The former minister, press secretary and veteran journalist works his way through Christian allegory and lessons from our nation’s history in fashioning this powerful essay on the American experience and the stewardship of democracy.
TomPaine.com:
In the parable, the “tenants” are the leaders of Israel. They hoard the fruits of the vineyard for themselves, instead of sharing the fruits as the covenant teaches, according to God’s holy purposes. And the holiest of God’s purposes, ancient tradition taught, is helping the poor, and the fatherless, and the widow, and the stranger—all who do not have the resources to live in a manner befitting their dignity as creatures made in God’s image, as children of God.
When he finished the story, Jesus asked the people what the owner of the vineyard will do when he comes back. “He will kill those tenants and give the vineyard to others,” Jesus tells them. In the Gospel of Matthew, the people themselves answered: “He will bring those wretches to a wretched end, and he will rent the vineyard to other tenants, who will give him his share of the crop at harvest time.”
Political dynasties fall from negligent stewardship. One thinks of the upward redistribution called “tax relief”; of the Iraq invasion sold as critical to the “War on Terror”; of rising poverty, inequality, crime, debt, and foreclosure as America spews its bounty on war and a military so muscle-bound it is like Gulliver. It would be hard to imagine a more catastrophic failure of stewardship, certainly in the biblical sense of helping the poor and allocating resources for the health of society. Once upon a time these errant stewards boasted of restoring a culture of integrity to politics. They became instead an axis of corruption, joining corporate power to political ideology to religious self-righteousness.
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Jump to Comments
By Spinoza, December 27, 2006 at 9:48 am #
(Unregistered commenter)
How about Bill Moyers and Cindy Sheehan in 08?
Report thisBy spinoza, December 26, 2006 at 1:00 pm #
(Unregistered commenter)
TIME FOR REVOLUTION, WHAT SAY YOU?
The truth is, our elections are rigged.
The truth is, our system of government is utterly corrupt.
The truth is, neither of our political parties represent the people.
The truth is, Americans will continue their denial until reality like a hurricane, rips the country apart.
Report thisBy Steve, December 25, 2006 at 1:39 pm #
(Unregistered commenter)
For those who play chess, there often comes a time (in the “Endgame") when we know we’ve lost and, no matter what our options, the game is over.
The American public has lost this “game”. It simply doesn’t as yet realize that fact. The next step will be starting over again, a rebuilding of soceity that will take generations.
Report thisBy rabblerowzer, December 25, 2006 at 6:05 am #
(Unregistered commenter)
Clinging to an umbrella in a hurricane
Even after all the corporate media lies crammed down our throats have been revealed, Americans cling to denial like an umbrella in a hurricane. Truth shakes our faith in every myth that we cherish about ourselves and our country. Our leaders lie to us, corporate media lies to us, and we lie to ourselves in a futile attempt to keep ugly reality from shattering our illusions.
The truth is, we invaded Iraq and killed hundreds of thousands to monopolize their oil.
The truth is, Globalization is a plutocratic subterfuge to cut their overhead and increase their profits. Job outsourcing is now working it’s way up the food chain, and the middleclass is beginning to feel the squeeze. Living standards for most Americans will continue to decline, as our plutocrats extend their tentacles around the world.
The truth is, our elections are rigged.
The truth is, our system of government is utterly corrupt.
The truth is, neither of our political parties represent the people.
The truth is, Americans will continue their denial until reality like a hurricane, rips the country apart.
Merry Christmas.
Report thisBy Jaded Prole, December 25, 2006 at 5:02 am #
(Unregistered commenter)
Moyers represents the kind of moral, deep thinking and insightful leadership this nation desperately needs—which is why our corrupt ruling class would never choose him as a viable candidate. We should encourage and support him. He is a national treasure.
Report thisBy Hank Van den Berg, December 24, 2006 at 8:05 am #
(Unregistered commenter)
The complexities brought out in this interesting essay suggest a long social, political, and economic conflict that will occupy us for the next century. Combine with this the technology that is quickly integrating the world into a single, but still very diverse, society, and we have out work cut out for us over the next 100 years.
Report thisMaintaining human progress is going to take a lot of enlightened thinking and active leadership by reasonable people. Thank you Truthdig and the many writers who appear on this site for contributing so much to the effort.
By Manny, December 24, 2006 at 6:56 am #
(Unregistered commenter)
As a humanist first and a human being that as a deep respect for what ever God we chose to love,
Report thisour nation is without a doubt in the grips of a deep social and moral decay. Human life in America is of little value. We are a fearful people and that is why we allow all forms of political lobbies to dicate our humanity. Warfare and fear as been the foundation of our social fabric these many years. Indeed America’s God is the AIPAC and the corporate fathers.
By rabblerowzer, December 24, 2006 at 4:12 am #
(Unregistered commenter)
Sometimes the wheels of justice turn too slowly.
It’s somewhat reassuring to hear that Democrats plan to hold investigations into Bush Regime and Republican crimes for the last six years, but everyday that Bush retains power, he and the Rabid Right will commit new crimes against humanity. If the past is any indication, we can expect them to continue their assaults on the constitution and our civil rights on a daily basis.
Surely Bush and his un-indicted co-conspirators must be beginning to feel cornered, which might inspire them to commit even more heinous crimes. This gang of sociopaths has no qualms about employing torture or genocide for profit, so where do they draw the line? Might they nuke Iran in the hopes of provoking another attack on American soil. Such an attack would incite millions of Americans into a patriotic frenzy for revenge, the likes of which we have never seen.
The more threatened the Rabid Right becomes, the more desperate to escape justice they will become. Dire circumstances usually result in desperate measures. Democrats must be prepared to employ dire countermeasures to combat whatever crimes these madmen attempt.
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