Watergate figure Chuck Colson warned a gathering of Southern Baptist pastors Sunday night against what he described as two dire threats: the deadly marriage of Islam and fascism and a new, militant atheism growing in popularity in the West.Colson, a former Nixon “hatchet man” who became a born-again Christian and founded an evangelical ministry to prisoners, called on Christians to do a better job of explaining their religion’s worldview.
Colson, 75, spoke at a conference that precedes the annual meeting of the Southern Baptist Convention, which begins here Tuesday.
At one point, Colson said “Islam is a vicious, evil … “ and then before finishing the sentence, said, “Islamo-fascism is evil incarnate.”
“Islamists,” Colson said, “are very different. We will die for what we believe. They will kill for what they believe.”
“The problem isn’t terrorism,” Colson said. “The problem is an ideology that is mixed with fascism … We are in a long war, a long struggle.”
Comments about Islam have generated controversy at past Southern Baptist meetings. In 2002, a former Southern Baptist Convention president, the Rev. Jerry Vines, called Muhammad, the Muslim prophet, a “demon-possessed pedophile.”
The second threat, Colson said, was evident in the popularity of several best-selling books espousing atheism by Richard Dawkins, Sam Harris and others.
“This is a virulent strain of atheism which seeks to destroy our belief system,” Colson said.
Colson also dismissed a burgeoning movement known as “the emergent church” – popular among younger Baptists and other evangelicals – as “abandoning the search for truth” in favor of “conversations in coffee shops.” He instead pointed to the success of booming Third World Churches, which Colson said adhere to “pure orthodox truth.”
Colson, White House counsel for President Nixon, pleaded no contest to obstruction of justice in the Watergate scandal. He started Prison Fellowship in 1976.
Southern Baptists form the nation’s largest Protestant denomination, with 16.3 million members.
June 12, 2007 at 5:22 pm |
Thank God for Chuck Colson!
Muslims are trusting in their good works to get to heaven. They think that keeping the five pillars is going to please their god, but this is like trying to bribe a judge. If you’ve ever told a lie, you’ve broken the 9th commandment, and you’re a liar. If you’ve ever stolen anything, you’re a thief. Jesus said that if you’ve ever looked at a woman with lust, you’ve committed adultery with her in your heart. Everyone is guilty of breaking God’s holy law. If God is just, He has to punish thieves, liars and adulterers. The Bible says all liars will have their part in the lake of fire (Revelation 21:8).
Bloodshed is required for the forgiveness of sins (Leviticus 17:11). Muslims have no sacrifice for their sins, and their sins cannot be forgiven. We’re all going to stand before God on Judgment Day, and give an account for every thought, word and deed, and if we tell the Judge that we did religious things like prayer or going to Mecca or whatever, He’s only going to add bribery to our list of sins. Justice must be served. Every lie must be punished, and if God were to just forgive us, He would be a corrupt judge.
God has to maintain His justice, but He provided a way for sinners to get to heaven. Jesus, who is God, lived a perfect life, and was tortured and killed for my sins. He proved that He was sinless by rising from the dead. It’s like I’m standing before the judge, and I’m guilty of a crime, and he gives me a fine I can’t pay. If someone steps up and pays my fine, the judge has to let me go free. Justice has been served. Anyone who repents and puts their faith in Jesus, will be saved.
I would ask you to please think about your sins, and how justice must be served. Every lie you’ve ever told, must be accounted for. Think about the fact that you have no sacrifice for your sins. If it worries you that hell is what you deserve, think about what Jesus did on the cross.
Thanks,
Bill
June 12, 2007 at 5:49 pm |
billphillips, I am sorry to tell you this but your ideas are twisted. Using the examle of “bribing a judge” to support what you were saying is totally wrong because Allah cannot be compared to any human being or any other creation of his. Allah forgives all sins no matter what as long as humans are returning to him and repenting. Allah created us. He Almighty loves us and will always love us. That`s why he forgives us after repentance. That`s why He accepts our apology for any sin we`ve done.
Jesus Christ was only a messenger. He was not a God. He ate, slept, walked on feet, and went to the bathroom just like any other human. What God is that that does all these things?
I love Jesus Christ and I respect him as a messenger of Allah. Not more, not less.
It`s ignorance to worship a human being just like me.
June 12, 2007 at 8:45 pm |
Ahmed,
So if someone slit the throat of one of your loved ones, and left them to die, wouldn’t you be angry? Doesn’t Allah care about the death of your loved one? Doesn’t he care about justice? Is Allah’s character so warped that all that he requires for forgiveness is repentance? That doesn’t work in a court room. If I’m guilty of breaking a law, a good judge won’t let me go just because I’m sorry.
Every human has an idea of what justice is (because we’re made in His image), and we’re angry when justice isn’t carried out. God is infinitely just, and a human judge isn’t infinite anything. A judge can be fooled or mistaken, but God is going to judge every thought, word and deed ever committed, and is going to make sure that justice is served.
Jesus claimed to be God (John 10:30-33, 20:28, 8:58, etc.). I don’t see how you can believe He was a messenger of Allah. If I told you I was God, you would call me a nutcase. The same goes for Jesus. If you think that Jesus was human, then He’s an insane human, who claimed to be God. If he was truly a prophet, then he had to be telling the truth, and He is God.
Your god is not just. The God who created the universe, and the God we’re going to stand before on Judgment Day is infinitely just. If you don’t have someone that’s taken your punishment for you, you will take your own punishment.Thanks,
Bill
June 13, 2007 at 1:40 am |
Well as someone from the ‘Emergent Church’ I think I may have to agree with you in regards to justice. Also If Colson had his way, I think we would be both in big trouble