An Open Letter To Ted Cruz

Last updated on: November 18, 2017 at 7:09 pm by Matthew Distefano

An Open Letter To Ted Cruz 2017-11-18T19:09:47-06:00 Matthew Distefano

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Courtesy of Pixabay

Courtesy of Pixabay

Dear Ted,

You and I claim to worship the same God. We probably read our Bibles a bunch and, only because I recently started attending a Methodist church, our Sunday mornings are probably spent in “similar” fashion. But, in light of some of the things you and your “people” have said on the campaign trail, I cannot help but think we actually worship a different God—at least one with very dissimilar qualities. No doubt if you knew my theology you would agree with me on that one. And so, instead of simply prattling off all the reasons why I believe you are in the wrong and I am in the right (as if that would get us anywhere), please allow me to ask you three quick questions about how you approach faith, the Bible, and the like. I think this will help me understand just how you arrived at some of your conclusions. Thanks.

When you told the American Family Association that “if you fear God, you obey God’s precepts,” what did you mean by that? I know you listed a few things after this statement (like living by holiness codes, individual responsibility, and free enterprise) but are we to follow all biblical precepts? For instance, if two men get into a fight with one another, and the wife of one intervenes to rescue her husband from the grip of his opponent by reaching out and seizing his genitals, should we cut off her hand and show no pity like Deuteronomy 25:11–12 commands? Or how about this one: are we to follow Phinehas, son of Eleazar, son of Aaron the priest, in ramming spears through interracial couples to turn back the “wrath of God” (Numbers 25:7–12) when we believe we are under God’s curse? Since Phinehas was given a “covenant of peace” because of this, do you advocate we follow suit in our “zeal” for the Lord? Okay, one more regarding “biblical precepts.” If I suspect that my wife is cheating on me, am I going to have to take her to church and make her drink dusty wine to see if she is guilty, as commanded in Numbers 5:11–31? Or can I just sit down and talk with her about it? Perhaps you could clarify exactly which tenets we are to follow because I don’t think I have it in me to talk about things like this with my pastor. Nor do I have the stomach to shove spears into interracial couples or chop off my wife’s hand. Isn’t it my fault for getting into a fight in the first place? Oh, never mind …
When you state that your plan to defeat ISIS is to “carpet-bomb them into oblivion,” can you please provide your “Christian” justification for doing so? Can you point me to a situation where Jesus’s solution to the overwhelming terror the Roman Empire was inflicting on its subjects was to “bomb the sh*t out of them?” (To borrow a quote from your friend/enemy Donald Trump) And if you cannot find one such instance, please explain why you think it is then your duty to “not follow Jesus” and start raining hell-fire from the sky.
This last part is actually for you and your pal, Phil Robertson, whom you seem to have vetted and deem a loyal supporter of “the faith.” Allow me to preface my question by quoting Mr. Robertson. Immediately after straw-manning those who argue in favor of LGBT-marriage,[1] he states: “It is evil! It’s wicked! It’s sinful! And they want us to swallow it [Freudian slip?], you say? We have to run this bunch out of Washington DC. We have to rid the earth of them. Get them out of there.” Now, I have a few questions. First, and simply out of sheer curiosity, who are the “they” that he is referring to? Is Robertson advocating we rid the earth of the politicians in Washington DC or everyone in the LGBT community? If you are not sure, could you kindly ask him for me? And how exactly are we to get rid of them? Murder? Forced emigration? Blast them off into space and forget about them? Similar to question 3, I would like to see some proof that Jesus openly advocated the “ridding” of an entire people-group based on differences in political philosophy and moral codes. Heck, I would like some proof that he advocated the “ridding” of an entire people-group for any reason!

Thank you for taking the time to answer my questions. I know the campaign trail can be tough, with people like Ben Carson coming and going and all. So any extra time that you devote to this is appreciated, especially when you could be masterminding—I mean, working on—other things. Take care and God bless America the World.

Sincerely,

Matthew J. Distefano

—————————

^ When Robertson states: “Redefining marriage and telling us that marriage is not between a man and a woman, c’mon Iowa,” he is making a blatant straw man fallacy. That is to say, he is misrepresenting the argument at hand. Nobody that I know is saying that marriage is not between a man and a woman, but rather, that marriage is not only that. The true argument is simply a matter of equal rights for LGBT people.

Previous Post

February 1, 2016

How to Cherry-Pick the Bible

Next Post

February 23, 2016 The Election to Save America

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Atonement Book Review Early Church Eschatology eternal torment Hell Hermeneutics LGBTQ+ Mimetic Theory Mysticism News Old Testament Podcast Poetry Politics Prayer Religion Sacrifice Satire Soteriology Theology Uncategorized Violence

Select a Month October 2026 September 2026 August 2026 July 2026 June 2026 May 2026 April 2026 March 2026 February 2026 June 2025 December 2024 November 2024 October 2024 September 2024 August 2024 July 2024 June 2024 May 2024 April 2024 February 2024 January 2024 December 2023 November 2023 October 2023 September 2023 August 2023 June 2023 April 2023 March 2023 February 2023 January 2023 December 2022 November 2022 October 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 April 2022 March 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021 May 2021 April 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

Which book comes before Amos in the Old Testament?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Obadiah Micah Joel Hosea

Books by This Author Books by All Set Free

See All Titles »