Reality Check: Reform will eliminate insurance discrimination against the disabled Mike Strautmanis, Chief of Staff for Valerie Jarrett and father of a child with a disability, addresses the myth that health insurance reform will mean children with disabilities will not get the care they need. To, the contrary, reform will make insurance more affordable, provide more options, and eliminate discrimination in purchasing health insurance so families wont be turned down if a parent or child has a pre-existing disability or other health condition.
Filed under: Health Insurance Reform, National politics, Obama
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November 22, 2009 • 6:19 pm 0
Does Psalm 109 describe what should happen to President Obama?
Max stirred up a load of you know what over at the Arkansas Times Blog concerning the growing cottage industry for t-shirts and such denouncing the President in the words of Psalm 109. Is this appropriate?
This passage is part of what is called the “imprecatory” Psalms. It calls for retribution against an enemy. For starters, here’s the complete text. After all, if we are going to look at the Bible seriously, there has to be some context. This is the NASV rendering.
The center of conservative criticism of President Obama is v. 8, “Let another take his office.” I am told that some early versions of the King James translation correctly render the language as “take his possessions”
The tone of Ps. 109 is intense and some might think that Christians should not ever utter such a prayer as is attributed here to King David. The ESV Study Bible has some background.
If we are to follow the rule of allowing Scripture to interpret itself, there is some assistance available in Acts 1, in which the replacement for Judas the betrayer of Jesus is being discussed. In Acts 1; 20, Peter directly cites Ps. 109; 8 and Ps. 69; 25 as a prediction of Judas; treason.
New Testament Christians should know that the passage in Ps. 109; 8 is a direct prediction of Judas being replaced as an apostle after his death. Let’s consider the larger context of the passage.
If one’s days are “few” and his wife is a “widow,” it must logically follow that the object ot the prayers is dead. Can conservative opponents of the President be so biblically illiterate not to understand this?
You may well wonder abut the general tone of the Psalm. Is it appropriate for a Christian to pray to the God of love for revenge on his enemies? We know that the person being prayed about is liar (v. 2-3) and great harm has been caused by the misrepresentation. In fact, as was the case with Judas, the representations resulted in death.
To be perhaps a bit too concise about this entire passage, murder and lying are joined in a single offense related by King David against some of his false accusers and referenced by Peter as a foreshadowing of Judas. One particular false accuser leveled charges against David which may be seen as foreshadowing Christ’s passion.
Of course, those familiar with the story know that David was completely blameless of any blood against Saul or his house. Shimei and Judas are both traitors.
So David had good reason to ask God to bring judgment against his enemies. That is quite a bit different from taking matters into one’s own hands. It is not necessarily wrong to seek divine justice in the face of grave wrongdoing.
Is it appropriate for political opponents to pray for the President’s death or an end to his term. Scripture has a few things to say about political leaders.
Romans 13 at least hints that we ought to respect the President.
And there is this …
But Christians must not submit to immoral laws and are certainly allowed to use their civil rights to appeal to government. We are commanded to pray for civil rulers and we must speak out against bad public policy. But, just maybe, it is a bit over the top to call for President Obama’s death, as is suggested in Ps. 109.
This has been rather brief and does not begin to do justice to the larger subject, but I think you get my drift.
Filed under: Christian Worldview, Commentary, Obama