How American Christianity has failed

[Helden]

Most of this is true and the rest who knows.

American Christian Churches are a good thing and don't play race games. Half the Mormons in the world for example basically live in africa, south America and ultra poor parts of asia.

I'm not a christian and liberal, but the average strong christian is better than the average lukewarm deist. If america had more christians, It would be a better nation.

HAHAHAHAHA
Good joke

 

[Helden]

You believe there is no God. That requires faith.

No it doesn't

 

[ripskater]

No it doesn't

Yes it does. Because you can't prove that there is no God. You have faith that no God exists.

 

[Helden]

Yes it does. Because you can't prove that there is no God.

Lol seriously?

Google "burden of proof"

 

[wlu.29]

In what way?

your viewpoints are hypocritical and observant to the letter of the book rather than the spirit of what jesus would do

 

[HUNTERMANIA]

Specifically which denomination if you don't mind.

I'm a protestant, probably anabaptist is what I most identify with. I'm not a local member but I enjoy Greg Boyd in Minnesota a lot, he has a strong international podcast ministry. The local church is non-denominational.

I also like John Piper and Matt Chandler a lot even if I disagree with them pretty strongly about some important theological issues (they're Calvinists - I used to be when I was a Christian before but I'm not now)

 

[ripskater]

Lol seriously?

You have a belief that cannot be proven. You believe there is no God. That requires faith on your part.

Google "burden of proof"

That has nothing to do with your faith in your unproven belief.

 

[ripskater]

your viewpoints are hypocritical and observant to the letter of the book rather than the spirit of what jesus would do

Give an example.

 

[Helden]

You have a belief that cannot be proven. You believe there is no God. That requires faith on your part.

That has nothing to do with your faith in your unproven belief.

You keep repeating "requires faith" as if saying it over and over will somehow make it true

No it doesn't.


Absence of belief =/= belief

 

[HUNTERMANIA]

In my opinion, the existence of God isn't even a matter of faith. God is objectively real - it's a belief. Faith is about trusting God's instruction and guidance for your life.

 

[ripskater]

You keep repeating "requires faith" as if saying it over and over will somehow make it true

No it doesn't.


Absence of belief =/= belief

Everyone believes something. You are expressing your beliefs right now.

 

[Helden]

In my opinion, the existence of God isn't even a matter of faith. God is objectively real - it's a belief. Faith is about trusting God's instruction and guidance for your life.

God is not real. Fairy tale for stupid people, nothing more

 

[Helden]

Everyone believes something. You are expressing your beliefs right now.

Not a belief, absence of belief

"Christian apologists will repeatedly distort or reverse the meanings of words to force the terminology into having a new or different implied meaning for the purpose of convincing you of their case. Needless to say, this new meaning inevitably coincides with the Christian stratagem of reversing the burden of proof "

 

[wlu.29]

Give an example.

Jesus ultimately gave two commandments

love god, and love your neighbour

do you view the millions of refugees as neighbours or only as "muslim terrorists"?

 

[ripskater]

Jesus ultimately gave two commandments

love god, and love your neighbour

do you view the millions of refugees as neighbours or only as "muslim terrorists"?

You can love your neighbor, but it may not be wise to let him sleep in your house with your wife and kids around.

The same with Muslims. We can help them outside our homes, outside our borders.

 

[wlu.29]

You can love your neighbor, but it may not be wise to let him sleep in your house with your wife and kids around.

The same with Muslims. We can help them outside our homes, outside our borders.

let's be serious, you don't view any of those people as your neighbour

you are not living the spirit of what Jesus asks and commands of you, moreover you have a high level of contempt and disdain for them

 

[ripskater]

let's be serious, you don't view any of those people as your neighbour

I don't even have any Muslim neighbors. I don't even know one.

you are not living the spirit of what Jesus asks and commands of you,

How so? By saying we should help the Muslims outside our borders?

 

[jimbob27]

I think it's unfair to isolate American Christians, when Christianity has always been a bit of a failure regarding their claims to be compassionate.

Many centuries ago the Byzantines pass on reports of troubles in the middle east, and the compassionate European Christians responded by sending giant armies there and slaughtering everyone in sight whilst wearing nice crosses, and shouting religious slogans.

Obviously I can't say for certain, but I'm pretty sure Angela Merkel's extremely generous offer to the middle eastern refugees was less influenced by her religion, and more influenced by her national guilt derived from the atrocities performed by her parent's generation.

 

[wlu.29]

I don't even have any Muslim neighbors. I don't even know one.

How so? By saying we should help the Muslims outside our borders?

not literal neighbour, they are your brother and sister

Jesus would sacrifice his whole life to help

 

[seiger]

https://sojo.net/articles/american-christianity-has-failed

For the last few years Christians have been singing worship songs that include lyrics like “ keep my eyes above the waves, when oceans rise …” and yet have rejected refugees who’ve seen loved ones die beneath waves, who themselves have literally struggled to keep from drowning in oceans. Those American Christians — particularly white evangelicals — continue to sing the words: “Spirit lead me where my trust is without borders …” but fail to realize the shameful irony that they’re largely responsible for refusing shelter and opportunity to some of the world’s most helpless and oppressed people.

This represents a predominant theme of Westernized Christendom: proclaiming Christian rhetoric while actively — or passively — practicing the opposite in reality.

Because while the gospels instruct followers of Christ to help the poor, oppressed, maligned, mistreated, sick, and those most in need of help, Christians in America have largely supported measures that have rejected refugees, refused aid to immigrants, cut social services to the poor, diminished help for the sick, fueled xenophobia, reinforced misogyny, ignored racism, stoked hatred, reinforced corruption, and largely increased inequality, prejudice, and fear.

If Christians refuse to help and actually use their political advocacy and opinions to further hurt refugees, immigrants, women, foreigners, minorities, the poor, the oppressed, the persecuted, the sick, the LGBTQ community — and aren’t abiding by the golden rule of loving their neighbors as themselves, then who exactly are Christians supposedly loving?

What benefit are Christians providing their communities, and what good are they contributing to the world around them? Because in America, it appears that the sole purpose of Christianity is to selfishly protect people’s own self-interests instead of sacrificially serving others.

The election of President Donald Trump has proven that numerous Christians are more worried about power, influence, and control than the gospel messages of humility, generosity, ministering to others, and love.

Of course there are exceptions, but it should be sobering for Christians to realize that that many who claim to follow the Prince of Peace, the Healer, the Light of the World, supported policies that are bringing darkness and pain to so many people.

These presidential orders, which will refuse help to many of the world’s most vulnerable individuals, are what many Christians voted for. This is the fruit of their political labor, but it’s not the Fruit of the Spirit. In fact, love, joy, peace, happiness, and self-control are notably absent from the current administration.


The gospel of Jesus has been traded in for a narrative of fear. But the Bible keeps reminding us to right the course:

Learn to do good; seek justice, correct oppression; bring justice to the fatherless, plead the widow's cause. (Isaiah 1:17)

For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me (Matt. 25:35)

“When a stranger sojourns with you in your land, you shall not do him wrong. You shall treat the stranger who sojourns with you as the native among you, and you shall love him as yourself, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God. (Lev. 19: 33-34)

Whoever oppresses a poor man insults his Maker, but he who is generous to the needy honors him. (Prov. 14:31)
...

By these standards — and by the ultimate example that Jesus himself set for us by example — mainstream Christianity in America has failed. It looks nothing like Jesus.


But the reality is that following Jesus is extremely hard. It demands giving away your most prized possessions and abandoning your biggest fears. So while there might be political, economic, financial, and safety reasons for implementing policies that harm people and refuse them help, there are certainly no gospel reasons.

Nobody understood this better than the early church. Those first Christ followers who refused to bow to the emperor and go along with the policies of the Roman government. For them, they gave everything — to the point of being persecuted, arrested, tortured, and eventually martyred — for the purpose of serving Christ and serving others, the result of choosing to dedicate their lives to the truths of Jesus rather than the ideals of the ruling empire.

The question is, will American Christians ever learn to do the same?

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Couldn't agree more with this article.

american christians are known to be scum, by most god fearing brits. not all of them. but yeah, not a great rep. jesus didnt have an army people.