Thursday, September 18, 2008

Sarah Palin.. How could anyone spark so much controversy on one side and so much enthusiasm on another? There is so much disagreement over this one person.. I suppose the lines drawn are fairly typical in the Christian blogging world. Vision Forum, Carmon, and that side of the Christian world being agin', Doug Wilson, and of course a lot of others being for. In some ways I can get a little overwhelmed by all the controversy swirling around. I'm trying to boil it down to the things I feel pretty sure of. For one thing, I don't buy the argument that women are never to have authority over men. I do accept the roles of men and women in a marital situation, and also in the service of the church. These seem pretty clear in scripture and also have an illustrative purpose in modeling God's relationship with mankind. These we best not fool with. But I don't think that that automatically leads to a fact of being a 'gender twist' that a woman can be over a man in civil structure, or a work situation. And as to judging to whether she is being submissive to her own husband (which could be kind of arrogant, for us to presume we can judge her heart on this at all.) well, if he is supporting and even encouraging her to run, is she not acting with her husband's blessing? If we say that the husband is the one to make decisions for his family, then ought we not practice that and allow him to make that judgement for his family?

I'm not saying that the fact that she has children doesn't give me pause. I'm just saying I don't buy some of what's being said.

It really does bother me, as I read some of what is being written, the snideness of some of the comments. Quoted from the Vision Forum website (who are in turn quoting Worldnet Daily, who is quoting a home school mother)in regards to Todd Palin..

In fact, he recently hosted a tea for former first ladies of the state at the governor’s mansion in Juneau. I wonder if he held his pinkie upright as he sipped from his demitasse cup.

Yeah right. How snide. And I have to wonder if you chuckled to yourself over the cleverness of your own comment when you wrote that.

The way I see it is this. There is a job opening coming up that must be filled. There are two applicants. And one is light years more qualified, more ready and more in line with how I believe the job should be done than the other. Neither were my first pick, but I didn't get my first pick (or second, or third, or fourth..) this time around. So I make the best decision with what I have and get on with it.

I get tired of being typed by some as compromises, sold out to the Republican party etc. I could not in good conscience let my vote sit idle and have Obama win without a fight. I just couldn't.

There also seems to me to be a bit of an arrogance in some of the arguments going around. As though the white and cleanness of one's own personal holiness is more important than getting dirty in the fight. For example. No, John McCain is not purely pro-life. But he would appoint more constitutional judges. I doubt he would go in for tax funded abortions. I doubt we would see abortion programs done in foreign countries as we did during the Clinton years. (At least with US backing) I'm quite certain that there would be less abortions under a McCain presidency than an Obama. But we have it said round about that if you're not "all pro-life, you're not pro-life at all, therefore I (being the speaker) can't vote for McCain. So tell that to the babies who would be at risk under an Obama presidency who wouldn't be as much so under a McCain. You couldn't get your hands dirty and vote for someone who didn't line up with everything you wanted? Your personal feeling of sanctity was more important? I don't buy that kind of sanctity.

And I don't buy the argument that things have to get worse in order to get better. Or maybe if things get really bad, people will wake up. I read one comment on one blog that said she'd rather have an Obama presidency and the church praying fervently for revival than a McCain presidency and everyone just going on with life as usual. But sin is deceptive. It doesn't always come that people wake up when things get worse and worse. Look at countries that lived under communism and how even still the people have a nostalgia for the old days. Look at countries that have fallen and sludged along in poverty for hundreds of years and still they don't turn in large wholesale repentance. One doesn't always follow the other. By the grace of God it may, but I don't think we better plan on that.

Besides, if you follow that line of reasoning, we should never work to make anything better, for ourselves or our children, because as soon things got better, the people's hearts get worse!

Well, for all that, there's some of my thoughts. And now I better go make dinner.

Mexican chicken over rice and salad. What are you having? :)

6 comments:

LynAC said...

I can't seem to bring myself to care about any of it anymore.

I was saddened to see S.P.'s daughter on the front of a tabloid today. ick--not where I'd want to see my daughter ever. I admire S.P. I wish her children were all much older. I wish she was a bit older. It's impossible to do 2 really important jobs fantastically, imo--one will suffer for the other. It seems to me her role as mother has already suffered. I guess just like Eli's role as father (Eli the priest).

God is in control! That much I do know!

Marbel said...

This is terrific and I was happy to see you - finally! - comment on this.

In all my reading and pondering I never thought of, and never saw brought up, the notion that women cannot be in authority over men in work or another secular situation. Bravo! I think you are right.

The snide comment about the tea - this should not be coming from a Christian. How come the Christians that pretend to have all the right answers are the ones that come off snarky and ignorant?

As for things getting worse before getting better - I saw a comment somewhere suggesting that God might give us Obama to get us on our knees. And that was countered with a reminder about the unborn of the future. Now of course God may give us Obama anyway. But we should not welcome him as evidence that it has to get worse before getting better.

It is tiring to think of how much longer before the election. How much more sniping and snide comments and digging for dirt.

Dinner was leftover smoked pork, coleslaw and beans. Not bad, but yours sounds better!

Mrs. Darling said...

Preach it girl! Let me smooth out the stump! There now, hop on and preach even harder. These Christians that arent voting because they cant have things their way are wrong on every level. To not vote because they dont agree on everything is not going to help our nation! It only makes them feel pious and self righteous. Thats one reason I hate the blogs. Women, especially use them for their pulpit.

Oh yeah, they dont think Palin should be in authority over men but what sort of backward teaching allows them to condemn that, yet preach like a man from their blogs and try to sway people, (men included), to their way of thinking.

If women are not to usurp authority over men and if women are to remain silent than puhleeeze, all those know it all, self righteous blogging women need to shut down their own pulpits!

I say, Go Mccain ,Go Palin, turn this country back to the right. Obama is so far left even the Dems are squirming!

Oh were you on this stump first? I'll just be hoppin' down now. You're doing a good enough job on your own!

Mrs. Darling said...

Oh dinner, you ask? Mine was Polish sausages on buns with sauteed onions and green peppers, tomatoes from the garden, and a side of tator tots. Yeah I know it was unhealthy but hey I had so many places to run tonight I scarecly had time to cook!

Lana said...

Great Post! Frustrating to hear some of the other opinions isn't it?

I'm due on the 9th, so we'll have to have a race! :-D I'm actually hoping for early... DON'T want to go late, too close to Christmas...

Amy said...

I hear you! Sometimes I forget that Sarah is running for VP and not President. I'm thinking the Dems forget that too. However, I guess if McCain dies in office, she will be President. Wouldn't Hillary Clinton think that's great, lol. A woman President.