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BWF EXEC. ASKS UCC TO REMOVE HATE PIECE FROM WEB PAGE |
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August 7, 2006 – “A blatant piece of hate writing” on the UCC website “discredits and brings shame on our denomination,” says Biblical Witness Fellowship Executive Director David Runnion-Bareford in asking for the removal from the UCC website of a commentary written by John Farmer, national political correspondent for The Star-Ledger of Newark, N.J. “Such virulent prejudice and spite violates everything we stand for,” continues the BWF executive director, referring to the posting entitled Commentary: Fundamentalism, in its varied forms to blame for Middle East Strife. The request to the UCC.org webmaster follows.. |
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Dear Friends, On the UCC website for the first week of August, there appears a "Commentary: Fundamentalism, in its varied forms to blame for Middle East Strife". We call on the UCC to immediately withdraw what is a blatant piece of hate writing presented with the seemingly sole purpose of demonizing groups of people with whom the author disagrees. Placing it on the UCC website discredits and brings shame on our denomination. Such virulent prejudice and spite violates everything we stand for. Farmer begins his "commentary" with the statement "In the search for root causes of the Middle East's misery, one shouldn't overlook the role of religious fundamentalism - Christian, Jewish, and Muslim." Christian fundamentalists, as you are well aware, derive their adjective from the defense of their belief in the fundamentals of Creation, Biblical Inerrancy, and the virgin birth, the atonement, resurrection, and second coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Nothing in their history suggests any form of violence or aggression against other religious groups whatsoever. If anything, they have been victimized by the prejudice and derogatory characterizations of the secular press and mainline religious establishment and have carried that burden with grace. Equating them with Islamo-facists, or with groups that kill, kidnap, and create terror to further their ideological ends is nothing short of hate speech. It is in fact a very dangerous slander. This piece doesn't, after making the statement, make any such case, going on to describe the conflict between Jews and Muslims without saying that Christians play a role. Then irrationally out of thin air, Farmer, with no justification of any kind, makes the outrageous statement that, "Religious fundamentalism is by no means confined to the murderous Middle East. We've got our own brand in this country in the more extreme elements of the Christian Coalition, with their intolerance of any moral creed but their own. They are in a sense, our very own Taliban." In reality, it is the distortion and demonization of this kind of writing that ferments violence by slandering in such a way that reason, civility, dialogue and reflection are no longer possible. It fuels the danger that those who believe such falsehoods may feel justified in acting violently toward the demonized. Farmer should be ashamed, but putting his piece on our denominational website is inexcusable. We certainly hope that no one in leadership in the UCC shares his delusion. Whoever is making the decision to place material on our site needs the appropriate theological training and historic perspective not to make these kind of mistakes. This is not the first hate piece that has appeared. We hope it will be the last. In His Grace, |
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Last Updated Thursday, May 24, 2007 |
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