Consider the following: you’re living peaceably in a land that your ancestors staked claim to a few thousand years ago. You’re practicing your culture, happily. Your rites, your ceremonies, your superstitions have been handed down in the oral tradition generation after generation in myth and fable. Then one day some invading foreign power usurps your land. Bad enough. But adding insult to injury this new culture tells you that you’ll follow their rituals and rites, worship only their one particular loving god or they’ll kill you.
They use coercion. You initially resist, but when that fails you go through the motions. The invading culture suspects heresy and metes out punishment. Figuring the best way to ensure conversion takes root is via the young, they take your kids and send them away to better control their minds and strip the ancient heathen belief system from them. Success is measured by the elimination of the old culture’s beliefs, and the acceptance of the new culture’s ... and body count of those stiff necked traditionalists who resisted. No title of “martyr” for them; just “dead heathen.”
And so it was in the 16TH, 17TH, 18TH, 19TH centuries and into the 20th in North and South America. And so it was in Africa, and the Pacific Basin. And so it was in Australia and New Zealand. For this is the “mission” of Christianity. Destroy indigenous cultures, steal their children’s birthright, rape their minds, and instill the fear of hell and damnation the better to cultivate a love for their mythical “prince of peace” man-god. Save their souls even if it kills them.
No other religion on the planet, save Islam, proselytized by the sword and gun. No other belief system of an invading culture more worked toward the eradication of the conquered culture’s indigenous superstitions. Not the Romans, the Saxons, the Persians, the Greek city states, the Visigoths, the Hun, the Mongols, none of the “barbarian” tribes and cultures. Only Islam rivaled it.
Fact is, considering Christianity's methods and impact, calling those tribes barbarian is a misnomer. For while those tribes conquered and pillaged and laid claim to the spoils, pre and non-Christian conquerors left the vanquished people their birthright - their cultural beliefs and practices. And if those beliefs gradually declined as a result of assimilation, it was not by threat of death or institutionalized brainwashing.
This is the legacy of Christianity. But it doesn’t stop there. It goes on, just more subtly.
As I type this there are hundreds if not thousands of “Christian Group Homes” for troubled children in the US and around the world who are spreading the faith and saving souls through Christian barbarism. Operating under the guise of helping the most vulnerable among us to education, social adjustment and assimilation they rape both their minds and their bodies.
They use coercion. You initially resist, but when that fails you go through the motions. The invading culture suspects heresy and metes out punishment. Figuring the best way to ensure conversion takes root is via the young, they take your kids and send them away to better control their minds and strip the ancient heathen belief system from them. Success is measured by the elimination of the old culture’s beliefs, and the acceptance of the new culture’s ... and body count of those stiff necked traditionalists who resisted. No title of “martyr” for them; just “dead heathen.”
And so it was in the 16TH, 17TH, 18TH, 19TH centuries and into the 20th in North and South America. And so it was in Africa, and the Pacific Basin. And so it was in Australia and New Zealand. For this is the “mission” of Christianity. Destroy indigenous cultures, steal their children’s birthright, rape their minds, and instill the fear of hell and damnation the better to cultivate a love for their mythical “prince of peace” man-god. Save their souls even if it kills them.
No other religion on the planet, save Islam, proselytized by the sword and gun. No other belief system of an invading culture more worked toward the eradication of the conquered culture’s indigenous superstitions. Not the Romans, the Saxons, the Persians, the Greek city states, the Visigoths, the Hun, the Mongols, none of the “barbarian” tribes and cultures. Only Islam rivaled it.
Fact is, considering Christianity's methods and impact, calling those tribes barbarian is a misnomer. For while those tribes conquered and pillaged and laid claim to the spoils, pre and non-Christian conquerors left the vanquished people their birthright - their cultural beliefs and practices. And if those beliefs gradually declined as a result of assimilation, it was not by threat of death or institutionalized brainwashing.
This is the legacy of Christianity. But it doesn’t stop there. It goes on, just more subtly.
As I type this there are hundreds if not thousands of “Christian Group Homes” for troubled children in the US and around the world who are spreading the faith and saving souls through Christian barbarism. Operating under the guise of helping the most vulnerable among us to education, social adjustment and assimilation they rape both their minds and their bodies.
Whether under the auspices of organized churches, or run by self-proclaimed Christian “brothers and sisters” doing “the Lord’s work” these depositories for troubled kids are dispensaries of religious indoctrination, physical, sexual, and mental abuse which will haunt the survivor for her entire life. They flourish today because they are licensed and “blessed” by the states who are more than happy not to have to provide real and meaningful assistance at tax payer expense, and whose monitoring and input to these places are negligible if any at all.
Not until one of these religionist snake pits are exposed due to some outrageous excesses becoming public is there an investigation and intervention by secular authorities who always feign surprise that such a thing could happen. Why? Because Christianity gets a pass. In Western culture if it's Christian sponsored it must be good, the barbaric history of Christian outreach to those who never asked for it not withstanding.
Whether for financial gain or out of this sick need to infest minds and save non-existent souls, the barbarism of Christianity missions will never end until its false attributes of goodness and godliness are stripped away and it’s thrown into the trash bin where the atrocities of history belong.
Not until one of these religionist snake pits are exposed due to some outrageous excesses becoming public is there an investigation and intervention by secular authorities who always feign surprise that such a thing could happen. Why? Because Christianity gets a pass. In Western culture if it's Christian sponsored it must be good, the barbaric history of Christian outreach to those who never asked for it not withstanding.
Whether for financial gain or out of this sick need to infest minds and save non-existent souls, the barbarism of Christianity missions will never end until its false attributes of goodness and godliness are stripped away and it’s thrown into the trash bin where the atrocities of history belong.
Having worked with victims of the RC Christian Brothers, I have little regard for the Church's ability to protect the weak and defenseless.
ReplyDeleteI'm also happy to give Christianity pride-of-place in the proselytize with the sword category. I'm not sure, however, you can let all the other religions off so easily. While I can't say I've studied this point closely, I'd suggest that almost any invasion would involve some level of forcing the loser to accept the religious views of the victors - otherwise the loser will be harder to govern with religion acting as a potential catalyst for rebellion.
This could be more subtle (like the English "yes you can be Catholic, but you'll starve"), or overt like the Romans and Druids.
Mike,
ReplyDeleteThanks for the input.
The Romans never forcibly converted those in lands they conquered. In fact, very often the legions adopted gods from conquered lands and embraced them among their own pantheon of gods. Isis is an example.
The druids waged war against Rome. Rome's response was not religiously driven, simpy a matter of defanging those who represent the threat to the Empire.
Similarly, the period of Christian persecution was driven by the fact of Christian anti-patriotism, if you will, a rejection of service in the military and refusal to participat in Roman community. They set themselves apart and thus became "the other," and a threat to the empire's stability. There was no attempt to convert them to the prevailing pagan gods... anymore than the Jews were target of conversion within the empire.
"The Christians as the Romans saw them" covers this in great detail, albeit, the book is a hideously and interminably slow read.
Well, hump. All Christian history shows is that Christians are very good students. Their god says: "Love me or I'll kill you". No... worse than that, "I'll torture you forever".
ReplyDeleteExcellent choice of pic for the post. Looks like they put the "fear of god" into 'em.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the history lesson on this subject. I learned something new!
ReplyDeleteI get particularly annoyed at Christian charities proselytising to some of the most vulnerable members of our community who have no choice but to accept the welfare of these charities and all the religious bullshit that comes with it. These charities as well as proselytising by the sword and gun and even placing chaplains in schools are just three examples of Christians seeking a captive audience.
ReplyDeleteIt's truely sad christians who act like they are better than every one else even amongst their own divided religion (thanks to the bible mythmakers in seperating them). The state we are in shows that no christians is redeemed they speak badly of others yet go out of their way to do the exact same thing. They have children at a young age while living lawless thinking that action of morality is useless all they need is call on the name of jesus they are saved well they will see hitler in heaven then as well as all thetyrant rulers who said the name jesus as savior. Sad how they live just like the jews of their own mistranslated misqouted misinterpreted misundertood mistaken bible full of plagairism vampirism racism nepotism sexism hatred war-mongerism ignorants murderers rapist killers thieves liars false leaders messiahs and false god who can't seem to help them from even thinking of wrong doining (sinning). When does it end. A book that is full of confusion contradictions male dominance with no respect to women (who in fact came before men) and with its myth legend fairytales and down right bull that when crap hits the fan christians enjoy their own bad smell as if its sweet aroma. Just sad but even their messiah is a puzzling charater who was written about 4 times its bad enough these writters knew only by oral traditions and not by close encounter and being that the greek bible has no title odd t seems but very true so makes you wonder are christians mentally challenged when it comes to others culture
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure why you don't consider the history of communists in this picture. It seems to me that atheism can be just as brutal towards religious people as ???-practicing catholics (for this was the christian sect you were referring to). There are many exemples of persecution of religious people coming from eastern european countries, URSS, China, etc Look them up!
ReplyDeleteI'm sure there are many christian groups who would not do the evil things you mention above.
Also, as an atheist, what is your basis of morality? Who sais it's wrong to exterminate "inferior" races?
The nazis and some american scientists from the 1930s and 1940s believed the opposite!
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It seems to me that on the one side you generalize too much (blaming on all christians what some people living in opposition to christian beliefs did) and, on the other side, you are too specific (blaming on Christianity what evil men have done -- when Christ teaches love, forgiveness, mutual respect).