The Devout true christians!

[Valerye]

Ok, Can someone help me.

Why is it that bible thumping Christians Believe they are following the word of god and are less of a sinner then any of us? Yet they are the ones that are bigoted, racist, and More evil then most of us?

[Harlequin]

I think you are definitely overgeneralizing and stereotyping people. I know many devout, "bible thumping" Christians who are not anything you mentioned above. I find that highly offensive that you call them "more evil than the rest of us."

But I also know Christians and non-Christians who have the same qualities you mentioned above. An analogy to what you said could be "Why are all Native Americans lazy, poor, and more stupid than the rest of us?" I certainly don't believe this, but once again it is a stereotype.

Possibly you are speaking from personal experience and know devout Christians who act "holier than thou" and in the manner you suggested. You absolutely cannot generalize a personal experience to an entire group of people.

[balancedchaos]

Well, Valerye has a point, Harlequin.

I think Christians became faceless oppressors when they got into politics (in the form of Ronald Reagan and the 'silent majority'). Christians in politics disregard any other belief system and try to make us live by their religion's ideals.

Meanwhile, they're off tapping their foot in public bathrooms looking for some good old-fashioned lovin'. It's a disgrace.

[Valerye]

Originally Posted by Harlequin

I think you are definitely overgeneralizing and stereotyping people. I know many devout, "bible thumping" Christians who are not anything you mentioned above. I find that highly offensive that you call them "more evil than the rest of us."

But I also know Christians and non-Christians who have the same qualities you mentioned above. An analogy to what you said could be "Why are all Native Americans lazy, poor, and more stupid than the rest of us?" I certainly don't believe this, but once again it is a stereotype.

Possibly you are speaking from personal experience and know devout Christians who act "holier than thou" and in the manner you suggested. You absolutely cannot generalize a personal experience to an entire group of people.

I knew I forgot a word. D: damn lack of sleep!

I ment the stereotypical Biblethimping devout Christian(Any religion really.) When they donot follow the bible.


O.o I brutalized this befor spellcheck....guess it is time for bed.

[willnotwill]

The most religious man I knew was humble, you never got a holier-than-thou attitude.
He also was quite a funny guy and could tell some pretty good religious jokes without being blasphemous. True devout christians do not hate.

Now, there is the crowd I call the "Shiite baptists" who have no humility or tolerance. Last time folks like these came to power, Jesus cleared out the temple.

[avery]

maybe some people figure if they've got the bible to stand behind they don't need to put any conscious effort into being kind, fair, and ethical like the rest of us do.

EDIT: 1,337th post! ha, remember when that number actually meant something?

[bgi39jsjw0ggg]

I think the problem most people have is not that the majority of self-professed devout Christians are bible thumping, proselytizing bigot moralizers. It's that the vast, overwhelming majority of bible thumping, proselytizing bigot moralizers are self-professed devout Christians. Self-professed devout Christians have really, REALLY shitty, yet surprisingly aggressive, PR, and that's where the problems come in.

[teddy564339]

Edit: I was in the process of making this post while Valerye was making the second one. Because I think my point is still one that is true, I'm not editing it out...but I gather that Valerye already understood what I'm saying when the first post was made...there just wasn't as much clarification in the original post).

What I don't understand is why when a post like this is made (not just about a religious group, but about any group of people), why doesn't it say "some bible thumping Christians"?

A simple four letter word makes a huge difference in the statement you made. When "some" is not included, it's not clear whether you mean a few, a majority, or all. This is what leads to posts like Harlequinn's, which is completely valid, not just about Christians but about any group of people.

It's true that by adding the phrase "bible thumping" you're narrowing the group of people you're talking about, but it's still unclear exactly what a "bible thumper" is...especially because the perception that people have of the phrase is different depending upon the person.


As it stands, because I can't tell exactly what you mean, I can't say why it's true because it may not be true.

However, if I assume that you mean "some bible thumping Christians", then I can offer my view on it.

Which is the first point...the fact of the matter is that in any group of people, there are always going to be some who have negative traits. There are people in all kinds of groups that are racist, bigoted and "evil". There are certainly people in all kinds of groups that believe they are better than others. As for following the "word of God"...to me that has little to do with not being racist or bigoted because every person is going to believe what is right to them. If someone believes that the "word of God" is teaching them to be racist (especially if they're looking for it to), then that's what they'll believe. The "word of God" can make anyone believe a lot of things, positive and negative.

My guess is that there are things that have happened or are currently happening in your life that led you to make this post, which means you've noticed these things among these bible thumping people...and you've probably noticed them more than some other people because it means a lot to you. I'm not saying that your feelings don't have validity because they certainly do...I'm just saying that certain things stand out to us all because of the way they make us feel and because they affect us personally.


Basically a lot of people use religion to reinforce their own beliefs. Even though religion can certainly change people's beliefs, in general I think most people use it to make them feel more stronger about beliefs that they get from a variety of places. It's probably because of this that their negative attitudes can bemore pronounced than others...because they might believe them with more conviction.

But a lot of it is culture and how people are raised to believe things as well. From your location I would imagine you're mainly referring to people in Louisiana, maybe even rural parts. Even though I've only been to Louisiana a few times, in general the rural areas people tend to be more closed minded because they aren't exposed to a lot of diversity. Life as they know it tends to be one way and it affects their perception on life. If something different comes along, they may find it strange and uncomfortable, and it can be harder for them to accept it, especially at first. Due to its history, this can be even more pronounced in the south.

(Now, I'm speaking in general terms here...of course this will be different for every person.)


So when you combine the passion of religion with these kinds of backgrounds, it can lead to people who feel very strongly about their own way of life and have a problem with anything beyond that. And even if it's not a good thing, it does make sense...if you're taught something your whole life ever since you were a kid, it takes a lot to change your mind about it as an adult...especially if you end up staying in the same place around similar people as an adult as well.



To me the key thing is viewing people as people not as part of any group. One quote that I like is "Race is part of a person, a person is not part of a race." I think the same thing holds true for any time of category people can be labeled as.

[teddy564339]

Originally Posted by bgi39jsjw0ggg

I think the problem most people have is not that the majority of self-professed devout Christians are bible thumping, proselytizing bigot moralizers. It's that the vast, overwhelming majority of bible thumping, proselytizing bigot moralizers are self-professed devout Christians.

I think you make a really good point here. When you think about it, though, your second statement makes sense, and is what you really would expect to happen.

Why? Because if someone has the mentality that they're better than others and that their own views/beliefs matter more than others, they typically need some kind of reason to believe so. I've seen some people use the reason of being smarter, more good looking, stronger, more athletic, or more sexually active as a reason of superiority.

But religion is the ultimate one. Because if someone is convinced that God is the reason why their own beliefs are the best, it's very hard to trump...they can always say that since God is the one in control and in power, those beliefs are better and more important than anyone else's...and it can be very hard to convince them otherwise.


I've always viewed religion as a tool. In itself it's not really good or bad...but it can be used for either one.

[Kitsuno]

Originally Posted by teddy564339

I think you make a really good point here. When you think about it, though, your second statement makes sense, and is what you really would expect to happen.

Why? Because if someone has the mentality that they're better than others and that their own views/beliefs matter more than others, they typically need some kind of reason to believe so. I've seen some people use the reason of being smarter, more good looking, stronger, more athletic, or more sexually active as a reason of superiority.

But religion is the ultimate one. Because if someone is convinced that God is the reason why their own beliefs are the best, it's very hard to trump...they can always say that since God is the one in control and in power, those beliefs are better and more important than anyone else's...and it can be very hard to convince them otherwise.


I've always viewed religion as a tool. In itself it's not really good or bad...but it can be used for either one.

I completely agree with what your saying here teddy, religion is a tool that has been used for good and evil in the past more than most people would like to admit.

Personally I am quite religious, being a Member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (Mormon for those who are unfamiliar with our actual name) has kept me grounded in these matters as humility is a very big virtue for myself. I do not believe on pressing my views on anyone ever period. I am more then willing to discuss my views with those who would like to hear what I have to say. But I do no perceive myself as better or worse than anyone else as I cannot truly every fully know that person so who am I to judge? That's one question that helps me keep myself level headed, no matter the topic of discussion I just think to myself "really who am I to judge?" and I realize I am in no position to do so. I believe everyone has the right to believe in whatever they would like or by the same token not believe in whatever they like. Really when it boils down to it your faith is personal for a reason because its exact tenets are really only completely right for you.

Just thought I might throw my two cents in