Ben Affleck seems so amiable in his movies. However, on the set of Bill Maher’s liberal TV show (I don’t even know the name), he was seething. Yes, seething mad that someone might think, just because Muslims are chopping off heads, raping young girls and committing honor killings, that there might be a problem within the doctrines of Islam.
Even Maher, an avowed atheist and super liberal, seems to get it right when it comes to Islam. However, Hollywood A-lister Affleck (who is so famous his name gets spell-checked in Word!) disagrees. He thinks any criticism of Islam is Islamaphobic (a word that Word does not recognize). In fact, he thinks, “It’s gross. It’s racist.”
Affleck ascribes to a belief system based on fairy tales that radical Islamists are a small minority and in no way reflect the belief of the overwhelming majority of peace-loving Muslims. He and his ilk like to say silly things such as, “Only 7 percent of Muslims are radicalized.”
That sounds so reassuring until you do the math and realize that 7 percent is roughly 100 million people! One-hundred million Islamic fanatics willing to rape, murder and pillage for the sake of their religious beliefs. Yes, at least one in every 70 people on Earth believes it is OK to kidnap, rape and maim unbelievers. And that doesn’t even include “moderate” Islamic leaders and their regimes like Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, the PLO or the king of Saudi Arabia, who have no problem killing for political gain.
However, I don’t need to combat Affleck on these issues. Maher and Sam Harris, his debating partner, do a fine job (if Affleck would just let them talk) using facts to dispel Affleck’s emotion-driven myths. My issue is Affleck’s utter hypocrisy.
While claiming that, as a good liberal, he must be kind and tolerant of Muslims, he uses the name of Jesus as a curse word. About 2:18 into the clip (see below), after Mr. Harris refers to Islam as the mother lode of bad ideas, Affleck mutters the Name above every name, and in a way he would never use the name of Muhammad—as a curse.
He took the name of Jesus, and inserted it in place of a four-letter curse word—all the while, defending Islam. I am sure he didn’t even notice it.
What is clear is that liberals like Affleck defend Islam in a way they would never defend Christianity. Does he think that moderate Islam is pro-choice? Pro-gay? Pro-equal rights for women? Pro-nudity in films like Affleck’s most recent movie (I am told)?
Harris calmly points out to the agitated actor that nearly 80 percent of the U.K.’s Muslim community felt the Danish cartoonist who drew Muhammad should have been prosecuted. Maher points out that 90 percent of Egyptians believe death is the appropriate response for leaving Islam.
A careful study of moderate Islam would reveal that they are only moderate compared to people who rape and behead. There are numerous cases of non-militant Muslims supporting terror, committing honor killings, being racists and frankly, hating people like Affleck—Western liberals.
But again, I digress. These Hollywood elites will defend Islam, while holding Christianity in disdain. That is my point. Curse Jesus while defending Muhammad and pretend you are genuinely tolerant. It is open season on believers in the New Testament, but don’t you dare draw a picture of Muhammad.
Click below to watch the clip on Real Time with Bill Maher. Warning: There is some profanity.
Ron Cantor is the director of Messiah’s Mandate International in Israel, a Messianic ministry dedicated to taking the message of Jesus from Israel to the ends of the earth (Acts 1:8). Cantor also travels internationally teaching on the Jewish roots of the New Testament. He serves on the pastoral team of Tiferet Yeshua, a Hebrew-speaking congregation in Tel Aviv. His newest book is Identity Theft. Follow him at @RonSCantor on Twitter.
