Phrasing Comments

When are people going to learn how to frame their comments so that they're actually understood?

John Hagee is an evangelical minister from San Antonio. I've heard him preach many times and, most of the time, he speaks very much in line with my own beliefs. He believes, for example, that we are living in the end times and that many of the signs of our times point to the idea that biblical prophecy in that regard is being fulfilled. Not all of it, mind you, but much of it.

One of the main points Hagee made has to do with the re-establishment of Israel as a state, one of the benchmarks I'm referring to. There is no scripture that I know of that says directly "Once Israel is re-established..." or anything like that. There IS scripture that refers to the destruction and desecration of the Temple and the cessation of sacrifical worship in the last days. The presumption being, of course, that the Jews must occupy Jerusalem and the holy land for a third Temple to be reconstructed before any desecration of that Temple could take place! Therefore, many Christians believe that the re-establishment of Israel in 1948 was a sign that would lead eventually to the fulfillment of the scriptures that describe these events. Hagee is not alone in this belief.

Where Hagee went over the top a bit was the claim that Hitler was doing God's work without offering a detailed explanation of what he was claiming. Do I think that Hitler was doing God's work? Absolutley not! Hitler was evil incarnate and everything he did was absolutely atrocious and totally reprehensible. Does God use evil for good on occasion? Can good things ever come from acts that were meant for evil? I think they can and I think they do from time to time. If the persecution and murder of Jews led to the formation of the state of Israel, which no one can deny, did that absolute evil lead to something good? We have yet to see the reconstruction of the Temple, but, if the Temple is indeed reconstructed as predicted in scripture, it is a sure sign that the end of days are upon us. Is THAT a good thing? Well, for any Christian who awaits the promised return of Jesus, it is a good thing indeed! So, though it may be somewhat convoluted and definitely circuitous, what Hagee meant by his remarks, I'm sure, was what I just explained. He could have used greater wisdom in phrasing the comments!

Is McCain wise to distance himself from Hagee? At this point, I don't know if it is. Evangelical Christians are a base that almost always vote Republican. They vote as much on the abortion issue alone as much as anything. If evangelicals see McCain as "Obama Light," then they're more apt to move with the rest of the country away from what most of us have come to consider the distasteful policies of Bush and toward the guaranteed change that will come with a Democrat in the White House. If I were McCain, I'd ask Hagee to clarify his comments, offer my own version of what I think he was trying to say, offer my own beliefs on the topic, and let it go. Let's face it; people who are not Christian are probably going to vote Democrat in any case. Why would McCain distance himself from those who probably WILL vote Republican? There's only one reason; McCain want to move toward the middle and entice the so-called "Reagan Democrats." To do that, he has to do what he can to appeal not only to evangelicals but also to those with no particular religious affiliation. Tough act!

Let's pray that he can get that job done! Otherwise, we'll get Jimmy Carter 2008 in the White House and I don't think ANYBODY is going to like that act again!