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.
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entwine413@lemm.ee 1 month agoThat’s pretty much the entire history of Christianity.
QuoVadisHomines@sh.itjust.works 1 month ago
Photuris@lemmy.ml 1 month 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 1 month ago
Constantine literally started this modern Christiandom train
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.
And thus Christian imperialism, conquest, subjugation, and terror has marched along ever since.
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.
JeremyHuntQW12@lemmy.world 5 weeks ago
The Renaissance occurred when Greek scholars in the Ottoman Empire were exiled by Islamic extremists, thus bringing the knowledge of antiquities to Europe.
When Islamic extremism reached India, the Moguls were about to be overthrown when the British turned up.
QuoVadisHomines@sh.itjust.works 1 month ago
It’s sad how many downvotes you have while being correct while the other poster has a bunch if upvotes while being really off the mark.
QuoVadisHomines@sh.itjust.works 1 month 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.”
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?
JeremyHuntQW12@lemmy.world 5 weeks ago
It wasn’t Calvin it was Luther. And he was quoting Saint Augustine.
Calvin said that although the righteous were selected and so charity would not gain brownie points to heaven, the selected would do charitable works because they were the select.
Martin Luther just opposed all charity.
Sixtyforce@sh.itjust.works 1 month ago
We’ll also note that their supposed god claim never chimes in to distance himself from these people.
entwine413@lemm.ee 1 month 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 1 month 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
Zwrt@lemmy.sdf.org 1 month ago
I dont understand why your down voted.
Christian institutions == christian followers.
a few hundred years ago homeless people and veteran carried tokens that enabled them to be given free food and help at churches.
Paster Damian died of leprosy after 11 years of helping others with the sickness, tending their wounds, sharing food and digging graves. He kept doing so while he was sick.
The catholic church as an institution absolutely is evil but that does not automatically make believers or individual priests so.
History is Littered with proof of this. Science denying is not the answer to religious bigotry.
NotASharkInAManSuit@lemmy.world 1 month ago
After all the murder and violent colonialism, kind of makes it a moot point, eh?
entwine413@lemm.ee 1 month ago
Your statements don’t align with reality, which isn’t surprising because religion doesn’t align with reality.
NotASharkInAManSuit@lemmy.world 1 month ago
Ever heard of The Crusades?
JeremyHuntQW12@lemmy.world 5 weeks ago
You mean where muslim invaders were cast out of Europe ?
QuoVadisHomines@sh.itjust.works 1 month ago
Yes what relevance does that have to the willingness of people to take care of their neighbors?
NotASharkInAManSuit@lemmy.world 1 month ago
Holy wars and misogyny aren’t a requirement for people to help their neighbors.
UnderpantsWeevil@lemmy.world 1 month 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 5 weeks ago
I think they’re using “Christianity” to refer to the institution.