07 March, 2006

I Am Angry

It seems that this has become my style now - the two posts a day routine. However, today, I have to use this outlet to express my anger at certain individuals that call themselves American.

I happened to be reading the news this morning when I came across a story about a protest at a funeral. This struck my curiousity. I am sorry - a funeral - any funeral - should be treated with the greatest amount of respect. However, it seems that there is a group of people in this country who feel that their small voices need to be heard - even while another family grieves the loss of a family member. My anger was intensified when I found that the deceased individual was an American soldier who had died while providing a service to his country.

Now, you can say alot of things about America. That's fine - as an American you have that right. You can talk about the way the government is run. You can talk about the corruption of our legal system. (Just ask Hubby. That's a favorite point of mine.) However, when you attempt to dishonor the name of one of our brave citizens who has the courage to put their lives on the stake for our freedoms - especially when you yourself do not have the backbone to join them in battle - that's when it goes a little too far.

A soldier fell in Iraq this week. And - this makes my blood runneth hot - an American pastor is going out of his way to protest at this young man's funeral. Why? Because this homophobe pastor who totally misses the whole heart of the gospel thinks that this young man who fought for his country and lost his life in the fight is promoting homosexuality. What happened to the fact that we serve a God who would eat with tax collectors and sinners? What happened to the fact that Christ would not even condemn the woman who was about to be stoned for being caught in the act of adultery? What happened to loving your neighbor and not judging them?

The soldier had a family - with a young daughter. She will never get to see her daddy on this earth again. This is her last chance to say goodbye to him. And a supposed "man of God" would take that away from her because there are homosexuals living in the land that her father was fighting to protect.

This raises the question - "WHAT HAS HAPPENED TO COMMON RESPECT AND COURTESY?" Why aren't people polite anymore? Really look for it in your surroundings today. Try to see if the people that call themselves "Christians" really possess that spirit of brotherly love that overflows into their relationships with others. Or rather - maybe we should all just take a look at ourselves. I know that I will be examining myself today.

Christ, help me to show Your love to others today.
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2 comments:

TTrotter said...

Hey girl! good post---How about tomorrow at 1:40 again? That would be so much fun to get up with you. That's when I can do it this week :) ;....what about you? I'll call you tomorrow.AL

6:00 PM
Chris K said...

Here is an article from the local paper about the protest. Phelps makes me nauseous...but the supportive vets lifted my heart - I rarely cry when reading the paper...

‘A FINE EXAMPLE’
Husband, father of 3 who was killed in Iraq is honored at memorial service
By R. SCOTT RAPPOLD THE GAZETTE


Sgt. Gordon Misner’s family was his life, but in December he parted from them for a year, because there was a job to do in Iraq.
On Feb. 22, he gave his life for the same cause, when a roadside bomb tore through his M2 Bradley Fighting Vehicle, killing him and two other soldiers from Fort Carson’s 3rd Heavy Brigade Combat Team.
Hundreds gathered for Misner’s funeral in Colorado Springs on Saturday to honor a father and husband cut down at age 23.
The sadness was tempered with pride as friends and loved ones talked about the young man who spent one year in Iraq and re-enlisted, knowing it would mean serving another.
“He was very patriotic. He loved his country, all the troops. And he loved his family,” brother-in-law Jason Gillen said.
“I believe he died doing what he loved, protecting us and serving his country,” Gillen said.
Gordon Misner II graduated from high school in Sparks, Nev., and joined the Army two months before the Sept. 11 attacks. He came to Fort Carson in December 2001 and lived in Colorado Springs with his wife and children.
He and two other soldiers were on a mission near the Iraqi city of Balad to retrieve another Bradley disabled in an earlier attack when the bomb went off near their vehicle. The blast also killed Staff Sgt. Curtis T. Howard II, 32, of Ann Arbor, Mich., and Spc. Thomas J. Wilwerth, 21, of Mastic, N.Y.
Fellow soldiers remembered Misner as a man who did his utmost for them and, as a sergeant, led by example.
“He set a fine example for the soldiers serving with him,” said Sgt. 1st Class David Gonzalez.
“He would do anything to make sure you had a good time,” said his next-door neighbor, Samantha Berryman.
“He’ll always be remembered as a soldier. That’s all I can say,” she said. “He was a soldier.”
But always foremost in the soldier’s thoughts was his family. He had a wife, Christina, and three children.
“He was a good friend, a wonderful husband and father,” said his mother, Charlene McCartin, of Fernley, Nev. “His world revolved around his family.”
Misner was buried at Evergreen Cemetery with full military honors. Among the mourners were 250 veterans on motorcycles, invited by Misner’s family to counter a protest by the Kansas-based Westboro Baptist Church.
Church members protest at soldiers’ funerals across the country. Because of them, 14 states have passed laws or are considering measures banning protests at funerals. The protesters, led by Rev. Fred Phelps, claim soldier deaths are divine punishment because America tolerates homosexuality.
A growing number of veterans, who call themselves the Patriot Guard Riders, travel across the country to counter them. Morgan Milam of Arvada was among those who came to support the family by shielding them from the protesters with flags and drowning out their shouts with songs and motorcycle engines.
“I can’t understand why they would want to inflict more pain on this family than they’re feeling right now,” Milam said.
“Those boys are giving up a lot, so it’s the least we can do,” said Art Wilson, a veteran and chair of the local group Rolling Thunder.
The 18 protesters left after about 45 minutes. Police reported no disturbances.
After the burial, Misner’s mother looked over the ranks of leather-clad supporters, veterans who fought in a different war and didn’t know Misner but showed up anyway.
“I’m so touched,” she said softly. “From my heart.”

11:10 PM

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