I can't stand to see all these people dress up their hatred in religion.

[milestogo]

There is nothing about right wing Christianity which evokes the words and deeds of Jesus. Its just the opposite.

[Mariana]

1. Nevertheless, they are the majority of Christians in the US.

Christianity is as Christianity does.

[Ocelot II]

4. Not so. It's much more complicated than that.

There are about 78 million evangelicals in America, according to Pew Research Center’s massive new survey of the religious landscape released on Wednesday. Most are white, Republican, and say religion is very important to them.

But not all.

The study—considered the most comprehensive look at religion in the United States, with more than 36,000 people filling out a 116-question survey in all 50 states—shows significant evangelical variety. Evangelicals are diverse: racially, politically, economically, and even in terms of religious practice.

Twenty-eight percent aren’t white, the Pew study shows. Twenty-four percent are Democrats or lean Democratic. On some issues, including government assistance for people in need and environmental regulation, an even larger percentage of evangelicals support the more liberal position.

More here: https://www.christianitytoday.com/2025/02/who-are-evangelicals-pew-study/

[Mariana]

7. 63% of Protestant voters and 59% of Catholic voters went for Trump in 2024

according to the exit polls.

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2024-elections/exit-polls

Those numbers represent a majority.

[Ocelot II]

11. Catholics aren't considered evangelicals, and neither are all Protestants.

The Venn diagram doesn't completely overlap. Some people voted for Trump for reasons having nothing to do with religion but might still have identified as some form of Christian. There is a strong correlation between voting for Trump and identifying as evangelical, but nowhere near all Christians are evangelicals, and nowhere near all Christians of any denomination voted for Trump.

[Mariana]

13. I very clearly said the majority of Christians.

Of course you can select out this or that group of Christians and point to their voting numbers, but that doesn't change the fact that the majority of Christian voters cast their ballots for Trump.

[H2O Man]

22. The majority

of those who voted supported the felon. There are no statistics on those who did not vote.

[xuplate]

40. And 2/3 of SCOTUS

[pat_k]

41. And 66% of Americans oppose Christian Nationalism.**

We need to be crystal clear. While we embrace all religions, including Christianity, we vehemently oppose Christian Nationalism. We believe it is both Un-Christian and Un-American to pass laws that impose religious beliefs on people who do not share those beliefs.

We believe in the four freedoms as core American aspirational values.



** According to a February 2025 survey from the Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI), about two-thirds of Americans (66%) oppose Christian nationalism.

[Aristus]

2. For many Trumpanzees out there, hatred IS their religion.

n/t

[3catwoman3]

3. Exactly the opposite. I have no problem with the basic teachings attributed to Jesus.

I have a huge problem with the words and actions of so many people who claim to be his followers. I think he would be appalled at much of what is said and done in his name.

Gandhi nailed it - “I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ.”

[unblock]

5. One of the best observations I've seen on TikTok

Was from an "spiritual advisor" formerly devout Christian who quit religion after studying religions depth.

She concluded that societies create religions to justify what they want and need, particularly in their power structure. Religion follows rather than leads.

Societies with few resources have religions that condemn materialism, societies where many are unhappy hold out hope for a better life after this one, societies bent on conquest have religions of entitlement, and so on.

The right wing's religion is that of a bully. My god is bigger and better than yours, I'm right and you're wrong, and I'm justified to steal or kill.

It's who they are.

[LuvLoogie]

31. Man made god in his own image

[ananda]

6. I wonder what Jesus would think of Christianity today?

I don't think of the rightwing version as a religion at all,
but rather a very sick cult pretending to be religious..

[Mariana]

8. Christianity has been ugly through much of its history.

This has been especially true whenever they've had the political power to force their religion on populations. What's happening today isn't really surprising.

[ananda]

9. You have a point there.

In fact, I consider colonialism to be at the root
of all our evils today.

[Ocelot II]

15. Christianity started to have problems when it became the official religion of the Roman Empire.

Once a religion gets tangled up with the state, it becomes a means for the state to assert more power. Christianity started out as a small, often-persecuted Jewish sect based on principles of charity and altruism, but it attracted more and more Gentiles in Greek and Roman territories, until it finally landed a big-name convert, the Roman Emperor Constantine I. Once connected to the state, the new church became wealthy and could own land. Eventually, as was inevitable, once the church became powerful as an extension of the state it became the persecutor instead of the persecuted.

[milestogo]

17. This.

The founding fathers knew this. Practice whatever religion you like or none at all, but keep it out of government.

[Mariana]

33. It started before that.

In the Book of Acts chapter 5, the story of Ananias and Sepphira describes how the Apostles used violence and fear from the very earliest days.

[quakerboy]

32. Any time humans have power

Most human groupings are not so bad. Until they manage to acquire some power. Im struggling to think of a counterexample.

[JustAnotherGen]

10. Honestly? I think he'd scratch his head

And ask - "But why aren't you Jewish as I was?"

Sorry - my UU self can't help questioning the J.C. / PDR narrative. He was a Rabbi. I think it would be a fair question for him to ask.

[H2O Man]

27. The best

response on this OP/thread! Thank you. The prophet Jesus was a Jewish Rabbi.

[Stuckinthebush]

44. Perfect

Fellow UU here. Well said!

[H2O Man]

24. He would puke.

[ariadne0614]

12. John Fugelsang is the best at exposing the truth about right wing "Christianity."

This interview is really good, and his new book sounds like a must-read.

?si=9NPU-U0H1nbgm8wN

[Ping Tung]

14. "If Christ were here there is one thing he would not be--a Christian." Mark Twain

And, he would probably be arrested and deported to El Salvador for not being white enough and being a troublemaker.

[Keepthesoulalive]

16. This is America

The klan, Southern Baptists , the Methodist community splitting because of accepting the gay community and so many other ways in which Christianity has been used to oppress people. This is not new , it is the way it has been since the beginning.

[sop]

18. There's no hate like MAGA Christian love.

[Nasruddin]

19. Heretical

Definitely heretical by any definition of Christianity, but see
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Grand_Inquisitor

The NAR guys at least are in so deep that there's no backing out now.
They'd have to figure out how to burn themselves at the stake if they recanted Trump.

[bmichaelh]

25. Grand Inquisitor

Many of them are more on the side of The Grand Inquisitor than Jesus Christ.

Some even view empathy as a sin.

Or think Sermon on the Mount is too woke.

I tried to tell this story of The Grand Inquisitor to a MAGA family member, their response was "Was the writer a liberal?"

Dostoevsky not only had the gift of psychological insights but ability to show how the smallest of moments can have ripple effects.

[twodogsbarking]

20. "The object of life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane."

― Marcus Aurelius, Meditations

[Mr. Ected]

21. Not being very religious myself

I often wonder if the evangelicals are more connected to the Old Testament, while Catholics and many of the Protestant denominations are predominantly New Testament-oriented.

It would account for why evangelicals think our lot in life is to suffer, while the rest of the Christian faith are more aligned with Christ and his actual teachings.

[Mtnmama]

23. Didn't Mahatma Gandhi say that the one thing preventing

him from being a Christian is other Christians? That Christians are so unlike Christ. A very astute observation from such a holy man.

[haryn]

26. Tribalism

The older I get (and I am very old), it seems that all evangelical religions, whatever the denomination or whatever they call themselves) are off shoots of tribalism, which has been in existence as long as humans have inhabited the earth. There's not much to commend a species which chooses division and power over a humanistic view of all peoples' right to exist in peace.

[erronis]

28. That's exactly what I scrolled down to the bottom to say. Substitute "tribe" for "religion" and there we are.

[haryn]

37. Unfortunately...

yes, that's exactly where we are

[LearnedHand]

29. They are squarely in the xtian tradtion from the crusades onward

Widespread healthy and loving xtianity is a very rare thing.

[Dr. T]

30. Democrats have definitely taken the moral high ground

away from conservative Repuglicans. Republicans are now the party of moral repugnancy.

[BurnDoubt]

35. More Psycho-Sexual anomaly.

This is all Dominance Disorder.
Dominance is the original Original Sin. All Evil originates there.
Get Thee To The Shrink.

[hibbing]

36. No hate like Christian love n/t

[multigraincracker]

38. If he was here today, he might on a bus or plane

head to deportation camp.

[pat_k]

39. Which is why I'm DELIGHTED James Talarico is running!!!

Allred is great, but Talarico is exceptional and is precisely what is needed in our party at this horrific juncture.

Oh man. I can just see Cruz's face as Junior Texas U.S. Senator James Talarico is introduced.

. . .
He told us we would know them by their fruits.

Jesus includes.

Christian Nationalism excludes.

Jesus liberates.

Christian Nationalism controls.

Jesus saves.

Christian Nationalism kills.

Jesus started a universal movement based on mutual love.

Christian Nationalism is a sectarian movement based on mutual hate.

Jesus came to transform the world.

Christian Nationalism is here to maintain the status quo.

They have co-opted the Son of God. They've turned this humble rabbi into a gun-toting, gay-bashing, science-denying, money-loving, fear-mongering fascist.
. . .

If this was truly a Christian nation, we would love all of our LGBTQ neighbors. If this was truly a Christian nation, we would make sure every child in this state and in this country was housed, fed, clothed, educated, and insured.

If this was truly a Christian nation, we would never make it a Christian nation because we know the table of fellowship is open to everybody, including our Buddhist, Hindu, Jewish, Muslim, Sikh, and atheist neighbors.
. . .

The closest thing we have to the kingdom of heaven is a multiracial, multicultural democracy where power is truly shared among all people. Something that's yet to exist in human history.
. . .

When someone asked Jesus to name his most important commandment, he cheats and gives two -- two that he says are related. The first is to love God. The second, he said, "Is like it: love they neighbor as thyself." It's like it because when I recognize the divine image in myself, I can't help but recognize it in my neighbor; whether they're Christian or not, whether they're religious or not. In the Parable of the Good Samaritan, Jesus specifically defines neighbor as some different from us, racially, economically, politically, religiously. God loves diversity; God loves variety. Just look around this beautiful planet of ours.
. . .

God is so much bigger than our human categories. God is not a Presbyterian. God is not a Christian.

God it not a noun at all.

God is a verb.

God is not a being.

God is being itself.

God is love.

And that's why Jesus is against anything that gets in the way of that love between neighbors, including religion.
. . .

That's why he says sinners will get to the kingdom of heaven before religious people do. Sorry to everyone here. I know you came all this way.
. . .

The kingdom of God inverts the power dynamics of "all the kingdoms in the world."

True strength is vulnerability.

True status is equality.

True wealth is sharing.

And we as Christians are called to realize that kingdom "on earth as it is in heaven," not by force, but by faith.

Jesus asked us to have the faith of a mustard seed, trusting that by living and dying for love we give birth to a better world.

That's not easy to do.
. . .

Christian Nationalists are more committed to the love of power than the power of love.

And it exposes a lack of faith because the opposite of faith is not doubt. Doubt is a healthy part of any faith.

The opposite of faith is control. When we stop trusting God, when we stop trusting love, we start taking control for ourselves.

Christian Nationalists want to control what we read, who we marry, where we travel, when we have children. They want to control our minds and our bodies.

"O ye of little faith."
. . .

[ancianita]

42. Exactly. And in times like these I highly recommend everyone read John Fugelsang's helpful and brilliant book.

It's both on Amazon and in libraries. (sorry the photo's so big, couldn't find a smaller pixel size)

[Warpy]

43. That is pretty much all their religion is about

meaning the self righteous hatred of anyone "other" so they don't have to focus on their own massive shortcomings. Besides, there's always a sick little thrill that comes with self righteous hate, it's hard wired into the most primitive parts of our brains, all of us.

At its best, religion provides cohesion, community, positive reinforcement for treating each other decently, and an override to the hate-reward circuitry. At its worst, it's what we're seeing on the loony right, especially those totally out of control bunches who think they really do speak for god (who can't speak for himself, oh well) and have a perfect right to dictate to non believers in their shit and kill anyone they don't like because apparently god makes a lot of mistakes that only they are wise enough to correct.

Know your enemy and make sure people around you know who they are, too, and maybe they'll find fewer suckers avaailable to them in the future.

[Qutzupalotl]

45. Correct. White Nationalism is not Christianity.

Just look at the parable of the Good Samaritan — he was an “other” with a good heart. It's not the religion you profess that matters, and definitely not your nationality; it's how you treat the less fortunate.

By their works, we know them, and they fall woefully short — and even directly contradict their own teachings.

[Iggo]

46. Welcome to my world.