Civil Commotion

Can Albert Mohler prove that a supernatural being even exists? He cannot.

Can Albert Mohler prove that the Bible enjoys the imprimatur of the supernatural being he can’t prove exists? Of course not.

He has no right to say “God wants this” or “God condemns that” until he has established his premises, until he has shown that an all-powerful supernatural being actually exists and the Bible is the means for knowing what that supernatural being expects. He merely asserts it, because he knows he can’t prove such a claim — but that many people, perhaps most, will let him get away with it.

No more; he and his intellectually corrupt buddies have to be held accountable. No deference. Ever.

There is only one good thing about the Nashville Statement, and very few people are likely to get the benefit: Go looking for the premises, for the facts, for the justification of its myriad claims, and the thoughtful person will inevitably recognize how intellectually empty and intellectually corrupt Christian theology actually is.

After 2000-years and Niagaras of bloodshed, Christian theologians have failed to prove that god exists, that Jesus was a historical figure, that the Bible enjoys the imprimatur of those beings they can’t prove exist or ever existed, or even make a convincing argument — in view of the Bible’s preposterous claims — that the Bible wasn’t written by the first-century analog of a bunch of drunk college boys out to have some fun with the rubes. And, yet, they propose to rely upon it to justify constricting their neighbor’s Life, Liberty, and Pursuit of Happiness.

It’s tempting to say, “Oh, well, Mohler … that crowd, they’re stupid.” There is more at work here than plain-vanilla stupidity. Faith, resolute ignorance, is a character failure — and it needs to be called-out, because even stupider people pay attention to the things these preening frauds say.

A New Zealand cult that’s in the news makes explicit the death-wish theology at the bottom of Christian thought.

We seek to live a practical Christian life that mirrors life in Heaven, where there is perfect obedience to God, complete unity of thought, no self-will, no argument or strife, and no sin.

But, of course, the Southern Baptist Convention teaches the exact same thing, that you should strive to eliminate self-interest and self-direction from your life because your self is evil and an offense against the cosmos. This is degrading nonsense — and you cannot eliminate it from Christian thought. At bottom, Christianity is deeply anti-life.

And what is the Nashville Statement, you wonder? So far as I can tell, a fundraising gimmick meant to spur donations from stouthearted imbeciles.

It includes, for instance, the deranged claim that Adam and Eve were real people — so that tells you who it is aimed at.