I didn't know your faith identity is UU. Mine too. I was raised Catholic and had the financial and spiritual support of my priest when I had my first abortion at age 17. Unitarian Universalism is full of people who grew up Catholic but couldn't abide the misogyny and homophobia. In recent years the Church has gone down the anti-science road, too. My current obsession is whether Catholic hospitals are consistently anti-abortion to the extent that they do not allow treatment with Regeneron.
John, I agree with much you've written here. (Also, I haven't watched any of her interview today and only some of it yesterday and I haven't read the piece in the Atlantic.) I do want to say, however, that in my view faith and obedience for the real followers of Jesus cannot be separated. And in addition to that Jesus taught that all other religious laws are summed up in loving God and loving our neighbors as ourselves. I believe the fear factor so many who think of themselves as Christians is not a part of Jesus' teachings. Fear was added on later by mostly males who came mistakenly to believe the notion that people who did not follow their rules would after they die burn in hell for eternity.
I do not know what Barrett believes about that. Seems we'll have to wait and see. It is impressive that she and her husband have adopted so many children whose lives would be suffering greater than most of us who read The Editorial Board. I also wonder how she ever came to trump's attention. She will probably be confirmed by the Senate. I'm hoping she will be guided by the unconditional love Jesus actually taught rather than the fear of the kind of "Christians" who will probably vote for trump because of their absurd notion that their god chose him to be president.
Personally, I continue to believe that it's Occam's Razor. The GOP has used religion and religious values as a veil for their lust for money and power. The Koch brothers recognized that control of the courts was key to reshaping America for kleptocracy. Barrett is a logical extension of this 40-year assault on democracy. Her religious beliefs allow her to pursue anti-democratic legislation without acknowledging the unfathomable suffering her decisions will unleash. For whatever psychological reasons, humanity seems to rebel only when we have hit the proverbial 'bottom'. For the 2nd time in its history, the US has hit bottom. Unless there is a movement that continues far beyond 2020, this won't be the last time this country falls into the abyss. Even if Biden wins and the Senate flips and we survive a post-election implosion by Trump and the GOP, will Biden rebalance the Court? Will the sane majority continue to push to rebalance the district and appellate courts? Will there be scrutiny and accountability in state and local courts? If people don't continue to advocate for a fair and just government on a continual basis, then we are headed into ever-more dangerous times, as the impact of global warming explodes in the next 5 years.
I didn't know your faith identity is UU. Mine too. I was raised Catholic and had the financial and spiritual support of my priest when I had my first abortion at age 17. Unitarian Universalism is full of people who grew up Catholic but couldn't abide the misogyny and homophobia. In recent years the Church has gone down the anti-science road, too. My current obsession is whether Catholic hospitals are consistently anti-abortion to the extent that they do not allow treatment with Regeneron.
John, I agree with much you've written here. (Also, I haven't watched any of her interview today and only some of it yesterday and I haven't read the piece in the Atlantic.) I do want to say, however, that in my view faith and obedience for the real followers of Jesus cannot be separated. And in addition to that Jesus taught that all other religious laws are summed up in loving God and loving our neighbors as ourselves. I believe the fear factor so many who think of themselves as Christians is not a part of Jesus' teachings. Fear was added on later by mostly males who came mistakenly to believe the notion that people who did not follow their rules would after they die burn in hell for eternity.
I do not know what Barrett believes about that. Seems we'll have to wait and see. It is impressive that she and her husband have adopted so many children whose lives would be suffering greater than most of us who read The Editorial Board. I also wonder how she ever came to trump's attention. She will probably be confirmed by the Senate. I'm hoping she will be guided by the unconditional love Jesus actually taught rather than the fear of the kind of "Christians" who will probably vote for trump because of their absurd notion that their god chose him to be president.
Personally, I continue to believe that it's Occam's Razor. The GOP has used religion and religious values as a veil for their lust for money and power. The Koch brothers recognized that control of the courts was key to reshaping America for kleptocracy. Barrett is a logical extension of this 40-year assault on democracy. Her religious beliefs allow her to pursue anti-democratic legislation without acknowledging the unfathomable suffering her decisions will unleash. For whatever psychological reasons, humanity seems to rebel only when we have hit the proverbial 'bottom'. For the 2nd time in its history, the US has hit bottom. Unless there is a movement that continues far beyond 2020, this won't be the last time this country falls into the abyss. Even if Biden wins and the Senate flips and we survive a post-election implosion by Trump and the GOP, will Biden rebalance the Court? Will the sane majority continue to push to rebalance the district and appellate courts? Will there be scrutiny and accountability in state and local courts? If people don't continue to advocate for a fair and just government on a continual basis, then we are headed into ever-more dangerous times, as the impact of global warming explodes in the next 5 years.
I was raised in a religious family and every time I see Barrett, creepy Stepford Wives music plays in my head.