Jesus Christ On The Issues


It was just another narrowly focused commentary by Rush Limbaugh, touching on oil companies, the military, the value of the dollar, the decline of America, Jesus Christ, tax hikes, the deficit, entitlements, General Motors, and abortion. But he seemed particularly exorcised when he remarked

Folks, I cannot tell you how righteously offended I am at these people who 364 days a year try to make a mockery of Christianity and Christians, on one day a year now try to come out and appropriate Jesus Christ as their own. Not because of His message, but so they can manipulate it and further their agenda.

In January, 2008 Mark McDonald from the left whether we

Remember the "What would Jesus do?" campaign that was popular back in the 1990s? It was a slogan used by many Christians as a reminder to follow Jesus in their daily lives. These days, Republicans have borrowed the phrase as part of their creepy, ongoing deification of their hero, Ronald Reagan. Recently, right-wing hacks Sean Hannity and Laura Ingraham have been touting the Heritage Foundation's "What would Reagan do?" campaign. The "What would Reagan do?" slogan (often abbreviated as "WWRD") recently took off like wildfire across the right-wing Web. Wingnut bloggers pontificate on the subject and online merchants peddle WWRD T-shirts and other products.

From the right while writing on the website of right-wing World Net Daily, Rebecca Hagelin that same month asserted

Which brings us back to the thousands and thousands of candidates running for local, state and national offices this year. When pondering a policy question, they should ask themselves, What Would Reagan Do? The Heritage Foundation has partnered with talk show greats Sean Hannity and Laura Ingraham in a new year-long campaign to invite citizens and candidates to ponder this very question. There is no better role model to help navigate the choppy waters of politics, today and well into the future.

Search on the Heritage.org website even today for "what would Reagan do?" and up pops "What Would Reagan Do?"; "Defense Spending: What Would Reagan Do?"; New Start: What Would Reagan Do?"; Heritage In Focus: What Would Reagan Do?"; "Immigration: What Would Reagan Do?: Heritage In Focus." The (four) authors may not have believed Ronald Reagan was the second coming, but they didn't mind if you did.

Three years ago, the right knew what Ronald Reagan and Jesus Christ would have decided on a wealth of issues. Now, Rush Limbaugh tells us what side Jesus would have taken on spending issues:

Taxes and budget cuts, what would Jesus do? Well, what would Jesus take? That's the question people need to ask to put this in perspective. Of course the answer is, nothing.

And you knew that Limbaugh, who neatly divides the country into "producers" and "non-producers," would shamelessly ask rhetorically

Would Jesus approve of Democrats fanning the flames of class warfare for the sole purpose of being reelected?

Unlike, evidently, Limbaugh, I've checked ontheissues.org in vain to find the position statements of Jesus Christ (R-USA) and don't know if he would be aghast at class warfare, although it is written

And Jesus entered the temple and drove out all who sold and bought in the temple, and he overturned the tables of the money-changers and the seats of those who sold pigeons. (Matthew 21:12, ESV)

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