The Bryan Fischer Award is given to those who display a staggering lack of self-awareness, accusing their enemies of having the same traits and the same behavior that they themselves exhibit in spades. Here’s Pat Robertson claiming that Islam is not a religion, it’s “an economic and political system with a religious veneer.”
This coming from a man who has used his religious beliefs to gain both incredible economic riches and enormous political influence. Irony!
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raven
February 15, 2013 at 1:10 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
AFAICT, US xianity has hollowed itself out. It’s a Zombie.
The fundie perversion is just right wing extremist politics with a few crosses stuck on it for show.
They have a magic book they never read, have no idea what it actually says, don’t know their own doctrines and dogma, which doesn’t matter because they change all the time.
The fundie god is a sockpuppet which hates what they hate and wants them to have what they want.
baal
February 15, 2013 at 1:11 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Much of Islam outside of the US is explicitly political. It’s hard not to see xtianity in the US in a similar light.
jnorris
February 15, 2013 at 1:18 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Two words Pat: Prosperity Gospel.
meursalt
February 15, 2013 at 1:31 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
It’s odd that he calls Islam a “religion of chaos.” For better or worse, the dominant strains of Islam have a strong emphasis on law and order. We might find much objectionable in the specific rules and the patriarchal and xenophobic mindset behind them, but it’s hard to deny that much of the Quran and hadiths are dedicated to building and maintaining a stable society.
Jesus’ challenging of rabbinical authority seems far more chaotic to me, as an outside observer.
Then there’s the issue of generalizing about 1/5 of the world’s population based on its most zealous extremists. That’s about as legitimate as calling Christianity a religion of child molesters, crusaders, and inquisitors. Classic Pat. Stay classy, Pat!
Sastra
February 15, 2013 at 1:36 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
What’s particularly bizarre about this complaint is that Christians such as Robertson are quick to criticize Christians who “leave their religion at the church door every Sunday” and fail to let faith inform every part of their life. Those people aren’t real Christians. Real Christians apply their Bible-based beliefs to economics, politics, business, family — everything! It’s not just a collection of creeds, it’s a whole “worldview.” That’s what happens when you do religion the right way.
Yes. Bryan Fischer Award well deserved.
Rodney Nelson
February 15, 2013 at 1:37 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Pat Robertson is a multimillionaire and failed presidential candidate. He’s hardly the one to complain about a religion being an economic and political veneer.
Larry
February 15, 2013 at 2:21 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
He has a point. Any one investing in blood diamonds knows a little about economics, I think.
starskeptic
February 15, 2013 at 2:51 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
“accusing their enemies of having the same traits and the same behavior that they themselves exhibit in spades.”, doesn’t necessarily require or indicate a “staggering lack of self-awareness.” IIRC, Charles M. Kelly, in his book The Great Limbaugh Con referred to this tactic as “immunization”. It works remarkably well in the maintenance of that self-imposed right-wing bubble that’s been on such display since before the election. Of course it’s difficult to tell with these nuts but I think it’s worth maybe having a different award or at least, a subcategory.
yoav
February 15, 2013 at 3:18 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Maybe he should replace Glenn Beck as Bill, christianity is not a religion it’s a philosophy, O’Reiley’s opening act.
Ichthyic
February 15, 2013 at 5:35 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
indeed, it can be done quite intentionally, and with malice.
swiftboating as an example.
hard to tell with Robertson though. I think he has the capability to do it intentionally, but most of the time, it just dribbles from his mouth.
d.c.wilson
February 15, 2013 at 9:56 pm (UTC -4) Link to this comment
But according to Bill O’Reilly, Christianity isn’t a religion either.
Crudely Wrott
February 16, 2013 at 12:12 am (UTC -4) Link to this comment
I can understand Pat’s angst; he thinks that Islam is crowding the turf of his CBN. He must be so frustrated.
dingojack
February 16, 2013 at 12:37 am (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Raven – “The fundie god is a [impotent] sockpuppet which hates what they hate and wants them to have what they want”.
FIFY
Dingo
lpetrich
February 16, 2013 at 6:28 am (UTC -4) Link to this comment
Seems to me that a lot of Islam-bashers are frustrated cold warriors. It must be very painful for them to be deprived of their favorite enemy, and be deprived of it in such an undignified fashion — they don’t get to ride tanks into Moscow, and they don’t get to do to Communists everything that they complained about Communists doing.
Let’s see. Communism has been gone from eastern Europe for 20 years, China is now their favorite sort of country, an authoritarian capitalist one, and Cuba and North Korea are too tiny to be big threats.