“I don’t have to honor your religion”. Ya, my feelings exactly, lady. No one has to honor your shitty faith. Now all you need to do is have a little self awareness…
Tag Archives: christian nationalists
The Good Atheist Podcast: EP 360
In this episode (that’s admittedly a little late), we talk about the growing fascist movement in the US called Christian Nationalism, the Mormon church being sued, and why Protestants are walking away from religion. Don’t miss this one!
Trump Supporters Claim Harris Will Bring About Apocalypse
How do you know you’re in a death cult? Well, for starters, your first clue would be that everything you dislike is always characterized in apocalyptic terms. Don’t like rock music or rap? It’s the work of the devil, you see! Painting everything with this brush ensures that you are constantly afraid, which is another important aspect of death cults. If you’re not scared all the time, you’re doing it wrong.
Most Christians out there have no idea they are in a death cult. That’s because it’s been around for so long that folks are just accustom to it. It’s a bit like how people in wars get used to the constant bombardment around them. Eventually, they are just blind to it, despite the fact that the real danger of death has not fundamentally changed. Merely their perception of it has.
So we can’t be surprised at all by conservative christians who support Donald Trump from behaving in some very strange ways. Since they have adopted the orange turd as their messiah, the departure of Joe Biden from the presidential race, and his biracial female replacement has sent waves of fear among their most loyal supporters. Seeing the writing on the wall, many are now claiming that she is the personification of all the evils in the world:
In just the past week, popular MAGA pundits warned that Harris is “Hitler and Stalin combined but times 200,” and also a “commie” who will choose a running mate who supports “allowing men to beat up women in the Olympics.” They also expressed outrage over the opening ceremony at the Paris Olympics as the end of “Western civilization,” and singled out one woman on a Zoom fundraiser call for Harris’ campaign as another harbinger of end times.
Their list of grievances is perhaps some of the most pathetic braying in history. Transgender athletes and artistic depictions of The Last Supper are not exactly barnburner issues. If anything, it only demonstrates that the things that Christians fear as demonic is pretty milk toast. Meanwhile, this is the same group of people that want to outlaw all abortions, force the Bible to be taught in schools, and essentially blow up the separation of church and state in order to officially make America into a theocratic nightmare.
The only bit of good news in this is that Harris is genuinely terrifying these weirdos. The thing to remember is that the country is a vastly different place than when Donald won his presidency is 2016. Over 22 million baby boomers, which make up the vast majority of his base, have died since the last election. That’s a significant number, and with more young people being energized, this election is beginning to look like it could go Harris’ way. This means that as election night gets closer, you will begin to see the true desperation of these Christian Nationalists on full display. When the stakes are risen to the point of apocalyptic language, it’s difficult to predict exactly what will happen, but it’s safe to say that people should be extremely worried. Never forget that those who believe in absurdities can be easily convinced to commit atrocities.
Jeff Sharlet Interview on Christian Nationalism
If you’ve never heard of Jeff, he’s been studying Christian Nationalism before it was given that moniker. His illuminating book, “The Family”, is a must read for those interested in learning more about how religion is fusing with American politics.
In this interview, he talks about the mutation of Christianity, and what it means for the future of the country.
Christians Get Off on Persecution
Here is the trailer for yet another Christian movie where the protagonists are living in a world where their beliefs are being persecuted. You might remember the entertaining but preposterous movie “Book of Eli”, where Denzel Washington played a blind man that had memorized the entire Bible, and as a result was the target of an evil Gary Oldman. At it’s heart, it was an action movie, which is what made it worth watching.
Unfortunately for entertainment, this premise wasn’t ludicrous enough. Now, a Christian production company has decided to make a distopia in which the Bible is made illegal, and the government forces people to have a more “inclusive” Bible. The main characters must now run all over the place with dramatic music playing in order to stop an evil government.
The comment section is pretty telling. A bunch of delusional Christians that feel as though the whole world is against them. These are the same people that are attempting to impose the Bible on everyone else, hoping to use the government as their cudgel to force it down our throats.
The agenda that is the teaching of the devil and is leading people to hell with him. Follow Christ’s teachings, and you will have eternal life. People different from you have every right to be on the same planet, but the right to enter the kingdom of heaven is given by it’s king, and his name is Jesus Christ. You will see him coming on the clouds, on the day he will judge you, and me, and all the living and the dead. The difference is, he is with me, and I am with him. Who are you with?
So basically you only really have the right to follow the Bible, and everyone else can burn in hell. What a pleasant god you believe in! No wonder his followers are all so fucking annoying: they keep thinking that if they aren’t in charge, the whole world will fall apart. This kind of fantasy is probably intended to make them believe that their attempts to undermine the separation of church and state is ultimately for the greater good. It just the kind of delusional, non-reality based thinking that these clowns are famous for.
So, whose in the mood to watch a bunch of crappy, third rate actors cry over not being able to read about how Jesus cursed a bunch of pigs. So sad.
Trumps Followers Convinced He is the Second Coming
By now, you are all aware of the assassination attempt on Presidential candidate Donald Trump. A lone gunman, whose motives are still a mystery, shot at him but ultimately killed an innocent bystander instead, but not before grazing Trump on the ear. It was a surreal event, which is why so many people are still in shock.
Shock has now turned into the familiar cries of miracle, thanks to the gullibility of his followers. Where once they thought that perhaps he was the chosen messenger of God, now they are now certain of it. The recent Republican National Convention made it clear that this was divine providence. The people who spoke from the podium were all in unanimous agreement. God himself had stopped a bullet for this man.
With his recent brush with death, Trump seems to be convinced that he is now a God, although it is difficult to know if he has felt this way for a while now. One thing is clear: the religious right is now at his feet, ready to kiss them for the hope of entering his new kingdom, one that would be unrecognizable to the America of today.
I have to imagine that it must be a weird time for Republicans that are not evangelicals. They could always convince themselves that Trump was one of them, and was simply using religion, as they all do, to maintain the reigns of power. These rich, white men thought that they could control the more extreme religious fringe with a little money and a lot of propaganda. It is fringe no longer. Instead, Christian Nationalism, which is merely a disguised word for fascism, has become mainstream in the party. Many Congressmen are now openly calling themselves Nationalists, since it opens the door for the theocracy they have been hoping for.
As for Trump, while he may not believe in the Christian God, he knows that he is now completely interwoven into its American fabric. He is like a new prophet, and he brings with him the hopes and dreams of citizens who imagine a very different world than they live in today. This is an America to be feared and loathed. Gone would be its secular values of its founding, replaced instead with a newly mutated Christianity with Donald J. Trump as their messiah.
The followers of Trump believe so overwhelmingly in his victory that they think the rest of the country is with them. Those that aren’t will be magically swept under the rug, only to go away. This religious pipe dream has one benefit: it is completely out of touch with reality. Viewership of the RNC was at a historic low. Many Republicans are being pushed away by the more fringe factions, and the common interests of the business elite and their once easily manipulated religious allies are dwindling. Trump’s choice of running mate, another religious nutbag who is willing to anoint a man he once compared to Hitler, does little to dissuade fears of a complete religious takeover.
The right’s capitulation to Trump has sealed their fate. The moderates will either remain silent in the hope that he will go away, or they will march in step with the people that terrify them, too afraid that another 4 years of a decrepit old man will turn their country into a transgender paradise. In any case, it is a party at war with itself. The RNC had none of the old guard show up. This was a not so subtle message that his endorsement is through coercion. The long term effect of this could very well be that the party implodes on itself, since there will come an irreconcilable rift that will split it in half. Trump’s anointment is merely the beginning of that rift.
The reality of the situation is that unless Trump is willing to kill his opposition, they aren’t going anywhere. The dream that progressives will simply lay down and die is born out of faith, and not reality. To rule a country, you need consensus, and that means you must appeal to more than a lunatic branch, no matter how large. In every fascist state, lethal methods were required to maintain control. Countless artists and writers had to be eliminated or silenced to maintain order. How is this to be done in a time and place in which innumerable people express themselves on a daily basis to millions of followers?
Are the people who failed to show up to elect him in 2020 suddenly convinced to show up now? If anything, I would say that it has done little to move the needle in his direction within the party itself. The old guard hope simply to outlive him. Trump is a useful idiot no longer, and his ability to try and bridge the gap with the moderate wing of his party is all but gone. He has only several months to change their mind, but with his assassination attempt, it’s a fair bet that the religious rhetoric is about to hit the stratosphere. His choice of vice-president is more self serving than strategic. Trump wants only people willing to kiss his ring.
Lastly, it’s critical to consider what happens to his allies. Trump loyalists never get that loyalty back. Most of them are either in prison or facing bankruptcy. A presidential pardon would do little to fix their reputation. Having 20% of the population love you is not enough to compensate for the 80% who loath you. The message is clear: when you base your entire career on this man, prepare for it to be a short one.
Trump’s only hope is the electoral college. There is no chance of winning by popular vote in any case. Only by exploiting the broken, archaic system that was invented specifically to impede the voice of the people can he hope to achieve victory. He may succeed. Trump loyalists should keep in mind, however, that as you grow in strength, so do your enemies. Politics, as they say, makes for strange bedfellows. The question is this: which bed will the people chose?
Gay Furries Hack Heritage Foundation
Alright, who had “gay furries try and protect democracy” on their political bingo card? Certainly not me. A few days ago, the Heritage Foundation , a conservative think tank that is the mastermind behind “Project 2025”, was hacked. Although it was difficult to determine exactly what the information pertained to, the breach royally ticked off the foundation’s executive director, Mike Howell.
The hacker group, named SiegedSec, is comprised of a gay men who dress up in smelly anime costumes and engage in something they call “yiffing”, which is just a nice word for sweaty sex. The group’s head rep, called “vio”, engaged in a rather interesting exchange with Howell, which has now gone viral. Here’s his totally non-supervillain response:
“Closeted Furries will be presented to the world for the degenerate perverts they are,” Howell said. “You cannot hide. Your means are miniscule compared to mine. You now can either turn yourself in or you can cooperate.”
When that threat did little to intimidate a group of people accustomed to being hated on, he said this little gem:
“Are you aware that you won’t be able to wear a furry tiger costume when you’re getting pounded in the ass in the federal prison I put you in next year?” Howell asked.
Threatening a group of gay men with ass pounding is not really that intimidating. In his angered state, Howell foolishly agreed to share the conversation, convinced that he would be vindicated in the end. All it shows is that when put under a microscope, he’s just as sad and vulgar as the people he so smugly looks down on.
Now I am not an advocate of wearing funny costumes and performing sweaty and smelly rituals, but I have to at least admit that one of these groups of weirdos doesn’t try and shove their perversions in my face. Furries are all consenting adults, and more importantly, they leave the rest of the world to live their own lived. Howell and his coven of sexually repressed tight-asses on the other hand are actively trying to undermine the very founding principle of their country they claim to love so dear. They are too ignorant of history to know that the European Wars of Religion had left deep scares in its refugees. Those looking for a fresh start knew the incendiary nature of faith, especially when it held the reigns of power. The separation of church and state was therefore vital in ensuring that different faiths could coexist. That, apparently, is no longer the goal.
To be honest, it should be other religious faiths fighting against Christian Nationalism. An Episcopalian or 7 Day Adventist should be more afraid of these cryptofascist than secularists. The long history of religious oppression is the result of countries having an official faith. Currently, Christian Nationalists are predominantly part of the Evangelical branch of America. To think they are at all capable of getting along with other Christian denominations is foolish and dangerous. If history is any teacher, there is only one way for religions to avoid being at the mercy of sectarian overlords: be being secular.
Will religion ever appreciate the fact that their only hope for freedom comes from people who could care less about their faith? I doubt it.
Pastor Gets Pathetic Fine for Using Church Donations to Run for Office
What is the point of a law if it is never enforced? I ask this question because there is one law in America that is violated so often , that it might as well cease to exist. The law in question was created over half a century ago, as part of the rules enforcing a kind of political neutrality for churches. If they wished to maintain their tax-exempt status, the law says that you cannot endorse or coerce your flock into voting for a particular candidate. Violation of this law is supposed to be the removal of their tax exempt status. So, you might be wondering, how many times has the IRS actually bothered to enforce this law? How about zero?
Since 1996, Americans United for Separation of Church and State has reported 125 churches to the IRS because we believe that they engaged in partisan political activity. Throughout the 1990s and into the 2000s, the IRS Tax Exempt and Government Entities Division (TE/GE) appeared to be working hard to ensure that all houses of worship played by the rules. But it seems that since the IRS lost its case against the Living Word Christian Center in 2008, it has essentially abandoned enforcement of the no-politicking rule. Notwithstanding the “settlement” reached with another organization over this matter in 2014, I am unaware of any enforcement activity in the last eight years.
That’s right. The IRS has essentially abandoned the idea, even when the violations are so ludicrous that it should have been automatic. Take the case of West Texas pastor Scott Beard. Beard decided to run for public office, and it was discovered that not only was he preaching from the pulpit, but he actually embezzled church funds in order to do so. His penalty? A 3,500 dollar fine.
Beard, who was fined $3,500, showed a “lack of good faith” in accepting the donations and in posting campaign signs on church property for his unsuccessful Abilene City Council race despite the commission’s warnings against doing so, it found.
What is the lesson here? Considering that what he did is against the law, you would think that some serious repercussions would result. Instead, the IRS fined the pastor a pathetic 3500 dollars, which is the kind of ticket you get for pouring oil on your lawn. The IRS is within its power to revoke the tax-exempt status of the church, but instead, they issued a fine so small, it might as well have been a slap on the wrist. The message to other pastors wishing to obliterate the separation of church and state is clear: so long as you’re the right religion, no one in government will stop you from violating laws in order to push your political agenda.
MAGA Pastor Thinks 10 Commandments Solves Everything
The 10 Commandments is perhaps the most overhyped, and underwhelming list of “moral precepts” that the world has ever seen. I’ve mentioned this in the past, but it’s worth repeating here: Apart from the commandments not to murder, all the other “rules” are too rigid and useless to follow.
For example, we are told not to steal. But what is someone to do if their child is starving, and the only way to feed them is to steal a loaf of bread? As for not “coveting” their neighbors wife, let’s not forget that this is done under the guise of property, and not because of the “sanctity of marriage”, since this list was written when men had multiple wives and concubines. It would also fly in the face of American capitalism, which seems to be a favorite among evangelicals.
Moral absolutes do nothing to help navigate the complicated ways in which we live our lives. This is why humans have spent thousands of years agonizing over morality, and this has produced many fantastic works of philosophy that we are still trying to grasp today. So the 10 commandments isn’t about morality. It’s about control, as even religious morons are willing to openly admit.
Enter MAGA pastor Jack Gibbs. Gibbs is part of the Christian Nationalist movement, and believes will all his heart, and none of his brain, that when schools are forced to display the 10 commandments, everything will change in society:
“If [The 10 Commandments are] obeyed, everybody’s going to live, nobody’s going to get murdered, and kids are going to stop lying about what happened to their homework, and teachers are not going to be raping kids anymore,” Hibbs said in a recent broadcast.
What fantasy is this guy living in, where an outdated and frankly useless list of rules magically eliminates all crime and stops child abuse? Gibbs, like all his religious counterparts, seem to conveniently forget that countless pastors, deacons and bishops have been raping kids for thousands of years, and only recently has the scale of the abuse surfaced. Assuming that religion cures all ills is exactly why these abuses happened. All a pedo has to do is dress up in a religious outfit, say a few prayers, and bingo, he’s in candyland. Because of the status religious folks automatically give to these creeps, and because of how the churches shelter abusers, it’s the best gig in town if you’re a depraved human being.
Here’s the only thing you need to know about religious hucksters like Gibb: they will do everything in their power to destroy America as it is today, only to replace it with a confusing, contradictory and chaotic theocracy that eats itself from the inside. I have a question for supporters of Christian Nationalism: what type of Christianity is going to rule exactly? The number of denominations are too many to count, and let’s not forget that they tend not to get along very well. In fact, most theocracies are in a state of constant conflict.
Wow, that sounds amazing! Where do I sign up?
Oklahoma wants to force Bible Study from Grade 5-12
Oklahoma Superintendent, and all around douchebag Ryan Walters has demanded that school in Oklahoma teach the Bible for grades 5-12, in a move that’s been condemned by civil rights group as an obvious violation of the separation of church and state. Because Republicans have no idea what this concept means, they are convinced that because many Americans have historically believed in the Bible, that it must mean that this book was vital in the development of the nation. This therefore justifies in their mind that the book must be imposed on people who do not share their pathetic faith.
“The Bible is an indispensable historical and cultural touchstone,” Walters said in a statement. “Without basic knowledge of it, Oklahoma students are unable to properly contextualize the foundation of our nation which is why Oklahoma educational standards provide for its instruction.”
Let’s get real for a moment here. Christians who have never really delved very deeply into this book are always told that it’s full of wisdom and moral lessons. In reality, it bares all the hallmarks of a book written thousands of years ago. It’s filled with superstitious nonsense (like the idea that women on their periods are unclean, or that curses can be put on people), violent and pointless stories of death, and literally hundreds of instances of rape. If it was made into a movie, it would resemble House of a Thousand Corpses.
You may recall that this is just the beginning of a nationwide assault on educational institutions by Christian Nationalists. Louisiana is forcing teachers to display the 10 Commandments, and Texas is also trying to get in on the action. Y’all ready to live under the American Taliban?
More Bibles in Schools, Less Free Lunches
What happens when you interview the coauthor of an insane bill designed to force the 10 commandments in schools? You get one of the more unhinged and deranged individuals yet! And let’s not forget this dangerous idiot is just getting started!
This woman is against programs that would help children from poorer families to benefit from a meal program. That kind of charity is not in the 10 commandments, so it can promptly go to hell I guess.
You know, when claiming that America is a Christian nation, I think that this religiosity should be pointed at whenever we see the legacy of racism. After all, the Bible condones slavery, and was one of the main documents used to justify it. That’s history folks, and if they insist on accuracy, I say we oblige them. “Introduction to Christian Atrocities 101” sounds about right, doesn’t it?
Arizona Lawmaker wants 10 Commandments in Classrooms
It will never stop. Religious morons will always insist that their sectarian messaging has to be in everyone’s faces, in every institution. It isn’t enough that they added their God in the pledge of allegiance, or display it on their currency. If their Christian God isn’t being constantly worshipped, then in their tiny minds, it means that their country is falling apart.
In Arizona, yet another lawmaker is attempting to bring the 10 Commandments into classrooms across the state. Sen Anthony Kern is not a particularly educated man. He has a bachelor in business administration, from one of the lowest ranked university in the country. When he was fired from his job as a certified peace officer for being a liar, he was put on the “Bradey List”, which is a record of misconduct and dishonesty for former officers.
Not content with doing a bad job in the public sector, he doubled down by becoming elected in Arizona’s senate. He’s tried to pass a series of stupid laws, including trying to make it a misdemeanor to travel as a passenger in a car without an ID. Sounds like some Nazi Germany shit.
While on the subject of fascism, Kern has recently tried to pass a bill that would force the 10 commandments to be displayed in schools, and for teachers to be compelled to include it in their curriculum. In his tiny mind, he believes that Christianity is the only reason that religious liberty exists in the first place:
And because America is such a diverse nation, it is because of the Christian religion that we have allowed their religions to come in and be known,’’ Kern said. “Because of the Christian religion and its foundation in this nation is the reason why we have other religions in this nation.’’
As you may recall, the people who left Europe to settle into what is now America had done so precisely because the ruling faith of their respective countries would not allow other forms of Christianity from existing. These were called “The European Wars of Religion”, and the whole affair lasted a few hundred years and cost millions of lives. Kern doesn’t know this because the only book he’s ever read is the Bible.
The thing about these kinds of idiot laws is that they are always shot down at some point by the fact that the highest law of the land, The Constitution, makes it very clear that government cannot be in the business of promoting any religion. It’s the fucking first sentence of the thing, and still American lawmakers act like it’s just a minor inconvenience.
So far, the only thing this waste of a human is capable of doing is spreading false information, and turning his country ever so slowly towards a fascist hellhole. Don’t you just love religion?
Americans Think Religion is Losing Influence
They say that a cornered animal is at its most dangerous. When desperation sets in, and the stakes are raised to the point of a fight for existence, then there is no telling what a creature can do to ensure its own survival. One thing is for certain: extreme caution is advised.
I say this, not to be hyperbolic (though I am already guilty of this), but as a warning to those of us that have become complacent, and convinced that religion is on it’s dying breath. It’s true that the steady decline of faith overall has been progressing well among the population. It’s been so rapid that a recent Pew poll found that 81% of Americans think that religion is losing influence in public life.
It’s important to note here that a full 69% of those respondents considered that a BAD thing, and believe that religion should have more influence. What they don’t realize is that influence has actually increased in public life. For instance, thanks to gerrymandering efforts in many states, courts are now packed with religiously minded judges. The same is true for school boards, where Dominionists have been busy sneaking religious education back into schools. This is only going to get worse.
72% of religiously unaffiliated adults – those who identify, religiously, as atheist, agnostic or “nothing in particular” – say conservative Christians have gone too far in trying to control religion in the government and public schools; 63% of Christians say the same about secular liberals.
The people I want to address in this study are the 47% of non religious liberals adults who don’t think that religious conservatives have gone too far. What the hell are you smoking? Did the recent events in Alabama not convince you that this is only the beginning? I wonder what other kinds of religious encroachment it’ll take for nearly HALF of the non-religious community being totally fine with that Christian nationalists are doing to their country.
This is how you lose: by keeping your head in the sand while your opponents, convinced that your side has gone too far, is busy taking away every progressive thing your ancestors fought tooth and nail for. I know it’s cliché to say this now, but we are officially the worst generation now: a bunch of feckless idiots that gave up at the finish line and let the world slip into a theocratic nightmare. Enjoy your distopia, morons.
The Good Atheist Podcast: EP 352
This episode, we discuss a variety of topics, from American religious nationalists to Hindu ones. We also talk about an attempted honor killing in Australia, and that governments softball response. Be sure to stay informed!
Christian Nationalists Now 1/3 of American Voters
If you want to be terrified, than look no further than this report by the Public Religion Research Institute, also known as PRRI, that demonstrates that roughly 1/3 of American voters identify or support the agenda of Christian Nationalists.
The findings of just who these people are should surprise no one. They are populated by a significant portion of old, white, evangelical Christians, although there seems to also be quite a few black and hispanic religious groups in the mix as well. In total, when you add up people who identify as Christian Nationalists, or who have sympathy for their cause, it amounts to over 30% of the voting population.
The reason that this should terrify people is that this number is an almost perfect parallel to what occurred in Weimar Germany before it was taken over by the Nazi party:
[T]he July 1932 elections brought the Nazi party 37.3 percent of the popular vote, making it the largest political party in Germany… In the ensuing elections in November 1932, the Nazis lost ground, winning 33.1 percent of the vote. The Communists, however gained votes, winning 16.9 percent. As a result, the small circle around President Hindenburg came to believe, by the end of 1932, that the Nazi party was Germany’s only hope to forestall political chaos ending in a Communist takeover.
The fragile democracy of Germany was broken by the time the Nazi party had a significant share of government power. It didn’t take a majority for them to simply take over. All they needed to do was ensure that everyone was more scared of their opponents, and when the moment was right, they literally executed their rivals, and declared themselves the only power. The destruction of Germany, and the deaths of hundreds of millions of people, was the result.
Now, the only main difference between 1930’s Germany and America in 2024, is that the economy has not (yet) collapse, or have a crisis. If it did, no doubt the number of people identifying as this frightening new minority would surely grow. The growing instability around the globe, and the renewed conflict of old enemies can be a catalyst for these religious psychos to try and grab more power.
The only solution to this disaster is for the “None”, the religiously unaffiliated, to take the mantel of power, and to act like a cohesive political group. Instead of just sitting by the sidelines and watching their country dissolve into a theocracy, the Nones will need to create political alliances with other groups that are fearful of this new development.
The alternative is to allow the most powerful military in the world to be controlled by people who pray every night for their God to destroy the world so that only their little pathetic religion can dominate.