The Dudeism Forum

Phil Zuckerman

Professor of Sociology, Pitzer College in Claremont, CA. [Local lad from my patch]

"This article was co-authored by Dan Cady is an assistant professor of history at California State University, Fresno. He publishes on the history of the American West, music, and religion.

The results from a recent poll published by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life (http://www.pewforum.org/Politics-and-Elections/Tea-Party-and-Religion.aspx) reveal what social scientists have known for a long time: White Evangelical Christians are the group least likely to support politicians or policies that reflect the actual teachings of Jesus. It is perhaps one of the strangest, most dumb-founding ironies in contemporary American culture. Evangelical Christians, who most fiercely proclaim to have a personal relationship with Christ, who most confidently declare their belief that the Bible is the inerrant word of God, who go to church on a regular basis, pray daily, listen to Christian music, and place God and His Only Begotten Son at the center of their lives, are simultaneously the very people most likely to reject his teachings and despise his radical message.

Jesus unambiguously preached mercy and forgiveness. These are supposed to be cardinal virtues of the Christian faith. And yet Evangelicals are the most supportive of the death penalty, draconian sentencing, punitive punishment over rehabilitation, and the governmental use of torture. Jesus exhorted humans to be loving, peaceful, and non-violent. And yet Evangelicals are the group of Americans most supportive of easy-access weaponry, little-to-no regulation of handgun and semi-automatic gun ownership, not to mention the violent military invasion of various countries around the world. Jesus was very clear that the pursuit of wealth was inimical to the Kingdom of God, that the rich are to be condemned, and that to be a follower of Him means to give one's money to the poor. And yet Evangelicals are the most supportive of corporate greed and capitalistic excess, and they are the most opposed to institutional help for the nation's poor -- especially poor children. They hate anything that smacks of "socialism," even though that is essentially what their Savior preached. They despise food stamp programs, subsidies for schools, hospitals, job training -- anything that might dare to help out those in need. Even though helping out those in need was exactly what Jesus urged humans to do. In short, Evangelicals are that segment of America which is the most pro-militaristic, pro-gun, and pro-corporate, while simultaneously claiming to be most ardent lovers of the Prince of Peace.

What's the deal?

Before attempting an answer, allow a quick clarification. Evangelicals don't exactly hate Jesus -- as we've provocatively asserted in the title of this piece. They do love him dearly. But not because of what he tried to teach humanity. Rather, Evangelicals love Jesus for what he does for them. Through his magical grace, and by shedding his precious blood, Jesus saves Evangelicals from everlasting torture in hell, and guarantees them a premium, luxury villa in heaven. For this, and this only, they love him. They can't stop thanking him. And yet, as for Jesus himself -- his core values of peace, his core teachings of social justice, his core commandments of goodwill -- most Evangelicals seem to have nothing but disdain.

And this is nothing new. At the end of World War I, the more rabid, and often less educated Evangelicals decried the influence of the Social Gospel amongst liberal churches. According to these self-proclaimed torch-bearers of a religion born in the Middle East, progressive church-goers had been infected by foreign ideas such as German Rationalism, Soviet-style Communism, and, of course, atheistic Darwinism. In the 1950s, the anti-Social Gospel message piggybacked the rhetoric of anti-communism, which slashed and burned its way through the Old South and onward through the Sunbelt, turning liberal churches into vacant lots along the way. It was here that the spirit and the body collided, leaving us with a prototypical Christian nationalist, hell-bent on prosperity. Charity was thus rebranded as collectivism and self-denial gave way to the gospel of accumulation. Church-to-church, sermon-to-sermon, evangelical preachers grew less comfortable with the fish and loaves Jesus who lived on earth, and more committed to the angry Jesus of the future. By the 1990s, this divine Terminator gained "most-favored Jesus status" among America's mega churches; and with that, even the mention of the former "social justice" Messiah drove the socially conscious from their larger, meaner flock.

In addition to such historical developments, there may very well simply be an underlying, all-too-human social-psychological process at root, one that probably plays itself out among all religious individuals: they see in their religion what they want to see, and deny or despise the rest. That is, religion is one big Rorschach test. People look at the content of their religious tradition -- its teachings, its creeds, its prophet's proclamations -- and they basically pick and choose what suits their own secular outlook. They see in their faith what they want to see as they live their daily lives, and simultaneously ignore the rest. And as is the case for most White Evangelical Christians, what they are ignoring is actually the very heart and soul of Jesus's message -- a message that emphasizes sharing, not greed. Peace-making, not war-mongering. Love, not violence.

Of course, conservative Americans have every right to support corporate greed, militarism, gun possession, and the death penalty, and to oppose welfare, food stamps, health care for those in need, etc. -- it is just strange and contradictory when they claim these positions as somehow "Christian." They aren't."
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/phil-zuckerman/why-evangelicals-hate-jes_b_830237.html

It's all a goddamn fake. 
Like Lenin said, look for the person who will benefit. 
And you will, uh, you know,
you'll, uh, you know what I'm trying
to say--

Evangelical Christianity is a delusion fueled by hate sold through greed.

Not at all like the percieved Jesus archetype that may or may not have been an actual person, but carried a take er easy, love thy neighbor message.

QuoteNot at all like the percieved Jesus archetype that may or may not have been an actual person

An allegory?

Yeah man... I do not believe for an instant that JC actually existed..."his" teachings are as valid then as they are today...the whole thing was hijacked by the Catholic church who just flew the whole damned thing into the mountain.

Is it coincidence that mental is part of the word fundamentalist... I think not and that word applies to those deep Southern Evangelistas!

ahhh what the fuck...I'm rambling dudes....

Quote from: revgms on April 16, 2011, 09:52:40 AM
Evangelical Christianity is a delusion fueled by hate sold through greed.

Not at all like the percieved Jesus archetype that may or may not have been an actual person, but carried a take er easy, love thy neighbor message.

As I see it, Christianity is run and controlled by a few extreme undudes, though most Christians seem to be cool, and a lot are very dude like. The rank and file I mean. But these assholes should be hung and quartered.................

Quote from: digitalbuddha on April 17, 2011, 04:56:25 AM

As I see it, Christianity is run and controlled by a few extreme undudes, though most Christians seem to be cool, and a lot are very dude like. The rank and file I mean. But these assholes should be hung and quartered.................

Simply put the romans realised they would not be able to hold onto their empire, so they grabbed at the first thing they could, religion, and in this case christianity, and have managed to continue to rule their empire, and expand it, for the last couple of thousand years.

It is not a coincidence that the vatican actually sits on more or less the same site as Nero's palace.

Quote from: meekon5 on April 18, 2011, 06:12:02 AM

Quote from: digitalbuddha on April 17, 2011, 04:56:25 AM

As I see it, Christianity is run and controlled by a few extreme undudes, though most Christians seem to be cool, and a lot are very dude like. The rank and file I mean. But these assholes should be hung and quartered.................

Simply put the romans realised they would not be able to hold onto their empire, so they grabbed at the first thing they could, religion, and in this case christianity, and have managed to continue to rule their empire, and expand it, for the last couple of thousand years.

It is not a coincidence that the vatican actually sits on more or less the same site as Nero's palace.

Well said, dude. You make a good point from history. I agree, they grabbed religion to control the masses given that mere force was no longer working like it had. Interesting observation, mang.

That article is fucking interesting, man. Confirmation of what is widely felt, I would say. However, I would like to point out that Evangelical Christianity is its subject, not Catholicism. Not saying I disagree with the points dudes have made about Catholicism--just saying.