Hate-filled christ-worshippers just being themselves...

Every time I get into a discussion on the topic of religious extremism - after acknowledging that my discussion partner naturally has some good points regarding fascist Muslims - I try to point out that just about all religions taken to their logical, legalistic, fundamentalist extremes are dangerous as hell (no pun intended). Yes, radical Islam is a threat to peace, harmony, liberty, true democracy, and co-existence on the only planet we have, but so is extremist Christianity. These fascists actually believe that they are so much better than us simply for their worship of a deity purported (by their preferred religious tome) to be the true son of god (that god being Yahweh, an ancient pre-judeo tribal god whose name is sometimes mispronounced Jehovah). So much better, in fact, that among themselves, those of us who don't subscribe to their superstitions are often referred to as "the unsaved".

In a cobbled-together myth known as "The Rapture", taken from bits and pieces of many books in their bible but mainly from a mushroom trip called Revelations, it is said that the "saved" will rise to Heaven on the final day of judgment while the rest of us have to tough it out here on Earth. Sweet, huh? This from their "loving" god. Many of these special souls also believe that Barack Obama is the Antichrist, a main character in this absurdity. So many, in fact, that Newsweek actually devoted a main article in their Belief Watch section to this insanity.

Anyway, here's some of 'em playing one of their favorite games, "Hate Those Who Aren't Just Like Me".

Has Newsweek Gone Mad? New Article Gives Voice to Antichrist Whack Jobs

Just when I was able to breathe again knowing that we prevented dangerous true-believer and all-around christian wacko Sarah Palin from becoming President-to-be-upon-McCain's-death (this was causing me actual nightmares), along comes this piece from Newsweek, of all places! Why the editors saw fit to give voice to these fear-driven religious impositionists is beyond me. To dignify superstitious myth and legend is not the domain of serious journalism, unless it's a study of the mass trance-state that is religion. Giving space to a 600-word article detailing how Obama may show traits of a fictional character from a cobbled-together biblical legend shows how far from the Enlightenment we have fallen.

What century is this again?!--Pete

By Steve Benen, Washington Monthly

http://www.alternet.org/blogs/peek/107597/

When bizarre, fringe publications speculate openly about who may or may not be the Antichrist, it's easy to dismiss. When Newsweek publishes a 600-word piece on those who wonder about Obama being the Antichrist, one really has to wonder what on earth the editors were thinking.

On Nov. 5, Todd Strandberg was at his desk, fielding E-mails from around the world. As the editor and founder of RaptureReady.com, his job is to track current events and link them to biblical prophecy in hopes of maintaining his status as "the eBay of prophecy," the best source online for predictions and calculations concerning the end of the world. Already Barack Obama had drawn the attention of apocalypse watchers after an anonymous e-mail circulated among conservative Christians in October implying that he was the Antichrist. Former "Saturday Night Live" ingenue Victoria Jackson fueled the fire when, according to news reports, she wrote on her Web site that Obama "bears traits that resemble the anti-Christ." Now Strandberg was receiving up-to-the-minute news from his constituents in Illinois. One of the winning lottery numbers in the president-elect's home state was 666 -- which, as everyone knows, is the sign of the Beast (also known as the Antichrist). "It is very eerie, and I take it for a sign as to who he really is," wrote one of Strandberg's correspondents.

First, from a theological perspective, the whole thing about "666" being a "mark of the beast" is inherently suspect, and dismissed as nonsense by most scholars. Second, and more importantly, what is the purpose of Newsweek running a story about those who wonder if Obama is the Antichrist?

Mat Staver, dean of Liberty University's law school, says he does not believe Obama is the Antichrist, but he can see how others might. Obama's own use of religious rhetoric belies his liberal positions on abortion and traditional marriage, Staver says, positions that "religious conservatives believe will threaten their freedom." The people who believe Obama is the Antichrist are perhaps jumping to conclusions, but they're not nuts: "They are expressing a concern and a fear that is widely shared," Staver says.

Um, Newsweek? "Widely shared" fears can most definitely be "nuts."

Strandberg says Obama probably isn't the Antichrist, but he's watching the president-elect carefully. On his Web site, he has something called the Rapture Index, a calculation based on signs and prophecy of the proximity of the end. According to Strandberg, any number over 160 means "fasten your seat belts." Obama's win pushed the index to 161.

Keep in mind, this isn't just some bizarre online-only piece -- Newsweek decided this was worthy of publication in the print edition of its weekly news magazine.

I can appreciate the fact that there are a handful of very odd people in the world, some of whom believe the Book of Revelation foretold Obama's election. Strange people can be led to believe strange things. That's not a reason for Newsweek to publish articles about their inanity.

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