Posted on 03/15/2021 4:20:00 AM PDT by Kaslin
At the independent, fundamentalist Baptist church I grew up attending in the 1980s, legalism was a staple, and the ‘rules’ were seemingly endless. Skirts (or something called ‘culottes’) for women and girls, long pants only for men and boys, and dresses and ties on Sunday morning. Good Christians didn’t dance or go to Hollywood movies. They didn’t smoke, cuss, or drink or hang around with those who did. Music wasn’t allowed unless it was Christian, and regardless of the lyrics, it wasn’t ‘Christian’ if it had drums, an upbeat tempo, or was written after 1895 (or thereabouts).
And the “thou shalts” were just as onerous as the “thou shalt nots.” Regular church attendance (three times a week), soul-winning, tithing (at least 10% of ‘gross’ income because we need a new auditorium and hey, you can’t outgive God!), and daily Bible study and prayer were all expected, at a minimum.
Aside from the rules and requirements, the belief system one had to adhere to in order to be a ‘good Christian’ was, shall we say, specific. From a six-day creation 6,000 or so years ago to the pre-tribulation Rapture of the Church to the King James Bible laying it all out in the very words of God himself, my particular religious neck of the woods had it ALL figured out, and we weren’t shy about patting ourselves on the back about it.
Rule-making, of course, isn’t just for fundamentalist Baptists. To the Pharisees, the Puritans, and countless other sects, cults, and religions throughout history to the present day, the establishment of such rules, requirements, and belief systems are typically meant to help bring the follower closer to the Creator. Follow these, it is reasoned, and the faithful will at the very least stay ON the right road and avoid falling OFF the proverbial cliff to eternal damnation.
Granted, sometimes there existed a solid reason for some of the rules. One can make a strong case, for example, for keeping sex - and especially children - within the confines of a loving, committed marriage. Other times - like dress codes and the absurd prohibition against going to movie theaters when everyone knew good and well we were all renting them - not so much.
Ironically, Jesus himself didn’t seem to be much of a rules guy or even someone who cared all that much whether everyone’s theology was 100 percent correct. In fact, the object of Christian worship summed up the entire law and prophets in two simple commands: Love God and love your neighbor. Do those things, in any culture or religious background, and the ‘rules’ don’t matter so much, do they?
Ah, but a proper love of the Creator means you’ll WANT to obey all the rules, they say. True, but how many came from man, and how many came from God? For example, I’m pretty sure Jesus wouldn’t mind me having the occasional glass of wine, especially considering he once MADE IT HIMSELF at a wedding. Clearly, there’s a difference between rank legalism and living one’s life in line with general principles of morality and doing good to others.
Which brings us to the other side of this hellish coin, Puritans of another stripe altogether. You see, the religious aren’t the only ones hellbent on establishing and following dumb rules and strict belief systems. Indeed, the woke left has its own set of requirements and regulations its adherents must follow, and the belief system it demands fielty to is just as rigid and unyielding, if not more so, as the cultiest Christian cult.
From speech codes to microaggressions to the broad spectrum of toxic, punishing censorship known as cancel culture, it’s become impossible to point out even blatantly obvious truths without drawing the wrath of the woke left. And unlike religion, you don’t have to be a ‘member’ to be ‘forced’ to assent to their insane beliefs and obey their ridiculous dictates on pain on social ostracization, job loss, and even physical harm. Like fundamentalist Christianity, fundamentalist wokism purports to justify their rules as a way to keep people on the proverbial ‘road,’ not to heaven, but to what they consider a better, more utopian society. Read a Dr. Seuss book, they reason, and the next thing you know you’re putting on a white hood and joining the Klan. But just like rules-obsessed Christians, they’re missing the point.
Like fundamentalist Christianity (I’m ‘picking’ on them only because I was one!), needless legalism and illogical Puritanism tend to provoke rebellion. When you hear about the woke left wanting to ban a book, what’s the first thing you want to do? Why locate and BUY THAT BOOK, obviously, right? We knee-jerk WANT to defy them just because they are lame, insufferable prudes and usually the things they are trying to force people to do or believe are counterproductive, dumb, and often objectively evil.
Of course, they’ll tell you that political correctness, cancel culture, and wokism are just ways to build a ‘tolerant’ society. Being kind and respectful to people is one thing, and yes, it’s the right thing to do. But when some pencil-necked dweeb in a “Yes I am a male feminist” t-shirt condescendingly lectures us about the 9,673 microaggressions we must not commit in order to be considered a “good person,” most Americans who live in the real world roll their eyes and gets back to work. I mean really, WHO NEEDS all that guilt?
The overarching pattern here is this: people are always trying to make life more complicated than it needs to be. To paraphrase someone the left hates very much (for some reason), it’s a good thing to treat others as we would want to be treated. Whatever your religious and political background and baggage, my advice is to follow that general principle, ignore the modern-day woke Puritans, and give the rest to God.
Don’t think so.
Wokeism and socialism are counterfeit Christianity’s, wanting the goodness of God, without having God.
A fulfillment of II Timothy 3:5
True fundamentalism means following what the Bible says--and not adding in your own rules and regulations that others must follow. (it's fine to add rules for yourself, if that helps you stay on the straight-and-narrow).
No--the two are complete opposites. "Wokeism" is just plain fascism and slavery. Christianity is freedom.
This is stupid
I grew up in an Independent Baptist church, too. It was nothing like this man described. It’s because of articles like this, I don’t read any of Townhall’s stuff.
I grew up in an Independent Baptist church, too. It was nothing like this man described. It’s because of articles like this, I don’t read any of Townhall’s stuff.
Yet another spectacular and breath-taking example of how clueless our side is, although this guy is so stupid it looks like he is actively taking part in the destruction of America.
Townhall is supposed to be a “conservative” site, right? They certainly publish folks who are aligned with the chaos, violence, and nihilism of the ongoing Chinese cultural revolution (American style) being carried out in America.
I still say that the wokesters make even a hardshell East Texas IFB seem like a laissez faire libertarian.
This article seems to be more of an attack on what the author would call an “unfair upbringing” than a serious article on wokeism. I hope he can work through his adolescent rebellion against “rules.“ Although none of us can know the man’s heart, I sense a great deal of bitterness. Can a serious adult truly lament not being able to see movies as a youth? So go watch your movies. Do they edify? Does wine bring fulfillment and meaning to your life?
I’m sorry he feels like he missed out, but it is possible he was saved from more than he knows.
Sincerely,
One who met Christ as an adult
Not even close. One uses the word of God to direct you to Jesus the other uses shame and force of destroying your life to comply.
Glad to see all the vigorous rejections of the OP article.
Also glad that finger he is pointing is not a gun!
Granted, sometimes there existed a solid reason for some of the rules. One can make a strong case, for example, for keeping sex - and especially children - within the confines of a loving, committed marriage.
Um, this is actually one of the 10 Commandments...one does not simply say "Thou shall not commit adultery" is a "rule."
This piece came out after Trump won but it remains THE best in explaining the new left. This writer's thesis is similar to our Town Hall writer, except this guy is correct:
Liberals have always accused social conservatives of bringing religion into politics, but liberals have done something far worse, and far more radical: They have made politics their religion...What they really want is liberal Sharia law, a secular theocracy.
The minimum wage, gender equality, nationalized health care, and global warming—whatever their practical virtues—are not just expedient policy prescriptions. They are essential aspects of the liberal fatwa... Question them and you are not just wrong—you are a heretic...for them, politics is the means to secular salvation...political failure is not just a setback on the road to a more stable society—it is a blow to their very worldview. Opposition to their program is not just wrong-headed, but evil.
bkmk
I was reading about Matthew Hopkins, the witchfinder general and the times and place he lived in, and the atmosphere of Puritan England reminded me a lot of the the Social Justice Warrior climate we are living in today.
It was full of the same purity tests, literal witch hunts, but also people in general loving to hop on bandwagons in condemning their own family and neighbours for any straying away from zealous puritan ideals.
The iconoclasm and insane desire to destroy the past was also in evidence too. Quite literally whitewashing history by painting over medieval scenes from the bible that had existed for centuries on church walls because to even tolerate their continued existance was to venerate the old corruption and idoloatry of the Catholic church that England had belonged to only 100 years before.
Not even remotely. Fundamentalist religion follows a written word and places final authority in an almighty God. Thesee are limiting factors. Leftism, wokeisim whatever is made up in any given moment and can and does and eill contradict itself at many points. Wokeisim is angry and justifies it’s rage.
I grew up in a Southern Baptist church and, except for the drinking part, was never given, and never have been given, his long list of “rules.”
Sorry. Nope.
Sorry. Nope.
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