Friday, December 16, 2011
Death Wish
Watching the cinematic essay Silhouette City last night, I recalled encounters with American religious fanatics seeking political power and influence in the 1990s. Some of them succeeded, others martyred themselves in confrontations with law enforcement, but their apocalyptic beliefs and murderous ideology live on.
In seeking world conquest for Christ, the Dominion movement and its soldiers have steadily infiltrated and corrupted the US military and other federal institutions. Perhaps even more alarming, the movement has infected mass media and other markets to the point that blatant bigotry is accepted as a normal aspect of American life.
As the documentary conveys in its coverage of the continuity of Christian intolerance that arrived on our shores with both Columbus and the pilgrims, the culture they embraced and nurtured through the centuries is nothing but a death wish. As a lethal social pathogen that corrodes all healthy relations, it is likely the greatest obstacle to democracy and peace on the planet. As such, it needs to be confronted and contained, if not eradicated.
In seeking world conquest for Christ, the Dominion movement and its soldiers have steadily infiltrated and corrupted the US military and other federal institutions. Perhaps even more alarming, the movement has infected mass media and other markets to the point that blatant bigotry is accepted as a normal aspect of American life.
As the documentary conveys in its coverage of the continuity of Christian intolerance that arrived on our shores with both Columbus and the pilgrims, the culture they embraced and nurtured through the centuries is nothing but a death wish. As a lethal social pathogen that corrodes all healthy relations, it is likely the greatest obstacle to democracy and peace on the planet. As such, it needs to be confronted and contained, if not eradicated.
