Bruce (from dialogue
with Roy Casanova): Note: Please remember that my references to
Jesus here are directed at your belief in Jesus (with "your"
being used generically for all Christians), not my own. I no longer
believe in him or any other personal deity so I don't actually question
why he cannot prevent such "tragedies" from occurring or why
he cannot resurrect people from the dead.
AMANDA: If you don't
believe in Jesus, then why are you going through so much trouble in
trying to disprove Him to the world?
BRUCE: I'm not trying to "disprove [Jesus]
to the world," Amanda. If believing in Jesus or anything else
gives someone comfort, and they mind their own business, that's just
fine with me. The problem is with people like you, Amanda, because
you cause harm! There is no difference between you and any other
religious cult, including those Muslim terrorists on 9/11 that believed
they were "doing God's will" and that they would be rewarded
in heaven for their "courage" whilst "dying for God and
country." You use psychological torture (turn or burn) and
imposed guilt (you are a sinner) in order to propagate your faith, and
that is cruel and destructive. You are intolerant in claiming that
you alone hold the truth. You don't just say "This is what
I believe and it works for me, and if what others believe works for them
then that must be how God has chosen to speak to them."
No, Amanda, your "message" is the antithesis of this; what you
say is that anyone who fails to accept your religion (e.g., your
version of your religion), then they are being "misguided by the
devil," and if they don't "come to their senses" soon and
start accepting "the truth" then they are destined to eternal
torture in hell! In other words, Amanda, you basically hold a gun
to people's heads and say, "believe my way, or else suffer the
consequences! . . ." But what makes it even worse is that you
propagate this hate, intolerance and psychological terrorism disguised
behind feel-good words like, love, kindness, and compassion.
This is the kind of "hatred" I left behind when I left the
church, Amanda! I finally came to "see the light" about the
harsh reality of my Christian beliefs (Baptist, which, of course, was
the only true form of Christianity!). I recognized the harm I was
helping to promote, and I just put an end to it.
It's funny to me now because I receive a regular supply of hate mail
from "good Christians" telling me how "full of hate [I]
am," and that I'm "The Devil's helper working overtime,"
or "Spreader of lies, lies, lies, from the father of all lies, the
Devil," or "pure evil," etc., etc., and yet they always
manage to also inform me that they are "praying for me" and
that "God is love." So deep is their brainwashing that
they truly cannot see the dichotomy.
Bruce Monson