An 'imposter Christianity' is threatening American democracy

[dalton99a]

https://www.cnn.com/2022/07/24/us/white-christian-nationalism-blake-cec/index.html

An 'imposter Christianity' is threatening American democracy
Analysis by John Blake, CNN
Updated 12:46 PM ET, Sun July 24, 2022




...

Much of the House January 6 committee's focus so far has been on right-wing extremist groups. But there are plenty of other Americans who have adopted teachings of the White Christian nationalists who stormed the Capitol — often without knowing it, scholars, historians, sociologists and clergy say.

White Christian nationalist beliefs have infiltrated the religious mainstream so thoroughly that virtually any conservative Christian pastor who tries to challenge its ideology risks their career, says Kristin Kobes Du Mez, author of the New York Times bestseller, "Jesus and John Wayne: How White Evangelicals Corrupted a Faith and Fractured a Nation."

"These ideas are so widespread that any individual pastor or Christian leader who tries to turn the tide and say, 'Let's look again at Jesus and scripture,' are going to be tossed aside," she says.

The ideas are also insidious because many sound like expressions of Christian piety or harmless references to US history. But White Christian nationalists interpret these ideas in ways that are potentially violent and heretical. Their movement is not only anti-democratic, it contradicts the life and teachings of Jesus, some clergy, scholars and historians say.

...

[rurallib]

1. one of the nice things about religion for believers is that it is so malleable

it can be made to fit any situation. If you hate, your religion can be made ti hate the same people you do.

I wouldn't call it an 'imposter' Christianity. Just another one made to fit.

[OnDoutside]

2. I would take issue with the 'imposter' bit.....

[unblock]

3. I think a better taxonomy is to call it a different religion

I think the right-wing fascist version of Christianity is so radically different from liberal Christianity that it amounts to a different religion.

And I think the christo-fascists benefit from the current arrangement of merely calling their beliefs "Christian" because it exaggerates their numbers and silences opposition within christianity.

Call it a different religion. Make it clear a huge portion of Christian's don't agree with them.

That would allow liberal Christian's to speak their minds as well.

[multigraincracker]

4. 34,000 different Christian denomination

and each teaches a different dogma than the others. All from the same book.

[slightlv]

5. What these christo-fascists call Christianity today

bears as much resemblance to what has been taught mainstream for decades prior as Islamist extremism is to true Islam. Extremism is its own religion, regardless of whatever "book" it says it follows, whatever the name it places upon itself. All extremism only exists to glorify itself, power, and violence. Period.

Besides, while I'm not a Christian in any way, shape or form (being Craft, myself) I was raised Evangelical and escaped as soon as I came of age. I don't believe there is anything left of what was originally "Christianity" as it was in the days of old. (If it truly ever existed.) What has been passed down through the age is Paul-ism. Which is a bastardization of what the Christ actually wanted, for He said to Peter, You are my Rock; upon You do I build my Church. Paul just took it upon himself to take it over. Peter was too humane and liberal for Paul's beliefs, IMO. In the meantime, everything in the Bible was written and rewritten by men over centuries later and done for certain agendas of the times. But like I said; I'm Craft. What do I know.

[DavidDvorkin]

6. What a long-winded way of saying "no true Christian"!

[lees1975]

7. Stay informed on all of this infiltration of Conservative Evangelical Christianity

https://signalpress.blogspot.com/2022/07/if-theyre-telling-us-who-they-are-we.html

https://signalpress.blogspot.com/2022/07/why-i-am-christian-who-votes-for.html

https://signalpress.blogspot.com/2022/06/how-doctrine-and-theology-of-american.html

https://signalpress.blogspot.com/2022/06/christian-dominion-theology-intersects.html

Written from a Christian blogger's perspective.