Martyring the Evangelically Demented, Systematically (MEDS)

A TSUNAMI, which in less politically and terminologically correct times would have been termed a "tidal wave", swept into Indonesia, killing hundreds, but, thank heaven, sparing thousands more, unlike previous tsunamis and/or tidal waves. Out popped the zealous fundamentalist Christians, like hallucinogenic mushrooms after a summer shower, proclaiming that the Islamic Indonesians were spared by Jesus Christ, presumably providing proof of the urgency for their conversion. Its easy to imagine how ingenious the evangelicals consider themselves when posing such sacred and undeniable but, alas insane truths. Benjamin Franklin struck Jefferson's term "sacred and undeniable" from the Declaration of Independence and replaced it with "self evident" for the same reason that the right wing Christian version of Islam, Christianity, and truth should be deep dumpstered and replaced with reason; a preference among intelligent people for verifiable truth, and a contempt for zealous religious jargon and fantasy. We who boldly embrace reality stipulate that people who are spared death by tsunami save themselves by fleeing far enough, and by the limitations inherent in even the forces unleashed by nature, and nature's God. Recently this website published an essay praising Islamic culture for its humane treatment of and reverence for cats. Cat lovers agreed, but out came the Christian zealots. Amid a discussion of our beloved pet cats at the senior center, I offered similar comments in praise of culturally mandated respect for cats; out came the usual suspects (Christian lunatics). A slim pamphlet in terms of paper and reason, was placed on my table, called "The voice of Martyrs", a publications intent on glorifying some imaginary global martydom of true believers, in the face of some imaginary assault on their true faith, the only faith, the Christian faith. Millions of Muslims convert to the one and only true faith, the christian faith, it is claimed, at great peril, rendering them true martyrs, as well as new true believers. This, in the face of the fact that Islam is growing in numbers, and Christianity is shrinking, particularly in Europe and the United States. As Casey Stengal used to say: "you could look it up". Dear heavens, what one must endure for the love of cats. A favorite ploy of the zealously unbalanced is to invent an event, elevate it to the status of dogma, then proclaim its truth by virtue of its uniqueness. Hence the Christian faith becomes, by a long train of tortured thinking, the only religion on the planet with a living savior, thus proving it unique monopoly on reality, when in fact living Gods and saviors are more plentiful in human culture than the post shower mushrooms all closed minded zealots might be well advised to consume. They go well with wafers and wine, and at least hold the promise of illuminating the pathologically ill devout. Some hallucination engendered revelations are transcendent and sublime; those having to do with religious hatred and bigotry dwell in the realm of the pathologically irredeemable.