Blogging the Christian Left

The Christian Right has been ascendant in public life for some time. But there are signs that other sectors are not only mobilizing to meet the challenge -- but that they have plenty of fight in them.

(And by fight, I don't mean violence, nasty arguments, or clever bumperstickers. I mean people who understand that politics, and persuasion is a normal part of life in a democratic society, and churches that have a democratic polity -- and have the gumption to act and to organize instead of naively seeking only common ground. The Christian Right has learned to fight effectively, and to utilize the tools and institutions of democracy in order to push for antidemocratic policies and practices. But then, you probably knew all that.)

Amidst the millions of personal blogs out there -- where we can see such things as our friends' latest cute cat or baby pics, and so on -- there are also a growing number of smart, capable progressives who are turning their blogs into effective internet publications. Some of these, I believe, will be playing a catalytic role in the revival of the religious Left.

Here are two pioneering sites worth checking out:

Faithforward is a new blog by a minister in the United Church of Christ -- thats the liberal Protestant church currently in the news for trying to place ads that welcome all to their churches, that CBS and NBC found "too controversial." The site is run by Pastor Dan, who blogs on religion news from Pennsylvania, and cross-posts over on the secular Daily Kos, the largest liberal democratic blog site. "It's a work in progress," he wrote in announcing the new site on Kos, "but we'll keep at it, with the hopes of building up some kind of community for progressive Christians."

Dr. Bruce Prescott, based in Norman, Oklahoma, is a leader in the struggle with the fundamentalists that have taken over the Southern Baptist Convention. He is the executive director of Mainstream Baptists of Oklahoma, and is a leader in Americans United for Separation of Church and State. On his Mainstream Baptist blog, he offers sharp, well-informed takes on the news, developments on the Christian Right, and goings on among the Baptists. For example, in response to the right wing noise machine's claim that Christianity is under attack in the public schools and in society at large, he rejoined (on Saturday, Dec. 18): "We need to dispel the myth that Christians are being persecuted in our public schools. Most of the instances I hear about Christians being persecuted are really examples about Christians no longer being permitted to dominate the stage and school or takeover the public square."

He has also launched a Christian Democrats blog for discussing religion in the context of politics and the Democratic Party.

Please join me in celebrating the inauguration of the era of progressive Christian bloggers.