Posted by
RANT BRAZEN on Wednesday, January 06, 2010 8:02:17 PM
As if separation of church and state weren’t bad enough – now we’ve got separation of church and news!
It had to happen.
A lot of us know that separation of church and state is a put-up job – and unconstitutional to boot.
But this silly flap over Brit Hume’s suggestion that Tiger Woods should “turn to the Christian faith” is disappointing, albeit predictable.
Hume – a broadcaster I have always admired – said on “Fox News Sunday” that legendary golfer and serial playboy Tiger Woods should trade his Buddhist faith for Christianity if he wants to make a comeback.
Cool. I’m glad the classy and always restrained newsman not only feels that way – but says so – on a program designed to discuss meaningful issues of the day. And, quite honestly, what could be more meaningful than where each of us will spend eternity?
And that question is not news? Well, no, not to the cynical, clubby, elitist and even atheistic types who people the lofty ranks of broadcast and print newsdom.
Anyway, here’s part of what veteran journalist Hume said on the Fox News channel on January 3:
"Tiger Woods will recover as a golfer. Whether he can recover as a person I think is a very open question, and it's a tragic situation for him. I think he's lost his family, it's not clear to me if he'll be able to have a relationship with his children, but the Tiger Woods that emerges once the news value dies out of this scandal -- the extent to which he can recover -- seems to me to depend on his faith. He's said to be a Buddhist; I don't think that faith offers the kind of forgiveness and redemption that is offered by the Christian faith. So my message to Tiger would be, 'Tiger, turn to the Christian faith and you can make a total recovery and be a great example to the world.'"
The first reaction came from just across the table, when, after a moment of awkward silence, fellow panelist Bill Kristol recovered enough to gasp, "Well, Brit's concerned about Tiger's soul, which is admirable, but I just made a more straightforward sports prediction, which was that he'll come back and win the Masters."
Good for you, William. Any reporter in his right mind would put a thousand miles between his reputation and a public statement in support of the dreaded Christian faith.
But this hot potato was too good to pass up. The smirking began in earnest.
David Gibson, described as an award-winning religion journalist, author, filmmaker, and a convert to Catholicism, trumpeted in snide headlines on his Politics Daily column: “Brit Hume: Jesus Can Tame You, Tiger.”
“When talk turned to Tiger Woods,” the religion expert wrote, “Hume weighed in with some serious preachifying.”
Then the writer took pains to explain how it was that Brit Hume gained a reliance on Christ, noting that Hume’s faith really took root after his son committed suicide in 1998:
"I certainly want to pursue my faith more ardently than I have done. I'm not claiming it's impossible to do when you work in this business. I was kind of a nominal Christian for the longest time. When my son died, I came to Christ in a way that was very meaningful to me. If a person is a Christian and tries to face up to the implications of what you say you believe, it's a pretty big thing. If you do it part time, you're not really living it."
Very smarmy, wouldn’t you agree? Surely not the kind of thing that should be stated on a “news” broadcast. Why, what will the people say?
That it’s out of place, naturally. It’s . . . well, embarrassing. Way too personal. In American journalism, you know, we must make every effort to respect the separation of church and news!
Must we? Drivel.
But the Politics Daily religious commentator did one final idealogical body slam on Hume, as in World Championship Wrestling, or whatever:
“Anecdotally, one need look no further than the sanctimonious Christian pols-turned-philanderers, or the many high-profile pastors who turn out to have feet of clay. Statistics also show that Christians are as likely to divorce or abort as everyone else, and Bible Belt states often have much higher rates of marital breakdown and teen pregnancy than other regions.
“So Buddhism -- or any number of other religious or secular philosophies -- could get Tiger to the Promised Land that Brit Hume wants for him.”
That’s a matter of opinion, Parson Dave. And it’s one that I do not share. While I can’t speak for them, it’s probably something about 77% of Americans would also find questionable, possibly even repulsive. They’re our Christians.
I liked the comment – a question, actually – that a reader left with the Politics Daily religion pundit: “Would this guy have bothered to write about an appeal to Woods to turn to Allah?”
But let’s cut this journalistic jerk a little slack, okay? He’s a “religion” editor. Heaven forbid we should call him a Christian.
I do salute David Gibson for making room in his column for what he calls the purpose of Christianity: “It is eternal salvation through belief in Jesus Christ.”
Well, then you can’t be all bad, Gibby boy. But I’m not sure that’s going to be enough to get you into heaven. I will say you’re lucky that’s not my call.