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As Hurricane Sandy bears down on the east coast, evangelist John McTernan knows exactly who to blame for the massive storm. It's coming for the gays. Huffington Post reports that in a blog post, McTernan recently linked the storm to President Obama's announcement of support for same-sex marriage - and, course, those icky gay people in general, just because. This sort of pronouncement is nothing new for right-wing evangelicals, who have blamed everything from Hurricane Katrina to the 9/11 attacks on the supposed limitless God-enraging power of gays.
In addition to the nonsense about the hurricane itself and President Obama, it's also pretty hard for me to see how Governor Romney's statements on the campaign trail can be taken as "pro-homosexual," given that he supports the Defense of Marriage Act, opposes same-sex marriage in general, and as Massachusetts governor even deliberately put up roadblocks to make it as difficult as possible for same-sex parents to adopt children. Perhaps McTernan is referring to Romney's 1994 senatorial campaign against Ted Kennedy during which he supported more liberal positions. But even then, so little of this rant makes sense it's hard to see where most of it comes from in the first place.
What amazes me the most, though, is how so many Christians believe that the single most important thing that God supposedly hates, homosexuality, is an issue that was never even mentioned by Jesus - you know, the person that Christians believe was God incarnate during his time on earth. Jesus said a lot about the virtue of engaging with people who are rejected by society (like the LGBT community). He said a lot in favor of taking care of the poor and fighting against their exploitation. He kicked the moneylenders out of the temple. But he said absolutely nothing whatsoever about gays. While homosexuality is forbidden by Jewish law, so are a lot of other things that the vast majority of Christians pay little attention to these days, from the various kosher dietary laws to the prohibition on mixing different kinds of thread in your garments. Poly-cotton, thou art abomination!
In fact, if Sandy is indeed meant to be interpreted as divine disapproval of the LGBT community, wouldn't you expect it target somewhere like San Francisco instead? I know, San Francisco doesn't get hurricanes - but hear me out. God is omnipotent. And a hurricane striking the west coast during Atlantic hurricane season? Such an event certainly would be paranormal enough to get people to stand up and take notice. But instead, God apparently is aiming for New York. It seems to me that anyone who's read Jesus' words rather than the dogma cooked up by conservative Christian churches over the centuries should realize that it makes a lot more sense to suggest that God is sending the hurricane to wipe out Wall Street.
And yes, by the way, I know that the above picture is a fake. Still, it's an absolutely stunning one.
In a wordy and occasionally rambling blog on his website, chaplain John McTernan seems to link Hurricane Sandy (and a number of other recent weather-related trends and natural disasters) on LGBT people and President Barack Obama's recent backing of marriage equality. While most of McTernan's wrath is directed at Obama, he has some choice words for GOP candidate Mitt Romney, too.
"God is systematically destroying America," McTernan writes. "Just look at what has happened this year."
Calling Sandy "the most powerful hurricane on record" (it's not) that "could do catastrophic damage to the entire Northeast," McTernan adds, "Obama is 100 percent behind the Muslim Brotherhood (he's not) which has vowed to destroy Israel and take Jerusalem. Both candidates are pro-homosexual and are behind the homosexual agenda. America is under political judgment and the church does not know it!"
In addition to the nonsense about the hurricane itself and President Obama, it's also pretty hard for me to see how Governor Romney's statements on the campaign trail can be taken as "pro-homosexual," given that he supports the Defense of Marriage Act, opposes same-sex marriage in general, and as Massachusetts governor even deliberately put up roadblocks to make it as difficult as possible for same-sex parents to adopt children. Perhaps McTernan is referring to Romney's 1994 senatorial campaign against Ted Kennedy during which he supported more liberal positions. But even then, so little of this rant makes sense it's hard to see where most of it comes from in the first place.
What amazes me the most, though, is how so many Christians believe that the single most important thing that God supposedly hates, homosexuality, is an issue that was never even mentioned by Jesus - you know, the person that Christians believe was God incarnate during his time on earth. Jesus said a lot about the virtue of engaging with people who are rejected by society (like the LGBT community). He said a lot in favor of taking care of the poor and fighting against their exploitation. He kicked the moneylenders out of the temple. But he said absolutely nothing whatsoever about gays. While homosexuality is forbidden by Jewish law, so are a lot of other things that the vast majority of Christians pay little attention to these days, from the various kosher dietary laws to the prohibition on mixing different kinds of thread in your garments. Poly-cotton, thou art abomination!
In fact, if Sandy is indeed meant to be interpreted as divine disapproval of the LGBT community, wouldn't you expect it target somewhere like San Francisco instead? I know, San Francisco doesn't get hurricanes - but hear me out. God is omnipotent. And a hurricane striking the west coast during Atlantic hurricane season? Such an event certainly would be paranormal enough to get people to stand up and take notice. But instead, God apparently is aiming for New York. It seems to me that anyone who's read Jesus' words rather than the dogma cooked up by conservative Christian churches over the centuries should realize that it makes a lot more sense to suggest that God is sending the hurricane to wipe out Wall Street.
And yes, by the way, I know that the above picture is a fake. Still, it's an absolutely stunning one.
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