"Jesus speaks through the Republicans" or: how some Christians use politics to self-destruct their own religion

Nope, this ain't from The Onion and don't think that I didn't mistake it for parody either 'cuz at first I did. Boyz and goylz, this is legit... unless this was some disgruntled anti-Bush person who took this route to make Bush supporters look ridiculous. After THIS election I'll concede that ANYTHING is possible, that the bar is now so low that there's nothing that people on either side won't do to destroy the other. Anyway, this is from The Morning Call newspaper out of Allentown, Pennsylvania. Here's the direct link if you be so lacking in faith that this is legit. But just in case that link goes down I'm gonna cut-'n-paste the full letter right here:

Jesus speaks through the Republicans

I hope the election of George W. Bush is seen as a wake-up call to all the liberal Democrats who oppose God's will.

It is His doing that George W. Bush is still our president. Millions of born-again Christians helped win this election through our prayers and votes. Jesus speaks through the Republicans.

The Democrats will not be able to win elections until they renounce their sinful ways and stop encouraging abortions, gayness, and trying to take away our guns.

Earl Balboa
Washington Township

Ummmm... no Earl, it wasn't God's will that George W. Bush was elected and if you believe that it was, then you are destroying a bedrock foundation of your own faith because by stating that the outcome of this election was God's choice then it logically follows that there is no free will or choice at all on the part of the individual. And if the individual has no free will then it follows that a person cannot choose whether or not to turn away from sin. Therefore, it logically follows that there was no reason for Jesus Christ to have come... or worse, that He did come but His sufering and death were ultimately meaningless and served no purpose at all. Which lends itself toward only four possible conclusions that can possibly come from what Earl is suggesting here: (1) Jesus Christ was not the Son of God but was a lying ordinary human being, (2) Jesus Christ was not the Son of God because He was terminally insane, (3) God exists and He is insane, or (4) there is no God.

GOD DID NOT DIRECT THE OUTCOME OF THIS ELECTION TO SUIT THE REPUBLICANS. And anyone who suggests that He did had better accept that God made the German people vote in Adolf Hitler or (some will shudder at this) that God decreed that Bill Clinton would be the American President from 1993 to 2001. No doubt that God could have done so, given that He's all-powerful, but He couldn't do that in this situation without violating everything that is in accordance with His nature. Just as He gives each person the choice of whether they will serve Him or not, God gave we the people of the United States the free and clear choice to govern ourselves... which more often than not directly correlates to how much we allow Him to govern our own hearts. But we still have the final choice of determining how this plays out. That does NOT mean that we can make God's plans go awry though: as my best friend beautifully put it to me a few years ago, "you can't mess up with God no matter how bad you do something." Whichever way we screwed this election up - and we're going to screw up regardless of outcome so long as we remain good little slaves to the two-party kleptocracy - God's plans are going to win out in the end. And without anyone, much less a political party, playing a role in it "lest it should boast."

Did God know the outcome of this election (whatever outcome that may turn out to be) beforehand? Given that He's omnipotent, of course He did. But if anything, He allowed it to happen... meaning that He's letting us live with the consequences of our own choices and actions... instead of directly intervening to tilt things one way or another. I mean, c'mon: does anyone not a few cans short of a six-pack seriously believe that Almighty God, Creator of the Universe, Architect of the Heavens, Delver of the Depths, Maker of All Things Great and Small, Sovereign of the Visible and Invisible, Final Arbiter Between Good and Evil, Perfect and Righteous Judge of the Living and the Dead, the Authority From Which All Authority Derives, the Glory Defying Comprehension, the Peace Beyond Understanding, the Wisdom Surpassing All Human Foolishness, the Justice Without Question and yet the Love Without Bounds, the Lord of All That Is Or Ever Will Be... what need or interest could God possibly have with the Republican Party?

But if some people would rather that we wait for a puff of white smoke to come out of the chimney of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue to indicate that God has chosen a new President, I guess we can change the Constitution to allow for that too, huh?