The upside down world of persecuted Rightwing Christians

As I sit in my cubicle and ponder the meaning of life as an American citizen, as a mixed breed Native American, as a progressive, I can’t help but be concerned by the Christian rights continued framing, that they are being persecuted.

When I looked up the word persecution in the Cambridge online dictionary, this is what I found.

persecute  
verb [T]
to treat someone unfairly or cruelly over a long period of time because of their race, religion, or political beliefs or to annoy someone by refusing to leave them alone:

Brings to mind Native Americans, Jews, African Americans.

It demonstrates the falsity of the religious rights claim of being a persecuted class in the great American society.  They hold significant numbers of elected positions in local, state and the federal government.  They have been and are an economic force in all fifty states.  They are granted tax-free status for their houses of worship and their social/religious programs.  They have at least a 30% share of ownership in the radio and television market and no one really knows the net worth of the 5 biggest Tele-Evangelists.
Now this clearly shows to any human being with an IQ greater than their shoe size, that this group of people are not currently nor have they been in the last 200 + years of our republic, been a persecuted class of people.

Now to the heart of my upside down theory, that Christianity is being persecuted in the US..

more after the fold:
What we have here is a simple case of persecution complex , that to inflame the masses, into believing that the class of people who identify themselves as Christians, are indeed under attack.

When I looked up the word persecution complex in the Cambridge online dictionary, this is what I found.

persecution complex
noun [C]
If someone has a persecution complex, they suffer from the feeling that other people are trying to harm them.

My belief is that the extremists of the religious right are trying to enflame the masses of Christians who actually believe and live by the principles of their Christ centered religion, to feel that they are indeed a persecuted class of people in the United States of America.

If they can manipulate these mainstream individuals into this false sense of persecution complex, they can in fact change the course of America as we know it.  They will turn our country into a theocracy, more sinister and more deadly than any Theocratic nation in the history of the world.  

I cannot imagine someone like Falwell, Robertson, Dobson, Perkins, or their ilk, having any compunction to eliminating the perceived evil of non-believers, or Christians who do not follow their proscribed versions of the Christian faith. Not having any compunction to use Nuclear weapons upon any non-Christian nation that fails to convert to Christianity.  That these so called men of God, currently support the incarceration and torture of individuals who are held by our Government, clearly demonstrates to me, that these people are indeed not going to protect, me or my spirituality.

I believe we as a nation need to address this false persecution complex directly and with absolutes, that clearly show the mainstream that persecution of Christians and Christian values is not taking place in this country.  How we do this is very clear, the talking points are defined below.

When hearing someone state that Christians are persecuted in the US, steer the conversation to these points.

The Communist oppression of Buddhists in Tibet

Religiously motivated genocide and crimes against humanity in the former Yugoslavia are being effectively controlled by peace keepers. These acts involved Muslims, Serbian Orthodox Christians and Roman Catholics both as perpetrators and victims.

These examples show clearly how persecution for your religious beliefs are perpetuated in harmful and in many cases deadly ways.  Yet our rightwing brethren continue to promote the following items as their basis of persecution in the US.

Religious Persecution: A Worldwide Tragedy
Haven Bradford Gow
April, 1997

In his new book Original Intent (Wall Builder Press, Box 397, Aledo, Texas), historian David Barton provides some examples that make one wonder if Christians now have become second-class citizens:

1. “In the Alaska public schools, students were prohibited from using the word `Christmas’ at school, from exchanging Christmas cards or presents, or from displaying anything with the word `Christmas’ on it because it contained the word `Christ’.”
2. “In a high school class in Dickson, Tennessee, students were required to write a research paper using at least four sources. Despite the fact that the students were allowed to write about reincarnation, witchcraft and the occult, because student Brittany Settle chose to write her paper about the life of Christ, she was given a zero by her teacher.”
3. “An elementary school principal in Denver removed the Bible from the school library, and an elementary school music teacher in Colorado Springs stopped teaching Christmas carols because of alleged violations of the `separation of church and state’.”
4. “In DeFuniak Springs, Florida, a judge ordered the courthouse copy of the Ten Commandments to be covered during a murder trial for fears that jurors would be prejudiced against the defendant if they saw the command `Do not kill’.”
5. “In Omaha, Nebraska, a student was prohibited from reading his Bible silently during free time, or even to open his Bible at school.”

As is most of the rhetoric and blathering coming from the religious right, these incidences of religious persecution are blown totally out of proportion and exaggerated beyond recognition to the actual facts that occurred.  

I challenge all Christians to reexamine yourselves and your faith, how are you supporting those outside of the US, who are truly being persecuted for their religious beliefs, Christian and non Christian alike.  As a Native American, I fear that if the extreme religious right is able to achieve its ends, those of you who are not considered by the ruling elite to be of the true class of believers, you will in fact feel the full effects of a persecution on your beliefs.  My culture and spiritual beliefs were nearly wiped out by extremists in the ilk of Robertson, Falwell, Perkins, Dobson and those who support the unethical, abhorrent and clearly non Christian beliefs of these false prophets.  That they continue to profess this false premise of religious persecution in the United States clearly shows the world how out of touch with reality these false men of Christianity really are, from the true believers of the Christ.

I fear that my spiritual beliefs, those of my wife and family members will one day put us in danger of elimination, because we are not Christian and I can tell you today, I will not profess to a religion that I do not believe.  My spiritual well being is entirely my responsibility and I want to continue to be responsible for it and not have to face a tribunal of extremist Christian fundamentalist who will decide whether or not I get to keep my children, my faith or my life.  It is abhorrent to me that Christians, true believing Christians have not risen up in defiant anger at this bastardization of your spiritual foundations and this corruption of your beliefs.  I can only pray to the Great Spirit that those of you who are true to your faith will arise and take back from the extremists your religion and your faith.