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Wednesday, August 25, 2010

Church Burning Koran, Liberals Burning Constitution

By Rick Pearcey • August 25, 2010, 08:04 AM

"The Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) has joined the growing condemnation of plans by a Florida church to burn copies of the Quran on the 9th anniversary of the 9/11 terror attacks," reports CNSNews.com in a news story titled, "Burn the Quran Day Prompts Warnings of Anger, Unrest."

Two observations:

1. Any worldview -- be that "scientific," philosophical, religious, political, Biblical, or Koranic -- that would be considered a viable option as the object of a person's trust should be chosen carefully on the basis of whether it is true to reality, that is, to the facts of history, humanity, the evidence of reason, empirical data, internal consistency, and so on. If something is "sacred" but false, it should not be "believed."

This approach, by the way, is the real-world orientation of the Biblical epistemology, quite in contrast to so much that you see coming out of politics, Hollywood, the academy, and so-called "people of faith" these days (understanding "faith" in the dumbed-down secular way, in contrast to the Biblical data). The attempt to hide meaning in a protected "values" realm, immune from the considerations of evidence, is a seedbed of violence, because now force, and not reason, becomes the decider of what is publicly acceptable or not.

2. Literal book-burning is a problem because it suggests a fear of critique. Far more serious is the mental "book-burning" we see today in American politics, where certain passions would rather "burn" the Constitution and Declaration of Independence rather than respect their contents the way honest people of intellect ought to. Specifically, any attempt to recast these Founding, defining documents of the enduring American mainstream as so-called "living" documents (where the text can be ignored, to be replaced by the personal opinion of those with power) represents book-burning on the highest (read: lowest) level.

That kind of "living" document is, in effect, a nondocument, a document committed to the flames. It is thereby transformed into a tool of oppression. "Progressives," liberals, RINOs, and secularists who would rule by it are captured by the spirit of dictatorship and manipulation, whether on purpose or not, whether they consent or not.

There is a better, more humane and holistic way. A healthy people will resist empty "values" and charred documents. A free people of intelligence, dignity, and choice, who understand that human rights have their only sure basis in the self-same knowable Creator who has created us equal and endowed us with "certain unalienable rights," and who does not require intellectual suicide as a prerequisite to personal commitment, will resist.

This is the American identity. More importantly, this is our human identity. Properly understood American exceptionalism and human exceptionalism are waters of life which have their origin in the same wellspring of goodness and truth. I speak of the Creator, not of Washington, D.C., and not of its current prophet, who is seen every now and then in a chair far too big for him in the White House. All around him are flames.

Related
Church: "We Will Burn the Koran" 
How the New Resistance Can Win the Culture War