OPINION
The Clarion
When the persecuted become the persecutors
Column By
ERNEST L.
Chaplain
MILLS, JR.
“A picture can tell a thousand
words.” I turn again to page 197 in
one of the books I used in Seminary
entitled Through the Aees. A History
of the Christian Church. The page
opens a chapter in the history of the
church and above the page is a pen
and ink drawing that tells it all. The
caption reads “Dutch Mennonites
Suffering Persecution for Their Inter
pretation of the Bible.”
In the foreground are several
bodies with decapitated heads. To the
right several priests in robes holding
the Crucifix look on as a man has his
hands chopped off. In the back
ground, several women are praying
before a man being bumed alive. The
tragedy behind all of this is that it de
picts Christians persecuting Chris
tians.
History goes on and there are
countless other such stories that could
be related. For example, during the
Crusades when the “Armies of God,”
carrying banners bearing the cross of
Christ marched into Jerusalem and re
captured the city, Muslim men,
women and children were beheaded
all to the tune of “Marching into War”
and all for the ... glory of God?
It was not a very rewarding
look at the history of Christianity, but
it opened my eyes. Sadder still is the
reality that persecution still exists. It
does not take the form as depicted in
these images from history. Today it
takes another form. The persecution
today is more subtle and less tangible,
more emotional or psychological and
less physical. It is directed toward
both Christians and Non-Christians,
and in some cases “Christians” are the
perpetrators.
Their weapon is not an ax or a
stake, they are not beheading or burn
ing, their weapon is a very subtle
scoffing and ridicule, shunning and
coming across with an air of self-righ-
teous, holier-than-thou, condescend
ing attitudes. They use very subtle
forms of coercion and force imple
menting judgement and condemna
tion and even humor as tools to per
suade non-believers to see things their
way.
I have seen it directed from so
called “Christians” toward Quakers,
Universalists, Unitarians, Jews, His-
panics, gays, victims of aids and the
list goes on and on. In an article pub
lished in The Journal of the Religious
Education Association, Olivia Pearl
Stokes asked this question, “Were not
members of the Ku Klux Klan reli
giously educated in the church?”
We would search the teachings
of Christ in vain for any mandate or
even hint that persecution in any way,
shape or form is to be embraced by
anyone who calls him/herself a fol
lower. In fact Jesus tells his followers
that they can expect persecution. Al
low me to let Jesus speak;
“I say unto you. Love your en
emies, do good to them which hate
you. Bless them that curse you, and
pray for them which despitefully use
you. And unto him that smiteth thee
on the one cheek offer also the other;
and him that taketh away thy cloak
forbid not to take away thy coat also
... and as ye would that men should
do to you, do ye also to them like
wise. For if ye love them which do
good to you, what thank have ye? For
sinner also do even the same ... But
love ye your enemies, and do good,
and lend, hoping for nothing again;.
.. ye shall be Children of the High
est: for he is kind unto the unthankful
and to the evil. Be ye therefore mer
ciful, as your Father also is merciful.”
(Luke 6:27-36)
Have we even yet begun this
journey?
Prime time television needs dose of reality
Column By
LENORA MOODY
I remember watching the “A-
team,” “Night Rider,” “Mayberry”
and many other shows while grow
ing up. Now every TV show I come
across differs tremendously from
those memories.
Recent programs center around
relationships, aliens, detectives and
news, but the storylines do not have
one main event. My childhood TV
shows had a character with one
struggle or problem and their battle
to conquer the area of difficulty. Now
TV has many characters, with many
struggles and many episodes of con
quering.
The plots of sitcoms and drams
were once clear, crisp and to the point.
Now it is “watch for a month and
maybe you will discover what is re
ally happening.”
Some programs like the “X-
Files” and “Profiler” intrigue me
enough to make me watch month af
ter month. New shows like “Once and
Again,” “Ally McBeal” and “Freaks
and Geeks” consist of same or simi
lar plot lines every episode.
I know some people would ar
gue the only plot X-Files composes
is about aliens. Yet, the X-Files is dif
ferent in weaving a story. One epi
sode is about this man being involved
with the alien plot and the next is dis
covering a deadly virus connected to
the aliens.
The new shows coming out on
TV deal with the same controversies.
One controversy is love. They pro
voke society into believing there must
always be a girlfriend, boyfriend,
fiance, husband, wife or some other
lover. Why don’t the producers cre
ate a TV show dealing with people
living in a real world, with actual
struggles (like death, no job, college
pressure, etc.) in order to show the
benefits of independence, and that all
we need is motivation, self-respect
and the support of our families to con
quer life.
One show was headed this way.
Party of Five.” It dealt with the loss
of parents, finding a job, keeping the
THE CLARIO
M STAFF
1 Letters to The Clarion should be sent to: I
Wendy Jo Allen
Trevaughn Mayz
j Brevard College [
1 MG 126 1
Wendy Byerly
Rachel Mikaelsen
j 400 N. Broad j
Michelle Crabtree
Stephen Rosenthal
1 Brevard, NC 28712 I
1 1
Chris Fredrickson
Jessica Rodriguez
Will Hatcher
Jamie Welch
1 All letters will be edited for libel, journalistic style and .
1 format. |
Mindi Hockenberry
Lenora Moody
Summer Worley
1 1
1 A contact name and number must be included. Names 1
1 will be held by request. j
family together, and much more.
However, when the show was almost
canceled they changed the plot line.
Now almost every episode deals with
“will so and so stay together this week
and are what’s their names getting
married or will they separate?”
I am only one woman’s voice,
but I long for a change in television
shows. I want a real show with heart
break, opinion and true controversies
(like money). I am tired of the fake
shows telling us what life should be
like. TV characters and writers need
to start paying attention to actual
peoples’ lives. I believe they have
forgotten their own since they went
to Hollywood.