Religious Politics

Ed Cook posted a very disturbing survey. SBL has come out with a survey that I find annoying. Please read it before you read on.

I’m sorry, but whoever came up with this survey needs to be flogged severely. This survey is just wrong on so many levels.

1. They apparently wanted to trump Dan Rather on coming out with biased content. Are they unaware that a large number of their membership (surely a minority, but not a really small number I’m sure) probably agree that abortion is wrong and that gay marriage should not be allowed? This survey just seems to assume that this isn’t the case, because it so slanted it basically says "those red state people are right-wing nut jobs, right?". Many of those in SBL would agree, but this is not a good assumption.
2. You know, we will often think "such and such a position on some topic is just plain stupid" but we won’t generally say it that way in public, especially in officially sanctioned institutional documents or something like it. It doesn’t paint you in a good light, and doesn’t foster discussion. But the tone, the slant, in this case sounds completely elitest. "All those backwards folks who voted for Bush are homophobes and misogynists." You might as well just be casting insults at those who disagree with you.
3. Like Ed said, what in the world are you doing in politics? Don’t you have enough to talk about at SBL? Sure, religion and politics intersect. Shouldn’t SBL be a forum for discussing how the Bible affects religion, not one that assumes that one political viewpoint is wrong? That’s not encouraging discussions; it is the picking of a fight.

If you were to reword it and pass it around SBL, turn the tables on who is getting slammed, I doubt it would be receieved happily. Are we not interested in discussion? Are we just wanting to insult those who aren’t as "enlightened" as we are? I guess a lot of people are happy as long as they aren’t the ones being called "homophobe." This annoys me greatly. Don’t insult me; talk to me. I’d rant more and check my coherency if I didn’t want to go to bed.