Weird Encounter with my MP

[crazyforkate]

I come from what is basically the Canadian equivalent of Arizona - hot weather, plenty of retired folks, and LOTS of conservative whackjobs. You could run a corpse for Conservative here and it would probably win, but only if we don't come up with a further-right party by the next election. So our MP is Conservative, but on the occasions I met him I've been nice because I'm not a dick. Plus he's an improvement on his predecessor - the last one praised Hitler. So, take what you can get.

Today my church (Anglican) held its 100th anniversary party, and since it's a heritage building a lot of local dignitaries were there, including said MP. I've met him a couple of times, so we got to talking and he asked me about my plans. Russia inevitably came up, and he said "Oh yes, I went there in the late 1990's...with Bibles."

Hopeful glance. Eyebrow wiggle.

"Oh, you brought Bibles with you?"

"Yes. It was so WONDERFUL to bring BIBLES to the people. Such a great way to SERVE."

Very, very pointed look. I mumbled something about needing coffee and wandered off.

It makes me wonder whether he had a stack of Bibles in his car just in case someone was going to a country that wasn't majority his-weird-brand-of-evangelical.

Is it just me, or is it totally unprofessional for an MP to behave like that while on duty? Seriously, who acts like that with their constituents? Am I just being silly, or should I be bothered?

[fundyfunland]

Hmmm....I'm pretty sure there are a number of Conservative MPs who've done that. There are a number of evangelicals in that party, which is one of the reasons why they scare the crap out of me. Let me do some research.

[uber frau]

It smacks of lack of imagination and a bit of narcissism (I think he thinks church + Russia = I can tell a story relating to that) rather than unprofessionalism. But then, I don't hang around pollies on any kind of social basis and the Australian culture is fairly different when it comes to what is considered acceptably polite conversation.

Is your previous MP the one who made comments that would fit the likes of Todd Akin? I have family living in that neck of the woods.

[crazyforkate]

We have a few boneheaded MPs in our history who've said stuff like that - but I don't think mine's the one.

[nokidsmom]

We certainly have our members of Congress who do boneheaded stuff. My now former (I am so glad to say that) Congressman from my district was a Tea Party darling and a real piece of work. He came to my workplace shortly after taking office and we got a good view of the crazy.

[holierthanyou]

To me it sounds like your MP is just ignorant of the Anglican church in Canada. He was a politician being a politician- trying to say what he thought people wanted to hear. Didn't realize the Anglican church isn't going to be high-fiving over the random mass distribution of Bibles.

[2xx1xy1JD]

At a church event, religious talk isn't necessarily out of place. I'd have found the conversation more impressive, however, if the trip had been 10 years earlier. Once upon a time, I had instructions on ways to smuggle religious items into the Soviet Union and Poland without getting into trouble.

[gustava]

OP -- I just returned from two weeks in Russia. PM me if you want to.

[julie paradox]

I expect, what with you being offspring of a bishop (that is you, isn't it?) he was expecting you to say what a fabulous job he'd done bringing the Word to the oppressed God-starved children of communism. "That's nice dear" just wasn't cutting it for him.

[Arete]

The evangelical set is great about "smuggling" (they are quite legal now) Bibles into the former Soviet Union. They are Protestant Bibles, so they lack the Apocryphal books that are part of Orthodox and Catholic Bibles. Most Christians in Russia are Orthodox, though there are small numbers of Baptists and Mormons now thanks to aggressive proselytizing. Oh well, at least they bring Russian language Protestant bibles.

During the Greek Revolution (1821) English missionaries were sending crates of bibles on ships that were also bringing weapons and fighters. Since most Greeks on mainland Greece at the time were illiterate (upwards of 85%), they didn't know what those books were and were actually using them as cannon fodder. No kidding. An illiterate Greek at the time would have seen a bible in church, usually covered in gold and precious stones. Even though they were practicing Christians (obviously not the right kind), in the middle of a bloody war, what the illiterate soldiers really needed were Bibles.

Two hundred years and some things just never change. :roll:

[crazyforkate]

I expect, what with you being offspring of a bishop (that is you, isn't it?) he was expecting you to say what a fabulous job he'd done bringing the Word to the oppressed God-starved children of communism. "That's nice dear" just wasn't cutting it for him.

Yup, that's me, but I'm pretty sure he considers my dad demon spawn, as he got a sour look on his face when I mentioned him (my dad has, er, made local headlines a few times for causes that would really upset some conservatives).

[Just Not Good]

This all sounds like Arizona. Questionable politics, questionable theology, plenty of judging.