Sarah Palin and the Christianity Tangent

I need to develop this more as a specific post on forgiveness...
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Below is a response I made on Jim Schulz' blog (Blog from Bolivia: Bolivia Takes Gold in 'Most Elections' Competition) to some points on Christianity. If I ever stop being so lazy, I'd like to do a proper scripture study on this topic, that is, children who have rebelled and been reconciled, but specifically children of parents considered to be "good" or "God-fearing". Right now Governor Sarah Palin is being held up by both sides. Her detractors call her a poor example, a hypocrite, because she may have gotten pregnant before she married and now that she has her life on track and is a vocal Christian, she has a daughter who is pregnant out of wedlock.
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Does being a Christian, (not just in title, but a practicing, earnest, trying-to-please-God Christian), does that exempt you from having family crises, from having children that repeat our mistakes? Obviously I don't believe so. I think that this one is worth study and prayer. What does scripture have to offer us in answering this question? About sin and forgiveness; about hope in God our father and his work in our children's lives.
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Some starting points: We have the prodigal son parable. We have the horrific sin of David when he took Uriah's wife Bathsheba and then arranged Uriah's death. Below I note the sins of Jacob and later of his sons. We have the woman at the well - not five children, but five husbands! [John chapter 4]. We have the woman caught in adultery.
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If anyone actually reads this and has some thoughts on what scripture teaches us, I'd appreciate your insight.
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POST from Jim's blog ----
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Wow anon 6:18 AM, good points! Sorry if my response is a bit long winded, but you bring up a lot. First thanks to 6:22 PM; you made points that I thoroughly concur with, although perhaps Chelsea was perfectly proper. Your point on rebellious children is supported throughout history, scripture, and by every parent of a teenager. We still love them and are there to support them even when they make critical mistakes.
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6:22, I’ll address some of your concerns in order. If I agree with you, I’ll say so. As to Biblical passages on fidelity, fornication, shell fish, swine, and indentured servitude, first understand that we are not held to Hebrew law. We are not Jewish. At the council in Jerusalem [Acts of he Apostles, chapter 15] the apostles debated this issue heavily and came to the conclusion that the Gentile converts to Christianity should not be held to such things as circumcision, Jewish dietary law (shell fish, pork), etc.
'It is the decision of the holy Spirit and of us not to place on you any burden beyond these necessities, namely, to abstain from meat sacrificed to idols, from blood, from meats of strangled animals, and from unlawful marriage. If you keep free of these, you will be doing what is right. Farewell.' [See also Peter with the centurion Cornelius in Acts chapter 10].
Jesus cuts right to the chase though with the Pharisees in Matthew Chapter 15 [vs. 1-20]. Note how he finishes:
"Are even you still without understanding? Do you not realize that everything that enters the mouth passes into the stomach and is expelled into the latrine? But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and they defile. For from the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, unchastity, theft, false witness, blasphemy. These are what defile a person, but to eat with unwashed hands does not defile."
Paul, further reinforces this in his letters, explaining that in our freedom from the law we are still to avoid sin (such as fornication and adultery as you rightly point out.)
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Concerning Palin’s religious beliefs and trying to force them onto others; look into her actions and statements as governor. She believes in creationism but said she would not use religion as a litmus test in appointing members to the school board. She opposes same sex marriage but complied with an Alaskan state Supreme Court order and signed an implementation of same-sex benefits into law. Palin's first veto was used to kill a bill that would have barred the state from granting benefits to the partners of gay state employees. Simply put, it appears that she agrees with you to a great degree.
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So what about the religious right and abortion? Pro-choice frames it as a choice and pro-life frames it as the taking of an innocent life. There is not a whole lot of room for compromise on that yet Palin seeks middle ground there. She belongs to Feminists for Life, a group that has spearheaded efforts to make sure pregnant and parenting college students, who have the highest abortion rates in the nation, get tangible help like medical referrals, child-care, and assistance in completing their education. She recognizes the need to do more than say she opposes abortion. There must be alternatives and assistance.
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Well, you went a bit over the edge with your last paragraph, but I suppose you wanted to end strong. Let me say that when Christ said render unto Caesar..., he was telling the Pharisees to submit themselves to the authority of God and to the authority of the state and quit trying to trip me up with trick questions. He does not say to separate them, but to obey both. Saint Paul goes further in Romans chapter 13 saying that our earthly leaders are put in place by God.
Let every person be subordinate to the higher authorities, for there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been established by God. This is not SEPARATION of Church and state, but union. Nevertheless, I concur that religious freedom must exist.
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Now you started off saying that people are not attacking Palin’s daughter, but to a great degree that is not true. She got pregnant out of wedlock. That is wrong. She should have refrained. Scripture is full of examples of disobedient children in God fearing families though. Isaac’s son Jacob was a deceiver, a liar, a cheat and a blackmailer. God worked with him over decades and he became Israel, father of the 12 patriarchs. The first 10 patriarchs threw their brother Joseph in a well and then, rather than kill him (their first plan), they sold him into a life of slavery and lied to their father about it. God worked with them over the decades and turned their hearts. What is the Christian response to a rebellious child? It is to love, forgive, and support; let God work with them. Look at John chapter 4, John chapter 8. Look at Joseph’s reaction to his pregnant bride-to-be. Governor Palin’s response to her daughter was one of love, forgiveness, and support. Her response to other pregnant teens has been the same. Do you really see this as hypocrisy? Isn’t she rather the kind of centrist Republican many have been saying we need?
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Sorry for the length of the response, but I thought you brought up very valid points worth a thoughtful response.