Subject: story?
Mr. Babinski:
I'm an Associated Press reporter wondering if the Bush administration's
evangelical overtones are causing any discussion in the fundamentalist
anonymous community.
ED: Yes they are. As you can imagine, no former fundamentalist is
comfortable with the way the Bush administration is pal-ling around with
such strict fundamentalists as Dobson, Robertson, Falwell, LaHaye.
Former fundamentalists were also edgy during the Reagan administration when
Reagan used to speak to people at dinner about "the prophecies of Ezekiel
and armageddon" coming true (see Grace Halsall's in-depth book concerning
such matters, Prophecy and Politics, and the work we she also wrote before
she died, concerning the governmental influence of "believers in the
Rapture"). Remember, Reagan also appointed James Watts as Secretary of the
Interior, and he said on an Oral Roberts radio broadcast [my paraphrase],
"We needn't worry too much bout the environment, because Jesus is coming
soon!" The evangelical lobbyists continue to exert an influence regarding
Middle East matters. They "love" Israel, and pal around with Israeli leaders
while also preaching that unconverted Jews go to hell and that the
anti-Christ will be a Jew (as Falwell has stated). Such people seem to be
looking for confirmation of their faith via some sort of immense war and
Middle Eastern conflagration. That worries me and a lot of people, not just
former fundamentalists. The fundamentalist mindset also views matters in
black and white. All Muslims are hellbound, etc. Surely such rhetoric will
only strengthen the dialectical opposition between Middle Eastern Muslim
extremists and American Christian evangelicals and fundamentalists.
Likewise, where the U.S. miiltary goes, so go an increasing number of
Christian missionaries with their all or nothing faith in Jesus. Not all
missionaries or their organizations are like that of course. But usually it
only takes a few hardheaded fundamentalists to rouse an entire village of
devout Muslims to anger. Gandhi said it best when he concluded that
missionaries should not concentrate on making people change faiths, since
there are a lot of compassionate and loving passages in the Scriptures of
all the major world religions. Missionaries should simply strive to live
good lives and encourage people of all faiths to live equally good lives
based on the highest ideals found in their own sacred scriptures.
-----------------------
Many of the web sites I visited related to fundamentalists anonymous seemed
very personal, and I was just curious if the nation's political debate tends
to drive people away from comments like Gen. Boykin's and toward a new
understanding of their faith.
ED: General Boykin's remarks remind of a common former fundamentalist
complaint against Christianity. Namely, that Christianity provides the
ultimate justification for "demonizing" one's opponents in times of war. And
there is no shared understanding or common ground when the demonization has
hit the level of theological demonization.
----------------
I know that sounds vague, but I was hoping you could tell me whether I
should keep looking for a story along these lines. Does fundamentalists
anonymous track its membership in any way?
ED: Ours is a new organization built upon the ruins of the old
Fundamentalists Anonymous begun by Richard Yao in the 1970s. You may have
heard how he opened chapters in every major city, and even testified before
Congress concerning the dangers of the "fundamentalist mindset," all of
which upset Jerry Falwell and his Moral Majority very much. In fact it upset
them so much that they used the political clout that they had back then, and
got the IRS to confiscate the files of the entire FA organization. Neither
was Richard Yao ever heard from again. Now THAT would be a story! I have
never been able to discover what happened to Richard Yao. If you could write
an article about what happened to the original FA I would love to know! If
you need help digging, let me know.
I have not sought to maintain a membership list of our group. But I have
spoken with hundreds of former fundamentalists since I left the fold in the
mid 1980s. What is known of Richard Yao's story can be found in an appendix
in my book, LEAVING THE FOLD.
---------------------
Do people contact you complaining about the administration, or is that a
lesser worry for them?
ED: Most former fundamentalists are concerned about the current Bush
administration. Some however, remain fiscally conservative Republicans and
support Bush. But that appears to be a minority.
Edward T. Babinski works on the staff at Furman University in the Duke
Library, and is the author of "Leaving the Fold: Testimonies of Former
Fundamentalists".
http://www.fundamentalists-anonymous.org
.
|
