Explain Christianity Again, Please?

Well, Duh! How did I miss that? Now the whole thing makes perfect sense!

Yes, that's what I do every day, you flaming bigot.

Fantastic! If that's what you believe then go for it! I say if you aren't hurting anyone, do whatever makes you happy.

Whoever authored this meme is suffering from the delusion that Christians should just sit there and take their bigoted verbal abuse.

Ok oook

SMH, I can't believe that's what they do! Thank you for triggering this bigot called ninja2016

Instead of mocking things you don't understand, it might be better to try and understand them.

I am trying to understand, that is the whole point. If Willie Wonka's "condensed version" of the Bible is incorrect, please educate me. Then please explain how that story makes any sense at all. BTW, I did not mention aliens, that was someone else. :)

Thanks for your reply, but looking at the meme you wrote, it doesn't look to me like someone trying to understand the Bible's claims. It looks like the claims in the meme are close enough to the truth that people will recognize them, but they have been distorted to the point where they are not claims that the Bible would make for itself (so I remain skeptical about your statement that the whole point is that you're trying to understand).

For example, praying and sending telepathic messages aren't the same thing. Telepathic messages can presumably be among equals, while prayer must always be to a higher power.

Another example is that describing Jesus Christ as a dead Jew misses the point. Yes, it's true that he died, but he also rose again from the grave. Right now he's not dead, but alive.

The other example is that comparing Christ's death to a human sacrifice (in the sense of a pagan human sacrifice) seems dishonest. It's true that he was human, and it's true that he gave his own life (ie, sacrificed), but pagan sacrifices are a very different thing to what happened when Christ died on the cross. Pagan sacrifices are something humans came up with in an attempt to turn away the anger of the gods. They don't know for certain whether the sacrifices are legitimate, or will be accepted or not. In contrast, God's sending of his own Son to take the punishment that sinful human beings deserved was an act of love and mercy that was God's own concept. It is perfectly legitimate, and it is certain that God accepts it.

Those are just some examples. The meme also misrepresents salvation as a trade between us and God (we do this, and God will do this). That's not accurate.

The truth is that we're sinners, who deserve God's punishment because of the way we live independently of him, defying his commands. We're not in a position to make any deals. Salvation is a free gift of God. Christ's death on the cross, where he takes the punishment we deserve, and instead gives us right standing before God based on the goodness of his own life, is nothing we can earn.

I hope my initial comment didn't come across as too harsh, but my observation stands that it's better to try to understand things before mocking them. I hope you will make the attempt to understand what the Bible is saying on its own terms - especially what it teaches about Christ, and salvation from our sin.

Wow socrates, thank you for your courteous and thoughtful reply. That is a very rare and welcome thing to find on the internet (or anywhere) these days. I was about to debate your line items one-by-one, then thought maybe it would be simpler to just say that after going to Catholic school daily for 8 years and attending church services twice weekly during that time and studying the Bible for a few decades more after that I find that I still cannot follow your logic, and I cannot live by the moral code therein. As a matter of fact, I have never met or even heard of anyone, Christian or not, who does live by the Bible. As you say "taken on it's own terms" I find the Bible to be a hateful and repulsive guide to human affairs, and refuse to believe that it represents the wishes and values of a just and loving god. While I respect your right to believe whatever you wish to believe, it sounds to me like you are picking out the parts of the Bible you like, and ignoring the parts you don't. So, yes, I do think that memes are a fun way to point out the inconsistencies, illogical arguments, contradictions and repulsive values that are inherent in the Bible (and those who claim to live by it). Thanks again for being courteous, and best of luck in the eternal paradise that awaits you!

Thanks. I don't really see anything in my comment that would give anyone a reason to say "it sounds to me like you are picking out the parts of the Bible you like, and ignoring the parts you don't."

But thanks for reading the comment. See you on another meme maybe. :)