Let’s say that a Christian is a person who tries to follow the said”teachings of Christ “. If this is true then I believe white evangelical Christians are not Christian at all. They are only being opportunistic in their spreading of hate!
Trump does not care about Christians, Jews, Muslims, or any other religious group. All he cares about is the radical right who aren’t afraid of pushing his agenda. Whoever will give him a vote. I agree with your statement about antisemitism in the U.S. and abroad. Jews have faced far more persecution in 2023 than have other groups in their communities and synagogues.
Not even that...although your points are well taken... all he cares about is himself. He is a sociopath... meaning he has no emotional connection to other humans except for a very limited range of feelings involving HATE and demanding REVENGE. That's all a sociopath is capable of. They can kill people and laugh about it. Trump is a malignant narcissist, a sociopath, and a roll of toilet paper that fell into the bidet. Please, let's all FLUSH FLUSH FLUSH and Felon Musk/Skum along with the same swirl of water.
D. M. I think you may be crediting tRump with more democratic concern than he warrants. The most consistent thing in his behavior strongly suggests all he REALLY cares about is money and getting more of it.
Very good article, thanks! And Trump is not hiding how he's manipulating supposed "anti-Christian bias" for political purposes; it's all out in the open. Unfortunately, I have family members who've totally bought into his lies about Christian persecution, just like they bought into the fantasy of a stolen election.
We all know there's a type of Christianity Trump admires above all. That would be the prosperity gospel. Indeed, he's appointed Pastor Paula White-Cain as Special Government Employee and Senior Advisor of the newly created White House Faith Office. Perhaps the money that funded PEPFAR and starving Sudanese babies will be diverted to her.
Iy would be helpful if all Christians gave up their romantic attachment to the concept of themselves as persecuted.
Ever since Emperor Constantine pragmatically decided to convert to Christianity, Christians have been very busy persecuting everyone who doesn't belong to their faith, and corrupting religion to be a part of the secular power structure.
You hit the nail on the head! As a former member of a conservative Baptist church, I can tell you that they teach (indoctrinate) their members that they are the only "true Christians" and all others will go to Hell. They pick and choose what they want to believe from the Bible and believe it to be the literal word of God despite the fact that it was written by men who were far from perfect. It was this exclusiveness and hypocrisy that drove me away from the conservative church. If they truly followed the teachings of Jesus, none of this would be happening.
I have wondered the same thing. As a Catholic I find these folks very disturbing! What kind of Catholics are they? Clarence Thomas?! WTH! It’s embarrassing actually.
None of us are prefect and all of us fall from Grace at times. When something desired, that others have, and that one does not have, it can be extremely difficult to turn one's back to it when offered without discerning the reason for the giving by the donor. And it becomes easier and easier to be tempted each time one does accept.
There can be corruption involved from the outset, but not necessarily. Temptation can be a strong motivator.
It's kind of like Vance in Europe trying to sell his messages as a Democrat because he says enough people voted for Trump to be President and that gave him the authority to do what ever he wanted to do, however he wanted to do it, and therefore Trump is a leader of democracy. He made me sick. At least the Europeans aren't buying his fraudulence. I'm sure they are watching independent media to get their information about what is really going on in America or have their own in our country who are reporting the truth to them.
Somehow we need to keep making it clear who Trumps christians are, although I'm sure true followers of Christ are not confused. People need to see how Trump is using this connection to reach his ultimate goals. Another reason why he needs to be stopped.
No true follower of the teachings of Jesus Christ would do, say, or want to do what Trump does. We are about INCLUSIVENESS, UNITY, MERCY. Yes, each of us is not consistent in practicing these principle, that is why we Episcopalians pray for forgiveness for things we have done and for things we have left undone, that needed to be done and weren't.
Meanwhile people will continue to walk out of church doors. Most,but not all, will be young people. The more politics get mixed into church activities, the more people it will drive off.
I would also remind the theocrats driving this that religious civil wars get really ugly. Everybody involved is convinced only they know the truth.
How did you become such a cynic? People have been walking IN our doors
We don't pretend to have all the answers and we all acknowledge we are in this together and support each other. You must be very lonely with that train of thought, Reach out to others.
Check the Pew organization's statistics on people leaving organized religion over the last decades. Lots of company there; so I am not so lonely. You might be an exception but many denominations are not.
Yes, I have heard that and many of those people are coming to the Episcopal Church. The church leads by example and leaves it up to each person to follow as they choose. We are an inclusive church and anyone is welcome to worship with us. There really isn't a wrong or right way. Tradition guides us and we are open to change. What works for one might not work for another and we know that.
We have only a few tenets and they include : the Bible, the Nicene Creed, and the Apostles' Creed. They also include a commitment to the Five Marks of Mission.
Tenets:
Scripture: The Bible is the basis of the Episcopal Church's faith.
Nicene Creed: A foundational statement of belief for most Christian churches.
Apostles' Creed: A basic statement of Christian belief.
Five Marks of Mission: A framework for ministry that includes:
Worship and prayer
Repentance and forgiveness
Evangelism
Service
Baptism: A full initiation into the Church through water and the Holy Spirit
Other beliefs:
The Episcopal Church believes in one God, who is a Trinity of Person,
believes in Jesus, the Second Person of the Trinity,
believes that God loves every human being,
embraces inclusion, with people of all genders and sexual orientations serving as bishops, priests, and deacons..
is part of the Anglican Communion, which has roots in the Church of England.
I copied the above online and lightly edited out repetitive words,
By definition, a Christian is "a person who believes in Jesus Christ and follows his teachings" according to Webster's dictionary. As such, President Trump's idea of Christian isn''t Christian and he is not a Christian because he demonstrates daily that he does Not follow the teachings of Jesus Christ, not even remotely.
As a follower of Jesus Christ, I sincerely ask for prayers for the redemption of President Donald J. Trump's soul, for those who support sinning in thought, word, or deed, and for all of us who sin (a person who transgresses against divine law by committing an immoral act or acts. Oxford dictionary)
I am also Robert P. Jones. I am a Catholic who welcomes believers or non-believers. That is what Freedom of Religion means to me. Everyone is entitled to believe in a Supreme Being, or not, and what that Supreme Being looks like from their perspective. Church and state are separate now, America was that way from the beginning, and I pray it always stays that way.
Let’s say that a Christian is a person who tries to follow the said”teachings of Christ “. If this is true then I believe white evangelical Christians are not Christian at all. They are only being opportunistic in their spreading of hate!
Trump does not care about Christians, Jews, Muslims, or any other religious group. All he cares about is the radical right who aren’t afraid of pushing his agenda. Whoever will give him a vote. I agree with your statement about antisemitism in the U.S. and abroad. Jews have faced far more persecution in 2023 than have other groups in their communities and synagogues.
Not even that...although your points are well taken... all he cares about is himself. He is a sociopath... meaning he has no emotional connection to other humans except for a very limited range of feelings involving HATE and demanding REVENGE. That's all a sociopath is capable of. They can kill people and laugh about it. Trump is a malignant narcissist, a sociopath, and a roll of toilet paper that fell into the bidet. Please, let's all FLUSH FLUSH FLUSH and Felon Musk/Skum along with the same swirl of water.
John T. Cullen JTC Sheep Heil!
johntcullen.substack.com <---- please read!
https://www.johntcullen.com
https://www.galleycity.com <---- 50+ books
MARA Make America Real Again
D. M. I think you may be crediting tRump with more democratic concern than he warrants. The most consistent thing in his behavior strongly suggests all he REALLY cares about is money and getting more of it.
Very good article, thanks! And Trump is not hiding how he's manipulating supposed "anti-Christian bias" for political purposes; it's all out in the open. Unfortunately, I have family members who've totally bought into his lies about Christian persecution, just like they bought into the fantasy of a stolen election.
The last thing Trump is, is a Christian. At best, Satin's right hand man.
We all know there's a type of Christianity Trump admires above all. That would be the prosperity gospel. Indeed, he's appointed Pastor Paula White-Cain as Special Government Employee and Senior Advisor of the newly created White House Faith Office. Perhaps the money that funded PEPFAR and starving Sudanese babies will be diverted to her.
She must be suffering mightily without a bespoke wardrobe and multi-million dollar dwelling in DC.
Yes! I totally agree!!!
Bishop Mariann Budde is a bishop in The Episcopal Church.
Iy would be helpful if all Christians gave up their romantic attachment to the concept of themselves as persecuted.
Ever since Emperor Constantine pragmatically decided to convert to Christianity, Christians have been very busy persecuting everyone who doesn't belong to their faith, and corrupting religion to be a part of the secular power structure.
This is painful.
You hit the nail on the head! As a former member of a conservative Baptist church, I can tell you that they teach (indoctrinate) their members that they are the only "true Christians" and all others will go to Hell. They pick and choose what they want to believe from the Bible and believe it to be the literal word of God despite the fact that it was written by men who were far from perfect. It was this exclusiveness and hypocrisy that drove me away from the conservative church. If they truly followed the teachings of Jesus, none of this would be happening.
And then there are six CATHOLICS on the US "supreme" court who are doing the PINO orange felon's bidding, no questions asked.
I wonder what he has on them, in addition to all the corruption already out in the open.
I have wondered the same thing. As a Catholic I find these folks very disturbing! What kind of Catholics are they? Clarence Thomas?! WTH! It’s embarrassing actually.
None of us are prefect and all of us fall from Grace at times. When something desired, that others have, and that one does not have, it can be extremely difficult to turn one's back to it when offered without discerning the reason for the giving by the donor. And it becomes easier and easier to be tempted each time one does accept.
There can be corruption involved from the outset, but not necessarily. Temptation can be a strong motivator.
It's kind of like Vance in Europe trying to sell his messages as a Democrat because he says enough people voted for Trump to be President and that gave him the authority to do what ever he wanted to do, however he wanted to do it, and therefore Trump is a leader of democracy. He made me sick. At least the Europeans aren't buying his fraudulence. I'm sure they are watching independent media to get their information about what is really going on in America or have their own in our country who are reporting the truth to them.
Somehow we need to keep making it clear who Trumps christians are, although I'm sure true followers of Christ are not confused. People need to see how Trump is using this connection to reach his ultimate goals. Another reason why he needs to be stopped.
No true follower of the teachings of Jesus Christ would do, say, or want to do what Trump does. We are about INCLUSIVENESS, UNITY, MERCY. Yes, each of us is not consistent in practicing these principle, that is why we Episcopalians pray for forgiveness for things we have done and for things we have left undone, that needed to be done and weren't.
Meanwhile people will continue to walk out of church doors. Most,but not all, will be young people. The more politics get mixed into church activities, the more people it will drive off.
I would also remind the theocrats driving this that religious civil wars get really ugly. Everybody involved is convinced only they know the truth.
How did you become such a cynic? People have been walking IN our doors
We don't pretend to have all the answers and we all acknowledge we are in this together and support each other. You must be very lonely with that train of thought, Reach out to others.
Check the Pew organization's statistics on people leaving organized religion over the last decades. Lots of company there; so I am not so lonely. You might be an exception but many denominations are not.
Yes, I have heard that and many of those people are coming to the Episcopal Church. The church leads by example and leaves it up to each person to follow as they choose. We are an inclusive church and anyone is welcome to worship with us. There really isn't a wrong or right way. Tradition guides us and we are open to change. What works for one might not work for another and we know that.
We have only a few tenets and they include : the Bible, the Nicene Creed, and the Apostles' Creed. They also include a commitment to the Five Marks of Mission.
Tenets:
Scripture: The Bible is the basis of the Episcopal Church's faith.
Nicene Creed: A foundational statement of belief for most Christian churches.
Apostles' Creed: A basic statement of Christian belief.
Five Marks of Mission: A framework for ministry that includes:
Worship and prayer
Repentance and forgiveness
Evangelism
Service
Baptism: A full initiation into the Church through water and the Holy Spirit
Other beliefs:
The Episcopal Church believes in one God, who is a Trinity of Person,
believes in Jesus, the Second Person of the Trinity,
believes that God loves every human being,
embraces inclusion, with people of all genders and sexual orientations serving as bishops, priests, and deacons..
is part of the Anglican Communion, which has roots in the Church of England.
I copied the above online and lightly edited out repetitive words,
This was a very well written article!! Thank you!!!
By definition, a Christian is "a person who believes in Jesus Christ and follows his teachings" according to Webster's dictionary. As such, President Trump's idea of Christian isn''t Christian and he is not a Christian because he demonstrates daily that he does Not follow the teachings of Jesus Christ, not even remotely.
As a follower of Jesus Christ, I sincerely ask for prayers for the redemption of President Donald J. Trump's soul, for those who support sinning in thought, word, or deed, and for all of us who sin (a person who transgresses against divine law by committing an immoral act or acts. Oxford dictionary)
A bit of reading here for FFOTUS:
Christianity is not a religion that gives some people a ticket
to heaven and makes them judgmental of all others.
Rather, it’s a call to a relationship that changes
all our other relationships. __ Jim Wallis
Very similar logic to the "Dear Colleague" letter we got from the Department of Education.
I am also Robert P. Jones. I am a Catholic who welcomes believers or non-believers. That is what Freedom of Religion means to me. Everyone is entitled to believe in a Supreme Being, or not, and what that Supreme Being looks like from their perspective. Church and state are separate now, America was that way from the beginning, and I pray it always stays that way.