Blasphemous shorts – Page 4 – The God free guide

The theology of warfare

How do Christians justify their commitment to kill people because some politician tells them to?

I regularly come across either serving or veteran military personnel in these atheist v theist groups who also identify as Christian. As a rule such people express pride in their military credentials and some even seem to assume that they deserve special consideration or respect as a result. This has always confused me.

How can a Christian join an organisation in which they will be expected to kill (or support the killing of) other people simply because a politician decides it’s a good idea? As we all know, military interventions are not always motivated by noble intentions.

I don’t suggest that military service isn’t courageous, even heroic and I fully understand that it genuinely can be necessary (although it often is not). It’s the decision to ‘join up’ that I find confusing.

How is a commitment to take the lives of unknown others at some future date for as yet unknown reasons, ordered by currently unknown politicians with equally unknown motivations in any way consistent with Christian values?

How do Christians justify their commitment to kill people because some politician (whose motives may be very reprehensible) tells them to?

God’s word (or not) 3: Judge not lest you, yourself be judged.

What if God told you that you were doing it wrong?

Is this a message from God (as my friend thinks) or is it more nonsense from a YouTube atheist with an overs tive imagination and too much time on his hands?
You decide.

Stop lying about atheists!

Christians seem not to share that dislike of dishonesty and dictatorial arrogance

I have no problem with religious believers. Religion is their right. I’ve defended that right many times and no doubt will do so again. I do have a problem with control freaks and liars. Unfortunately many Christians seem not to share that dislike of dishonesty and dictatorial arrogance – in fact they empower and even embody it!

The source of Christian morality: It’s not what you might think

Church won’t excuse your bigotry,
You’re only there ’cause you agree!

Church won’t excuse your bigotry. You’re only there ’cause you agree!

John & Mary go looking for a new church

Isaiah 7:14, the one about the virgin giving birth to a bloke called Immanuel that you hear about at every kids nativity play has absolutely nothing to do with Jesus. That’s a mistranslation, a mistake made by whoever wrote the gospel of Matthew.

He was a Greek speaker who couldn’t read the original Hebrew and so relied on a more ambiguous word from the Greek translation of the Old Testament. Unfortunately he made the wrong choice and wrote ‘Almah’, meaning ‘virgin’ instead of ‘young woman’. Not only that – the entire story is about events that happened in Isaiah’s time, over 700 years before the nativity story is supposed to have taken place..

Anyone who reads more of Isaiah chapter 7 than just verse 14 will quickly see that. It’s not hard to understand. There’s not really much room for ‘interpretation’ with this one. So if your pastor is telling you it’s a prophecy about the Messiah – ask him3 why he’s lying – or, more charitably, why he doesn’t know this himself. Has he never read the Bible?

The burden of proof

I would say my diary demands faith in place of inquiry

“… And if I said God wrote my diary

I’d anticipate inquiry…”

A short poem about the burden of proof

Christian hypocrisy

You cherry-pick your Holy book,
Ignore the homeless beggar as you look
The other way
Complaining every day
About the taxes that you have to pay.

When you have to lie to make your point, your point isn’t worth making!

Escatological follies

So many Armageddons past,
So many days that weren’t the last,
For you the end can’t come too fast.

My death is just the price you’ll pay,
So gladly to be on your way,
And if I’m damned – well, that’s OK!

I’ve written a little poem for all those Christians who love to gloat about their salvation and my alleged damnation. It only lasts two minutes. Have a listen and tell me what you think in the comments.