Open Letter to Ben Carson From Fellow Seventh-day Adventist: Stop the Islamophobia

[KamaAina]

http://religiondispatches.org/an-open-letter-to-ben-carson-from-a-fellow-seventh-day-adventist-stop-the-islamophobia/

As a clergy-trained fellow Seventh-day Adventist, I urge you to stop singling out Islam and Muslims. This upcoming weekend there are anti-Muslim rallies planned across the country—some of them calling for armed protesters—fueled by the anti-Muslim rhetoric you are helping advance in mainstream America. You are profiting in fundraising and in polls off the backs of a marginalized religious minority in our country.

Your singling out of a marginalized faith community is ironic, perhaps hypocritical, on many levels. As a lifelong Seventh-day Adventist, I am well aware (and assume you are, too) of the fears held by many in our community of the possibility of persecution for beliefs that differ from mainstream Christianity, such as a Saturday Sabbath. Holding membership in what many view as a small, fringe faith community, it is surprising that you are giving voice to religious discrimination.

Recently, when talking about “American values,” you raised concerns over Islam pertaining to discrimination of women, LGBTQ people, and subjugation of those with different religious beliefs. As a presidential candidate with a public platform it’s puzzling that, in addition to calling out a marginalized religious community, you would be singling these issues out in another faith group and failing to call out discrimination within your own....

Or perhaps your statement of concern about Islam reflects a change of heart from your previous comments about women and LGBTQ people. If that is true, I invite you to join the growing chorus of Seventh-day Adventists denouncing the moral authority of Adventist church leadership as a result of its choices to perpetuate discrimination against women and LGBTQ people.

[bkkyosemite]

1. Carson is SDA

I know of that religion. They have stuff that comes to them in the mail that says things about outsiders that is not such a nice thing...trying to not offend here but.......what I read was disappointing.

[KamaAina]

2. You know who else was? David Koresh.

Of course, his was a splinter group, but still...

[angrychair]

3. Not anymore odd

Than any other religion as far as I am concerned.
I will give you some are more odd than others...scientology comes to mind...but the one thing they all have in common is they are all fairytales about sky faries and/or underground faries.
Nothing wrong with a good story, just as long as they stay stories. Not stories that demand obedience and control over our lives, or else horrible fate "X" awaits you. There is no real life example in how the universe works and is organized that supports any being exercising that type of authority in how the universe works.