May 26, 2022
Christians often say things that sound nice, cute, and pleasant, but when you dig into what these things actually mean, you’ll find pretty horrifying implications.
Some of the things on this list I was even guilty of saying myself. It wasn’t until I had some distance from the Church that I was finally able to take a step back, get some perspective, and fully understand just what the hell I’d been saying that whole time.
“Identity in Christ”
Translation: You don’t get a choice as to your identity. You don’t get to pick, choose, adjust, pivot, or even try anything else.
“Identity in Christ” doesn’t really make much sense when taken literally, but it essentially means that this your identity as a Christian and believer in Jesus. It means you are now the same copy/paste version of all the other Christians in your church.
“He’s So Zealous”
Translation: He’s abrasive and abusive.
It means he gets to say what he wants, do what he wants, and run over as many people as he wants because it’s all worth it to spread the kingdom of God.
This word has been used to excuse the bad behavior of extreme Type A celebrity pastors who cause a hell of a lot of harm on their “mission” to evangelize.
I discussed this idea further in my article Are Pastor Downfalls Inevitable?
“Love the Sinner But Hate the Sin”
Translation: You’ll be friends with LGBTQ+ people, talk to them, and invite them to church… but you still think they’re going to hell anyway.
This one’s a classic.
It’s an easy write-off meant to bridge the gap that exists because Christianity is supposed to disapprove of same-sex attraction, but at the same time needs to “modernize” in order to keep a younger generation coming to church when so many of those same young people have lost all patience with those who disapprove of these lifestyles.
“Freedom in Christ”
Translation: Servitude, slavery, and following a bunch of rules.
I discuss this early on in my book.
“Freedom in Christ” doesn’t make any sense at all. Being a Christian and believing in Jesus is perhaps one of the least free lifestyles there is.
Having to worship one guy (or anyone) is not freedom. Having to exclude all different spiritual beliefs and paths in favor of a single one is not freedom. Limiting your behavior according to an arbitrary list mashed up from the Bible and contemporary Christian culture is not freedom (especially when the authority figures are not even close to holding themselves to the same standard.
“Pride of the Flesh”
Translation: Having a confident, healthy opinion of yourself is bad.
If you derive self worth, confidence, self-assuredness, and assertiveness from deep within you (where it actually comes from) as opposed to externalizing it to a god, then you are in the wrong. You’re “prideful” and you need to “check your heart” before you “stumble.”
I explore this in more detail in my article Pride & The Deconverted Man.
“Persecution”
Translation: Being contradicted.
When Christians spout nonsense and people refute it, debate it, prove it wrong, fact check it, or even politely decline to have the conversation, Christians consider themselves and their beliefs as being “persecuted.”
Using this term in these circumstances is more than a little dramatic.
“Treasures in Heaven”
Translation: Real life only begins after you die.
Christians really are not fans of being alive.
They trudge through the mire that is reality on Earth with a keen eye turned toward their death and afterlife, where only then will the true life begin. There, they’ll be rewarded with their “treasures” that are meant to compensate them for a well-lived life of obedience and evangelizing and abstaining from sin.
Never mind that life in Heaven just seems so… boring. No one was really able to describe to me what Heaven was supposed to be like. Apparently it’s 24/7 nonstop worshipping of God. That actually sounds like my personal hell down here on Earth.
I always supposed my human sensibilities of what was boring or not would be wiped away when I was in Heaven and my soul would somehow be “reprogrammed” to be really excited about worshipping God all day, every day. But I don’t like that idea either. I don’t want to be reprogrammed to like it. That means I didn’t choose it, which means it’s meaningless. Would God really want to be worshipped every day by someone who was forced to because he was somehow an altered version of his true self?
On second thought, knowing the Christian God and the way he’s portrayed in the Old Testament… yes, he probably would enjoy such a thing.
“The Good News”
Translation: You need to accept and believe that a man who lived 2,000 years was the son of God and your personal savior. Or else!
If you don’t immediately agree to do this now, you’ll burn in hell, a place of everlasting conscious torment, for all eternity.
(And you’ll deserve it too because we warned you and you didn’t listen).
“God’s Mysterious Ways”
Translation: Condoning pain and suffering around the world since God is somehow “glorified through it all.”
This is one way that Christians check out of reality and avoid responsibility. When insane and horrific stuff happens around the world, Christians must wrestle with an idea of an all-powerful God who could’ve stopped it, but chose not to. The best they can drudge up was that by him allowing these things to happen, he’s glorified. Meaning… his plan to spread his kingdom on earth is now closer to fruition? Was it worth the death, the genocide, the starvation, and the sickness?
Conclusion
Words are powerful. Words mean things. However, it’s entirely possible to say some words that are not at all backed up by the literal meanings of those words. With enough persuasion, social pressure, and yes—even a little bit of brainwashing—people can accept things to mean just about anything, no matter how backwards it is.