Faith or Hate

Imagine being hated on sight without having done something.

You probably don't have to imagine, because I'm pretty sure that's everyone now.

If someone asks me if I'm a Christian, my immediate gut response is, "Yes." But now I pause to think about it. Am I?

The Nazis, the Klan, the Crusades... sounds like Christians are terrorists. Am I a terrorist? No. I don't want to be part of a hate group!

I do want to keep my belief in Jesus, God, Heaven, and Hell. But I don't want to be associated with a hate group. Which matters more to me: my faith, or not being associated with a hate group?

Hang on. Why is that a choice?

When did religion become something that makes you part of a hate group?

To make matters worse, religion is also cited as the rationale behind the war on women and non-cis people. I am a woman. (A human being who identifies as female, was born with a vagina, and still have a vagina. That is me, in my case. But more importantly, I am NOT a "host body," not some laboratory equipment filled with embryonic fluid.) Several of my friends are LGBTQIA+. A handful of my friends are Jewish. I have one friend who follows Norse paganism. And another who is an atheist. I would have Muslim friends, but I don't know that I've ever met any. (Had a penpal who was, and know some from online groups, but that's more acquaintances.) I don't want to have to hate myself or my friends, or be associated with those who do.

I've seen some horrible memes lately. "Stop terrorism by hanging bacon on your doorknob and rubbing it on money." I don't want to be associated with any groups that find that funny.

Mocking people who have faith. Declaring that anyone who doesn't want to touch a pork product is a terrorist. I haven't seen them, but I'm sure there are memes of the same nature aimed at Christians.

Though, if one pays attention, the Christians from the Middle East are just as hated as the non-Christians. Not sure piggy is the problem. 🐷🥓 Where was Jesus born? Bethlehem near Jerusalem in Isreal? Wait, isn't that in the Middle East?

Wroot-wroo, Shaggy! Looks like Google Maps just dropped a hard truth.

I want to keep my faith but not be part of the hate my faith spreads. And, frankly, if the Christian Heaven requires hate to get in, not sure I'd want to go. I mean, when I read the Bible, it sounded a lot like "Love Thy Neighbor" and "Love one another" and "judge not lest ye be judged" and I swear it mentioned something about "Thou Shall Not Kill."

But, apparently, other people read it and it says, "treat women like a sub-class of living things, something with less worth than an animal; but treat fertilized eggs like Heaven's Royalty up to the second they are born." (Because the second the cord is cut, they're a drain and should be ashamed for living. Already breathing our air, creating a carbon footprint, using resources. The nerve of that one-second-old! Should know better. How dare it not come out of the womb carrying 25-carat diamond to pay its way!)

Never mind what people think it says about others who are living as they were made. They're supposed to be lying about who they are? Covering for what Christians are deeming as God's mistakes? Or are we still pretending that someone else creates some people and makes them different so as to offend Christians? Or is this something about God being too weak to defend against his creations, so some Christians are doing it because they think the Almighty isn't mighty enough but are trying to phrase it so it doesn't sound like that? (Gotta tell you, that seems pretty offensive. Pretty sure God can handle business. But I read the part about Noah. I missed the part where it said to kill off anyone who doesn't agree with certain interpretations of some sections.)

See? I'm not good at this faith. I'm not. I don't believe in hating people for being who they are. As long as it isn't violating the consent of another being (who is able to give that consent because they are of sound mind and body, and at the age of adulthood), I don't much care what people do.

Does that mean I have to be an atheist? Or have to switch religions? I've been asking that for years. I still don't know.

I doubt I'm the only one who feels this way. Wondering if abandoning religion is a way to not be hated, or associated with hate groups. Is that even enough? 

Screwing with Hate

Burqa -
Some believe the full body covering to be a form of oppression, perhaps even a way to cover abuse. Others believe it to be a freedom from sexual advances and judgement based on appearance, thus an encouragement of equality. Nearly all believe it to be tied to Islam.

Which is why I find it especially disturbing when certain Christian-based hate groups, or men who claim to be Christian while disregarding 98% of the teachings of Jesus, do or say things to indicate they want all females to dress either in a burqa or be naked sex workers. Girls being sent home from school for a bra strap showing. Women being shamed for feeding a baby.

Guys,  when you support that and then blame "terrorists" (who you think are all Muslim because you don't have the brain power to separate a hate group from a religion, maybe because your own hate group has a base in your religion so you incorrectly assume all Christians think like your dumbass), the ACTUAL terrorists win. Seriously, the point was to get you to be more like those extremists. So, if you are,  they win.

Religion and Politics in this post

Check out @SarahHuckabee's Tweet: https://twitter.com/SarahHuckabee/status/796376615685095432?s=09

Trump won more evangelical CHRISTIAN votes than any other presidential candidate in history?

I keep thinking about all those movies, books, and shows where the Christian president might get a divorce. And it's the biggest scandal (pun intended, if you know the show) possible. Concerns the guy would be tossed out of office, the economy would crash, doom and gloom. "I know about Ellie." "You know about E.L.E.?" (Extinction Level Event -- Deep Impact)

Well, guess we stopped caring about divorce. Or about having children with multiple partners. If it's okay for the gander, it damn well better be okay for the goose now. "Yes, I have three baby daddys/mamas, just like the President of the United States." It is vital to understand that the CONSERVATIVE party and the Evangelical CHRISTIAN voters are in FULL SUPPORT of that. Good job, Maury Povich. All those "whose your daddy" episodes really brought them around!

Seriously, I never knew the church was so totally cool with divorce and with children from multiple partners. But here we are, in a world where they are SO COOL with it that they actually voted for a president who lives THOSE values.

The old days of Republicans talking about family values and sticking it out, how they were only okay with divorce in extreme cases, and children from other partners being only slightly better than bastards... those days are over!

See, not a whole lot of bright side for Democrats these days. But at least we see how dramatically the Conservative party has changed their core values, and how much more open minded the church must be now. The heck with updating a political document to reflect modern needs-- the Republicans have changed what the BIBLE is okay with now. Wow. That's impressive. And even the extremists Christians, known as the KKK, are supporters of this guy.

So we're all agreed.
Republican and Democrat alike: divorce is now perfectly acceptable and holds no shame or public guilt and judgement whatsoever, and having babies from multiple partners is also perfectly acceptable and holds no shame or public guilt and judgment whatsoever. ""Those people"" are JUST LIKE the president incumbent.

"You have three baby daddys?"
"Yup. :) Just like the president!"
"Wow! That's soooo cool. I'm totes jealous."

Just remember, that's now politically correct for both parties. We applaud that now.

(See, I've known a few judgemental Republican Christians who thought they weren't okay with such choices. It's important they realize that now they ARE okay with them, since they voted those values and choices into the highest office. I expect to see them out there showing support! SUPPORT.)