this post was submitted on 18 Sep 2023
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Asklemmy
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Probably the two a half billion people claiming to identify as christian while actively opposing and taking action against any of Christ's non-self-serving ideals.
If there's one good thing about Maga it's that it clearly illuminated what a majority of these "Christians" actually are.
They've been more than happy to illuminate themselves, sometimes via burning crosses, for some time. At least those ones have taken off the hoods now.
There are some of us that don't do that. But yeah, even as an adherent, I see and feel what you mean.
That must be painful and frustrating. An old coworker of mine was a “real” Christian (by that I mean kind, pleasant, and non-judgmental) and I often wonder what his take on the last several years would be.
I know what mine is. Nobody is truly thinking about how they "should" go about things, they make the word second fiddle to something else, whether it's public speakers being selective and hoarding their money to supposedly "Catholic" or "Protestant" governors enacting policies that would make even Neo-Stoics give up on them. I often hear about people going through hardships with supposedly Christ-loving families, hardships that shouldn't be there, and it makes me mad I can't do anything. I might be terrified of being a mom, but I'd do it for those people.
A good rule of thumb: The ten commandments > The word of Jesus > The rest of the old testament > Indirect interpretations, with Paul being nothing more than the Christian equivalent of a hadith.
Out of curiosity, why put the 10 commandments before the words of Jesus? I dig the general point you're making but that caught my eye.
Also seems a bit weird to me. Maybe they meant it along the lines of what is easy to look up and apply quickly. But even then, there’s “Love thy neighbour as thyself“ which is maybe even simpler. Maybe they’ll explain what they meant.
The ten commandments are a priority, Jesus stressed often the need to not impede on those. Commandments were brought up a few times in the synoptic gospels. The most famous example was when he said that fantasizing about someone you're not married to was (figuratively) as good as adultery. In another, he was asked why he was "working on Sundays" and he went out of his way to demonstrate how it wasn't work in a laborious sense. The ten commandments do take priority over other teachings, that's why they're called the ten commandments and why, according to some, they were inscribed on stone while other rules were spoken orally.
Jesus himself did this. The implication behind them being inscribed in stone was that they are a priority. Imagine putting something in bold print and saying "oh don't worry, that text is in bold just because I felt like it". If someone had to choose between, say, disobeying a commandment and disobeying the food rules, you should disobey the food rule.
The Ten Commandments are literally the word of God, straight from their mouth (hand?) and onto stone. Doesn't get much more important than that.
God gave us 10 commandments, Jesus gave us 1.
Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.
We call it the Golden rule because if you can follow that one rule you're golden when it comes to your judgment at the end of time.
Blessed are the empathetic, for they shall accrue a debt that God will repay.
Jesus still said the ten commandments were crucial expressions of the commandment of doing to others as one one have done to themselves. The ten commandments had been brought up a few times in the new testament, either with Jesus being questioned as to why he wasn't following them (in response to which he'd elaborate why a commandment is important and why he's not dishonoring it) or with him expanding a commandment, such as at Matthew 5:28-29.
I always preferred the general commandment of "don't be a dick", and everything else is just kind of a given if you follow that.
I grew up in a religious community that was mostly "real" Christians (there are always exceptions, and people are imperfect, but they were trying their best). It's SO frustrating to see how these people are. I haven't been practicing in well over a decade, so I don't feel like I'm a part of that group anymore, so it's starting to get less frustrating. Or maybe I'm just getting jaded.
But the worst part of it all is seeing my parents start to drink the hate Kool aid. My parents used to be the kind of people that would literally take the shirts off their backs to help anyone. And now they are so hateful and selfish. It's so disappointing.
I feel like there was something in Revelations about how a powerful delusion would fall on people because they "loved not the truth".
And I'm not saying this is the end times but I definitely feel like there wouldn't be much difference between how I felt right now and how I would feel if I knew for a fact it was the end times.
Nah, that's not a plot hole. That's just a seed for the Act 3 twist we're due in about 2 years. When the Vatican incorporates and invades Yugoslavia.
Fucking Papal States. I wish that I could play Florence without becoming Excommunication Simulator!
For real. I am no catholic or god worshipper but i feel like i am living a more religious life then them because I recognize the fiction of Jesus life for the vast inspirational philophies it contains and actually try to incorporate some of it in my life.
Literally, all it boils down to is: Don't Be An Asshole.
That's it. That's all you have to do.
That is really hard for so many people to do.
It's so, you couldn't even write ''
lol fair
How does it feel to be on the same side as most preachers and weekly church-goers?
Few things drives them more nuts than people who call themselves Christians and don't even attempt to be followers of Christ. Trying and failing is one thing, and always an embarrassment to the church, but living like the worst dregs of society, while using that name, is worse than an intentional smear campaign.
Wow, top voted reply. Damn Lemmy is cynical. There are many people out there doing God’s work caring for each other for no recognition, no reward. And certainly there are many folks out there too that make things look really bad, and the media loves to tell that story, but don't for a moment think that that’s every Christian.
I don't think it's fair to complain about assumed absolute statements and in the next breath say "damn lemmy is cynical".
Obviously every christian isn't a hypocrite.
Also obviously, too many are.
You’re right. Just sad to see this being the highest rated comment on something that I really didn’t expect to have at all to do with religion.
The biggest real-life plot holes and you didn't expect something that directly affects 8 out of ten people (and indirectly affects the other 2) on the planet to come up?
Anything that affects that many people is going to have real life plot-holes:
America nominally fought its last war in 1945, but we've had soldiers fighting and dying in dozens of countries ever since.
Fossil fuels and unregulated pollution is proven to be destroying the recent period of relative climate stability and fossil fuel companies are getting paid by the government to stay in business.
America produces enough food to feed the entire country(and probably several others) but created laws that force you to throw it away.
Bigger the event, bigger the plot holes.
The best thing these unrecognized christians "doing God’s work" you say exist could be doing to help the world right now is to be actively and vocally trying to oppose the Christians that are currently very loudly advocating for fascism. There is literally no bigger threat right now. There is a clear imbalance in voices in the Christian community. The good Christians could be just as loud if they wanted, they could be setting an example, but they aren't. People always say it's just a "few" loud voices when talking about the bad things being said, if it only takes a few to be that loud then why the fuck are the good ones silent?