Religious Right Watch

Religious right groups in Minnesota and across the country are enraged by a recent report by the Department of Homeland Security that they feel targets them as right-wing extremists and terrorists.

The religious right has been handed a number of setbacks in recent days, with a unanimous Iowa Supreme Court and the Vermont Legislature legalizing same-sex marriage within days of each other. For this subset of American Christians who have found their power waning, the backlash has been severe. Vermont and Iowa are “evil,” “perverse” and bent on “destroying democracy itself,” religious right leaders say.

The religious right’s favorite bogeyman, Hollywood, brought out the fury Sunday evening when Milk, a film about murdered gay man Harvey Milk, won two Oscars including Sean Penn for Best Actor. The fact that the film had been in consideration at all prompted anti-gay protesters outside the Kodak Theatre, but it was the acceptance speeches that really got the religious right worked up.

A sign that the culture war is being waged anew took up an entire page of the New York Times on Friday. United under the moniker “No Mob Veto,” a coalition of religious-right figures vowing to shame “anyone who resorts to the rhetoric of anti-religious bigotry” placed the ad, which has raised ire among gay and lesbian activists and others. But the group’s role in championing religious freedom is suspect: Several of its members have expressed bigotry against Mormons, Muslims and Jews.

The religious right had a bad day on Tuesday. The election of Barack Obama and Democratic gains in the U.S. Senate and House put support for religious right policies further out of reach, and there’s plenty of blame to go around. Some say Republican John McCain coddled Obama on the issues, and others point to President Bush’s noncommittal attitude for issues the religious right cares about the most: gay marriage and abortion. The one bit of post-election hope seems to be the ascension of Sarah Palin as a religious right figurehead.

The religious right never goes down without a fight, and given the dwindling chance that their candidates, Sarah Palin and John McCain, can win the White House, they’re taking the fight to extreme new levels. Prominent figures are comparing supporters of Sen. Barack Obama to the Nazis, warning that God will condemn Americans if they don’t vote for McCain, accusing Obama’s family of witchcraft and foretelling a future when Christianity is criminalized by an Obama administration. Are you prepared for Obamageddon?

Jan Markell of the end-times movement Olive Tree Ministries in Maple Grove, Minn., says a doll marketed by toy-making giant Mattel is indoctrinating children into Islam. The Little Mommy Cuddle ‘n Coo dolls are designed to make baby sounds — cooing, giggling, and baby babble. But that’s not what the Minnesota’s religious right is hearing. Listen for yourself.

Sarah Palin sat down for a one-on-one interview with the 700 Club’s David Brody. The lengthy interview touches on Palin’s faith, her defense of the negative outbursts by supporters at her rallies and how detractors are mocking her and God. The interview will air on Pat Robertson’s 700 Club on Tuesday.
“It’ll be a great chance [...]