Did Jesus stand for conservative philosophies?

Question

Let us briefly run through the politics of the religious right, just so the comparison will be fresh in our memory. Christian conservatives believe firmly in God, country, and family. Self-sufficiency and rugged individualism are highly esteemed qualities; people should pull themselves up their own bootstraps. Becoming rich is a keen goal and almost universally admired. Taxes are seen as a curse. Social programs for the poor are a waste of tax-payers' money, and the sort of people on those programs are lazy and given to crime. As for criminals, they should feel the full force of the law, and that goes for international criminals as well. A nation should deal with its enemies from a position of strength, and should never be afraid to let them feel the full force of its military might. Guns are good, sex is bad.

Were these the politics of Jesus? Let's take a look:

ON DEFENSE: Jesus said, "Love your enemies" and "Blessed are the peacemakers." "If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also." (Matthew 5:44; 5:9; 5:39.) "Put your sword back into its place; for all who take the sword will perish by the sword." (Matthew 26, 52) "Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good." (Romans 12:21)

ON SOCIAL PROGRAMS: "If you would be perfect, go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven." (Matthew 19:21.) "Yes, every man is a fool who gets rich on earth but not in heaven. Sell what you have and give to those in need. This will fatten your purses in heaven!" {Luke 12:15-21} Give to him who asks of you, and do not turn away from him who wants to borrow from you. {Matt. 5:42}

ON RUGGED INDIVIDUALISM AND "PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY": "Love your neighbor as yourself." "So in everything, do to others as you would have them do to you." (Matthew 22:39; 7:12.) "But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous." (Luke 14:13,14.)

ON ACCUMULATION OF WEALTH: "It is almost impossible for a rich man to get into the Kingdom of Heaven. I say it again -- it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of God!" { Matthew 19:16, 21-26 } "You cannot serve God and wealth." "The Pharisees, who were lovers of money, heard all this, and they ridiculed him. So he said to them, 'You are those who justify yourselves in the sight of others; but God knows your hearts; for what is prized by human beings is an abomination in the sight of God.'" { Luke 16:13-15}

ON PAYING TAXES: "Give to Caesar what is Caesar's, and to God what is God's." (Matthew 22:22.)

ON THE DEATH PENALTY: "If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her." "Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you." {John 8:7; Matthew 7:1,2.}

ON CLIMBING THE SOCIAL LADDER: "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth." Matthew 5: 2--12} "The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, 'Behold, a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!'" {Matthew 11:19.} Similar scripture exist where Jesus is seen hanging out with the prostitutes, tax collectors, and other people of low stature in society.

ON FREE LUNCH: "Taking the five loaves and two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves… The number of those who ate was about five thousand men…" (Matthew 14:19,21.)

ON MONEY-HUNGRY TELEVANGELISTS: "In the temple courts [Jesus] found men selling cattle, sheep and doves, and other sitting at tables exchanging money. So he made a whip out of cords, and drove all from the temple area, both sheep and cattle; he scattered the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables." (John 2:14,15.)

ON SELF-RIGHEOUS SINNERS WHO SPEND SO MUCH TIME POINTING OUT THE SINS OF OTHERS WITHOUT SEEING THE SINS THEY THEMSELVES COMMIT
"Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee, standing by himself, was praying thus, 'God, I thank you that I am not like other people: thieves, rogues, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give a tenth of all my income.' But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even look up to heaven, but was beating his breast and saying, 'God, be merciful to me, a sinner!' I tell you, this man went down to his home justified rather than the other; for all who exalt themselves will be humbled, but all who humble themselves will be exalted." { Luke 18 : 9-14 }

ON THE SELF-RIGHEOUS RELIGIOUS RIGHT LEADERS OF HIS DAY
"You would think these religious leaders and these Pharisees were Moses, the way they keep making up so many laws! . . . It may be all right to do what they say, but above anything else, don't follow their example. For they don't do what they tell you to do. They load you with impossible demands that they themselves don't even try to keep... Everything they do is done for show... They act holy by wearing on their arms little prayer boxes with Scripture verses inside, and by lengthening the memorial fringes of their robes. And how they love to sit at the head table at banquets and in the reserved pews in the synagogue! How they enjoy the deference paid them on the streets and to be called 'Teacher' and 'Master'! Don't ever let anyone call you that. For only God is your Teacher and all of you are on the same level, as brothers.

And don't address anyone here on earth as 'Father,' for only God in heaven should be addressed like that. And don't be called 'Master,' for only one is your master, even the Messiah. . . Woe to you, Pharisees, and you other religious leaders. Hypocrites! For you won't let others enter the Kingdom of Heaven and won't go in yourselves." { Matthew 23:1-14: }

ON FAITH VERSUS WORKS: In the parable of the Good Samaritan, Jesus praises the morality of a nonbeliever over his own phony religious leaders. (Luke 10:30-37.)

ON SEXUAL MATTERS
Jesus told the religious leaders who challenged his teaching in the temple, "Truly I tell you, the tax collectors and the prostitutes are going into the kingdom of God ahead of you." { Matt. 21:23-32} When he was invited to a wedding, far from throwing cold water on it. he turned water into wine, in order to "let the good times roll". { John 2:1-12 } When holier than thou people wondered how Jesus could let a prostitute touch him, he made a point of lifting her up and putting her critics down. { Luke 7:36-50 } Even his disciples raised their eyebrows when Jesus spend so much time chatting with a Samaritan woman.{ John 4:4 . . . 42 }

ON CRIME AND PUNISHMENT
When the holier than thou church people dragged a woman "caught in the very act of adultery" before him and asked him to join them in stoning her to death as the bible said that they should do, He turned the tables around and humiliated the churchmen, instead of that poor woman. "Jesus bent down and wrote with his finger on the ground. When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, "Let anyone among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her." And once again he bent down and wrote on the ground. When they heard it, they went away, one by one, beginning with the elders; and Jesus was left alone with the woman standing before him. Jesus straightened up and said to her, "Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?" She said, "No one, sir." And Jesus said, "Neither do I condemn you. Go your way, and from now on do not sin again." { John 8: 2--11 }

ON RELIGIOUS DOGMA
"If any of you has a sheep and it falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will you not take hold of it and lift it out?" "The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath." (Matthew 12:11; Mark 2:27.)

PUBLIC PRAYER
“Whenever you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, because they love to pray while standing in synagogues 7 and on street corners so that people can see them. Truly I say to you, they have their reward. 6:6 But whenever you pray, go into your room, 8 close the door, and pray to your Father in secret. And your Father, who sees in secret, will reward you. 9 6:7 When 10 you pray, do not babble repetitiously like the Gentiles, because they think that by their many words they will be heard. 6:8 Do 11 not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. 6:9 So pray this way: 12

Jenn,

Brief, was the first paragraph. It was indeed a brief summary of the beliefs of the religious right.

Jenn from below,
Jesus said nothing about gay marriage or abortion. He did say everything I mentioned above.

Answer 1

"let's briefly run through the politics of the religious right. . "

What on earth is your definition of brief?

Answer 2

Yes. No one has ever been any more Conservative than Jesus.
Back in the 60's, Hippies tried to say that Jesus was a liberal, a communist, didn't take baths, took drugs, and had sex with everyone.
But no one fell for it.
"Jesus cast the Liberals to the Swine. Because of the Liberals, the Swine then became Filth. Jesus then Forbid the eating of Pork".

****added note****(You can twist it anyway you want. But Jesus was not a weirdo-freak-liberal. He believed in working and supporting your family, which is the opposite of liberals.)
I'm not a church person, but I do know a little about religion.

Answer 3

By considering the circumstances and laws, 2000 years ago, was Jesus an absolute Liberal.

Answer 4

When he was Jewish sure he probable was very conservative, once he was no longer Jewish he was THE biggest liberal of his time and still is to this day.

Jesus has only been a symbol for religion and has not had much to do with it since about 500-535bc. - when it institutionalized.

People just use the name today either to make someone feel bad (quilt), to attempt to justify their actions and existence because they feel a lacking within them selfs and/or for a tax break. Sad really considering what is believed or carried as 'faith in what he was attempting to teach.

Answer 5

Can you condense this into a paragraph or two? Who in the hell has time to read this?

<<<< Doing paperwork so I'm caught up when I get to work tomorrow.... How else can we support your Socialistic agenda?

Answer 6

Ann Coulter speaks for the right wing radical conservative Republicans, because she says God and Jesus called her to

Answer 7

It never ceases to amaze me how liberals can take the fact that the right wing faction believes in God and country and all things right------------and twist the facts around to attempt to discredit us in anyway possible------------just to promote their socialistic agenda----------------------folks we are in a war between good and evil----------do not let forces of evil to fool you---------many people are pawns without even knowing they are being used-------think for yourself-----and do not let liberal lawyer politicians turn you into their puppets----------if in your heart you know something is wrong-----------take a closer look at who is saying it------if you will scrutinize it objectively you will find they are wrong on other things as well.---...love to all

Answer 8

In his time the conservatives were called "Pharisees". Jesus condemned them.

Today the conservatives would crucify him again.
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Answer 9

um jesus stood for love not your misconceptions of what you think jesus' politics were

Answer 10

wolf doesn't have any idea what "conservative" means, it means to favor traditional values, which jesus certainly did not, he changed all the traditional values