The Evils of Radical Fundamentalism

For the last several years, a network of radical fundamentalists has wreaked havoc on the American way of life. No, I'm not talking about al Qaeda, but rather the fundamental Christians who believe they have been ordained by a higher power to right what they believe is wrong with America. James Dobson, Jerry Falwell, Pat Robertson and their powerful, prosperous Christian organizations, have exchanged democracy for theocracy and it hasn't been working out too well for anyone.

This has become all too apparent in light of Attorney General Alberto Gonzales's mess. One of the most profound revelations in the investigation is how many people in the present administration are from Pat Robertson's Regent University School of Law. According to The Boston Globe, graduates of the law school have been among the most influential of the more than 150 Regent University alumni hired to federal government positions since President Bush took office in 2001, according to a university website.

President Bush has been quoted saying that he believes God wanted him to be president. Whether Bush's conversion was authentic or if it was a strategy in order to gather the sheep and secure their votes, something has gone terribly wrong. The president may have sold his soul to the Christian Right in order to get into office, but now that he's been firmly planted there for two terms, one wonders how he can possibly ignore that he's driven our country on the road to hell. Is he that indebted to the Christian Right that he refuses to acknowledge the egregious errors of his ways? Or, because of his low approval rating, does he consider himself a martyr, believing he will eventually be vindicated by some miracle?

Here's the thing: these so-called Christians are not relying on genuine faith, which is supposed to be the bedrock of their belief, but instead rely on manipulation in order to get what they want. Do they not see the contradiction of calculating control over a system that is supposed to be separate from government? If they believe God answers prayer, why didn't they simply ask to have the government handed over to them without going through subversive means? Apparently, prayer alone wasn't good enough.

Still, not a group to be discouraged, when there is the belief that the voice of God is directing them, there is little need to pay attention or account to mere mortals, which is obviously the case for the Bush administration. But, tragically, it is this thinking that has divided our country in so many factions that we are becoming our own worst enemy and the call for America to be blessed seems more like a curse thanks to the radical fundamentalists.