This is a talk Chris Hedges gave on April 6 at a protest at Princeton Theological Seminary demanding the removal of hedge fund billionaire Michael Fisch as chair of the seminary's trustee board.
As a scientist I cannot accept the leap of faith, but I was reared in the Church of England. I have met the sort of hypocrisy you speak of. One of my favourite friends in Cambridge University was a local vicar, also a scholar, who was anti- his prudish, prigish seniors. They always tried to get back at him for his simple and decent attitude. He used to go to the pub and try to recruit army cadets to the faith and perhaps better behaviour and goals. Naturally this scandalised the lofty hypocrites in charge. He got disciplined more than once. Swore like a trouper by the way, but I believe he did a lot of good, was very human and, delightfully, the opposite of sanctimonious.
My sentiments exactly Chris. The prisons using slave labor maybe why the right opposes abortion also? I was thinking they also want to own slaves and so do the foreigners and the white slaves might go for more money? Also, it seems the right is not planning on any more future elections once they get their dictatorship installed so they will be able to send all the dissidents off to war without weapons and put them in the front lines like Russia is doing right now. Taiwan comes to mind. China does almost all the manufacturing on Earth with cheap labor, very few environmental restrictions and intelligent workforce and they have over a billion people many of whom are soldiers. I think the right-wing billionaires are the nEW world order George Bush Senior was talking about. And China has been chosen to rule the world. The church is siding with the billionaires or the people with money reminds me of the dark ages. Life is cheap to them. The church has been used to indoctrinate the children to serve the rich while detaching the children from reality. From what I can tell, most children are brain damaged from all mental abuse, for the rest of their lives and are easily led into insurrection and evil.
Those in the Church who uphold this conduct as acceptable conduct, are known as phony, or "Putt'in on a front" in street parlance, and of course selling their souls to the Devil and root of all evil. While some people feel that it is not accurate to classify money as the root of all evil, it takes two to tango, so that when a person is combined with money you have the basic ingredients for the "root of all evil" inclusive of the human being. Of course, it takes two or more to commit a conspiracy, and maybe this is a conspiracy theory. But when I look at the Vatican and ask myself, is this a "true" "honest" religion?
I think of the Vatican library, and of all of its texts and writings, some of which have been determined by some high authority, to be off-limits for the masses, and of course anyone who might have a prying mind. And then I ask, what if Jesus were an embodied human being today, and what if he went to the Vatican librarian and simply asked to check out all of the classified books, texts and documents to be viewed on site? hat would the reply be? Perhaps, Mr. Jejsus, or Mr. Christ, do you have a need to know? What is your classification? Of the most high!!!! But I do not see your name on the list of permissible readers Mr. Jesus/Christ. Insane you say? but probably trues, after all we know how the money changers treated him. And then I thought, I am a child of God. My soul is of GOD, ETERNAL and so why cannot I have access to these records? Well we all know the answer that Human ego is behind this foolish act, and that all of humanity was supposed to have access to all of the truth. Remembering that a half-truth is in fact a whole LIE. AND that my friends, typifies the Vatican today. Secrecy and lies.
Thank you, Mr. Hedges. The tears I am experiencing right now leaves me speechless since I too as a Yale Divinity School graduate feel that Jesus has been abandoned by most of our churches. I was at the first Vietnam protest in 1965 when Norman Thomas was alive and was the only student at YDS that attended. I thought the entire student body would have gone. It altered my way of thinking so much so that I almost left the Divinity School.
I left the church years ago.........finding it mostly vacuous and virtue signalling. It bored me to be perfectly frank.
But this real church Chris talks about I never really left. It's just that for me.......whatever is beyond this life, this life deserves dignity, respect and above all, fairness. Social justice isn't a frill....it is the essence of an actual 'civilization'.
I don't know who this Fish person is........but he sounds like a bit of a Vampire. I didn't used to believe in them either, but modern capitalism has once again, proved me wrong....the blood suckers seem to be everywhere. Even the dying church has room for some of them, in the most comfortable pews.
"It is located with those who work in prisons, schools and shelters, those who organize fast food workers, who serve the undocumented, who form night basketball leagues in poor communities, as my divinity school classmate Michael Granzen did in Elizabeth, "
Yes
"and who are arrested at anti-fracking and anti-war protests."
No.. at least not the anti-fracking as it completely conflicts with all the previous. It is luxury virtue signaling that results in economic harm to the very people claimed to advocate for.
This gets to the foundation problem of the liberal church. It is a cult that fails in practice to deliver results because it's agenda is primarily to serve the egos and life meaning of the cult followers.
And ironically this modern liberal cult supports and protects the big government corporatist model that enriches people like Michael Fisch.
An absolute predator on those whom Jesus called "the least among us" and "my sisters and brothers" is somehow acceptable to a theological seminary?! OMG!
Apparently none of the apologists for this unholy cabal have ever read Acts 4:34-35. "There was not a needy person among them for as many as had lands and houses sold them, bringing the proceeds and laying them at the feet of the apostles. Who gave to each as any had need."
As a scientist I cannot accept the leap of faith, but I was reared in the Church of England. I have met the sort of hypocrisy you speak of. One of my favourite friends in Cambridge University was a local vicar, also a scholar, who was anti- his prudish, prigish seniors. They always tried to get back at him for his simple and decent attitude. He used to go to the pub and try to recruit army cadets to the faith and perhaps better behaviour and goals. Naturally this scandalised the lofty hypocrites in charge. He got disciplined more than once. Swore like a trouper by the way, but I believe he did a lot of good, was very human and, delightfully, the opposite of sanctimonious.
My sentiments exactly Chris. The prisons using slave labor maybe why the right opposes abortion also? I was thinking they also want to own slaves and so do the foreigners and the white slaves might go for more money? Also, it seems the right is not planning on any more future elections once they get their dictatorship installed so they will be able to send all the dissidents off to war without weapons and put them in the front lines like Russia is doing right now. Taiwan comes to mind. China does almost all the manufacturing on Earth with cheap labor, very few environmental restrictions and intelligent workforce and they have over a billion people many of whom are soldiers. I think the right-wing billionaires are the nEW world order George Bush Senior was talking about. And China has been chosen to rule the world. The church is siding with the billionaires or the people with money reminds me of the dark ages. Life is cheap to them. The church has been used to indoctrinate the children to serve the rich while detaching the children from reality. From what I can tell, most children are brain damaged from all mental abuse, for the rest of their lives and are easily led into insurrection and evil.
Thank you because you became my pastor decades ago as did Professor West. 😘
Those in the Church who uphold this conduct as acceptable conduct, are known as phony, or "Putt'in on a front" in street parlance, and of course selling their souls to the Devil and root of all evil. While some people feel that it is not accurate to classify money as the root of all evil, it takes two to tango, so that when a person is combined with money you have the basic ingredients for the "root of all evil" inclusive of the human being. Of course, it takes two or more to commit a conspiracy, and maybe this is a conspiracy theory. But when I look at the Vatican and ask myself, is this a "true" "honest" religion?
I think of the Vatican library, and of all of its texts and writings, some of which have been determined by some high authority, to be off-limits for the masses, and of course anyone who might have a prying mind. And then I ask, what if Jesus were an embodied human being today, and what if he went to the Vatican librarian and simply asked to check out all of the classified books, texts and documents to be viewed on site? hat would the reply be? Perhaps, Mr. Jejsus, or Mr. Christ, do you have a need to know? What is your classification? Of the most high!!!! But I do not see your name on the list of permissible readers Mr. Jesus/Christ. Insane you say? but probably trues, after all we know how the money changers treated him. And then I thought, I am a child of God. My soul is of GOD, ETERNAL and so why cannot I have access to these records? Well we all know the answer that Human ego is behind this foolish act, and that all of humanity was supposed to have access to all of the truth. Remembering that a half-truth is in fact a whole LIE. AND that my friends, typifies the Vatican today. Secrecy and lies.
That was succinctly written. All I have to say to this is AMEN!!
Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Hedges. The tears I am experiencing right now leaves me speechless since I too as a Yale Divinity School graduate feel that Jesus has been abandoned by most of our churches. I was at the first Vietnam protest in 1965 when Norman Thomas was alive and was the only student at YDS that attended. I thought the entire student body would have gone. It altered my way of thinking so much so that I almost left the Divinity School.
I left the church years ago.........finding it mostly vacuous and virtue signalling. It bored me to be perfectly frank.
But this real church Chris talks about I never really left. It's just that for me.......whatever is beyond this life, this life deserves dignity, respect and above all, fairness. Social justice isn't a frill....it is the essence of an actual 'civilization'.
I don't know who this Fish person is........but he sounds like a bit of a Vampire. I didn't used to believe in them either, but modern capitalism has once again, proved me wrong....the blood suckers seem to be everywhere. Even the dying church has room for some of them, in the most comfortable pews.
"It is located with those who work in prisons, schools and shelters, those who organize fast food workers, who serve the undocumented, who form night basketball leagues in poor communities, as my divinity school classmate Michael Granzen did in Elizabeth, "
Yes
"and who are arrested at anti-fracking and anti-war protests."
No.. at least not the anti-fracking as it completely conflicts with all the previous. It is luxury virtue signaling that results in economic harm to the very people claimed to advocate for.
This gets to the foundation problem of the liberal church. It is a cult that fails in practice to deliver results because it's agenda is primarily to serve the egos and life meaning of the cult followers.
And ironically this modern liberal cult supports and protects the big government corporatist model that enriches people like Michael Fisch.
NO NEEDY AMONG THEM
An absolute predator on those whom Jesus called "the least among us" and "my sisters and brothers" is somehow acceptable to a theological seminary?! OMG!
Apparently none of the apologists for this unholy cabal have ever read Acts 4:34-35. "There was not a needy person among them for as many as had lands and houses sold them, bringing the proceeds and laying them at the feet of the apostles. Who gave to each as any had need."
Powerful and empowering, your message always hits home with me. Thank you Chris!
Excellent.