Christianity

Representative John Shimkus Warns You to Back Big Coal or Die

On February 13, 2010, in Christianity, Coal Industry, Environment, Global Warming, John Shimkus, Peter Roskam, Religious Freedom, Utilities Industry, by RSR
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Another chipper Twitter message from Illinois’ 19th Distric Representative  John Shimkus, Big Coal’s guy in Washington, to his constituents: “the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

We continue to be bothered by Shimkus’ biblical tweeting, not because he is not within his rights to do so or because we don’t like Christians, but because we think it demonstrates profound insensitivity toward his constituents who are not followers of Christ. Shimkus was elected to represent all residents of his district, not just the Christians. His choice of passages continue to reflect, however, an attitude that his spiritual path is the only path with any legitimacy. Perhaps Shimkus could mix it up a bit. (Our Congressman, Shimkus’ buddy Peter Roskam, could sure use to hear some biblical wisdom on the practice of usury or on welcoming the stranger.)

Perhaps as troubling to us is that Shimkus is using his Christian religion to absolve himself from acknowleding the sound science that tells us that our continued dependence on fossil fuels is poisoning our environment threatening the possibility of leaving global ecological catastrophe as our legacy to our children and grandchildren. Shimkus’ warped theology gives him an out to keep on accepting big contributions from the electric utilities, oil and gas companies, and coal companies while using his vote in Congress to advance their interests rather than those of his constituents.

Don’t believe me? Have a peek at these videos U.S. House Subcommittee on Energy and Environment hearings in March, 2009 (preserved thanks to the outstanding progressive news site, Progress Illinois)

From the March 25, 2009 hearing of the U.S. House Subcommittee on Energy and Environment, Shimkus’ openening remarks using Genesis 8 and Matthew 24 to reassure us that we don’t need to worry about climate change because the “infallible word of God” tells us that only God will end the world:

Shimkus’ later with Christopher Monckton endorsing Monckton’s ridiculous conclusion that we are a “carbon-starved” planet and that cap & trade will starve plants of their food. Bear in mind as you listen to this drivel  that, in the Cambrian era, during which Monckton asserts our present “carbon shortage” did not exist, the world was a much warmer place and complex life was not found on land.  Shimkus concludes by again stating his biblically-justified belief that the “earth will not be destroyed by a flood”:

And, to wrap it up, because we couldn’t resist, here are the American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity’s Clean Coal Carolers doing “Frosty the Coal Man”. ACCCE is a coal and utility industry astroturf group that thought this might be a good idea:

By the way, we understand Shimkus has a Democratic opponent, Tim Bagwell. We don’t know too much about him but 19th District voters might want to check him out.

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Does the Evangelical Movement Belong in the Democratic Party?

On November 8, 2009, in Ben Lowe, Christianity, Congressional Elections, Peter Roskam, by RSR
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Kevin Spidel posted a thoughtful diary today at Daily Kos posing that question, using Peter Roskam’s 2010 challenger, Ben Lowe, as a case in point.

My answer is an unequivocal “yes”.

Excluding anyone on the basis of their religious belief is wrong and efforts to do so should be deplored by all Democrats. I admit to having a reflexive tendency to react negatively to avowed Christians, particularly Evangelicals, running for political office. That tendency is based on years of experience with the likes of Jerry Falwell and Tony Perkins. But assuming that all Evangelicals share their world view is not correct and, to the degree that I do so, I am guilty of the same kind of intolerance peddled by them.

We are only beginning to be acquainted with Ben Lowe. Let’s ignore the stereotypes and let him speak for himself about who he is and what he wants to achieve through his candidacy. While it is too early to promise Ben my vote, he has my attention, and I am encouraged by what I have heard so far.  I support his candidacy as a Democrat.

I am firmly committed to preserving a woman’s right to choose. I am equally committed to LGBT rights.  A candidate’s positions on these matters are important and they affect the way I vote. But, for me, anyway, there is no litmus test. Our country and our planet face some many critical problems right now – global climate change, poverty & hunger, a looming water crisis, a health care crisis  – and we have to be willing to work with everyone to attempt to resolve them. I would remind everyone that we presently have a Representative, voting on our behalf, who seems to think everythings hunk dory as long as we keep giving tax breaks to rich folks. It is hard to imagine that a person like Ben representing us would not amount to an improvement.

At any rate, I hope that Democrats will give Ben a chance to speak for himself on issues like abortion and LBGT rights rather than rush to judgement. If anyone is truly attempting to undermine his candidacy, I hope they will cease and desist. We should be thanking Ben for having been willing to step up to the plate when no one else would.

Update: Kevin’s post referred to above has been deleted from Daily Kos  but is available on MyDD. Not sure what happened on Daily Kos to prompt the deletion. I thought it was a great post. There was a pretty vigorous discussion going on when I last saw it but seems like that’s a good thing, that Democrats wrestle with this issue.  Also, check out Ben Lowe’s thoughts regarding Faith and Politics.

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Peter Roskam, “Serious Christian”

On April 24, 2008, in Christianity, Economic Justice, Peter Roskam, by RSR
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John H. Armstrong, a Christian author, editor and adjunct professor at Wheaton College writes a blog that I happen upon occasionally when it touches on matters related to the district. John is polite and thoughtful in his writing (accusations that could never be leveled successfully against me) and I enjoy the blog when I visit though I do not generally share his viewpoints.

Earlier this month John wrote a piece about enjoying Peter Roskam’s hospitality in Washington and being helped out by Roskam’s staff when his American Airlines flight was cancelled. Five words from that piece have been nagging at me ever since: “Congressman Roskam is a serious Christian.”

Reading those words I felt a visceral reaction and compelled to respond but at the same felt myself to have no real standing to do so. I no longer profess to be a Christian. I was raised in a Protestant community and ministered for a time within the Catholic church. I became disenchanted with the church and found that, once I removed myself from it’s influence , many of its claims of certainty to be pretty dubious.

I do retain a deep appreciation for the Judeo-Christian scriptures and the teachings of Jesus and it is based on my understanding and appreciation of that scripture that I have to say that I just don’t get it. I don’t understand how Evangelicals who ally themselves with the political right can reconcile the policies of these leaders that they so revere because they are “serious Christians’ when those policies are so devastating to the poor and the powerless with whom Jesus cast his lot:

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,

because he has annointed me

to bring good news to the poor.

He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives

and recovery of sight to the blind,

and to let the oppressed go free,

to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”

-Luke 4:18-19

How can anyone listen to the Jesus of the Gospels and profess to be his follower and then turn a blind eye to the kind of carnage being inflicted on trade unionists and indigenous people in Colombia in order to promote U.S. Corporate interests?

How can one hear his words and turn around to insist that workers should not be required to receive subsistence level wages for full time work while no restrictions may be applied to the huge compensation paid to corporate executives for success that is based on the labor of those workers?

How can anyone listen to the teaching regarding hospitality to strangers and turn around and lay grievous burdens on the backs of migrant workers who come among us and provide us with needed services while providing themselves and their families with the means to a better life?

  • Pardon me John, and Peter. I don’t pretend to know what is in men’s hearts. But as I observe the self-congratulatory, triumphalistic, pharistical belief system that is accepted as “serious Christianity” by many on the right, I see little in it that relates too or even acknowledges the teachings and commandments of Jesus. I see this right wing public Christianity as having two main functions:
  • -Relieving those with wealth and power from the actual necessity of observing the Gospel commandments
  • -Distracting those who might otherwise act on those commandments with an obsessive focus on sexual morality and other peripheral matters

The end of these being to maintain the status quo. To permit an unjust state of affairs where power and wealth is concentrated in the hands of a very few while countless millions suffer from poverty and hunger and illiteracy and disease and violence.

Shouldn’t “serious Christianity” mean getting serious about tackling economic injustice and ending violence against and oppression of the poor?

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