This is about the dumbest, most meaningless things I have seen Congress do. Let’s pass a resolution declaring 2010 the “Year of the Bible”. Wow. Thank you Representative Paul Broun for a foolish political stunt. Here is the text from Representative Broun’s pronouncement:
“I hope that the National Day of Prayer will encourage America’s citizens and leaders to seek God’s help through prayer and Bible reading. The Bible’s tremendous influence in the shaping of American history and providing hope for all Americans is something that Congress and the President should formally acknowledge.
“The National Year of the Bible Resolution reminds us that our great nation was founded upon Biblical principles and that religious freedom is guaranteed by the Bill of Rights. I encourage Speaker Nancy Pelosi to bring this resolution to the floor so President Barack Obama has the opportunity to designate an appropriate year as ‘The National Year of the Bible,’” said Paul Broun.
Civic religion at it’s finest! This is a quote from Congressman Barney Frank and as nauseating as he is I have to agree with him on this:
“Does that mean 2009 is not the year of the Bible?” mocked Rep. Barney Frank ¬(D-Mass.), who is Jewish. “What is 2012 the year of? The Quran?”
Is having 2010 be “The Year of the Bible” going to encourage people to read the Bible? Will it make America a holier nation for a year? What happens in 2011? Is 2010 the year of the Bible only in America?
The Bible is not a slogan or a political prop. Quite frankly as someone who loves the Bible and thinks more people should read it, (especially Christians!) I also don’t think the Federal government has any business encouraging people to read it. Whenever we entangle the secular government with the sacred work of proclaiming the Gospel, the Gospel always suffers for it.
3 comments:
What will be really sad will be to see how many Christians rejoice over this as some sort of victory in the "culture war." I think they're just trying to throw the conservatives a bone...ya know...to stop all those right-wing terrorists.
What I find particularly distasteful is that this is a cheap stunt designed to score political points using the Word of God.
The government has no place promoting a particular religion.
And I am a Christian who believes the Bible to be the infallible Word of God.
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