Do Christian Nationalists know what Jesus taught? They probably do. At least they can probably pull out some words here and there to support their beliefs. Maybe the real question is, do Christian nationalists understand what Jesus taught? In that case, I have to say the answer is a resounding “No!”
People are less happy over the last decade. That really shouldn’t be a surprise. At least, not for people who are honest. While the number of millionaires and billionaires continues to rise, the number of people falling lower on a socioeconomic scale is rising even faster. That, and other factors, leads to a general feeling of being “less happy”. Maybe a better way to put it is just plain unhappy.
The question is – why?
Should we respond to hate with more hate? I dare say, most people know the answer to this question. It’s generic. It doesn’t specify what kind of hate. So chances are, most people would say “no, we should not respond to hate with more hate”. The problem is, in the back of our minds, there’s an “unless it’s ______”. If we’re talking about the specific kind of hate that pushes our buttons – the answer is quite different. Even if we don’t like to acknowledge it.
Do politically active Christians understand the armor of God? Judging by the words from Ron DeSantis and people’s reactions to those words, I’m sad to say that, in far too many cases, the answer is no. In fact, I’ll go further and say that politically active Christians who support DeSantis and the words coming from him don’t understand Christianity. They don’t understand some core statements from the Bible on Jesus or what He commanded His followers.
I read an article the other day that, if true, isn’t good news for penguins. Or for us people. It suggests that penguins and people share an evolutionary trait. Well, actually, it’s not a suggestion. It’s pretty much a statement of fact. But like everything science, and let’s be honest about it, facts change. That begs the question, is the statement, and its conclusion, true?
It feels like many Christians are afraid of science. They think science either will, or does, disprove Christian beliefs. But is this a legitimate fear? One of my favourite (intentionally spelled that way) authors wrote: Above all, do not attempt to use science (I mean, the real sciences) as a defence against Christianity. The thing is, if you recognize the quote, you know this is exactly the opposite of the way we Christians should feel.
Who gets to define religion? Actually, the better question is – who gets to redefine religion? Maybe even who defines “of”. We’re looking at China in this series, but the same issues come up everywhere. It’s all about who sets the rules. One thing we can be sure of – it’s not God. Not in China. And not in my country or yours either.
My body my choice! It feels like it’s being used for lots of things these days. Not getting vaccinated. And by extension, not vaccinating kids. Getting an abortion. And by extension, in a similar manner, not having kids. Of course, there are arguments made on both sides of both issues. We’ll look at both. However, I want to add another dimension. Christianity. Why? Because it makes things much more clear. And, by extension, much more volatile.
I’ve started several times to write something like this. But it’s never gotten very far. However, with things around the world deteriorating, maybe it’s time to try again? This time, it’s in the form of a question. Government christianity or Jesus’ Christianity. Which do you want? I know, some of you want to answer neither. But that’s not a choice. We’ll see why not in a moment.
I used to get angry over abortion. Very much so. Now, I feel sad. Very sad. To the point of crying sad. We’re dooming souls to Hell. And that’s not what we should be about. Roe is dead. Now, please, can we Christians turn back to God and to saving souls?
