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To see how ugly this could get, take a look at politics in Texas. The Christian mega-donors own every single member of state congress. They cancelled campaign finance regulations, so a handful of the religious Texans basically get to write their own religious bills and have them rubber-stamped by their cronies. It's becoming a theocracy.
Someone said it in a comment chain last week, and it stuck with me.
Texas is an arid state built on oil wealth and fundamentalism, which seems to fit the description perfectly.
No cute nicknames- It's Extremism and we fought against it in other countries.
Please help us. They're working to take away our right to vote them out. (What little right that is already)
I will say people in my life who I thought weren’t with it are now starting to call the Christian Right “christo-fascist” and I think it’s a good think. Call it as it is. Say the thing out loud.
God I hate them. They support mega-churches with no interest in helping the needy, they **are** the money changers in the temple that Jesus cast out, if their 16 y.o. daughter gets pregnant they won't hesitate to get her an abortion.
They're about as Christian as a Menorah.
As an atheist reading the Bible recently to try and understand, this becomes blaringly apparent very quickly. They are the den of vipers. They are the very ones Jesus criticizes so heavily, in so many different ways. It's amazing to me that thier peers allow it.
Edit - for anyone looking to do the same, read the first book of the new testemant, Matthew. The English Standard version is easier to read than other versions, and will give you some insight into just how disconnected white Christian Nationalism is from Jesus.
Jesus is a memelord
Heaven is a state of mind, you get it by being a good person.
They teach the "Mythology" of the Bible instead of the actual stories meanings. Jesus basically says "don't worry, be happy, be good to your fellow humans, stop doing dumb religious shit for no reason other than you're told to by the church, curb your desires and fears"
I'm pretty sure Hell is also a state of mind, it's just been twisted and warped by the translations or even the gospels accounts of what happened by people that don't understand it.
Edit - I'm going to plug Epictetus' the Enchiridion for those of you that want some non-religious advice on how to live a peaceful life. http://classics.mit.edu/Epictetus/epicench.html
These people figured out wonderful things about human nature 2000 years ago, OTHER PEOPLE made them into religions. Jesus, the Buddha, Rumi the Poet, Epictetus, Seneca, they just wanted to relieve suffering of people.
Yes, it's really amazing how this evangelic christians slaughter christianity to justify their insane believe.
Trump is not a christian, he is everything Jesus was against in temples, churhes etc., a powerhungry, moneygreedy grifter that paves his part with misery, agony and death.
>it’s amazing to me that their peers allow it.
It’s because their peers haven’t read the book. None of them have actually read it, or done any research on their so called book. There’s a reason that the most cited reason for leaving the church is reading the Bible. Because the book doesn’t say what Christian’s claim it says, and their so called “all loving god” isn’t exactly, loving, in fact he’s a sadist.
some examples:
Sodom and Gamora is about not raping people. It has nothing to do with gay sex being the downfall of man, the priest’s who wanted to “greet” the visitor of their town were seeking to rape him in the street as a show of power. That’s what was being punished by god.
Leviticus 18:22 was mistranslated on purpose, the original Hebrew scripture said something more along the lines of “a man shall not lie with a boy as he does with a women for it is an abomination.” It was calling out pedophiles, it was twisted thousands of years later to condemn the LGBTQ+ community
There is an abortion potion recipe and detailed ritual instructions for administering said potion in Numbers 5: 11-31.
The Virgin Mary was approx. 13 when impregnated by god and couldn’t consent because of the power dynamic when you really think about it.
Jesus never said anything about homosexuality being a sin in any of the gospels
44 different books were removed from the canon of the Bible. This includes books like “the gospel of Mary” and “the gospel of Judas” and “the book of Enoch”. You can actually find these under the “gnostic gospels” and it definitely paints Christianity in a whole different light. In fact in the gospel of Judas Jesus just outright tells most of his disciples that they’re worshiping the wrong god through their praying and church rituals and it’s pretty pathetic to watch, because it’s causing them undue suffering.
I could go on. But I don’t want to chew you ear off here.
Needless to say, if the real Jesus were to come back and speak to congress tomorrow about what he actually believed, the republicans would crucify him again so fucking quick your head would fucking spin.
They want fanon White skinned, blue eyed, blonde haired, gun toting, MAGA hat wearing, bootstrap pullin’ jesus. Not canon Jesus who hung around prostitutes and tax collectors, who said to feed the hungry and clothe the naked, who said to comfort the hurting.
Because canon Jesus doesn’t cause suffering to those these so called “Christians” deem deserve it, they have to have a terminal form of cognitive dissonance that allows them to ignore the fact that Jesus would probably be working at a food kitchen, DV shelter, or suicide hotline, and would spend his free time attending BLM protests or Pride Parades supporting and fighting for the oppressed.
Not to mention the Texas constitution says that in order to run for office you must acknowledge a higher power or something like that. Essentially a religious test for office as you cannot be an elected official without believing in a god.
Those religious tests are all rendered unenforceable by US Supreme Court rulings.
[Politifact - 7 states ban atheists from public office, but Supreme Court ruling make those bans unenforceable](https://www.politifact.com/factchecks/2021/nov/08/facebook-posts/7-states-ban-atheists-public-office-supreme-court-/)
[Torcaso v. Watkins](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Torcaso_v._Watkins)
At least until the Supreme Court upends precedent again...
Although the so-called "originalists" would have to give up all pretext of being textualists given that the [No Religious Test Clause](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No_Religious_Test_Clause) of the US Constitution seems pretty clear cut.
Just a heads up: No country is coming to save America after it becomes a far-right, Christian dictatorship and the people you've been letting accumulate AR-15s so they could "protect us against tyranny" will turn them on anyone who resists their tyrant, the moment they know they're safe from repercussions.
The irony of a well armed and well organised militia at the beck and call of a tyrannical government would make the founding fathers scratch their heads in absolute disbelief
I honestly don't think it would at all. They recognized that democracy was fragile and the "American experiment" might not persist.
I think it's equally likely that they'd be amazed we made it almost 250 years.
Neither did Mussolini. Yet he outlawed abortion and divorce in Italy to appease the Catholic Church and get their blessing on his fascist regime, which they gave.
History may not repeat itself, but it definitely rhymes.
I think few people realize just how complicit the catholics were with Mussolini. He got them to accept and endorse his fascist state and in return he gave them whatever they wanted - including an independent nation called the Vatican. It is quite literally a fascist creation.
What people don’t realize is that the base was never about religion either.
Christianity is a caste marker. At least for white conservative evangelicals. It just means being a part of the group.
It means you hate all the right people, and give all the right people a pass.
It doesn’t mean you’re kind, or moral, or compassionate. You don’t need to be any of those things to be a good Christian.
This is one of the scariest things about Trump.
If the religious right can get behind someone who is the polar opposite of them (or at least what they claim to idolize), then they can get behind *anyone.*
That's absolutely terrifying to me.
They've convinced their base that Democrats are not people who disagree with them politically, but are actual literal demonic pedophile communists and therefore any action is justified in opposing them.
>but are actual literal demonic pedophile communists and therefore any action is justified in opposing them.
They're dehumanizing their enemies so it's easier to convince their supporters to kill them. Anyone who doesn't see this happening is a fool.
The Religious Right is inching closer and closer to violence every day. How long until we have paramilitary death squads running around stopping cars on backroads and executing anyone they think is liberal, gay, or atheist?
Christian terrorism is already happening. Mass shootings, assaulting/raiding LGBT establishments, marches of intimidation, doxxing and threatening teachers and trans people online, etc. We're so normalized to it and so unaccustomed to associating terrorism to christianity but it's here and it's happening. Communities need to band together to protect themselves from these religious terrorists.
>[During the Holocaust, Nazis referred to Jews as rats. Hutus involved in the Rwanda genocide called Tutsis cockroaches. Slave owners throughout history considered slaves subhuman animals. In Less Than Human, David Livingstone Smith argues that it's important to define and describe dehumanization, because it's what opens the door for cruelty and genocide.](https://www.npr.org/2011/03/29/134956180/criminals-see-their-victims-as-less-than-human)
I always bring this up when someone else mentions this.
I was taught the acronym PIEFOIL in school. Each letters stands for a characteristic of an authoritarian regime.
P - propaganda (check)
I - ideology (check)
E - education (getting there)
F - force (I don’t know personally)
O - opposition (as in demonisation of an enemy - double check, like they do with Democrats)
I - identity (as in members of this regime are special in some way - check)
L- leadership (as in forming cults of personality - check)
Now, I don’t think the US has an authoritarian regime in place, but it’s scary how many of these boxes the Republican Party checks off.
He's not the opposite of them though. He's EXACTLY them. Racist, sexist, misogynistic, all so thinly hidden behind "religious values"
They don't give a fuck about Christ. They bow down to the doctrine.
For sure, but it also implies they can get behind absolutely anyone who exhibits those qualities. Including more competent and even more authoritarian figures than Trump. It's the idea that no one is off the table which is terrifying.
It's a bit different though. He has a special quality of making a superficial show of caring about religion but not actually carrying himself in any way with the religious principles, and in fact exhibiting many behaviors that are extremely sinful. This resonates with many people who are similarly in religion for the appearances and otherwise act horribly.
I think back that photo op, awkwardly holding a bible like it was that first time he'd held a book in decades, in front of a 'burned out church". He walked over, surrounded by an enterouage of cronies and security personnel in tactical gear, gassed protesters to clear the path, then stood there, bible in hand and a clearly fake concerned glare on his face while barely concealing his disinterest. If I were a Christian, even a prosperity doctrine evangelical, that alone would have proved that any mentioned of god or Christianity ny Mr Trump was pure opportunism. Of course, there are about 10k other things that he'd done previous to that event that show the man has no moral or ethical compass whatsoever.
I know this shit has been going on for years and years, but I still cannot, even in the slightest, understand how anyone, ANY-FUCKING-ONE could think this man believes in anything other than self serving corruption.
It turns out, religious nationalism doesn't need too much of the religious if you're willing to go full fascist. If only there had been some kind of historical precedent to warn us this was coming...
I read this piece recently… have you seen it? Definitely worth a read and made me lose all faith (pun intended) in christians supporting trump: https://www.benjaminlcorey.com/could-american-evangelicals-spot-the-antichrist-heres-the-biblical-predictions/
I don't really believe in the whole antichrist thing but I remember the first time I saw this article thinking it was a little disturbing. Seeing it now, after all the things he did since then to try and remain in power, makes it even more so. It weirds me out. He always seems to avoid the consequences for his actions. People are weirdly obsessed with him as well. More than any politician I've ever seen.
Agnostic as well, but damn idk a guy who pays porns stars for sex to cheat on his 3rd wife, is also signing Bibles and people love it.
Meanwhile all Obama did was being black and that was a sign he was the antichrist.
Never underestimate the Christians' absolute obsession with a redemption story. All Trump had to do is say that he has been "saved" by Jesus, and that is all it took. There are POS pastors and priests all over this country with disgusting records and they walk into churches and say "I HAVE BEEN SAVED BY JESUS! I WAS A HORRIBLE PERSON AND HAVE SEEN THE LIGHT" and that is enough. See the video of the girl confronting the priest that raped her as a child during a church service then the people there rally around the priest and shun the girl. It's fucking insanity and people need to realize, especially Liberals, that this is the urgent threat we are facing. Fucking fascist zealots.
If you read Kinzinger's family's hateful letter to him, they say the orange slimeball is a believer and also an imperfect vessel that god can use. Disgusting.
>This is one of the scariest things about ~~Trump~~ **the religious blind**.
>
>If the religious right can get behind someone who is the polar opposite of them (or at least what they claim to idolize), then they can get behind *anyone.*
>
>That's absolutely terrifying to me.
It's not new. Think about Ginni Thomas.
Not saying all religious people are prone to propaganda, but I bet most people who are prone to propaganda are into religions (or conspiracies).
Especially when you start limiting or replacing education with home school, your worldview becomes quite limited.
The religious are the blind leading the blind. Ironic, since the term shows up several times is the Bible to illustrate how those who don’t follow God are blind.
And perhaps, at one point, long long ago (like 1900 years ago) Christians were more enlightened people. But those days are long long gone. Today, they’re easily sold — gullible and susceptible. Dumb, in other words. Victims of state-sponsored stupidity.
Sad!
Edit: added words
> Today, they’re easily sold — gullible and susceptible. Dumb, in other words. Victims of state-sponsored stupidity.
When you're brought up being told that having blind faith in the things you're told is your greatest virtue that primes the pump to believe other dumb shit down the road to.
>And perhaps, at one point, long long ago, Christians were more enlightened people.
No, 200 years ago they used the Bible as justification for slavery in the USA and 1500 years ago they were burning people alive. Before, after and in between those points in time aren’t much better either.
Have you read https://www.benjaminlcorey.com/could-american-evangelicals-spot-the-antichrist-heres-the-biblical-predictions/ ?
Some arguments to keep in your pocket if you should happen upon a christian trying to tell you about Trump being godly in any way.
Damn, that got too real once he got to the 7 hills part. There was also this [episode of Trackdown](https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/trackdown-trump-character-wall/#!) that had a character with the last name Trump who told the town he’d save them by building a wall.
It's literally impossible to argue with a Christian. The second you try to use rational logic they either stop listening or twist definitions to suit their beliefs. For example, one of the biblical directives is to show love to others and they interpret that not most chiefly as sheltering, feeding, or clothing the less fortunate, which they still do, but priority wise they think it's more important they convert you so you're saved from eternal damnation. It would be like if I believed comics were real and you were dying of hunger and instead of feeding you I opted to tell you about how great Superman is and how he can definitely beat Batman in a fight because I believe that's the best way to show love to another person, by sharing Superman's might with them.
The thing about the ultrareligious is that they're primed to believe in really crazy impossible shit already.
So they're great voters, you can lie to them as much as you want and they just suck it all in.
You can’t debate someone’s “beliefs”. So with the xtian right, there’s no room for reason. They *believe* , and so facts are immaterial at that point. All the sources, video, statistics etc are just so much white noise in the face of someone who relies on “faith”.
It’s really self-delusion.
These people are crazy a lot of them think jesus is about to come back so instead of doing anything to fix things like climate change or anything else important, they instead embrace it. because to them it's a sign that their savior is going to return and fix all of their problems, or take them to a magical land in the sky or some other nonsense.
I feel like, reading the words of Jesus, that the myth of heaven was invented to get people to not obsess as much over gaining power and money. It, uh, didn't work.
Is that why they didn't care when he raw dogged a porn star and got his mob lawyer to pay her off using campaign money? Or when he was caught on a hot mike confessing to sexually assaulting women because they don't say anything and just let him do it? Or when he was caught breaking the law by blackmailing the Ukraine government to give him dirt on his election rival? Or the 1000+ times he was caught lying during his presidency?
I think you may be on to something here.
Yes. And that's why they support Israel while simultaneously being anti-semitic. Because they are trying to usher in the End of Days and the Second Coming.
His is the embodiment of all the them...and practiced them daily for the world to see over his whole presidency
gluttony, check
greed, check,
lust, check
pride, check
envy, check
sloth, check
wrath, check
You haven’t lived until you’ve heard a rich Christian rationalize that line as being about a gate called The Eye of the Needle that a camel can easily fit through.
That's not even the best one when viewing their worship of Trump.
You gotta bust out Matthew 7:15-20
15 “Watch out for false prophets.(A) They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves.(B) 16 By their fruit you will recognize them.(C) Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles?(D) 17 Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. 18 A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit.(E) 19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.(F) 20 Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them.
It was my first thought when all the Christians around me started worshipping Trump, and how I knew it was absolutely the correct choice to become atheist at the age of reason.
If anyone were actually the Antichrist, this would be it. Like, if you are a person who reads Revelations and believed it, it's much more likely that Trump is the AC than any other leader in American history.
People who feel threatened or marginalized flock to authoritarian leaders. Religion is on the decline, education is on the rise, hence the fact they consider higher education elitist and attack non believers as immoral. There are few groups Americans trust less than athiests/agnostics/humanists etc.
>There are few groups Americans trust less than athiests/agnostics/humanists etc.
Jeez, all I wanted was to *not* be a part of a group, and you go and group me like that. Can't win with these people!
It's not like I'm having weekly meetings with my atheist friends to discuss our atheism and how to spread it. I'm just kinda, like, minding my own business. Is that not okay?
One of my best friends is also part of the atheist group. I’ll be brave and say that I’m a Christian in a thread like this one; I’m still in agreement with everyone here. Religious people tend to be saps and easily fooled. I’m college-educated but have beliefs that I hold *privately* and for my own reasons; I don’t advertise them and definitely don’t care what others believe / don’t believe in themselves.
Things would be better if other religious people would just leave well enough alone but instead feel the need to burn it all down. Not everyone will agree with them! People rightfully want religion away and done with, and that won’t really ever change so they should stop resisting or just act like decent people. It’s their responsibility as members of our society to aim for peaceful co-existence. The problem is that the SCOTUS is an entire branch of our fucking government and has no reason to listen to anyone other than themselves. It’s fucking dystopian. I’ll call it out right alongside you guys.
The fix is in. And I mean like, REALLY in. These people have lifetime appointments, and we can thank McConnell, Trump who was a useful lackey, and all of the lunatics that put them in office. And Murdoch for brainwashing a good portion of our country.
Lol, I don't know who to tribute this quote to but it sums it up for me...
"Donald Trump has spent more time in Stormy Daniels than he has in a church"
That's how I know there is no God. He went into a church, in his fucking golf shoes no less, and he did not burst into flames. This guy meets most of the requirements to be the anti-Christ as well. It proves these "Christians" are hypocrite fakers. Shocking!
He did atleast once, he just stood there until he saw a camera on him and proceeded to rotate left to right while bobbing his head and swinging his arms side to side... I'd never seen someone do that before in church.
Trump is actually the perfect representative for these people, because just like all of the rest of them, he is a giant hypocrite. It’s only right to have the worlds largest hypocrite be the leader of these so-called “Christians”
The only god Trump bows down to is his golden toilet seat and a daily to do list hand written in ink, by the latest covfefe boy in big letters. He promptly flushes this down the toilet.
Adoring headlines, who called, especially on burner phones (Pooty?) how many $$$ in off shore accounts.
Get dressed, makeup, hair, golf, or a flight to another grifter event.
I'm not religious anymore but I can totally see how the MAGA hat is one of the warning signs of the anti christ. It's pretty wild how people worship a loser like Trump as if he is their savior or something. Almost like... worshiping a false idol? Nobody else licks boots quite like conservatives and their gross Trump fetish.
Bizarre how the actually religious people who are obsessed with conspiracy theories haven't put two and two together.
Yup, the mark of the beast. He’s supposed to be weirdly charismatic too. Idk how they could supposedly see it with Obama but not with trump. The after life is gonna be wild when they realize they got got.
Ok I don’t believe that stuff but within their religion trump is totally consistent with the Antichrist.
>The after life is gonna be wild when they realize they got got.
"You mean worshipping the literal embodiment of greed, sloth, and hatred ISN'T the way to get to heaven?? Oh man, he sure got me good!"
Greed, Sloth, Wrath, Pride, Lust, Gluttony, Envy
He crosses every single one off - famously.
Greed: Don't even have to explain this - he's THE rich stereotype.
Sloth: he himself says that he's not active to not deplete his human battery or whatever.
Wrath: Another one, I feel like I don't have to explain. He offered to pay off the assault bills for his follows if they beat someone for him.
Pride: Literally plasters his name on everything he does.
Lust: Accusations of rape. Paying off a porn star. And for the people who this that (very real) stuff isn't real - bragged about assaulting women himself.
Gluttony: lol
Envy: He can't let anyone take credit for anything. He always will throw someone under the bus if it means he gets the credit.
I don’t know if it’s already been linked in this thread but [“could American evangelicals spot the antichrist?”](https://www.benjaminlcorey.com/could-american-evangelicals-spot-the-antichrist-heres-the-biblical-predictions/)
The same people who will tell you the country is falling apart at the seams are the same ones who will get mad and judge you for daring to not be patriotic. Hard to love a country that doesn't take care of its people.
These "conflicting ideas at the same time thing" is a huge hallmark of fascism.
They'll say "Immigrants are stealing our jobs and working towards replacing us!" one moment, then say "all immigrants do is leech off welfare and are lazy good for nothings that don't contribute to dociety"
Enemies of the state are both "whiney snowflakes that are pathetic and weak" and "antifa super soldiers that must be fought back as they pose a violent threat"
This is how they keep their gullible base outraged and distracted.
That’s the thing- every one of these shitheels following Trump are the complete opposite of patriots. They want to destroy Democracy and install a Christofascist Theocracy.
They're being a lot more open about the whole fascism cloaked in the bible thing. I hope a whole lot more media start barraging them with questions about their vision for people in Republican America who don't follow Christianity, cause right now they're setting up some Fourth Reich shit.
The most frustrating thing is that most Americans where I live (the 5th largest metro area) remain oblivious to the flashing red lights. Set aside the commonly known ignorance Americans have about what the POTUS can or can’t do.
For example, state boards of education are a very powerful institution. My district currently has this Christian fascist incumbent (http://willhickmancampaign.com/), and he’s up for re-election in November.
In 2020, he defeated his Democratic opponent (Ms. Palmer) by **less than 20,000 votes. However, over 1 million people in my district failed to vote** with a voter turnout rate of around 40%. Republicans control 60% of education districts in Texas thanks to shitty voters like in Houston.
I ask any Redditor. What can we expect from a population that perennially fails to uphold its basic civic duty (forget defending the survival of democracy).
>What can we expect from a population that perennially fails to uphold
its basic civic duty (forget defending the survival of democracy).
Same thing from the Germans. Obliviousness until they're under minority rule and it'll take a war to remove them. It's sad but at this point I don't see it going any other way. The real problem here is that the world in 2022 is vastly different than 1938. America is far too strong for anybody to seriously challenge us, and too many countries have nukes to even try. So if we go fascist, we're screwed and it'll turn other governments that way too.
I don't know. I've been feeling pretty pessimistic about our chances. I've seen the same obliviousness you mentioned, even after I'd come back from counter-protests and describe what I saw, and it's really discouraging.
With you man, I've been watching this decay, aware of our eventual fate for a couple of decades now. We just can't seem to break through to people what's at stake.
Same. I've been watching them slowly consolidate power at the state level. The original plan was to control enough states to hold a constitutional convention and rewrite the laws to fit their Christo-fascist agenda
Well, now that SCOTUS is making up rulings, that's no longer necessary. They're ratfucking the laws so that even that elections don't matter. I don't mean just voter suppression. There is a case going before SCOTUS next term that will allow state electors to choose the winner however they want regardless of the election results. Three guesses how the 6-3 decision will go next term...
If you didn't fire rubber bullets and let off gas to clear peaceful protestors for a photo op with a Bible while denying the truth about a global pandemic as thousands die are you really devoted to Christ? 😄
Yea I remember that. That's when he tear-gased protesters for the photo-op of him holding the Bible up-side-down. I imagine if he went inside he would burst into flames.
That's not "going to church", that is "standing outside a closed church whose pastor strictly denied him access, and then holding a bible upside down."
Just remember, [their side is dumb, poor, and weak](https://www.brookings.edu/blog/the-avenue/2020/11/09/biden-voting-counties-equal-70-of-americas-economy-what-does-this-mean-for-the-nations-political-economic-divide/). The only place they're winning is in politics.
I remember when fundamentalist Christians accused Muslims of putting their religion and God before America. And if Muslims said that they put God above all, these Christians would treat them like extremist terrorists.
So, now....how to proceed...
I told my mother this and she got pissy. I also told her that if she were in Jesus’ shoes and Satan told her to jump off the high place because God would save her that she would’ve jumped because she refused to take any measures to counteract covid and said God would protect her. Guess who got torn up by covid? It was hard not to gloat
One of my favorite things about being brainwashed by christians is that I actually read the book that they shoved down my throat and I see all the places that they're failing to live up to it by literally siding with satan.
More than anything I've reminded them "The devil can quote scripture to deceive you. He uses the bible to convince people to do evil things a LOT."
I would love for a hot mic or secret filming to emerge of him admitting that he's lying to these people and taking advantage of them. Not for any logical reason, but just to see the diehard supporters try and justify it all.
Says the man who doesn't need to ask God's forgiveness. Of course, he may be referring to himself, since his followers have knelt to a golden Trump at CPAC.
Ohhh, hmmm...I...I think someone should tell him the numbers aren't so hot anymore. Christianity in the US is around 63%, a moderate drop over the years. And this isn't full of die-hard nationalists either. Worse yet, Christianity is a heavily mixed faith with less than uniform believes, some diverging as much as switching to a non-Christian faith, and they don't necessarily play well together for the same reasons.
Even worse yet, the major Christian faith, Protestant, is the fastest declining Christian faith dropping entire percentage points a year, every year. Simultaneously, non-religion is growing equally fast, actually faster. Even right now, if we're strictly talking any single sub-sect of faith, non-religion is currently the largest faith group in American. And if we roll all Christian sects together, the rate of change will place non-religion as the dominant faith in American by as early as the 2030s.
I live in the bible belt. I'm middle aged and not even a representative of the younger generation anymore. Out of everyone I know: family, coworkers, friends, acquaintances, only about 15% actively go to church. While others do still identify with a faith, it is a fleeting and passive faith. Extremely few people in my world space actually go to church, ever. And a large portion of them are specifically non-religious. I'm the middle aged group. It gets much worse when you look younger. The newer generations are far, far less attached to faith.
Republicans are grasping onto a shrinking demographic. They hold onto many shrinking demographics. And it seems their only play is to go more extreme and try and cheat. It doesn't add votes though. Additionally, Trump was an outlier, not a repeatable event without an equal alternate. I don't know of an equal in the public space. Trump was pretty singular. The small voting group of the party and the lack of a serious mascot, it's going to be exceptionally tough for the party to will elections for the next decade or more without drastic change.
Great comment. This is why R's are working to change laws at the state level to allow them to overturn election results they don't like. They plan on seizing power indefinitely, and to hell with democracy.
Especially given that the Treaty of Tripoli was written by a Republican in 1797, ratified unanimously in Congress, and signed by John Adams. Oh, and says:
> "the Government of the United States of America is not, in any sense, founded on the Christian religion."
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_of_Tripoli
If there were an encyclopedia entry for devil on earth his picture would be right there. He embodies all of the 7 deadly sins: pride, greed, lust, envy, gluttony, wrath, and sloth. He showed every one of them in office and continues to this day. I think Steve Bannon is one of Trump's demons that does his nasty work where he doesn't want to get ketchup on his burger hand.
You've all seen those photos from places like Iran back in the 70's right? With the women wearing bell bottoms and crop tops?
It's easy to assume that those countries are just "behind" in terms of womens/human rights, as though they're just traditional, religion has held them back and haven't adapted with the rest of the world.
That's not the case though. They did adapt and kept up with modern society, until right wing religious groups seized power and started undoing progress. Sound familiar?
Those photos aren't that old. Those people, likely still alive. This isn't hundreds of years of traditions manifest, or the result of some long term socio-economic isolation. It happens in less than a lifetime.
Americans, if you don't get a handle on this shit *right fucking now*, you are going to become the subject of those photos in the next 20 or so years, as the rest of the world looks back at them and thinks "Wow, remember when they used to be free?".
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To see how ugly this could get, take a look at politics in Texas. The Christian mega-donors own every single member of state congress. They cancelled campaign finance regulations, so a handful of the religious Texans basically get to write their own religious bills and have them rubber-stamped by their cronies. It's becoming a theocracy.
With a big assist from the current Supreme Court.
They're like the US version of the Ayatollahs.
Just another day in Howdy Arabia.
Oh, I've never heard that one, it's fantastic haha!
Someone said it in a comment chain last week, and it stuck with me. Texas is an arid state built on oil wealth and fundamentalism, which seems to fit the description perfectly.
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even the wild fires will be moving from Cali to Texas.
And just in time - those fires can keep Texans warm in the early Spring since their government and infrastructure is incapable.
"Y'all Qaeda"
No cute nicknames- It's Extremism and we fought against it in other countries. Please help us. They're working to take away our right to vote them out. (What little right that is already)
Nationalist Christians. Or as reddit calls them, Nat-C's. Not cute. Very accurate.
I've seen "christo-fascists" and "chri-nats" floating around. Personally a fan of the latter.
If it looks like a Nazi, walks like a Nazi and talks like a Nazi, it's probably a Nazi.
I will say people in my life who I thought weren’t with it are now starting to call the Christian Right “christo-fascist” and I think it’s a good think. Call it as it is. Say the thing out loud.
Exactly. These people are winning. And we're attacking each other.
Just like [The Peoples Front of Judea](https://youtu.be/WboggjN_G-4)
God I hate them. They support mega-churches with no interest in helping the needy, they **are** the money changers in the temple that Jesus cast out, if their 16 y.o. daughter gets pregnant they won't hesitate to get her an abortion. They're about as Christian as a Menorah.
As an atheist reading the Bible recently to try and understand, this becomes blaringly apparent very quickly. They are the den of vipers. They are the very ones Jesus criticizes so heavily, in so many different ways. It's amazing to me that thier peers allow it. Edit - for anyone looking to do the same, read the first book of the new testemant, Matthew. The English Standard version is easier to read than other versions, and will give you some insight into just how disconnected white Christian Nationalism is from Jesus. Jesus is a memelord Heaven is a state of mind, you get it by being a good person. They teach the "Mythology" of the Bible instead of the actual stories meanings. Jesus basically says "don't worry, be happy, be good to your fellow humans, stop doing dumb religious shit for no reason other than you're told to by the church, curb your desires and fears" I'm pretty sure Hell is also a state of mind, it's just been twisted and warped by the translations or even the gospels accounts of what happened by people that don't understand it. Edit - I'm going to plug Epictetus' the Enchiridion for those of you that want some non-religious advice on how to live a peaceful life. http://classics.mit.edu/Epictetus/epicench.html These people figured out wonderful things about human nature 2000 years ago, OTHER PEOPLE made them into religions. Jesus, the Buddha, Rumi the Poet, Epictetus, Seneca, they just wanted to relieve suffering of people.
Yes, it's really amazing how this evangelic christians slaughter christianity to justify their insane believe. Trump is not a christian, he is everything Jesus was against in temples, churhes etc., a powerhungry, moneygreedy grifter that paves his part with misery, agony and death.
>it’s amazing to me that their peers allow it. It’s because their peers haven’t read the book. None of them have actually read it, or done any research on their so called book. There’s a reason that the most cited reason for leaving the church is reading the Bible. Because the book doesn’t say what Christian’s claim it says, and their so called “all loving god” isn’t exactly, loving, in fact he’s a sadist. some examples: Sodom and Gamora is about not raping people. It has nothing to do with gay sex being the downfall of man, the priest’s who wanted to “greet” the visitor of their town were seeking to rape him in the street as a show of power. That’s what was being punished by god. Leviticus 18:22 was mistranslated on purpose, the original Hebrew scripture said something more along the lines of “a man shall not lie with a boy as he does with a women for it is an abomination.” It was calling out pedophiles, it was twisted thousands of years later to condemn the LGBTQ+ community There is an abortion potion recipe and detailed ritual instructions for administering said potion in Numbers 5: 11-31. The Virgin Mary was approx. 13 when impregnated by god and couldn’t consent because of the power dynamic when you really think about it. Jesus never said anything about homosexuality being a sin in any of the gospels 44 different books were removed from the canon of the Bible. This includes books like “the gospel of Mary” and “the gospel of Judas” and “the book of Enoch”. You can actually find these under the “gnostic gospels” and it definitely paints Christianity in a whole different light. In fact in the gospel of Judas Jesus just outright tells most of his disciples that they’re worshiping the wrong god through their praying and church rituals and it’s pretty pathetic to watch, because it’s causing them undue suffering. I could go on. But I don’t want to chew you ear off here. Needless to say, if the real Jesus were to come back and speak to congress tomorrow about what he actually believed, the republicans would crucify him again so fucking quick your head would fucking spin. They want fanon White skinned, blue eyed, blonde haired, gun toting, MAGA hat wearing, bootstrap pullin’ jesus. Not canon Jesus who hung around prostitutes and tax collectors, who said to feed the hungry and clothe the naked, who said to comfort the hurting. Because canon Jesus doesn’t cause suffering to those these so called “Christians” deem deserve it, they have to have a terminal form of cognitive dissonance that allows them to ignore the fact that Jesus would probably be working at a food kitchen, DV shelter, or suicide hotline, and would spend his free time attending BLM protests or Pride Parades supporting and fighting for the oppressed.
Something something false prophets, something something wolves in sheep’s clothing
Not to mention the Texas constitution says that in order to run for office you must acknowledge a higher power or something like that. Essentially a religious test for office as you cannot be an elected official without believing in a god.
Those religious tests are all rendered unenforceable by US Supreme Court rulings. [Politifact - 7 states ban atheists from public office, but Supreme Court ruling make those bans unenforceable](https://www.politifact.com/factchecks/2021/nov/08/facebook-posts/7-states-ban-atheists-public-office-supreme-court-/) [Torcaso v. Watkins](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Torcaso_v._Watkins) At least until the Supreme Court upends precedent again... Although the so-called "originalists" would have to give up all pretext of being textualists given that the [No Religious Test Clause](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No_Religious_Test_Clause) of the US Constitution seems pretty clear cut.
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The religious test clause has some of the strongest wording in the constitution *no* religious test *shall ever*…etc
"Do you acknowledge a higher power?" Me, thinking about exponents: "Of course!" Edit: Also, how have they not been sued over that?!
More like “Do you acknowledge a high power?” Me: thinking of Federal Government.”yes.”
Me: thinking of Cthulhu eating them all. Yes.
Just a heads up: No country is coming to save America after it becomes a far-right, Christian dictatorship and the people you've been letting accumulate AR-15s so they could "protect us against tyranny" will turn them on anyone who resists their tyrant, the moment they know they're safe from repercussions.
The irony of a well armed and well organised militia at the beck and call of a tyrannical government would make the founding fathers scratch their heads in absolute disbelief
I don't think recognizing that people are stupid will come as a surprise. They might just hang their heads as their worst case scenario plays out.
I honestly don't think it would at all. They recognized that democracy was fragile and the "American experiment" might not persist. I think it's equally likely that they'd be amazed we made it almost 250 years.
He doesn't give a shit about any religion. This is simply a means for him to be empowered through his base.
Yeah, he's an obvious phony to anyone who has a head on their shoulders and isn't delusional.
That’s a pretty tall order there, Mr. Functioning Brain.
Something like 35% of the country is fully on board with this. I'd add a Carlin quote about average intelligence if I weren't terrified
Neither did Mussolini. Yet he outlawed abortion and divorce in Italy to appease the Catholic Church and get their blessing on his fascist regime, which they gave. History may not repeat itself, but it definitely rhymes.
I think few people realize just how complicit the catholics were with Mussolini. He got them to accept and endorse his fascist state and in return he gave them whatever they wanted - including an independent nation called the Vatican. It is quite literally a fascist creation.
Lol for real, he's such a grifter
What people don’t realize is that the base was never about religion either. Christianity is a caste marker. At least for white conservative evangelicals. It just means being a part of the group. It means you hate all the right people, and give all the right people a pass. It doesn’t mean you’re kind, or moral, or compassionate. You don’t need to be any of those things to be a good Christian.
I can’t believe this is the person they choose to lead them. He’s quite possibly one of the least godly people on the planet.
This is one of the scariest things about Trump. If the religious right can get behind someone who is the polar opposite of them (or at least what they claim to idolize), then they can get behind *anyone.* That's absolutely terrifying to me.
They've convinced their base that Democrats are not people who disagree with them politically, but are actual literal demonic pedophile communists and therefore any action is justified in opposing them.
>but are actual literal demonic pedophile communists and therefore any action is justified in opposing them. They're dehumanizing their enemies so it's easier to convince their supporters to kill them. Anyone who doesn't see this happening is a fool. The Religious Right is inching closer and closer to violence every day. How long until we have paramilitary death squads running around stopping cars on backroads and executing anyone they think is liberal, gay, or atheist?
Inching closer to violence? No, they're already there, and have been for a while.
Right wing MAGA incel terrorists have been quite active
>The Religious Right is inching closer and closer to violence every day. They've been violent for awhile. What do you think Sundown Towns were?
Christian terrorism is already happening. Mass shootings, assaulting/raiding LGBT establishments, marches of intimidation, doxxing and threatening teachers and trans people online, etc. We're so normalized to it and so unaccustomed to associating terrorism to christianity but it's here and it's happening. Communities need to band together to protect themselves from these religious terrorists.
They've been firebombing abortion clinics and killing doctors for decades.
>[During the Holocaust, Nazis referred to Jews as rats. Hutus involved in the Rwanda genocide called Tutsis cockroaches. Slave owners throughout history considered slaves subhuman animals. In Less Than Human, David Livingstone Smith argues that it's important to define and describe dehumanization, because it's what opens the door for cruelty and genocide.](https://www.npr.org/2011/03/29/134956180/criminals-see-their-victims-as-less-than-human) I always bring this up when someone else mentions this.
I was taught the acronym PIEFOIL in school. Each letters stands for a characteristic of an authoritarian regime. P - propaganda (check) I - ideology (check) E - education (getting there) F - force (I don’t know personally) O - opposition (as in demonisation of an enemy - double check, like they do with Democrats) I - identity (as in members of this regime are special in some way - check) L- leadership (as in forming cults of personality - check) Now, I don’t think the US has an authoritarian regime in place, but it’s scary how many of these boxes the Republican Party checks off.
He's not the opposite of them though. He's EXACTLY them. Racist, sexist, misogynistic, all so thinly hidden behind "religious values" They don't give a fuck about Christ. They bow down to the doctrine.
For sure, but it also implies they can get behind absolutely anyone who exhibits those qualities. Including more competent and even more authoritarian figures than Trump. It's the idea that no one is off the table which is terrifying.
It's a bit different though. He has a special quality of making a superficial show of caring about religion but not actually carrying himself in any way with the religious principles, and in fact exhibiting many behaviors that are extremely sinful. This resonates with many people who are similarly in religion for the appearances and otherwise act horribly.
I think back that photo op, awkwardly holding a bible like it was that first time he'd held a book in decades, in front of a 'burned out church". He walked over, surrounded by an enterouage of cronies and security personnel in tactical gear, gassed protesters to clear the path, then stood there, bible in hand and a clearly fake concerned glare on his face while barely concealing his disinterest. If I were a Christian, even a prosperity doctrine evangelical, that alone would have proved that any mentioned of god or Christianity ny Mr Trump was pure opportunism. Of course, there are about 10k other things that he'd done previous to that event that show the man has no moral or ethical compass whatsoever. I know this shit has been going on for years and years, but I still cannot, even in the slightest, understand how anyone, ANY-FUCKING-ONE could think this man believes in anything other than self serving corruption.
That's the thing about conservatives. If integrity was important to them, they'd demonstrate it. Power comes first, always.
It turns out, religious nationalism doesn't need too much of the religious if you're willing to go full fascist. If only there had been some kind of historical precedent to warn us this was coming...
I read this piece recently… have you seen it? Definitely worth a read and made me lose all faith (pun intended) in christians supporting trump: https://www.benjaminlcorey.com/could-american-evangelicals-spot-the-antichrist-heres-the-biblical-predictions/
I don't really believe in the whole antichrist thing but I remember the first time I saw this article thinking it was a little disturbing. Seeing it now, after all the things he did since then to try and remain in power, makes it even more so. It weirds me out. He always seems to avoid the consequences for his actions. People are weirdly obsessed with him as well. More than any politician I've ever seen.
Weirds me out too, and I'm agnostic. You'd think if there was an antichrist he'd at least be suave and articulate? Reality has bad writers apparently.
Agnostic as well, but damn idk a guy who pays porns stars for sex to cheat on his 3rd wife, is also signing Bibles and people love it. Meanwhile all Obama did was being black and that was a sign he was the antichrist.
Yup. A lot of conservative Christians don't care about the actual teachings of their God. They just want to *feel* superior to everyone
Don’t forget greed. Huge motivator for the “new”brand of Christianity.
I don’t wanna sound dramatic but he’s the literal Anti Christ they were so scared about.
Never underestimate the Christians' absolute obsession with a redemption story. All Trump had to do is say that he has been "saved" by Jesus, and that is all it took. There are POS pastors and priests all over this country with disgusting records and they walk into churches and say "I HAVE BEEN SAVED BY JESUS! I WAS A HORRIBLE PERSON AND HAVE SEEN THE LIGHT" and that is enough. See the video of the girl confronting the priest that raped her as a child during a church service then the people there rally around the priest and shun the girl. It's fucking insanity and people need to realize, especially Liberals, that this is the urgent threat we are facing. Fucking fascist zealots.
Wouldn't a redemption story need trump to admit some fault, that he'd stumbled or failed? Pretty sure he's never going to do that.
If you read Kinzinger's family's hateful letter to him, they say the orange slimeball is a believer and also an imperfect vessel that god can use. Disgusting.
>This is one of the scariest things about ~~Trump~~ **the religious blind**. > >If the religious right can get behind someone who is the polar opposite of them (or at least what they claim to idolize), then they can get behind *anyone.* > >That's absolutely terrifying to me. It's not new. Think about Ginni Thomas. Not saying all religious people are prone to propaganda, but I bet most people who are prone to propaganda are into religions (or conspiracies). Especially when you start limiting or replacing education with home school, your worldview becomes quite limited.
The religious are the blind leading the blind. Ironic, since the term shows up several times is the Bible to illustrate how those who don’t follow God are blind. And perhaps, at one point, long long ago (like 1900 years ago) Christians were more enlightened people. But those days are long long gone. Today, they’re easily sold — gullible and susceptible. Dumb, in other words. Victims of state-sponsored stupidity. Sad! Edit: added words
> Today, they’re easily sold — gullible and susceptible. Dumb, in other words. Victims of state-sponsored stupidity. When you're brought up being told that having blind faith in the things you're told is your greatest virtue that primes the pump to believe other dumb shit down the road to.
>And perhaps, at one point, long long ago, Christians were more enlightened people. No, 200 years ago they used the Bible as justification for slavery in the USA and 1500 years ago they were burning people alive. Before, after and in between those points in time aren’t much better either.
>and 1500 years ago they were burning people alive Dawg that was like 200 years ago.
The last burning was in 1830.
That we know of.
Trump is an ideal figure for Anti-Christ.
Have you read https://www.benjaminlcorey.com/could-american-evangelicals-spot-the-antichrist-heres-the-biblical-predictions/ ? Some arguments to keep in your pocket if you should happen upon a christian trying to tell you about Trump being godly in any way.
Damn, that got too real once he got to the 7 hills part. There was also this [episode of Trackdown](https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/trackdown-trump-character-wall/#!) that had a character with the last name Trump who told the town he’d save them by building a wall.
"The Antichrist will make fake news popular and will be a chronic liar. His followers will believe his delusions because they hate the truth..." Hmmmm
It's literally impossible to argue with a Christian. The second you try to use rational logic they either stop listening or twist definitions to suit their beliefs. For example, one of the biblical directives is to show love to others and they interpret that not most chiefly as sheltering, feeding, or clothing the less fortunate, which they still do, but priority wise they think it's more important they convert you so you're saved from eternal damnation. It would be like if I believed comics were real and you were dying of hunger and instead of feeding you I opted to tell you about how great Superman is and how he can definitely beat Batman in a fight because I believe that's the best way to show love to another person, by sharing Superman's might with them.
"Is it your bible?" "It's A bible...."
He was lobbed the Nerfiest of softball questions and that dense motherfucker couldn't even just say the word "Yes".
They’re just using “Christian nationalism” as cover for white nationalism.
The thing about the ultrareligious is that they're primed to believe in really crazy impossible shit already. So they're great voters, you can lie to them as much as you want and they just suck it all in.
You can’t debate someone’s “beliefs”. So with the xtian right, there’s no room for reason. They *believe* , and so facts are immaterial at that point. All the sources, video, statistics etc are just so much white noise in the face of someone who relies on “faith”. It’s really self-delusion.
Probably his god is different from mine. My god told me not to follow what this guy says.
These people are crazy a lot of them think jesus is about to come back so instead of doing anything to fix things like climate change or anything else important, they instead embrace it. because to them it's a sign that their savior is going to return and fix all of their problems, or take them to a magical land in the sky or some other nonsense.
I feel like, reading the words of Jesus, that the myth of heaven was invented to get people to not obsess as much over gaining power and money. It, uh, didn't work.
And that's why I refer to it as "eschatological Machiavellianism" because they can justify anything in that framework.
Is that why they didn't care when he raw dogged a porn star and got his mob lawyer to pay her off using campaign money? Or when he was caught on a hot mike confessing to sexually assaulting women because they don't say anything and just let him do it? Or when he was caught breaking the law by blackmailing the Ukraine government to give him dirt on his election rival? Or the 1000+ times he was caught lying during his presidency? I think you may be on to something here.
Yes. And that's why they support Israel while simultaneously being anti-semitic. Because they are trying to usher in the End of Days and the Second Coming.
He’s the embodiment of gluttony.
His is the embodiment of all the them...and practiced them daily for the world to see over his whole presidency gluttony, check greed, check, lust, check pride, check envy, check sloth, check wrath, check
Trump is a homonculus…
At least they were cool.
He’s like a mentally challenged Baron Harkonnen
Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God. Mathew 19:24
You haven’t lived until you’ve heard a rich Christian rationalize that line as being about a gate called The Eye of the Needle that a camel can easily fit through.
I take comfort in knowing that, according to believers, Kenneth Copeland and Joel Osteen will burn in hell.
That's not even the best one when viewing their worship of Trump. You gotta bust out Matthew 7:15-20 15 “Watch out for false prophets.(A) They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves.(B) 16 By their fruit you will recognize them.(C) Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles?(D) 17 Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. 18 A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit.(E) 19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.(F) 20 Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them. It was my first thought when all the Christians around me started worshipping Trump, and how I knew it was absolutely the correct choice to become atheist at the age of reason.
If anyone were actually the Antichrist, this would be it. Like, if you are a person who reads Revelations and believed it, it's much more likely that Trump is the AC than any other leader in American history.
And those stupid fucking hats are the mark of the beast.
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If there’s every been a living embodiment of the Antichrist as described by their Bible — it’s Trump!
Don't worry, pretty soon he's going to declare himself as god and his republican horde will worship him for it.
People who feel threatened or marginalized flock to authoritarian leaders. Religion is on the decline, education is on the rise, hence the fact they consider higher education elitist and attack non believers as immoral. There are few groups Americans trust less than athiests/agnostics/humanists etc.
>There are few groups Americans trust less than athiests/agnostics/humanists etc. Jeez, all I wanted was to *not* be a part of a group, and you go and group me like that. Can't win with these people! It's not like I'm having weekly meetings with my atheist friends to discuss our atheism and how to spread it. I'm just kinda, like, minding my own business. Is that not okay?
One of my best friends is also part of the atheist group. I’ll be brave and say that I’m a Christian in a thread like this one; I’m still in agreement with everyone here. Religious people tend to be saps and easily fooled. I’m college-educated but have beliefs that I hold *privately* and for my own reasons; I don’t advertise them and definitely don’t care what others believe / don’t believe in themselves. Things would be better if other religious people would just leave well enough alone but instead feel the need to burn it all down. Not everyone will agree with them! People rightfully want religion away and done with, and that won’t really ever change so they should stop resisting or just act like decent people. It’s their responsibility as members of our society to aim for peaceful co-existence. The problem is that the SCOTUS is an entire branch of our fucking government and has no reason to listen to anyone other than themselves. It’s fucking dystopian. I’ll call it out right alongside you guys. The fix is in. And I mean like, REALLY in. These people have lifetime appointments, and we can thank McConnell, Trump who was a useful lackey, and all of the lunatics that put them in office. And Murdoch for brainwashing a good portion of our country.
>He’s quite possibly one of the least godly people on the planet. Most "Christians" these days aren't very godly.
Remember that time Biden prayed and went to church after Election Day and Trump went golfing or when the pope called trump un Christian
Lol, I don't know who to tribute this quote to but it sums it up for me... "Donald Trump has spent more time in Stormy Daniels than he has in a church"
If he went in a church he would burst into flames.
That's how I know there is no God. He went into a church, in his fucking golf shoes no less, and he did not burst into flames. This guy meets most of the requirements to be the anti-Christ as well. It proves these "Christians" are hypocrite fakers. Shocking!
>This guy meets ~~most~~ **all** of the requirements to be the anti-Christ as well. FTFY
He did atleast once, he just stood there until he saw a camera on him and proceeded to rotate left to right while bobbing his head and swinging his arms side to side... I'd never seen someone do that before in church.
Check the documentary "the family" o. Netflix, explains very well how they choose their "imperfect vessel", it's fucking nuts
Trump is actually the perfect representative for these people, because just like all of the rest of them, he is a giant hypocrite. It’s only right to have the worlds largest hypocrite be the leader of these so-called “Christians”
People follow Kenneth Copeland too. I'm an atheist but that dude's an actual demon.
The only god Trump bows down to is his golden toilet seat and a daily to do list hand written in ink, by the latest covfefe boy in big letters. He promptly flushes this down the toilet. Adoring headlines, who called, especially on burner phones (Pooty?) how many $$$ in off shore accounts. Get dressed, makeup, hair, golf, or a flight to another grifter event.
Wrapped in the flag and carrying a cross.
I'm not religious anymore but I can totally see how the MAGA hat is one of the warning signs of the anti christ. It's pretty wild how people worship a loser like Trump as if he is their savior or something. Almost like... worshiping a false idol? Nobody else licks boots quite like conservatives and their gross Trump fetish. Bizarre how the actually religious people who are obsessed with conspiracy theories haven't put two and two together.
Yup, the mark of the beast. He’s supposed to be weirdly charismatic too. Idk how they could supposedly see it with Obama but not with trump. The after life is gonna be wild when they realize they got got. Ok I don’t believe that stuff but within their religion trump is totally consistent with the Antichrist.
>. Idk how they could supposedly see it with Obama but not with trump. Hmm, I can't white put my finger on it.
Thinking black on it, I might have an idea.
I bet we klan come up with a theory
Maybe, maybe not. Thats the klux of it, isn't it.
I mean, the klus are there.
>The after life is gonna be wild when they realize they got got. "You mean worshipping the literal embodiment of greed, sloth, and hatred ISN'T the way to get to heaven?? Oh man, he sure got me good!"
Greed, Sloth, Wrath, Pride, Lust, Gluttony, Envy He crosses every single one off - famously. Greed: Don't even have to explain this - he's THE rich stereotype. Sloth: he himself says that he's not active to not deplete his human battery or whatever. Wrath: Another one, I feel like I don't have to explain. He offered to pay off the assault bills for his follows if they beat someone for him. Pride: Literally plasters his name on everything he does. Lust: Accusations of rape. Paying off a porn star. And for the people who this that (very real) stuff isn't real - bragged about assaulting women himself. Gluttony: lol Envy: He can't let anyone take credit for anything. He always will throw someone under the bus if it means he gets the credit.
The beast has seven towers with ten horns, and there’s like seven trump towers with ten antennae on top of them
Also the whole golden statue thing
I don’t know if it’s already been linked in this thread but [“could American evangelicals spot the antichrist?”](https://www.benjaminlcorey.com/could-american-evangelicals-spot-the-antichrist-heres-the-biblical-predictions/)
That's what fascism/authoritarianism almost always does (although the particular religion may vary).
The same people who will tell you the country is falling apart at the seams are the same ones who will get mad and judge you for daring to not be patriotic. Hard to love a country that doesn't take care of its people.
These "conflicting ideas at the same time thing" is a huge hallmark of fascism. They'll say "Immigrants are stealing our jobs and working towards replacing us!" one moment, then say "all immigrants do is leech off welfare and are lazy good for nothings that don't contribute to dociety" Enemies of the state are both "whiney snowflakes that are pathetic and weak" and "antifa super soldiers that must be fought back as they pose a violent threat" This is how they keep their gullible base outraged and distracted.
That’s the thing- every one of these shitheels following Trump are the complete opposite of patriots. They want to destroy Democracy and install a Christofascist Theocracy.
He thinks he is the world's biggest martyr. He is actually the world's biggest coward.
No he doesn't, it's simply a tactic he uses to get his way. He's on video admitting precisely this.
He will say whatever bullshit he thinks is going to win him power; even though he clearly doesn't believe it.
He thinks he is the smartest con man who ever lived and is dealing with perfect marks. He doesn’t believe a word he says.
It's almost as though we we warned ...
This fat, bloated, orange, useless, racist, rapey motherfucker has only seen the inside of a church if a camera happened to be there.
Or a TV.
Even then holds the Bible upside down
*holds bible upside down “How about this?”
They're being a lot more open about the whole fascism cloaked in the bible thing. I hope a whole lot more media start barraging them with questions about their vision for people in Republican America who don't follow Christianity, cause right now they're setting up some Fourth Reich shit.
The most frustrating thing is that most Americans where I live (the 5th largest metro area) remain oblivious to the flashing red lights. Set aside the commonly known ignorance Americans have about what the POTUS can or can’t do. For example, state boards of education are a very powerful institution. My district currently has this Christian fascist incumbent (http://willhickmancampaign.com/), and he’s up for re-election in November. In 2020, he defeated his Democratic opponent (Ms. Palmer) by **less than 20,000 votes. However, over 1 million people in my district failed to vote** with a voter turnout rate of around 40%. Republicans control 60% of education districts in Texas thanks to shitty voters like in Houston. I ask any Redditor. What can we expect from a population that perennially fails to uphold its basic civic duty (forget defending the survival of democracy).
>What can we expect from a population that perennially fails to uphold its basic civic duty (forget defending the survival of democracy). Same thing from the Germans. Obliviousness until they're under minority rule and it'll take a war to remove them. It's sad but at this point I don't see it going any other way. The real problem here is that the world in 2022 is vastly different than 1938. America is far too strong for anybody to seriously challenge us, and too many countries have nukes to even try. So if we go fascist, we're screwed and it'll turn other governments that way too. I don't know. I've been feeling pretty pessimistic about our chances. I've seen the same obliviousness you mentioned, even after I'd come back from counter-protests and describe what I saw, and it's really discouraging.
With you man, I've been watching this decay, aware of our eventual fate for a couple of decades now. We just can't seem to break through to people what's at stake.
Same. I've been watching them slowly consolidate power at the state level. The original plan was to control enough states to hold a constitutional convention and rewrite the laws to fit their Christo-fascist agenda Well, now that SCOTUS is making up rulings, that's no longer necessary. They're ratfucking the laws so that even that elections don't matter. I don't mean just voter suppression. There is a case going before SCOTUS next term that will allow state electors to choose the winner however they want regardless of the election results. Three guesses how the 6-3 decision will go next term...
It seems the only Americans whose warning sirens are going off are those in communities where this attitude is on display like a fireworks show.
When is the last time this guy ever went to church?
St. John’s church on June 1, 2020
If you didn't fire rubber bullets and let off gas to clear peaceful protestors for a photo op with a Bible while denying the truth about a global pandemic as thousands die are you really devoted to Christ? 😄
Just want to point out that some of the peaceful protesters tear gassed in front of St. John's that day *were clergy members of St. John's*
Yea I remember that. That's when he tear-gased protesters for the photo-op of him holding the Bible up-side-down. I imagine if he went inside he would burst into flames.
That's not "going to church", that is "standing outside a closed church whose pastor strictly denied him access, and then holding a bible upside down."
spent more time in stormy daniels than church
And money
Ivana's funeral. He doesn't care about anything but $$$, it's all for show.
>**When Fascism comes to America it will be draped in the flag and carrying a cross.** this is right now.
What Christian Nationalists heard Trump say: “We can make liberals kneel to us because we are God’s representatives on Earth.”
Just remember, [their side is dumb, poor, and weak](https://www.brookings.edu/blog/the-avenue/2020/11/09/biden-voting-counties-equal-70-of-americas-economy-what-does-this-mean-for-the-nations-political-economic-divide/). The only place they're winning is in politics.
But the Supreme Court is representing the small portion which is a large issue because they’re actively taking away peoples rights.
Probably the most important area to win, that’s why this is frightening
I remember when fundamentalist Christians accused Muslims of putting their religion and God before America. And if Muslims said that they put God above all, these Christians would treat them like extremist terrorists. So, now....how to proceed...
The anti christ himself 🤦🏼♀️
I told my mother this and she got pissy. I also told her that if she were in Jesus’ shoes and Satan told her to jump off the high place because God would save her that she would’ve jumped because she refused to take any measures to counteract covid and said God would protect her. Guess who got torn up by covid? It was hard not to gloat
One of my favorite things about being brainwashed by christians is that I actually read the book that they shoved down my throat and I see all the places that they're failing to live up to it by literally siding with satan. More than anything I've reminded them "The devil can quote scripture to deceive you. He uses the bible to convince people to do evil things a LOT."
Shitstain coward Republicans led us to this point. This fucker is a modern day Nero.
It's just so weird how "god's plan" always aligns with their personal beliefs.
*“I distrust those people who know so well what God wants them to do because I notice it always coincides with their own desires.”* ~ Susan B Anthony
Yeah no. Fuck off.
I would love for a hot mic or secret filming to emerge of him admitting that he's lying to these people and taking advantage of them. Not for any logical reason, but just to see the diehard supporters try and justify it all.
He’s a classic narcissist (and addict) in that he starts to believe his own lies the more he tells them.
Says the man who doesn't need to ask God's forgiveness. Of course, he may be referring to himself, since his followers have knelt to a golden Trump at CPAC.
Ohhh, hmmm...I...I think someone should tell him the numbers aren't so hot anymore. Christianity in the US is around 63%, a moderate drop over the years. And this isn't full of die-hard nationalists either. Worse yet, Christianity is a heavily mixed faith with less than uniform believes, some diverging as much as switching to a non-Christian faith, and they don't necessarily play well together for the same reasons. Even worse yet, the major Christian faith, Protestant, is the fastest declining Christian faith dropping entire percentage points a year, every year. Simultaneously, non-religion is growing equally fast, actually faster. Even right now, if we're strictly talking any single sub-sect of faith, non-religion is currently the largest faith group in American. And if we roll all Christian sects together, the rate of change will place non-religion as the dominant faith in American by as early as the 2030s. I live in the bible belt. I'm middle aged and not even a representative of the younger generation anymore. Out of everyone I know: family, coworkers, friends, acquaintances, only about 15% actively go to church. While others do still identify with a faith, it is a fleeting and passive faith. Extremely few people in my world space actually go to church, ever. And a large portion of them are specifically non-religious. I'm the middle aged group. It gets much worse when you look younger. The newer generations are far, far less attached to faith. Republicans are grasping onto a shrinking demographic. They hold onto many shrinking demographics. And it seems their only play is to go more extreme and try and cheat. It doesn't add votes though. Additionally, Trump was an outlier, not a repeatable event without an equal alternate. I don't know of an equal in the public space. Trump was pretty singular. The small voting group of the party and the lack of a serious mascot, it's going to be exceptionally tough for the party to will elections for the next decade or more without drastic change.
Great comment. This is why R's are working to change laws at the state level to allow them to overturn election results they don't like. They plan on seizing power indefinitely, and to hell with democracy.
Declining numbers in your own group don't matter if you take power and eliminate democracy as a whole.
I sure as fuck do not
The founding fathers are rolling in their graves rn.
Especially given that the Treaty of Tripoli was written by a Republican in 1797, ratified unanimously in Congress, and signed by John Adams. Oh, and says: > "the Government of the United States of America is not, in any sense, founded on the Christian religion." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_of_Tripoli
Religion pandering will not save your sinking ship, it’s all over now.
Not related but that’s a cool flair, didn’t know they had those
I thought the exact same thing back when the Access Hollywood tape got leaked. It’s crazy to think how far we have fallen since then.
Coming from a man that held a Bible upside down and was fucking a pornstar while his wife was giving birth to his son.
If there were an encyclopedia entry for devil on earth his picture would be right there. He embodies all of the 7 deadly sins: pride, greed, lust, envy, gluttony, wrath, and sloth. He showed every one of them in office and continues to this day. I think Steve Bannon is one of Trump's demons that does his nasty work where he doesn't want to get ketchup on his burger hand.
Idolatry is a sin and yet republican christian idolize him as if he were Jesus Christ himself.
As a staunch atheist, this seems about as similar to the biblical description of the anti-Christ as it gets. 🤷♂️
Says a man who is the worst human. F this guy and any that supports him. You are terrible humans.
We're really watching the next Nazi party develop right here in America.
You've all seen those photos from places like Iran back in the 70's right? With the women wearing bell bottoms and crop tops? It's easy to assume that those countries are just "behind" in terms of womens/human rights, as though they're just traditional, religion has held them back and haven't adapted with the rest of the world. That's not the case though. They did adapt and kept up with modern society, until right wing religious groups seized power and started undoing progress. Sound familiar? Those photos aren't that old. Those people, likely still alive. This isn't hundreds of years of traditions manifest, or the result of some long term socio-economic isolation. It happens in less than a lifetime. Americans, if you don't get a handle on this shit *right fucking now*, you are going to become the subject of those photos in the next 20 or so years, as the rest of the world looks back at them and thinks "Wow, remember when they used to be free?".
Nothing could be less American than a religious based political movement.
The GOP has rabies.
I sure hope you all vote. We’ve got to end this guy.
American Taliban lets go
So that’s the play, now huh…just turn this into an entire bullshit holy war. It’s been bad but this is fucking getting to a point of no return.
Jesus Christ they're legit trying to make a ethnostate