Read on Twitter
"Christianity will have power" is trending and it turns out it's a New York Times story, not one of those middle-of-the-night bot things. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/09/us/evangelicals-trump-christianity.html
Any other ex-evangelicals read this kind of thing and get freshly enraged about the way we were lied to as kids?
I want to yell at a whole BUNCH of people who aren't around to yell at anymore. How COULD you? Really? After what you put me through, THIS? THIS is what you believe in?
You SAID your kingdom was not of this world. Right? You remember saying that? But some tinpot dictator comes along and offers you a kingdom of the world and you slurp it up like ice cream.
You SAID that you were happy to be persecuted for the sake of your savior! That you'd go to prison! Endure torture! But actually, you're not even willing to feel maybe a little bit like "coast elites" are making fun of you.
You're all, like, "PUT ME IN IRONS I WILL NOT RENOUNCE MY FAITH!" but in real life. you can't even stand being mocked a little bit.
"Ultimately Mr. Trump recognized something, said Lisa Burg, a longtime resident of nearby Orange City."
“The one group of people that people felt like they could dis and mock and put down had become the Christian. Just the middle-class, middle-American Christians”
“The one group of people that people felt like they could dis and mock and put down had become the Christian. Just the middle-class, middle-American Christians”
“That was the one group left that you could just totally put down and call deplorable. And he recognized that, You know what? Yeah, it’s OK that we have our set of values, too."
"I think people finally said, ‘Yes, we finally have somebody that’s willing to say we’re not bad, we need to have a voice too.’”
Okay, Christians, I hear you.
"Yes, we made a bargain as close to a literal deal with the devil as you can get in this world, but you don't underSTAND, people were making FUN of us."
"Yes, we made a bargain as close to a literal deal with the devil as you can get in this world, but you don't underSTAND, people were making FUN of us."
"YES we sold our souls to the devil, but you have to understand, he made a really good offer! He offered us earthly riches and power, how were we supposed to say no to that?
“I guess the biggest concern for me is trying to keep our country the way it was. Conservative. The values. For us, I mean, this is as good as it gets. We can do whatever we want,” said Mr. Driesen, 56"
This man isn't that much older than me, he cannot possibly remember the country the way he claims to want it.
But also, behold the living message of Christ: I've got mine, everybody else can get bent.
But also, behold the living message of Christ: I've got mine, everybody else can get bent.
I just think, as a Christian, the most important thing is for people like me to have it really good and get to do whatever we want.
"He thought back to Mr. Trump’s speech. “There was one gaffe he kind of got in trouble for. What was it? Because there were a bunch of things he said.”
"He paused a while. “I can’t distinctly remember, but I just remember there was one thing, and that was the news for 10 days after that. Something about — I wish I could remember. I can’t.”
He's probably thinking of the "two corinthians" thing. (two corinthians walk into a bar...) https://www.npr.org/2016/01/18/463528847/citing-two-corinthians-trump-struggles-to-make-the-sale-to-evangelicals
But -- and I'm sure the writer of the article noticed this -- he's talking about it the way people who have been hypnotized or brainwashed talk about that.
"I'm very sure of all these things but cannot actually remember a single detail"
"I'm very sure of all these things but cannot actually remember a single detail"
"They want the Christian education for their children “so we don’t have to have them indoctrinated with all these different things,” he said. “We are free to teach them our values.”
“So far,” Ms. Driesen clarified. “That’s where we see Trump as a key figure to keep that freedom.”
“So far,” Ms. Driesen clarified. “That’s where we see Trump as a key figure to keep that freedom.”
Right, of course, they want to make sure their children are only indoctrinated with THEIR things.
But that's what pisses me off so much.
That's what I mean when I say that you lied to me about what our faith was supposed to be.
But that's what pisses me off so much.
That's what I mean when I say that you lied to me about what our faith was supposed to be.
One.
You told me that faith must be freely chosen and sincere. Right? Isn't that why we get baptized as "adults" instead of as infants like those decadent Catholics? Because it has to be a choice.
You told me that faith must be freely chosen and sincere. Right? Isn't that why we get baptized as "adults" instead of as infants like those decadent Catholics? Because it has to be a choice.
But here you are, trying your hardest to make sure that your children never have the opportunity to choose anything OTHER than your faith. Your life. Your values. The "freedom" you claim that DJT offers is the freedom to make sure your children are anything but free.
Two.
You told me that our faith was good.
And I don't mean morally good, although you told me that too, I mean, you told me that our faith was a good PRODUCT, that it was something attractive, that if people saw it in action, they'd like it, they'd want it.
You told me that our faith was good.
And I don't mean morally good, although you told me that too, I mean, you told me that our faith was a good PRODUCT, that it was something attractive, that if people saw it in action, they'd like it, they'd want it.
But here you are, afraid that your faith can't possibly compete with other ideas. Afraid that if your precious children encounter gay people, or non-Christians, that they won't want to follow your path anymore.
Three.
You told me that our faith was strong. That God was great. Powerful. triumphant. That with the strength of our God a person could stand against anything.
You told me that our faith was strong. That God was great. Powerful. triumphant. That with the strength of our God a person could stand against anything.
But here you are, confessing that your faith is so weak that it must be protected -- that it can't stand against the media, can't stand against alternate viewpoints, can't stand against diversity -- that it's so weak it must be protected by a dictator.
And that's what pisses me off.
Because if I'd known from the start that Christians are just self-involved, self-important liars I wouldn't have spent so many torturous hours worried about going to hell, worried that I wasn't good enough for the God you told me about.
Because if I'd known from the start that Christians are just self-involved, self-important liars I wouldn't have spent so many torturous hours worried about going to hell, worried that I wasn't good enough for the God you told me about.
Now I know: you never believed in that God either.
And I'll never stop being angry about that.
And I'll never stop being angry about that.
