I love Bill Maher. Not only is he hilarious and smart, he’s completely anti-bullshit. I own a copy of Jesus Camp and he is completely right about it. What Becky Fisher does with those kids and what they become after exposure to her philosophy is some scary stuff.
Agreed that Jesus Camp depicts some severely disturbing practices that are too common in evangelical churches. And there are many, many hypocrites in Christian churches. I think both these facts can largely be attributed to the cultural status of Christianity in the West. It is desirable and profitable to pose as a faithful Christian – notice our line of Presidents from Washington (who attended but always left before communion) up till today. Notice also that in the Midwest a company will be seen as trustworthy if they label their company as Christian. There are also many groups both within and outside the church who want to use the social power of Christianity – the evangelical voting bloc – for ends outside of the church, which you clearly see in Jesus Camp as the children pray over an image of then-President Bush.
At the same time, I think we have the resources to tell the difference between faithful Christian practice and sham Christian practice. As a believer, this is what I spend most of my time doing, trying to distinguish between a real application of Jesus’ teachings, and the kind of power-grab that politicians and businesses want to do in Jesus’ name.
Comments (3)
I love Bill Maher. Not only is he hilarious and smart, he’s completely anti-bullshit. I own a copy of Jesus Camp and he is completely right about it. What Becky Fisher does with those kids and what they become after exposure to her philosophy is some scary stuff.
Agreed that Jesus Camp depicts some severely disturbing practices that are too common in evangelical churches. And there are many, many hypocrites in Christian churches. I think both these facts can largely be attributed to the cultural status of Christianity in the West. It is desirable and profitable to pose as a faithful Christian – notice our line of Presidents from Washington (who attended but always left before communion) up till today. Notice also that in the Midwest a company will be seen as trustworthy if they label their company as Christian. There are also many groups both within and outside the church who want to use the social power of Christianity – the evangelical voting bloc – for ends outside of the church, which you clearly see in Jesus Camp as the children pray over an image of then-President Bush.
At the same time, I think we have the resources to tell the difference between faithful Christian practice and sham Christian practice. As a believer, this is what I spend most of my time doing, trying to distinguish between a real application of Jesus’ teachings, and the kind of power-grab that politicians and businesses want to do in Jesus’ name.
Bill Mahr just rubs me the wrong way.