Let me begin this post by saying that I have not seen Kirk Cameron’s upcoming movie Monumental, but I have seen the trailers. These clips are the basis for this post and the one on Saturday. On Saturday, I noted that Cameron recruited Herb Titus for his movie. Titus has become popular with Birthers who believe Obama is not a natural born citizen and therefore ineligible for the Presidency.
Reading more, it appears that Dr. Titus is also of the Christian Reconstructionism persuasion. Here he delivers a tribute to Rousas J. Rushdoony, father of Christian Reconstructionism, here he argues that public education is unbiblical, here is his book on dominion and law and here he and law partner William Olson argue against the Lawrence vs. Texas case that nullified sodomy laws nationally.
According to this Atlantic article by Harvey Cox, Titus was fired as law school dean at Regent University because of his dominionist views. Titus later sued the school for $70 million (I don’t know how it turned out). Cox featured Regent University in a November, 1995 article on the religious right. Concerned about Pat Robertson’s dominionist writings, asked about the views among the faculty there:
I [Cox] thought it was important, if awkward, to bring up these questions with Regent faculty members. And I did so. The answer was very clear. Regent, they insisted, is absolutely not a dominion-theology school, and Robertson himself had demonstrated this recently by getting rid of the dean of the law school, Herbert Titus, because Titus was leaning in the dominion direction. (Titus, who was a lawyer with the American Civil Liberties Union before his conversion to evangelical Christianity, is currently suing the school for about $70 million.) I did not wave quotations from Robertson’s books in front of anyone, because by this time I thought I might hear once again that he just doesn’t choose his ghostwriters carefully enough. Also, Terry Lindvall sounded persuasive when he told me that whatever might have been the case in the past, the battle over Herbert Titus had really been a “struggle for the soul of the university” in which the dominion-theology party had decisively lost. “This is no Masada,” he said. “We just want the evangelical voice to be heard and to make a positive contribution.” In his mind, the matter was settled once and for all.
Most viewers of Monumental will not know this. About Titus, Cameron says he has been the Dean of two law schools, not saying, of course, that Titus was let go from one of them.
Many evangelicals will jump on this bandwagon without really understanding the implications.
Berni, drop me an e mail at my forum name, no spaces and then google mail
@ David M
Like you, I simply couldn’t … more out of sheer embarrassment (theologically, Santorum and I are ostensibly from the same theological stable) than anything else.
It’s an ill omen when one’s legal argument goes back to the original precedent governing the supreme courts’ role. It’s also fascinating that that was their best argument.
Is Santorum losing touch with moderate Catholicism?
http://www.sdgln.com/social/2012/03/16/rgod2-exclusion-inclusion-making-catholicism-truly-universal
@StraightGrandmother
I know your listening to the lot of them was an act of love. And for that I thank you.
“Most viewers of Monumental will not know this. About Titus, Cameron says he has been the Dean of two law schools, not saying, of course, that Titus was let go from one of them.”
It would appear that Cameron is honing his skills at lying by omitting. He’ll make a perfect Barton Jr, Perkins Jr, Sprigg Jr, Lively Jr, Fischer Jr….heck, whoever wants to abdicate his throne, Cameron could step up to the plate and assume the mantle, no prob.
(Anyway, the good news is that the rather worrying ‘Santorum spurt’ may have passed – the gap in the polls between him and both Obama and Romney seems to be widening. Perhaps people are beginning to wonder if it might not be a good thing to have a santorumic digit hovering over the ‘nuclear button’ – the guy, like so many of his ilk, does seem rather prone to ’emotional outbursts’!)
Straight G. The great burden gay Americans still bear is shame. That’s what silenced us for so long; caused the ghettoization that created safe spaces like Fire Island; caused the flight to the cities where we felt safer and where we could meet men and women like us; which also led to less positive aspects of gay life. I know it must get kind of tedious for straight people but this is what’s behind the current demand to come out. It’s only as we started to be honest about our lives that we started to get anywhere. It’s also what’s behind the demand the push for marriage equality: so that we can take a place in society that has some respect and a legal framework.
Unfortunately the church has been in the shame business for too long. It’s time now to move on. Also unfortunately, a great deal of fundraising is based on the prolonging of anti-gay animus.
However, things are better than they were. Here are a couple of links to pieces you might find of comfort. A wedding announcement only remarkable for its ordinariness. And a piece by Frank Bruni, an editorial writer for a paper that refused to use the word ‘gay’ till it was long past due, writing about AIDS and ActUp. If you don’t know about ActUp it will make you proud to be American, even though he leaves out some uncomfortable details.
I’ll do my best with links. Otherwise cut and paste.
A wedding announcement
Frank Bruni in the Times
Is Santorum losing touch with moderate Catholicism?
http://www.sdgln.com/social/2012/03/16/rgod2-exclusion-inclusion-making-catholicism-truly-universal
Straight G. The great burden gay Americans still bear is shame. That’s what silenced us for so long; caused the ghettoization that created safe spaces like Fire Island; caused the flight to the cities where we felt safer and where we could meet men and women like us; which also led to less positive aspects of gay life. I know it must get kind of tedious for straight people but this is what’s behind the current demand to come out. It’s only as we started to be honest about our lives that we started to get anywhere. It’s also what’s behind the demand the push for marriage equality: so that we can take a place in society that has some respect and a legal framework.
Unfortunately the church has been in the shame business for too long. It’s time now to move on. Also unfortunately, a great deal of fundraising is based on the prolonging of anti-gay animus.
However, things are better than they were. Here are a couple of links to pieces you might find of comfort. A wedding announcement only remarkable for its ordinariness. And a piece by Frank Bruni, an editorial writer for a paper that refused to use the word ‘gay’ till it was long past due, writing about AIDS and ActUp. If you don’t know about ActUp it will make you proud to be American, even though he leaves out some uncomfortable details.
I’ll do my best with links. Otherwise cut and paste.
A wedding announcement
Frank Bruni in the Times
@ David M
Like you, I simply couldn’t … more out of sheer embarrassment (theologically, Santorum and I are ostensibly from the same theological stable) than anything else.
@StraightGrandmother
I know your listening to the lot of them was an act of love. And for that I thank you.
(Anyway, the good news is that the rather worrying ‘Santorum spurt’ may have passed – the gap in the polls between him and both Obama and Romney seems to be widening. Perhaps people are beginning to wonder if it might not be a good thing to have a santorumic digit hovering over the ‘nuclear button’ – the guy, like so many of his ilk, does seem rather prone to ’emotional outbursts’!)
David, I am ashamed to say I had not thought about what it would be like for a young person, gay, lesbian, bi-sexual or transgender to have to sit in the pew and listen to that. It must be terrifying.
I listened to all of them, I felt I had to. When you listen to them all, the real impact hits you. But then again I am heterosexual, if I was a lesbian I bet I would not listen to them either.
David, I am ashamed to say I had not thought about what it would be like for a young person, gay, lesbian, bi-sexual or transgender to have to sit in the pew and listen to that. It must be terrifying.
I listened to all of them, I felt I had to. When you listen to them all, the real impact hits you. But then again I am heterosexual, if I was a lesbian I bet I would not listen to them either.
@StraightGrandmother
Aw, do I have to?
After listening to a clip and a half, I’m done. I’m a grown up now and no longer have to sit through this kind of hate speech. Thank God. As someone posted on the link, the psychological impact of it for a confused teen is almost unbearable. Some break. Others of us will always walk with a bit of a limp.
@StraightGrandmother
Aw, do I have to?
After listening to a clip and a half, I’m done. I’m a grown up now and no longer have to sit through this kind of hate speech. Thank God. As someone posted on the link, the psychological impact of it for a confused teen is almost unbearable. Some break. Others of us will always walk with a bit of a limp.
I didn’t kwno where to add this information on the blog so I figured this was as good of topic as any. Rick Santorum will be campaigning this Sunday at the Baptist Home Church of Tony Perkins. Here listen to clips of the pastors sermons about sexual minorities. Listen to ALL the clips.
http://www.goodasyou.org/good_as_you/2012/03/listen-rick-santorums-sunday-night-campaign-stop.html
I didn’t kwno where to add this information on the blog so I figured this was as good of topic as any. Rick Santorum will be campaigning this Sunday at the Baptist Home Church of Tony Perkins. Here listen to clips of the pastors sermons about sexual minorities. Listen to ALL the clips.
http://www.goodasyou.org/good_as_you/2012/03/listen-rick-santorums-sunday-night-campaign-stop.html
It’s an ill omen when one’s legal argument goes back to the original precedent governing the supreme courts’ role. It’s also fascinating that that was their best argument.
Berni, drop me an e mail at my forum name, no spaces and then google mail
“Most viewers of Monumental will not know this. About Titus, Cameron says he has been the Dean of two law schools, not saying, of course, that Titus was let go from one of them.”
It would appear that Cameron is honing his skills at lying by omitting. He’ll make a perfect Barton Jr, Perkins Jr, Sprigg Jr, Lively Jr, Fischer Jr….heck, whoever wants to abdicate his throne, Cameron could step up to the plate and assume the mantle, no prob.
Grandma, I found this for ya….http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christian_Reconstructionism
PS, Miss you on CP.
Articles like this make my head spin. Somebody help me out here, what is a “Christian Reconstructionism” again? I know it has been covered here before but I forget, honestly the labels become a blur after a while.
The one thing I do remember is the Dominionists, These are the 7 mountain people who want to infiltrate the 7 mountains of, Politics, Religion, Education, the Arts etc. and put in Christian Religion as the Doctrine of that mountain. I think I have that right. But what are the Reconstructionalists again?
Grandma, I found this for ya….http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christian_Reconstructionism
PS, Miss you on CP.
Articles like this make my head spin. Somebody help me out here, what is a “Christian Reconstructionism” again? I know it has been covered here before but I forget, honestly the labels become a blur after a while.
The one thing I do remember is the Dominionists, These are the 7 mountain people who want to infiltrate the 7 mountains of, Politics, Religion, Education, the Arts etc. and put in Christian Religion as the Doctrine of that mountain. I think I have that right. But what are the Reconstructionalists again?