The Secret Political Reach Of "The Family"

[moobu2]

The fundamentalist group The Family has operated secretively with the help of influential congressmen and senators who are members of the group to promote their anti-gay, anti-abortion, pro-free-market ideas in America and other parts of the world, but two sex scandals involving people connected with The Family -Nevada Senator John Ensign and South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford - have brought public attention to the group.

There's other Family news. Bart Stupak and Joe Pitts are connected to The Family. They introduced the amendment to the House health care reform bill that would prevent funds appropriated from the act to cover abortion and go to any insurance company that covers abortion. Pitts is a member of The Family; Stupak lives at their residence on C Street.

The Family is also connected to proposed anti-gay legislation in Uganda that could sentence, quote, repeat offenders to the death penalty. That family connection is revealed in new reporting by my guest, Jeff Sharlet. Sharlet is the author of the bestseller "The Family" and is a contributing editor for Harper's. He's been investigating The Family for years.

Jeff Sharlet, welcome back to FRESH AIR. Let's start with a recap of what The Family is and what it stands for. You've described it as elite fundamentalism, as opposed to the kind of televangelist, populist fundamentalism. What do you mean by elite?

Mr. JEFF SHARLET (Author, "The Family: The Secret Fundamentalism at the Heart of American Power"; Associate Research Scholar, Center for Religion and Media, New York University): Well, the founder of the group, Abraham Vereide, said that God came to him one night in April 1935 and said Christianity has been focusing on the wrong people, the poor, the suffering, the down and out. I want you to be a missionary to and for the powerful, those who he calls the up and out. They can dispense blessings to everybody else through a sort of kind of trickle-down religion.

(Very Good) Transcript of Terry Gross interviewing Jeff Sharlet on Fresh Air about "The Family"

[struggle4progress]

1. ".. the National Prayer Breakfast .. is .. a private, sectarian event organized by The Family .."

[the blues]

2. K&R

Drag it into the sunlight.

[undergroundpanther]

3. hitler?

Most christians do NOT realize the bible can be interpreted as a story of power and abuse of power.
The bible is a two faced text.
The family is traitorous,tyrannical,and dangerous.The essence of Anti-american,they think democracy does not work. They seek to recruit powerful people,they are undermining the constitution with bible based power tripping.Working like fifth column infiltrators seducing state officials.They are a serious threat to democracy. They need to be shut down and the prayer breakfasts stopped.The family needs to be locked up,silenced and most importantly..DISEMPOWERED,forever.

Some beliefs are not sacrosanct,in fact they can be toxic,the family is toxic.