He thinks this, as do all the others like him, because that is how they are and they assume all “Christians” (actually retrograde Paulists that the Rabbi Yeshua would scourge from the temple along with the money changers) are just like them.

I figure that if you need to resort to harassment, intimidation and physical violence (i.e., bullying, Mr. Fischer) to make your point, you have no point worth making. To hell with the American Fascist Association.

More to the point, fewer and fewer folks are buying what they are selling. Our side offers a much more attractive package.

You’ll have to forgive Mr. Fischer he apparently missed the whole point of Christ’s teachings on compassion, tolerance and forgiveness. I guess he figures Jesus was just kidding when he stated things like “Judge not lest ye be judged” or “Let he who is without sin cast the first stone.”

It’s a darn shame that “Christian” has become code for Authoritarian Asshole(and I say this as someone who does follow the tenets of Christianity and firmly believes in compassion, tolerance and forgiveness.)

I’d seen a piece about that study. I’d like to think that the kind of overreach committed by fundie loons like the AFA is a primary cause.

It’s almost beyond belief that people who call themselves Christians would DECIDE to hate and bully. This is not just a casual thing. Much worse than the schoolyard bully demanding your lunch money. This is a decision they teach.

I don’t see anything thinly veiled about anti-bullying legislation.

It is a blatant, in-your-face statement by society proclaiming that (among other things) a person’s sexual orientation — or perceived sexual orientation — is no reason for one child to hit, taunt, belittle, or otherwise mock another child.

It is a blatant, in-your-face statement by society proclaiming that if you are a teacher, staffer, or administrator at a school, every single one of the children in your care deserve respect and protection, regardless of their sexual orientation and also regardless of your personal opinions about homosexuality.

It is a blatant, in-your-face statement by society proclaiming that those who think otherwise are free to think otherwise, but they are not allowed to ACT on their bigotry, no matter how firmly they hold onto it and no matter how loudly they shout “religious liberty.”

You can’t shout “religious liberty” and exclude blacks from your lunch counter. You can’t shout “religious liberty” and throw bricks through the window of the local Chinese restaurant. You can’t shout “religious liberty” and fire a female employee because she gets married.

It’s not thinly-veiled at all. As the saying goes, if you want to get a mule’s attention, you have to hit it across the head with a two by four.

And no, it’s no compliment to me as a pastor when folks like this call gay-bashing “the Christian thing to do”. Thanks for the post calling him out.

There you go, talking about that Rabbi Yeshua feller, when all true Xtians know you only read the stuff by the hallucinatory loons who never met him, especially that authoritarian, misogynist, Paul.

Yes, but you are one of those heretical folks who actually reads and follows the teachings of the Rabbi Yeshua.

It never ceases to appall me how the loudest self-proclaimed Christians don’t seem to grasp (and in some cases have never seen) the Sermon on the Mount. Surely if there is an Essential Jesus, he can be found in those three chapters of Matthew, but you’ll never know it listening to the like of Bryan Fischer.

They are not really Christians, but rather Paulists.

I try.

I don’t give them that much credit. They’re false prophets, just like Jesus warned would show up.

Oh, they latch onto that part at the end of the Beatitudes where Jesus says “blessed are you if people persecute you on my account.”

They’d read that verse, then read this post, and feel very self-righteous. “See? The fact that those people are persecuting us is proof that God is on our side.”

Uh, no.

*DIVINE FACEPALM*

YMMV, but I suspect God would say something along the lines of “It’s proof that you’re very very mistaken.”

From what I see, you do a mighty fine job of it. I am not a believer, but I kind of like a lot of what that Yeshua fella had to say. He is also one of the reasons I am a socialist. I don’t think that is what my mother had in mind when she made me read the Bible (all of it) when I had my apostasy at 13.

That may explain the droughts and extreme weather in the South this year. ;-)

I guess that explains why the haters don’t seem to worry about meeting their Maker. Although I think they should.

Colbert’s on it tonight

It might help if they were the people being persecuted, rather than just the people who whine about being persecuted when they aren’t allowed to persecute others.

Speaking of Colbert, I miss Father Guido Sarducci.

LOL…wasn’t he a treat.

That is the worstest persecution of all!

Off to bed for me. G’nite, all!

I’m going to wisely follow Peterr’s lead. Peace out, y’all!

Night to Peterr and EDP!

Think I will follow the herd and toddle off as well. Young minds to corrupt tomorrow and, appropriately enough, we are discussing anthropological approaches to the study of religion. Take care all

Christians really want the biggest opportunity to be bullies and dicks

Sorry, I couldn’t help myself.

Y’all are goin’ to bed at 8:52 PM? Sounds like they have won. Time zones.

@EvilDrPuma@#19: That’s absolutely classic. I’m going to add it to my slate. Bravo!

Aloha, Athenae…! Several Einstein quotes to ponder… “My religion consists of a humble admiration of the illimitable superior spirit who reveals himself in the slight details we are able to perceive with our frail and feeble mind.” “God does not care about our mathematical difficulties. He integrates empirically.” And, “A human being is a part of a whole, called by us _universe_, a part limited in time and space. He experiences himself, his thoughts and feelings as something separated from the rest… a kind of optical delusion of his consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires and to affection for a few persons nearest to us. Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty.”

Pleasant dreams to all the Sleepers…! *g*

Doesn’t anti-bullying legislation cover all bullying, not only anti-gay bullying?

If so, I don’t know why anyone assumes it is about gays, as opposed to being about the well-being of all children.

Bingo. In my option, Paul messed up everything. And he never even met Jesus.

Fee, fie, fo, fum, I smell Republican.

By which I mean that the aroma arising from those remarks is far more Republican than it is Christian.

When you criticize the left, the left refutes you on substance. When you criticize the right, the right atttempts to discredit you or the group to which you belong.

Given how many gays vote Republican in comparison with how many gays vote Democratic, it is predictable that some gays will publicly recommend voting Democratic.

I was surprised to see, for example, Suze Norman, begging anyone who waw gay or who loved a gay friend or family or knew a gay to vote for Obama. Norman was out (as a gay) by that point, but she had been careful to criticize both major political parties. And I thought she leaned more right than left–and maybe she did, until Obama {finally} said he supported equal marriage opportunity.

So, when you have gays known for their financial success with that kind of credibility, visibility and popularity begging people to vote for Obama because of his gay stance, the response of Republicans is to double down on their gay bashing. But they know that no one can get away with it, except someone doing in the name of God.

The unholy alliance between Tepublicans and neo theos has done, and continues to do, so much for Republicans. As a result, many associate Christianity with the more odious characteristics of Republicans.

All of which proves that Jefferson was correct. A wall should be between religion and government, for the benefit of both religion and government. Shame on government for knuckling under and/or getting fooled repeatedly by those seeking to have government propping up religion in one way or another, as when the Family supposedly convinced Eisenhower that putting “under God” into the pledge of allegiance was some kind of anti-Russian statement.

P.S. My prior post should have read “in my opinion.”

I’m a 70 y.o. bisexual. It was easy for me to live in the closet most of my life. But I did so because, until the Gay Rights movement, I did not know what a “bisexual” is. Once that was defined, I did not know yet whether I fit into it. I just enjoyed all kinds of sex and developed relationships with both genders, but knew that same-gender sex is punishable –by Christians. And I still know that.

I’m also a 70 y.o. Neo-Pagan by spiritual path. I live in and out of the broom closet depending whether a Christian is within punishing range or not. For a fundamentalist, Pagan is more punishable than Gay. These are professional haters to the point of inflicting death if they can.

But I have a loving extended family. I do not have to live in any closet for them and most of them are Christian by faith. And they too are punished–by fellow “Christians”–all because they refuse to punish an out-Gay family member, my nephew. They choose real Christian love, not the kind that the fake Christians practice, which is the prevailing kind. And let me define “prevailing” as those who govern that religion and the prominent masses of them who give their permission to that governance. There’s only a small minority left after that, so as laudable as they may be, they can’t be called “prevailing”.

There are a lot of statements in the New Testament about how we are to treat each other if we profess to be Christians.

Love one another.
Judge not, lest you be judged.
Love thy neighbor like you love yourself.
Take care of the poor.

At no point in time were any qualifiers ever added. No qualifiers like ‘when it’s convenient’, ‘when you can afford it’, or ‘as long as they look like you’.

I find it hard to swallow that anyone on the right has read the Bible, outside of the Old Testament. Jesus would surely treat them as he did the Pharasees.

I happened to be in downtown San Francisco some years ago when they had that brief period of time where the Mayor “legalized” gay marriage. It was a heady and happy experience to witness various gay couples – most of them weeping copiously – as they came out of city hall with hands clasped celebrating their recent nuptials.

Of course, the rightwing ersatz Christiany bullies were out in force with their nasty signs and shouting bigoted taunts, and ranting about how they’re going to HELL etc.

I happened to engage in conversation with one nasty sign bearing fellow, and I said: why are you doing this? I got the usual bumkum about how “God hates gays” or whatever, and how they’re all going to Hell, etc.

I said: Well I was raised a Christian, and what I remember is Jesus preaching love, tolerance and non-violence. I think what you’re doing is NOT loving or tolerant, and IS very violent. Whatever you believe is your right, but answer me this: Why do you BELIEVE that you have the RIGHT to tell these people what to do with their lives??

He said something like: well Bible verses, blah blah HELL etc

I said: IF you really believe these people are going Hell, then Why do you care? It’s. None. Of. Your. Business. Let them go to Hell, and let “God” sort them out. Do you BELIEVE that YOU are “God,” and that you are in “charge” of judging them on earth??

Conversation continued in that vein. Guy did actually listen to me and had no real responses. I’m sure I did nothing to change his mind, but he at least thought a little bit about what I said.

I never understood why “Christiany” types feel it’s their “duty” to be bullies for “God.” If you don’t agree with gay marriage, then don’t marry someone of the same gender. If you don’t agree with abortions, then don’t have one. Case closed (but sadly it’s not).

These fascist bullies hide behind the skirts of so-called “Christianity” to enable and endorse their nasty violent viscious behavior. The end.