Ok, so after the new Governor of Alabama, Robert Bentley, was officially sworn in he went to a church across the street to celebrate his inauguration and MLK day. During a speech inside the church the new Governor said:
There may be some people here today who do not have living within them the Holy Spirit, but if you have been adopted in God’s family like I have, and like you have if you’re a Christian and if you’re saved, and the Holy Spirit lives within you just like the Holy Spirit lives within me, then you know what that makes? It makes you and me brothers. And it makes you and me brother and sister.”
Now I will have to say that, if we don’t have the same daddy, we’re not brothers and sisters. So anybody here today who has not accepted Jesus Christ as their savior, I’m telling you, you’re not my brother and you’re not my sister, and I want to be your brother.
Really?! I sincerely hope he was ad libbing and not reading a speech. To say it was bad enough, but if he, or someone else wrote that down and still didn’t catch that it’s not right then something is very wrong. But then again it is Alabama.
Since saying that he has now apologized.
Now politicians say stupid things like that all the time. Other people do as well, but politicians have reporters and cameras following them so what they say gets reported.
But what really bothers me is the reaction of people in Alabama. Such as:
I get what he was saying. It didn’t bother me.
I see really nothing wrong with what he said. I think it was innocent, and people are trying to make a mountain out of a molehill.
He probably shouldn’t have said it, but it didn’t bother me.
Now I think they’re saying this for two reasons.
1. Christian Privilege
2. They haven’t really thought through the consequences.
When I say Christian Privilege I mean the tendency of Christians to believe they should be treated differently, preferentially, because they are the largest group. The majority of people in Alabama are Christians so the Governor saying that Christians are his brothers and non-Christians are not doesn’t bother them because they are Christian.
And that kind of leads into the second point. They don’t realize that the language the Governor used is exclusive. It says that certain people (Christians, those who share the belief) are good, and other people (non-Christians, those who do not share the belief) are not. Which is really one of the basic tenets of almost every single religion of the world. Replace Christian with something else and you’ll see exactly how divisive his words were.
There may be some people here today who are not WHITE, but if you are, then you know what that makes? It makes you and me brothers. And it makes you and me brother and sister.
Now I will have to say that, if we don’t have the same daddy, we’re not brothers and sisters. So anybody here today who is not WHITE, I’m telling you, you’re not my brother and you’re not my sister.
Or how about:
There may be some people here today who are not REPUBLICAN, but if you are, then you know what that makes? It makes you and me brothers. And it makes you and me brother and sister.
Now I will have to say that, if we don’t have the same daddy, we’re not brothers and sisters. So anybody here today who is not REPUBLICAN, I’m telling you, you’re not my brother and you’re not my sister.
Or even:
There may be some people here today who do not have living within them the Holy Spirit, but if you have been adopted in ALLAH’s family like I have, and like you have if you’re a MUSLIM and, and the Holy Spirit lives within you just like the Holy Spirit lives within me, then you know what that makes? It makes you and me brothers. And it makes you and me brother and sister.”
Now I will have to say that, if we don’t have the same daddy, we’re not brothers and sisters. So anybody here today who is not MUSLIM, I’m telling you, you’re not my brother and you’re not my sister, and I want to be your brother.
Do you see now how wrong his language is?