Earth Day passed yesterday, but sadly millions of Americans who pride themselves as "family values" Christians paid it little heed.
The corporately connected Christian churches that oppose efforts to preserve forests, curb carbon emissions and protect water supplies manifest their opposition in two ways: silent complicity, and willful deceit.
Take the Interfaith Stewardship Alliance, for example. The ISA is roundly endorsed by Focus on the Family leader James Dobson, a good friend of the former drug abusing, male prostitute-using Evangelical leader Ted Haggard.
The ISA "fully supports" and adheres to the ideological premises laid out in the pro-business Cornwall Declaration, which advises, "The tendency among some to oppose economic progress in the name of environmental stewardship is often sadly self-defeating."
The loftily titled declaration is endorsed by over 1,500 Jewish, Protestant and Catholic leaders, according to the website--whose heading reads, "Dominion. Stewardship. Conservation."
The idea of domination or "dominion" has long fueled the mindless destruction of our natural resources and environment. It has its roots in a chapter in Genesis. "And God said, '[Let humans] have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.'" (Genesis 1:26)
The Cornwall Declaration cites global warming among a list of environmental phenomena not worthy of concern; the two others include overpopulation and "rampant species loss."
Meanwhile "primitive agricultural, industrial and commercial practices" are a major area of concern for the drafters of the Cornwall Declaration. God forbid we let these savages continue farming their own land using ancient traditions of husbandry. We should push them off and let Big Agribusiness take over the land.
Global warming, the Cornwall Declaration declares, is a "concern mainly for environmentalists in wealthy nations." In fact, a recent poll showed that China, India and the United States--whose economies are among the healthiest in the world--ranked among the least willing nations to take action on global warming if it included "significant costs."
The poll, conducted by the Chicago Council on Global Affairs, found that in the South American country of Argentina 63 percent of the population was ready to "begin taking steps [to curb emissions] now even if it involves significant costs." Only 43 percent of the US population agreed with that statement.
In Mexico, 70 percent of the population found global warming to be a "critical threat" while 46 percent in the US agreed. Lord knows how many wealthy environmentalists populate Mexico.
But I don't have to prove that the Cornwall Declaration is filled with lies. Just like everything that James Dobson endorses and supports, the declaration is fraud and pure propaganda.
"These six things the Lord hates,/ Yes, seven are an abomination to Him:/ A proud look,/ A lying tongue,/ Hands that shed innocent blood,/ A heart that devises wicked plans,/ A false witness who speaks lies,/ And one who sows discord among brethren." (Proverbs 6:16)
This chapter seems it was written directly to James Dobson. We already established the "lying tongue." Dobson has been a fierce supporter of the Iraq War (innocent blood), arguing that it is morally justifiable under the Augustinian theory of "just war."
Dobson qualified for abominations five and seven through his efforts to make gay marriage a political wedge issue. His work helped Republicans take over the Senate and House in 2002 and 2004 (wicked plans), all while splitting this country apart in the process (discord among brethren).
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