Saturday, September 06, 2008

And now it's gone, it doesn't matter anymore


(Fleetwood Mac-Sara)

Want to know everything about Sarah "Baked Alaska" Palin? It only takes knowing 2 things:
  1. Rigidly anti-Choice,
  2. pro-Creationism.
That's all. From those 2 things, all else follows.

Biblically, there are 2 parts to Salvation: Grace (being saved), and Works (doing Christian deeds). Most Catholics and old-school Protestants relied on both, Grace, of course, but with a healthy dose of Works because it was the right thing to do.

Modern Evangelicals put all their eggs in the Grace basket. And sadly, in my observation, many of them completely fail the Works test.

Palin is a prime example of this. Seeking self-aggrandizement and satisfaction, punishing and belittling others who don't do her wishes, lack of concern about real-world issues including her job duties, but it's all OK because she's Saved.

While some Evangelicals seem to truly exhibit the traits mentioned in the Sermon On The Mount, many I have known, and I have known many, don't. I don't mean the Epic Fails of Jimmy Swaggart, Ted Haggard, etc., I mean the failure to live in a way that reflects one's supposed belief:
  • Drive a gas-guzzler when you're admonished to be a good steward? But I'm saved.
  • Cheat on taxes when you're told to render unto Caesar what is Caesar's? But I'm saved.

While these are typical hypocrisies, they may or may not apply to Palin. But . . .

Evangelicals condemn Moral Relativism, yet Palin doesn't seem to be the "help-meet" to her husband that Evangelicals believe the Bible requires.

Evangelicals condemn Situational Ethics, yet Palin's callous increasing of Wasilla's debt doesn't seem to bother her sense of Stewardship.

Evangelicals tout the 10 Commandments, yet Palin's continuous lying doesn't seem to bother her conscience. She keeps telling the jet/ebay story, now thoroughly debunked.

But that's OK, because she is saved.

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