christian suicide ..

it's difficult to figure where to start here..
it's like .. this is crazy
the things i want to say seem so damned obvious ..

this has been a week-long wonder at if-to-say what-to-say
like, superfluous ..

..

i guess i could hit on the headliners
the political madness among the trumps/rubios/cruzs
   who want to ban muslims
      like they were some fracking exxonmobil
         wait ..! they're not even being discussed - my bad ..
or the paris COP21 madness among the world's nations
   who waver at stemming the bleed-out
      like the #1 polluter, ye ol' great US, was some global priesthood,
      pristine and pointing burnt and bloodied fingers
         wait ..! that's hardly even being pointedout - my bad ..
or the madness among the 'christian' nations of the west
   who are and have slammed their doors to the many thousands fleeing for life
      like they were some righteous form of human
         wait ..! i forget - christianity, pure as the driven snow
   
`|`

so .. here i sit
befuddled
kerfuffled
all muddled
.. and muddied
my own brand of religion is swimming in a morass of filth
and i've been dog-paddling, trying to stay afloat
slimy green goop choking my lifebreath

and that shocks my naivete more than any of the other madnesses running loose ..
it utterly deflates this soul
i grasp desperately for whatever straws are out there
hoping to make it through this sickening crud alive
with some semblance of human nobility
at least a modicum of 'christian' faith
.. but it's hard ..
alas, i fear i'm drowning

`|`

for the people that speak loudest and boldest for christianity
are shooting the faith in the foot
and the world is watching

the world is watching

what's more
   and this really defines it
the world is correcting the antichristianity of christianity ..
as a muslim once said, "Mahatma Gandhi was right. Everyone in the world knows what Jesus Christ was about - except for Christians."
and there ya have muslim and hindu truth in the face of christian misdirection ..

but aside from the religious comment
the world at large is watching these christian bigboy bigots
and scratching its head in confusion ..
because the person this religion touts is Jesus
   and when they compare the 2
   they are confused
      and rightly so
      absolutely
and, my friend, God is not the author of confusion

the reason for the confusion is not hard to fathom
because when they read the gospels
they see what Jesus said and did
and what they see there and hear here is worlds apart

2 irreconcilable worldviews

irreconcilable !

madness

..

the gun-totin' jerry falwells who advises students of the largest christian university in this country to carry, and he is its head  ..
   may he fall well
      as in  " .. everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house,
and it fell,
and great was the fall of it.”
      so says Jesus ..
      ( Matt 7: 26, 27 )

the franklin grahams
   who speaks in the very place of his billy father
   saying muslims must be stopped
      billly, who i hope is grinding his teeth in trepidation and
      angst at the uncivil uncouth comments of his offspring

then there's the progeny of swaggart who drool the same hateful spittle
their dribble pooling on the pulpits and communion tables

..

i had another application for this pic
but i use it here to propose that the religion Jesus never meant to start has and, more pertinently, is now killing him afresh ..
killing the king of glory
now
here
displaying him to public shame
while all the world looks on
   astounded
   confounded
   dumbfounded

..

i could quote Jesus all day long
but i won't ..
because if you're too lazy or uninterested in reading in scripture what he said for yourself .. well, then
..
and that's precisely a marked part of the problem
many want to be 'christian'
but we hardly know the Lord Christ
what he said and did and how he behaved
what he thought and liked
what his attitude was ..
'cause we don't read it for ourselves ..
we let some jackass on a soapbox on the tele tell us

and then we wonder at the comment He made, " then i will say to them, depart from me! i never knew you "

we deserve to be beaten with many stripes for our disingenuity ..
..

real christianity is not defined by them
or by the christian universities and seminaries
it is defined by Jesus, the Lord Christ

..

and so, in my own remorse
my own version of repentance
i testify that i am ashamed of the label 'christian' ..
and i no longer lay claim to it

its history and its testimony and reputation today leave me no other choice
i want nothing more to do with the label

..

i have denounced, in this order, protestantism, the cult of christian fundamentalism, evangelical, and now i've cut my self off
   to the dismay of my godly mother
from the christian label

i want nothing more to do with it

and you know what ..?
i believe that if you asked Jesus today if he aligns himself with it
he would say "No!"
   exclamation mark included

and I follow him !
   exclamation mark included

not any religion

not any preacher

not any church

not any denomination
   He trumps them all

i done !

and i'm pissed!

christianity has put a loaded bible to its head and assassinated itself for all the world to see
and they borrowed jerry falwell's gun and franklin graham's hand

`|`

if anyone asks me about my faith, what i believe, why

i will begin here - i follow Jesus

i am his disciple

that's who i am

that's who i try to be

that's my story

..

i'll still attend any church i can find that will uphold and uplift Jesus in truth
and support it
but i wear the label no more

..

now

dare i say

peace to you

ps.

i relent ..
here is part of Jesus' teaching ..
read it, if you will
it's quoted from Matthew 5

One day as he saw the crowds gathering, Jesus went up on the mountainside and sat down. His disciples gathered around him, and he began to teach them.
“God blesses those who are poor and realize their need for him,
    for the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs.
God blesses those who mourn,
    for they will be comforted.
God blesses those who are humble,
    for they will inherit the whole earth.
God blesses those who hunger and thirst for justice,
    for they will be satisfied.
God blesses those who are merciful,
    for they will be shown mercy.
God blesses those whose hearts are pure,
    for they will see God.
God blesses those who work for peace,
    for they will be called the children of God.
God blesses those who are persecuted for doing right,
    for the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs.

God blesses you when people mock you and persecute you and lie about you and say all sorts of evil things against you because you are my followers. Be happy about it! Be very glad! For a great reward awaits you in heaven. And remember, the ancient prophets were persecuted in the same way.

You are the salt of the earth. But what good is salt if it has lost its flavor? Can you make it salty again? It will be thrown out and trampled underfoot as worthless.

You are the light of the world—like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden. No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father.

Don’t misunderstand why I have come. I did not come to abolish the law of Moses or the writings of the prophets. No, I came to accomplish their purpose. I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not even the smallest detail of God’s law will disappear until its purpose is achieved. So if you ignore the least commandment and teach others to do the same, you will be called the least in the Kingdom of Heaven. But anyone who obeys God’s laws and teaches them will be called great in the Kingdom of Heaven.
But I warn you—unless your righteousness is better than the righteousness of the teachers of religious law and the Pharisees, you will never enter the Kingdom of Heaven!

You have heard that our ancestors were told, ‘You must not murder. If you commit murder, you are subject to judgment.’
But I say, if you are even angry with someone, you are subject to judgment! If you call someone an idiot, you are in danger of being brought before the court. And if you curse someone, you are in danger of the fires of hell.
So if you are presenting a sacrifice at the altar in the Temple and you suddenly remember that someone has something against you, leave your sacrifice there at the altar. Go and be reconciled to that person. Then come and offer your sacrifice to God.
When you are on the way to court with your adversary, settle your differences quickly. Otherwise, your accuser may hand you over to the judge, who will hand you over to an officer, and you will be thrown into prison. And if that happens, you surely won’t be free again until you have paid the last penny.

You have heard the commandment that says, ‘You must not commit adultery.’
But I say, anyone who even looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery with her in his heart. So if your eye—even your good eye—causes you to lust, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. And if your hand—even your stronger hand—causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell.

You have heard the law that says, ‘A man can divorce his wife by merely giving her a written notice of divorce.’
But I say that a man who divorces his wife, unless she has been unfaithful, causes her to commit adultery. And anyone who marries a divorced woman also commits adultery.

You have also heard that our ancestors were told, ‘You must not break your vows; you must carry out the vows you make to the Lord.’
But I say, do not make any vows! Do not say, ‘By heaven!’ because heaven is God’s throne. And do not say, ‘By the earth!’ because the earth is his footstool. And do not say, ‘By Jerusalem!’ for Jerusalem is the city of the great King. Do not even say, ‘By my head!’ for you can’t turn one hair white or black. Just say a simple, ‘Yes, I will,’ or ‘No, I won’t.’ Anything beyond this is from the evil one.

You have heard the law that says the punishment must match the injury: ‘An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth.’
But I say, do not resist an evil person!
If someone slaps you on the right cheek, offer the other cheek also.
If you are sued in court and your shirt is taken from you, give your coat, too.
If a soldier demands that you carry his gear for a mile, carry it two miles.
Give to those who ask, and don’t turn away from those who want to borrow.

You have heard the law that says, ‘Love your neighbor’ and hate your enemy.
But I say, love your enemies!
Pray for those who persecute you!
In that way, you will be acting as true children of your Father in heaven. For he gives his sunlight to both the evil and the good, and he sends rain on the just and the unjust alike.
If you love only those who love you, what reward is there for that? Even corrupt tax collectors do that much. If you are kind only to your friends, how are you different from anyone else? Even pagans do that.

But you are to be perfect, even as your Father in heaven is perfect. "

   and there's more
like chapter 6 ..
read on ..

peace be unto you