Recently, John MacFarlane, pastor of First Baptist Church in Bryan, Ohio, warned liberal politicians that he and his fellow Bible thumpers are coming for them; that overturning Roe v. Wade is just the start. MacFarlane wrote:
Now, almost 50 years later, we can see where and how this country is divided. It’s not about political parties and red v. blue. We are a nation divided over the Bible and God, the One in whose image we are created. And this division is getting deeper every day! To call a ruling that supports life as cruel, outrageous, and heart-wrenching is egregious in and of itself.
Such statements from our national leaders ought to cause every blood-bought born-again believer to stand up and say, “This ruling isn’t the only change that’s happening. There’s going to be more. A LOT more!”
Is this devotional political? Absolutely — and I make no apology for it. The reason that it’s political is because the politicians have insisted on sticking their noses into issues of values, morality, and truth. Rather than accepting what God says, they’ve chosen to go against it, forcing the Christians to rise up and to take some stands. We MUST obey God rather than man.
Dear liberal politician, you have given the Christians no choice. Edmund Burke’s famous statement is true. “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.” It’s time for GOOD men and women – especially GOD’s men and women to arise and do the right thing!
MacFarlane is an Independent Fundamentalist Baptist (IFB) preacher, a Trumpist who supports and defends every plank in the culture war agenda. Along with his fellow forced birthers, MacFarlane had the orgasm of a lifetime when the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, allowing states to effectively ban abortion. I suspect MacFarlane makes no exceptions for rape, incest, or the life of the mother; that, if he had his way, certain birth control methods and in-vitro fertilization would be outlawed too. MacFarlane’s goal is to facilitate returning the United States to the glory days of the 1950s; the days when abortion and birth control were illegal; the days when women were barefoot and pregnant; the days when blacks knew their place, Mexicans went back to where they belonged after picking our crops, and homosexuals never left their pitch-dark closets; the days when public school teachers led their students in prayer and read the Bible to them; the days when Joseph McCarthy spent his waking hours ferreting out commies; the days when IN GOD WE TRUST was added to the pledge and currency; the days when “Biblical” Christianity ruled supreme.
Based on what MacFarlane has written here, he either rejects or has a faulty understanding of the separation of church and state. The United States has a secular government. No amount of quotes from professional liar David Barton will change this fact. While it is likely MacFarlane opposes the Taliban and other extremist Islamic governments, he seems to be okay with Sharia law in America as long as it follows his interpretation of the Protestant Christian Bible.
MacFarlane says the Federal government should accept what God says in the Bible and govern accordingly. Of course, MacFarlane is quite selective about what laws, precepts, and commands he wants the government to follow. Not one Evangelical zealot wants the government to enforce all 613 Biblical laws. Does MacFarlane want the adulterers, fornicators, child molesters, and disobedient children among his congregation executed? Does he want atheists, agnostics, Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, Catholics, and all other non-Evangelicals arrested, tried, convicted, and executed? Shall I go on?
The Bible is a dangerous book in the hands of theocrats such as John MacFarlane. They must NOT be trusted with the reins of government. If theocrats are allowed to gain control, freedoms will be lost and people will die. When the MacFarlanes of the world say that overturning Roe v. Wade is just the beginning, we should believe them. If the January 6th insurrection has taught anything, is that MacFarlane and his fellow theocrats are dangerous and will use violence to achieve their goal of a Christian nation.
What, exactly, have Evangelicals been forced to do? I can’t think of one thing. No, what’s going on here is that Evangelicalism is in numerical freefall. NONES are on the rise. Young adults are leaving Evangelical churches in droves. Evangelicals have lost their dominance and control, and they don’t like it. So, instead of loving God and loving their neighbors as themselves — you know, the two great commandments — Evangelicals have turned to raw, naked political power to advance their agenda. How else can we explain so many Evangelicals voting for Donald Trump — twice?
Sixty years ago, Barry Goldwater said:
Mark my word, if and when these preachers get control of the [Republican] party, and they’re sure trying to do so, it’s going to be a terrible damn problem. Frankly, these people frighten me. Politics and governing demand compromise. But these Christians believe they are acting in the name of God, so they can’t and won’t compromise. I know, I’ve tried to deal with them.
An unattributed quote says:
When fascism comes to America it will be wrapped in the flag and carrying a cross.
Make no mistake about it, the Christian nationalist horde is at the gate, and Pastor John MacFarlane is standing there with them. John is a well-respected pastor. By all accounts, he is a friendly, winsome man. But that doesn’t change the fact that he is promoting beliefs and practices that are materially harmful not only to me and my family personally but also to hundreds of millions of non-Evangelical Americans.
Bruce Gerencser, 66, lives in rural Northwest Ohio with his wife of 45 years. He and his wife have six grown children and thirteen grandchildren. Bruce pastored Evangelical churches for twenty-five years in Ohio, Texas, and Michigan. Bruce left the ministry in 2005, and in 2008 he left Christianity. Bruce is now a humanist and an atheist.
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Hearing this pastor’s shtick makes me long to move far, far away.
I hope people finally are listening and believing when these zealots are saying they intend to turn the US into a Christo-fascst nation. Clarence Thomas specifically said he wants to go after contraception and LGBTQ marriage.
Obstacle–Thomas is simply saying out loud what he’s wanted to say for decades now that his allies the court’s majority.
I think the problem is that people weren’t paying attention when, in their confirmation hearings, Gorsuch, Kavanaugh and Coney Barret said that Roe v Wade is “settled law” or “the law of the land.” They all had documentable histories of opposition to abortion rights and privacy in general.
Reading the MacFarlane diatribe reminds me of what I saw on Yahoo a day or so ago,with Bannon saying 4,000 shock troops should revolt and dismantle the government brick by brick. Same mentality. They are itching for Civil War 2.0. Drunk with power,or at least, anticipation.