That said, the proclamation's list of faith practitioners is heavily male and protestant. It includes only one woman, Abigail Adams. It contains no African Americans or Native Americans. One would hope that a religion predicated on the belief that ". . . God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life" would not be practiced mostly by males of European descent.
There are a few other oddities. Given that Native Americans are approximately 10% of the South Dakota's population, including Andrew Jackson on the list seems particularly tone deaf. Jackson's treatment of Native Americans was nothing short of barbaric.
This is apparently the 24th celebration of the Christian Heritage Week. It might be time to add people from the 1970s and 1980s to the list of names. As it stands now, the last notable practicing Christians held office in the 1950s.
On a more entertaining note, including Harry S. Truman, a man well known for using salty language is a refreshing reminder that Christians retain their foibles. Dwight Eisenhower may well be my favorite member of this list. When a pastor began bragging that Eisenhower was a member of his church, the President told his press secretary, "You go tell that goddamn minister that if he gives out one more story about my religious faith I won't join his goddamn church."
That sentiment might be the best summation of the United States's combination of Christianity and individualism, but I doubt it's what Governor Daugaard was thinking of when he signed the proclamation.
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| Stolen from Dakota Free Press because downloading is faster than screenshoting |
2 comments:
Yep, he really stepped into it this one!!!
Thanks for stopping by Jake
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