Year of the Bible Has No Support From God or Christian Nation
With Democrat Henry Waxman as the chair of the House Committee on Government Oversight and Reform, the committee has been dealing with some of the following issues recently:
- national energy policy
- hospital capacity during emergencies
- the upcoming 2010 census
- corruption at the EPA and Department of Defense
- marine habitat conservation
- tax fraud
- global warming
- military recruitment
- White House coverup and interference with criminal investigations
There is a Republican minority in the House Committee of Government Oversight and Reform, of course. The Republican minority in the committee has a different idea of what kind of oversight and reform needs to take place.
Instead of dealing with the issues listed above, the Republicans are trying to use the oversight commitee to get the federal government to officially recognize 2008 as the Year of the Bible.
Led by Missouri Republican Todd Akin, a group of 30 members of the House of Resolution have cosponsored the effort to get H. CON. RES. 284 to be approved by the House Committee of Government Oversight and Reform. The resolution reads,
“Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring), That the President is encouraged –
(1) to designate an appropriate year as `The National Year of the Bible’; and
(2) to issue a proclamation calling upon citizens of all faiths to rediscover and apply the priceless, timeless message of the Holy Scriptures which has profoundly influenced and shaped the United States and its great democratic form of self government, as well as its rich spiritual heritage, and which has unified, healed, and strengthened its people for over 200 years.”
Not only does the resolution call for a National Year of the Bible, to apply for non-Christians as well as Christians, but it has the government call upon citizens to spread the Christian religion – the “timeless message of the Holy Scriptures”.
Apparently, the people supporting this resolution have let the Bill of Rights slip their minds. The Bill of Rights clearly forbids the government establishment of religion, yet the resolution encourages people to rediscover the Bible as “Holy Scriptures”, and provides special recognition to the Christian religion for an entire year that other religions have not received. If that isn’t government establishment of religion, nothing is.
Of course, there is another explanation: That the members of the U.S. House who have sponsored this legislation know about the Bill of Rights, but just don’t approve of the freedoms guaranteed by the Bill of Rights. If that’s the case, this resolution is a fairly transparent attempt to establish a precedent for special government recognition and privileges for Christianity over other religions, and over non-religious ways of life.
Even from within the Christian tradition, this resolution seems insulting. Do Christians really believe that the Bible is such an anemic piece of literature that it needs the support of a nanny government to coddle it and protect it from competing ideas? If you are among those who believe in the Christian God, do you really believe that God is weaker than the Congress of the United States of America? A religion that needs congressional resolutions in order to thrive may not be a religion worth belonging to.
If we really are to believe that God wants the support of the federal government of the United States of America in order for the Christian Bible to be successful, then we must conclude that God is far from omnipotent when it comes to Congress. God needs to get some new lobbyists, because only a small percentage of members of the U.S. House have come to the support of this bill. H. CON. RES. 284 doesn’t seem to have the support of either God or the population of this supposedly “Christian nation”.
The following are the cosponsors of the resolution to officially establish the Christian Bible as the federal government’s religious scripture this year:
Michelle Bachmann
Gresham Barrett
Brian Bilbray
John Boozman
Kevin Brady
Paul Broun
Donna Christensen
Emanuel Cleaver
Howard Coble
Michael Conaway
David Davis
Tom Feeney
Trent Franks
Phil Gingrey
Robin Hayes
Sam Johnson
Jim Jordan
Steve King
Doug Lamborn
Kenny Marchant
Thaddeus McCotter
Marilyn Musgrave
Charles Pickering
Joseph Pitts
Bill Sali
Heath Shuler
Tom Tancredo
Gene Taylor
Tim Walberg
Note that the problem of this profoundly flawed resolution isn’t just a Republican one. There are Democrats in this group: Gene Taylor, Heath Shuler, Donna Christensen and Emanuel Cleaver. Their constituents ought to give them a call (Ring the capitol switchboard at 202 224-3121) and remind them that being a Democrat is supposed to include support for the Constitution and its separation of church and state, established in the Bill of Rights.
[...] American ayatollahs, take heed: Someone in Congress is thinking of your needs. Republican Representative Todd Akin from Missouri has introduced legislation to establish a government sponsored Year of the Bible in 2008. [...]
How would one ever designate “an appropriate year?” 33 A.D.?
Marilyn Musgrave is prejudice and it is embarrassing that she represents us here in Colorado. People in Colorado are tolerant of others and are generally nice! Marilyn Musgrave is NOT Christian in any sense of the word. Would Christ be this prejudice?
I can’t understand how people can think total intolerance is somehow what God wants.
Musgrave is Colorado’s only remaining famous bigot. The other two, Tancredo and Wayne Allard (who sponsored the anti-gay bill in the senate) are retiring. As the last famous church-going bigot standing in the Colorado contingent, it is imperative that all Coloradans join in driving her — especially her — from office. This is the Year!!
[...] That’s My Congress puts it: Apparently, the people supporting this resolution have let the Bill of Rights slip their minds. [...]
I don’t see a problem with Congress designating a year “The Year of the Bible”. Such a proclamation is not binding on citizens and doesn’t infringe on my rights to NOT believe in God if I don’t want to. Congress designates days, months and years for all sorts of things.
I can see how people who are hostile toward religion and Christianity in particular might find this bothersome, but that’s a personal problem. Even such people should brush up on their history and learn about the religious foundations of the United States.
Relax. It is not the death of the Bill of Rights or of the Constitution for a bunch of suits in Washington to do something like this.
I propose for next year… the Year of the Uptight Athiest.
Ta ta,
Teejay
[...] a devout Pentecostal and attempting to declare 2008 “The National Year of the Bible” calling on citizens of all faiths to “spread the timeless message of the Holy Scriptures,” she was declared by Citizens [...]
These sorry bastards in DC use the Constitution when it help their cause like makeing 2008 the Year of the Bible. Saying that the Cont. more are less tells the Gov. stay out of Reg. Where the hell were these sorry bastards when they Took God out of the schools. Why did they not use the Cont.s at that time. Jackasses
Henry, consider: Any god that can be taken out of a school by a legislature is not a god worth worshiping.