Bugnutty?

Pitcher Plant - Ginter Botanical Gardens, Richmond, VA

And whatever you do, whether in word or deed,

Do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus,

Giving thanks to God the Father through Him.

Colossians3:17

Penn Jillette, half of the comedy/magic team of Penn & Teller and an avowed atheist, wrote an Op/Ed piece a few days ago in the Los Angeles Times, entitled Politics and the bugnut Christians.   He did not define the term “bugnut,” but it was obvious that it was not a term of endearment.  Prior to all the fuss about Jillette’s article, I had never heard the term “bugnut.”  Apparently in one slang context, a bug nut is a twist-on wire connector used to complete a circuit.  I don’t think that was Jillette’s idea, however, when he applied it to Christians, particularly to Christian “talk” by politicians.

Jillette (and author Susan Jacoby) believes that the term “Christian” wasn’t used very much in the larger world of language until it was applied to anti-abortionists in the Roe vs. Wade controversy in order to bring together Protestants and Catholics.  He further explains that its use expanded under the presidency of Jimmy Carter, a “born-again” Christian, and to some degree under the presidency of Bill Clinton, whom Jillette called a “church slut” because his worship attendance did not conform to one denomination.

I’m sure that the “nutty” portion of Jillette’s label for people of faith meant exactly what it always has – over-enthusiastic, weird, foolish, crazy, etc.  It is a sad truth that the newspaper would have never printed the article as written if it had referred to “bugnut Muslims” or the “bugnut Buddhists.”  Why the editors agreed that the term could appropriately be applied to Christians is beyond my imagination.

Bugnutty or not, I proudly call myself a Christian because it is not a “term,” but my name.  I am a follower of Christ – a believer in His life, His message, and His gift of salvation.  I am neither a weirdo nor a nutcase.  I am proud of the fact that I am His child, and He is my Father, mentor, and Redeemer.