Pluralism

Sometimes when I hear Christians defame pluralism, I wonder to myself if they have ever read the Bible. Considering that the Bible is a document that begins its discussion with an entire pantheon of gods, and then, at a much later date, proceeds to inform us that those others were just figments of their predecessors imaginations. It seems likely, that if we were to sit Abraham and second Isaiah in a room they would both deem the other an idiot. When we read Esther it is impressive that God is barely mentioned, yet at other points in the Old Testament God would appear to be involved in even the most minute details of life. Which then are we to assume is right in their attitude?

As for the New Testament we have four separate accounts of Jesus. Most of similarities between them seem to be the result of plagiarism rather than coinciding accounts. And, even insofar as they share the same material, the Gospels seem to have vastly different interests for which they are writing their accounts.

The untold truth is that the variety of interpretations and accounts of the Christian story were amazingly varied. The weeding out process that occurred within "Christianity" took hundreds of years before the process of sifting "heresies" for "orthodoxy" was sufficient to pass on the religion that we all seem to know today. The funny thing is that, quite literally, according to our definitions the earliest disciples, and indeed Jesus himself, were all heretics who erred greatly from proper Christian doctrine. Even Paul on whom all our orthodoxy is based would border on false teaching and be eyed with suspicion. If the Canon contains such conflicting and even contradictory material, imagine what kind of plurality must have existed before the "inferior" books were denied and frequently burned.

At its origins, whether in the voices of the Biblical writers, or in the history of early Christian thought, our faith is a pluralistic faith. That is simply a fact. The Bible itself is a pluralistic document. Granted, it does place some constraints on this, but not many. Many of the voices in the Bible dance precariously close to atheism, and in my opinion this is a vital part of our tradition; a vital part that is too often negated its right to be heard.

Most preachers I've heard malign pluralism appeal to fear in order to rally their congregations against it. Supposedly it makes truth irrelevant and misleads the youth. Granted, it does make it hard to give concrete moral answers to 7th graders. Thus, why the theology of 99% of churches in America has never passed the 7th grade level. I would assume that 30 year olds should be fully capable of handling the diversity of thought that pluralism presents us with, but perhaps on this one issue I am the rare optimist in a sea of skeptics.

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Voting

"These may not look like huge differences [between the parties], but they translate into substantial effects on the lives of people. Anyone who says, 'I don't care if Bush [read McCain] gets elected' is basically telling the poor and working people in the country, 'I don't care if you lives are destroyed. . . . I just don't care, because from my elevated position I don't see much difference between the two candidates.' . . . Apart from it being wrong, it's a recipe for disaster if you're hoping ever to develop a popular movement and a political alternative."
- Noam Chomsky, Imperial Ambitions p. 114


I occasionally find myself apathetic towards politics. Supposedly we live in a bipartisan democracy, yet it appears that both parties represent the same interests; neither of which significantly benefit me. Both Republicans and Democrats represent business, particularly multinational corporations. The vast majority of candidates for either party are funded by big business lobbies, and so upon obtaining office, will vote accordingly. The difference as far as I can see is the extremes they represent.

Democrats as best as I can tell, are a business party which has subsumed what was once America's Populist, Labor, and Socialist movements. They represent business, but their ideology still bears resemblance of our more democratic foundations. I don't trust them, but they are the best thing we have at the moment.

Republicans on the other hand, have it in mind to destroy anything remotely resembling a democracy. They proclaim a "hands off" ideology, and proceed to quietly steal individual freedom at every turn. Palin last night preached that her party desires to cut taxes and leave more money in the pockets of taxpayers. Republicans want to leave money in taxpayer hands the same way casinos want patrons to win. The long term effects will be the same, and we will all be poorer. (We referring to the bottom 90%)

I'm not sure what to think about Obama. He sounds great, and that's what worries me. If he does manage to win this November (please God!!), I imagine he will inherit such a mess that three terms would not be sufficient to fix it. I'm skeptical how much he really plans to change things. Yet, allow me to state for the record: I don't know to what extent Obama/Biden are lying to us, but I am quite convinced that McCain/Palin have no intention of saying anything true, ever. Not in the next four, or (God forbid!!) eight years, and certainly not in the coming month.

Therefore, I stand by the only reliable piece of political advice I have ever heard: "All responsible Americans should vote against Republicans, and, where possible, Democrats too."

Only, for the love of God and the few holy things left in the world, lets achieve the former first!!



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