"For those who care, and I understand if you don't: Today I quit being a Christian. I'm out. I remain committed to Christ as always but not to being "Christian" or to being part of Christianity. It's ...simply impossible for me to "belong" to this quarrelsome, hostile, disputatious, and deservedly infamous group. For ten ...years, I've tried. I've failed. I'm an outsider. My conscience will allow nothing else.
and then a little later
"As I said below, I quit being a Christian. I'm out. In the name of Christ, I refuse to be anti-gay. I refuse to be anti-feminist. I refuse to be anti-artificial birth control. I refuse to be anti-Democrat. I refuse to be anti-secular humanism. I refuse to be anti-science. I refuse to be anti-life. In the name of ...Christ, I quit Christianity and being Christian. Amen."
What prompted it was all of the hating people are doing in the name of God.
Read more: http://blog.beliefnet.com/
MY COMMENTS:
I think this is an eloquent and heartfelt expression of how using religion and invoking the name of God to incite hate and division in this country, that stands for freedom to be who you are without persecution, has become more and more widespread. It's important to note that Anne Rice didn't say she stopped believing, but has broken away from any group that is part of inciting hate and violence in this country in the name of God. I'm sure it won't make her more popular or sell more books. On the contrary, she will most likely lose part of her following. But she stood up for what she believes without regard to her career in the future. If only politicians had the courage and the principles to do the same thing. Stepping back and listening to the facts, the impact on the present and future, and most importantly, to their constituents, should be what we demand from our representatives. At a time when job creation is the most important thing this country needs, politicians are spouting ill-conceived notions, not based on facts, and refusing to act in the hopes that their rhetoric will secure them their re-election in November. As I said to a very dear friend recently, this country can not survive when the top 5% of the population that is the wealthiest continue to grow their wealth while the bourgeois slip closer and closer to the poverty level and below. Scare tactics and mass media sensationalism have become the norm and it only serves to justify hate crimes committed or incensed by those persuaded to carry out the bidding of their political "role models" and pundits . If only citizens of this country would take the initiative to invest the time in the concept of "trust but verify". Research both sides of an argument with an open mind and then make your decision. It is everyone's responsibility as a citizen to have knowledge of the issues, not take things at face value, and then take an active part in holding your legislative representatives accountable to truly vote with their conscience and not by what the impact of their often misleading poll numbers might or will be. If you voted for someone because their campaign platform lined up with the ideals and competence you believed necessary to be effective in serving in the best interest of the people and they are not holding true to those promises, then it's time to re-evaluate your options in the next election. Straight party line voting instead of voting for the person who is most capable of doing the job, is part of what got us in the position we are in today. No one party can have the right answers and do the right thing on every issue.
An emotional decision in my opinion, but to be a "Christian" means to be Christ-like, a follower of Jesus Christ.
ReplyDeleteI can understand her feelings, but I think, to be more accurate, she wishes to disconnect from those who claim they are "christian", those who corrupt the word of God toward their own power and glory, to support their own agendas.