Bernie Sanders’s Liberty University speech, annotated

While we’re harvesting babies for research and actively opposing marriage the most immoral thing he can find to complain about is income inequality.

(And as usual with his tribe, doesn’t bother to explain why we should expect people to have equal incomes)

There was so much cognitive dissonance in his speech.

WSJ article: Price Tag of Bernie Sanders’s Proposals: $18 Trillion (over 10 years)

Why I hope he gets the nomination:

• Would be a clear choice between a socialistic agenda vs a conservative agenda
• I think saner Democratic voters will vote Republican

What I think will happen:

• With Hillary sagging in the polls
• The Dem deep pockets will rally behind Biden

In the desire to be open-minded, Liberty allows those who are the enemies of the basic values of Christianity as well as the opponents of “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness” to be treated with credibility. What a travesty! Sanders tries to equate four religions of the world on some quasi-moral grounds of the “Golden Rule.” By including Islam, he perpetrates the lie it practices by ordering the taxation and killing of opponents to that religion. Apparently, judging by the favorable applause/yells, there are many at this so-called Christian university that are in agreement with Sanders on the subject of abortion and gay marriage. I should think that Jerry Falwell might have rolled over in his grave. Is Liberty U. so hard-pressed for funds and notoriety that it has to moderate its convictions to gain a good press? Very disappointing!

I actually wouldn’t begrudge LU having a liberal speaker in. It can be done well or done poorly, but academic institutions do well to give students some variety. You can always deconstruct the thing in class afterwards, which I hope happened a good bit in this case… to the degree it was even necessary.

But given the trends, I’m not confident. Sound economic theory and coherent political philosophy have been so widely neglected for so long.

Unless some spokesman at Liberty makes a comment to the press about Liberty’s rejection of Sander’s point of view, it can appear that Liberty considers his liberal point of view tolerable, especially when a sizeable number of students applaud wholly un-bliblical and morally objectionable points of view. Liberty students can easily research on line what Sanders thinks. They don’t need to have the school exposing them to ideas that are foreign to biblical thinking. As a Christian institution, Liberty should teach the Christian point of view and compare all other ideas to that frame of reference. It’s the idea of identifying the counterfeit by exposure to the genuine.

Carwest… “They don’t need to have the school exposing them to ideas that are foreign to biblical thinking. “

Yes…because intellectual isolationism has worked so well for Fundamentalism in the past.

Carwest… “As a Christian institution, Liberty should teach the Christian point of view and compare all other ideas to that frame of reference. “

Which is exactly what they do.

Someone should probably note that there is a difference between being a Socialist and a being Heretic. You can be both or you can be neither or you can be one or the other. But having a liberal arts Christian college educate their students about an “unAmerican” system of government is hardly the equivalent of inviting a heretic to join their faculty. Apples meet oranges.
I’m always stunned that the default setting of many is that we have done such a poor job rearing and teaching and discipling our children that the first time they get exposed to something unBiblical they will abandon all their training and rush to embrace the dark side. I’ve always found when having lunch or coffee or a conversation with someone who is my polar opposite that I have the opportunity to educate THEM to a Biblical worldview and what drives my philosophy. But then, that assumes that one can actually believe a Biblical worldview sufficiently to interact with the pagans.
I just know I’m going to regret not listening to my inner voice to just sit this thread out…

Jim, actually Jerry Falwell had Ted Kennedy speak in 1983.

http://www.liberty.edu/news/?PID=18495&MID=9850

[DLCreed]

Carwest… “They don’t need to have the school exposing them to ideas that are foreign to biblical thinking. “

Yes…because intellectual isolationism has worked so well for Fundamentalism in the past.

Carwest… “As a Christian institution, Liberty should teach the Christian point of view and compare all other ideas to that frame of reference. “

Which is exactly what they do.

Someone should probably note that there is a difference between being a Socialist and a being Heretic. You can be both or you can be neither or you can be one or the other. But having a liberal arts Christian college educate their students about an “unAmerican” system of government is hardly the equivalent of inviting a heretic to join their faculty. Apples meet oranges.

I’m always stunned that the default setting of many is that we have done such a poor job rearing and teaching and discipling our children that the first time they get exposed to something unBiblical they will abandon all their training and rush to embrace the dark side. I’ve always found when having lunch or coffee or a conversation with someone who is my polar opposite that I have the opportunity to educate THEM to a Biblical worldview and what drives my philosophy. But then, that assumes that one can actually believe a Biblical worldview sufficiently to interact with the pagans.

I just know I’m going to regret not listening to my inner voice to just sit this thread out…

Exactly right. You actually can be a Christian and a socialist you know. There really is room under the tent of Christianity for people who disagree on economic theory. I don’t know how we have gotten to the point where we all have to be capitalists to be good Christians.

I’m not sure that’s really the point, Greg. I don’t believe Liberty allowed Sanders to speak because they have any notion of agreeing with anything he says or that it is in any way Christian, but because they simply (if I’m not mistaken) have a standing invitation for all presidential candidates to speak at convocation, liberal or conservative.

I’m really not sure how someone can defend socialism biblically, although many try. Socialism misses one important biblical truth—the doctrine of the depravity of man (when it places its faith in government to solve all our problems).

But Aaron Blumer has said and can say much more to this point than I can.

[jimcarwest]

Apparently, judging by the favorable applause/yells, there are many at this so-called Christian university that are in agreement with Sanders on the subject of abortion and gay marriage. I should think that Jerry Falwell might have rolled over in his grave. Is Liberty U. so hard-pressed for funds and notoriety that it has to moderate its convictions to gain a good press? Very disappointing!

Are you sure those were students applauding the views on abortion and gay marriage? Was it open to the public as well? I’d have to know the answers to those questions before I could criticize. Even then, you could only criticize the students…Liberty is very outspoken about their stance on abortion and gay marriage.

[RickyHorton]

Are you sure those were students applauding the views on abortion and gay marriage? Was it open to the public as well? I’d have to know the answers to those questions before I could criticize. Even then, you could only criticize the students…Liberty is very outspoken about their stance on abortion and gay marriage.

“Throughout his speech, Sanders was met with loud applause from a pocket of supporters seated near the stage, many unaffiliated with the university. The reaction from the students was generally less enthusiastic, but still positive. His biggest applause lines came when he quoted the Bible and praised the school for being a proudly religious institution.”

- - - - - - - - - -

“Not surprisingly, judging by their applause, most of the student audience didn’t agree with Sanders. The biggest applause line didn’t come from the candidate but from Nasser, who asked Sanders about protecting “children in the womb.” Several students said they were leaning toward supporting Republican Ben Carson, Sanders’s political polar opposite, for president.

Still, the students lived up to the idea that the convocation should serve as a platform for ideas, and that even the ones they don’t like should be heard. There were moments when the audience murmured in obvious disagreement—including when Sanders praised President Barack Obama—but there wasn’t the kind of loud booing that such a clash of ideology might be expected to inspire.”

http://www.bloomberg.com/politics/articles/2015-09-14/bernie-sanders-an…

Christian students at Liberty to behave well with Bernie Sanders, a presidential candidate, speaking to them. Even if you disagree vehemently, you still respect him during his talk, rather than booing constantly.

I’m really not sure how someone can defend socialism biblically, although many try. Socialism misses one important biblical truth—the doctrine of the depravity of man (when it places its faith in government to solve all our problems).

I do know a few people that are conservative evangelicals from other countries (England, Sweden) that hold to the doctrine of depravity that lean socialist in their political-economic views. They also see the doctrine of depravity among the private sector as well and prefer more government intervention to deal with the sins of individual and society. I sharply disagree with them, because I see many more unintended negative consequences taking place with more government intervention.

What scares me the most is that the students whose faith is weak may be lured to abandon what they believe and become pro-abortion socialists or at the least Democrats or Libertarians.

(I pass on my usual temptation to make a “Village” reference.)