Judgement.

Judgement as a political weapon.

Since Ronald Reagan* reintroduced religion to the political debate we have seen judgement used as a political weapon.

The older generation had their revenge on the Baby-Boomers and condemned them, ostensibly for sexual transgressions, but in reality for left-wing/Socialist views.

And Generation X grabbed their chance to damn their hated enemies.

Reagan called us "agents of the devil" and Generation X labelled us "loose".

You hypocrites!

Jesus said: "'Do not judge, so that you may not be judged.'" Matthew 7"1 (NRSV)

And "loose" from the generation that popularized male strippers and toy-boys.

You hypocrites!

But the fact remains that Judgement should not be used as a political weapon.

The Religious Right gave in to the temptation to judge their enemies.

It gave them power and privilege.

But most of all it provided a political victory.


(*Ronald Reagan said that Christianity contained unconventional weapons.)

[Scripture quotations (marked NRSV) are taken from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the U.S.A., and are used by permission.  All rights reserved.] 

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