Which is the more tolerant, Evangelicals or Progressives?
The media and the Left would put me into a voting bloc they identify as Evangelical Christians, because I believe in God as the absolute power in the universe, and I try my best to live by the standards of the Bible, although I am constantly falling short of achieving that goal.
When most of the left-leaning media speaks of Evangelical Christians, they seem to come off as white-robed bigots who are willing to strike down with flames anyone who looks, acts, or has different beliefs. Personally, I don’t own a white robe, I only have two white shirts, one short sleeve and one long sleeve, and I struggle with getting the charcoal grill lighted.
The media portrays Christians as being against the progress of women, often referring to a television series, The Handmaid’s Tale, as the ultimate goal of Evangelicals. I’ve never seen the series, though I hear it’s quite good, and I hope to get around to it someday. Contrary to popular opinion, many Evangelicals haven’t classified televisions as an instrument of the devil and banned them from our homes.
The Left seems to fear Evangelicals. I guess they are afraid we will kidnap them, lock them in a dark room, and shout “Hallelujahs” and “Hail Marys” until we either convert them or sentence them to eternity in Hell.
When Lucifer tempts me, (sarcasm, for those who can’t recognize it) and I succumb to watching television news, I start to feel as if I am also falling short of being a Christian, since I have no interest in striking down non-believers, or torturing atheists until they convert. Sure, I would be more than happy to speak with anyone about my beliefs and the fact that God answers my prayers, even if the answer I get is not the one I wanted. But forcing you to accept my beliefs is really not something I am interested in doing. Besides, it’s not true faith if it’s a forced opinion.
But then I look around at my fellow Evangelicals and I realize most of them are just like me. There are some on the fringe, as there are in any group, but mostly we just want to have the freedom of worshiping God in the manner in which we choose, and we are more than willing to allow anyone else to do the same.
That’s when I begin to see the differences between those on the Left and the Evangelicals. The Christians would like to welcome you into our fold, help you to learn about Christ and his teachings, and guide you into a personal relationship with God. Just you and God, for that’s where the true meaning of faith becomes so fulfilling. But, if you don’t want to come to God, we’ll just continue to pray for you. We can still be friends, socialize together, go to the same events and enjoy each other’s company.
The Left, however, sees Christians as the enemy, ostracizing them whenever possible, portraying them as backward and ignorant because of their moral stances. They are quick to point out any who may fall short of perfect as the example of hypocritical Christians, grouping us all as one.
Christians are cited as bigoted because their faith and moral compasses don’t align with many of the current progressive values, because they don’t condone alternate lifestyles, and they refuse to abandon their faith to simply fit in today’s world.
One definition of bigoted states, “having or revealing an obstinate belief in the superiority of one’s own opinions and a prejudiced intolerance of the opinions of others.” I wonder which side this description more closely fits?
Let”s fact check Mikey”s fears: The holocaust was conducted by pagans and satanists Pogroms were conducted by the Russian Empire, not exactly a hotbed of evangelical Christians The inquisitions were conducted by the Roman Catholic Church, mostly against evangelicals It appears that Mikey is terrified of evangelicals repeating something they never did
Please forgive me for being blunt, but can you explain how taking a group of people based on some perceived notion portrayed by the media and applying some blanket judgment on who and what they all are is appropriate for you to do, because they’re liberals, but not OK for ‘them?’
You know me, Jerry. This liberal (me) likes to attack Christians who don’t read the Bible or apply an ounce of critical thinking to it but rather get their opinions from others who may or may not have read the Bible with an ounce of critical thinking themselves. For example: the obsession with homosexuality, and it is an obsession. I can’t pretend the Bible doesn’t condemn homosexuality, that would be a lie. What I will say is that the same Bible also condemns adultery and fraud, two of Donald Trump’s defining traits, while so many of Trump supporters call themselves ‘Evangelicals.’ OK, forgive and accept. Fine. Unless they’re gay, of course. The same Bible also condemns usury; in fact, the money lenders are the only people who actually pissed Jesus off. Not the lepers, not the prostitutes, tax collectors, Pharisees, Sadusees, not the Romans, not the pagans, not even the fraudulent adulterers, and not even the gays. Money lenders. And yet, where’s the outrage against short-term lending, title loans and payday loans? No one talks of these things because ‘Evangelicals’ are too busy gay-bashing.
Sorry for the rant. You are right though – I do tend to lump people together. I’ll try to do better.
Thanks for reading, and I have to plead guilty to your charge of lumping all into one group! I must confess I have several liberal friends who attend the same church as I and we are always cordial, however we rarely discuss politics at services! I don’t doubt their sincerity to their religious or political beliefs at all.
Perhaps I should have used the term “vocal left” instead. I read a good many conservative opinion articles, but also a lot of left-leaning thinkers as well, and rarely do I see a conservative writer participate in “gay-bashing,” at least from my perspective. They may disagree with the lifestyle, but do not normally denigrate the people. Usually that type of speech comes from social media and far-right conspiracy theorists, which I try to avoid. But I do see a lot of derogatory remarks about “evangelicals” or Christians from what would be considered mainstream media, including national news services.
Again, this is my perspective, but politics is mostly perspective anyway. I thank you for your comments. I learned from you today, and I hope to put that education to good use in the future. It’s always good to see from a different point of view!