Expecting Christianity to base their actions on Jesus is like expecting the Nestle corporation to base their actions on the Quik Bunny.
Comment on Most American headline
QuoVadisHomines@sh.itjust.works 2 days ago
Christ empowered his followers to clothe the naked, feed the hungry and tend to the sick. For some reason American Christians have decided that these explicit dictates should he ignored, much like the reminder that it is not their role to judge, so that they can instead focus on bigotry.
WhiskyTangoFoxtrot@lemmy.world 2 days ago
otterpop@lemmy.world 1 day ago
Every movement in history has hypocrites that follow it, and give the movement a bad name. Lumping “American Christians” together and then judging them based on the worst people who adopt that title is creating a straw man.
All American Christians that I know try and follow what you pointed out in your first sentence.
The statement on judging however is a bit misguided, Jesus didn’t say to never judge, but to be careful to avoid hypocrisy and to judge with love.
QuoVadisHomines@sh.itjust.works 1 day ago
At this point a substantial portion of self identified Christians in America are supporting some ideologies and programs that are the opposite if Christ’s teachings. It isn’t a small part. It might even be close to the majority.
otterpop@lemmy.world 1 day ago
Yeah, that’s true and it’s very upsetting that so many hypocrites would exist within the wider church. I’d argue that someone that doesn’t follow the teachings of Christ isn’t a Christian at all since that’s literally what the word means.
QuoVadisHomines@sh.itjust.works 1 day ago
The catch is for many of these their Churches are telling them thiscis the message of Christ
entwine413@lemm.ee 2 days ago
That’s pretty much the entire history of Christianity.
UnderpantsWeevil@lemmy.world 2 days ago
It’s really not.
The corrupt nature of the Church as an institution exists to take advantage of the naive humanitarianism of its fellowship.
People, by and large, do want to help their neighbors and provide for the young and the elderly. Modern prosperity gospel Christianity doesn’t change human nature, it only pollutes human prescription.
agamemnonymous@sh.itjust.works 1 day ago
I think they’re using “Christianity” to refer to the institution.
QuoVadisHomines@sh.itjust.works 2 days ago
No, it isn’t. For most of history most Christians were taking care of those around them. It is with industrialism and Calvinism that we see people move away from this.
Photuris@lemmy.ml 2 days ago
Dude, a guy named Constantine literally started this modern Christiandom train rolling with his “Hey guys, I just met Jesus, and he told me I should be in charge now. So, I’m king, ordained by heaven, and we’ll enforce this new order with lots of violence.”
And he and his successors then proceeded to conquer territory, and then mint coins depicting a soldier holding a cross and smashing the head of his enemy under his boot. In hoc signo vinces.
And thus Christian imperialism, conquest, subjugation, and terror has marched along ever since. Lest ye forget the Crusades and the Inquisistion, for example.
Yes, there’s beauty and kindness in the Christian tradition as well. But let’s not pretend that it was all huggy-bunches-of-love until Calvinism showed up.
UnderpantsWeevil@lemmy.world 2 days ago
Constantine ended the institutional persecution of monotheists within the Roman empire. The apostolic church had been groving along well before that.
The end to formalized persecution gave Christians an opportunity to begin organizing openly - leading to the Ecumenical Councils that would define the church as an institution for the next two millennium. But the foundations were all in place well beforehand.
The Church, as a military power, has always been mediocre at best. Rome itself was gutted during the transfer of the court to Byzantium. And this laid the seeds for the Roman Orthodox split, which divides the church to this day.
The Western empire dissolved into feudal states, with Catholicism and the Church operating as a kind of diplomatic corps and patronage network for European aristocrats.
It wasn’t until the emergence of Protestantism, following the failure by the Hapsbirgs to consolidate power during the 30 Years War, that capitalist expansion began to produce imperialism in the modern sense.
The conquest and subjection that followed was in pursuit of economic growth via slavery and plunder. The church existed to help rationalize these economic pursuits, but the priesthood was secondary to the merchant classes in actually executing it.
QuoVadisHomines@sh.itjust.works 2 days ago
Constantinus was the Emperor of Rome before he converted the Empire. He did not create the notion of the Divine Right to Rule. His conversion was entirely politically motivated as it happens near his death.
Calvin is the one that promotes the notion that wealth is a sign of God’s love which is the opposite of what Jesus taught.
Why did you reply authoritatively if your understanding of this subject is so poor?
Sixtyforce@sh.itjust.works 2 days ago
We’ll also note that their supposed god claim never chimes in to distance himself from these people.
entwine413@lemm.ee 2 days ago
You need to brush up on your history then. The church’s history is largely violently forcing others to convert and using the Bible to persecute those they don’t like.
QuoVadisHomines@sh.itjust.works 2 days ago
That is entirely unrelated to the fact that most Christian communities did in fact try to clothe, feed and tend those that needed it. Most humans will try to ease the suffering of those they know in their communities if they can because most aren’t so cold hearted
NotASharkInAManSuit@lemmy.world 1 day ago
Ever heard of The Crusades?
JeremyHuntQW12@lemmy.world 1 day ago
You mean where muslim invaders were cast out of Europe ?
QuoVadisHomines@sh.itjust.works 1 day ago
Yes what relevance does that have to the willingness of people to take care of their neighbors?