I have a question. Why is the billboard that you see to the left here alright to display along a public highway, but a plan by a Muslim group to display similar messages regarding Islam on the New York subway system is causing outrage? (Granted, it’s a New York Post article, but still) The outrage stems from the fact that one of the people involved in it has been tied to Sheik Omar Abdel-Rahman otherwise known as “the blind sheik”.
But so what? Isn’t this exactly what we hope Islamic radicals will do? Put down your weapons, stop the death to America chants, and engage in the process? That’s the process of resolving every conflict, religious and otherwise all around the world. It happened successfully in Northern Ireland, where the IRA stopped bombing folks and took a stake in the political process. So now, instead of plotting to blow up the subway, this guy is plotting to advertise the benefits of his faith in the subway. I don’t know about you, but I’m much less scared of the second than of the first. It all sounds a bit like progress to me.
But back to the point, I understand someone at FOX News will trot out the old tired line that the United States is “a Christian nation.” Despite that being demonstrably untrue, for some reason people keep saying it. The United States was not founded as a Christian nation and has never that I am aware of changed that. This doesn’t mean that I am anti-Christianity. I am in fact… a CHRISTIAN!!! Although like a great majority of people of every faith, I am not a particularly observant member of my faith.
Even as a Christian, I don’t particularly love the Jesus billboards along the highways. Something about them seems like a cheapening of something that is supposed to be dear to people. For the same reason, I think the Islamic project with the New York subway system is equally base. Although at least in this case, the goal is more educational than evangelical. Judge for yourself, here’s a link to the project.
I guess what I’m saying is that if Christians are allowed to engage in the shameless marketing of God, then how can we rationally form our mouths to object when other religions follow suit and cheapen their beliefs in the same manner? What’s good for one has to be good for the other. In fact, that’s sort of the idea our country was founded around.
