I am so shocked that I am almost speechless, almost; I feel a fine, old-fashioned Angie rant bubbling to the surface.
Adultery, that ugly word, has the power to do that to me, you can all blame my BBFF for this one, he sent me the link to the article. I think almost everyone on the planet is familiar with The 700 Club, it has been on the air for years, the host, Pat Robertson has always been controversial. However, this time there is no excuse for his blatant ignorant reaction to a woman who called in to ask for guidance on how to forgive her husband for cheating on her.
Pat Robertson’s reaction was to stop talking about it, that he’s a man, men wander, he went on to tell her to focus on why she married him in the first place. Ok, that one I will agree with, the next one, is he handsome. What??? Does that imply that it’s ok to cheat if one is handsome, or only handsome men cheat?
Let’s address what the bible says about adultery, the 10 commandments come to us from Exodus 20:1-17. Number 6 says, and I quote “You shall not commit adultery” hmmm pretty strong words, but is that all the top ten says. Let’s look shall we, oh look, number 10 says “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his donkey, nor anything that is your neighbor’s.”
God thought it was so important to stay faithful He said it twice, don’t commit adultery and do not covet your neighbor’s wife.
But Pat Robertson says it’s ok, men wander, God didn’t think this was ok, in fact it is a sure fire way to, well, get to the fire.
Of course Jesus is all about love and forgiveness, and if the wife chooses to forgive the husband, that is up to her.
If she had called into Conversations with Shanon J and Angie B, my advice would have been, this is hard, infidelity is hard to forgive, however, I understand wanting to keep your family intact. I would have urged her to seek counseling, to talk to an outside third party. If she cannot forgive and move past this, then she needs to decide what to do after that. The man has to be contrite and willing to put up with a lot of crazy, he caused the crazy; he has to live with it.
It seems everywhere we turn infidelity is being celebrated, the hit show Scandal has its basis in the lead character sleeping with a married man. I just saw a commercial for a summer show called Mistresses, this is not ok people.
Infidelity hurts, it hurts more than the wronged party, if it is within marriage, it hurts the children, it hurts the families. It has the ripple effect, it just keeps hurting.
I wonder what Pat Robertson would say to a husband who called in regarding a cheating wife. Would he have asked if she was pretty, would he have said get over it, move on, women wander. I don’t know how people can share the same stage as him; he does not represent all Christians.
You see this is how Christians get a bad rap, because people like him say it is ok to cheat, Haitians are responsible for the earthquake that hit there, suggesting that the United States should assassinate Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez.
I am glad that Pat Robertson exists, I am glad that we have freedom of speech, that way we can hear the crazy before seeing them. Forewarned is forearmed.
Freedom of Religion
I have kept silent on this issue for a long time and with recent events I feel the need to express my thoughts. I want to get this straight, people are shocked and outraged that a company, that has not hidden the fact that the owners are Christian, are against gay marriage. Also people are shocked and outraged by Kirk Cameron saying he is against gay marriage. First off, let’s consider what happened here, both of these people were asked a question point-blank about their views on the topic. Both answered honestly. They did not take a full-page ad out in the paper, they didn’t specifically go on television to say these things. They answered a question honestly, and also, last time I looked this country still has freedom of religion (oh yeah the reason the pilgrims first came here) and freedom of speech.
Why so much vitriol directed at these two entities? Why are people so shocked? Seriously, everyone has the right to believe the way they do, in this country, not all countries. Are you going to boycott products from countries that kill gay people? Perhaps you all should research all of the things you purchase since you are so morally upright and fight for gay rights. Let’s get real, shall we, this is a hot topic right now, a hot button if you will. People are jumping a the bandwagon, seeing the people who don’t agree with them as the enemy.
When I don’t agree with someones views, I talk to them about what they believe and why, at times we have a friendly debate, others, we agree that we don’t see eye to eye on this subject but shall remain friends. I do not vilify them for what they believe, I don’t call them names, I don’t see them as my enemy, unless they are killing people over said views. That is a whole different story, I guess I was raised differently, I was raised in a household that believed in good old-fashioned debates, friendly banter and at the end of the day America was still the best country. Freedom of Religion was its foundation, Freedom of Speech was appreciated, for if we go in silence we never know the views of anyone, until it is too late. I believe Germany learned a lesson on that one.
In conclusion, I would like everyone to take a moment, reflect on their own behavior over this whole mess, appreciate that you have the freedom to say what you think. And respect others for their freedom as well.
Angie World 