To Hell With Your Crusade

In 1096 the first Christian crusade was a mission to retake Jerusalem from the Muslims.


The first thing the crusaders did before leaving home was murder 2,000-5,000 Jews.


After 40 years of that forever war, the crusaders reached Jerusalem. They liberated the city by killing Muslims. And Jews. Literally a city founded by Jews, and the Christians killed them there to erect a “Christian” city. Because the Pope told them to.
And if 40 years sounds like a forever war, guess what. There were three more crusades over the course of 200 years. Many Jews, Christians, and Muslims died, and during none of that time did Jesus come back.

850 years after the first crusade, Germany would exterminate even more Jews, after boldly claiming that they were the third iteration of the great empire that started the crusades. And they couldn’t have done it without recruiting masses of Christians invested in their country’s GDP. And they executed Christians who spoke against them.

Proponents of any “Holy War” from Western Christians against the Middle-East today who believe that violence must be done in order for Jesus to come back—damn your religion to hell. It is not that of Christ. You don’t care about Jews, and you don’t get to pretend that you care about Jews. You welcome the slaughter of anyone, even your own kind, in order to force Christ to come back. People like you are the anti-Christ.

Curse your rhetoric and your trash calls for patriotism and faith, you who pretend to care about Israel, but provoke wars that will slaughter Israelis, as well as Gazans, Iranians, and others. People in far lands are not tools for your dreams of cheaper gas, climbing portfolios, and fast-returning you-shaped saviors.

Oh, and those “Christian” crusaders. Yeah, they also killed fellow Christians. In Europe. Constantly. For political reasons. They attacked Constantinople for political reasons. They no interest in Gospel. Faith was just a tool to accomplish violence for kings.

The meek shall inherit the earth. It’s best go move out of their way while you still have a chance to become them.

Jesus is Lord, and Neither Party Acts Like It

At first glance, it could not be any more clear.

Recently, Kamala Harris told Christians in her audience “you’re at the wrong rally,” when they declared “Jesus is Lord,” and J.D. Vance declared “Jesus is Lord” to a host of cheers and applause. If you believe Jesus is Lord, you should obviously side with the guy who says that, especially since your only other viable option is the woman who would kick you out for saying that. Continue reading

On Taking the Bible Literally

According to a 2011 Gallup survey, 3 in 10 Americans “interpret the Bible literally, saying it is the actual word of God,” while 49% say “the Bible is the inspired word of God but [shouldn’t] be taken literally.”

That’s commonly how the survey is quoted. But if you go to the survey results themselves, a specific and important statement begins the piece: A plurality view Bible as inspired word of God but say not everything in it should be taken literally.”

Continue reading

Renovating My Heart with God, a Friend, and Dallas Willard

Despising self-help books, I am always skeptical of any non-fiction book advertised to guide me into helping myself make myself feel better, live better, do anything better for my mental and emotional health. Most of them out there are written by jack wagons. Ironically, it is the fixation on the self itself that make such a genre as “self help” complete malarkey.
Continue reading

He Brews: The Coffee Christianity Obsession

 

bible coffeeI wish I had a free cup of coffee for every time I saw a picture of someone with a Bible and a cup of coffee.

It has now become a staple of Bible study in America, reaching beyond just millennials, white girls, hipsters, preachers, or even the middle and upper class. Sometimes it seems that everybody except the Mormons is taking their daily coffee with their daily (or at least periodical) Bible reading. If you notice the images in blogs, websites, and posts. Can you drink of the same cup I drink of? Apparently, we all are.
Continue reading

Jesus and the EyeWitnesses: Study with a Skeptic, Part 3—Papias

Papias, Papias, and more Papias (continuing from our previous study)

Papias was a bishop of Hierapolis, a 3rd generation Christian who compiled oral reports of the life of Jesus. In his book, Bauckham spends a great deal of time on Papias, who naturally assumed that the elders he received his reports from had spoken with the disciples of Jesus directly.
Continue reading