Fran Eaton's Anti-Christianism Rises Again as Obama Heats Up, UPDATED
I have written several times before, as have others (here and here by ArchPundit plus here by Pastor Dan), about the anti-Christianism emanating from conservative Illinois Review editor Fran Eaton when it comes to her perverse discussions of the church where her apparent nemesis Sen. Barack Obama worships, Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago.
Trinity United is hardly different from any other Christian church around the world. It is community-focused and reflects its congregation, to be sure, but that is no different than any other house of worship. In fact, in recent weeks, there was a great outpouring of sympathy throughout Chicagoland for Trinity United as their energetic and joy-filled choir director was found murdered under mysterious circumstances.
Ms. Eaton herself is both a self-proclaimed "Christian" (which is odd given how staunchly she opposes this one church) and is also rabidly anti-Obama. She was an Alan Keyes campaigner in 2004 when he packed his Maryland bags and ran for Senate against Obama here in Illinois. She also opposed then-State Sen. Obama for many years before his US Senate run on issue after issue in Springfield.
Unfortunately for those who value honest debate Ms. Eaton's biases are leading her to infopimp twisted hokum that just isn't true and, despite the fact honest Americans have repeatedly pointed this out, she is continuing to do so. Perhaps the glare of the spotlights is too appealing as she plays the part of publicity hound busily burying bones of out-of-context hooey here, there and everywhere she can.
To put it bluntly, Ms. Eaton is diametrically opposed to Sen. Obama and would be happy to tear him down any way she can and in the wake of his big Iowa win and close New Hampshire second, several more conservative media outlets are all too happy to help her continue to shovel her bull.
She began last year by originally using the hyperbole that Trinity United espoused "black supremacy" and is "racist" among other choice words. The local Star Newspaper group even gave her a forum for publishing her strange ramblings to a wider audience than the narrowcasted conservative blog Illinois Review allows (there's that gosh-darned [not so] "liberal" media again). Many in that newspaper's audience were nonplussed.
In fact, it was one of her newspaper columns which touched off this peculiar series of anti-Christian infopimping that she is all too happy to continue. From the original Fran Eaton column in the local Chicago suburban Star Newspapers:
"It is troubling that his church’s doctrine may demand he promote affirmative action, racial quotas, reparations, bussing and more government programs dependent upon skin color."
Of course, nowhere in any Trinity United material is any of this actually "promoted", despite these claims from staunchly conservative Ms. Eaton. Besides, I'm sure all the white folks who worship at Trinity United (there are several white congregants) would be just as surprised to learn of these things as other honest folks are. Indeed, Trinity United's head pastor, Rev. Jeremiah Wright, is opposed to any notion of "supremacy" whatsoever and isn't afraid to say so.
Oddly, Ms. Eaton claims that the fact Rev. Wright has written a series of tenets called the "Black Values System" is some sort of evidence of her non-existent black supremacy movement at the church. Yet, in reading what those values actually are they appear to be little different in tone than the "conservative values" espoused by Ms. Eaton* herself as I explained in an earlier post on the topic:
Is there a place for such nattering nabobs of negativity in today’s partisan political marketplace? Apparently yes, as Fran Eaton’s Chicken Little cries of “racist church” continue to be echoed throughout conservativedom with constant drips and drabs of “some say Sen. Obama’s church is racist” sprinkled throughout conservative talk shows and publications.
Here, again, is another quarter for the Clue Bus: “middleclassness” (like the rest of the 12-points at TUCC) is a way for the church to encourage its congregants to rise above the base material-centered world and become engaged in a Christ-centered fellowship of responsibility and accountability.
And here I thought that was what the so-called social conservatives also wanted to encourage — anti-materialism, responsibility for one’s self and a Christ-filled life.
Unfortunately, in their blind partisan zealotry they’d rather spout off anti-Christian fiction about a church they don’t like just because one of its members happens to be running for president. (Can you imagine the fire and brimstone if the coin were flipped and partisan liberals repeatedly lied about Pres. Bush’s church like this?)
Ms. Eaton has since ratcheted down her heated rhetoric (barely) as she began to attract the publicity she sought. Such "liberal" (not) media icons as Tucker Carlson and Sean Hannity picked up the malarkey on their TV shows... malarkey ultimately traced back to Ms. Eaton herself. And even supposedly neutral outlets like CNN ("Is Sen. Barack Obama's church racist?") and dead tree media like the Chicago Tribune ("...South Side church's tenets spark criticism...") and USA Today ("Activist Obama church enters spotlight") have helped Ms. Eaton infopimp the non-controversy by distributing stories based on her twisted interpretation of Trinity United.
For one thing, all churches by their very nature are "activist". For another, all churches promote their "values". Finally, as explained above, all churches promote the notion that congregants ought to better both themselves and their communities. In these regards, Barack Obama's Trinity United is no different in its efforts than Fran Eaton's church.
So there must be some other reason for Ms. Eaton to be so adamant in her promotion of these racially-tinged fallacies about Trinity United Church of Christ.
ArchPundit believes it may have something to do with the fact Trinity's Rev. Wright opposes Pres. Bush and his failed policies (which have been none too kind to America's black communities). Ms. Eaton is a staunchly partisan Bush supporter willing to go toe to toe with anyone to defend "W".
Others allude to the notion Ms. Eaton, as white as wonder bread, is trying to tell black folks "how they should speak, act, and think". If this is the case it would, obviously, be a subtle form of racism stemming from some superiority complex. To be honest, though, I've only ever seen ignorance of racial matters from her (ie, she's simply blissfully unaware of what some black Americans have to endure even to this day) -- not blatant racism. That said, Ms. Eaton clearly thinks her outside-the-mainstream beliefs are superior to all others and will often brook almost no difference of opinion.
It may also be related to the fact many conservatives do not consider the United Church of Christ to be a "real" denomination or, at the least, to be too "liberal" a denomination. I wonder if these same partisans actually think Christ cared about politics and partisanship?!
Bottom line, Ms. Eaton is promoting this schlock not out of respect for Christianity (clearly, far from it) but because she is conservative and Obama is not. Her partisanship has blinded her to the fact that she is attacking her fellow Christians (that is, if she actually can even still be considered Christian given the false witness she is bearing in her quest for publicity and self-promotion).
For more debunking of conservatives' baloney about Obama,visit:
- Snopes.com (neutral fact checking resource)
- Media Matters for America (media fact checking resource, debunking conservative partisans' fallacies)
- Halfrican Revolution (an individual citizen's blog)
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* - By way of explanation, Ms. Eaton is on the staff of the linked United Republican Fund (linked above as reference to conservative "values"). URF annually publishes their "values scorecards" to track legislators. Apparently even conservative white people like Ms. Eaton have what they consider to be "values"....
Disclosure: I'm supporting Barack Obama and have done some minor volunteer work for his campaigns in Illinois (both for Senate in 2004 and President in 2007/8).
c/p at Illinois Reason, Daily Kos, and Prairie State Blue
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UPDATE: Ms. Eaton replies, more on that later over at Illinois Reason. Take her reply for what it's worth (not much considering she finds the fact others consider her "vapid" to somehow be insulting).
22 comments:
Saint Paul, proud Citzen of Rome, never wrote the Legions should redeploy away from the Parthians.
Wright's visit to Castro coupled with subsequent silence on imprisonment of Cubans of African Heritage like Guillermo Fariñas or Dr. Biscet makes me wonder about how Afro centric his theology is. There are exceptions.
Unlike the Apostles, Wright did not journey to convert a pagan, or even just preach Liberty and Democracy.
Gov. George Ryan, for all his faults a democratically elected leader, went and visited Castro and (unfortunately) a rash of democracy did not break out on the Communist island.
It's pretty darn easy to cherrypick one or two examples of whatever you like and try to tarnish someone's reputation over it.
And in doing so all you've accomplished, Bill, is to distract the topic away from Ms. Eaton's opposition to the Christians worshipping at Trinity United bsaed on partisan (rather than religious) grounds.
As far as "Afro centrism," even Pres. Bush had promised monetary aid to African nations for combating AIDS, poverty, terrorism, etc. (He's broken many of those promises, but that's another story.)
Re: George Ryan and his faults,
Former Chicago Police Commander Jon Burge and officers serving under him stand accused of torturing some 200 mostly African-American men in custody in the '70s and '80s. In 2002, after a criminal investigation, four who had been sentenced to death and spent over a total of 70 years behind bars on false confessions extracted through torture were pardoned, Governor Ryan issued a moratorium on executions and a package of reforms was passed.
From Laura Flander's in The Nation blog: Obama be bold: Break with a Backer on Torture.
Maybe it's time for Ryan to get a break.
I'm not a Christian and stay out of their battles. When they visit tyrants though, to sell them corn as Ryan did, or hokum to Americans about Castro as Wright did, well then I figure qualified to comment.
As far as Religion goes, I'll stick with Stockdale's Epictetus,
Stockdale said that when he was shot down and parachuted into the arms of his Vietnamese captors in 1965, he whispered to himself: ‘Five years down there, at least. I’m leaving the world of technology and entering the world of Epictetus.’
Are Fran’s statements over the top? Of course they are. That’s just Fran being Fran. Usually, I don’t pay much attention to her writings or the inevitable controversy surrounding them, but your lengthy rejoinder got me thinking: how would blacks and/or Democrats feel if a white Republican presidential candidate was a member of a church that explicitly promoted "a White worship service and ministries which address the White Community?”
Grand Old,
I don't recall whites being a minority that has historically (and even to this day) been oppressed through a variety of means by the majority.
That said, there are plenty of white Christian churches which help white people (white people can be in poverty too, in fact, they are the majority of folks who are in poverty in this country).
White people also celebrate their heritage through a variety of means -- the St. Patrick's Day, Columbus Day, Casmir Pulaski Day and their associated parades, etc. are just a few.
There are also many other ethnic groups which worship within their communities -- we have several local Hispanic, Korean, etc. services right here in the suburbs. As I pointed out in my post, this is nothing new among churches.
You're missing the point and doing so unfortunately ends up promoting racial divisiveness (as it does with Ms. Eaton's claims of black "supremacy," "racism," and "separatism"). Whether you or she does so deliberately I can't say.
But in terms of Trinity United Church of Christ's tenets, they really aren't all that different from various conservative groups' tenets, as I pointed out.
And as that particular congregation goes, one of the UCC's caucasian worshippers noted at Illinois Review earlier:
...I can personally assure everyone that this congregation is by no means racist or exclusionary. The "Black Value System" is both a reflection of the community Trinity UCC serves and also exemplifies the church's effort to serve the poor, marginalized, and displaced. There is really nothing racist about it. All people, regardless of race, are welcome to membership in Trinity UCC...
PS Grand Old,
You write, "Are Fran’s statements over the top? Of course they are. That’s just Fran being Fran. Usually, I don’t pay much attention to her writings or the inevitable controversy surrounding them"
...Clearly, based on the numerous "reports" in conservative and legacy media, other people are paying attention to her writings. Thus the need for a reality check.
Some where on IR you'll find me noting to Fran the real problem with Wright's UCC is not the racism she sees in it's Afro Centric theology. That seems no different than the Irish Catholicism I recall from South Oak Park.
The problem with the UCC is the cozying up with tyrants as Wright did in Castro, and as The Forward noted more recently in the war between Israel and Hezbollah.
Liberal Churches Slam Israel By Daniel Treiman,
Some of the harshest criticism of Israel has come from the 1.3-million-member United Church of Christ. In a “Pastoral Letter to Palestinian Friends and Partners,” the denomination’s president, the Rev. John Thomas, denounced the “massive destruction” of Palestinian infrastructure, decried Israel’s separation barrier and condemned the “complicity” of the American government in the sanctions against the Palestinian Authority, which “have caused a financial strangulation of vital political, educational and humanitarian institutions.”
In his letter to the Palestinians - which drew an angry response from the Los Angeles-based Simon Wiesenthal Center - Thomas also criticized “many Christians” in the United States “who see only Israel’s need for security, who focus only on a few terrorist acts which you yourselves condemn,” and he complained, “Many in our own churches are subject to intense lobbying by Jewish groups demonizing the Palestinian community.” He proclaimed the UCC’s “readiness to use our church’s economic resources, including the possibility of divestment, to press for an end to the occupation and to support peacemaking and the Palestinian community.”
It's what's passing for Liberal today in Liberal Christianity that's the problem.
They're not so Afro Centric as to join in Communion with Anglicans in Uganda or Nigeria.
Africa has it's limits for the UCC and that's one of them.
I just wish they'd reconsider the moral blank checks they tend to write Castro or Hezbollah.
Fran should hit them on that instead.
Bill Baar, changing the subject again, said: "Fran should hit them on that instead."
As long as UCC gets hit on something, right Bill? Refute Fran's ridiculous portrayal of Obama's church with more ridiculousness.
"Cozying up to tyrants" Really? Is that what they're up to? What part of "blessed be the peace makers" is too liberally Christian for you?
Kudos to Rob Nesvacil for stayting on the Illinois Review beat. His work is truly a public service.
Much ado about little. The people who read and listen to Ms Eaton really aren't very likely to be Obama supporters, are they? And, in general, Obama supporters aren't very likely to be people persuaded by the writings of Ms Eaton and her ilk. I don't think she costs Barack many votes, and may bring him quite a few ("if she doesn't like him, I probably do")
Why has Obama been silent on Jon Burge and police torture?
47th Ward, Precisely.
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Steve, Ms. Eaton sees a need to exercise her 1A rights by promoting her hokum.
I see a need to exercise them by calling her out on it.
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Why has Anonymous been silent on the bilking of taxpayer dollars at the hands of war profiteers, let alone the abuses allegedly committed by mercenaries, during Pres. Bush's watch?
Possibly worse, why has Anonymous tried to change the subject with a weak attempt at guilt-by-association?
As long as UCC gets hit on something, right Bill?
Just their Leaders statements in support of Hezbollah when it attacked Israel.
Just Wright's visits to Cuba.
As a Unitarian Universalist (cousins of the UCC), and member of my Church's Social Justice Committee, I like to point out instances where our leaders get cozy with Tyrants.
It's not new.
Chicago was a hotbed of Liberal Christians who thought FDR and the United States were greater threats to the world than Hitler or Tojo.
Albert Palmer from my childhood Church, 1st Cong in Oak Park, and then later Chicago Theological Seminary.
Palmer's advice to allies fighting Hitler spoken June 19, 1940, and the strategy he advocated America take instead of joining Britian in War against Hitler included an Economic Defense of,
Whole hearted devotion to solving the problems of social and econoic justice in a democracy. A nation that maintains its civil liberties, overcomes unemployment, repudiates racial prejudice and discrimination, provides decent housing and adequate educational opportunity, will be practically unconquerable. Even though defeated in battle, it would have a social espirt de corps that would survive all military disaster.
So Wright follows long line of Chicago Liberal Christians. All noble goals but the notion we or Britian could have sustained a militray defeat by Hitler and survived as a Liberal Democracy with just espirt de corps a little foolish.
That's what I criticize.
Wright should note hardly anyone remembers Palmer anymore; or Charles Clayton Morrison, John Haynes Holmes, Paul Blakely, Ernest Fremont Tittle, or Georgia Harkness from nearby Garret in Evanston. All once popular Religious leaders in America.
Afro Centric theology may last but Liberals and Progressives avoid the liberal anti war past.. and will probably want to forget Wright's politics in the future too.
Rob said,
Why has Anonymous been silent on the bilking of taxpayer dollars at the hands of war profiteers, let alone the abuses allegedly committed by mercenaries, during Pres. Bush's watch?
A tangent for sure, but since it's here. Your right, and the first question is how did Blackwater get a campus in Illinois, and did Blackwater spring Rezko's friend Alsammarae from jail in Iraq as PM Maliki has said.
That's a question that should be asked a lot.
Bill Baar, changing the subject again, said: "Fran should hit them on that instead."
Fran is the core subject of this post by the way.
She's wrong on Wright's Afro Centric Theology.
She should condem Wright's politics as far to cozy with tyrants.
All seems on topic.
Maybe I just use to many illustrations from history for your taste to complete the frame, but I am topic.
PS
...on topic except for Rob's tangent on war profiteers, but there is a lot of mystry there that's of interest and some of it leads to Chicago.
Bill, the war profiteering comment was snark aimed at "Anonymous" who inserted his/her out-of-left-field guilt-by-association slam.
As for repudiating world leaders or not, keep in mind that Sen. Obama believes in a policy of engagement (I'm speaking very generally here). This follows Christ's teachings of "peace-mongering". Common wisdom tells us that talking with people, rather than ostracizing them, tends to ratchet down violence, intolerance, and a legion of other problems.
Rob_n,
If the Christian Foreign policy you describe,
...follows Christ's teachings of "peace-mongering". Common wisdom tells us that talking with people, rather than ostracizing them, tends to ratchet down violence, intolerance, and a legion of other problems.
Obama may find America not a very Christian nation; common wisdom be damned.
Check Samantha Power's Youtubes by the way.
Slight semantic correction Bill...
Most Americans are indeed Christian, with healthy doses of Judaism, Islam, and many more. But, the creeds of these faiths are not necessarily reflected in foreign policy which, given our Constitution, may be just as well (whether a given citizen approves or dissents from a given foreign policy).
Ain't America grand?
She clearly has some issues.
Rev. Wright's comments didn't bother me all too much cause he did some truths in his rants that we all need to hear. BUT. the $10 million estate the church provides to him in Tinley Park, IL disturbs me immensely and is very indicative of how Chicago Democrats want to solve problems. Keep as much money for themselves to get rich off of, then steal poor people's pay checks to provide more government jobs for family and campaign workers. "Screw you if you're poor, we'll just raise your taxes more" should be the Chicago Democrat motto.
So how can you defend a Church paying for a $10 million estate in Tinley Park while it's preacher is yelling that rich white people are the root of all evil? If you can't beat em join em?
It would be one thing if Rev. Wright were preaching about how all white people are the cause of poverty for blacks and then doing something about it with that $10 million instead of buying an estate for himself. And I know that church has done and does plenty of community charity work, just not with the $10 million they spent on a mansion for Rev. Wright.
But Rev. Wright blames white people for the Democrats failed policies and then takes poor black people's offerings (mostly) and builds himself a mansion?
Rev. Wright and Sen. Obama deserved the scrutiny Ms. Eaton has given them. Americans are better off knowing what goes on in corrupt Chicago Democrat circles than being in the dark as Robbie here would always prefer. Defending Rev. Wright for his misplaced blame is just Rob N. protecting the real story that his party not only fails minorities in Chicago to the tune of only 6 out of 100 Chicago public high school students ending up with college degrees, but makes things worse by taking even more money and resources from poor people than anywhere else in America.
Rob, you must feel stupid now.
This post seems anachronistic.
The poster must feel like really out of touch.
Wright is a wacko.
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