What's worse than a mindless bore?

The answer is, of course, a mindless bore with a mission! An evangelical bore!

I'd forgotten how thoroughly unpleasant these characters can be -- and how tenacious -- until this week, when I was contacted by someone wanting to challenge my beliefs. Not that this is a bad thing, per se. But when they insist on trotting out the same old, tired, utterly discredited laundry list of claims, one can be forgiven for wishing they'd at least use a little imagination, if not a little homework to discover the f-a-c-t-s.

He was a born-again, pentecostal "Christian" determined to get me to watch "The Godmakers" to save me from my folly. What irritated me was his unwillingness to listen to what I was saying to him. He had his script and he wasn't about to veer to left or right, let alone allow anyone to get a word in edgewise. I believe that word is "boorish", but it could as easily be "ignorant," "rude," "churlish" or a host of other synonyms.

What finally got his attention was me outlining the long list of errors and inaccuracies in the movie. What REALLY stopped him in his tracks was my comment that NONE of the stuff he was trying to ram down my throat (figuratively, at least) was ever designed by its creators to change MY mind. Rather, HE was living proof of its real purpose... to prevent their own followers from ever running the risk of honestly investigating what my religion actually teaches. (An open mind is anathema to the manipulators and merchants of deception who create and peddle this nonsense.)

So he switched to remote control. I guess he figured a one-way "conversation" was less threatening to his irrational, emotional position. A stream of email messages, links, exhortations, etc commenced. I replied to the first one courtesously, asking him to discontinue. After a couple of days of this deluge I simply blocked him at my mail server.

I scratch my head in wonder at how closed-minded all fanatics are. He'd have been horrified if I'd compared him to the followers of Osama Bin Laden, the IRA and other extremists, who use religion as a cloak for their political objectives, simply because there are so many unthinking, fear-filled people willing to die for their beliefs as some kind of back door to heaven, when even their own scriptures teach that the ONLY legitimate way to enter heaven is by LIVING those beliefs. (But that requires time, effort and self-discipline and -- most threatening of all -- reason, which fanatics are rarely willing to face.)

I don't care what religion you profess to follow... a fanatic is never a valid representative of any legitimate faith, including my own.

But for a person professing to be a Christian to subscribe to the same mindset and practices as those who incite hatred, intolerance, coercion, injury and death on those who don't share their bizarre views, a long, hard look at the reality of their position is needed.

Christ said "by their fruits ye shall know them". In other words, it's not what you say that counts. It's what you DO.

From the beginning, there's only one being whose hatred of mankind -- and of God, by whatever name -- has inspired hatred, intolerance, coercion, injury and death to the children of God by his followers, be they merely mindless or openly malevolent.

So it stands to reason that those who follow this being will be the ones who practise what he preaches.

That being is not Jesus Christ. It can't be. His is a gospel of peace, kindness, tolerance and love. So "Christian" fanatics -- regardless of what they convince themselves is their version of the "truth" -- can't be true followers of Christ.

The truth is simple, plain and unmistakable. The "god" that they follow is none other than the adversary of God and his children. The father of lies. The deceiver supreme. The sworn enemy of God...

Satan himself.

Joshua said it succinctly: "Choose ye this day whom ye will serve; but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord."

Just be careful which lord you choose to serve.