For the last 40 years, the right wing has pretty much had the Bible to itself, quoting it freely, offering piety as proof of godliness and reminding us that they have the truth, while the rest of us so-called Christians flounder around in darkness, self-deception and Satans illusions. So, when President Obama quoted a piece of Scripture last night, from the Book of Exodus, the story of God delivering Israel from Pharaohs industrial-military complex, low wages and abuse, conservatives were caught off guard, I suspect. But the text is important: A timely reminder to the folks who had just been liberated: when things are good for you, dont forget from whence you came. You were once strangers yourself, and you were treated badly by a society that had no interest in people, but only in making lots of bricks to build granaries to store away the grain because the elite were scared to death of not having enough if there should be a famine, and bricks to built the ultimate symbol of how wealth works - the pyramid: at the top, just a few; at the bottom, millions churning out bricks, forced to find straw on their time off (Exodus 5). So, remember what it was like to be a stranger in Egypt, and vow right now to treat well all the strangers in your midst. Let things be different for you - you no longer live under Pharaohs society of scarcity and anxiety - you live under a different set of rules, with a God who knows when to take some time off and rest - Sabbath. Obama cites a piece of Scripture, from Exodus, that has a profound and precise political message ... Pharaohs message of fear and power is corrupt and deadly - as for you, Gods People, there are another set of rules by which to live. So, I was glad to see O claim Scripture, and to remind conservatives that they and their pastors dont always have the last word on what the Bible might mean.
Posted on: Fri, 21 Nov 2014 20:03:53 +0000
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