Slumber of indifference

AMEN, Jerome Beigler, AMEN.

Jerome

Our country has a long history of Christians attempting to implement policies that they consider to be in line with their religious beliefs. One only has to read the historical accounts surrounding the Native American Genocide to realize this.

At beginning daylight of November 29, 1864, Col. John Chivington, a former Methodist minister (and still an elder in the church), led about 700 heavily armed soldiers into an Arapaho and Cheyenne village named Sand Creek, Colorado. Several months earlier Chivington, who that year was also a candidate (Republican) for Congress, had announced in a speech that his policy was to "kill and scalp all, little and big."

"Nits make lice," he was fond of saying, and of course, since Indians were lice, their children were nits. Clearly, Chivington was a man ahead of his time: it would be almost a century later before another man would think of describing the extermination of a people "the same thing as delousing": Heinrich Himmler.

The air was cold and crisp. The cavalrymen paused: the village was filled almost entirely with women and children, the men were away on a buffalo hunt and had left only about "thirty-five braves," mostly old men.

A few days before riding into the camp Chivington had been informed that the village could be taken with a small fraction of the troops at his command, not because the Cheyenne men were away on the hunt, but because the people had voluntarily disarmed themselves to demonstrate they were not hostile. Witnesses later reported that Chivington dismissed this news and replied "Well, I long to be wading in gore!".

Old chief Black Kettle tied a white flag to a lodge pole, and above that he tied an American flag that had been given to him by the Commissioner of Indian Affairs. He held the pole high and kept shouting to his people "not to be frightened, that the camp was under protection and there was no danger."

Then the troops opened fire on this mass of women and children, and all began to scatter and run. The massacre was on. As eyewitnesses later recalled:

"I should judge there were between 400 and 500 Indians killed ... Nearly all, men, women, children were scalped. I saw one woman whose private parts had been mutilated,"(testified Robert Bent)

"I saw one squaw cut open with an unborn child, as I thought, lying by her side."(Asbury Bird)

"Next morning after the battle I saw a little boy covered up among the Indians in a trench, still alive. I saw a major in the 3rd regiment take out his pistol and blow off the top of his head." (Corp. Amos Miksch)

"One Indian who had been scalped had also his skull smashed in, and I heard that the privates of White Antelope had been cut off to make a tobacco bag out of."(Capt. L.Wilson).

Our country doesn't need any more Christian Crusaders claiming to act on Gods behalf. The soil of our country is already stained from the blood of those not adhering to others religious beliefs.

Enough is enough!!!!

It is odd that the writer wants to call on people to be like christians and stop abortion when most christians are ok with abortion. Something like 75% of christians believe that it is outright permissable or a thing which should depend on what the mother chooses. Apparently he is not up with the latest available data -- here is some http://www.pewforum.org/Abortion/Abortion-Views-by-Religious-Affiliation.aspx

The data in the above link was published in 2009, but was gathered in 2006-07.

The link listed below is a later poll which shows a vast difference.

http://www.pewforum.org/Abortion/Support-for-Abortion-Slips.aspx

When looking at the topline of the latter poll - It's interesting to note that the vast majority of ALL persons of faith believed that the government was too intrusive into their lives. Viewing the same topline, one also sees that people expressed belief that while they disfavored abortion; they don't believe on infringing on the right of someone else seeking the abortion.

Maybe the first poll reflects the same opinion?

Geezer cherry picks a story out of the past in order to condemn ALL Christian leadership. Nice straw-man Geezer. Our past is full of less than noble human behavior; concerning every race, creed, etc. Mr. Biegler isn't asking to excuse past behavior...he is appealing we change the course of our future by remembering past behavior, learning from it, and not repeating it.

But if you are not using morality given by God to guide your life...what morality are you using?