The following was written by Ben Stein and recited by
him on CBS Sunday Morning Commentary.
My confession:
I am a Jew, and every single one of my ancestors was
Jewish. And it does not bother me even a little bit when people call those
beautiful lit up, bejeweled trees Christmas trees. I don't feel
threatened. I don't feel discriminated against. That's what they are:
Christmas trees.
It doesn't bother me a bit when people say, "Merry
Christmas" to me. I don't think they are slighting me or getting ready to
put me in a ghetto. In fact, I kind of like it. It shows that we are all
brothers and sisters celebrating this happy time of year. It doesn't
bother me at all that there is a manger scene on display at a key
intersection near my beach house in Malibu . If people want a creche, it's
just as fine with me as is the Menorah a few hundred yards away.
I don't like getting pushed around for being a Jew,
and I don't think Christians like getting pushed around for being
Christians. I think people who believe in God are sick and tired of
getting pushed around, period. I have no idea where the concept came from
that America is an explicitly atheist country. I can't find it in the
Constitution and I don't like it being shoved down my throat.
Or maybe I can put it another way: where did the idea
come from that we should worship Nick and Jessica and we aren't allowed to
worship God as we understand Him? I guess that's a sign that I'm getting
old, too. But there are a lot of us who are wondering where Nick and
Jessica came from and where the America we knew went to.
In light of the many jokes we send to one another for a
laugh, this is a little different: This is not intended to be a joke; it's
not funny, it's intended to get you thinking.
Billy Graham's daughter was interviewed on the Early
Show and Jane Clayson asked her "How could God let something like this
happen?" (regarding Katrina) Anne Graham gave an extremely profound and
insightful response.
She said, "I believe God is deeply saddened by this, just as we are, but
for years we've been telling God to get out of our schools, to get out of
our government and to get out of our lives. And being the gentleman He is,
I believe He has calmly backed out. How can we expect God to give us His
blessing and His protection if we demand He leave us alone?"
In light of recent events...terrorists attack, school
shootings, etc. I think it started when Madeleine Murray O'Hare (she was
murdered, her body found recently) complained she didn't want prayer in
our schools, and we said OK.
Then someone said you better not read the Bible in school. The Bible says
thou shalt not kill, thou shalt not steal, and love your neighbour as
yourself. And we said OK.
Then Dr. Benjamin Spock said we shouldn't spank our
children when they misbehave because their little personalities would be
warped and we might damage their self-esteem (Dr. Spock's son committed
suicide). We said an expert should know what he's talking about. And we
said OK.
Now we're asking ourselves why our children have no
conscience, why they don't know right from wrong, and why it doesn't
bother them to kill strangers, their classmates, and themselves.
Probably, if we think about it long and hard enough, we
can figure it out. I think it has a great deal to do with "WE REAP WHAT WE
SOW."
Funny how simple it is for people to trash God and then
wonder why the world's going to hell. Funny how we believe what the
newspapers say, but question what the Bible says. Funny how you can send
'jokes' through e-mail and they spread like wildfire but when you start
sending messages regarding the Lord, people think twice about sharing.
Funny how lewd, crude, vulgar and obscene articles pass freely through
cyberspace, but public discussion of God is suppressed in the school and
workplace.
Are you laughing?
Funny how when you forward this message, you will not
send it to many on your address list because you're not sure what they
believe, or what they will think of you for sending it.
Funny how we can be more worried about what other people
think of us than what God thinks of us.
Pass it on if you think it has merit. If not then just
discard it... no one will know you did. But, if you discard this thought
process, don't sit back and complain about what bad shape the world is in.
My Best Regards.
Honestly and respectfully,
Ben Stein
