Re: ANYT THOUGHTS ON AMERICAN PBS SERIES

Hello John! And good to hear from you [will send a private
message]

----- Original Message -----
From: John Till <familystrengths@hotmail.com>


> Hi Elson!!!
>
> Elson wrote:
> >I saw it too.  My impression was how stupid the comparison
was:
> >comparing religious fanatics in the US (who support the US
> >oppression of people in the Middle East)
>
> Don't forget the roots of Christian fundamentalism in the
antisystemic
> movements of the Protestant Reformation.

Yep, good example.

> Well, having lived in the Midwest for a couple of years now, I
think we need
> to be careful to acknowledge our own subject position when
characterizing
> Christian fundamentalists as "religious fanatics" in contrast
to
> "Modernism" never really caught on here.

I agree, and add that they are of course as modern as the
Reformation was.

> In Indiana, I know a Christian fundamentalist who won a public
welfare seat
> (Township Trustee) on the theme of family values and hard work.
The
> Democratic Party had controlled Trusteeships for decades.
Typically, these
> elected welfare officials (who decide who gets and doesn't get
the
> dole)never showed up for work, meaning that families who needed
welfare
> assistance generally didn't get it.
>
> After this guy got elected, we finally had an accountable
person who
> families could turn to for (some) financial assistance, subject
to
> predictable (as opposed to arbitrary) guidelines.
>
> BTW, has anyone seen the new book on the failure of the
"religious right" by > Cal Thomas and Dr. James Dobson? They are
claiming that Pat Robertson's
> organization is the "revolution betrayed," and that Christians
should pursue > the family values agenda in the realm of everyday
life. Shades of 1968 for
> the religious right.

The movement did fail and this tends to support my view that they
are fanatics ("marked or motivated by an extreme, unreasoning
enthusiasm") which obviously didn't appeal to the post 1960s
generations, or most pre 60s generations.

elson