Christianity Creates Fundamentalists:

In any religion, there will be those that take it too far. But how far is too far? And why is taking the “Good Book” literally at all harmful to one’s self or others? I hope I will be able to give you a brief, yet concise explanation as to exactly why I believe being a “fundamentalist” is neither healthy nor morally admirable. As a note: that which is in blue text is in direct reference of the Bible; that which is in red is the same, but is also a supposed quotation of Jesus of Nazareth.

As a Christian, in my late youth and teen years, I have come across many a “Fundie.” At a certain point, namely the first two years of high school (at least), one could have called me a Fundamentalist Christian, and I wouldn’t have had a problem with it. It was exciting at first, and even interesting to take time to study the Bible with friends and company to find out – for the sake of my own striving to become a better person in others’, God’s, and my own eyes – what the canonical text for which wars have been fought is all about. And while Fundamentalist Christians may purport to be avid about what they believe whole-heartedly is right (and certainly ready to share it with the world), it’s just that kind of “wolf in sheep’s clothing” that is seen clearer with a healthy dose of fresh air and reason.

Luke 10:27 sums up the best of it quite nicely, as Jesus said: “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as thyself.” At first sight, this is not just a nice idea to preach to the masses (as it is preached as one of the ways Jesus says we can get to Heaven… among others), but also quite the headline of Christianity if, say the New Testament was to be reduced to the length of an article or “tract” and distributed to the masses, as is often done.

But hiding beneath those words lies something sinister; and that something is analogous to the driving evil that has waged wars, genocide, and acts against humanity in the name of “the Lord, whose name is Jealous.” (Ex 34:14) Christians are commanded to do what can only be done freely. By giving in, supposedly out of simultaneous demanded love for one’s God and/or out of fear for is waiting for those who do not, one gives up his or her own free will, personal responsibility, and ability to judge right from wrong without invoking the Bible’s authority as Arbiter. By taking the Bible as the official text it was intended to be, and by listening to any preacher or authority figure who supports the use of it (even those who pick and choose what they like of it), it is no wonder Christians become the fundamentalist, mindless sheep they are commanded to be. (Mt 18:11-13, Lk 15:4-7).

If any Christian can be described with the long “F-word,” they must believe that when God mandates certain action, that mandate is superordinate. It is superior to man-made Law, others’ Freedom, and Reason. A famous example of this kind of mandate against Reason is God’s famous test of Abraham to kill his son, Isaac (Gn 22:1-2), and offer him as a burnt sacrifice. Later, after Abraham gets all the wood together and straps his son down and draws his knife to kill the helpless boy, it is said that Abraham sees an angel just in the nick of time (Gn 22:10-12) who lets Isaac free from the absurd test of his father’s unhealthy fear of the divine. And to top it all off, God makes a promise to Abraham that his multitude of progeny-to-come will duly be rewarded with earthly power and possessions. Yay, way to go, Abraham!

So let’s make sure we get this straight. God already knows everything (including not only what you are going to do, but what you would do in a given situation) and therefore needs not to test anyone but for the same sick pleasure that maybe a burnt offering would bring. But if God (or what’s left of him in written form) says it is good, by all abandon of reason, it must be the right thing to do! And if anyone has a full-blown hallucination (to the point of believing it to be real and not tell otherwise) of an “angel of the Lord” commanding him or her to kill his/her firstborn for the sake of a vile and unnecessary test of an unhealthy level of theophobia, by word of God it must be right and righteous!

I tell you what, if I hallucinate to the point where I believe God comes down from the clouds, talks directly to me and says “Here I am. It’s me, God. Go kill your family! I’ll make an example out of you, you’ll have a lot of kids, and they will all get shiny toys and never have to work!” seriously, just blow my brains out before I get such a gaining idea of any-cide. Please, for the sake of humanity, if anyone has to die – kill me instead. At that point, I don’t need to be breeding.

The Bible should not be taken literally – plain and simply. I know I only gave a couple examples as to why I believe this, but you can figure that all out for yourself just as I and many before me have. Next week, I’ll give you an example of just why I don’t trust the Jesus character (or what is now said of him almost two millennia after his possible existence), as I explain how I understand the divisiveness of Christianity. But I’ll leave the thinking for yourself up to you. What would be the point of me telling you to believe or not believe anything? I hate to see people consumed by religion. As one who has completely deviated from the Lord’s Army, I’d just like to say it’s better out here where I’m allowed to freely and openly critique and dissect any information that is passed before my mind without shutting myself off out of fear. My views may be closer to that of reason and logic than those proposed by any monolithic religion, but it is my belief that my views and beliefs should be recursively tested and scrutinized just as anything else. And on that note, I welcome you to have at it (hopefully without the ad homonyms)!

Thank you for reading.