Free Speech and The War of Words
November 4, 2007 by Randy
Filed under Christianity, Church, Culture War, Current Affairs, Film, Holiday, People, Politics, Sports, art
Proverbs 18:20-21 (NKJ)
20 From the fruit of his mouth a man’s stomach is filled;
with the harvest from his lips he is satisfied.21 The tongue has the power of life and death,
and those who love it will eat its fruit.
Last night, after the concert, I went blog surfing and found three articles that stood out to me.
I ran into this article at Newsbusters yesterday. It is titled (and links to) Tony Snow Slams Media in Freedom of Speech Award Address. Then I read about the author of the books behind the new movie The Golden Compass, aimed directly at children, wants to “kill God.” To top off my Saturday evening reading I also learned that China is banning the Bible at the ‘08 Olympics.
There is one stunning theme …
Tony Snow (emphasis mine)
This brings me to the final dangerous factor - a cramped view of the First Amendment itself. News organizations gleefully embrace the First Amendment’s protection of a free press, but what about the two other freedoms - of religion and assembly? The three are linked indissolubly. The assail one is to weaken the other two.
But the journalistic establishment doesn’t seem to appreciate this fact. Religion in this country - Christianity especially - has been redefined as a menace, rather than a bulwark of our social order. Schools no longer acknowledge Christmas, for instance, but they celebrate Kwanzaa.
The onslaught against traditional religion is palpable and real. Despite this, religion flourishes - revealing a profound and growing disconnect between the journalistic establishment and the public, not to mention the political elites who have put many of the strictures in place.
The press does a horrible job of discussing religion - reporters are less likely to attend worship service than the public generally, and are less likely to take a skeptical view of those who want to constrain religious expression. In some cases, one can almost hear a muffled cheer when a court or organization puts a muzzle on those who merely want to express their religious beliefs.
The Golden Compass (emphasis mine)
The series’ author, Philip Pullman, is an avowed atheist who has averred that “I don’t profess any religion; I don’t think it’s possible that there is a God; I have the greatest difficulty in understanding what is meant by the words ’spiritual’ or ’spirituality.’” Critics of Pullman’s books point to the strong anti-religion and anti-God themes they incorporate, and although literary works are subject to a variety of interpretations, Pullman left little doubt about his intentions when he said in a 2003 interview with The Sydney Morning Herald that “My books are about killing God.” (Conservative British columnist Peter Hitchens labeled Pullman “The Most Dangerous Author in Britain” and described him as the writer “the atheists would have been praying for, if atheists prayed.”)
Olympic Bible Ban (emphasis mine)
Will the Bible be banned in Beijing for Olympic athletes? Catholic News Agency reports:
“Organizers of the 2008 Olympics in Beijing have published a list of “prohibited objects” in the Olympic village where athletes will stay. To the surprise of many, Bibles are among the objects that will not be allowed. According to the Italian daily La Gazzetta dello Sport, organizers have cited “security reasons” and have prohibited athletes from bearing any kind of religious symbol at Olympic facilities.“
Also notice that the theme of Christianity being bad and worthy of being attacked/silenced spans from America to Britain to China. Granted, Pullman is against any “spirituality” and the Chinese oppress all religions. Even so, the tenor of American Media, Atheism and Communism usually sets a very anti-Christ agenda above others.
I would encourage you all to read the linked articles for entire context. Especially Tony Snow’s address. It is long but it is definitely worth the investment. I did not think he “slammed” the media but he didn’t pull any punches. I found his address to be very enlightening and helped me understand why the media is the way it is from a historical perspective. Between he and Tammy Bruce’s theories on media groupthink … I think they pretty much nail it.
So … what to do? Well, I think exposing media bias is a must. The new media is doing that and Snow’s address is a compelling accountability statement to modern media. His statements should be spread far and wide and it would be my hope that the Old Media will take note and question itself. It would also be good if college professors and journalism teachers were to take the statement and turn it into class discussions and response essay assignments for the students.
As for The Golden Compass, I will wait till the Christian Community Leaders respond, find the one that is the most redemptive, spiritually sensitive and intellectually comprehensive and then publicize that. I personally don’t feel a need to see a movie based on writings that wants to kill God (so arrogant.) But if our leaders don’t take it to task (which … of course they will) I guess I would reconsider for the purposes of having a response. There has to be a response. I would hope the Christian community would exercise their freedom of assembly somewhere else aside from that particular movie screening.
If anyone knows of any group smuggling Bibles into the Chinese Olympics, let me know … via the contact form under the menu at the top of the page.
So we live in a world that is increasingly stigmatizing Christianity through groupthink inculcated in the infotainment and entertainment industry, I pray that we don’t go the way of China where the church has been driven underground and evangelical Christians “disappear.”
I started this post off with the scripture from Proverbs because it places personal responsibility on the words that we speak. I will quote it again here.
Proverbs 18:20-21 (NKJ)
20 From the fruit of his mouth a man’s stomach is filled;
with the harvest from his lips he is satisfied.21 The tongue has the power of life and death,
and those who love it will eat its fruit.
What do you think?
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