Why does God have to be Perfect & All Good? Why can't he be both Good & Evil or Imperfect like everything else?

[Winston]

To Christians:

Key question for you: Do you actually believe that a "Just God" rules this world? Who would actually believe that? Isn't that 1000 percent IMPOSSIBLE?! Look at the world around you. There's way too much pain, suffering, injustice, death, and enslavement too. No sane person would believe that the ruler of this world must be just. Is simply does NOT FIT the data and reality. So isn't that the most insane and impossible claim in the world?! How could you have been hoodwinked into such an impossible claim? Think about it. Do you see any "Just God" running this world? Obviously not. If a "Just God" were running this world, then obviously the world would be just and fair, or at least mostly just and fair to some degree. That's simple logic, as obvious as 2+2=4. You can't escape that. Obviously the world is not just, and history shows that it never has been, in all of recorded history at least. So your claim is impossible and indefensible. There's no way around this. Simply put, your claim that a "Just God" is in charge of this world does NOT FIT the data at all. Not even a little. So why do you take it as dogma just because the church or some book or others told you so? That makes NO SENSE at all if you think about it!

Of course, the Christian traditional excuse has been to blame the state of the world on the Fall of Man in the Garden of Eden when Adam and Eve "sinned" by eating the forbidden fruit. But that doesn't hold water, sorry. It doesn't justify the pain, suffering, death, injustice, and enslavement in the world at all. Not one bit. The punishment does NOT fit the crime and is WAY out of proportion. Who would actually seriously believe that all the pain, suffering, death, injustice, and enslavement in this world is all due to two dumb people eating an apple/fruit off a bad tree? It's totally ludicrous. How can any sane buy that? At best that story is only metaphorical, not literally true. It's not only a cheap copout excuse, but the dumbest and most lame excuse in the world too. How can any mature adult buy that? If you think about it, it sounds totally insane and nonsensical and most importantly explains NOTHING. Nor does it justify anything at all. It sounds like a lame excuse to make you feel guilty and pin the blame for everything bad in the world on YOU, for something you didn't do, because your ancestors made a simple mistake. Really lame. What kind of a God would let the world go to hell just for one trivial mistake like that? No one would do that in real life, not even a bad father, let alone a "just God". This is totally indefensible and 100 percent impossible to justify. If you think about it clearly for a moment, you will realize this. I'm sure many Christians do realize this but they dare not think it further out of fear of course, because Christianity is a fear based religion using a carrot and stick to control you.

Therefore, if a "Just God" is not in charge of this world, then the only logical possibilities are:

1. God is both good and evil, good and bad, and everything in between, like Pantheism and Hinduism suggest. After all, if God is everything and everything is part of God, then that means the good and bad and everything in between are part of God too. The logic follows. And if God created everything or is everything, then if this world contains the good, the bad, and the ugly, then God must by definition embody all those traits too, because the creation is a reflection of the creator, which is logical and makes sense.

2. God is neither good or evil, but neutral.

3. God is not involved in the affairs of this world. He is a Deist God. This is what the founding fathers of America and 18th Century intellectuals believed. It's what Einstein believed too. This makes sense if you think about it. If we are atoms and molecules in the universe, then the creator cannot talk to us, just like we cannot talk to the 40 trillion or so cells in our body. We may be able to influence them with our thoughts, but we cannot have one to one communication or interaction with them. There's no way we could. Why would God ever have time to talk to everyone one on one even if he could? That's like expecting Santa Claus to visit every house in the world on the same night. It's implausible and expecting too much of God. If the 40 trillion cells in your body expected you to interact with them one to one wouldn't that be asking too much of you? lol

I'm not saying that there aren't higher forces that sometimes help us and intervene. There very well could be, even if Deism were true. But these would just be interdimensional beings, ascended higher beings, nonphysical entities, spirit guides, guardian angels, or even our own higher selves. Not the "one and only creator of the universe himself or herself". Also, even if they help or guide us sometimes, they seem to do so only on a personal basis, they do not intervene in world affairs or stop invading armies or governments from doing bad things. That's what history shows us. So they are limited and not all powerful it seems.

4. God is not all powerful, but very limited, even if he is a higher being. Same with multiple deities. This makes sense too if you think about it. Just because someone creates or designs something does not mean they have to all powerful. For example, Bill Gates created Microsoft and Steve Jobs created Apple, but it didn't make them all powerful or infallible. The logic simply doesn't follow. It's an assumption without basis that a creator must be all powerful or perfect or always right.

Conclusions and Important Points:

The Christian institution obviously invented this doctrine of a Just God because humans need something all powerful and perfect to worship, otherwise they could never respect a flawed deity who is no better than themselves. After that, everyone assumed it must be true because everyone else believed it. Humans are easy to dupe, brainwash, and condition after all.

Another reason people need to believe in a just God is that they need to believe in a just and fair universe. Because they cannot bear to live in an unjust cosmos. That's why many people are very victim-blaming, and assume that if something bad happens to you, you must have done something wrong to deserve it, whether you realize it or not. Just like how in the Book of Job, Job's friends assumed God must be just so all of Job's misfortunes must have been due to his wrongdoings and sins. New Agers are also guilty of this too, and tend to be very victim-blaming. They like to say "there are no victims" and assume that if something bad happens, your bad attitude or negative mindset, or bad karma from a past life, must have caused it. Like Christians, they need to believe in a just universe, even though they are more open minded, they still have that proclivity. They also need to believe that everything happens for a reason, and by that they mean "good reason" of course. So if something happens, it must be just and deserved. So this is a factor too.

The thing is, if something is true, it does not need to be repeated constantly. Only lies have to be constantly repeated and reinforced. For example, no one has to keep saying "tigers are bigger and stronger than rabbits" or "fire is hot and ice is cold" because those are obvious and self-evident. So why do Christians have to keep saying "God is just. God is good. God is in control. God will save us and deliver us." etc? Isn't it because deep down they have trouble believing it, because it doesn't fit reality, so they have to convince themselves of it by uttering it? If so, then that means they have no real basis. It's just a lie or fable they have to constantly reinforce in themselves, because it's not true or sensible to begin with. That bodes very bad for Christians. It means they have no reality or foundation for their beliefs. Think about it. If something is true and self-evident, it does not have to be declared or repeated constantly.

Before Christianity and Islam, the Abrahamic religions, took over much of the world by force, no one believed the gods were perfect. Ancient people always believed that the gods were full of virtues and vices and flaws too, just like everything else. Nor were they all powerful or infallible. Only Abrahamic religions, which are fear based and unnatural, claim that. The ancients made more sense because we do not see anything or anyone who is perfect in real life. So why should the gods, if they exist, be perfect? It's obviously just part of a man made control system type of religion that needs an all powerful deity to authorize its authority. If you think about it, there is no logical basis for it. Hence the notion that God is perfect and just has to be artificially programmed into you, it's not something you would otherwise believe naturally.

What this means is that even if Christianity is indeed a divine revelation of some sort, it is is still NOT perfect and NOT "the only way to the true God". It would still be one of many emanations or faces of God, one of millions. Just like the 33 million gods in Hinduism are all emanations and faces of Brahma. None of them being "the only true way". We may all be different faces or emanations of God too, each and every one of us. Think about this: The creator or co-creators of this world obviously love infinite diversity and variety, since there is so much of it in this world, so why would God be so narrow minded as to believe that only "one true way" exists? That contradicts everything in creation if you think about it, all the diversity we see around us. Hence that's another reason why this notion of there being "only one true way" makes no sense, if you think about it that is and stop believing the dogma you were fed with by others.

All the great wise spiritual gurus of the East agree, and say that if Jesus was an enlightened person or great spiritual teacher or highly evolved ascended master of high consciousness, or even a messiah or redeemer, that still would NOT mean that he was the only way to God or that all those who don't accept him will go to hell. For example, Deepak Chopra, Sadhguru, the Dalai Lama, Thich Nhat Hanh, etc. all accept Jesus as a great teacher or sage or even prophet. But that doesn't mean he's the only way to God. All wise people say that Jesus' teachings were corrupted and turned into a control system by the Catholic Church, once it became a system of political and social control. There's a consensus about that among all non-fundamentalist spiritual teachers. I agree with that too of course. Thus it's most likely true. So no, you are wrong to assume that Jesus was a fundamentalist evangelical Christian like the Billy Graham types are. No way. Christianity evolved over time through a long series and chain of events, just like any religion or culture does. It is not something set in stone from the beginning til now. No way jose. If you believe that you are crazy and wrong too.

I know that evangelical fundamentalist Christians agree that the Catholic Church corrupted Jesus' teachings. They are happy to admit that since they are anti-Catholic. However, where they go wrong is when they assume that their version of Christianity was the original pure unadultered version before the Catholic Church corrupted it. No way jose! Hell no! No objective historian believes that. Only fundamentalists do. There is no evidence at all that the original or early Christians believed what modern evangelical Christians believe today, which is made in the USA and didn't even become mainstream in America until 1910, hence is mostly a modern version of Christianity. In fact, the early Christians were never united. Since the beginning, they were always divided and split into factions, with some believing that Christians should follow Jewish laws and others like Paul saying no. So there was never any singular "true version" of Christianity to begin with. This is what evangelical Christians don't realize and can't accept, because their minds are hijacked and their dogmatic beliefs won't allow them to see the obvious.

Here's another kicker: Jesus himself was NOT a fundamentalist. Even if you go by the four canonical Gospels, you see that Jesus often repudiated fundamentlist interpretations of the Scriptures and Old Testament and disagreed with Moses' Law. In his debates with the Pharisees, he made that clear. Instead he interpreted scriptures in a more esoteric manner, not the literal manner that the fundamentalists of his day did. What this means is that Jesus would NOT have agreed with the fundamentalist versions of his teachings today that evangelicals espouse. This is HUGE and totally undermines the evangelical version of Christianity and makes them look silly, dumb, foolish, and obviously wrong too.

Why do Christians never address these questions head on? Because obviously they can't and they know it. These questions and points disprove their beliefs and since they do not want to change their beliefs, they prefer to ignore all these points and questions instead, and pretend that they don't exist. Because in the final analysis, a man's beliefs are his identity, and no one wants to change their beliefs unless they are dissatisfied with them and looking to change them. Hence if you disprove their beliefs, they will simply ignore your message and flush it out of their mind. That's why Christians always dodge tough questions like these and only answer the most easiest ones.

Obviously, in the end everyone chooses their religion based on what resonates with them and speaks to their soul the best. Either that, or they stick with the religion they grew up with. It's not about evidence, reason, or logic. That's fine and normal. But the problem is that this Christian notion of a "Just God" ruling the Earth simply does NOT FIT the data at all. It does not fit reality or the world you see around you. Hence it's not natural, and has to be artificially induced into you. You have to be brainwashed to believe it, in other words. That's what Christians don't get. Their beliefs are not natural. They would not hold them if some people or institution did not ingrain them with it. That's what they don't realize. Hence it is NOT absolute truth as they assume. Far from it.

Such a dogma about God being absolutely "Just" may be necessary to hold the Christian faith together, but it is not logical at all, nor does it have any basis or evidence to support it at all, if you think about it. It's simply a dogma that has been ingrained and brainwashed into you, because it's necessary for the religion to exist, not because it's true. How can you justify or rationalize something that goes against all the data and evidence and reality around you? Doesn't it require mind control for you to adopt something totally unreasonable and contrary to reality and without basis?

[Winston]

Something I posted to Amor Russell on his Gnostic channel:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4INsfJm2ZlA

Amor, the obvious answer is that God is both good and evil. The upper level Freemasons and Rosicrucians know this too. Ask the ones at the 33rd degree level. Even the Hindu yoga masters do. It's one of the secrets that is revealed to you in the mystery schools if you ascend high enough. You didn't know this? Hindus have told me this too. Hinduism masters like Sadhguru know this too. They just don't tell the masses because they aren't ready for this kind of truth. Even the Book of Isaiah says that the Lord creates both good and evil. Look it up. What's your basis that God is 100 percent perfect, all good and all just? ZERO! You have 0.0000000 evidence to support an all loving God who does nothing bad. Hence your assumption is completely BASELESS. In contrast, you can look at this world and find a MILLION reasons why God is either good and evil or evil. There's no way around this Amor. No way. Checkmate. There's no logical reason why a creator has to be perfect. Do you think Bill Gates is perfect just because he created Microsoft? Come on think about it. If anything God is trying to improve himself through us, because he is not perfect. So he is on a self-improvement quest too.

[Cornfed]

Amor, the obvious answer is that God is both good and evil.

A society that adopts such a belief will never amount to anything.

[Winston]

Amor, the obvious answer is that God is both good and evil.

A society that adopts such a belief will never amount to anything.

Maybe. Maybe God has to be seen as perfect or no one will worship him. So it's a necessary lie right? Baseless too.

[Cornfed]

Amor, the obvious answer is that God is both good and evil.

A society that adopts such a belief will never amount to anything.

Maybe. Maybe God has to be seen as perfect or no one will worship him. So it's a necessary lie right? Baseless too.

If you assume something is true and that assumption profits you, that is evidence that it is in fact true.

[gsjackson]

[
If you assume something is true and that assumption profits you, that is evidence that it is in fact true.

The one school of thought considered to have been developed in the U.S. -- known as pragmatism. See William James.

[Winston]

Amor, the obvious answer is that God is both good and evil.

A society that adopts such a belief will never amount to anything.

Maybe. Maybe God has to be seen as perfect or no one will worship him. So it's a necessary lie right? Baseless too.

If you assume something is true and that assumption profits you, that is evidence that it is in fact true.

But you forget that every religion has an esoteric and exoteric version. The esoteric version is for initiates in the mystery schools. The exoteric version is for the masses. The "God is all good and perfect and just" concept is for exoteric religion believers. It's for the profane masses in other words. It's not the apex of all spiritual knowledge. The esoteric is the one for the mystery schools like the Freemasons or the Illuminati or even advanced Hindu yogis. They do not teach that God is only good and zero bad. They teach that good and evil is a polarity and that God is both and beyond the polarity too.

I don't know if you are familiar with esoteric knowledge or mystery schools Cornfed, but this is what is taught at the higher levels of the mystery schools. It's not for the masses of course. You assume that the exoteric religions like Christianity is the highest level, but it is not. It's for the profane masses, not for the illuminated. The top elites and ruling class and controllers all know this. Only the common folks don't.

[Pixel--Dude]

Amor, the obvious answer is that God is both good and evil.

A society that adopts such a belief will never amount to anything.

Maybe. Maybe God has to be seen as perfect or no one will worship him. So it's a necessary lie right? Baseless too.

If you assume something is true and that assumption profits you, that is evidence that it is in fact true.

But you forget that every religion has an esoteric and exoteric version. The esoteric version is for initiates in the mystery schools. The exoteric version is for the masses. The "God is all good and perfect and just" concept is for exoteric religion believers. It's for the profane masses in other words. It's not the apex of all spiritual knowledge. The esoteric is the one for the mystery schools like the Freemasons or the Illuminati or even advanced Hindu yogis. They do not teach that God is only good and zero bad. They teach that good and evil is a polarity and that God is both and beyond the polarity too.

I don't know if you are familiar with esoteric knowledge or mystery schools Cornfed, but this is what is taught at the higher levels of the mystery schools. It's not for the masses of course. You assume that the exoteric religions like Christianity is the highest level, but it is not. It's for the profane masses, not for the illuminated. The top elites and ruling class and controllers all know this. Only the common folks don't.

The polarity presented in the Bible is inverted anyway. Enki is slandered as Satan and it was Yahweh who committed most of the atrocities against humanity. Yahweh's crimes against humanity are even self confessed in the Bible. Everything we generally associate with evil, such as genocide and infanticide etc are actions committed by Yahweh, not Satan.

Aside from all this, Yahweh denies humanity our birthright to ascend as gods. This is a travesty and an unforgivable crime against the natural order of the cosmos. Everything in nature is programmed by the All to grow and thrive, yet Yahweh wants us to exist as obedient slaves to him. To worship him blindly.

The tree of knowledge is allegorical for the secrets of the universe which Enki wanted to teach us. The tower of Babel is also allegorical for the spiritual anatomy of humanity. Yahweh saw Enki was teaching us and he came to earth and destroyed Enki's cities with nuclear weapons or "evil winds" the effects recorded in the Bible are similar to the effects of radiation poisoning or the effects of a nuclear explosion. If Yahweh was really an all powerful creator he would be able to just make all the sinful people drop dead on the spot without the need to blow everything up and have possible collateral of his world's environment and animal life and even potentially religious humans.

Let's look at it like this. Why didn't Yahweh warn Adam and Eve about the Serpent lurking in the Garden of Eden? Why didn't Yahweh intervene and throw the Serpent out of the garden? Where was God when the Serpent was supposedly deceiving Adam and Eve? Isn't God meant to be everywhere? Isn't he also supposed to be all-knowing? Then how come he didn't know Adam and Eve had eaten from the tree of knowledge until he returned (returned from where?) and realised that Adam and Eve knew they were naked?

There are so many questions with Christianity. More questions than answers. Too many holes in the story. I think you need to have some critical thinking and question why some of the Bible, most of the Bible actually, just doesn't make sense. It only makes sense if Yahweh is an evil cosmological dictator who is in fact evil, since most of his actions are what most of humanity would consider to be acts of evil.

@Lucas88
@Tsar
@Kalinago

[Cornfed]

But you forget that every religion has an esoteric and exoteric version. The esoteric version is for initiates in the mystery schools. The exoteric version is for the masses. The "God is all good and perfect and just" concept is for exoteric religion believers.

Typically the opposite is the case. With most religions you have fallible deities for the masses whereas the adepts of the religion get a Christian-like education about the one true God that rules them all. This is how we know that Christianity is the one real religion.

[fschmidt]

The polarity presented in the Bible is inverted anyway. Enki is slandered as Satan and it was Yahweh who committed most of the atrocities against humanity. Yahweh's crimes against humanity are even self confessed in the Bible. Everything we generally associate with evil, such as genocide and infanticide etc are actions committed by Yahweh, not Satan.

Aside from all this, Yahweh denies humanity our birthright to ascend as gods. This is a travesty and an unforgivable crime against the natural order of the cosmos. Everything in nature is programmed by the All to grow and thrive, yet Yahweh wants us to exist as obedient slaves to him. To worship him blindly.

The tree of knowledge is allegorical for the secrets of the universe which Enki wanted to teach us. The tower of Babel is also allegorical for the spiritual anatomy of humanity. Yahweh saw Enki was teaching us and he came to earth and destroyed Enki's cities with nuclear weapons or "evil winds" the effects recorded in the Bible are similar to the effects of radiation poisoning or the effects of a nuclear explosion. If Yahweh was really an all powerful creator he would be able to just make all the sinful people drop dead on the spot without the need to blow everything up and have possible collateral of his world's environment and animal life and even potentially religious humans.

Yahweh slaughtered the scum for the good of the human gene pool.

People who think they are gods are delusional arrogant bastards. This is how the elite think.

Yahweh absolutely does not want people to be slaves. The whole Old Testament is about seeking freedom.

The tree of knowledge is allegorical for the loss of innocence that comes with civilization, and the resulting risks of people to turn into scum. The tower of Babel is also allegorical for the arrogance of such scum.

The Old Testament is an ideal guidebook for people who don't want to be scum.

[Pixel--Dude]

Yahweh slaughtered the scum for the good of the human gene pool.

Yahweh did nothing of the sort for the good of the human gene pool. He slaughtered humans like cattle. He's an abusive tyrannical asshole. If this was a real god I would spit in his face.

People who think they are gods are delusional arrogant bastards. This is how the elite think.

I disagree. I would rather acknowledge that I am a potential god rather than accept living as a weak and servile slave out of fear to some deranged half wit of a god. The elite think like Yahweh, it's him who they worship "The Great Architect" an evil demiurge. The Gnostics knew all about Yahweh and his evil.

Yahweh absolutely does not want people to be slaves. The whole Old Testament is about seeking freedom.

You're kidding right how many times in the Bible does Yahweh order weak Christian serfs to obey authority and obey their masters. There is no freedom in being a Christian. Only servility and worship to a cosmic dictator who slaughters children. Only a deranged loon would worship this kind of being.

I'd sooner give my love to Enki/Shiva who doesn't demand worship and punish with death, but instead loves humanity as a true benevolent father should. Your god is evil.

The tree of knowledge is allegorical for the loss of innocence that comes with civilization, and the resulting risks of people to turn into scum. The tower of Babel is also allegorical for the arrogance of such scum.

We'll have to agree to disagree on this point I don't think that there is anything arrogant about wanting to raise the Kundalini through the chakras and ascend as a god if that is our birthright. Yahweh is arrogant and foolish for assuming the role of creator of the cosmos. He's nothing but a psychopathic impostor who deserves no worship or respect, only contempt.

The Old Testament is an ideal guidebook for people who don't want to be scum.

If I ever decide to commit mass genocide or infanticide, or sacrifice animals for minor infractions against redundant edicts then I'll be sure to quote you here when I'm in court.

[Winston]

Interesting video that dares to explore the idea that God could be evil, which Christians and Atheists won't touch. I think Atheists want to hang on to the "God must be perfect" claim in order to set up a straw man that they can easily use to debunk the existence of God. That's why they are just as narrow as Christians.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RePTqKuVoMo

Comments I posted below the video:

I've wondered about this for a long time. A god that is evil or semi-evil or imperfect definitely makes 10000000000x more sense and fits what we see and experience in this world, than an all perfect, all good god, that's for sure. But for some reason, both atheists and Christians are afraid to go there, they each believe that either god is perfect and all good or he doesn't exist at all, which is a false dichotomy since there are many other possibilities. Moreover, there is no logical reason why a creator or architect has to be perfect or all good. He can be evil or semi-evil or an a-hole too. Just like any CEO can. Moreover, the book of Isaiah has a verse that says "the Lord creates both good and evil". And occultists say that evil is the left hand path of God. Carl Jung said that negative energy exists because God has a shadow side or dark side. And Thomas Paine said that the creation is a reflection of the creator, so if creation is imperfect, then god must be too. Very simple and logical. Why can't most people accept that?

Free will is an ad hoc theory that Christians use to try to reconcile an unjust world with a just god. It doesn't work though, because most people are on auto pilot and don't seem to have free will and there's no evidence for free will too. Plus a lot of bad things happen that we did not choose too.

[Winston]

Check this out. There is a term for belief in an evil God. It's called "dystheism" and is rarely addressed or considered because everyone assumes that either God is all good and perfect or he doesn't exist at all, which is weird and illogical and baseless if you think about it. Yet Christians and Atheists assume this and are blind to other possibilities beyond it. It's very strange how narrow and closed minded everyone is. Especially since an evil or imperfect god makes a million times more sense than an all good, perfect god, and fits what we see and experience in this world and in life too. So why is it never considered? Very odd.

There are only 2 videos about dystheism though on YT. Here they are.

[josephty2]

I don't get why you are not allowed to blame God for anything as though he was above blame and blameless. What's wrong with blaming God for all your problems? If God is in control, as Christians claim, then he's responsible for everything right?

Isnt it a double standard to praise or thank God for good things, but not blame him for the bad things in life? Thats not logical and is a clear double standard. Plus there's no logical reason to believe God is perfect. Basic logic says God must be both good and bad since he created good and bad things and Creation is a reflection of the Creator, as our founding father Thomas Paine said. Even the Bible says God creates both good and evil. So does Hinduism and Gnosticism and advanced occultism and mysticism.

Furthermore not one single verses in the Bible says we have free will. That is a man made concept. So u can't blame everything on free will. Especially since we cannot control most things in life.

If u dont like a company policy u have the right to blame the CEO. If u dont like a book u have the right to blame the author. So if u dont like this world u have the right to blame the Creator. Right? I know it won't accomplish anything. But u have the right. Because the Creator is responsible for his Creation. Its logical.

Consider this: if a CEO decided to do nothing to fix the problems of his company and blamed everyone else for their bad decisions or their free will, and never took responsibility for anything, that CEO would be seen as a bum and fired by the board of directors. Right? Of course.

So why then is it ok for the God of the Bible or Christian God to do nothing to fix the problems and injustices of this world and blame everyone else but himself? No one accepts a king or leader who does that in the real world.

Imagine a CEO saying:

"I am perfect. I dont need to do anything. Every problem is other people's fault. They made bad choices with their free will. I'm perfect and blameless. I dont need to do anything."

Everyone would call for that CEO to be fired. No one would accept that. So why is God allowed to get away with that kind of attitude? It makes no sense if u think about it.

Im no longer under Christian brainwashing. So i dont assume that God must be perfect just because Christian tradition says so. Theres no evidence or logic to support that a Creator has to be perfect. The ancient cultures never believed their gods were perfect. Only Christianity has that unreasonable belief without basis.

Once i broke free of Christian mind control in 1992 i could think for myself and follow the evidence and data wherever it may lead. A Christian would not dare think these things of course. Because they live in fear.

It's not necessarily brainwashing. Would you consider the Holocaust a result of brainwashing? However it's a cult much like the Apple iPhone users after 2014. A cult isn't brainwashed. It's a group of people with fundamentaly similar beliefs. I realize you're no longer in your 20s 30s.

If a cult has enough traction it could form something similar to the Civil War. Most of the time it's just people who have something in common that you can sense us vs them. Lots of Americans live in places near a lot of different ethnic groups, especially in the east coast. Christianity is a way to have refuge.

American Christianity is very strange, many Europeans in 1600s, 1700s, 1800s observed this. It's one thing to arrest a certain type of person. It's another to deal with immigration from Europe, and Africa (1600s 1700s). It's another thing to have a motto like: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_ ... 20trust%22.

It's nothing like the Catholic Church. Sure both don't care about reincarnation or psychics so something like James Randi would be completely difficult for them. However we know Catholics aren't obsessed with guns.

[vlkmo]

Well I'm referring to the concept of God that most Americans think of, which is the Judeo-Christian concept as well.

This concept makes extreme claims that don't make sense, but people believe it cause they are told it is true, so it must be true, and their fellow Christians do too. So it becomes an agreed upon given fact to them.

It's not supposed to make sense. The Christian teaching of salvation and the role of God in human life, creation, etc. is illogical, contrary to man's thinking, and is why "thinkers" and "intellectuals" will never get it. The God of Christianity is about the relationship, not about a set of rules, logical theorems, or intellectual assent. If it were, only the intelligent would be saved. Plus, I wouldn't want to believe in a god that I can get my head around 100% or fit inside of box of my own making. That would make me greater than God, and I couldn't put my faith or trust in such a thing. "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." (Hebrews 11:1).

I also don't agree that people just blindly believe whatever they are told about God. A thinking person will always question and wonder. After all, it's an illogical faith, so it would be odd if people didn't question it. What disturbs me in the US, is the wrapping of the flag, nationalism/jingoism, End-Times navel-gazing around what the mass-culture claims to be "God". God is not an American, God doesn't drive a Chevy, and God doesn't wave an American flag. Unfortunately though, this is what you often get in our politics, the evangelical movement (which has way too much control over our politicians and military), and our public discourse.

If Christianity is not a set of rules but a relationship only, why does the Bible itself have moral prescriptions from God (like ideas on modesty and sexuality, etc.)? And God implies that you can go to Hell simply for reveling in anything opposed to that. Unlike what you said, I find it hard and it bothers me that I can't completely get my head around God. It's too open-ended. Somehow, allowing evil and impunity is justified with God even though he is supposed to be completely benevolent. And the Bible not only predicts that there can be evil, but that there will be a discrete period of acute evil before the end of times that dwarfs any other dark period in human history. And it's somehow all justified or necessary.

But I would disagree with you that evangelical Christianity has any mainstream influence and that has been replaced by the Godless religion.