Go to Hell?
Last night as I watched David Fisher, the co-owner of the funeral home in Six Feet Under, continue to struggle in his effort to reconcile his flaming homosexuality and his strong Christian faith, I began to contemplate my own fate in the supposed after-life. The way I see it, David and I have one thing in common: we are both going to hell according to Christian tenets. The Bible may contain many, many self-contradictions, but it is unequivocal as far as one thing is concerned: You are going to hell if you are gay or if you are not a believer, even if you are such a swell guy. On the other hand, idiots like Jerry Falwell, who have pretty much preached intolerance against gays and non-Christians all his life, not to mention being blatantly racist, have a clear path to this so-called Heaven because they have been serving the Lord. Judging by the criteria found in a pamphlet I got the other day, even Saddam Hussein can get into Heaven (if he's not already in Hell) so long as he repents his sins and puts all his faith in Jesus Christ our savior. That's the one thing I will never understand or forget as long as I'm sane.
Living in this predominantly Christian country, it is unsurprising that I have many friends who are Christians, even some very devout ones. Thankfully, most if not all of them are socially liberal and they have never tried to proselytize me. But sometimes I wonder if they have ever contemplated the possibility of me, who they have known and hanged out with for years, getting all kind of special treatments from demons and goblins and devils while being roasted in a very hot place, since I'm not one of them. On the other hand, I'm glad I won't have to think about my Jewish/Muslim/Hindu/non-religious friends suffering all kinds of torture come Judgment Day since I don't believe in any of this hail fire and brimstone bullshit. Of course, I don't think my Christian friends take all this gloom and doom stuff seriously, at least I hope not. Also, even though I'm not as familiar with Islam or Judaism or Hinduism, I wouldn't at all be surprised if I will have a similar fate awaiting my infidel ass.
The fact that my closest, best friends and blowtards like Pat Robertson and people who hold "God Hates Fags" signs outside of "The Laramie Project" productions all believe in the same religion just boggles my mind. Similarly, how could my friend Imran, one of the nicest, most friendly people I know, and Osama Bin Laden share the same religion? Obviously, the demagogues have all twisted and manipulated the teachings of their respective religions to carry out their nefarious agendas, but they appear to have too much conviction in their actions to suggest that they are being totally insincere. What gives?
Last night as I watched David Fisher, the co-owner of the funeral home in Six Feet Under, continue to struggle in his effort to reconcile his flaming homosexuality and his strong Christian faith, I began to contemplate my own fate in the supposed after-life. The way I see it, David and I have one thing in common: we are both going to hell according to Christian tenets. The Bible may contain many, many self-contradictions, but it is unequivocal as far as one thing is concerned: You are going to hell if you are gay or if you are not a believer, even if you are such a swell guy. On the other hand, idiots like Jerry Falwell, who have pretty much preached intolerance against gays and non-Christians all his life, not to mention being blatantly racist, have a clear path to this so-called Heaven because they have been serving the Lord. Judging by the criteria found in a pamphlet I got the other day, even Saddam Hussein can get into Heaven (if he's not already in Hell) so long as he repents his sins and puts all his faith in Jesus Christ our savior. That's the one thing I will never understand or forget as long as I'm sane.
Living in this predominantly Christian country, it is unsurprising that I have many friends who are Christians, even some very devout ones. Thankfully, most if not all of them are socially liberal and they have never tried to proselytize me. But sometimes I wonder if they have ever contemplated the possibility of me, who they have known and hanged out with for years, getting all kind of special treatments from demons and goblins and devils while being roasted in a very hot place, since I'm not one of them. On the other hand, I'm glad I won't have to think about my Jewish/Muslim/Hindu/non-religious friends suffering all kinds of torture come Judgment Day since I don't believe in any of this hail fire and brimstone bullshit. Of course, I don't think my Christian friends take all this gloom and doom stuff seriously, at least I hope not. Also, even though I'm not as familiar with Islam or Judaism or Hinduism, I wouldn't at all be surprised if I will have a similar fate awaiting my infidel ass.
The fact that my closest, best friends and blowtards like Pat Robertson and people who hold "God Hates Fags" signs outside of "The Laramie Project" productions all believe in the same religion just boggles my mind. Similarly, how could my friend Imran, one of the nicest, most friendly people I know, and Osama Bin Laden share the same religion? Obviously, the demagogues have all twisted and manipulated the teachings of their respective religions to carry out their nefarious agendas, but they appear to have too much conviction in their actions to suggest that they are being totally insincere. What gives?
posted by Gary at
1:19 PM
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