A Sad And Pathetic “Journalist” Tried To Attack Former Baseball Player For His Beliefs

For those of you who have read my articles for some time, you know that my favorite sport is basketball. Outside of that, I don’t know much else about other sports or the players, unless they are household names like Tom Brady or Babe Ruth. So forgive me if I don’t know much about former New York Yankees relief pitcher Mariano Rivera.
 
What I may lack in understanding of his seemingly stellar career I have tried to make up for in understanding his devout Christian faith and seemingly right-wing views, especially when it comes to the State of Israel.
 
As such, I feel it is necessary to defend him from a pathetic man considering himself a journalist attacking the man for holding such beliefs.
 
Over the weekend, Rivera was unanimously elected into the baseball Hall of Fame, becoming the first player to ever achieve such a feat. Regardless of such an accomplishment, and regardless of the kind of career he had in the Major Leagues, a writer by the name of Robert Silverman chose to attack his beliefs and suggested he should be put to shame for having such beliefs.
 
“… over the past three years, he’s also served at the pleasure of a racist president, taken part in thinly veiled propaganda on behalf of a far-right government in Israel, and gotten chummy with outright bigots and apocalyptic loons. None of this will be inscribed on his Hall of Fame plaque. It should, even if much of the sports world would very much like to pretend none of it exists.”
 
Right off the bat, this guy shows some serious lunatic behavior and wording. Let’s start from the beginning of that shortened paragraph. “Served at the pleasure of a racist president…” From the way that sounds, it’s as though Rivera was scouting the Southern Border and shouting out towards Trump, armed with a shotgun, that some illegals were crossing the border. What it actually refers to is Rivera participating in a listening session about the opioid crisis. Nothing partisan, much less racial, about that topic. Taking part in “thinly veiled propaganda on behalf of a far-right government in Israel” is merely supporting a right-wing government in the only Jewish nation on Earth, which continually wins elections in a… wait for it… Democratic manner. But from what it sounds, it’s as if Rivera was writing the Nuremberg Laws.
 
And for having the audacity to listen to Trump talk about fighting the opioid crisis and supporting Israel, his Hall of Fame plaque, a plaque about his BASEBALL CAREER, ought to highlight that this man is not willing to bow down and submit to the Left’s ever-so tolerant views.
 
Later down the article, Silverman regurgitates Leftist talking points about how the Israeli Defense Force (IDF) was slaughtering innocent Palestinian protesters, all-the-while ignoring the fact that most of the people the IDF killed were Hamas terrorists, who own the region of Gaza and use human shields to get the IDF to kill innocent civilians and blame it on Israel, something the far-Left media happily follows.
 
And what is perhaps the last straw for Silverman, Rivera *maybe* supports Trump.
 
“Beyond Rivera’s pro-Israel activism, even though he’s never publicly given his endorsement, the Hall of Famer’s actions make it clear his sympathies lie with the Trump administration, which has backed all manner of far-right policies when it comes to Israel.”
 
What? You mean actually following through on the promise many US President have made in the past about moving the embassy to Jerusalem is considered a “far-right policy”? Actually defending Israel against theocratic fascists who have repeatedly stated their intentions to wipe them off the face of the Earth is far-right policy? Supporting Israel’s right to EXIST is far-right policy?
 
Does this guy have any idea as to why we Republicans, conservatives, Christians support the State of Israel? Funny enough, he does know why:
 
“But the vast majority of Evangelical Christians also believe in a particular messianic biblical prophecy: Jews must rule the Holy Land before Christ can return. Whether Rivera ascribes to those beliefs entirely is unclear, but his support for Israel and the Israel Defense Forces is a matter of public record. He has traveled to Israel on multiple occasions, possibly beginning in 2013.”
 
The beginning part of that quote is what we’ll focus on for now. Of course, that is only one of many reasons why we support Israel. The fact that Jews must rule Jerusalem for Christ to return is, I think, the main one. But there are plenty of places in the Bible that show us just why we Christians support Israel.
 
Psalm 102:12-16 reads: “But you, O Lord, are enthroned forever; you are remembered throughout all generations. You will arise and have pity on Zion, it is the time to favor her; the appointed time has come. For your servants hold her stones dear and have pity on her dust. Nations will fear the name of the Lord, and all the kings of the earth will fear your glory. For the Lord builds up Zion; he appears in his glory…”
 
Psalm 122:6: “Pray for the peace of Jerusalem! ‘May they be secure who love you!’”
 
Isaiah 2:3: “… ‘Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob, that he may teach us his ways and that we may walk in his paths.’ For out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.”
 
It is important to note Isaiah is most notorious for being a very accurate descriptor of the first coming of Jesus and it is also important to note that one of Jesus’ titles is “the Word of God”, as John wrote in the beginning of his gospel: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”
 
And Luke 1:32 reads: “He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David…”
 
So there is plenty of reason for Christians to be supportive of Israel apart from, you know, THEM BEING THE CHOSEN PEOPLE OF OUR GOD!
 
It’s not surprising to me at all if Rivera also believes this and it’s not surprising that he would, as a Christian, support Israel.
 
Rivera, in an interview with Sports Spectrum in 2010, expressed his Christian views and credited God for allowing him to create a deadly pitch in 1997 which would be a staple of his career moving forward: “It came from the Lord. Nobody taught me that but Him. It’s been tremendous since the first time that I used it. It’s been effective, so I thank God for that.”
 
Rivera also said: “I believe in Jesus Christ, and I cannot move without His direction. That doesn’t mean that I’m a perfect man. Now I wish I could tell you that I’m perfect, but I’m not. But I’m always trying to please the Lord, and that’s my goal.”
 
So it’s pretty clear to me that the man is very much a man of faith and places his entire faith and being into Christ’s hands. He follows the Lord, supports the people and State of Israel and does not bad-mouth the current President of the United States. For this trifecta of decency, he is marred as having essentially committed a capital crime against the Left, something that Silverman essentially accuses him of in his hit-piece.
 
Now, I’ve read my share of moronic pieces. Last week I even covered a moronic piece on Disney’s “The Lion King”, defending it from the accusation that it was some sort of fascist fantasy, but this I feel far more inclined to cover not simply because of the idiotic reasons behind the piece, but because of what exactly is being attacked.
 
I really couldn’t care much about someone saying “The Lion King” was fascistic apart from the stupidity of the claim because I’m not much of a Disney fan anymore. To remain objective and fair, I defended the movies (original and remake) but this is an entirely different matter. This is an attack on a Christian for the charge of BEING A CHRISTIAN!
 
Sure, Silverman throws in his support of Israel and his silence on the current President (because silence is violence, apparently), but it’s largely an attack on the guy’s overall views and beliefs, which stem from being a Christian.
 
As I said in an article last week, there is no reason for a Christian to not support Trump. You can disagree about his personal choices and his choice of words regarding various subjects, but there’s no disputing the fact that this man, flawed as he may be, loves the Lord and loves this country. Most Christians, certainly true Christians, will support President Trump, particularly over the borderline (or actual) Satanists on display in the Democrat Party. If Rivera is, himself, a Christian, it stands to reason he would support Donald Trump, at least in terms of his policies.
 
Of course, no one could blame Rivera for not being so outspoken about any support he may have of the POTUS. The media will attack him for NOT SAYING ANYTHING, so could you imagine what they would attack him for if he were to endorse the President? They intimidate and bully people into silence and even THEN they continue to bully and intimidate. Again, no one blames him for not speaking out about his potential support of Trump, but that is also in part due to the fact that Donald Trump isn’t the end-all, be-all of good fights.
 
Don’t get me wrong, I think supporting Trump is pretty crucial to our country, but for a man of faith, he will be far less ashamed of supporting the Lord. If someone is attacked for being a Trump supporter, not much happens. They may be targeted for attacks that last a week or so and their reputations might be a little stained in the eyes of people who don’t support Trump. However, if someone is attacked for believing in Christ, that person is blessed.
 
Matthew 5:11-12 says: “’Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”
 
If we are attacked for our support of Trump, it doesn’t really matter. We deal with it and fight back. But if we are attacked for our faith in the Lord, we are blessed by Him. All things considered, I don’t care if Rivera never says he supports Trump because at the end of the day, it doesn’t matter. What matters is that he follows and loves the Lord Jesus and speaks and acts as God asks us to. He isn’t ashamed, clearly, of expressing his faith and he shouldn’t be.
 
Of course, that doesn’t make what Silverman is doing any better. The guy is attacking a Hall of Fame baseball player for holding beliefs that are antithetical to his own. That’s vile and disgusting and should be considered an example of what garbage journalism has become. But for Rivera, if he is attacked for his beliefs, specifically for his Christian beliefs, that is one of the best things you can do for him. And for any Christian, really.
 
Don’t misunderstand, Christian persecution is still terrible and an injustice, but if we are to be attacked for any given reason, let it be for our faith in the Lord, who is sovereign over all the universe.
 
This is the mentality of a Christian; the mentality of someone like Rivera. If we are to be persecuted for anything, let it be for the right thing.
 
Ephesians 5:11
“Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them.”
 
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Author: Freddie Marinelli.