Islam is better than Christianity
What Judeo-Christian Heritage?
By Jeff Emanuel Posted in Are you freaking kidding me? | Christianity | Christmas | Democrats | Islam | Liberals | Ramadan — Comments (75) / Email this page » / Leave a comment »
[Update: The Democrats in question are: "No" votes: Ackerman, Clarke, DeGette, Hastings (FL), Lee, McDermott, Scott (VA), Stark and Woolsey.
"Present" votes: Conyers, Frank (MA), Holt, Payne, Schakowsky, Schwartz, Wasserman Schultz, Welch (VT) and Yarmuth
Lee voted no on Christmas and missed the Ramadan vote.]
What would you say if I told you that eighteen Democrat Representatives -- elected members of the United States Congress -- either voted against, or simply voted "present" on, a resolution passed in honor of Christmas?
Then, what would you say if I told you that seventeen of these eighteen American Representatives also voted for a resolution passed in honor of Ramadan?
No joke -- and believe me, it gets better. Go below the fold for more.
The resolution brought to the floor in honor of Christmas (H.R. 847 - warning, temporary link) said simply the following:
HRES 847 EH
H. Res. 847
In the House of Representatives, U. S.,
December 11, 2007. Whereas Christmas, a holiday of great significance to Americans and many other cultures and nationalities, is celebrated annually by Christians throughout the United States and the world;
Whereas there are approximately 225,000,000 Christians in the United States, making Christianity the religion of over three-fourths of the American population;
Whereas there are approximately 2,000,000,000 Christians throughout the world, making Christianity the largest religion in the world and the religion of about one-third of the world population;
Whereas Christians and Christianity have contributed greatly to the development of western civilization;
Whereas the United States, being founded as a constitutional republic in the traditions of western civilization, finds much in its history that points observers back to its Judeo-Christian roots;
Whereas on December 25 of each calendar year, American Christians observe Christmas, the holiday celebrating the birth of their savior, Jesus Christ;
Whereas for Christians, Christmas is celebrated as a recognition of God's redemption, mercy, and Grace; and
Whereas many Christians and non-Christians throughout the United States and the rest of the world, celebrate Christmas as a time to serve others: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
(1) recognizes the Christian faith as one of the great religions of the world;
(2) expresses continued support for Christians in the United States and worldwide;
(3) acknowledges the international religious and historical importance of Christmas and the Christian faith;
(4) acknowledges and supports the role played by Christians and Christianity in the founding of the United States and in the formation of the western civilization;
(5) rejects bigotry and persecution directed against Christians, both in the United States and worldwide; and
(6) expresses its deepest respect to American Christians and Christians throughout the world.
Yes, it references and honors Christianity as "one of the world's great religions," using the occasion of Christmas to do so.
Objectionable? Well, to seventeen Democrat Congresspersons, it was more objectionable than the following resolution honoring Islam:
HRES 635 IH
110th CONGRESS 1st Session H. RES. 635
Recognizing the commencement of Ramadan, the Islamic holy month of fasting and spiritual renewal, and commending Muslims in the United States and throughout the world for their faith. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
September 5, 2007 Ms. EDDIE BERNICE JOHNSON of Texas (for herself, Mr. MEEKS of New York, and Mr. ELLISON) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs
RESOLUTION
Recognizing the commencement of Ramadan , the Islamic holy month of fasting and spiritual renewal, and commending Muslims in the United States and throughout the world for their faith. Whereas since the terrorist attacks on the United States on September 11, 2001, threats and incidents of violence have been directed at law-abiding, patriotic Americans of African, Arab, and South Asian descent, particularly members of the Islamic faith;
Whereas, on September 14, 2001, the House of Representatives passed a concurrent resolution condemning bigotry and violence against Arab-Americans, American Muslims, and Americans from South Asia in the wake of the terrorist attacks;
Whereas it is estimated that there are approximately 1,500,000,000 Muslims worldwide;
Whereas Ramadan is the holy month of fasting and spiritual renewal for Muslims worldwide, and is the 9th month of the Muslim calendar year; and
Whereas the observance of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan commences at dusk on September 13, 2007, and continues for one lunar month: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That--
(1) during this time of conflict, in order to demonstrate solidarity with and support for members of the community of Islam in the United States and throughout the world, the House of Representatives recognizes the Islamic faith as one of the great religions of the world; and
(2) in observance of and out of respect for the commencement of Ramadan , the Islamic holy month of fasting and spiritual renewal, the House of Representatives acknowledges the onset of Ramadan and expresses its deepest respect to Muslims in the United States and throughout the world on this significant occasion.
Which of the two is more strongly-worded? I'll take the one that prostrates a nation before "law-abiding, patriotic Americans of African, Arab, and South Asian descent, particularly members of the Islamic faith" who have supposedly been the targets of "threats and incidents of violence" -- it sure goes a long, long way to make clear that not only is America "Okay with Islam," not only is it willing to kowtow to it so as to make doubly sure that we aren't seen as racist bigot Islamophobes, but it pulls the Clintonian move of apologizing to people who have been wronged very little, on behalf of people who have done very little wronging.
Here's one thing I have learned very well and very clearly from my time in Iraq and elsewhere in the Arab/Islamic world: there is one language which is spoken above all others -- the language of power. Concession and compromise are signs of weakness beyond measure to those who would kill us; every time we attempt to show our goodwill and humanity, what they see is an invitation to redouble their efforts.
If the rationale behind this vote was to show the Islamic world not only that is America willing to keep trying to make nice with it (in hopes that the fringe elements will simply vanish), but also that, as a sign of our goodwill, we (in the form of these seventeen Representatives) will symbolically elevate it over the religion that provided America's moral and theological foundation, then it is simply a move made out of a complete and utter ignorance of how our enemies view the world.
If it is out of something other than that, well, that's just pathetic. Merry Christmas to you all anyway -- even if you were one of the eighteen Grinches to vote against it :-)
Islam is better than Christianity 75 Comments (0 topical, 75 editorial, 0 hidden) Post a comment »
should apologize for acting in an Islamophobic manner and start acting like good dhimmi's by making a large monetary contribution to CAIR.
/sarcasm off/
That Congress is wasting time with pointless resolutions about religion. Any religion.
We really should do away with all those resolutions that talk about faith. Stuff like this is just soooo pathetic:
WHEREAS it is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for His benefits, and humbly to implore His protection and favour; and Whereas both Houses of Congress have, by their joint committee, requested me “to recommend to the people of the United States a DAY OF PUBLICK THANSGIVING and PRAYER, to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many and signal favors of Almighty God, especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to establish a form of government for their safety and happiness:”
NOW THEREFORE, I do recommend and assign THURSDAY, the TWENTY-SIXTH DAY of NOVEMBER next, to be devoted by the people of these States to the service of that great and glorious Being who is the beneficent author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be; that we may then all unite in rendering unto Him our sincere and humble thanks for His kind care and protection of the people of this country previous to their becoming a nation; for the signal and manifold mercies and the favorable interpositions of His providence in the course and conclusion of the late war; for the great degree of tranquility, union, and plenty which we have since enjoyed;– for the peaceable and rational manner in which we have been enable to establish Constitutions of government for our sasety and happiness, and particularly the national one now lately instituted;– for the civil and religious liberty with which we are blessed, and the means we have of acquiring and diffusing useful knowledge;– and, in general, for all the great and various favours which He has been pleased to confer upon us.
And also, that we may then unite in most humbly offering our prayers and supplications to the great Lord and Ruler of Nations and beseech Him to pardon our national and other transgressions;– to enable us all, whether in publick or private stations, to perform our several and relative duties properly and punctually; to render our National Government a blessing to all the people by constantly being a Government of wise, just, and constitutional laws, discreetly and faithfully executed and obeyed; to protect and guide all sovereigns and nations (especially such as have shewn kindness unto us); and to bless them with good governments, peace, and concord; to promote the knowledge and practice of true religion and virtue, and the increase of science among them and us; and, generally to grant unto all mankind such a degree of temporal prosperity as he alone knows to be best.
GIVEN under my hand, at the city of New-York, the third day of October, in the year of our Lord, one thousand seven hundred and eighty-nine.
G. Washington
George Washington wrote a resolution for Thanksgiving so if Congress doesn't do so for Christmas, than Christmas will be destroyed?
Need reading comprehension 101, do we?
Do you actually think adolescent type insults help your point? Come on maybe I missed the point of the post I responded to - I suppose thats never happened to you. Look I have a lot of respect for you and Redstate, and would expect more out of you than immature high school level insults.
...was what if not ridiculous hyperbole which had nothing whatsoever to do with the OP or with Ben's above comment?
resolutions because than he pointed out that resolution from George Washington made a resolution in favor of Thanksgiving. The clear implication is that - George Washington favored a religous resolution therefore, Religous resolutions are okay. My point is so what, that still doesn't mean we need some dumb meaningless resolution about Christmas - I don't care if we've been doing it for two hundred years - Christmas will live on. So I may have engaged in hyperbole, tell you what you ought to try hyperbole sometime, its a legitamate form of communication.
BTW I'm certainly not the worst hyperbole ofender on this site.
Maybe Congress could settle this whole Huckabee/Romney controversy with a resolution.
Its not the job of the House of Representive to recognize any religion as a great religion. I say this as a deeply commited Christian. Christianity or Islam don't need congressional aproval they just need for the government to stay clear of religion as much as possible. I don't think complete separation of church and state is possilbe, but there is absolutely no neccesity for Congress to give its stamp of aproval or disaproval on any religion. Christianity may very well be the founding block of American society, but having congress recognize that with a resolution isn't going to change anything. Congress should not issue opinions regarding religion, except to make sure that everybody is free to practice whatever religion they want to.
Annually pass Resolutions honoring Christmas, Easter, etc. Used to be voice votes. Then recently, people started voting against them.
I mean really, what benefit do you think Christianity or Christmas get from a congressional resolution? Its not the end of the world if it passes, but I would just asoon we not pass such resolution. For Congress to say Christianity is a great religion ( which I wholeheartedly agree with BTW) is for probably for them to say someone else's religous beliefs are wrong becasue someone else probably believes it isn't a great religion. I can't say there was anything I disagreed with in the resolution, but the issues I really don't see a need for Congress to address - its not their job. And its not like Christmas is going to be destroyed if this resolution doesn't get passed which is what some of you make it sound like.
What it says about Christianity is this:
Whereas there are approximately 225,000,000 Christians in the United States, making Christianity the religion of over three-fourths of the American population;
Whereas there are approximately 2,000,000,000 Christians throughout the world, making Christianity the largest religion in the world and the religion of about one-third of the world population
Problem?
For Congress to say Christianity is a great religion ( which I wholeheartedly agree with BTW) is for probably for them to say someone else's religous beliefs are wrong becasue someone else probably believes it isn't a great religion
No, it's simply a statement of numerical fact...and if that hurts someone's self esteem because they're not in the majority, well, that's too bad, it seems to me.
Both resolutions recognized the religions in question as "one of the great religions of the world." One of them. As in, out of many. That's not selective endorsement -- nor is it belittling any other specific religions.
Than why do we need a Congressional resolution to state the fact. Do we need to have a congressional resolution that New York is a great state. Tell me, how is this resolution not a waste of congress not so valuable time.
Whereas: Puppies are warm
Whereas: Puppies are soft
Whereas: Puppies smell good
Resolved: We love puppies
Of course then the cat people will complain.
"No compromise with the main purpose, no peace till victory, no pact with unrepentant wrong." - Winston Churchill
As not liking puppies.
If you can get them to come out against the Flag, Apple or Mom that would be good too.
______________________________
"Those who expect to reap the blessings of freedom must, like men, undergo the fatigue of supporting it."
-Thomas Paine: The American Crisis, No. 4, 1777
And remember:
Cats rule while
dogs go to
obedience school
With a dog biscuit and a chaser of warm water
Clyde the Conservative Terrier
Arf!
The power to tax is the power to destroy.
that wavelength.
Woof!!
Franz' 11th Commandment: If anybody messes with you, kill them and eat them invite them to a State Dinner at the White House...
Whereas: Kittens are warm.
Whereas: Kittens are tender.
Whereas: Kittens taste good.
Resolved: We love kittens. In their place. And that would be in the microwave.
Woof!!
Franz' 11th Commandment: If anybody messes with you, kill them and eat them invite them to a State Dinner at the White House...
Now... Let's see if I can just get this image thingie to work...
"Hillary is a blonde. But what she's got is a testicle lockbox."
-Rush Limbaugh
And Thank God PhotoBucket provides prewritten codes for however you want your image show...
"Hillary is a blonde. But what she's got is a testicle lockbox."
-Rush Limbaugh
I did a search for it and couldn't find it. And I got issued a new computer, so I don't have it bookmarked anymore...
Any way that I can do that without editing the picture itself on my computer?
"Hillary is a blonde. But what she's got is a testicle lockbox."
-Rush Limbaugh
If you leave it large for the download it's still a burden on people's Internet connections.
Reformatted and didn't notice until a few days ago that XP didn't come with even a basic image editor...
"Hillary is a blonde. But what she's got is a testicle lockbox."
-Rush Limbaugh
People often dispute and disagree over the facts. Congressional recognition of specific facts as valid has a public consequence; though it is greatly diminished by ever-increasing admiration for cynicism.
that the Congress works for we the people and we the people celebrate Christmas.
So the sense of congress is for us.
Freedom of Religion not Freedom from Religion
It's about as useful as passing a resolution condoning ham sandwiches as "one of the great sandwiches of the world."
NT.
The point here is not that Congress should or shouldn't pass these sorts of resolutions. On that question, I bet many would agree that it's "uncommonly silly" and rather pointless. But the fact is that Congress has passed these resolutions forever, and will continue to do so.
The doesn't even seem to be that these guys voted no on this resolution. A hard-core libertarian probably would have voted no on it too - for the reasons you gave: that it's just not a proper use of Congress's time and not really worth anything, and probably not within Congress's power anyway.
But that's not why these guys voted no, as is clearly evidenced by the fact that they voted for a similarly pointless and fatuous resolution about Ramadan. And that is the point here. What exactly is wrong with these 17 members that they think it appropriate to vote to honor Ramadan but not to honor Christmas (a holiday celebrated by exponentially more people in the U.S.)?
Any info on whether there was a Channukah resolution and how they voted?
(And btw, Gary Ackerman used to be my Congressman, and isn't worth the time of day)
attacking all 18 of these people, and not just the 17 that didn't vote consistently? Like I said I agree with whoever didn't vote for either. Like 90% of us like Christmas we don't need the government recognizing that fact. We also shouldn't have the government recognizing Islam. But what happened should be an example of what happens when the government is involved in making favorable resolutions toward favorable religions it isn't always going to be your religion even if oru religion is in the majority.
Freedom of Religion not Freedom from Religion
I'd say that it's time to name their names and post their mug shots, along with their public explanation (or non-explanation) for their votes, "Why I didn't support H. Res. 847, (1) recognizes the Christian faith as one of the great religions of the world;et al" in every mall, every super market, every church and anywhere else you can think of!
Cockroaches hate sunlight!
"Politicians are like baby diapers. They need to be changed frequently — and for the same reason!"
Larry L. Taylor
That will really elevate the level of political discourse in this country.
... that being "BUSHLIEDPEOPLEDIED!!!!!", yes, I say that stang's suggestion would indeed elevate the level of political discourse in this country rather substantially.
Thanks for playing.
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Diplomacy is the art of saying 'Nice doggie' until you can find a rock.
Rather than allowing an otherworldly being bestow gifts on those who lead their lives in a way that would honor the man whose birth we celebrate on December 25, a Grinch assumes he knows what everyone else really wants, devotes all his energy to taking everyone's presents, and makes the whole town wait in line as redistributes them in a manner he deems most fair and efficient.
Also, Santa is an insensitve toad who labels "misunderstood" children as "bad".
This might be a protest vote, though. Rather than rubberstamping the Christmas amendment, Democrats want to raise awareness that President Bush's evil environmental policies are killing Santa, Rudolph, and the elves. I seriously wouldn't be shocked when we get a global warming Christmas special.
WWRPD? What would Ron Paul do?
I think the best approach would be to not even bring these types of resolutions to the floor. I think they are silly. Both, in my opinion, are attempts to make Christians and Muslims respectfully feel like the government "cares" about them. Guess what? I don't care if the government approves of my Christmas tree.
I'd say they are idiots and should be easy to boot their backsides out of their seats. But then again congresspeople demonstrating they respected their constituents used to be important. Nowadays it seems they could use a voter as a commode and nobody would bat an eye.
______________________________
"Those who expect to reap the blessings of freedom must, like men, undergo the fatigue of supporting it."
-Thomas Paine: The American Crisis, No. 4, 1777
Both of these resolutions are so phenomenally dopey as to be indistinguishable from something the onion might run lampooning congressional resolutions. Why does congress waste their time with this stuff?
-exits
On the Dem side, they can say, "Look at me, I am diverse. I think Muslims are swell.". On the GOP side, they can say, "Look at me. I'm fighting the good fight in the war on Christmas. I am a champion for our traditional Christian values.". Ugh.
Every. Last. One.
Evil prevails only when good men do nothing.
Most of them are constituent requests and get approved on the consent calendar. If we looked carefully at them, we'd probably ask why - but basically these are courtesies. Personally, I think we're taking these too seriously - heck, if someone wants to pass a National Atheist Week resolution, why not. If we're going to start looking at each of these resolutions under a magnifying lens, Congress will never get anything else done. Hmm, maybe that's an idea worth considering...
My first response is to be horrified that congress is wasting time passing resolutions telling us how many Christians (or muslims) there are and how great their religions are. Then, I'm left comparing this to the other things they could spend their time doing and I'm even more disturbed to be reminded that pointless idiocy is better than the congressional baseline.
I guess we should try to expand this. We need to convince congress to pass resolutions lauding physical constants. If only we can convince them to get into a partisan fight over who has the "courage" to praise more digits of pi, perhaps we can keep congressional printers tied up for several weeks of glorious congressional innaction.
by simply saying Congress shouldn't do this at all are completely missing the POINT. Whether you believe they should or not, congress has been doing things like this for many, many years. The point of the post isn't to say whether it should have been done.
The point is -- why would a representative choose to vote FOR a Ramadan resolution and NOT for a Christmas resolution?
If someone voted NO on both and said it's because he/she believes such resolutions are not the job of congress...well, I might not agree but at least you're consistent. Fine.
But to vote selectively...I want to hear the reasons.
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I'm not voting for Ron Paul because it's not expressly prescribed in the Constitution.
-- Mark Hemingway, The Corner (NRO)
I would also say I am not shocked for it is the Democrat Party.
Freedom of Religion not Freedom from Religion
Sure it's nothing new, and it may be a statement of fact, but consider a hypothetical parallel statement (courtesy of another site):
The House of Representatives
(1) recognizes white as one of the great skin colors of the world;
(2) expresses continued support for white people in the United States and worldwide;
(3) acknowledges the international cultural and historical importance of white skin;
(4) acknowledges and supports the role played by white people in the founding of the United States and in the formation of the western civilization;
(5) rejects bigotry and persecution directed against white people, both in the United States and worldwide; and
(6) expresses its deepest respect to white Americans and white people throughout the world.
How deeply do these simple statements of fact resonate with you?
Shame on those who tabled this resolution. Kudos to those who refuse to endorse any such resolutions.
Replace white in your statement with Rational. I'd do it myself but its not worth the effort.
______________________________
"Those who expect to reap the blessings of freedom must, like men, undergo the fatigue of supporting it."
-Thomas Paine: The American Crisis, No. 4, 1777
The difference is, I don't see these as a "simple statements of fact".
You've made word substitutions that invalidate the statements.
--------------------------------------
I'm not voting for Ron Paul because it's not expressly prescribed in the Constitution.
-- Mark Hemingway, The Corner (NRO)
I'm not clear on what you're saying. The resolution and its "white" alternative celebrate the historical and contemporary contributions of two identifiable (majority) groups. How is the "white" version any less valid than the Christian version?
...voted for the Ramadan and against (or abstained from voting on) the Christmas one.
We'll agree that some who voted for one of these resolutions deserve our contempt. I'll just take it a little further to say that all who endorsed any or both of the religious resolutions deserve the same contempt.
...deserves "contempt," but I certainly wouldn't begrudge you the right to consider both bills superfluous and beyond the scope of what Congress should concern itself with.
Call it even? :-)
The House of Representatives
(1) recognizes white as one of the inferior skin colors of the world;
(2) expresses continued abandonment of white people in the United States and worldwide;
(3) dismisses the international cultural and historical importance of white skin;
(4) dismisses and abandons the role played by white people in the founding of the United States and in the formation of the western civilization;
(5) supports bigotry and persecution directed against white people, both in the United States and worldwide; and
(6) expresses its deepest disdain for white Americans and white people throughout the world.
The choice is clear, for which do you vote?
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Vista really sucks!
Perhaps the real alternative is for our representatives not to affirm any particular religion or skin color.
It's feel-good stupidity. Because many will read between the lines, it can also be very divisive.
The only good thing; they are spending time on this non-sense rather than continuing to confiscate our earnings and wealth and limiting our freedoms.
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Vista really sucks!
I find it peculiar that the title of the Christian resolution is
"Recognizing the Importance of Christmas and the Christian Faith"
while the title of the other resolution is
"Recognizing the Commencement of Ramadan"
Since the text of the resolution talks about Islam, why not put it in the title? There were 41 "present" votes by Republicans for the Islam bill. Do they read these aloud before voting? I would think even the most anti-Muslim congressman might vote "present" rather than "no" if they thought that the resolution was only recognizing the start of a holiday, not the glorification of Islam.
Let us not forget these anti Christian people, constantly remind folks that they voted against Christmas and Christians - post their pictures in a hall of shame.
These are things that work in the internet age.
Isn't the point of this post crystal clear? Democrats are Godless people that hate Christians and Christmas and love the terrorists.
How else can you read it?
I've better tell the 50% of my neighbors that are Dems to take down their Christmas decorations and stop following me to church on Sunday.
The resolution states:
Whereas since the terrorist attacks on the United States on September 11, 2001, threats and incidents of violence have been directed at law-abiding, patriotic Americans of African, Arab, and South Asian descent, particularly members of the Islamic faith;
This IS amazing. The restraint of our country against members of Islam has been unbelievable. These radicals truly hate our country.
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Vista really sucks!
You must know that only ONE of these faiths, Christianity, is responsible for the ills the world is plagued with presently, the long litany from the Crusades to the Spanish Inquisition of destroying everything good, and of course the theocracy we have here in America today.
You must know this. It's an objective fact. :)