The Christian demand

The definition of the word 'demand' has been taken from the online Merriam Webster dictionary. The first definition is the one that is most relevant to the topic and theme of this post. I have often stated that in order to be a Christian one had to first be a hypocrite, and I believe that believers have demonstrated this fact over and over again both in their private lives and in the public forum. In their private lives they tend to try to live against their natures in search of so called spiritual oneness with their god. They seek to draw closer to him by trying to alter their lifestyles according to how they interpret the scriptures regarding how they should live in order to please God.

So called "true" Christianity as taught in the New Testament is seldom practiced and rarely seen these days. There are many today that are calling themselves Christians who in their words and deeds often betray the very thing that they proclaim themselves to be! Let's take a look at some of the things that theists do today that are clearly outlined in the scriptures as conduct unbecoming of a believer or so called follower of the teachings of their savior Jesus Christ.

16There are six things the Lord hates,

seven that are detestable to him:

17haughty eyes,

a lying tongue,

hands that shed innocent blood,

18a heart that devises wicked schemes,

feet that are quick to rush into evil,

19a false witness who pours out lies

and a person who stirs up conflict in the community.     Proverbs 6:18-19

Let's start with the first one by defining the word haughty and demonstrating how it relates to theists. According to the Merriam Webster dictionary online haughty is defined as : 'having or showing the insulting attitude of people who think that they are better, smarter, or more important than other people.'

Many believers that I have encountered whether knowingly or unknowingly demonstrate the opposite of humility when they speak about their beliefs with non-believers. Often when their beliefs are challenged they take a combative stance and resort to insults or threats of eternal damnation. The opposite of this and most insulting is the hypocritical display of pity and so called concern for our souls. They will say things like: "I will pray for you that the Lord may reveal his truth to you and that you may be saved before it's too late."Others will associate their beliefs with patriotism by stating that if you don't believe in God then you are not a true American. These are all obvious examples of condescending behavior and give the impression that you think of yourselves better than anyone who is not a believer. 

The next thing that the Lord hates is a lying tongue. I will state right here and right now from the outset that all apologists are guilty of being blatant and outright liars. In their many efforts to defend their beliefs they twist all manner of learning to suit their conclusions based on their beliefs. The most common examples are Creationism, ID, and apologetics. The first two are the theistic version or interpretation of what they call science and what real scientists and anyone with some knowledge about the scientific method would quickly recognize as not actual science but pseudoscience. The last is an example of the theistic version of philosophy. Theists even set out to reinterpret the common usage of language as well by playing what I like to call the semantics game. They basically take a  word that is in common usage and change its meaning to conform to what they are trying to convey regarding what they believe. All of these so called methods of defending the faith are nothing more than different ways to proselytize through the clever use of lies and deception. 

The next one is obvious so I wont go into that one. This refers to the murder of an innocent which ironically there is plenty of it in the Old Testament often performed by God himself or by his henchmen the ancient Hebrews aka as his chosen and beloved people amongst all the nations. The next one refers to a heart that devises wicked schemes. In defense of their faith theists have often had to rely on many devious means in order to continue propagating their faith. In the past those means have come in the form of forcing people to believe or be tried and executed as seen throughout their history in the various inquisitions. Today at least here in the states they try to manipulate government officials into making laws that support their beliefs such as the ban on stem cell research, abortion, gay marriages, etc. Their only claim to legitimacy for these laws that they so demand is that it is against God's law and thus immoral. 

As individuals we tend to take our beliefs to different extremes. Some theists are fundamentalist (extreme), others are in the middle, and then there are liberals. One of the biggest problems I have with Christianity is that they want to force their beliefs and ideologies on the rest of society. You see them preaching on the street corners as I once did. They are all over the place handing out biblical tracts about salvation,  they knock on doors to propagate their faith. They lobby for the government to support their beliefs and sometimes go as far as protesting events that they feel threatens their faith. The most extreme believers have gone on to bomb abortion clinics and even have gone to the extremes of public book burnings of the Koran. Theists demand that others respect their beliefs but apparently this only works one way; it does not apply to the contrary beliefs of others. This in my opinion is the most blatant display of hypocrisy that they could ever perpetuate. These are the people whose feet are quick "to rush into evil."

The next thing that the Lord hates is a false witness. Today's Christians demonstrate this in two ways in particular. They say one thing with their mouths and even feign piety towards those that they seek to convert. The other thing that they do is that they invent lies about those with opposing views; particularly atheists. From the absurd accusation that we eat babies to the idea that without God we are incapable of being moral human beings or even being happy with our lives. Many theists here in the states have got it in their heads that atheists are waging a war against theism and are out to destroy Christianity and all forms of religious beliefs! Nothing could be further from the truth! As an atheist and I think I speak for many of us we just want the right to live God free without being discriminated against. Why should our children have to be subject to prayer in our public schools or taught that creationism is an alternative theory to evolution (which it isn't)?

The last point about a person who stirs up conflict in the community refers to some of the things I spoke of in the last paragraph. Why should our society be divided along the lines of religious beliefs or the lack of beliefs? Why can't we just respect each others beliefs and opinions and keep religion in the churches or mosques where they belong? If I want to seek God I will go to a church of my choosing. I don't feel the need to have the church and its beliefs forced upon me through means of trickery and deceit. I have a live and let live policy as long as what you believe and what you are doing privately or publicly is within the parameters of the laws of our society and no other parties are being hurt by your actions. 

Christians in this nation demand respect of their beliefs but they themselves give none to those who don't believe as they do. Like the early church during the inquisitions they want to force their beliefs and way of life on the rest of us and expect us to just throw our hands in the air and say nothing! When we do say something in an attempt to defend our rights as citizens of the U.S. to live as we choose free from religion they cry persecution! Religious beliefs are a personal matter between the believer and his/her god or gods. I have no problem with prayer and proselytizing but I don't want it in my public schools nor do I want to be discriminated against for refusing to accept your beliefs as my own. When you cross the line and try to force your beliefs on me utilizing some of the methods I've outlined in this post then know that I will be standing there ready to defend my right to be free from religion!

Note: All biblical quotations are taken from the New International version of the scriptures and word definitions are taken from the online Merriam Webster dictionary which I have linked to in the text.