Christians say we are a “Christian nation,” but I see no evidence to support that claim. If we are, why is our entertainment and our pop culture often so gleefully sacrilegious and anti-Christian?
I suppose you’ll understand that you’re not talking about someone steeped in the very Christian concept of turning the other cheek when you come across a blog post thusly titled:
Dear Christians, Now Is The Time For Intolerance
There are many so-called “Christian” bloggers out there, and this being a free country and all, they’re well within their 1st Amendment rights to say what’s on their mind. Few of them, though, are more arrogant, self-righteous, self-important, and ridiculously intolerant than Matt Walsh. As near as I can tell, Walsh, whose writing betrays someone as joyless as a cold November rain, believes that the mere fact of being a Christian bestows upon him the right- nay, the obligation- to advance the argument that his narrow personal theology is far superior to and takes precedence over any and all other considerations. The fact that he is but one person and that the rest of the world may not- indeed, almost certainly does not- share his intolerant, inflexible, joyless beliefs seems to not have penetrated his thick, self-righteous shell.
Walsh seems to have his panties in a wad over the awful sinfulness and disrespect for Christianity that, in his estimation at least, permeates American entertainment and pop culture. His argument, even as patently silly and petulant as it is, shows a blatant disrespect for the love, tolerance, acceptance, and inclusion that his Lord and Savior preached. Mayhaps he slept through that Sunday School lesson?
There are obviously many, many, many examples of this, but a few recent ones include the prime time ABC show last week that depicted a woman getting an abortion while “Silent Night,” a song about the birth of Christ, played in the background.
It wasn’t out of the ordinary for ABC. After all, this is the same network that produced a sitcom called “Good Christian Bitches” a while back, and it’s the same network whose sister channel, ABC Family, features a drama about biracial lesbian foster parents.
Meanwhile, Fox will soon debut a comedy called “Lucifer,” in which the protagonist is a charming, well-intentioned, attractive Satan who comes to Earth to fight crime and flirt with women. Also, AMC will be premiering “Preacher,” about a Christian minister possessed by the lovechild of a demon and an angel. The show follows his adventures as he searches for God, who has cowardly abandoned His creation.
Granted, Hollywood is truly awful when it comes to addressing issues of spirituality. Perhaps it’s for the same reasons why movies with sports themes always suck donkey balls- it’s difficult to address deep issues or one where the inherent dramatic process of a sporting event has to be massaged for entertainment purposes. I could understand Walsh’s self-righteous ire if he was upset about how truly execrable Hollywood’s efforts to address religion and spirituality can be and usually are. Instead, he’s offended that entertainment options offered by TV and cable networks actually address the interests and sensibilities of those who aren’t Matt Walsh. Of course, he has a very simple choice available to him- don’t watch what he finds offensive. That wouldn’t be any fun, though; he’d rather enforce his narrow moral standards on the wider culture, most whom (thankfully) don’t live, love, think, and/or believe as he does. In a pluralistic culture, you don’t get to suppress the entertainment options you dislike or find offensive. You can, however, turn them off, walk away, and teach your children to be narrow-minded judgmental tools.
Except that Walsh seems decidedly unhappy with anything less than dictating terms of surrender to television and cable networks who dare wipe their muddy feet on his tender sensibilities. Here’s a radical idea for Walsh to consider- how about putting your big boy pants on and going your merry way? You’re not the poster boy for Christianity; you don’t get to decide what shows networks are allowed to broadcast. If you don’t like a program, just do what I and millions of other American do- turn off your television, get off your couch, and go outside to play.
Now, obviously, no media company would ever in a million years consider turning blasphemy against Islam into comedy like they do with Christianity. And none would ever attack progressive dogmas like they attack Christian teachings. Only our beliefs are mocked as entertainment. Only Our Lord is spit upon just for fun.
Hmm…I wonder if Walsh ever considered the reasons why no television show turns “blasphemy against Islam into comedy?” Could it be that the aforementioned “blasphemy” simply isn’t funny because most American aren’t familiar enough with Islam to get whatever well-intentioned jokes might be inserted into a script? Never mind that Muslims make up a very small part of America’s population; does he really think anyone is going to understand halal jokes?
Despite his overcooked imagination, television scripts don’t make fun of Christianity, nor do the spit upon the Lord- metaphorically or in actuality- “just or fun.” Entertainment outlets don’t exist for the sole purposes of selling a joyless, inflexible Christianity espoused by a very small percentage of Americans. Given that television sitcom humor is normally so thoroughly sanitized as to be virtually sterile, the idea that a scriptwriter could offer up a script that openly attacks Christian teachings is absurd. The only mocking that might occur is what should be directed at Walsh for being such a thin-skinned, intolerant whiner who elevates his theology over any and all other considerations.
And why? Simple: because we tolerate it. We accept it. We PARTICIPATE IN IT by continuing to support the companies that produce this garbage. We lack the courage of our convictions. We are weak.
No, you only participate in whatever it is you believe is going on if you’re watching. If a television show offends you, there’s a very simple choice available to you: turn it off, walk away, and go play a first-person shooter video game with your kid. It’s what Jesus would do, don’tchaknow?
Jesus flipped tables when the temple was desecrated. Well, Christ IS the temple, so should we not do the same when He is defiled? Nobody respects us in this society because they know they can slap God Himself in the face and we will stand by and just continue handing them our money.
What Walsh seems not to realize is that even Christians are blessed with the gift of free will. If Christians “will stand by and just continue handing them our money,” that’s on them. Unless someone is holding a gun to their head and forcing them to hand over their money, a Christian, like anyone else, can refuse to participate. All they have to do is change the channel or turn their television off. Problem solved.
I say enough of this. Nobody else in the world tolerates sacrilege like we do. And not long ago, Christians wouldn’t have tolerated it either. I think it’s time to be intolerant again[.]
Again? Honestly, I’d really like to know when Walsh STOPPED being intolerant. The victim mentality and his preference for defaulting to taking offense assume a degree of self-importance far beyond all reason. For Walsh to even consider presenting the argument that Christians are a persecuted majority is the textbook definition of absurd. Then again, he clearly seems to believe in his self-ascribe moral and theological superiority. If it wasn’t for self-delusion, he’d have no delusion at all.
As for “Nobody else in the world tolerates sacrilege like we do,” I’d submit that Walsh might consider walking a mile in the shoes of an American Muslim. Perhaps then he might actually come to understand what sacrilege and persecution really entail. Has anyone smeared feces on a Bible and left in front of a church door lately? Has anyone threatened to burn churches down? No? Quelle surprise, eh? That what Muslims in this country deal with. For a so-called “Christian” like Walsh to claim persecution is laughable.
Walsh is free to believe as he chooses. He’s even free to believe that his faith community is a persecuted majority- as patently ridiculous and self-serving as that belief truly is. What he’s not free to do is expect (or demand) that the world will without question cater to his tender pious sensibilities.
If he doesn’t like aspects of entertainment or popular culture, he’s free to engage in his own personal boycott of whatever he deems offensive. He doesn’t get to dictate what forms of entertainment are acceptable to the broader culture, if for no other reason than (as shocking as this may be to him) his sensibilities are no more or less important than anyone else’s.
Ultimately, Walsh’s post makes him look like a right crybaby and an intolerant hyper-religious hypocrite who can’t handle the fact that the world doesn’t revolve around his petty, inflexible piety. Then again, as an immature whiner with a greater capacity for impotent righteous outrage than common sense, Walsh actually seems to believe that his theology and moral framework is the yardstick by which we all must live. Hard to imagine anything more thoroughly arrogant and self-important than that, eh?
Time for someone to grow up and put their big boy pants on. When he’s finished, he might want to crack open his dusty Bible and actually read the Gospel. I’d say he might learn something, but he’s already too far gone, convinced that he and only he has the Divine Right to determine how Americans should live, love, think, and or believe. That his Lord and Savior taught love, tolerance, acceptance, and inclusion seems but a mere inconvenience to some already convinced that his Christianity is the One, True, and Only Faith.
Perhaps if Walsh spent more time focusing on getting his own house in order….
