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Oh no! Not Rick Warren! Whatever.
Dec. 18th, 2008 08:09 amhttp://news.yahoo.com/s/politico/20081217/pl_politico/16693
At the risk of upsetting some people, I really don't have much of a problem with Rick Warren and I think the people who are angry about him speaking at the inauguration need to step back, cool off, and think about things.
It's common knowledge that Obama has been planning to reach out to the right and to evangelicals. And if you know me you know I'm in favor of that because I'm a centerist; I don't like everyone being against each other. So if anyone sees having Pastor Warren presiding at the inauguration as a betrayal then they've set themselves up with a false expectation. Having Warren as the emcee at a glorfied party is not even close to the same thing as Clinton's messy "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy. And let's be really, really honest: at the end of the day, as far as conservative Christian leaders go, you could do a lot worse than Rick Warren.
Something that's personal to me and that I'd like to address is that I wish people understood that Christians who are conservative on the gay issues do not automatically hate gay people; most do not. I know it's very hard to believe that someone who is telling you they don't think you should get married doesn't hate you, but it actually can be true. The impression I get of Warren based on his public persona is that he doesn't hate anyone, but he isn't going to mince words on his religious beliefs about sin either. I don't share all those beliefs, but I do come from that background and I understand them. Someone disagreeing with your lifestyle doesn't automatically make them an ogre.
I've never read any of Pastor Warren's books, but I hear a lot of churches buy up hundreds of copies and then have their congregations try to follow them. I don't know how I feel about that since all Christian churches already have a book they're trying to follow. It's a fairly difficult book and even the most committed people have a hard time following all its principles simultaneously. Is tossing more books into the mix really what we need? I suppose I should read some of his Purpose Driven stuff someday to see if it makes Christian instruction clearer, or just longer.
::EDIT:: Based on new information that has been brought to my attention I must concede that Rick Warren is indeed a douchebag. However, I stand by my assertion that when reaching out to the Christian Right you could still do far, far worse than him, even if that's not saying much. And I still say it's no big deal if he speaks at the inauguration. It's Washington; he's gauranteed not to be the worst person there.
At the risk of upsetting some people, I really don't have much of a problem with Rick Warren and I think the people who are angry about him speaking at the inauguration need to step back, cool off, and think about things.
It's common knowledge that Obama has been planning to reach out to the right and to evangelicals. And if you know me you know I'm in favor of that because I'm a centerist; I don't like everyone being against each other. So if anyone sees having Pastor Warren presiding at the inauguration as a betrayal then they've set themselves up with a false expectation. Having Warren as the emcee at a glorfied party is not even close to the same thing as Clinton's messy "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy. And let's be really, really honest: at the end of the day, as far as conservative Christian leaders go, you could do a lot worse than Rick Warren.
Something that's personal to me and that I'd like to address is that I wish people understood that Christians who are conservative on the gay issues do not automatically hate gay people; most do not. I know it's very hard to believe that someone who is telling you they don't think you should get married doesn't hate you, but it actually can be true. The impression I get of Warren based on his public persona is that he doesn't hate anyone, but he isn't going to mince words on his religious beliefs about sin either. I don't share all those beliefs, but I do come from that background and I understand them. Someone disagreeing with your lifestyle doesn't automatically make them an ogre.
I've never read any of Pastor Warren's books, but I hear a lot of churches buy up hundreds of copies and then have their congregations try to follow them. I don't know how I feel about that since all Christian churches already have a book they're trying to follow. It's a fairly difficult book and even the most committed people have a hard time following all its principles simultaneously. Is tossing more books into the mix really what we need? I suppose I should read some of his Purpose Driven stuff someday to see if it makes Christian instruction clearer, or just longer.
::EDIT:: Based on new information that has been brought to my attention I must concede that Rick Warren is indeed a douchebag. However, I stand by my assertion that when reaching out to the Christian Right you could still do far, far worse than him, even if that's not saying much. And I still say it's no big deal if he speaks at the inauguration. It's Washington; he's gauranteed not to be the worst person there.
