Thou Shalt Not Noodge

Born Again Pagan Cartoons by Don Addis, a Memorial by Freedom from Religion Foundation

Response to:

https://thefederalist.com/2016/07/15/why-are-progressives-on-an-anti-christian-witch-hunt/

Here’s the thing I like least about Mary Eberstadt’s latest book, It’s Dangerous to Believe. Liberals don’t seem to be reading or discussing it. Or if they are, I can’t find the evidence.

Admittedly, it’s a hard-hitting book. Very few words are wasted in sympathizing with liberal progressives, and some may prefer not to read whole books comparing them to McCarthyites and witch-hunters. I’d encourage them to read it anyway. This is one conversation religious conservatives would really like to have with you. Call it the Mary Eberstadt Challenge.

This Progressive is not going to discuss Eberstadt’s book also. Be silly of me to give it any notice. No mass killer so far has blown away White Christians per se. You are disliked. BFD.

Insisting God is a factual factotum and Others must agree will be the absolute death of religion as traditionalists know it. Traditionalists know or suspect this, but they cannot stop themselves from making the same old arguments and trying to enforce archaic inhumane rules.

Christian dogma, apologetics and violence were effective for centuries before Gutenberg made the Bible accessible. Then all Hell broke loose. Heh. The Net is as revolutionary as the printing press. Everybody is discussing everything with everybody. Christian authorities have become defensive and aggressive.

This Cake Patrol Christianity is being presented as a conscientious religious objection. It is no such thing.

What is nonviolent civil or religious disobedience? Gandhi’s definition is the clearest, in my opinion:

“I have also called it love-force or soul-force. . . I discovered in the earliest stages that the pursuit of truth did not admit to violence being inflicted on one’s opponent but that he must be weaned from error by patience and compassion.

For what appears to be true to one may appear to be an error to the other. And patience means self-suffering. So the doctrine came to mean vindication of truth, not by infliction of suffering on the opponent, but on oneself.” — Mohandas Gandhi.

If you choose to disobey the law, you must incur the consequences. Not inflict the consequences of your disobedience on the Other. That is not conscientious objection. That is assault.

Jesus counseled following the civil law. Instead, some Xians have chosen to noodge people. And act surprised and all hurt and frightened when people noodge back. As ye sow, so shall ye reap. Galatians 6:7.