God, Guns, Guts, Glory: On "GLORY"
There are many who are offended, including me, by images of Christ portrayed with guns in hand circulating on the Internet. I don't consider myself to be a Christian, per se, but I simply cannot wrap my head around why anyone would try to make a point by using images of an armed Christ to make that point....especially those trying to promote God, Guns, Guts, Glory!
One of the more offensive images I saw was this one I found on Pinterest:
Just think, for only $2.50, you could have your very own God, Guns, Guts, Glory sticker to put in the back window of your vehicle.....or not. For me personally, that's a definite NOT!
Yep! That's it! God....Guns....Guts....and Glory! That's what made America Great! Exclamation point at the end.....for more emphasis! Yep. That's what did it...what made our country great.....God, Guns, Guts, and Glory! Too repetitive?
Weaponry has changed over the centuries. It seems we've simply replaced swords with guns. Deadlier? Yep. More efficient (kill more people)? Also yep!
Some of those images have included some pretty in your face text that Christ did not, and arguably would not have, said. That's a problem, but not, perhaps, in how some of us actually perceive it to be a problem.
Some would have us believe that portraying Christ in any way outside of perceived Christian standards is a problem. After all, Christ was a lover of peace, of humanity, of inclusiveness, right??
Some would have us believe that portraying Christ in any way outside of perceived Christian standards is a problem. After all, Christ was a lover of peace, of humanity, of inclusiveness, right??
The New Testament is full of those kinds of teaching. But, the types of images of Christ with weaponry of any kind are sometimes met with anger and hostility from self-proclaimed devout advocates of the teaching of Christ even though those same people advocate God, guns, guts, and glory. Conundrum, perhaps?
But I digress...awfully early in this post for me to do that, but I did it anyway. Back to "Glory".....
Folks don't seem to have as much of a problem with images like this one, now do they?
But I digress...awfully early in this post for me to do that, but I did it anyway. Back to "Glory".....
Folks don't seem to have as much of a problem with images like this one, now do they?
That image was taken from Pinterest ("God of Angel Armies") that has a ton of images depicting angels in armor and armed with swords. Glorious, right? Sorry, rhetorical.....
God's army of angels. Angels doing God's work, right? Glorious. Angelic. Fearsome. Intimidating. Violent. Yeah, I really like that one above of St. Michael the Archangel standing with his foot on the back of his vanquished foe and totally ready to strike, don't you?
Think about that. Take all the time you need.
Now, take a look at this one:
Think about that. Take all the time you need.
Now, take a look at this one:
So:
God, Guns, Guts, and Glory!
That's what made America Great!
Yep! That's it! God....Guns....Guts....and Glory! That's what made America Great! Exclamation point at the end.....for more emphasis! Yep. That's what did it...what made our country great.....God, Guns, Guts, and Glory! Too repetitive?
Weaponry has changed over the centuries. It seems we've simply replaced swords with guns. Deadlier? Yep. More efficient (kill more people)? Also yep!
So, is it really that much of a stretch for some folks to replace swords in Christian imagery with guns? Even images of Christ....with guns?
Look at the image on the sticker. The text is right there. It's embedded in the image....."God, Guns, Guts, & Glory". The Bible is front and center with angel wings on either side of the open Bible. The only thing missing would be an actual gun resting on the open face of the Bible! Those are out there, too. This image just didn't go that far.
Look at the image on the sticker. The text is right there. It's embedded in the image....."God, Guns, Guts, & Glory". The Bible is front and center with angel wings on either side of the open Bible. The only thing missing would be an actual gun resting on the open face of the Bible! Those are out there, too. This image just didn't go that far.
Somehow, in someone's delusional mind, only God, guns, and guts are what made America great....all glory to God, guns, and guts. Nothing else, just God, guns, and guts. Not people. No, siree! God, guns, and guts...that's what did it, and glory awaits!
That's troubling. At least it is to me. To base our country's greatness on God, guns, and guts with glory as the ultimate reward.....well, that's kind of a headscratcher if ever there was one as far as I'm concerned. God, guns, and guts. According to some folks, the three go together like bears and honey, like peas in a pod, like wine and chocolate, like....fill in with your own comparisons. To me, they go together like oil spills and the environment.
Is this really what 'Glory' translates into? To me, there's simply no glory to be had.
That's troubling. At least it is to me. To base our country's greatness on God, guns, and guts with glory as the ultimate reward.....well, that's kind of a headscratcher if ever there was one as far as I'm concerned. God, guns, and guts. According to some folks, the three go together like bears and honey, like peas in a pod, like wine and chocolate, like....fill in with your own comparisons. To me, they go together like oil spills and the environment.
Is this really what 'Glory' translates into? To me, there's simply no glory to be had.
Is this really how we want to view the teachings of Christ? God, guns, guts, glory? Seriously??
Am I belaboring a point here? Sorry.....rhetorical question.
I guess I'd like to think our country's greatness is based in something much deeper, much more human, much more tolerant, much more....well, much more like the actual teachings of Christ. So, I struggled with the concept of how to even talk about 'God, Guns, Guts, and Glory'.
Then I happened upon this blog post:
Am I belaboring a point here? Sorry.....rhetorical question.
I guess I'd like to think our country's greatness is based in something much deeper, much more human, much more tolerant, much more....well, much more like the actual teachings of Christ. So, I struggled with the concept of how to even talk about 'God, Guns, Guts, and Glory'.
Then I happened upon this blog post:
A Kinder, Gentler, More Grown-up Easter
Granted, it was written back in 2012. But it was also written by an ordained United Methodist pastor.
The bottom line, from a 'Glory' perspective, the "God, Guns, and Guts" mantra is something I, personally, cannot, and will not, accept as my view. Even though I do not consider myself a Christian, that view simply does not fit with how I, personally, view Christ or how I perceive what Christ stood for.
Whether you or I believe in Christ isn't the issue. Whether you or I believe the Bible is the word of God isn't the issue.
The issue is whether we, collectively, are willing to walk the walk, instead of just talking the talk. Anyone can talk the talk. Walking the walk, as Christ would have us do, is something else, something else entirely.
Granted, it was written back in 2012. But it was also written by an ordained United Methodist pastor.
Indeed, part of why Jesus was executed was because many of the Jews in Israel at that time didn’t see him fitting their expectations for a kick-ass, Rambo-like knight in shining armor who would kick Roman butt and restore the Kingdom of Israel (though he was close enough as far as Rome was concerned).The message is very powerful. This pastor says it so much better than I ever could. That's kind of why I'm sharing the link to his blog post and posting it here sort of as a proxy guest post, if you will.
The bottom line, from a 'Glory' perspective, the "God, Guns, and Guts" mantra is something I, personally, cannot, and will not, accept as my view. Even though I do not consider myself a Christian, that view simply does not fit with how I, personally, view Christ or how I perceive what Christ stood for.
Whether you or I believe in Christ isn't the issue. Whether you or I believe the Bible is the word of God isn't the issue.
The issue is whether we, collectively, are willing to walk the walk, instead of just talking the talk. Anyone can talk the talk. Walking the walk, as Christ would have us do, is something else, something else entirely.
My two cents....
* Comments on this blog are moderated.
* Comments on this blog are moderated.
Honestly, this is the part of the foursome that I believe is the crux of the problem. Guns, themselves, are inanimate objects - tools, if you will. It's the glorification of guns as the ultimate "problem solver" (or crutch, enforcer, protector . . . what have you) that makes people think they need 27 different guns of different sizes placed in every room of the house, the car, the yard, etc. so that one is always within easy reach. But what that imparts is a false sense of security. I've mentioned before that Chris Kyle's tragic shooting death while he was armed shows that even the "American Sniper," the most celebrated sharpshooter in recent military history, someone who was expertly trained with firearms, wasn't immune from being cut down in his prime. It's the folks who most glorify people like Kyle who are least likely to be able to admit this uncomfortable truth to themselves: an attacker will always benefit from the element of surprise. By the time you know you need to defend yourself with your own gun, you're already injured or dead. No one knows that better than attendees at a music festival or a parade who have bullets fired down on them from above. By clinging to that false narrative, that guns keep you safe from any and all harm, people don't give them the respect they deserve and neglect (or refuse) to store them properly, which leads to problems when the home or car is burglarized and now the criminals have even more guns. Worse yet, there are gun owners who consider themselves to be responsible ones who don't secure their guns even when kids are in the home. I personally know 3 families in which a kid or young adult intentionally killed himself with one of his parent's guns. I read news stories a couple of times each week about a kid getting his hands on an unsecured gun in his home and unintentionally shooting either himself or a sibling/playmate. 3 out of 4 school shootings are committed with a family member's gun(s). Guns are now the number one cause of death for children and teens in the US. Yes, conflating guns with "guts" and "God" seems like a nearly intractable problem. But I think it's the glorification of guns that is far more dangerous.
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