Christian Persecution In The United States?

[Hassan]

I hear this idea flirted with by many conservative Christians, that Christians in America are somehow persecuted.



Approximately 85% of the US identifies themselves as a Christian. Every President saince Jefferson (except perhapse Lincoln?) has been a Christian, both cannidates presently are professing Christians, the over whelming majority of the legislature are professing Christians, and Christians make up a majority of the Supream Court.



I really find claims of "persecution" hard to swallow in light of overwhelming political and economic dominance

what am I mising here?

Edited August 20, 2008 by Hassan

[princessgianna]

[quote name='Hassan' post='1632202' date='Aug 19 2008, 09:39 PM']I hear this idea flirted with by many conservative Christians, that Christians in America are somehow persecuted.



Approximately 85% of the US identifies themselves as a Christian. Every President saince Jefferson (except perhapse Lincoln?) has been a Christian, both cannidates presently are professing Christians, the over whelming majority of the legislature are professing Christians, and Christians make up a majority of the Supream Court.



I really find claims of "persecution" hard to swallow in light of overwhelming political and economic dominance

what am I mising here?[/quote]

This is what I see!
So many people claim to Christian. You are right. The problem is they are a what I like to call a "Convenient Christian" AKA "we celebrate Christmas and when it is popular, actually act like Christ and When it is not we ignore Christ and do whatever we want to"!

[CatherineM]

I don't know about Christian, but I have certainly been discriminated against for being Catholic. There were kids on my block growing up that weren't allowed to play with us because we were Catholic. I've lost job opportunities when the interviewer found out. I once had my head pounded into a marble floor for saying the Hail Mary.

[exquisitebones]

[quote name='CatherineM' post='1632419' date='Aug 19 2008, 10:13 PM']I don't know about Christian, but I have certainly been discriminated against for being Catholic. There were kids on my block growing up that weren't allowed to play with us because we were Catholic. I've lost job opportunities when the interviewer found out. I once had my head pounded into a marble floor for saying the Hail Mary.[/quote]


to a lesser extent for sure I see this often. if any one is discriminated against in america, its for sure the catholics.
for some reason, everyone wants to hate us.

my own father in law, called "my" church the "whore of babylon" ?
(he is a JW)
its crazy.. people get down right nasty against us.

[CatherineM]

[quote name='exquisitebones' post='1632423' date='Aug 20 2008, 12:19 AM']to a lesser extent for sure I see this often. if any one is discriminated against in america, its for sure the catholics.
for some reason, everyone wants to hate us.

my own father in law, called "my" church the "whore of babylon" ?
(he is a JW)
its crazy.. people get down right nasty against us.[/quote]

I can't tell you how many times Christian Identity guys have called me the whore of babylon or a papist or an idol worshiper.

[exquisitebones]

[quote name='CatherineM' post='1632428' date='Aug 19 2008, 10:31 PM']I can't tell you how many times Christian Identity guys have called me the whore of babylon or a papist or an idol worshiper.[/quote]
seriously.. I dont get it. why do they hate us so much?

also. I dont fully even understand the whore of babylon comment, but that may just be my own ignorance of the terminology.

[CatherineM]

[quote name='exquisitebones' post='1632432' date='Aug 20 2008, 12:37 AM']seriously.. I dont get it. why do they hate us so much?

also. I dont fully even understand the whore of babylon comment, but that may just be my own ignorance of the terminology.[/quote]

I don't know. I mean I know why they were mad at me, I'm prickly, but in general why they don't like Catholics is a puzzler. I guess we are just different.

[Justin86]

Catholics definitely get discriminated against in the media. They would pick on Evangelicals just as much too if they were organized enough.

[MilesJesu]

I don't think the persecution comes in an organized form, directly from the government like you find in some places like China or the Middle East. The persecution stems from various groups and is not specifically physical coercive, but rather more subtle.
Take for instance the "separation of Church and State crowd" trying to remove the symbol of the cross from the city seal of Las Cruces, NM. The name of the city means "the crosses" in Spanish and this symbol is what naturally would be expected on the seal. However, there are groups that are attempting to use the courts to advance their agenda against Christianity and argue that having the crosses on the seal is an act that "establishes" Christianity as the national religon. This tendency is also evidenced by nativity displays being banned along with strong opposition against public scholarships (funding) being used at a christian school.
As for the persecution singled out for Catholics, I think that comes with the nature of who we are. If the Church is the Body of Christ, then as the Body of Christ, we should expect to be persecuted just as Christ was. As long as the Church stands as a beacon revealing the Light of Christ, the Church will be hated and villified. Recall Jn 3:19-20: "19 And this is the judgment, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. 20 For every one who does evil hates the light, and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed."
As for the Whore of Babylon thing, that comes pirmarily from the book of Revelation, Chapter 17. Those people are taught from an early age that as part of the "end times" the Catholic Church is the "Whore of Babylon" found in Revelation and that the Pope is the anti-Christ.

This is just what I have experienced.

Peace,

MilesJesu

[Didacus]

[quote name='exquisitebones' post='1632432' date='Aug 20 2008, 01:37 AM']seriously.. I dont get it. why do they hate us so much?

[snip][/quote]

Because we hold the Truth in its fullness.

From the moment the Truth was psoken into the world, the Truth was hated by men.




I have had my professional engineering competence questionned due to my Catholic beliefs. I have had peers laugh in my face because of it.

Even some of my borthers nad sisters commonly mock my beliefs and 'ignorant' or 'childish' and others comments of the like are commonly used to describe my person.

[Madame Vengier]

Because Christians--especially Catholics--challenge the staus quo. They challenge the entire world order. Lots of people don't like that.

[cmotherofpirl]

My grandfather, a scots presbyterian, couldn't get a job after he married my irish catholic grandmother. I have had people tell me, I'm not a bad person, considering I'm catholic. My aunt of the southern baptist group lovingly and frequently told me how we were going to hell because we were idol worshippers. My own fundie neighbor who I have known for 50 years, hands me rosaries she gets in the mail in an envelope so she doesn't touch them. And I live in an area with a high catholic population

[desertwoman]

Catholics are perecuted because this nation is protestant. The Irish and other groups were discriminated against due to this fact and it is a shame.

Many people even had conspiracy theories that when Kennedy became President, the Pope was going to take over the US. This is how heavy and hard the rift and hatred between protestants and catholics are today.

[Didacus]

[quote name='desertwoman' post='1641403' date='Aug 29 2008, 11:28 AM']Catholics are perecuted because this nation is protestant. The Irish and other groups were discriminated against due to this fact and it is a shame.

Many people even had conspiracy theories that when Kennedy became President, the Pope was going to take over the US. This is how heavy and hard the rift and hatred between protestants and catholics are today.[/quote]

And yet here in Canada, and no where more so than in 'catholic Quebec', anyone who professes deep Catholic beliefs is marginalized and ridiculed.

[princessgianna]

[quote name='Hassan' post='1632202' date='Aug 19 2008, 08:39 PM']I hear this idea flirted with by many conservative Christians, that Christians in America are somehow persecuted.



Approximately 85% of the US identifies themselves as a Christian. Every President saince Jefferson (except perhapse Lincoln?) has been a Christian, both cannidates presently are professing Christians, the over whelming majority of the legislature are professing Christians, and Christians make up a majority of the Supream Court.



I really find claims of "persecution" hard to swallow in light of overwhelming political and economic dominance

what am I mising here?[/quote]


we speak the truth!
right after we became a nation a lot of people would not let a Catholic hold office (there goes "with liberty and justice for all" right out the window) because they were afraid that we would make them 'worship' the Pope' and unite with Rome. These people were called masons(didn't they start in France?) (aka anti catholic) and George Washington was one! so it has been since the founding of this country makes me sad but I got the Truth what is better than that???