One of my big problems with Fundamentalist Christians...

[polimicks]

Particularly of the Jack Chick tract reading variety.

"Being a good person won't get you into Heaven."

That is a line used in several Chick tracts.

"Being a good person won't get you into Heaven."

However, apparently being a child-raping, axe-murdering douchebag who at the zero hour proclaims, "Jesus, I'm sorry forgive me!" will.

This use of Jesus as a "Get out of trouble for being a hypocritical, cruel, lying douchebag for my entire life," card is what really annoys the fuck out of me. I've had this debate before. Many times. And it never makes any more sense to me. Well, it does, but not how most of these people think it does.

It's much easier to live your life as a douchebag and then ask forgiveness than it is to just not be a douchebag for a lot of people.

Me? I'd really rather just not be a douchebag and trust that whatever primal creative force in the universe there is is actually just. Because if it is, then a whole lot of these fuckheads are in for a rude awakening. And my primal creative force is totally OK with gloating.

I've talked about my best friend in Jr. High before. Her folks became born agains when we were 14. And their preacher ran off with all the church money and his mistress. Then, when the money ran out came slinking back with his tail between his legs, and they forgave him, his wife took him back and they let him be minister again. Which, I'm guessing, lasted until roughly about the time the church treasury held enough money for him to buy another sports car, run off with another mistress, and burn through it all in about six months again.

See, here's the thing. I don't know who's right, but I do ascribe to the sort of God who allowed us to develop modern medicine to fix diseases rather than refusing treatment and just bugging him with prayers. The kind of God who sends two boats and a helicopter to someone trapped in a flooding house, but my God would also slap the fool who refused all three of those in the back of the head, a la Gibbs on NCIS, when they showed up at the Pearly Gates, and then send their prideful "God will save me personally" ass right on down to Hell.

And I'm also a firm believer that if you live your life as a fucking doucheclam, then whatever happens in the afterlife will probably not be pleasant no matter how many times you say you're sorry to Jesus.

Honestly, we all just need one commandment: Thou Shalt Not be a Shithead.

And if being a good person won't get you into Heaven, then I don't want to go. I mean, who the hell wants to spend eternity surrounded by a bunch of hypocritical fucksticks who pulled a fast one on God? Or more to the point, a God who would allow a bunch of hypocritical fucksticks to pull a fast one on him? Oh, and I'm sure they are sincere in their deathbed conversions. I really am. For that five minutes I am sure they are the most sincere mother fuckers on this planet. Like the saying goes, "There are no atheists in foxholes."

And the idea that God is so petty that if you don't use the right name, you're doomed. Like God's some sort of socialite who'll snub you for mispronouncing her name. I mean, seriously. God is in charge of everything everywhere and he's going to get his knickers in twist because you call him "Allah" or "Buddha" or even "Cerridwen?"

This is NOT how I feel about all Christians. I've known some pretty awesome, very actually Christian people who live good lives, are kind to children and animals and do it not because it'll get them to Heaven, but because being a good person is the right thing to do and they view Faith as a means to this end. These folks, I respect.

To Jack Chick and all his ilk, fuck off and die in fire. Seriously.

Comments

[cochese.livejournal.com]

That belief comes up a lot in Buddhism. It doesn't mean they get the Enlightenment cookie for free or that you should let them hurt others. It just means they are no less worthy of your compassion than the most noble of saints. (Different traditions may vary on that point.) Conversely, it was possible for the most evil people to work towards Enlightenment. There are at least a couple figures in Buddhist tradition who were serious villains that ended up becoming Enlightened, though. (The one that comes to mind is Angulimala (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Angulimala), who was effectively a serial killer.)

[sirriamnis.livejournal.com]

Yes, but they have to WORK toward enlightenment.

Not just say, "I'm sorry, Jesus. Save me."

Fuck that.

[cochese.livejournal.com]

No argument there. I was primarily citing the Buddhism with the notion that even the most vile people are worthy of compassion. (And, to tie in with what rae_is says farther down, forgiveness as well.) As I said, infinite compassion isn't a Get Out of Jail Free card.

I don't know that *I* have it in me to have that sort of forgiveness. But I can at least explain my understanding of Buddhist thought as I commonly see it explained. I don't think all traditions have the same attitude as what I described above, but it's the approach that I see most often.

[cochese.livejournal.com]

I should add: Forgiveness, as I describe it above, does not let go of accountability. There's a difference between holding someone accountable and hating them for it. As part of compassion for all living beings, there's a level of "doing the best you can with what you got." Sometimes some must suffer for the betterment of the whole. Which means animals get killed for food, muderers go to jail for murdering. It doesn't mean you hate the animals or the murderer, but it's better to kill an animal than to let people starve and it's better to lock up the murderer than to let him murder.