meg·a·lo·ma·ni·a- n.
1. A psychopathological condition characterized by delusional fantasies of wealth, power, or omnipotence.
2. An obsession with grandiose or extravagant things or actions.
2. An obsession with grandiose or extravagant things or actions.
Glenn Beck wants to be your Megalomaniac in Chief. Within a matter of days, he's declaimed from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, declared his ministry as spiritual guide to the disenfranchised, appropriated God and Martin Luther King, and launched his own news website, The Blaze. Oh, and channeled Moses, but that's such an old schtick (oops, I pun).
It's tempting to use my brand new laptop and my brand new blogging year (Second Blogoversary countdown: 359 shopping days left!) to write my fanny off on this subject, but the research all by itself has been so much fun that I'd hate to put too many words in the way. So tag along as I follow the Yellow Brick Road to visit The Great Oz.
Orson Scott Card, Mormon author referenced by NYTimes: “Mormonism is not just another form of Christianity — it is incompatible with ‘traditional Christian orthodoxy.’” Amen! Absolutely correct! We send out missionaries to every country that will allow them to enter precisely because we believe that the gospel of Jesus Christ is incompatible with “traditional Christian orthodoxy.”
Russell Moore, Dean of The School of Theology at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary:
A Mormon television star stands in front of the Lincoln Memorial and calls American Christians to revival. He assembles some evangelical celebrities to give testimonies, and then preaches a God and country revivalism that leaves the evangelicals cheering that they've heard the gospel, right there in the nation's capital.
American news media pronounces him the new leader of America's Christian conservative movement, and a flock of America's Christian conservatives have no problem with that.
If you'd told me that ten years ago, I would have assumed it was from the pages of an evangelical apocalyptic novel about the end-times. But it's not. It's from this week's headlines. And it is a scandal.
Michelle Boorstein, The Washington Post (8/31/2010):
Jillian Rayfield, Talking Points Memo, quoting Glenn Beck in the same interview shown above:
Lacy Rose, in her Moneywood column for Forbes.com:
Longtime Beck-watchers said he has always made references to his faith journey, his conversion from Catholicism to Mormonism, his crediting God with saving him from drug and alcohol abuse, professional obscurity and "friendlessness." But in the runup to Saturday's rally, Beck talked publicly and privately about God working through him, calling a pre-rally event Friday "Divine Destiny" and lining up evangelical pastor John Hagee and other religious leaders to appear with him."I'm a little nervous about that kind of talk," said Janet Mefferd, a nationally syndicated Christian talk show host who said most callers Monday wanted to talk about Beck. "I know he means well and loves this country, but he doesn't know enough about theology to know what kind of effect he's having. Christians are hearing something different than what he thinks he's saying."
This isn't the first time Beck's faith has been scrutinized. Prominent Mormons haveoccasionally criticized him as being an entertainer, not a theologian. After an interview in 2008 with Focus on the Family, the article was pulled because some of the group's supporters thought it was wrongly validating his conversion experience.Glenn Beck, on Fox News Sunday: "You see, it's all about victims and victimhood; oppressors and the oppressed; reparations, not repentance; collectivism, not individual salvation. I don't know what that is, other than it's not Muslim, it's not Christian. It's a perversion of the gospel of Jesus Christ as most Christians know it."
Jillian Rayfield, Talking Points Memo, quoting Glenn Beck in the same interview shown above:
Host Chris Wallace also told Beck that "in the 40 years that I've been in this business, I have to say I've never seen anyone quite like you. You're not a newsman. You're not a preacher. You're not a politician.""I'm a dad, I'm a concerned citizen," Beck replied.Wallace also asked Beck about Jon Stewart, who's mocked Beck repeatedly on his show. "I think he's funny," Beck said of Stewart. "Quite honestly, I think he should write me a check."
Lacy Rose, in her Moneywood column for Forbes.com:
As I detailed in our Beck cover story this past spring, his now $35 million-a-year empire includes a variety of Web offerings as well as a popular radio program, Fox News TV series, books, podcasts, speeches, newsletters and stage shows. (To see how he makes his millions, go here.)Screenshot of Beck's other website, The Glenn Beck Program:
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| That headline reads:" Moses was high on drugs:Israeli..." |
And the intriguing article noted above reads:
Which naturally leads me to conclude that Glenn Beck was confused about exactly who was calling:Moses was high on drugs: Israeli researcher
March 4, 2008 - 10:20 ETHigh on Mount Sinai, Moses was on psychedelic drugs when he heard God deliver the Ten Commandments, an Israeli researcher claimed in a study published this week.
Such mind-altering substances formed an integral part of the religious rites of Israelites in biblical times, Benny Shanon, a professor of cognitive psychology at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem wrote in the Time and Mind journal of philosophy.
"As far Moses on Mount Sinai is concerned, it was either a supernatural cosmic event, which I don't believe, or a legend, which I don't believe either, or finally, and this is very probable, an event that joined Moses and the people of Israel under the effect of narcotics," Shanon told Israeli public radio on Tuesday.
Wow, Nance, I never realized how off Beck was. This is the stuff cult leaders are made of like David Koresh and Jim Jones and it never turns out well.
ReplyDeleteAlthough I suspect his real motivations are less religious delusion and more in keeping with the Moses message at the end of your post.
Got money? Throw a Rev. at your name and keep it all. Legal tax evasion - how patriotic!
I remember that news story about Moses probably being high on psychedelics when God gave him the Ten Commandments.
ReplyDeleteIn Glenn Beck's case it was probably his accountant, as your cartoon says.
As scary as Beck's delusions of grandeur are, the end of your post sent me into peals of laughter. Moses in a narcotics induced haze wandering off the mountain with the ten commandments and Beck's own adventure in tripping the light fandango resulting in hearing his own message of greed is priceless fun!
ReplyDeleteI love the way you collect all of this info and peel back the layers from this master of deception. Beck is the 21st century incarnation of a snake oil sales person.
RockyNC,
ReplyDeleteBeck admits to galloping ADHD, but the behaviors apparent lately--awake and calling assistants at all hours of the night, bursting into tears, believing himself chosen, making gaffs and accusations that tempt litigation--these are called symptoms and they may be spiraling out of control.
Sheria,
Thank you! Your reaction was just what I was hoping for. In fact, I think I had it in mind at the time.
Nance - these are called symptoms and they may be spiraling out of control
ReplyDeleteDefinitely a multiple axis nut job, but $35 million a year can buy a lot of time. Those who milk the cash cow will try to hold him together as long as they can, and I think his Dorian Grey transformation from circus clown to grotesque will take a while.
Meanwhile, follow the money ...
"It's a perversion of the gospel of Jesus Christ as most Christians know it."
ReplyDeleteThere was a time, not long ago, that collectivism was the soul of Christian piety. From my viewpoint, Jesus was mostly concerned with collective salvation; that of Judea from Roman occupation and restoring God's chosen king. Sharing of resources, giving of one's self to those in need, seems to define what little we know of Jesus' teachings and that each should be pious and cleansed of selfish ego was advocated as a part of a common goal: independence of the two Jewish nations from foreign control.
The question for me, is whether the gospel is even traceable to an historical Jesus. By the time we have copies, they had been authored by greeks who never met the man and were recruitment tools, not compendia of his teachings.
I have to note that for nearly all it's history, institutional Christianity has been the strongest enemy Democracy has ever had and that Jesus was about restoring the royal line chosen by God was sufficient justification for conflating monarchy with piety and God's will. I'm not sure this was what Jesus had in mind, but it's impossible to know as the Gospels were chosen by emperors.
Of course Beck hasn't a clue and wouldn't know history or even theology from proctology. He's just an Amy Semple McPherson or a Father Coughlin with political ambitions and the biggest tent in history to hold his meetings in. We've had them before and we'll have them again, but I can't say we'll necessarily survive them all with our freedoms intact.
Moses -- you know what that burning bush was, don't you?