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StraighTruth

I am a Freelance writer, poet, editor, artist & catoonist. My work is used by several OnLine companies to attract readers. Some of my writings have been translated into Chinese on the internet. I am posted on FaithWriters & Ezine and I edit the Harford County Christian Jail Ministry, (HCCJM) Newsletter, in Harford Co. Maryland. A follower of Christ, I work for the humane treatment of prisoners, the homeless and the disenfranchised

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Monday, December 03, 2007

CBS MORNING COMMENTARY by Ben Stein

"Come now, and let us reason together"
Says the Lord
Isaiah 1:18

The following was written by Ben Stein
and recited by him on CBS Sunday Morning Commentary***
My confession:
I am a Jew, and every single one of my ancestors was Jewish. And it does not bother me even a little bit when people call those beautiful lit up, bejeweled trees Christmas trees. I don't feel threatened. I don't feel discriminated against. That's what they are: Christmas trees. It doesn't bother me a bit when people say, 'Merry Christmas' to me. I don't think they are slighting me or getting ready to put me in a ghetto. In fact, I kind of like it. It shows that we are all brothers and sisters celebrating this happy time of year. It doesn't bother me at all that there is a manger scene on display at a key intersection near my beach house in Malibu . If people want a creche, it's just as fine with me as is the Menorah a few hundred yards away. I don't like getting pushed around for being a Jew, and I don't think Christians like getting pushed around for being Christians. I think people who believe in God are sick and tired of getting pushed around, period. I have no idea where the concept came from that America is an explicitly atheist country. I can't find it in the Constitution and I don't like it being shoved down my throat. Or maybe I can put it another way: where did the idea come from that we should worship Brad and Angelina and we aren't allowed to worship God as we understand Him? I guess that's a sign that I'm getting old, too. But there are a lot of us who are wondering where Brad and Angelina came from and where the America we knew went to. In light of the many jokes we send to one another for a laugh, this is a little different:
This is not intended to be a joke;
it's not funny, it's intended to get you thinking.
Billy Graham's daughter
was interviewed on the Early Show
and Jane Clayson asked her
'How could God let something like this happen?'
(regarding Katrina)
Anne Graham gave an extremely profound
and insightful response.
She said,
'I believe God is deeply saddened by this,
just as we are, but for years
we've been telling God
to get out of our schools,
to get out of our government
and to get out of our lives.
And being the gentleman He is,
I believe He has calmly backed out.
How can we expect God to give us
His blessing and His protection
if we demand He leave us alone?'
In light of recent events...
terrorists attack, school shootings, etc.
I think it started when
Madeleine Murray O'Hare
(she was murdered, her body found recently)
complained she didn't want prayer in our schools,
and we said OK.
Then someone said
you better not read the Bible in school.
The Bible says thou shalt not kill,
thou shalt not steal,
and love your neighbor as yourself.
And we said OK.
Then Dr. Benjamin Spock said
we shouldn't spank our children
when they misbehave
because their little personalities
would be warped
and we might damage their self-esteem
(Dr. Spock's son committed suicide).
We said an expert
should know what he's talking about.
And we said OK.
Now we're asking ourselves
why our children have no conscience,
why they don't know right from wrong,
and why it doesn't bother them to kill strangers,
their classmates, and themselves.
Probably,
if we think about it long and hard enough,
we can figure it out.
I think it has a great deal to do with
'WE REAP WHAT WE SOW.'
Funny how simple it is for people to trash God
and then wonder why the world's going to hell.
Funny how we believe what the newspapers say,
but question what the Bible says.
Funny how you can send 'jokes' through e-mail
and they spread like wildfire
but when you start sending messages regarding the Lord,
people think twice about sharing.
Funny how lewd, crude, vulgar and obscene articles
pass freely through cyberspace,
but public discussion of God is suppressed
in the school and workplace.
Are you laughing?
Funny how when you forward this message,
you will not send it to many on your address list
because you're not sure what they believe,
or what they will think of you for sending it.
Funny how we can be more worried about
what other people think of us
than what God thinks of us.
Pass it on if you think it has merit.
If not then just discard it... no one will know you did.
But, if you discard this thought process,
don't sit back and complain
about what bad shape the world is in.
My Best Regards.
Honestly and respectfully,
Ben Stein
*** This an excerpt from third comment on this post:
While the text you entered is supurb, it is unfortunately mis-quoted. Ben Stein did not in fact write or speak all of that. Most of the quoted text comes from the following two locations: Ben Stein, Dec 18 2005:
+ <>< <>< <>< + ><> ><> ><> +
There are several other links in the comment
This piece came to me as a circulating email this Christmas season of 2007-08
I thought it worthy of reading and posting and I posted the email with text virtually unedited for Christmas.
This is a non-profit weblog! However if any of this material is under the protection of copyright and improperly posted, I will withdraw it from my weblog as soon as I am notified by the copyright holder.
Blessings to all
Aslan

3 Comments:

Blogger dustlynn said...

Wow this is an awesome entry. I truly believe what Ben Stein said about pushing God away and then wondering why such bad things are happening. It shouldnt come as a shock when these things happen. What is a shock is we push and push, bad things happen and then we go looking for the very one we pushed away.

6:01 PM  
Blogger Aslan said...

I'm really glad that you appreciated what Mr.Stein had to say.
I wish I would have written this myself. It is written superbly and every word in my opinion is true.
I know that the secular and the young and the materialist will see little or no Truth in it.
Let us who know and care and have seen His mercy, pray that the Heart of our Nation's people finds God again and soon.

"Blessed is nation whose God is the Lord,
The people He has chosen as His own inheritance" Psalm 33

12:15 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

While the text you entered is supurb, it is unfortunately mis-quoted. Ben Stein did not in fact write or speak all of that. Most of the quoted text comes from the following two locations:

Ben Stein, Dec 18 2005:
http://www.benstein.com/121805xmas.html

Anne Lotz interview [CBS Early Show, Sep 13th, 2001]:
http://www.snopes.com/rumors/wheregod.asp


You can check out this and all other things you read online at this online "fact or fiction?" website:
http://www.snopes.com/

This article in particular can be found here:
http://www.snopes.com/politics/soapbox/benstein2.asp

cheers,
..dane

9:32 AM  

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