Our society's moral framework was significantly shaped by a specific Jewish man. It seems now that our culture is rapidly abandoning previously held moral ideals, with the popularity of Andrew Tate and Nick Fuentes epitomising this. The ideal of loving one's neighbours, even one's enemies, is being replaced in many minds by the notion that opposing supposed foes renders one virtuous - hence the aforementioned influencers; the zealous vitriol against Israelis from one side of the political spectrum and against migrants on the other.
The concept of “eternal conscious torment” is frequently believed to be a facet of Christianity, but as Sarah Ditum mentions, it is an invention of the Church and not aligned with The Bible. My own belief in Christianity developed amidst my experience of Anorexia (with convalescence affording time to examine academic debates), experience which included 2 involuntary spells in Eating Disorders Units. Patients who refused food were restrained and fitted with a nasogastric tube, through which calorie dense “milkshake” was pumped. Thus I’ve been perplexed as to why hunger strikers have instead been allowed to starve themselves. I respect their fortitude, yet it seems somewhat anachronistic to reject food through choice in an attempt to raise awareness of how torturous the hunger of others in our world is.
Ubiquitous as the phrase has become in certain forms, “Christian Nationalism” is an oxymoron. To genuinely follow Christ precludes idolatry of nation or ethnicity. Christ opposed those who feigned religiosity for the purposes of asserting dominance - and He implores each of us to choose to repent turn to Him, as our heritage does not render us righteous. He chastised those who boasted of their ancestry (Matthew 3:9); He rebuked tribal prejudices whilst commanding charity to those of other nationalities (Luke 10:25-37); and in contrast to the far Right’s militarism, He meekly allowed Himself to be executed - a peaceful Middle Eastern man suffering due to the barbarity of our fellow Caucasians (Romans) and (to the wrongdoing of each of us across humanity.
The notion that rationality or science and following Jesus are mutually exclusive is popular but fallacious. It certainly is true that consumerism has reshaped the collective Western psyche, contrasting with prior ideals (all be they rarely held to) of adhering to Christ’s teachings. Yet, whilst Kruger’s new party claims to support “Christian values”, Reform demonstrates no awareness of them, and seeks to attribute blame for Britain’s brokenness to folk from elsewhere. Like political spin, it may be appealing to think ourselves intrinsically righteous, with all problems arising externally, but at both a population and an individual level, this is a falsehood.
There
are human beings in our world who are literally starving to death, so
it's tragic that our mainstream media, unlike Premier, ignores most of
humanity's disadvantaged people whilst finding time for celebrity
gossip. Yet it's a potential blessing for us, since it's an opportunity
to be reminded to resolve or avoid family disputes of our own. Of
course, some situations necessitate estrangement due to abuse - and God
has called us to live in peace (1 Corinthians 7:15) - but seeing the
sad situations of celebrity family feuds could prompt us to ruminate on
the good news that God's forgiveness of us means we should forgive
others (and His help may enable us to do so)
Why
was she created with purple hair? The Right continually mocks coloured
hair. It makes one wonder if the original creator was out of touch with
those they were trying to reach.
It increasingly appears that he could be the antiChrist...
Though
we should talk more about how Western corporations and banks have been
stealing other nations minerals and more. Trump seeking to plunder
Greenland for its rare Earth minerals is evil, unfortunately such
larceny is not entirely new
As
much as Trump proposing to take Greenland is insane and evil, I'm
increasingly feeling that the hand wringing seems somewhat odd in light
of how other colonialism is overlooked. Some nations which were
colonised in the past continue to be grossly exploited by Western banks
and corporations despite supposed independence
Largely due to Trump, who wants to pretend he's the saviour of Nigerian Christians....
NB Jesus told us to help those in need, and He specifically included those who don't share of own nationality.
Aid can make many times more impact per $ than money spent in the West, it's a privilege that we can make an impact.
Whilst
Starmer has been talking about enabling us to afford to go to
restaurants more often, human beings elsewhere in our world are
literally starving to death and Starmer/Reeves have cut Aid (which can
do many times more per £ than money spent here) from 0.5% of GDP to
0.3%. Under them the party has abandoned what Labour stands for.
I
am so, so disgusted by how "third world" is now being used as a
pejorative to denigrate and dehumanise. In reality the third world
exists in no small part because of the inhumanity of some people from
OUR part of the world, who invaded and pillaged theirs. And the
exploitation is still going on, in spite of the empire ending
We
are so, so privileged - elsewhere in our world there are little
children who suffer needlessly because of a lack of access to basic
vaccinations.
Our
country is broken, it has lost its values - and it's not because of
Muslims or immigration, it's because we (the native white population)
have increasingly abandoned previously held ideals of selflessness and
normalised selfishness as morally good.
Yes.
It's not as though people voted for their MPs on the basis of
supporting Assisted Dying - and why should the opinions of the public be
deemed more important than the lives of the vulnerable anyway?
The government has cut its programme to tackle FGM in the poorest parts of our world https://committees.parliament.uk/committee/98/international-development-committee/news/210729/ending-government-funding-for-fgm-prevention-programme-puts-women-and-girls-at-serious-risk-committee-chairs-warn/ (amongst other cuts made to Overseas Aid) - why should they spend many times more giving cash to women in the wealthiest generation* of our wealthy country whilst little girls are being brutalised?
(NB you needn't tell me that "not all 50s born women are rich", I'm well aware of that, but the payment is being demanded on the basis of age, not need)
*https://ifs.org.uk/sites/default/files/output_url_files/BN257-How-and-why-might-the-wealth-of-different-generations-be-expected-to-differ.pdf
(NB you needn't tell me that "not all 50s born women are rich", I'm well aware of that, but the payment is being demanded on the basis of age, not need)
*https://ifs.org.uk/sites/default/files/output_url_files/BN257-How-and-why-might-the-wealth-of-different-generations-be-expected-to-differ.pdf
Some of the most commonly held beliefs about sex are wrong, according to a growing body of research.
Sex
sells, thus our media has been shoving it in people's faces and
instilling the lie that it's necessary for enjoying life for decades.
This falsehood has contributed to endless problems.
Critics of Trump, and of his British acolytes, correctly point out that their pretence of alignment with Christianity forgets that Jesus commanded love of the other. Fundamental to Christ’s teaching also is that we must repent - Trump, like many of instinctively feel, that our own morality suffices, but he should remind us that subjective morality is inadequate. That objective morality exists is posited by some philosophers as an indicator (in contrast to the notion that theism merely evolved) of a moral law giver - God - and Regan utilised a Biblical phrase when he asserted that America should be a “shining city on a hill”. Trumpism is antithetical to The Gospel, but demonstrative of broader trends; we’re reverting towards Stone Age individualism.
Trump has now declared that only "his own morality" constrains him. What is this, exactly? Reagan in referred to America as "a shining city on a hill". Arguably this was a misuse of an originally Biblical phrase partially about sharing the Gospel of what Jesus offers beyond this life, yet its use was demonstrative of an aspiration to be a positive entity in the world. Contradictorily, numerous US institutions and power holders have instead avariciously exploited less wealthy nations. But Trump cares only about "his way" and has abandoned any notion of benevolence entirely.
Prior to the secularisation of our society, one might have pondered the mysteries of the Universe’s Creator (science enabled novel discoveries as we deepened our understanding of the creation around us). In recent decades, materialism has superseded, and our culture presumes that there is nothing beyond this life whilst ubiquitous advertising manipulates us into constantly craving novelty. But unending social media content in itself doesn’t satisfy, and something in our design longs to feel that we are on the side of a moral cause - whatever new moral framework we’ve constructed for ourselves. In quest of ever more extreme stimuli (and assurance that we’re on the side we deem good, wrestling what we deem evil), we can fall down rabbit holes - we might need to touch grass.
Whilst we observe a pretence from opportunistic political agitators that Christianity is a matter of identity politics by which one distinguishes oneself from Muslims (reminiscent of the faux religion against which Jesus railed in its hollow and proud exuberance), in reality it is first and foremost a personal commitment to repentantly follow Christ.
It may be difficult to feel certainty of God given that we cannot observe Him with the sensory tissue nor scientific instruments with which we perceive the natural world - He is not comprised of the matter and energy that these detect. But those who don’t believe might evaluate for themselves the reasoning advanced by theistic scientists and philosophers for concluding God to be reality, just as a certain radio station exists irrespective of its signal waning in the Chilterns.
It may be difficult to feel certainty of God given that we cannot observe Him with the sensory tissue nor scientific instruments with which we perceive the natural world - He is not comprised of the matter and energy that these detect. But those who don’t believe might evaluate for themselves the reasoning advanced by theistic scientists and philosophers for concluding God to be reality, just as a certain radio station exists irrespective of its signal waning in the Chilterns.
Is it not inevitable that celebrities increasingly influence public discourse? Cambridge Dictionary’s word of the year is Parasocial, many people are emotionally attached to celebrities and in turn look to them for direction on deep issues. Where else would they look, in our secular society? We seem to have been designed to instinctively crave a moral framework - and the Government’s numerous recent references to “moral mission” are indicative of this. But who determines what is moral? In lieu of an ultimate Creator of morality, people seek to follow favourite celebrities, and in turn politicians feel obliged to adhere.
I certainly recall the Twitter skirmish between JD Vance and Rory Stewart, I was heartened to see the latter's gently worded but comprehensive and astute rebuttal to the former's risible assertion about Christian principles.
A phrase from Jesus' teachings was utilised by Reagan in his oft quoted reference to America as "a shining city on a hill". Arguably this was a misuse of the phrase, which was partially about sharing the Gospel of what Jesus offers beyond this life, yet its use was demonstrative of an aspiration to be a positive entity in the world. Indeed there's been rife hypocrisy in that numerous US institutions and power holders have instead grossly exploited less wealthy nations (including plundering of natural resources). But Trump has abandoned any notion of benevolence entirely. Millions will die due to his Aid cuts - and now the world is being taught that avarice rules. The "good old days" were preferrable.
A phrase from Jesus' teachings was utilised by Reagan in his oft quoted reference to America as "a shining city on a hill". Arguably this was a misuse of the phrase, which was partially about sharing the Gospel of what Jesus offers beyond this life, yet its use was demonstrative of an aspiration to be a positive entity in the world. Indeed there's been rife hypocrisy in that numerous US institutions and power holders have instead grossly exploited less wealthy nations (including plundering of natural resources). But Trump has abandoned any notion of benevolence entirely. Millions will die due to his Aid cuts - and now the world is being taught that avarice rules. The "good old days" were preferrable.
Indeed, Christianity has shaped Western society - and we can be oblivious to this, just as we might not consciously contemplate the air we breathe having always been immersed in it. Though, whilst it has permeated civilisation, Christianity is not primarily defined by civilisational battles (contrary to what certain political voices increasingly imply). Christ did not seize territory nor implore battle against conflicting religions, He urged His listeners to personally repent and follow Him. This is of one's volition, irrespective of being in a "Christian country". I was taken to Church as a child, but did not believe until I encountered rational reasoning for concluding God's existence, and Jesus' resurrection, to be realities. Many Brits presume Christianity to be myth - and defiance against perceived restraints on liberty might render one hopeful that there is no God, yet many Christians experience greater freedom upon turning to Jesus "So if [Jesus] sets you free, you will be free indeed" (John 8:36).
No, *the Christian God* loves humanity so much that Christ died for us.
People misappropriating *religion* for power are the issue, Jesus argued with them frequently.
Because
the job market and economy are tougher. And plenty of public voices and
media outlets think normalising it is compassionate - it isn't. Women
should not be stigmatised, but the industry itself should be.
What's
incomparably more concerning, as much as I love chocolate and hate
price rises, is that labourers (including children) are grossly
exploited in the production of cocoa. We should be angry with the
corporations mistreating and underpaying those workers, not that we
ourselves need to search further for bargains on chocolate.
you can buy fair trade..
Indeed,
but that won't solve the problem. The exploitation will still exist, as
other customers are buying non Fairtrade. The issue isn't my
conscience, it's the reality for those suffering - what's needed is for
the corporations to be forced to end the abuse.
Jenrick
says that the country is broken. The brokenness of our country is the
departure from previously held values. On Thursday, Jenrick lied
outright when he told the Tory Whip that he wasn't about to defect
(reported by The Times).
Reform
says that we need to return to "Christian values" and we do, but Reform
doesn't know what they are. First and foremost is repentantly following
Christ, Farage can't even apologise for saying that Hitler was right -
of course, actual Christian values also include honesty, selflessness,
and loving one's neighbour (from elsewhere)
(For clarity, I am by no means suggesting that these values are exclusive to Christians)