It appears the Left, at least in certain parts of the country, has abandoned identity politics for a new strategy—“progressive (i.e., heretical) Christianity.” Of course, this brand of “Christianity” falls in line with all the current moral and cultural trends that define today’s Left. Think of it as a “modern” Christianity, perfectly aligned with whatever fad or tactic the Left finds politically expedient at the time.
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Though this political strategy may be new, it does include something borrowed (and now something blue): the parroting of the old “Jesus never mentioned this” canard. The canard that if Jesus, during His earthly ministry did not specifically mention something, then that something is up to anyone’s interpretation, especially a “progressive” politician’s. Enter James Talarico, the current “progressive” Democrat nominee for the U.S. Senate from Texas.
Candidate Talarico is on record stating that Jesus never mentioned abortion or “gay marriage.” Accordingly, since Jesus never mentioned them, Talarico, in all humility, has taken it upon himself to speak on Jesus’s behalf. And, no surprise, just as Talarico is, Jesus would be fine with both. You see, Jesus did mention that we should love our neighbor, which, according to Talarico, means abortion on demand and gay marriage. Though that verse does not mention either, not to worry, this is just Talarico’s exegesis of the Word of God, to help clarify the Word of God because Jesus, the Word of God, forgot to mention it.
The “Jesus didn’t mention” canard is putatively based solely upon what was quoted by the writers of the Gospels and conveniently (i.e., purposely) ignores the rest of the Bible. Talarico plays along with the ignorance game even though the denomination he lays claim to, Presbyterian Church (USA), teaches the and the Bible teaches that Jesus is the Word of God Incarnate. Thus, everything that is in the Bible is something Jesus mentioned. I guess Talarico missed that day when it was taught at the “seminary” he attends.
So, does Jesus “mention” abortion? Well, He gave Moses the command “thou shall not murder.” He also prohibited child sacrifice and warned those who did should be stoned to death. Additionally, and even more on point, Jesus does mention a punishment, the death penalty, for anyone who, even unintentionally, causes a pregnant woman to miscarry. Furthermore, there is the specific mention of King David’s recognition of God’s “knit[ting] me together in my mother’s womb.” Finally, there is the passage where the pregnant Mary visits her pregnant cousin Elizabeth and the child in Elizabeth’s womb, John the Baptist, leaped upon hearing Mary’s voice. While not specifically mentioning abortion, one would think these passages should at least be considered when determining what Jesus thinks about it.
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Nonetheless, Talarico ignores the above biblical mentions and references another passage in the Bible; a passage that in the over 2,000-year history of the Church was never associated with abortion, rather, just the opposite. The passage Talarico references to prove Jesus is A-Okay with abortion is the verses that announce the coming birth of Jesus—the Annunciation. In that passage, the Angel Gabriel informs the Virgin Mary that she will conceive, give birth to and be the mother of the Messiah. Nonetheless, one can see how reading that through the gnostic lens of a “progressive” could lead to the belief that Gabriel was also implying that Mary could abort the Messiah and, well, it would be no big deal. In his explanation of why this passage confirms Jesus’s permission for abortion, Talarico makes some inferences of his own that were never mentioned. One being that when Gabriel announced this to Mary, God had his fingers crossed that Mary would consent. You know, God took a chance. He’s just lucky Mary said yes, otherwise….
Concerning “gay marriage,” Talarico is spot on that Jesus never mentioned it, but neither did anyone else until ten minutes ago because it was crystal clear, there was no such thing. It was also crystal clear what the definition of marriage was. Why was it crystal clear? Because—wait for it—Jesus mentioned it. In their Gospels, Matthew and Mark both quote Jesus as defining marriage as follows: “Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.” Jesus also mentioned this way back in Genesis at the dawn of creation just after God created woman, so that man would not be alone. As the old retort goes, “it’s Adam and Eve, not Adam and Steve” and it’s always been.
The authors of the Gospels never quoted Jesus specifically mentioning abortion and “gay marriage”, however, it is very clear as to why—no one was confused about them. Jesus’s ministry, first and foremost, was to bring salvation to the world through His death on the cross and His resurrection. Also, it is recorded that He spent significant time clarifying the confusing teachings of the religious leaders of the day—the Pharisees. For Jesus, His incarnate time on the Earth was of the essence and not to be wasted. His mission, the Gospel, was to teach who He was, why He was there, and what He needed to do so that, first the Jews, and then the Gentiles, would believe. The people knew His teaching on abortion and marriage. Jesus did not need to clarify things that were already clear.
As stated above, the “But Jesus didn’t mention” canard is nothing new, in fact, it goes all the way back to the Garden when Satan tricked Eve by asking, “Did God actually say?” However, today it’s been transmuted to “God never said;” and, accordingly, “progressive” politicians like Talarico will gladly insert their words as the Word of God.
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