I started noticing this when I was in college. I was sitting in one of my education classes. During this class, we did a series about certain students and their needs. This included students that had physical handicaps, students who were special needs, and students that were homosexual. I found the inclusion of the last one to be rather interesting.
We talked about a number of topics related to homosexual students including what to do if a student came out of the closet during class and the fact that we as teachers shouldn’t use phrases such as “That’s gay!” or “Don’t be a queer.” Those phrases that might be offensive to gays who are gay and may or may not be open about it. Fair enough. I don’t want to do offend my students.
But, playing devil’s advocate, I thought of a few arguments that people might use for that whole ordeal. These included things such as “They shouldn’t force their opinion of sexual orientation on me!” “You’re just a nut-job if you believe that that’s natural!” and “Well, that’s their opinion on that topic and I don’t agree with it.” While I don’t approve of the homosexual lifestyle, I don’t believe that these are acceptable arguments and I doubt many would.
Being a Christian, I started thinking about what others have said and done that has offended me, including the teacher that had us go through these sessions. One thing was the fact that people take the Lord’s name in vain. I’m insulted when someone irreverently throws around the name of my Savior. Yet I get a common response when I mention this to someone. It’s usually something like “You shouldn’t force your religious views on me.” “You’re just an overly sensitive nut,” or “Well, that’s your opinion and I don’t agree with it.”
Odd how those seem rather familiar to arguments most people wouldn’t accept for a different topic. But we never had a class discussion about how to not offend Christian students or what to do if a student declares they got saved.
Recent news has shown me that this wasn’t an isolated thing. Fox News’ Eric Bolling recently had a little “discussion” with Dan Barker, an atheist with Freedom From Religion, regarding the “War on Christmas.” During the discussion, the atheist called Christianity a mythology, a superstition, and repeatedly called it an insult. Barker goes off topic to say these things as well. Bolling never asks Barker his opinion of Christianity. The fact that Barker thinks so little of Christianity has nothing to do with if the Nativity Scene in question is okay. And then Barker goes out of his way to attack Christianity a second time after Bolling tries to get Barker back on topic.
Eric Bolling, ladies and gentlemen.
Outside Christian and conservative circles, which are usually connected like a Venn diagram, I haven’t seen any of this hit the mainstream media.
Now compare that to the fact that Kobe Bryant was fined $100,000 for using an anti-gay slur. It was one of the largest fines the NBA ever delivered. His words weren’t as explicit as Barker’s were either. Bryant just muttered a word while Barker went on a full-out assault on Christianity. I don’t approve of Bryant’s actions, but I’m sure a number of players have said things I would find offensive and no fine has been issued that I could find.
Again, there are more examples out there. With Denver Bronco Tim Tebow being so vocal about his faith in God, he’s become a controversial topic. Bill Press had some thoughts during his radio show. Here’s a clip.
For those not up on acronyms, STFU stands for “Shut the F dash dash dash up.”
Press calls Tim Tebow a disgrace and an embarrassment mostly for his faith in Jesus. His argument doesn’t rely on Tebow’s QB rating, completion percentage, or number of interceptions.
Press didn’t finish his rant there. On his blog, he posted “Jesus said a lot of strong things. But one of the strongest things he ever said was: When you pray, don’t be like those hypocrites who like to stand on a street corner and pray, so everybody can see them.”
Press apparently doesn’t know his Bible very well.
Acts 1:8 says “But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.”
Matthew 28:19 reads “Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:”
1 Thessalonians 5:17-18 “Pray without ceasing. In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Jesus Christ concerning you.”
I could go with more, but I’ll leave just one more for Press, Proverbs 17:28 “Even a fool, when he holdeth his peace, is counted wise: and he that shutteth his lips is esteemed a man of understanding.”
As if Press’ comments weren’t disturbing enough already. I look at them with an additional perspective. Growing up in the ‘90’s, I had David Robinson as a role-model. I watched him and was encouraged by his faith in God and the quality of his character. While I enjoyed watching the Spurs win, it wasn’t their record that caused me to become a fan. It was who they were as a team.
Compare that to the characteristics of so many professional athletes. There’s a large number of them that are getting into drugs, cheating on their wives, getting arrested, and shooting themselves in the leg. With that in mind, why in the world would Press bash Tebow? What message is he sending to our kids? He’s essentially saying that in a world where having a rap sheet is common, talking about Jesus is what makes one a disgrace.
It’s not that big of a stretch to say that Press would have gotten different results from the public if he said such things about an athlete regarding another aspect of who they are. Compare Press’ comments to this clip.
Rush Limbaugh on ESPN
For the record, Rush Limbaugh was forced to resign following those comments. They were comments more focused at the media than anything else, but they were close enough to being offensive that they merited the end of his work with ESPN.
But maybe I’m wrong on this. Maybe I’m picking a few key cases and this isn’t representative of the majority. So I figured I’d turn to the 99%. Enter the Occupy Movement!
The people at Misfit Politics put together a nativity scene at Occupy DC and shared some of the reactions they got. Censorship warning: one hat in this video does have profanity on it.
How ya gonna tweet about the Nativity Scene? “On our iPhones!”
This display showing the religious nature of the upcoming holiday at an Occupy camp is met with questions regarding its legality (oh, the irony!). They’re advised to move it. One man says it’s offensive to him and other people, but the message of the Occupy movement is offensive for anyone who works for a living and is proud to do so. One girl says she’s Jewish and offended by the display. But I don’t know a single Christian who is offended by a menorah. In fact, Fox News’ show “The Five” has a menorah as part of their holiday decorations.
About half of the people interviewed are positive and the other half are negative, but I challenge anyone to find a group of people that would draw that much hate from the Occupy movement (not counting the “1%”).
It’s not just limited to Occupy. When ignoring groups such as the KKK, Neo-Nazis, and the Westboro Baptist Church, it would be a challenge to find a group of people in America that will publicly express distaste for a group of people because of their race, religion, or anything of that sort.
Yes, there are probably some who mumble to themselves a comment about terrorists when they pass a Mosque. There are still some people who privately hold racist views. But publicly, these types of comments just aren’t acceptable. However, a show like Family Guy can totally get away with a “joke” like this and get zero public scrutiny.
This shows a complete lack of understanding when it comes to history
The fact that I have to look for groups like the KKK, the Nazis, and Westboro Baptist Church to compare to people like Barker, Press, and the creators of Family Guy is very telling. It’s not only telling of those who participate in it, but also of those who let it happen.
UPDATE:
News on this topic flows in on almost a daily basis. During the holiday weekend, Comedian Bill Maher tweeted "Wow, Jesus just f---ed #TimTebow bad! And on Xmas Eve! Somewhere ... Satan is tebowing, saying to Hitler 'Hey, Buffalo’s killing them'" (censorship mine). Bill Maher still has a job and hasn't been publicly reprimanded by HBO which airs his show.
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