To War?

What I think is funny, not funny "ha, ha," is the current stream of Christian rhetoric spewing from the mouths of Republicans. The most guilty, of late, is Rick Santorum. He's not the only Republican candidate in the last year that has "gone there." Nearly every single one of them has had something to say about the ungodly direction this country is headed, thanks largely to President Obama and the Democrats. What I find the most interesting is the often un-Christ-like manner by which these Christians spout their religious rhetoric. One of the most recent accusations Republicans have made against President Obama is his "war on religion" or "war on Christianity." He is, after all, a Muslim (*rolls eyes*). However, if any intelligent person takes the time to look at the exchange lately between the right (including somewhat prominent religious leaders) and the White House, that person can clearly see that the opposite is true. President Obama has proven time and time again that he has the country's and his constituents' best interests in the forefront of his mind. While Republicans claim that President Obama has done and continues to do whatever he wants or what is in his own best interest, those same Republicans continue to forget that the majority of this country voted him into office to do many of these things. Or have the great defenders of the constitution forgotten already that this is a government of the people, by the people, and for the people? President Lincoln, probably our greatest president, certainly never forgot. Yet, instead of using Lincoln as a model (perhaps they think his presidency too out of date to matter), most Republicans insist on looking to Ronald Reagan. To be fair to the Republicans, they have, in many ways, succeeded in perpetuating that Reagan conservatism, but I am clearly implying that is not a good thing, in many ways.

I digress, though only slightly. My point in all this, as I imply in the title, is to point out one of the Republicans' (especially Rick Santorum's) biggest failures in waging their own religious war. For all their religious, or more specifically Christian rhetoric, Republicans like Santorum seem to have forgotten one of Jesus' most important teachings: a house divided against itself cannot prosper. The Republicans are very divided right now, both politically and religiously. They see so many things the wrong way. Men and women have written multitudes of books on that subject, so I will refrain from adding my own interpretations in this post; otherwise, I'll never finish writing it. What I find the most troublesome is that in their attempts to take the moral high ground and in the name of religion (i.e. their version of Christianity) excoriate the actions and even religious views of others, they make the best argument against their self-proclaimed righteousness and militant following of the teachings of Jesus. Now doesn't that sound familiar? Isn't there another extremist "religious" group out there that thinks they have their religion's best interests at heart, yet their words and actions are far from the basic tenants of their faith in the way they view and treat others? Can you say Jihad? (That's right, I went there.)