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Duck Dynasty Digest

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Nothing new needs to be written about Duck Dynasty. Trust me on this one. For those of you who have been unable to keep up with the wide swath of commentary on the issue, I’ve compiled a list of some of the most thoughtful responses to the issue. It’s not everyday the story of a Christian entrepreneur’s religious convictions are the week’s leading news story (though, a similar story hit last year). This is one of those stories. And the surrounding issues are both significant and newsworthy, even if this has already been hyper-blogged.

Source: Arts & Entertainment
Source: Arts & Entertainment

I’ve chosen these summaries not because I agree with everything these authors have written here (and elsewhere), but because I think they each had something important and unique to say.

Kate Tracy (Writer at Christianity Today) with a summary of the entire saga, including the most-recent updates:

While A&E’s suspension of Duck Dynasty star Phil Robertson for labeling homosexuality a sin in a GQ interview is attracting widespread attention today, what could prove equally interesting is how the cable network responds to surging online petitions supporting the reality TV star.

Russell Moore (President of the Southern Baptist Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission) on why the decision by A&E to censor Phil Richardson is both misguided and intolerant, even if it is absolutely their right to be able to hire and fire whom they choose, based on the A&E institutional moral compass:

Let’s have the sort of cultural conversation that allows us to seek to persuade each other, not to seek to silence one another with intimidation. That’s what real diversity is all about… Let’s have genuine diversity, meaning let’s talk honestly with one another about what we believe and why. Muting one another isn’t what debate is for in a free society.

Brandon Ambrosino (Writer and professional dancer–who also is openly gay):

Why is our go-to political strategy for beating our opponents to silence them? Why do we dismiss, rather than engage them? One of the biggest pop culture icons of today just took center stage to “educate” us about sexuality. I see this as an opportunity to further the discussion…GK Chesterton said that bigotry is “an incapacity to conceive seriously the alternative to a proposition.” If he is right—and he usually is—then I wonder if the Duck Dynasty fiasco says more about our bigotry than Phil’s.

Rod Dreher (Senior editor of The American Conservative) on how to handle the insensitivity and complexity of issues of race in this country:

Anyway, one thing I’ve learned from where I grew up, and from all my travels, is how easy it is to demonize people, and how short-sighted and stupid it is. We all do it. We shouldn’t. All of us have had to sit at Thanksgiving tables and listen to uncles or cousins or family friends say dumb, even ugly, things about Those Not Like Us. Sometimes we speak out against it. Other times we hold our tongues and reproach ourselves later for our silence.

James Poniewozik (TIME Magazine columnist and television critic) on Robertson’s comments being reflective of the views of 45% of Americans (Pew Research data):

Robertson got in trouble, for once in TV history, for making the subtext text — for being explicit about the conservative Christianity that, when it was subtext, was a selling point for him and for his show… And, once you take any kind of action on that, you’ve got the opposite problem — with deeply religious viewers who like the Robertsons for their faith. They’re going to see it as you punishing him for saying out loud what he believes, and maybe for what they themselves believe, and what they believe is the word of God. You’re punishing him, in their eyes, for being one of them.

Wesley Hill (Assistant professor of New Testament at Trinity School and author of Washed and Waiting) on why Phil Robertson’s comments on sexuality are coarse and insensitive, even if we agree with his theological positions:

No one who takes seriously the mysteries of human nature and all the ways our hearts are opaque, even to ourselves, would say that embracing a Christian view of marriage and sexuality could ever be a matter of saying, “Gee, Phil, I’d never thought of it that way before, thanks!”And making that point is also a matter of speaking up for Christian orthodoxy in the public square.

The Robertson family offers their collective thoughts on the situation:

We want you to know that first and foremost we are a family rooted in our faith in God and our belief that the Bible is His word.  While some of Phil’s unfiltered comments to the reporter were coarse, his beliefs are grounded in the teachings of the Bible. Phil is a Godly man who follows what the Bible says are the greatest commandments: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart” and “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Phil would never incite or encourage hate.

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I’m sure I’ve missed some great commentary, but these were the essays I found most helpful. I pray the escalation of the culture wars will continue to be tempered by the likes of the even-handed voices I’ve quoted above.


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