Should we show an interest in the OWS movement?

[abelisle]

In light of what this article describes and our newfound interest in "working the cities' with NYC as the lead city in 2013, should we show an interest in this movement? Why or why not?

Religion claims its place in Occupy Wall Street

By JAY LINDSAY, Associated Press – 7 hours ago

BOSTON (AP) — Downtown Dewey Square is crammed with tents and tarps of Occupy Boston protesters, but organizers made sure from the start of this weeks-old encampment that there was room for the holy. No shoes are allowed in the "Sacred Space" tent here, but you can bring just about any faith or spiritual tradition.

A day's schedule finds people balancing their chakras, a "compassion meditation" and a discussion of a biblical passage in Luke. Inside, a Buddha statue sits near a picture of Jesus, while a hand-lettered sign in the corner points toward Mecca.

The tent is one way protesters here and in other cities have taken pains to include a spiritual component in their occupations. Still, Occupy Wall Street is not a religious movement, and signs of spiritually aren't evident at all protest sites.

Clergy emphasize they are participants in the aggressively leaderless movement, not people trying to co-opt it. Plus, in a movement that purports to represent the "99 percent" in society, the prominent religious groups are overwhelmingly liberal.

Religion might not fit into the movement seamlessly, but activist Dan Sieradski, who's helped organize Jewish services and events at Occupy Wall Street, said it must fit somewhere.

"We're a country full of religious people," he said. "Faith communities do need to be present and need to be welcomed in order for this to be an all-encompassing movement that embraces all sectors of society."

Religious imagery and events have been common since the protests began. In New York, clergy carried an Old Testament-style golden calf in the shape of the Wall Street bull to decry the false idol of greed. Sieradski organized a Yom Kippur service. About 70 Muslims kneeled to pray toward Mecca at a prayer service Friday.

A Chicago group, Interfaith Worker Justice, has published an interfaith prayer service guide for occupation protests nationwide.

Clergy who support the protests say they are a natural fit with many faiths, because they share traditional concerns about economic injustice. They also point to history, including the civil rights movement and abolition.

"Every movement for social change that has really made a difference has included the power of God, the power of the spirit and the power of people of conscience," said the Rev. Stephanie Sellers, one of the Episcopalian "protest chaplains" praying with protesters at different sites.

Sieradski said his Jewish faith's commitment to helping the powerless was one reason he was attracted to the movement, but he didn't intend to establish regular Jewish services. He announced his first event, a Sabbath potluck dinner, on online social networks, not knowing what to expect. The strong turnout led him to help organize the Yom Kippur service, activities during Sukkot, and what Sieradski hopes will be regular religious events.

In Boston, Marty Dagoberto said the Sacred Space was also created in an unforced way, after he suggested the idea at Occupy Boston's first general gathering. He said the space helps promote a spirit of calm and unity crucial to bringing change.

"I feel like it's really important for us to stay rooted in love, simply put," Dagoberto said.

Religious elements haven't sprouted up as visibly in other Occupy Wall Street movements nationwide, said Elizabeth Drescher, a lecturer on Christian spirituality at Santa Clara University, who has visited the occupations in Santa Cruz and St. Louis.

She said some protesters are wary because they don't recognize the authority of institutions, including religious ones, and are generally looking for clergy to be "ministering but not proselytizing." She recalled a conversation with an Occupy Santa Cruz protester while a man in a clerical collar picked up trash.

"(The protester) said, 'That dude's here with us. He's not handing out pamphlets and trying to save me. He's picking up trash,'" Drescher said.

While protesters are cautious about religious leaders, those leaders have concerns, as well. The Rev. Katharine Henderson, president of Auburn Theological Seminary in New York, has visited Occupy Wall Street and praised the movement for forcing society to re-examine its values. But she said the school is still trying to discern how much to be involved.

"There's so much polarization in our country now, and demonization of one side of the other. ... As religious leaders, we want to be 'repairers of the breach,'" she said, paraphrasing a passage in Isaiah. "So the question is how we can come together, Wall Street and Main Street, to come up with solutions that are going to work for all of us?"

Mark Tooley of the Institute on Religion and Democracy, an advocacy group for conservative mainline Protestants, said while Occupy Wall Street has succeeded in getting attention, it's limited because it's only attracting religious support from the left.

A call for government redistribution of wealth and reliance on street activism doesn't appeal to the swath of suburban churchgoers with conservative political and religious leanings, he said.

"It doesn't seem they put a lot of thought into expanding their support base beyond those who identify with 1960s-era protest action," he said.

The movement could still attract center-right religious support from the Roman Catholic Church, said Stephen Schneck, director of the Institute for Policy Research & Catholic Studies at the Catholic University of America. But he said it must be clear protesters in the still-fuzzily-defined movement share mainstream Catholic concerns about consumerism and an unfettered free market.

"If it becomes just another version of American progressivism, then I can imagine the church probably wouldn't want to cozy up to it too much," Schneck said.

Imam Al-Hajj Talib Abdur-Rashid, who helped organize Friday's Muslim prayer service in New York, believes religious groups have already amplified the movement's power. He sees his involvement as a duty, because so many in his congregation are affected by the nation's economic woes.

"If Moses or Jesus or Mohammed were alive in this day and time they'd be out there guiding and inspiring and teaching these young people," he said.

[LifeHiscost]

"Who [is so blind as] not to recognize in all these [that good and evil are promiscuously scattered throughout nature and human life] that it is God's hand which does it [and God's way]?"Job 12:9 AMP brackets their's LHC

God blesses!

[Overaged]

I'm not so sure how this could be seen as a "leaderless movement."

But i don't see any need to show an interest, as in us participating. It's an odd way to "preach the gospel" to be sure.

[miz3]

In light of what this article describes and our newfound interest in "working the cities' with NYC as the lead city in 2013, should we show an interest in this movement? Why or why not?

Religion claims its place in Occupy Wall Street

By JAY LINDSAY, Associated Press – 7 hours ago

BOSTON (AP) — Downtown Dewey Square is crammed with tents and tarps of Occupy Boston protesters, but organizers made sure from the start of this weeks-old encampment that there was room for the holy. No shoes are allowed in the "Sacred Space" tent here, but you can bring just about any faith or spiritual tradition.

A day's schedule finds people balancing their chakras, a "compassion meditation" and a discussion of a biblical passage in Luke. Inside, a Buddha statue sits near a picture of Jesus, while a hand-lettered sign in the corner points toward Mecca.

The tent is one way protesters here and in other cities have taken pains to include a spiritual component in their occupations. Still, Occupy Wall Street is not a religious movement, and signs of spiritually aren't evident at all protest sites.

Clergy emphasize they are participants in the aggressively leaderless movement, not people trying to co-opt it. Plus, in a movement that purports to represent the "99 percent" in society, the prominent religious groups are overwhelmingly liberal.

Religion might not fit into the movement seamlessly, but activist Dan Sieradski, who's helped organize Jewish services and events at Occupy Wall Street, said it must fit somewhere.

"We're a country full of religious people," he said. "Faith communities do need to be present and need to be welcomed in order for this to be an all-encompassing movement that embraces all sectors of society."

Religious imagery and events have been common since the protests began. In New York, clergy carried an Old Testament-style golden calf in the shape of the Wall Street bull to decry the false idol of greed. Sieradski organized a Yom Kippur service. About 70 Muslims kneeled to pray toward Mecca at a prayer service Friday.

A Chicago group, Interfaith Worker Justice, has published an interfaith prayer service guide for occupation protests nationwide.

Clergy who support the protests say they are a natural fit with many faiths, because they share traditional concerns about economic injustice. They also point to history, including the civil rights movement and abolition.

"Every movement for social change that has really made a difference has included the power of God, the power of the spirit and the power of people of conscience," said the Rev. Stephanie Sellers, one of the Episcopalian "protest chaplains" praying with protesters at different sites.

Sieradski said his Jewish faith's commitment to helping the powerless was one reason he was attracted to the movement, but he didn't intend to establish regular Jewish services. He announced his first event, a Sabbath potluck dinner, on online social networks, not knowing what to expect. The strong turnout led him to help organize the Yom Kippur service, activities during Sukkot, and what Sieradski hopes will be regular religious events.

In Boston, Marty Dagoberto said the Sacred Space was also created in an unforced way, after he suggested the idea at Occupy Boston's first general gathering. He said the space helps promote a spirit of calm and unity crucial to bringing change.

"I feel like it's really important for us to stay rooted in love, simply put," Dagoberto said.

Religious elements haven't sprouted up as visibly in other Occupy Wall Street movements nationwide, said Elizabeth Drescher, a lecturer on Christian spirituality at Santa Clara University, who has visited the occupations in Santa Cruz and St. Louis.

She said some protesters are wary because they don't recognize the authority of institutions, including religious ones, and are generally looking for clergy to be "ministering but not proselytizing." She recalled a conversation with an Occupy Santa Cruz protester while a man in a clerical collar picked up trash.

"(The protester) said, 'That dude's here with us. He's not handing out pamphlets and trying to save me. He's picking up trash,'" Drescher said.

While protesters are cautious about religious leaders, those leaders have concerns, as well. The Rev. Katharine Henderson, president of Auburn Theological Seminary in New York, has visited Occupy Wall Street and praised the movement for forcing society to re-examine its values. But she said the school is still trying to discern how much to be involved.

"There's so much polarization in our country now, and demonization of one side of the other. ... As religious leaders, we want to be 'repairers of the breach,'" she said, paraphrasing a passage in Isaiah. "So the question is how we can come together, Wall Street and Main Street, to come up with solutions that are going to work for all of us?"

Mark Tooley of the Institute on Religion and Democracy, an advocacy group for conservative mainline Protestants, said while Occupy Wall Street has succeeded in getting attention, it's limited because it's only attracting religious support from the left.

A call for government redistribution of wealth and reliance on street activism doesn't appeal to the swath of suburban churchgoers with conservative political and religious leanings, he said.

"It doesn't seem they put a lot of thought into expanding their support base beyond those who identify with 1960s-era protest action," he said.

The movement could still attract center-right religious support from the Roman Catholic Church, said Stephen Schneck, director of the Institute for Policy Research & Catholic Studies at the Catholic University of America. But he said it must be clear protesters in the still-fuzzily-defined movement share mainstream Catholic concerns about consumerism and an unfettered free market.

"If it becomes just another version of American progressivism, then I can imagine the church probably wouldn't want to cozy up to it too much," Schneck said.

Imam Al-Hajj Talib Abdur-Rashid, who helped organize Friday's Muslim prayer service in New York, believes religious groups have already amplified the movement's power. He sees his involvement as a duty, because so many in his congregation are affected by the nation's economic woes.

"If Moses or Jesus or Mohammed were alive in this day and time they'd be out there guiding and inspiring and teaching these young people," he said.

I can see the SDA fear of "Sunday Laws" coming out such a leftist group far more than "Sunday Laws" coming from some "right wing religious group".

SDA fear the 'religious political right' but this article demonstrates that the 'religious political left' is far more dangerous in this regard because of its natural mixture of so-called godliness and pagan philosophy.

The 'religious left' has always been a mixture of so-called christianity and the pagan culture. SDA have failed to see this and the danger it posses because they have historically and erroneously thought such dangers would come from the 'religious right'.

My, my, God has given us a clear view of our danger. Will the SDA Church notice or like so many other signs just pass it off or worse yet embrace it as a good thing.

[Kountzer]

Occupy Wall Street's Most Unlikely Ally: The Pope

by Thomas J. Reese

Pope Benedict XVI rides in his popemobile through Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany, last month. The Vatican has released a document on world economics, condemning "idolatry of the market."

Enlarge Thomas Niedermueller/Getty Images

Pope Benedict XVI rides in his popemobile through Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany, last month. The Vatican has released a document on world economics, condemning "idolatry of the market."

text size A A A

October 25, 2011

Thomas J. Reese is a senior fellow at the Woodstock Theological Center at Georgetown University, and a former editor of America, the national Catholic weekly magazine.

The Vatican released a document on the world economy on Monday that will cause heartburn in the Tea Party, but will be cheered by the folks occupying Wall Street.

Read A Different Opinion On The Vatican's Appeal For Economic Reform

This will surprise most Americans who think the pope is a Republican because he opposes abortion and gay marriage. But when it comes to economic justice, Pope Benedict XVI is to the left of President Obama. Heck, he is even to the left of Nancy Pelosi.

Those who read the pope's 2009 encyclical "Caritas in Veritate (Charity in Truth)" will not be surprised by this new document. In that encyclical, the pope decried "corruption and illegality" among economic and political elites in both rich and poor countries. He told financiers they must rediscover the ethical foundation of their activity and stop abusing savers. He wants a radical rethinking of economics so that it is guided not simply by profits but by "an ethics which is people-centered."

Benedict notes that economic "inequalities are on the increase" across the globe. He does not accept the trickle-down theory, which says that all boats will rise with the economic tide. Benedict condemns the "scandal of glaring inequalities" and sees a role for government in the redistribution of wealth.

Yes, you heard that right. The pope favors the redistribution of wealth. When was the last time you heard a liberal Democrat use those words?

Thomas J. Reese is author of Inside the Vatican: The Politics and Organization of the Catholic Church.

Courtesy of America magazine

Thomas J. Reese is author of Inside the Vatican: The Politics and Organization of the Catholic Church.

The pope also disagrees with those who believe that the economy should be free of government regulation. An unregulated economy "shielded from 'influences' of a moral character has led man to abuse the economic process in a thoroughly destructive way," he writes. This has "led to economic, social and political systems that trample upon personal and social freedom, and are therefore unable to deliver the justice that they promise."

Critics have complained that the Occupy Wall Street movement has no program. The people in the movement could do a lot worse than to study what the pope has said about the economy. Sadly, few Catholics know of the church's teaching on economic justice, which has been called the church's best-kept secret.

The pope does not have a magic plan to restore economic prosperity, but he does focus on the values that a political and economic system must support. The priority, he says, must be "access to steady employment for everyone." And that means not just here in the United States, but also in the developing world, where we must rescue "peoples, first and foremost, from hunger, deprivation, endemic diseases and illiteracy."

So if you are having a tea party, don't bother inviting the pope; he won't come. But if you see a white, solar-powered car heading toward Wall Street, it might just be the popemobile.

[abelisle]

Thank you for posting this article about the Pope.

But didn't the apostolic community in the New Testament also favor the sharing of wealth? Doesn't the New Testament preach a social gospel of the ones who can should help those who can't?

This brings to mind the etymological derivation of our word "potluck" which came from "potlatch" - the custom of the Kwakiutl (?) Indians of the Pacific Northwest who had a custom every year of each family giving up their most prized possession(s) to be shared by other families. This way, evryone had (at least for a short time) the pleasure of owning something valuable.

Alex

[miz3]

Occupy Wall Street's Most Unlikely Ally: The Pope

by Thomas J. Reese

Pope Benedict XVI rides in his popemobile through Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany, last month. The Vatican has released a document on world economics, condemning "idolatry of the market."

Enlarge Thomas Niedermueller/Getty Images

Pope Benedict XVI rides in his popemobile through Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany, last month. The Vatican has released a document on world economics, condemning "idolatry of the market."

text size A A A

October 25, 2011

Thomas J. Reese is a senior fellow at the Woodstock Theological Center at Georgetown University, and a former editor of America, the national Catholic weekly magazine.

The Vatican released a document on the world economy on Monday that will cause heartburn in the Tea Party, but will be cheered by the folks occupying Wall Street.

Read A Different Opinion On The Vatican's Appeal For Economic Reform

This will surprise most Americans who think the pope is a Republican because he opposes abortion and gay marriage. But when it comes to economic justice, Pope Benedict XVI is to the left of President Obama. Heck, he is even to the left of Nancy Pelosi.

Those who read the pope's 2009 encyclical "Caritas in Veritate (Charity in Truth)" will not be surprised by this new document. In that encyclical, the pope decried "corruption and illegality" among economic and political elites in both rich and poor countries. He told financiers they must rediscover the ethical foundation of their activity and stop abusing savers. He wants a radical rethinking of economics so that it is guided not simply by profits but by "an ethics which is people-centered."

Benedict notes that economic "inequalities are on the increase" across the globe. He does not accept the trickle-down theory, which says that all boats will rise with the economic tide. Benedict condemns the "scandal of glaring inequalities" and sees a role for government in the redistribution of wealth.

Yes, you heard that right. The pope favors the redistribution of wealth. When was the last time you heard a liberal Democrat use those words?

Thomas J. Reese is author of Inside the Vatican: The Politics and Organization of the Catholic Church.

Courtesy of America magazine

Thomas J. Reese is author of Inside the Vatican: The Politics and Organization of the Catholic Church.

The pope also disagrees with those who believe that the economy should be free of government regulation. An unregulated economy "shielded from 'influences' of a moral character has led man to abuse the economic process in a thoroughly destructive way," he writes. This has "led to economic, social and political systems that trample upon personal and social freedom, and are therefore unable to deliver the justice that they promise."

Critics have complained that the Occupy Wall Street movement has no program. The people in the movement could do a lot worse than to study what the pope has said about the economy. Sadly, few Catholics know of the church's teaching on economic justice, which has been called the church's best-kept secret.

The pope does not have a magic plan to restore economic prosperity, but he does focus on the values that a political and economic system must support. The priority, he says, must be "access to steady employment for everyone." And that means not just here in the United States, but also in the developing world, where we must rescue "peoples, first and foremost, from hunger, deprivation, endemic diseases and illiteracy."

So if you are having a tea party, don't bother inviting the pope; he won't come. But if you see a white, solar-powered car heading toward Wall Street, it might just be the popemobile.

Maybe the RCC/Pope is a leftist pinko on economics but the RCC/Pope sure benefit from the "free market" wealth. This article does not establish the RCC/Pope as the major danger to "last day events". The RCC/Pope support of the OWS crowd will of course be limited, very limited because the RCC/Pope has so many other conflicts with this crowd.

I still stand by what I said earlier and nothing in that article changes anything.

[ClubV12]

It will be neither the left nor the right pushing for legislation concerning Sunday laws, it will be both. And the legislators will respond to popular opinion in order to secure the support of the people.

As economic and natural disasters increase along with the moral decline of society the voices we hear NOW calling for a return to good christian morals will increase. The Occupy crowd is raising the volume level on one (or more) of those aspects now. Sunday laws will be very gradual at first. States increasingly passing them, challenging the Fed's, as we see with immigration laws today. Disdain from your neighbors because you either resist the change or openly fight against it with pen and voice. Religious liberty will be among the first "rights" to fall. Sabbath keepers refusing to work on Sabbath will be fired, with no legal recourse to object, as they currently enjoy. Even if Religious liberty laws remain on the books at that time, the courts will delay action on your case, you will find little support in the community for your "cause". Persecution and contempt will steadily increase against those who oppose the "Back to God" popular movement that will sweep the Nation. The movement will be seen as the solution to all these various woes the Nation is suffering. They will not see the end result and the devastating impact a complete loss of religious freedom will have on the country.

[SivartM]

I really cannot understand how everyone could simply forget about basic human rights. Religious liberty is ingrained in almost every developed country, and somehow we'll have another holocaust (remember that Jews would suffer the same punishments as Adventists) without anyone saying anything? And then the Sunday laws will spread to countries like India, which is 80% Hindu, and be accepted without question? Not to mention that the billion or so Muslims all over the world would be quite unhappy at being forced into Christianity.

I mean, Christianity may be the majority in the United States, but it's only one sixth of the world. Everyone is just supposed to do what the American Christians tell them to do?

[ClubV12]

When you understand the sequence of events, particularly in light of Daniel 11, then it becomes a bit more clear. By the time we get to the Federal level with a National Sunday law the world will already be on the brink of war, teetering on the edge. The world economy will be virtually bankrupt, disasters will be significant and well beyond any possible response. Islam will strike a major blow (perhaps a nuke on the Vatican) and the King of the North, fed up with all the havoc Islam has wreaked in general, will move against them in a pronounced and decisive manner (world war III if you would).

Those Islamic Nations that agree to the American and European alliance (NATO) will be "passed through", left alone, those that DON'T agree to the NATO demands will be wiped out. Among the demands they have to agree to, in order to survive the swift coming destruction, will be acceptance of a global Sunday law. THAT will be the test for those who choose to ally or face destruction.

The Muslims don't have a "strict" day of worship now, the men, largely by tradition, are called to prayer on Fridays. For women it's optional. To agree to NATO's demands, they simply call for yet another day of prayer, on Sunday. They may still choose to pray on Friday as well, or even continue to enforce Sharia law (kill christians). It's not like they have to be christians, they just have to accept Sunday to show their allegiance. So NATO let's them "live", buy and sell, do business and be left alone (mark in the hand, not the head). Others will fight for "God and Country" and world peace and to unify humanity and fully support the concept of a Sunday law as a day of worship (mark in the head).

In a "world war", it's Marshall law that prevails, for the good of humanity and all that. Obey the Church/State political religious powers and live, disobey and die. A counterfit to God's plan. Obey God and live forever, even though you might die on this earth by doing so. Disobey God and die forever, on this earth and once again at the culmination of the judgment.

Not a literal "mark" but an acceptence of the reality of war and a global power. Go along with it is one group, fully support it and be willing to die for it is the other group.

One more group, Gods people, who refuse to worship on Sunday even at the peril of their lives. Sabbath keepers. Among them will be some Muslims who may know little about Christians. But they accept Jesus AND keep the true day of worship, Sabbath, the ultimate test of faith.

[Kountzer]

It will be neither the left nor the right pushing for legislation concerning Sunday laws, it will be both. And the legislators will respond to popular opinion in order to secure the support of the people.

As economic and natural disasters increase along with the moral decline of society the voices we hear NOW calling for a return to good christian morals will increase. The Occupy crowd is raising the volume level on one (or more) of those aspects now. Sunday laws will be very gradual at first. States increasingly passing them, challenging the Fed's, as we see with immigration laws today. Disdain from your neighbors because you either resist the change or openly fight against it with pen and voice. Religious liberty will be among the first "rights" to fall. Sabbath keepers refusing to work on Sabbath will be fired, with no legal recourse to object, as they currently enjoy. Even if Religious liberty laws remain on the books at that time, the courts will delay action on your case, you will find little support in the community for your "cause". Persecution and contempt will steadily increase against those who oppose the "Back to God" popular movement that will sweep the Nation. The movement will be seen as the solution to all these various woes the Nation is suffering. They will not see the end result and the devastating impact a complete loss of religious freedom will have on the country.

That's it. You got it. The RCC is playing both sides. She has people like Nancy Pelosi on the left and Newt Gringrich on the right. Either way, her goals are accomplished.

[Bravus]

Didn't even need to read the thread to know which way it'd go...

Sunday Law is so far off topic it's not funny.

OWS is somewhat chaotic, but it's basically about social justice, and that is a massive concern of Jesus and of the whole Bible.

Have a look at what the Bible says about usury, as just one example.

And about our treatment of the poor, as another.

Never ceases to stun me, the ability of (many) Christians to automatically leap to the less-Biblical side of *any* issue.

[phkrause]

Didn't even need to read the thread to know which way it'd go...

Sunday Law is so far off topic it's not funny.

OWS is somewhat chaotic, but it's basically about social justice, and that is a massive concern of Jesus and of the whole Bible.

Have a look at what the Bible says about usury, as just one example.

And about our treatment of the poor, as another.

Never ceases to stun me, the ability of (many) Christians to automatically leap to the less-Biblical side of *any* issue.

[miz3]

Didn't even need to read the thread to know which way it'd go...

Sunday Law is so far off topic it's not funny.

OWS is somewhat chaotic, but it's basically about social justice, and that is a massive concern of Jesus and of the whole Bible.

Have a look at what the Bible says about usury, as just one example.

And about our treatment of the poor, as another.

Never ceases to stun me, the ability of (many) Christians to automatically leap to the less-Biblical side of *any* issue.

[ClubV12]

I think it's spot on topic!

"Social justice", as Bravus call's it, is the heart and soul of why a Sunday law will come to fruition. A "back to God" movement that will usher in a new order of peace, sharing, equality, the need for redistribution of wealth and moral integrity that will appeal to the majority of citizens. This will be a very "sincere" movement based on good old American values and decent morals, who will be able to argue with that!

I think the OWS movement is a glimpse of the future uniting of the people. A "people movement". It might not be THIS movement, but it's a glimpse of whats to come, if it isn't here....

"...that is a massive concern of Jesus and of the whole Bible." Yeah, thats the ticket, it's what Jesus would have done. Brilliant deception!

[SivartM]

"...that is a massive concern of Jesus and of the whole Bible." Yeah, thats the ticket, it's what Jesus would have done. Brilliant deception!

So... we should not do what Jesus would have done?

[ClubV12]

Indeed we should SivartM, so what WOULD Jesus do?

I don't see Him carrying a sign, resisting arrest and joining a group of protesters,,, myself. I see Him walking away saying something like "let the dead bury their dead". What He meant by that, is once you've been called to work for Him let nothing get in the way. Not work, not family, not dead relatives, not a group of protesters, no matter how worthy the cause. Set your hand to the plow and don't look back. I believe "we" have been called to deliver the third angels message, thats our mission, it's what we do.

No question there are christians among that group who feel strongly this is something they need to do for Jesus. There are lots of people with lots of different views in the world, choose carefully who you will follow.

[phkrause]

Indeed we should SivartM, so what WOULD Jesus do?

I don't see Him carrying a sign, resisting arrest and joining a group of protesters,,, myself. I see Him walking away saying something like "let the dead bury their dead". What He meant by that, is once you've been called to work for Him let nothing get in the way. Not work, not family, not dead relatives, not a group of protesters, no matter how worthy the cause. Set your hand to the plow and don't look back. I believe "we" have been called to deliver the third angels message, thats our mission, it's what we do.

No question there are christians among that group who feel strongly this is something they need to do for Jesus. There are lots of people with lots of different views in the world, choose carefully who you will follow.

[rudywoofs (Pam)]

I guess it's just about time for more deja vu from the '60's... kinda like a 50th anniversary..

The fact is, nobody NOBODY knows for certain what Jesus would do in *this* situation. He was rarely in step with a mob.

My brother happened to be in Oakland during this last protest there. He said it looked like the same-ol' same-ol' from the sit-ins we saw 50 years ago. If you get told you'll be policed, and you do it anyway, expect to be policed. (right or wrongly applied, re: Kent State)

Boy, are we ever a spectacle again for other countries! Everyone, WAVE!!!

[Overaged]

The fact is, nobody NOBODY knows for certain what Jesus would do in *this* situation. He was rarely in step with a mob.

hey Pam! lets start some sit ins at church. You get the US going; and I'll take care of Canada!

[CoAspen]

How quickly we try to kill the message by criticizing the method. It has always been interesting that 'social justice' is such an anathema to the Bible thumping part of our society.

(oh-oh, now we start down the old 'socialism' road....please restrain everyone)

[CoAspen]

Remember.....

"Fear is a darkroom where misconceptions develop"

[Overaged]

Remember.....

"Fear is a darkroom where misconceptions develop"

No internet yelling...Besides; it's not fear we are talking about here.

[Overaged]

I think it's spot on topic!

"Social justice", as Bravus call's it, is the heart and soul of why a Sunday law will come to fruition. A "back to God" movement that will usher in a new order of peace, sharing, equality, the need for redistribution of wealth and moral integrity that will appeal to the majority of citizens. This will be a very "sincere" movement based on good old American values and decent morals, who will be able to argue with that!

I think the OWS movement is a glimpse of the future uniting of the people. A "people movement". It might not be THIS movement, but it's a glimpse of whats to come, if it isn't here....

"...that is a massive concern of Jesus and of the whole Bible." Yeah, thats the ticket, it's what Jesus would have done. Brilliant deception!

Please forgive me for not knowing EVERYTHING. What on earth is OWS anyway?

[ClubV12]

Occupy Wall Street, now occuring all over America AND the WORLD!

There seems to be no consensus among anyone one group, or anyone for that matter exactly WHAT their protesting. An emerging theme seem's to be forgive all student loans. Which I think is ridiculous, you borrowed the money, now pay it back (use your welfare check to fund it).