Many have pointed out the ways in which Michael Joseph Grosss’ piece on Palin seems both unfair and under sourced. I won’t rehash all of that. I’ll just comment on the one section that stood out to me:
The term “prayer warrior” describes a person who offers a specific kind of supplication: asking God to direct an unseen battle between forces of light and darkness—literal angels and demons—that some Christians believe is occurring all around us…
Whenever I heard Palin speak on the road, her remarks were scored with code phrases expressing solidarity with fundamentalist Christians. Her talk of leading with “a servant’s heart” is a dog whistle for the born-again. Her dig at health-care reform as an expression of Democratic ambitions to “build a Utopia” in the United States is practically a trumpet call (because the Kingdom of God is not of this earth, and perfection can be achieved only in the life to come). But it is Palin’s persistent encouragement of the prayer warriors that most clearly reveals her worldview: she is good, her opponents are evil, and the war is on.
Having read this dismissive account of Palin’s faith, it surprised me to see Mr. Gross on television claiming he has a lot in common with Palin, including Christianity. It reminds me of that old car commercial “This is not your father’s Oldsmobile.” Well, Michael Gross is not your father’s Christian. In fact he’s apparently a graduate of Princeton Theological Seminary which is a long way from the faith of most evangelicals.
Since leaving Princeton, Gross worked as a speechwriter for ultra liberal Gov. William Weld and then did a series of Christian anthropology pieces for liberal outlets like The Nation and Slate. Occasionally, a bit of Gross’ Ivy League condescension reveals itself in his work. Back in 1999, Gross wrote a blurb for The Nation about A.N. Wilson’s latest book. In it, he describes a speech made by George W. Bush and concludes “George W. Bush may be transforming himself into that rarest of creatures: saved, but smart.” One wonders if Gross would place Sarah Palin among the chosen few. I think the excerpt above probably answers that question.
In addition to his work for The Nation, Gross is also a contributor to The Advocate where he has written to assure gays that Barack Obama can be trusted to work for their issues. From his resume alone I can think of lots of things Michael Joseph Gross does not have in common with Sarah Palin. I can also see several possible motivations for him to write a piece trashing her. Perhaps he’s being honest about his initial sympathy towards her, but I’m metaphysically certain he also has lots of equally plausible reasons to dislike her and what she stands for. You don’t write speeches for Bill Weld and then suddenly become one of Palin’s pen pals.
The fact that Gross doesn’t see fit to mention any of his liberal baggage when he appears on TV suggests that he’s not being very honest. I think the real motivations come through in his work.
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Yeah, his motivations are written all over eight pages of garbage. The cartoon is sort of a dead giveaway too.
Thanks for exposing some of his background.. No logical person believes a word of that article. I hope Vanity Fair will assume relic status soon.
Christians believe what Almighty God says. God's Word is not buzz-words or dog whistles.
Gross has nothing whatsoever in common with Christians. Nothing. Christians have one thing in common: Jesus Christ, Who he obviously does not know.
Gross has everything in common with satan, the father of lies.
Surprise, surprise. A slimeball writing a hit-piece in Vanity Fair isn't really a Christian. Oh my!
S'pose Vanity Fair will reconsider their sources? ROFHWL.
Matthew 5:11
"Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me."
When an attack piece is this Ineffectual, you have to figure there is some agenda in play. It appears that Gross was paid to find dirt, and finding none, did his best to fake it. I guess his best wasn't good enough.
I couldn't have said it any better.
Thanks Randy!
Hey, M.J. GROSS-
Attack a "Good Soul"—– don't be surprised when YOURS starts to corrode….. Karma, Karma, Karma !
This one's for you—Greedy, Lil' CREEP……..and all your cheap, little lies………..YOU need to APOLOGIZE !!!
Instant Karma's gonna get you,
Gonna knock you right on the head,
You better get yourself together,
Pretty soon you're gonna be dead,
What in the world you thinking of,
Laughing in the face of love,
What on earth you tryin' to do,
It's up to you, yeah you.
Instant Karma's gonna get you,
Gonna look you right in the face,
Better get yourself together darlin',
Join the human race,
How in the world you gonna see,
Laughin' at fools like me,
Who on earth d'you think you are,
A super star,
Well, right you are.
Well we all shine on,
Like the moon and the stars and the sun,
Well we all shine on,
Ev'ryone come on.
Instant Karma's gonna get you,
Gonna knock you off your feet,
Better recognize your brothers,
Ev'ryone you meet,
Why in the world are we here,
Surely not to live in pain and fear,
Why on earth are you there,
When you're ev'rywhere,
Come and get your share.
Well we all shine on,
Like the moon and the stars and the sun,
Yeah we all shine on,
Come on and on and on on on,
Yeah yeah, alright, uh huh, ah-.
Well we all shine on,
Like the moon and the stars and the sun,
Yeah we all shine on,
On and on and on on and on.
Well we all shine on,
Like the moon and the stars and the sun.
Well we all shine on,
Like the moon and the stars and the sun.
Well we all shine on,
Like the moon and the stars and the sun.
Yeah we all shine on,
Like the moon and the stars and the sun.
Never once mentioned her intellect – not much to assail there. My main thrust has been her loyalty which is even more important yet she is clearly an "Israel Firster." We have too much of that in our government not. Her career should have been over when she backed McCain……if conservatives had any brains at all. But the MEDIA LOVES PALIN and are determined to prop her up as your chosen leader just as they did McCain. You guys just aren't very savvy when it comes to things things.
vanity fair? What is that?
What a poor conflicted soul Mr Gross must be. A grad of Princeton Theological Seminary, he obviously
can find nothing better to do with his time than become a tool of the Left. How sad it is that a man with
his education can fall victim to his own lack of morality and be used as an expert to point out 'code'
in Palin's speeches and tweets. He is a sick, pitiful, little eunuch who is allowing himself to be used
as the whore of the Left. Sadly when he awakens they will have turned their backs on him, as always
happens to whores.
.
If he's a Princeton Theological Seminary graduate, I question his salvation and expect to see his fruits in keeping with godly repentance.
I doubt it's there after reading his 'stuff.'
<<<crickets>>>
The same way a conservative politician is ALWAYS described as "a conservative politician" but an ultra-liberal leftist politician is described as "a politician," so it is with Christians across the spectrum. That is, you hear of "conservative Christians" and "ultra right wing Christian fundamentalists," but you never hear of "liberal Christians," let alone "ultra left wing Christian liberals," but they're out there. They're doing about as well as other liberals, i.e., their church attendance is dwindling because they're preaching "a form of godliness, but denying its power." (II Timothy 3:5). But they're still out there.
Whenever I hear Obama read his teleprompter, his remarks are scored with code phrases expressing solidarity with Muslims. So what else is new?
By who?
YOU?
hehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehe
Whom.
Sarah Palin's dog has more intelligence than your modern educated a__, fool.
Oh, by the way you were wrong in correcting my grammer…nice try though……
LOL http://www.wikihow.com/Use-%22Who%22-and-%22Whom%...
LOL! I thought about it afterwards, too. Since it is a question it is really "who by"? (I think) and not the object.
<<<even more crickets>>>
"DividingbyZero", you have assailed Sarah Palin on every web site and every article, even when her name isn't in the ariticle. It's not original, clever, witty, insightful, nada, zip, zero, none of these. It's tired. You've ridden that horse into the ground. Here's a strategy: Get off, bury it, and find another ride.
Is Gross himself gay? If so, that may be the basis for his hostility. He should take it up with God, and leave Palin alone. Unless he is just jealous he can't fit into a size zero.
Well, If you gotta have a Master, better Israel than Islam.
Israel doesn't stone women for being raped, or gays for existing or run over the arms of children for stealing.
You are really sick, less than zero. Sick and stupid and mean.
Indeed. And that's more than likely how Sarah copes with detractors.
First, if you don't believe in spiritual warfare, you're not a Christian. It's pretty simple.
Second, there is no such thing as a "fundamentalist" Christian. Either you hew to what Jesus said about Himself or you don't. The former people are Christians. The latter people may call themselves Christians, but the Bible takes issue with them.
Third, there is no "code". There are words which Christians use to express concepts which other Christians understand. Codes are things which are meant to keep things secret. There are no secrets here. If Gross is unfamiliar with the "code", that suggests that he's unfamiliar with the concepts, because he neither understands nor lives them.
I could go on, but you get the point. Gross talks about Christianity as though it's some foreign bacteria found on a distant planet, not something he lives or believes.
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Personally, I am always very reticent to comment about other people's salvation. That's between them and God.
But the idea that Mr. Gross was completely sympathetic to Palin before he got to Alaska…that's obviously a lie. The fact that he would paint himself this way on TV tells me a lot.
…..and Sarah smiles and grows STRONGER and STRONGER…….
…..while Michael J. Gross is living to REGRET his LACK of ETHICS……..
Are those Zionist crickets?
<<<Back to crickets>>>
It seems like some other twit is making a run for "hack of the new millennium".
Just from reading the article you can tell it's nothing but vapid. Then, when people start disputing his accounts you start to see some real pathology here.
I lived the homosexual life for over thirty years before coming back to the Church. A lot of things that I saw and only partly understood back then became apparent and clear since I was welcomed back into the Church.
Homosexual men frequently like a certain kind of woman, namely a weak, mentally unstable woman who indulges in drugs and alcohol. Think of Judy Garland or Marilyn Monroe. Or homosexual men like a kind of older, grotesque, gargoyle-type of woman, like the older Bette Davis or Joan Crawford. The British show Absolutely Fabulous, which was very funny, appealed to homosexuals because the female characters were both grotesque and alcohol swilling and drug taking. You won't find a single "gay icon" who is emotionally and physically healthy. None of them have happy marriages. The key trait is emotional and physical illness.
On the other side, homosexuals do no like strong, attractive, healthy women, particularly if the woman has kids who she loves. To be blunt, homosexuals do not like healthy women. And spiritual health comes from God. Hatred of the healthy stems from a hatred of God.
It's no accident that some of the worst haters of Sarah Palin are homosexuals. What's worse, and more interesting, is that a significant part of the society was a whole now shares the same decadent sensibilities as homosexuals. If a person is decent, has a family, loves God and tries to be a good Christian, they get hated by the elitists and by the those who hate Christianity.
As far as demonic forces, well my experience with homosexuality is that it is quite demonic. I've seen what it did to me. I've seen what it does to the thousands of homosexuals I've known. As a Catholic, we have a tradition of being very circumspect with declaring something to be demonic. We don't like to label a person as demonic or a person as being favored by God either. My own suspicions are that a lot of the reaction over Sarah Palin and Glenn Beck comes from religious influences and spiritual conflicts.
I think it needs saying again…spiritual health comes from God. Hatred of the healthy and love for the unhealthy is an un-Godly thing. Fallen man is always sick, but this society has rejected God in this generation and it shows in the decadence and in the hatred of the decent, strong and moral.
The Nation magazine is a marxist rag, and the Advocate is the gay magazine. When I saw him on Morning Joe, I thought he was obviously gay.
When all of these marxists show up on MSNBC to spout their stuff the networks out to be required to scroll a label at the bottom of the screen to protect the innocent public. They treat them all as if they're mainstream — natch.
Gross wrote, "(w)henever I heard Palin speak on the road, her remarks were scored with code phrases expressing solidarity with fundamentalist Christians."
Can someone explain to me why it is that only liberals have access to the SECRET CODE PHRASE book conservatives use so they can make their evil, diabolical plans sound harmless? I sent 5 box tops to CONSERVATIVE CODES R US last year and my copy of the code book still hasn't arrived. It said "allow 6 to 8 months for delivery" but, come on. It should have been here by now. I think those union goons at the Post Office threw it down the storm sewer up the street.
If they would open their heart and read God's Word, it would no longer be "code."
Mr Gross is the worst type of liberal hack. He is a "Christian" when he chooses to be (kind of like BHO eh?). Between now and 2012 we are going to see more and more of this kind of drivel in the MSM. We need to be alert and we need to challenge any and all who would try to do this kind of hit piece. If there is one thing that the Tea Party has brought to the table it's that these kind of things cannot go unchallenged. I've never understood why the Republican party doesn't do a better job of defending itself. A lot of the charges brought against George W Bush were never defended by the Republicans. No one mentions that there is a great possibility that the weapons of mass destruction that Saddam might have held were more than likely smuggled across the Syrian border weeks before the war. No one talks about how Barney Frank and his ilk were responsible for the mortgage meltdown which led directly to the economic problems that occurred during the Bush admin. All we ever hear from the left is how it's George Bush's war, his economy etc…I'm glad that at least with this hit piece of an article someone is finally fighting back. Let's keep at it!!!!
Israel is my master not satanic islam
To Mr. Sexton – in what political world is William Weld ultra-liberal? Socially liberal, perhaps. But here in MA he angered many liberals by being so fiscally conservative. After all, he dropped many, many people from the government payroll. He more than once suggested government should stay out of people's pockets. But he also favored the pro-choice stance. Perhaps your view is that unless someone meets all the criteria of conservatism, especially the social (or moral?) ones, they are otherwise liberal or ultra-liberal? If not, I can't rationalize your stand.
Nicely said Blue, nicely said…..
John Lennon's words are MORE powerful, than anything, this wretch, "Gross"—- could EVER write….!
""Beware of false prophets who come disguised as harmless sheep but are really vicious wolves." http://read.ly/Matt7.15.NLT
http://www.cbn.com/cbnnews/world/2010/August/Isla...
DBZ what is funny is to see all and I mean ALL you Libtards get so completely apoplectic over Sarah Palin. She knows all your buttons and she can puch them at will. You folks are so caught up with Sarah Palin you've taken your eye off the ball. Fun and funny to watch.
Why yes, yes they are. They've crawled down div0's ear canal and wrapped themselves around his brainstem making him all crazy.
Mother issues. Mucho mother issues.
Silver daddy issues as well.
He's more concerned with demonizing Jews and (iirc) non-whites.
You nailed it. My wife watched his performance and said "oh my, sounds just like a catty woman going after another woman she considers a threat." Writing for the advocate??? If he were a conservative the media would already have nailed him for "shoe tapping in the stall". CNN with their usual fair coverage. Nobody reads Vanity Fair anyway
Twatwaffle! Never heard that one before, but seems to fit the child.
Olberman is such a tool. He was a mediocre sportscaster and he thought he was funny. Now he's the joke.
Mr Gross shot his career in the foot. Done, over.
I am surprised to hear the REPUBLICAN William Weld being referred to as "Ultra-Liberal".
There you go again, "dividing Palin's I.Q. by your zero I.Q." Division by zero is impossible, just as your observations are. You really are living down to your blog name. Keep it up, knucklehead, you do make many people laugh and make us feel superior!!!
People who write things like "things things" probably shouldn't be commenting on others' grammar – or intellect. It's like karma.
In which case, karma's coming after me next, because now I'm correcting YOU.
in what political world is William Weld ultra-liberal?
I take your point. I was thinking solely of his views on social issues which is where I believe Sarah Palin and Mr. Gross likely have very different views (sanctity of life, gay marriage, etc.). But you're correct that overall Weld is more of a libertarian than a liberal. I should have been more specific.
instead of "Liberal Christians", lets call Sharpton, Jackson, Walls, and others what they really are…criminals
Twatwaffle: word of the day
The Nation, if my knowledge of history serves me right, did quite a bit of cover up for Stalin back in the day. Duranty was by no means an isolated incident.
Andy Sullivan and Gross want Todd, so they malign Sarah hoping Todd will see he was meant for them. HA
"ultra liberal Gov. William Weld"
WTF?
Gross is not a graduate of Princeton Theological Seminary nor of Williams College. He "studied" there. See, you just have to know the code phrases for dog whistle almae matres.
I doubt this guy knows anything about reality. He proves it time and time again. His selfish needs are much more important than that of anyone else.
well said.
Weld…from Mass. Think of how Scott Brown has voted since claiming he was the new Reagan, double it, then double it again.
Liberal.
Just not as slimy in public as Dukakis.
Seeing themselves wise, they are actually fools. God uses the foolish to confound the wise. This by NO means says Sarah Palin is a fool, THAT she is not. She has a wisdom the elites do not understand, fail to understand, don't want to understand and are comfortable in maintaing their perpetual state of hatred for her. While "wise" Barack holes up in the White House, she's out there just like Reagan was out there when a peanut farmer from Plains, GA, thought he was safe and comfortable in the Rose Garden.
Zero gets another timeout until he or she can stay and post on topic.
This totally explains Chris Crocker with his twisted videos, and Perez Hilton and his savage attacks on Carrie Prejean. If I remember correctly Mario Armando Lavendeira choose Hilton as his last name in honour of one of the most annoying people on the planet(I'd say celebrity but that just does'snt sit well with me.).
From popular fiction to real life events one thing America loves more than anything is an under-dog story. Keep hammering at Palin you media-morons, because I personally know of at least a dozen people who have become fans of Palin simply because of how the media treats her.
Bingo! Your wife is perceptive.
So what exactly has Obama done for the gay community Mr Gross ? Seeing that you are a big cheerleader for Obama you shouldnt have any problem giving some examples and i dont mean he gave them hope, rainbows and lucky charms. Also what has he done for the black community ? The answer is NOTHING for both…yet many blindly follow their false prophet..the Messiah … THE ONE ..they worship him instead of God.
I never heard of Sara Palin until I watched her speak and then saw the way the Arab -controlled media bashed her . Hollywood stars made fun of her…stars like Tina Faye and Matt Damon who ran all over Florida during the primaries saying how wonderful Obama was hen he didnt know a thing about him . Now Matty is quoted as being "very disappointed" in Obama. IMAGINE THAT ?? Oprah – supposedly always a fighter for womens rights- showed her true colors when a woman was running for President – Oprah ran the other way- to her black side- that comes first and foremost to her.. Even Streisand isbacking away from Obama. Mr Gross however is still star struck by the Messiah
While I dont agree with everything Palin stands for I do believe that she loves this country and she is fighting to preserve it. Palin is making Americans wake up and vote for candidates who truly want whats best for this country- whether they are Democrat or Republican does not matter. She is briliant at it . The far far left is terrified of her and the Tea Party too because it contains alot of people like me….former Democrats….Hillary Democrats …conservative Democrats…gay and straight. With Gods help we will show America that Obama, Pelosi and Reid are toxic and we need legislators who actually love our country and follow the Constitution..
Politically, Judaism and Christianity advocate both for self-reliance and social compassion. Jesus' "Golden Rule" echoes a similarly worded expression of Rabbi Hillel.
Liberals see code words everywhere, much like the voices they hear in their little tiny pin-heads
Exactly. He calls it a code solely because he can't understand it.
Gross is gay…I believe he came out the closet not to long ago. It really speaks volumes about his twisted belief system and why Palin is so offensive to him.
The most telling part of Gross' article is his statement that stating there is no utopia here on Earth, etc. is some kind of code for "born again". Um, I believe that is the belief of pretty much all mainstream Christians, whatever sect they belong to. And unless Mr. Gross can show us where in the Bible God said that we'd have utopia down here, he best go back to his religious school or choose another one.
And I'm not even Christian (anymore) and I understand the concept. I mean, the inability to create a utopia here on Earth doesn't even need a religious argument. It's simply a matter of common sense and looking at the history of man. Any time any such thing is tried, it destroys itself. It's not possible.
Sounds to me like Gross went to some kind of theological school so he could pretend to represent Christianity so people would think he was reasonable. He's a leftist. Period. The Lefties do that all the time – co-opt something to use it for nefarious reasons.
And even the Devil can quote Scripture.
Praise God
He needs to bring his jealousy to God as well.
No matter what God still loves you and always will.
I sure do hope so! I'm a rather imperfect being.
Exactly. Though to be fair, Perez Hilton is disliked by a lot of "gay" men too. But that doesn't explain why a man with such obviously conflicted ideas about femininity would be judging a beauty pageant, or why so much of the media went out of their way to demonize her.
A bigger problem is that most homosexuals like the author of this attack piece don't even see their own conflicted ideas about women. So pointing this out to them won't get us very far. I've lived a fairly long and often very hard life, but at least I've learned a thing or two. One is that homosexuality is not biological but is something that develops from trauma in very early childhood. It comes from lack of identification with the parent of the same sex, or feelings of inadequacy with the same sex peer group, or from sexual abuse. This again, most homosexuals will deny, especially in public. But privately, to me as someone who's been through all of this, many men admit to me what sort of upbringing they've had. But in public, to admit to the pain that we all went through would mean to dethrone one's homosexuality. Like drinking is a coping mechanism that allows the alcoholic to somewhat function without committing suicide, homosexuality is even a deeper coping mechanism.
All of my experience tells me too that we shouldn't demonize the subject either. It's one of many sins that men do. But it should not be celebrated, should not be taught in the schools, and should not be forced on the military. Society as a whole should best adopt a policy of don't ask, don't tell. Homosexuality should not be persecuted. It should be ignored as one of many vices that people do.
Am I the only one who thinks Utopia would be incredibly boring?
No. Boring. Like that Wendy's commercial. But of course it may not be all together boring if it's a totalitarian utopia. You'd have to be on your toes then! That would make things actually interesting.
Yes, but would a Master Israel make me wear a tutu? I'd hate that. /The Lobe.
(For some reason, I'm having Freakazoid! flashbacks.)
So, acceptance as a Christian all depends on which school you went to??? Which political party you embrace? Or is it where you live? …or how you dress? or was it the quality of clothing in your wardrobe?
Hmmm.
Google: 'Progressive Era Seminaries' and 'socialism 1880's seminaries,'
See also: 'Republican Progressive Era.'
I don't think Christianity means what you think it means.
Judge others by your own beliefs and that whole E Pluribus Unum thingy goes right out the window.
Oh…btw. True, she didn't go to Harvard and she came up through the 'ranks.' But… Don't forget that Mrs. Palin has been a politician for nearly twenty years. It's kinda difficult to be an outsider AND an insider at the same time.
Like many Americans Mrs. Plain has somehow conflated politics with religion. In America it's freedom of religion. It is nNOT the freedom to impose your religion upon others through legislative fiat.
I gotta say, I am a little offended by the "Princeton <> Christian" rhetoric in this thread, as my pastor — a young'un, barely 30 — is unequivocally Christian by any orthodox definition, as well as a relatively recent Princeton graduate. Ditto for some of his buddies who come to visit our church from time to time.
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