Are they Dominionists?

Today on my Facebook feed, there were links to two separate articles voicing concerns that several of the top presidential hopefuls on the Republican side (duh) of the great political divide have strong ties to….and a strong leaning toward….Christian Theocracy and Dominionism.  Both articles provided a lot of history about the movement which was spawned and promoted by the likes of Rushdoony, Gary North, David Chilton…but its roots go way back,  All the way back to the Old Testament…..and the belief that God’s chosen people (then the Jews…now the Christians) were mandated to take dominion of society. 

Some of these guys were seriously wacko….promoting all kinds of things which were rooted in OT biblical law.  Watch out gays.  Watch out divorcees.  Watch out sassy teenagers. It’s Christendom’s version of Sharia law. 

I wrote a series about that aspect of it a while back …..” No Clean Hands” 

I also wrote a post about something shocking I came across….on line….an article written by William Einwechter, at the time an elder at Immanuel Free Reformed Church in Stevens, Pennsylvania.  He wrote an article about the Biblical mandate to stone disobedient teenagers.  He later published a more thorough explanation of what he meant….not a retraction but a more detailed explanation outlining the criteria.  You can’t just kill your 12 year old for smarting off….there has to be a more sustained pattern of behavior.  But if my family had followed his guidelines….I’d have two living children today instead of three because one of them would have been stoned to death during her years of all out rebellion. 

I’m not sure if the articles are still available online.  The hosting site was (mercifully) hacked.  I think his church is still in full swing though….and his book is still available.  There are quotes and excerpts in my blog post though and some links that are still live.  if anyone is interested in a truly bizarre example of twisting scripture, you can read about it HERE.

One of the articles I read today was authored by Frank “knows of what he speaks” Shaeffer.  His dad, Francis, was one of the forefathers of this movement.  Frank, himself, was a pillar of the far (far) Christian Right until he jumped ship and joined the other side. 

The other article was written by Michelle Goldberg, author of Kingdom Coming: The Rise of Christian Nationalism…and no….never a member of the Christian Right.  Her article is informative and balanced.  Even though Frank wrote from his unique “once upon a time” insider’s perspective, there was some rancor in his writing that was off putting.  Perhaps seeing it all up close and personal like he did stirs up those resentful emotions. 

Christian Domionism flies under the radar.  Both of these articles inform the reader of its origins, its beliefs and its skewed goal of making America into a Christian society….for Christians and non Christians alike…believers and non believers. 

It has more similarities to Sharia Law than differences. 

Check out Frank’s article HERE.  Check out Goldberg’s article HERE.