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European/Global Christianity Versus American 'Christianity'


I'll admit, I'm an atheist, but NOT because I despise Christianity (on the contrary), but because I simply don't believe, for rationalist reasons. That said, I do suspect there's more to the universe/cosmos, and possibly spirituality than any of us, including the scientific community, can possily comprehend.

Still, whilst I find it impossible to believe, just as I suspect it's impossible for any *genuine* theist to *stop* believing, and thus don't begrudge either theists or more fellow atheists/agnostics, I actually have a lot of time for *genuine* people of faith.

Even setting aside the signficance of Christian Socialism, the importance of Methodism to abolishing slavery and the Labour/Union movement, Liberation Theology in many South American Catholic nations, and the apparent movement of Pope Francis towards a more progressive and out-reaching form of Catholism (which is certainly not to say that the Catholic Church doesn't still have many issues), I've observed that in the UK many of my fellow volunteers and leftist activists, are themselves devout Christians and Muslims, among other religions. The volunteer organisation for the homeless I regularly help at is predominantly made-up of Christians, Muslims and Hindu volunteers (although there are a few atheists and secularists, besides myself), and a lot of them lean to the left (often far more than I do; which, when it comes to issues like Israel, isn't *always* a good thing; most of the leftists I know, aren't anti-Semitic, but a few, otherwise well-meaning ones, have occasionally shown some dubious, albeit low-level, prejudice towards Jewish people; and just to be clear, some of my fellow volunteers are also Jewish, but they tend to lean more on the secular/atheist side).

Anyway, the point I'm making is that I find it very odd how dominant the right seems to be within US Christian circles, and vice-versa, even though I find little in common between the free-market, pro-capitalist, anti-immigrant, anti-tolerance, benefit-slashing, top-tax-rate-cutting, white supremacist attitudes of right-wingers, especially Reaganite/monetarist/socioeconomic conservatives (i.e. the tax-cutting/benefit slashing 'classical liberal'/trad Republican ones), and the more populist anti-immigrant/white supremacist brand, that had dominated the party post-Obama/from the Tea Party eras up until Trump (although admittedly, the two brands often seem to merge, more for convenience than out of shared and consistent ideology; many 1980s-era monetarists, of your Alex P. Keating type, would abhor the viscerally racist/misogynist diirection the GOP has taken in recent years).

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"how dominant the right seems to be within US Christian circles"

Not really. Those are white evangelicals and perhaps some Catholics and Orthodox Jews. Black evangelicals, some Catholics and Non-Orthodox Jews tend to be liberal.

What you're listing is the Christian Nationalism movement in the U.S. which is really a political movement instead of religious one. Republicans attempt to attract more people by addressing them in churches or through their clergy.

American Christianity also has Prosperity Theology which isn't a thing in Europe.

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Agreed, Keelai. Not *all* American Christians are conservative, by any means, and increasingly a lot of non-evangelical Protestant sects appear to be moving more to the left, and embracing gay marriage, which, suffice to say, I regard as a very good thing, but Christianity does appear to be very dominant in US right-wing politics, and, alas, it seems that the reverse is also true (I understand Southern Baptists, who tend to lean very much to the right, and have historical links to pro-slavery/pro-Confederate politics, are the largest Protestant group in the US, and, as you say, there is a significant proportion of right-wing Catholics, although it's also fair to say that many American Catholics also lean to the left, for a variety of reasons).

I also agree with you, and appreciate it, when you say that 'Christian Nationalism' is a fundamentally political movement. I've long said that various right-wing parties across the world, including Franco in fascist Spain and recently Putin in Russia, have cynically exploited Christianity, without truly subscribing to any Christian behaviour or any apparently genuine beliefs (and yes, I feel much the same way about the adulterous and money-hungry Trump, part. on this issue, as I suspect you do; does this man *truly* believe in Christian theology, and if he does, how can he misunderstand it that badly? As academically ignorant and intellectually lazy as the man may be, I actually don't believe he's *that* stupid; if men like him and Hitler were entirely stupid they wouldn't be able to manipulate as many people as they do; however much we may abhor them, that does require *some* intelligence/skill). Still, whatever men like Trump and Putin may (or more accurately, may not) believe, many of their adherents seem genuine, and honestly seem to believe their attitudes and political allegiences can sincerely be reconciled with their Christianity. Suffice to say, I think they're wrong, BUT I do believe they are (scarily) sincere.

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"... have cynically exploited Christianity, without truly subscribing to any Christian behaviour or any apparently genuine beliefs "

Same thing in the U.S.. Republicans used "religion" to get more supporters.

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That's what I'm saying, and in this day-and-age, the US is arguably doing this more than any other country (hence my comparison between 'European and US Christianity').

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Why did you leave out "Satanism"? Official religion of California.

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Because I was talking about Christianity, both with respect to its left-wing and right-wing (and apolitical) adherents, and Satanism has nothing to do with that.

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