God's Profits: Faith, Fraud, and the Republican Crusade for Values Voters

Sarah Posner really breaks this down in simplest terms. Christians have no business meddling with the voting process. Jesus said, "Render unto Ceasar what is Ceasar's, and to God's what is God's." This is not referring to the tithe, this is referring to the separation of church & state. Christians cannot force morality on the world, that's what the Dark Ages & the Inquisitions were all about. These so called, "Men of God" are literally robbing there members. They are seeking they're treasures on earth. I guarantee a big portion of there members are recieving shut off notices & barely surviving, while these "FALSE PROPHETS" are living high on the hog. Matt.7:21-23, Tim.4:3-4. Sorry to say though people, the wall of separation of church & state will come down, it was prophecied thousands of years ago, "So people get ready."

"God's Profits" by Sarah Posner presents a timely expose of the Word of Faith (WoF) movement and a discussion of its significance within American culture and the Republican Party. Ms. Posner writes with the immediacy of a seasoned journalist who has backed up her story with solid documentation and onsite investigative reporting. The result is an important book that helps us understand how the "pray, pay and vote" movement has played a crucial role in steering our democracy in an increasingly fanatical and dangerous direction. Ms. Posner demonstrates that the WoF movement is particularly obsessive about its fund raising efforts even as its most visible proponents enjoy lavish lifestyles. Although the WoF's "prosperity gospel" may be disputed by reputable scholars, it has proven to be enormously effective in coercing the faithful to tithe their earnings in exchange for the promise of God's material blessings. Marketed aggressively through megachurches, mass rallies, religious schools and a vast media empire that includes book publishing, DVDs and movies as well as television networks, the WoF message reaches tens of millions of people who are eager to support their leaders' causes. For example, Ms. Posner contends that WoF supporters were encouraged in 2004 to support a ban on same-sex marriage and cast votes that may well have made the critical difference in George W. Bush's re-election in the crucial swing state of Ohio. Ms. Posner makes clear that the WoF movement's relationship with the Republican Party is one of mutual interest. Ideologically, the WoF's self-help message dovetails with the rugged individualism of economic neoliberalism, where success or failure in the marketplace is determined by one's own efforts and not by government policies. Although George H.W. Bush paid lip service to the 'thousand points of light' of the faith community, he was punished at the polls when he did not deliver meaningful legislation or support; not wishing to repeat this mistake, George W. Bush has granted WoF leaders with unprecedented access to the White House. On this point, Ms. Posner describes how specific WoF positions on topics such as support for Israel and war against Islam have gained sympathetic ears within the upper echelons of power, bringing new insight to the influences that have shaped the Bush administration's foreign policies. Thomas Jefferson warned that religion can result in "the last degradation of a free and moral agent" whose ability to engage in critical thinking is essential to the exercise of democracy. In that light, the WoF's emphasis on revelation against rationality poses a danger to us all, and it is one that in Ms. Posner's opinion will not diminish in the future. To that end, the vivid reporting and astute analysis presented by Ms. Posner empowers us to challenge the religious hucksters who have made their fortunes profiting from our insecurities. I highly recommend this book to everyone.

I hope to Gawd this book gets a lot more exposure as we get to the fall elections. John McCain has sought and received the blessings of the madmen preachers profiled in this book. That alone should be enough to make him lose in a landslide. Seriously! Hagee and Parsley scare the crap out of me with all their promotion of all-out nuclear war to bring about "Jesus Christ - The Encore Presentation". Yikes!!! Great work, Sarah Posner! Thank you for this timely book.

Posner has followed both the money and the beliefs of a crew of the nation's sleaziest snake oil salesmen to produce a horrifying but important story. "God's Profits" is a book anyone who wants to understand how good and honest people are seduced into movements led by theological sham artists needs to read. Of particular value is Posner's reporting on Rod Parsley, a rising star of "populist" fundamentalism. This is fast-paced, fearless muck-raking of the first order.

I first became acquainted with Sarah Posner's writing in the American Prospect, October, 2005 article, With God on His Side. Living in Ohio, among Parsley and his "Christocrats," witnessing the very real influence that Parsley, Russell Johnson and their "Patriot Pastors had on the '04 election, I found her writing perceptive, accessible and entirely on target. The biggest challenge posed by this cultic movement is getting people to believe in the long-term threat it continues to pose. Since that first article, I have devoured every word she has written, only to finally be rewarded with God's Profits. In this well-researched book, she clearly and compellingly explains the what's, who's, and why's of how religious huckster-ism has successfully manipulated a frightened, lonely, and despairing populace. Ms. Posner has done it again, only this time, the prize is bigger: it's a book. There is no writer out there who knows more about the subject, none who has gone more often into the belly of the beast, as she clearly has. As the bar regarding church-state separation continues to be lowered, it is time to take note of this serious journalist's insight and the skill with which she presents it. Would that I could, I'd give this book ten stars.