WIR
Rereading one of my favorites, Chameleon Christianity by Dick Keyes.
Some years ago I received two letters in the same week. One was from the Moral Majority and the other was from Katharine Hepburn, writing for Planned Parenthood. The messages were almost exactly the same. Both could be paraphrased,
"There is a well-funded and powerful minority in this country that is trying to take away all that America stands for, as well as your own personal freedom. But there is hope -- we are here. Your contribution will help us stand against this group and the destructive legislation that they sponsor at this critical moment in our nation's history."
The rhetoric was identical although the political perpectives were violently opposed. Neither group made an argument but rather each fed off their followers' fear of the other.
Some years ago I received two letters in the same week. One was from the Moral Majority and the other was from Katharine Hepburn, writing for Planned Parenthood. The messages were almost exactly the same. Both could be paraphrased,
"There is a well-funded and powerful minority in this country that is trying to take away all that America stands for, as well as your own personal freedom. But there is hope -- we are here. Your contribution will help us stand against this group and the destructive legislation that they sponsor at this critical moment in our nation's history."
The rhetoric was identical although the political perpectives were violently opposed. Neither group made an argument but rather each fed off their followers' fear of the other.
posted by William Sofield at 8:59 AM
2 Comments:
isn't this a repeat post...?
Could be. I'm pretty sure I quoted from this book before. I didn't mean to have a repeat. I like this paragraph a bunch, I guess.
I find the "culture of fear" interesting. Advertisers use fear as a very powerful weapon. Christians use it too, unfortunately. And this upsets me.
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