I just finished reading a book, given to me from one of my republican friends from church, written by Tony Evans and called “Kingdom Man.”  I almost didn’t read the book because right on the cover it says “Focus on the Family” which is the right wing enterprise of James Dobson.  I’ve been to Focus on the Family’s headquarters in Colorado and I’ve listened to Dobson on the radio many times and, as I’ve been attempting to educate myself to the REAL on-goings of our government since GW Bush invaded Iraq in 2003, Dobson keeps coming up in different books as one of the most divisive people who have a “national stage” in America.  Dobson is one of the leaders in the movement over the past 30+ years to turn the word “liberal” into a “dirty word.”  I’ve also read, in several instances (which I’m not going to go back to find so I can specifically point them out), about Dobson’s behind the scenes involvement in the right wing thrust of the republican party these past 35 years or so that has resulted in our nation crumbling from the effect of the so-called “Christian Right” providing republicans with a block of voters who vote their way without questioning their (the republicans) true agenda.  That all being said, I read the book because my friend agreed to read one book that I will provide him.  (We’ll see on that – I’m going to give him “The Family of Secrets” by Russ Baker – a thorough and provocative study of the “Bush dynasty” – by far the best I’ve read on the Bush family)

Tony Evans is an African American pastor of a Mega Church in Dallas Texas.  He’s the chaplain for both the Dallas Cowboys and the Dallas Mavericks and his resume, to me, is impeccable from top to bottom.  Evans is a great example of what is possible in America – that anyone can come from humble (or less than humble) circumstances and achieve great success.  And, he’s clear in pointing out that success doesn’t mean achieving at the level he’s managed to achieve at, but being a “Kingdom Man” is a goal all men can (and should) strive for.  I’m not going to get too much into the details of the book other than to say that it is clearly Christian based and that, in my view, it points out some realities about America that are undeniable.  The thrust of the book focuses on the problems created in America by the failure of so many men to live up to the responsibility of being first, a husband and then a father, and it goes on to point out the other responsibilities necessary for men if America is going to actually “change” direction – as so many of us desire.  As I read this book, some thoughts I’ve been struggling with gained a bit of clarity.

At this point I need to add a little about my background.  I’m old enough to have a medicare card, I’m a school teacher nearing retirement, I’m a Christian and I look forward to my time in church each week.  However, that’s where the “rub” starts and, hopefully, where Evan’s book might bring me some clarity in my own thinking.  Ever since I accepted Christ into my life as my “Lord and savior” I’ve struggled with the reality that so many of my good friends from church are part of this “Christian Right” that I mentioned above.  I’ve been uncomfortable being around people who make derogatory comments about “liberals” evidently not knowing I’m a “liberal.”  (actually, I always considered myself a conservative for years, but the republicans have moved so far to the “right” that I guess I’m finally comfortable with the “liberal” tag)  I was offended in 2003 by the enthusiasm coming from my church ( and churches across America) as we invaded Iraq (and pretty much destabilized the entire world).  And, I’ve been discouraged in the years since as I’ve come to realize the large number of “Christians” who vote republican as a block without taking the time to find out the TRUTH about who and what they’re voting for.  This block of voters (I was tempted to use the term “sheep”) has enabled the republican party to chip away at the very foundation of America because very few question anything and the ones who do are quickly considered “Persona non Grata” inside the party.  It has also allowed the surreptitious power-grab by large corporate and wealthy interest groups to gain a stranglehold on the party continually pushing it farther to the “right.”  (Dobson is a part of that  “surreptitious” group – he runs a BILLION dollar plus enterprise)

Let me quickly add that in my “research” of what’s been going on – REALLY going on with our government – the abuses show up on “both sides of the isle.”  I just recently finished a post pointing out my frustration with HARRY REID and the democratic establishment that, to me, doesn’t have the spine to do what’s “right” to clean up Washington DC – so, please don’t respond to anything I say here by saying something along the lines of “But the democrats……..”  I’m really tired of that response to my complaint about what the republicans are doing to America.  It’s abundantly clear that the same “special interests” who have a stranglehold on the republican party have enough excess cash to succeed in buying off a sufficient number of democrats to further their selfish interests.  That’s not the point here.  In Evan’s book, he’s laying out a plan for how by simply calling the American adult males to “man up” so many of our problems could be addressed in a positive way.  And, the reality is that I agree with him.

I’ve been teaching the sixth grade for near 20 years in a high poverty school.  I’ve seen first hand, OVER and OVER, the damage done to young children when they are in fatherless homes, or homes with abusive fathers.  By the time young boys (and girls too, but I’m going to focus on the males here – that’s the focus of Evan’s book) get to the sixth grade the damage is often MAJOR.  As a teacher, I feel that for many of my students I’m fighting for their lives.  I’m often shocked (well, the truth is that not much shocks me any more – but, it used to) when sixth graders at the age of 11 demonstrate “street knowledge” I didn’t have when I was finishing high school.  It is not rare for me to have students who are essentially raising themselves.  My students regularly watch R rated movies I wouldn’t watch myself.  I’ve had 11 year olds bring alcohol into the classroom (and actually drink it there), they’re exposed to all kinds of drugs, and most have no idea what an education might do for them in the future.  In fact, when I ask them what their thoughts about the future are, most say “huh?”  And, then add, “I don’t have any thoughts about the future.”  (Well, there are the ones who are going to be NFL or NBA stars)  I totally agree with Evans that this is a national problem.  Most of these students of mine are in single parent families and education isn’t on their scale of priorities.

The result of this societal breakdown in our family structures – Evans has the statistics about marriage, divorce, etc. and they’re sobering to say the least – is not only undermining the fabric of our nation, it is causing HUGE expense to deal with the results of all these wayward children “down the road.”  Evans has the statistics for that as well, and the costs are in the HUNDREDS OF BILLIONS of dollars to our society.  All the men who end up incarcerated, all the teen pregnancies and unwanted pregnancies, all the members of society who are performing at a level well below their potential is costly to society.  Yet, it seems to me that we’re not only not doing anything about this problem (I believe you can make a case that it’s the most difficult and most important challenge facing our society – the breakdown of the family structure) it’s not even on the radar screen.  That’s where I got a little bit of a sense of clarity about my own thinking as I read Evan’s book.

I’ve been writing about how the republican party as it is presently constituted needs to be defeated, exiled,  I’m not sure what the correct word is, but it needs to be a thing of the past.  Not because I’m totally against the republican party – over the years of my voting life I’ve voted for many republicans – it’s just that once I started looking into the “inner workings” of the party after the Iraq invasion (keep in mind, I’m from the Viet Nam era – and, I was convinced in my mind that something like that could never again happen in America) I’ve discovered many unnerving things.  From books like “The Family” and “The Shock Doctrine” and “Blackwater” and “Fiasco” and “Crazy for God” and “Family of Secrets” and I could go on and on, you get a picture that’s – well, to me – un-American.  There’s a propaganda campaign going on that is right out of the annals of Joseph Goebbels from the Third Reich where republicans are following Goebbels’ “Big Lie theory” to a tee.  They’ve got a network of “talking heads” who use the same key terms and repeat them over and over until the unsuspecting public believes their lie is actually the truth.  You’ve got to turn to books such as I mentioned previously to get a perspective that isn’t molded in some secret place and spammed onto America’s airwaves in order to control an unsuspecting public – many of which are the members of the “Christian Right.”  I can’t tell you how many people I know who believe what comes out of Rush Limbaugh’s mouth, or Sean Hannity’s, or Bill O’Reilly’s, or Lars Larsen’s (the local, to me, “mouthpiece”), or what they see and hear on Fox News.  I’ve had friends, when I show them the information that refutes what they’ve heard on Fox, crumble the paper (without reading it), throw it on the ground, and say “That’s liberal garbage.”

For starters, it doesn’t take long to identify these aforementioned people as racists.  This, of course, has become painfully obvious since the election of Barrack Obama.  But, anyone who takes any kind of an open minded look at what comes from Limbaugh’s mouth can’t question whether he’s a racist or not.  He’s right up front with it.  That’s why he only lasted one night on “Monday Night Football.”  The racist rhetoric just flows freely from his mouth.  And, this has been clearly the motivation behind the so-called “Tea Party” movement, which pushed the republican party even farther toward total extremism once Obama was elected.  The reality is there’s a large segment of America which is not ready to face the reality that this nation is getting “less white” all the time and that our president is Black (disagree? Then, explain to me why republicans are so open about “If Obama’s for it, we’re against it!” – even when it’s their own idea).  That issue alone has caused me great concern with so many people I know being associated with the republican party.  I don’t see how you can profess to be a “Christian” and associate yourself with racist views – to me, that’s not the Christianity that I believe in.  So, I’m in this quandary of  agreeing with the premise that Evans presents in his well written book, but having the same struggle I’ve had for years – and that’s the association with this “Christian Right” that just continues to perpetuate republican obstruction and divisiveness.  I long ago determined that I’m not going to allow these people to cause me to give up my Christian beliefs – I’ve recognized that, if what I believe is true, then the “judgement” will take place (as to who’s correct) when I’m no longer able to write in this “blog.”

So, here’s what seems to be gaining clarity in my mind.  Evans talks about how the solution to our problems of the family structure and the role of men in our society is a “bottom up” solution and I agree.  But, I also feel it is a societal problem and until our society is willing to address it and to put resources towards a solution (by resources, I mean both financial and intellectual) the slide in the wrong direction will continue.  And, this is where Evans will probably think I’m really off base, I believe the first step is to somehow end this partnership with the “Christian Right” and the republican party.  I’m not in any way suggesting Christians should support the democratic party.  In fact, in my mind neither party as they’re constituted should be supported regardless.  Lately, I’ve been voting democratic, but mainly because I’m voting against the republican agenda.  I would like to see a situation where both parties (or others should they emerge) can’t count on blocks of people who will support them “blindly.”  Without the “Christian” block, I can guarantee you the republican party would have to be more willing to work toward solutions that represent the needs of the “people” over the needs of their corporate sponsors, and the same is true with the democratic party.

Additionally, I believe the “Christian Right’s” affiliation with the republican party has turned more people away from Christianity than most people imagine.  As I study American History, the reality is that many of the progressive programs that came together under the New Deal during FDR’s time originated from Christian sources.  If you read “Crazy for God” you get an idea how the republican party created this disingenuous partnership with Christians (led by Francis Shaeffer and his son Frank – who now regrets his actions) over the abortion issue.  This was their superficial strategy to lock in this huge voting block (the so-called “pro-life” movement – which I could do an entire post on that issue itself) and it has worked.  Most of my friends who blindly vote republican still base their vote on this one issue – with little knowledge of what else they’re voting for.  So, what I’m suggesting is the first step in creating an atmosphere where the vision of Tony Evans might be realized is to break up this unhealthy “partnership.”  If we could eliminate the divisiveness that has been the mantra of people like Dobson, Limbaugh, and so many others on the “right” maybe we could create a dialogue which would actually address the issue of the role of men in our society.

I’m one who was essentially raised without  a father (not totally, but certainly  my father was not a “kingdom man”) and, in my adult life, I’ve discovered some of the damage done during my childhood that has permeated into issues during my adult life.  This is not unusual, but I agree with Evans that the way to turn America around is first in the family structure, and the key to that is men who are righteous (I’ll leave the discussion of what that means to another day).  Children naturally want fathers and when they grow up without fathers there’s a huge “hole” in their life.  This is a huge problem in America and, in my view, it won’t get addressed – it won’t even be on the agenda – in our present climate.  And, I’m not suggesting that breaking up the republican party is the solution.  To me, it’s just the first step.  However, if we can get beyond the intransigence, the divisiveness, and the obstructionism maybe these problems will become part of the dialogue and people who think like Tony Evans will then have a platform that leads to a national discussion and attempts to find workable solutions to this problem.  I’ll end by saying, the sad reality is that this “Christian”/republican “partnership” is fueling the divisiveness in America which prevents solutions to most problems “Christians” should care about.