Are today's Christian moral issues indications of weakness?

[Simon's Legacy]

Regardless of where one stands on matters of posting the 10 commandments; prayer in schools, teaching abstinence, amending the constitution to prohibit gay marriage--is it not a sign that Christianity is becoming weaker and weaker? Isn't it less and less about things that matter? Poverty, imprisonment, homelessness, disease, injustice, pollution, corruption. Why don't Christians get worked up about these matters? Doesn't it indicate that we no longer have the backbone to take on real evil. Instead, don't we just manufacture a few moral squabbles in order to play off the underlying social unease of the general population? I believe it is symptomatic of our weakness and a clear indication of our decline and demise.

[Cephus]

A lot of those are just talking points, just like political promises, easy to talk about but difficult, or even impossible to accomplish. Most Christians don't expect any of those talking points to ever be accomplished, they only exist to make the laypeople feel good, like they actually stand for something and at the end of the day when nothing happens, they can point fingers and blame everyone else and feel superior.

[juliod]

Isn't it less and less about things that matter? Poverty, imprisonment, homelessness, disease, injustice, pollution, corruption. Why don't Christians get worked up about these matters?

I think the answer is very simple. It's a well-documented republican technique to develop "wedge issues". These are used to seperate the lower classes from their own interests. They have been extremely successful at it. But it has nothing to do with solving problem, such as you have identifed, but in getting the less-than-well-educated to be afraid. Afraid of petty crime, homosexuals, other races, abortion, immigration, etc.

"Sheep tremble and here come the votes..."

DanZ