+Every so often I feel an urge to criticise religionists (why, why, why?). This morning I was given a perfect prompt to satisfy this urge when two of them debated head to head about the latest appalling massacre of schoolchildren in the U.S. This debate occurred on the BBC’s Sunday programme, which often finds devout Christians and other religionists tearing into each other. From my point of view that’s quite entertaining. This time we had one preacher (as I think Revs are commonly called in the States) saying how gun laws need to be tightened up. The other, perhaps bidding to become Donald Trump’s chaplain was convinced that Jesus himself had authorised the liberal supply of weaponry now in the possession of Americans, sane or not. Naturally the to and fro involved a number of quotes from the Good Book, which did little to enlighten us as to what Jesus actually said about the possession of assault rifles. The Trump leaning preacher claimed that owning a killing machine was a God given right (never mind the Second Amendment). I assume he stands firm with the sixth commandment ‘Thou shalt not kill’ but I am sure there are many caveats to that—its interpretation is purely contextual (which is to say it’s not a commandment at all).
Co-incidentally, today being a Sunday a leaflet was popped through my letterbox asking ‘Are YOU ready? Don’t be left behind.’ This came from some unnamed religious outfit concerned about my salvation and eternal life. One doesn’t need much of an imagination to grasp its message, which is to say I must repent my sins and join the queue for Heaven. With only hours left of today, I am a bit worried since it says ‘Today is the DAY OF SALVATION.’ Can this really be true? And what, I wonder has Putin got to say about it (he is the Evil One)? And what happens if you don’t pick up the leaflet until tomorrow? The worst aspect of all this is that it is clear that the Republican party is now more than ever in the grip of religious nutters. It’s deeply worrying, more so than even when Reagan was President (who apparently believed in Rapture but still it seems listened to his wife’s advice borne from astrology or some such). In this regard Biden’s religious beliefs seem very old fashioned and tame by comparison—he as a Catholic, but is nevertheless prepared to tolerate a woman’s right to abortion. I suspect he will be quite incapable of holding back the retrenched Trumpism sweeping the only country in the world with a God-given Manifest Destiny. +God bless yer M’am on yer Platinum Jubilee. I hope you reign for many more years to come, as each extra year will be one less for your dreadful son’s reign.
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