When "Imprecatory Prayer" Becomes Threat

Also known as voodoo, hex, jinx or curse, Imprecatory Prayer is one of the weapons used by the faithful to smite god's enemies. Or, in their version of things, god is listening to their pleas to smite his enemies and then giving them what they want, which he apparently otherwise wouldn't do... It's shaky theology which begs the whole question of their god's ominipotence, but that is another question for another day.

Back to Imprecatory Prayer: Conveniently for the practitioners of it, it always seems that god's enemies are their enemies as well.

It all sounds a little primitive, superstitious... savage, even ... except of course for those who actually practice it. A case in point is the Reverend Wiley Drake, a Southern Baptist who prayed mightily for the smiting of Dr. George Tiller, and is now crowing that god answered his prayers and smote indeed, yea mightily did he smite, Dr. Tiller.

So that means that our incarcerated wackjob Scott Roeder was actually just carrying out the orders from god, according to Wiley Drake. Well, shit, if that's all, then cut him loose...

This is the same Wiley Drake who has also been fervently praying -- ineffectually so far -- for the deaths of such notable enemies of god as Rev. Barry Lynn, the head of Americans United for Separation of Church and State. Fair enough, I suppose, since Drake -- contrary to the words of Jesus -- actually hates Lynn, but that's nothing compared to his latest bombshell, which came on June 2 in an appearance on Alan Colmes' radio show on -- where else? -- Fox News Radio:

Before appearing on Alan Colmes' radio show June 2, Drake had issued a statement that his imprecatory prayers for the death of slain Kansas Dr. George Tiller had been answered. He said that he "absolutely" believed that God wanted Dr. Tiller dead.
But Drake announced on Fox News Radio something that even Colmes could not wrap his head around. Apparently, in addition to AU's Lynn and Dr. Tiller, Drake has been praying for the death of – wait for it –President Barack Obama!
"So you're praying for the death of the president of the United States?" host Colmes asked in disbelief.
"Yes," Drake responded.
Drake said he didn't fear that these statements would maybe place him on a Secret Service or FBI watch list.
"I think it's appropriate to pray the Word of God," Drake said. "I'm not saying anything. What I am doing is repeating what God is saying, and if that puts me on somebody's list, then I'll just have to be on their list."
Later, still stunned, Colmes restated the question, "You would like the president of the United States to die?"
Answered Drake, "If he does not turn to God and does not turn his life around, I am asking God to enforce imprecatory prayers that are throughout the Scripture that would cause him death, that's correct."
It was one thing (though still wrong) for Drake to lash out Americans United back in 2007. After all, he was angry that AU reported his church to the IRS for partisan electioneering. We alleged that Drake violated the law by using church resources to endorse Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee.
But it's a completely different story to wish for the death of the president of the United States. It's just plain evil, and it serves as another example of the fanatical thinking of some members of the Religious Right.
"This whole concept that we're always to pray little, nice, soft, fluffy prayers – that we're not to pray imprecatory prayer – has been something that just, in all honesty, that Southern Baptists have lost, and we need to regain imprecatory prayer," Drake said.
"It is in the Bible," Drake continued, "and we are proud to say as Southern Baptists that we believe the Book. You've got to believe the whole Book, brother, or you don't believe any of it."

Got that? Wiley Drake's god is going smite Barack Obama! Now that's coming pretty goddam close to a physical threat on the President of the United States if you ask me, and at the very least it ought to earn Drake a personal visit from the Secret Service. This is really no different from some lunatic-fringe follower of The Great God Neptune shouting that his god is going to drown Obama. You can be sure that that guy would get some personal attention from the feds.

These assholes like Drake have a bunch of sheeple at their beck and call, and how long will it take before some unhinged nutjob like Scott "Angel of God" Roeder or James "Wacko" von Brunn listens to Drake and tries to take down the President of the United States "because it is god's will"?

Sidebar: Speaking of believing "the whole Book", of course anyone who has actually read "the whole Book" knows that every word of it cannot be literally true since it contradicts itself in numerous passaged throughout the whole thing. Even a third-grader can see the internal contradictions starting right at the beginning, in the first two chapters of Genesis with two very different accounts of how it all started.

Like I've always said, Jesus protect me from your followers.