Religious News Service reports that “A NORC/AP poll of 1,137 adults released this month shows that doctors, teachers, members of the military — even scientists — are viewed more positively than clergy. The less frequently people attend church, the more negative their views. Among those who attend less than once a month, only 42% said they had a positive view of clergy members — a rate comparable to that of lawyers, who rank near the bottom of the list of professions.”
According to a Gallup poll, only 37% of people surveyed said that Clergy are honest and have high moral standards.
The NORC/AP poll also reported that “Americans across the board said they didn’t want clergy input when it came to family planning, child-rearing, sex, careers, financial decision-making, medical decision-making or voting. Clergy, the poll suggests, are growing irrelevant.”
Honestly, I can see why. I see the rise of Fundamentalist and Evangelicals (Fundagelicals) and their disdain for education and science as a major factor in making the clergy irrelevant. I also think the silence and complacency of Mainstream and Liberal Churches have allowed Fundagelicals to become the loudest voice in the room and the defining image of Christianity.
Let’s face it; clergy used to be some of the best-educated people in the American population. However, with a better educated populous and better access to information, brought together with the twisted revisionist history and disdain for Science of the Fundagelicals, the populous is beginning to notice that Fundagelical clergy are sadly lacking in their education.
I’ve explained before why Fundagelicals deny climate change. It isn’t based on Science; it’s based on a Bible verse. Fundagelicals know very little about human sexuality. Just this week, an Orthodox Bishop claimed that gays are created when pregnant women have anal sex and enjoy it.
Fundagelical financial advice is worthless. Hucksters claim the way out of debt is for you to plant seed faith money by increasing your donations to them. They promise God will rescue you from debt if you just give them more money.
Let’s face it; Fundagelicals have been caught in sex scandals, money laundering, and tax evasion. Their integrity is lacking. Fundagelicals have at their core a racist and White Nationalist agenda.
We need a new Reformation. The Church too often partners with a secular government and corrupts itself in the pursuit of temporal power. It is always the return to repentance, education, and social justice that brings back the Church’s ability to connect people to God.
It’s time for another Reformation; it’s time to say goodbye to the Christian Dominionist who seek governmental power. It’s time to educate our clergy in Science and human sexuality. It’s time to not only defrock clergy involved in sex scandals but to prosecute them. Churches need to acknowledge that predators seek out churches as hunting grounds and establish policies and procedures that will protect the congregation. “Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves.” (Matthew 5:17)
Rodney Dangerfield deserves respect as a brilliant comedian. Pastors who chose ignorance, temporal wealth, and power deserve not only no respect but removal from their position. Pastors are human beings. Their respect should come from their Christ-likeness, not their title.
Thanks for reading! Please take a moment and share this post. Don’t forget to like the post and subscribe if you haven’t already. You can watch my vlog at Rev’s Reels on YouTube. You can also follow me on Facebook and Twitter. Join me and a bunch of other former Fundagelicals at Open Door Ministries in Westminster at the Westminster Mall.