REFRAMING BUSH'S RELIGION by Carol Wolman

REFRAMING BUSH'S RELIGION by Carol Wolman

 

The Democrats are talking a lot these days about the need to reframe their presentation of the issues, in order to counter the Republican propaganda machine.  George Lakoff is the guru of reframing, saying that the Repugs present a strong father image, while the Dems emit a nurturant mother feeling that is not popular nowadays, as fears about the future mount up.  Of course, the Bush administration whips up the fear, so that the strict father seems more and more necessary to "fight terrorism".

 

Family imagery is powerful, and seems to be working for the GOP.  But I believe we must look deeper in order to understand what is going on, and how to counter it.

 

Lakoff is right about the "strict father" metaphor.  However, he neglects to say that Its power derives from the ability of the Radical Right to identify their program with God's.  They strongly imply that a vote for Bush is a ticket to heaven.

 

The fears that people have these days are misdirected by the Repug spinmasters, but in fact there is plenty to fear.  Ecological disaster looms, and the recent tsunami is felt as a harbinger of worse to come.  Nuclear weapons have terrorized us for 2 generations, and the threat is growing.  Meanwhile, young people who have served in Iraq are afraid to reproduce because of their exposure to mutagens.

 

The "Christian" right offers the hope of escaping ecodisaster, which they call "the tribulation", by means of a startrek- like mechanism that they call "the rapture".  All of this is laid out in a science fiction series called "Left Behind", which millions of Americans believe to give true interpretations of Biblical prophecies.  It will take more than reframing to replace this psychotic delusion with something saner. 

 

Bush has enshrined the rapture cult by replacing "reality-based" politics with "faith-based" politics.  Meanwhile, he is intensifying our fears, not just as a propaganda tool, but with measures that accelerate the decay of the environment and the likelihood of nuclear war.  I'm pretty terrified, these days, aren't you?

 

The situation is extreme and calls for extreme mental solutions. 

1) Hit hard on the unscrupulousness, iniquity, of Bush politics and policies.  And point out that these tactics are unChristian, works of the Anti-Christ, not of Jesus.

 

2) Offer an alternative Bible-based Christian vision of hope, that through imitating Jesus' concentration on spiritual rather than material matters, we can find the love for one another to solve our common problems.  The outpouring of love for the tsunami victims shows us what we can do.  God is the spirit of love, not of mass murder and torture.

 

3) emphasize that the rapture/Bush cult is the way of death, and God wants us to choose life, for ourselves and our children:

 

Deuteronomy 30:19
I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live.

 

I realize that many "progressives" don't believe in Jesus and the Bible.  But if we are talking about American political life, it must be recognized that 85% of Americans identify themselves as Christians, and accept the Bible as a source of wisdom, if not as the word of God. 

 

Bush uses the name of Jesus without following any of His teachings.  His followers are misled by false prophets such as Tim LaHaye, Jerry Falwell, and James Dobson, and are seduced with false promises that are NOT Bible based.  Neither are their issues Bible based- abortion is not forbidden in the Bible, and homosexuality per se is not condemned.  See my blog http://biblequotes.blogspot.com/ for articles on these and related matters.

 

I believe that the best reframing work these days is being done by Jim Wallis of Sojourners.  He initiated the "God is neither a Democrat nor a Republican" advertisement, and is circulating one right now condemning "a theology of violence".  He has written several books on how Christian values are better represented by social safety net programs than by the ownership society.

 

Another, less well known, reframer is Charles Carlson, who has started "Pharisee Watch", comparing "Christian" leaders of today to the Pharisees who crucified Jesus.  He also confronts right-wing churches with the true teachings of Jesus on love and peace. 

 

The basic evil of the Bush administration is blasphemy, misuse of the name of Jesus.  This must be vigorously pointed out, over and over again.  It's the only way to undermine the satanic power that has taken over the US government.  Anything less is an avoidance of the situation.

 

In the name of the Prince of Peace,  Carol Wolman