Gibbs: Obama a 'mainstream Christian'

Gibbster...Gibbster...You know you have to leave it up to the "real" Christians to determine if he is Christian enough.

Asked about Beck's comments today, White House press secretary Robert Gibbs questioned what evidence the conservative icon would have as to "what the president does or does not believe."

That would be 20 years listening to Reverend Wright.

Collective salvation is not a mainstream idea.

http://www.examiner.com/libertarian-in-national/collective-salvation

The collectivist mindset is beset by all manner of impulses. The impulse towards "social justice". The impulse towards "economic equality" is another. Recently, there has been the rise of a new Progressive impulse, that of "collective salvation". Where Social Justice means subjugation of the individual to a group whether to a race, class or state, and economic equality requires the subordination of one's interest to others, so "Collective Salvation" seeks the subjugation of religious freedoms to those adequate to government's desires.

Beck is a mentally ill moron.....which makes him a perfect leader for todays extremist Republican party.

Glenn Beck is so transparently a scam to make Glenn Beck rich that I can't believe it's gotten this far. If it wasn't for the low IQ goobers who make up the Republican base (Teabaggers), nutjobs like Beck, Druggy Rush and Hannity would all be doing late night infomercials for a living right now.

Interesting subtle editorializing buried in this story with the phrasing;
"People aren't recognizing his version of Christianity," Beck said in an interview with "Fox News Sunday" this weekend, in which he also criticized Obama for his alleged belief in "collective salvation."
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There is nothing "alleged" about Obama's (non-Christian) belief that his personal salvation is dependent on collective salvation- this is an actual quote by Obama...
I have no idea -nor do I care-what religion Obama may be-but this quote alone would definitely put him out of mainstream Christian thought
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Mainstream Christians do not sit in a church for 20 years, get married by, and have their children baptized by a “Pastor” like Wright…

Did Ronald Reagan ever attend church??
As for this moron Beck, he's a con artist in it just for the $$. He'll say anything to get attention or to make a buck. He's is very simple and transparent, leading around low IQ teabaggers and other simple folk...can't handle the fact that there's a skinny black person in the White House who was elected by the American people.

"...Gibbs questioned what evidence the conservative icon would have as to "what the president does or does not believe." "

How about the president's own words and actions?
He attended Wright's church for 20 years, was married by him and had him baptize his children. Sounds like he was a devoted member. Wright preaches BLT.
The president has been quoted over and over and over talking about his belief in "collective salvation."
Mainstream Christian? Not so much.
As Gibbs says, he's not entitled to his own facts.

Beck is a mentally ill moron.....which makes him a perfect leader for todays extremist Republican party.

Posted by: Rob | September 2, 2010 1:57 PM

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Glenn Beck is so transparently a scam to make Glenn Beck rich that I can't believe it's gotten this far. If it wasn't for the low IQ goobers who make up the Republican base (Teabaggers), nutjobs like Beck, Druggy Rush and Hannity would all be doing late night infomercials for a living right now.

Posted by: Rob | September 2, 2010 2:06 PM

Wow- more intellectually stunning and astute observations...

How do you manage to post so often while at the same time, so consistently -(even accidently) have nothing legitimate to offer ? You are in a league of your own-

Well done-

Posted by: Free To Watch the Liberal's Summer Meltdown | September 2, 2010 1:43 PM
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Free To Watch Cartoons,
No one gives a damn whether or not you right wing clowns like Rev Wright or not, but considering that Obama sat for 20 years in a CHRISTIAN CHURCH how would that make him a "secret muslim"? Because that's what I'm hearing from all of the low IQ wingnuts like you, Princess.

The Republican Taliban needs to get their anti-Obama smear-mongering talking points together, only in the deluded minds of the right wing haters who make up todays extremist Republican party can Pres Obama be both a member of a christian church AND a "secret muslim".

Wake up, negative America! Kindergarden is over. You're in the adult world, now, not your child-like, make-believe world. How is it that you can believe that a" bow and arrow " war machine, Iraqi's, is ready to nuke America and you can rant and rave about our President being in a christian church and still believe he is not a christian. I suggest you contact God, immediately and ask for His forgiveness. All that lying will only get you a hotter seat in Hell!!
SUPPORT OUR TROOPS, BRING THEM HOME, ALIVE AND WHOLE. NOW.

Hmmmm, Rev. Jeremiah Wright's church certainly was not mainstream, nor its Christianity mainstream. Obama certainly doesn't act Christian or seem to understand basic Christian principles or theology.
Frankly, I don't think Obama is religious at all. He should just come out and say he is agnostic or atheist or just a believer who is not an active participant. One of those scenarios is the reality and he should just admit to it. But then Obama never really has been honest about who he is, nor the people around him.

Posted by: heartburn | September 2, 2010 2:31 PM
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Prepuke,
Wow- more intellectually stunning and astute observations...

How do you manage to post so often while at the same time, so consistently -(even accidently) have nothing legitimate to offer ? You are in a league of your own- I would say "well done"- but you're doing nothing but offering up the same old "Obama is not a "real" christian" smear that all the other Wingnutters are claiming.

Try again, Biff

What else was Gibbs asked about besides this garbage. I mean why should they care what Beck thinks right Rob?
Did anyone ask Gibbs why the Summer of Recovery turned out to be the Summer of Stagnation when Obama spent a Trillion? Either the Whitehouse press core must be asking garbage questions like this or maybe the Swamp only does garbage reporting of Whitehouse press conferences...

how would that make him a "secret muslim"? Because that's what I'm hearing...

Posted by: Rob | September 2, 2010 2:36 PM

Just ignore the voices in your head, Rob. Or, get to know them better...

Posted by: John D | September 2, 2010 2:59 PM
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Hey Princess Johnny,
Would it make you happy if Pres Obama came out said he's a Pat Robertson christian? You know, the kind that hates gay people, calls women who get abortions "whores" and calls for an all out war on Islam?

That's what you fringe right wingers want, isn't it Lil Johnny?

"...and you can rant and rave about our President being in a christian church and still believe he is not a christian..."

Posted by: Don Fitzgerald, IL | September 2, 2010 2:54 PM

Don- what christian church is Obama in..?

The Right Wing Lunatic Fringe hates Rev wright and Barack Obama because they are black, period, end of story. If they were looking for real hate instead of just trying to smear Obama they would find it coming out of the piehole of their own religious leaders.

10. "Lord, give us righteous judges who will not try to legislate and dominate this society. Take control, Lord! We ask for additional vacancies on the court."
–PAT ROBERTSON

9. "Just like what Nazi Germany did to the Jews, so liberal America is now doing to the evangelical Christians. It's no different. It is the same thing. It is happening all over again. It is the Democratic Congress, the liberal-based media and the homosexuals who want to destroy the Christians. Wholesale abuse and discrimination and the worst bigotry directed toward any group in America today. More terrible than anything suffered by any minority in history."
–PAT ROBERTSON

8. "I would warn Orlando that you're right in the way of some serious hurricanes, and I don't think I'd be waving those flags in God's face if I were you, This is not a message of hate -- this is a message of redemption. But a condition like this will bring about the destruction of your nation. It'll bring about terrorist bombs; it'll bring earthquakes, tornadoes, and possibly a meteor."
–PAT ROBERTSON, on "gay days" at Disneyworld

7. "(T)he feminist agenda is not about equal rights for women. It is about a socialist, anti-family political movement that encourages women to leave their husbands, kill their children, practice witchcraft, destroy capitalism and become lesbians."
–PAT ROBERTSON

6. "I know this is painful for the ladies to hear, but if you get married, you have accepted the headship of a man, your husband. Christ is the head of the household and the husband is the head of the wife, and that's the way it is, period."
–PAT ROBERTSON

5. "I'd like to say to the good citizens of Dover: If there is a disaster in your area, don't turn to God, you just rejected him from your city. And don't wonder why he hasn't helped you when problems begin, if they begin. I'm not saying they will, but if they do, just remember, you just voted God out of your city. And if that's the case, don't ask for his help because he might not be there."
--PAT ROBERTSON, after the city of Dover, Pennsylvania voted to boot the current school board, which instituted an intelligent design policy that led to a federal trial

4. "God considers this land to be his. You read the Bible and he says 'This is my land,' and for any prime minister of Israel who decides he is going to carve it up and give it away, God says, 'No, this is mine.' ... He was dividing God's land. And I would say, 'Woe unto any prime minister of Israel who takes a similar course to appease the E.U., the United Nations, or the United States of America.' God says, 'This land belongs to me. You better leave it alone.'"
-PAT ROBERTSON, on why Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon suffered a massive stroke

3. "Maybe we need a very small nuke thrown off on Foggy Bottom to shake things up"
–PAT ROBERTSON, on nuking the State Department

2. "You know, I don't know about this doctrine of assassination, but if he thinks we're trying to assassinate him, I think that we really ought to go ahead and do it. It's a whole lot cheaper than starting a war ... We have the ability to take him out, and I think the time has come that we exercise that ability. We don't need another $200 billion war to get rid of one, you know, strong-arm dictator. It's a whole lot easier to have some of the covert operatives do the job and then get it over with."
-PAT ROBERTSON, calling for the assassination of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez

1. "It may be a blessing in disguise. ... Something happened a long time ago in Haiti, and people might not want to talk about it. Haitians were originally under the heel of the French. You know, Napoleon the third, or whatever. And they got together and swore a pact to the devil. They said, we will serve you if you will get us free from the French. True story. And so, the devil said, okay it's a deal. Ever since they have been cursed by one thing after the other."
–PAT ROBERTSON, on the earthquake in Haiti that destroyed the capital and killed tens of thousands of people, Jan. 13, 2010

Posted by: Free to Watch the Liberal's Summer Meltdown | September 2, 2010 3:21 PM
***************

Free To Watch Cartoons,

I'm not the one who listens to a dry drunk, rodeo clown, ex shock jock (Beck). That would be you, slick

Posted by: heartburn | September 2, 2010 3:26 PM
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Prepuke,
Since when do doughy white wingnuts like you get to decide what is and isn't a christian church?

Just bring back Reverend Wright. He can clear this all up in a jiffy.

Since when do doughy white wingnuts like you get to decide what is and isn't a christian church?

Posted by: Rob | September 2, 2010 3:47 PM
Think much??
The operative word here is that Obama would have you believe that he is “Mainstream” when he is not-whether he is Christian or not will never be known ( which I have stated makes no difference to me).
Its my opinion that personal salvation (in the Christian sense) is based SOLELY on a PERSONAL relationship with Jesus.... Obama's assertion that he is a mainstream Christian is not consistent with his clearly NON mainstream viewpoint regarding collective salvation. Additional evidence of his being non mainstream is that the only church he ever attended with any consistency had ,as a pastor, a well documented racist. Would you agree that racism – by definition- takes you out of the mainstream of anything in our culture..?
So--Given your fixation on what you imagine me to be- doughy and white (BTW- I always feel like I need a shower after arguing with you)- my guess is that your standard of what is and isn’t racist is pretty fluid..and is based on how badly you are losing an argument.

* * * * *
“Since when do doughy white wingnuts like you get to decide what is and isn't a christian church?”
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Posted by: Rob | September 2, 2010 3:47 PM
.
Thank God that mindless, hateful racists like you don’t get to make that decision either.
.
And, BTW, churches aren’t Christian. The people who associate with them and/or attend them either are or aren’t Christians. Attendance and non-attendance do not decide the issue. Some people go to church for a variety of reasons having nothing to do with their genuinely held faith or beliefs. Whether a person is a Christian depends on the individual’s belief AND faith, and not on labels.
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I, for one, refuse to weigh in on the question of whether Obama is or isn’t a Christian. I don’t necessarily take Gibbs’ word on the matter, because I am not sure Gibbs knows what a “mainstream Christian” is. In any event, Obama’s status as a Christian is a matter between him and the God to whom he will one day answer.
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P.S. Please don’t cite Pat Robertson. He is not an accurate sample of the faith or belief of the vast majority of evangelical Christians in this country. Some (but not all) of the examples you have given provide reasons why this is so. If you care to find fault with evangelicals, first find a legitimate reason to do so.

Has anyone ever seen Limberg or Bech darken the door of a church?

Maybe Barack should attend a UCC or (first cousin) Disciples church once in a while.....

There is a rather big one LBJ used to attend....

You know what, I'm a Christian, but what the F*&K does Christianity have to do with running the God damned government? By the way, based on reading, I'm pretty sure Jesus spent his life fighting against Right Wing hacks, so it's interesting that they all take ownership of him and decide "what Jesus would do" (WJWD) instead of thinking "what would Jesus do?" (WWJD)". Rob, I'm glad you have the patience to respond to the right wingers, because I admit they are wearing me down with their incessant BS. Keep it up, I’ll try to help after another cup of coffee……………….

Rob, I'm glad you have the patience to respond to the right wingers, because I admit they are wearing me down with their incessant BS. Keep it up, I’ll try to help after another cup of coffee……………….

Posted by: Tim | September 3, 2010 11:09 AM
Tim- get over yourself... if you are including me in the "right wing hack" bucket... find anything in my posts that relate Obamas religion to how he governs- ( as long as you bring it up- divine intervention may be the only thing left to stop this trainwreck of an admin)
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You, along with your boy Rob, seem to struggle with staying on point and actually countering any argument with anything other than topic changes and insults..
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Gibbs was lobbed a softball question from a moon eyed member of the press corp asking for the president to denounce Glenn Becks questioning Obama’s ( apparent) view of Christianity that by all accounts seem to be have some basis in black liberation theology. This theology has clear Marxist tenets… (collectivism and the expectation of race based government policy)- so from that respect Obama’s “religious” viewpoint is fair game for speculation.
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The real story here ought to be how/why Bill Press ( the moon eyed Obama-phile) thought this question passes for journalism and what qualifies someone to be in the WH press corp- won’t hold my breath for that point of view from the buddy buddy press corp.
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Gibbs response( laughably) was to try to characterize the presidents views of Christianity as mainstream—up this brings you up to date…

Hope you enjoyed your coffee..

Just passing through The Swamp while doing a search, which means I'm obviously late to this party.

Even so (and this may take all of the fun out of the the conversation), I can't help but offer some words of what I hope is wisdom to R & T.: when you apply derogatory names to others the argument is lost.

And T, if you want to claim to be a Christian, it would be helpful to not break commandment number three if others are to believe the claim. Just saying...

Heartburn, you hit the nail on the head. Obama's beliefs come from Marxism, not what most people know as Mainstream Christianity. That is why and always was WHY the issue of what Obama believes is the MOST relevant subject.

If, as it seems Obama believes that the only way he can get salvation for whites is by redistributing what he considers ill gotten gains back to blacks, then that is a very important issue. And, I'm sure that all would agree that it is.