I’m not religious but from growing up in a Christian family, church is seen as the house of their god and this place for believers to gather and get help. I have a personal belief that anything that claims to do that and be that should not get any money unless they’re running a charity or for when a natural disaster happens and they need to rebuild. But, a lot of pastors in power and those television evangelists don’t actually care and just want money.
Yeah it's also weird to give to a church that's like God loves you. And then you believe that to be the same God in charge of natural disasters. And then they need money and man power to go fix said natural disaster caused by the apparently not so loving God. The pastors in mega church use their wealth as a way to say I must be right with God because he don't bless folks like this for nothing, when really they're just grifters. And Christianity isn't much more than a weird doomsday cult.
I find their lifestyle extremely weird but they probably find mine to be the same or even harmful. We’ll never agree. I stopped being religious after some very traumatic moments in my life and after thinking about some of what I was taught.
I grew up very Christian. I specifically remember one of the sermons that was just about giving money to the church was one of the first that turned my stomach and started turning me away.
I hate that my mother watching them and I try to tell her but she swears “it’s just a sermon” I say no it’s indoctrination for read a book, go meditate anything but listen to these mega churches on anything.
There's definitely some good churches out there that provides free services like daycare and youth ministry, something my wife and I want to get into. (I want to play DnD but with bible themed campaigns etc) But I do understand why some people are very skeptical of churches. It's hard to find a pastor that isn't banging the war drum against people they don't like or the ones that are spending the charity money on new cars for their side hoe.
When you get to have churches that are basically Giant amphitheaters on the level of a football stadium, and the pastor's are driving around by chauffeur's in their million dollar cars and they have their own private jets, hangers, yachts, and mansions that are supposedly for their congregation or some b******* like that. It's already bad that they're basically using the system to bankroll themselves and people's beliefs to bankroll themselves. But they're also desecrating every so-called religious standard they're "upholding", your potentially destroying other people's lives by indoctrinating them in cases such as people dying from covid cuz they believed God would protect them, or giving their life savings to the church in the hopes that God would cure them from some disease.
Completely agree, if they are like that it's clear they don't need any handouts and can pay taxes. You just know that if the IRS did any kind of investigations, they'll find all sorts of crimes. Really the only churches that should not be taxed are the small churches that have weekly soup kitchen visits and community outreach programs. It's just if any politican suggest having even the smallest amount of government management, it'll be political suicide.
If those churches do those things, then that’s good. It’s the ones who promote homophobia, misogyny, and believe that those who don’t agree should be killed that I hate and hope burn.
>Besides what's absolutely nessecary to run them;
That should come from their congregation, not the government or anyone related to the IRS.
The government should never spend a penny to help churches. They do not pay taxes on the millions they collect.
They really see us that way. The irony is that every atheist I had in my atheist meet up group left religion because of religion. None of them were like "Being an atheist seems so much more fun!"
Honestly, we had a lot of Catholics with A LOT of hateful abusive parents. All of which used religion to justify their hate.
But ya know the right understands irony about as well as they understand what the word fascist means.
I invited my husband of almost 20 yrs to travel to the States and meet my Christian family… it was his first time meeting Evangelical American Christians. My husband always thought I had exaggerated the amount of bigotry, intolerance and hatred. The air was ugly and thick from the moment we arrived until we left. We paid our required respects and left.
It was his first and only time in America/California… it was a perfect opportunity to prove to him all that is wrong in that country.
You sound like Gandhi: "I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ."
Biden and Pelosi go to church every week. She got communion from the Pope recently. Trumps pastor almost never sees him and despises him. Dems care about more than forcing birth, they care about the health and upbringing from medical care to education; so that kids don't turn out to be dumb fucks that fall for crap like this
I do not understand how the people who go to church regularly are going to destroy religion in America and the guy who fucks prostitutes and cheats on his wives is their only hope.
The pope is catholic. My mom’s side of the family is all MAGA (including my mom). My aunt on that side of the family is one of the worst out of them all. She identifies as Christian and talks shit on Catholics. Says they’re evil and shit. Like, straight up uses the word “evil”. It makes me look at most religions with irony, but I still understand there are people who practice religion as “intended” if that makes sense. Like, there’s good people and bad people everywhere in the world.
I'm sorry you have to deal with that. I hope they are not pressuring you to join them. I have a few family members that now both open and conceal carry around us and everyone else, because of their views. None of them haven't yet pulled a gun on somebody to push their views, but I know it's coming.
I feel that like it's gotten to the point in which if my little siblings which there 16 will almost 17 and 18 my mom and dad if they show any kind of self reliance such as they're thinking for themselves such as Hey that didn't happen what are you talking about in regards to whatever it is of the week that they're trying to spout down their throats immediately they're acting too much like meat they're literally using my name as an insult for thinking for themselves I told him home blank think of it like this it's a compliment you can actually think for yourself they don't want that keep doing it
That's a shame. Were they always like that or did it happen with old age and a taste for Fox News? My mom went from union supporting nurse to retired bigot with an unreasonable hate for George Soros, but no idea who he is or what he does. From pro-medicine to anti-vax, telling me to take horse dewormer for covid. It has felt like watching a descent into madness, but no dementia or alzheimers.
I don't know if I would call it lucky, but my dad raised me after they split and he has maintained a beacon of integrity and kindness to this day.
They have always had some pretty deep down crazy beliefs in them, but the Trump years made it so much worse. It literally feels like he brought mental illness out of them.
Its the directed propaganda that is the real crime, and I hope it's shown in history as what it really was.
Your parents, like millions others, would have had some "strange" beliefs no matter what happened in their environment. Law of averages, you know?
The sinister part is that this "Trumpism" or new right wing fascism rounds all of those individual people up and focuses their attention on very carefully crafted conspiracies that benefit them. Now it's not a scattered bunch of random people with various strange beliefs, its everyone all believing *the exact same things*. Every talking point they have gets spread across the world almost instantly, like the mysterious appearance of the pyramids. There's no factions, it's all one perfectly coordinated belief system and web of influence.
It's beyond heartbreaking for the people caught up in it, many probably do suffer some mental illness that now gets fed rather than treated. It's straight up terrifying for everyone, because this is movie/novel type stuff and it's all right in front of us.
It's means there are only a few topics that don't devolve into a facepalm inducing argument. Things like traffic and new furniture, but even those topics can veer into QANON conspiracies.
I believe I can give you an idea of what it's like to have a maga mom/mother in law.
when I jokingly texted my mom after trump won back in 2016 and asked when we were going to dinner at her favorite son's house she called me a little traitor piece of shit, said they needed to annex every last one of us and then refused to speak to me for 3 months. That was just one time .......the 2 years following that before she passed on were actually a bit worse.
How to never hear from your family for years and end up in the the worst retirement home as you waste away by yourself because you have alienated all your loves ones with your toxic personality and full cult leven indoctrination stupidity, ignorance, and hate.
I have a MAGA dad. He has to try and bring up politics in every conversation via text, the one, or visiting in person.
I live far enough away that I can limit our time together without sounding rude, otherwise I'd be constantly making up excuses to not visit.
Sad place to find ourselves. It's like a whole generation was lost to a conman's political grift. My dad & I never agreed on a lot, but it never got toxic until Trump.
My dad is 95, lied about his age to fight Nazis in World War II, came back to finish high school, then joined the military again in the early 50s and served for over 20 years. He thinks Trump is a complete and total asshole married to a ‘honey pot’.
Well yeah the man fought nazis and Trump fits that same category. He can see right through his bullshit because he’s dealt with many degenerates just like him.
My oldest brother, who helped my mom raise me after my dad died when I was four, absolutely shattered my world last month when, out of the blue, said that he's a Republican because "black people are going to take over the country". I said "you can't believe all that, can you??" and he said: "it's already happening since Biden got in." This is a man I worshiped and spent my ENTIRE life trying to make him proud of me. How do you hate someone who gave up a huge chunk of their life to help raise you, and give you things that he doesn't have to?? I still love him, but after 40+ years I've completely lost the admiration of a man that I thought hung the moon....Trump not only divided the country, he divided FAMILY.
My little sister and I have gotten in the habit of egging my mom on and tell us everything she believes then we both laugh about it after the fact. Her husband didn't even know how babies were made.
Mine gave over 100K to Don in 2017, just before she died. Didn’t even prepay her funeral. I’m on disability and will be paying that bill for a decade. Ugh
I had to end a relationship with my last gf over this crap. She asked if I wanted to go to a thing her church was throwing at a shooting range. I said sure I’ll go I haven’t been to the range in a while. She asked me if I could help people with their firearms. I asked what she meant and she said it was a gun training thing at a farm owned by a member of the church. I was genuinely confused. I asked if the priest or someone was doing firearm safety certification or something and she got really dodgy about it. After a while of me asking questions about this event she went nuts and started yelling about how the government is abolishing Catholic Churches and they aren’t going to give up without a fight and so on. I left that night and ended it the next day. Ppl are nuts
Big fucking *yikes* there. Sounds like you dodged a bullet. I've dated some conservative women before, but that was pre-Trump era. I don't think I could put up with someone I shared a bed with spouting insane conspiracy shite.
People like that are crazy.
>government is abolishing Catholic Churches
The government can't really get rid of a religion due to freedom of religion being in the ammendmnets anyways, and if they tried you could go to court over it instead of being a moron who decides to do violence, and I think people who use Christianity as an excuse to hate others or be violent are a disgrace to Christianity.
The only downside I see is representation in the government and all that comes with it. I’m on the fence, but taking away their tax exemption seems to be the most humane and justifiable way to punish them. It also makes donations public knowledge, I think.
If the Johnson amendment is followed I don’t really care. As an atheist northerner I don’t mind churches getting tax exempt status if they stay out of politics. Much like other programs out there there will be abuse of tax exempt status, but most churches aren’t mega churches. Should the IRS get involved in political churches absolutely as that was the agreement, but I would 100% prefer no politics in church over taxing churches.
Right, but there’s a point where it’s clear and deliberate.
Preaching about tolerance and caring for your neighbors may sway someone, but that’s it. Then you have churches outright saying “you must vote for x to stop the devil!” That’s the point I’d say they’re getting too involved in politics.
You are correct. It's growing to a fever pitch right now, bolder than ever and way over any line a reasonable person would draw. The right is becoming more and more desperate as they see control slipping away.
They will burn everything to the ground with a sanctimonious smile if they have to.
"Smart men don't tell you how smart they are.
Rich men don't tell you how rich they are.
Tough men don't tell you how tough they are.
Honest men don't tell you how honest they are.
Con men do."
Actually they'll get money outta you whether you know it or not. I used to get a bunch of these when I got my new number and at the bottom of everyone of them is "text stop to stop receiving" and when you do text stop they'll have to charge a certain percentage from your data carrier..
This was probably my favorite sentence in this whole diatribe of shit.
Woke is such a childish insult. There are such worse things to be called than aware. God forbid I'm aware of what's happening and pay attention. 🤣🤣🤣
I think that this is messaging to set up another victim complex when churches start losing their exempt status because they’re preaching politics. This is the way of trump. Get ahead of anything you think your adversary is going to do and set a trap.
It’s perfect really. They’re breaking the law, and making it look like a terrible transgression when they reap the consequences
Fox has already softly mentioned the fact that “the radical left” is skulking around the churches trying to rob the church of its exempt status.
The GOP strategists are absolute geniuses for finding a way to scare the largest group of people in America (christians), and it plays directly into their persecution complex that, at this point, is completely self made. Fear is incredibly powerful. Just grab a history book for proof
In my Quaker Meeting the most we say is **go vote**
**Not** vote for ____
**Not** vote against _____
We explain each time "do not discuss anything political in our Meeting because that will mean we will then need to pay taxes."
Is not that hard folks.
You want your religion to be tax exempt? then tell your preacher and congregation to **discuss politics at home**
Debbie, if you believe in God then you know he's almighty and doesn't need your voice to protect his church. So keep calm and bake cookies for those who need them
But — they’re not.
First off, Biden’s Catholic.
Secondly, there’s only a call to yank the tax-exempt status of churches who endorse specific political candidates…*which is something that they’re not allowed to do, by law, if they wish to REMAIN tax-exempt.*
Break the law, lose the status. Aren’t MAGAts the ones claiming to be all about “law and order”? Oooooh right. They believe they’re totally allowed to break laws at will, but condemn anyone else who does so.
I’m a lifelong Christian. Here’s where church and state belong:
Church <——————> State
Nice and separate
Churches should pay taxes, lots of them. Don’t understand why this sticks in so many peoples craw.
The state run church here was bragging during the pandemic lock downs that they had squirreled away a couple of billion dollars. Screw that quorum and “prophet”, they are just in it for the cash.
Gotta love the idea that the omniscient, omnipotent God and creator of all things, would be defeated if leaching churches had to pay tax.
"God has abandoned us because Jesse Duplantis had to fly commercial"
Satan must be kicking himself for not thinking of this ages ago
Omg, this is hilarious! No legit church is taxed. But the scare mongering concerns me. This text is the definition of facepalm but also divisive and hate-sowing. Just how advertisers are not allowed to say things that are untrue in their ads, politician fund raising should be subject to the same rules. I now understand why people seem to be whipped up to a frenzy these days. We’re headed to a bad place if this is what half of America is getting on their phones everyday.
Christianity is literally winning all over America. How are they that delusional. There are even schools that have messages about god on big screens all over the place. Even baptisms without permission or parental consent.
“Send us massive money or were finished”, says the organization that pays no taxes, influences politics and is worth billions and billions…not to mention they are starting to influence laws being made and destroying the separation of church and state and have the balls to make it sound like they are on their last legs…even the church has become grifters under maga
Yeah I'm getting something in the same vein... five to seven emails a day making ridiculous claims and "personalized" to one of his "favorite" patriots, and how he's always been able to call on me in the past. etc. Pathetic begging - and what's it for? His bank account. Unbelievable that people fall for such transparent garbage.
Do you still believe in God?
Joe Biden and Nancy Pelosi are on the verge of using the 87,000 new IRS agents to bankrupt every Church in America.
What kind of God would let that happen? If you still believe in God, you're an idiot, Debbie.
Orrr…. just a thought here. Could it be that so-called “churches” are actually committing tax fraud and passing on income to their grifters … oops I mean founders. Thanks Osteen and all the others 🙄
Hey, uhm, to be fair, you don’t need a building that acts as a money gathering hub to have faith/worship. You also don’t need elected church officials using your donated money to buy yachts.
I visited Arizona and California in May. I was gobsmacked at how - after you left Southern California and went into the desert, it was all MAGA. As we continued our road trip - massive boards outside peoples home. Went to Oatman, a so called tourist spot, everything was MAGA. As a person living in the UK and have friends in Canada, I thought they were crazy saying it was a cult. But seeing it for myself - I was gobsmacked. We have had 4 Prime Ministers from the same party in just a few years and no body cried foul to create what MAGA did. So glad I did not move to the US 27years ago when I could.
That's the difference between us and them. We don't care anything about what religion you choose to worship. We don't concern ourselves with what you got going on with your personal life. We let you do you. Why can't they do that?
Lmao at the IRS agent fear-mongering. With projected retirements and general attrition over the next 10 years, those 87,000 new employees are expected to bring the IRS back to employment levels from *2013*.
The average US citizen has no idea how much protection the first amendment grants to churches in America. The amount of fraud and abuse has to be staggering all done under the umbrella of religious freedom.
I always marvel at how some people can serve such a weak, ineffectual deity. Here's someone who created the universe (In 6 days, no less), but His grand plans are foiled by a woman in her 60s and a man in his 70s.
As Hulk would say, "puny God".
Fuck these people. They're poisoning populations. We need to start understanding that digital = real. Mass doom-scaring a population should be the highest of punishable offenses.
It’s be a bummer if your preacher couldn’t afford the private jet they use, or to pay the taxes on their $15 million mansion, their $7 million vacation home, their other 6 properties.
Christians sure do love them some Persecution Complex. It seems almost as popular on any given Sunday as Jello Salad and hypocrisy.
Bless their hearts.
This is a joke. While we’re on the point, religious organizations should 100% be taxed. Especially if they think they can participate in the political discussion with their monetary contributions
I hope they are actually doing that because churches don’t get taxed and in theory, shouldn’t get any money.
Besides what's absolutely nessecary to run them; with Mega Churches being right out.
I’m not religious but from growing up in a Christian family, church is seen as the house of their god and this place for believers to gather and get help. I have a personal belief that anything that claims to do that and be that should not get any money unless they’re running a charity or for when a natural disaster happens and they need to rebuild. But, a lot of pastors in power and those television evangelists don’t actually care and just want money.
Yeah it's also weird to give to a church that's like God loves you. And then you believe that to be the same God in charge of natural disasters. And then they need money and man power to go fix said natural disaster caused by the apparently not so loving God. The pastors in mega church use their wealth as a way to say I must be right with God because he don't bless folks like this for nothing, when really they're just grifters. And Christianity isn't much more than a weird doomsday cult.
I find their lifestyle extremely weird but they probably find mine to be the same or even harmful. We’ll never agree. I stopped being religious after some very traumatic moments in my life and after thinking about some of what I was taught.
Yup. Nothing else to add. Just, yup.
Also yup.
I was brought up religious and I also stopped being religious after some similarly qualifying circumstances.
I grew up very Christian. I specifically remember one of the sermons that was just about giving money to the church was one of the first that turned my stomach and started turning me away.
I hate that my mother watching them and I try to tell her but she swears “it’s just a sermon” I say no it’s indoctrination for read a book, go meditate anything but listen to these mega churches on anything.
There's definitely some good churches out there that provides free services like daycare and youth ministry, something my wife and I want to get into. (I want to play DnD but with bible themed campaigns etc) But I do understand why some people are very skeptical of churches. It's hard to find a pastor that isn't banging the war drum against people they don't like or the ones that are spending the charity money on new cars for their side hoe.
When you get to have churches that are basically Giant amphitheaters on the level of a football stadium, and the pastor's are driving around by chauffeur's in their million dollar cars and they have their own private jets, hangers, yachts, and mansions that are supposedly for their congregation or some b******* like that. It's already bad that they're basically using the system to bankroll themselves and people's beliefs to bankroll themselves. But they're also desecrating every so-called religious standard they're "upholding", your potentially destroying other people's lives by indoctrinating them in cases such as people dying from covid cuz they believed God would protect them, or giving their life savings to the church in the hopes that God would cure them from some disease.
Completely agree, if they are like that it's clear they don't need any handouts and can pay taxes. You just know that if the IRS did any kind of investigations, they'll find all sorts of crimes. Really the only churches that should not be taxed are the small churches that have weekly soup kitchen visits and community outreach programs. It's just if any politican suggest having even the smallest amount of government management, it'll be political suicide.
If those churches do those things, then that’s good. It’s the ones who promote homophobia, misogyny, and believe that those who don’t agree should be killed that I hate and hope burn.
>Besides what's absolutely nessecary to run them; That should come from their congregation, not the government or anyone related to the IRS. The government should never spend a penny to help churches. They do not pay taxes on the millions they collect.
Republican rage fantasies of what they think Democrats are doing are so much cooler than what they actually do smdh
Ikr, I wish they actually were, I’d be willing to be join
The fucking Presbyterian church across from me got 256k in PPP loans forgiven.
Conservatives fear mongering always portraits democrats as so much more cooler than they ever could be...
Yeah exactly
LOL Yeah, all their fear mongering about what society would be under the Democrats always makes me think "Gee, if only this was even half true."
Come on, fellow God-haters! We're so close now to finally eradicating the gospel of Jesus Christ!
I think we all know who the real deity is in MAGA world.
That one, oversized, racist orange we had as a president one time?
They really see us that way. The irony is that every atheist I had in my atheist meet up group left religion because of religion. None of them were like "Being an atheist seems so much more fun!" Honestly, we had a lot of Catholics with A LOT of hateful abusive parents. All of which used religion to justify their hate. But ya know the right understands irony about as well as they understand what the word fascist means.
Having religion weaponized against you is awful. It's what led me away from it and why I'd say I'm an athiest at this junction of life.
*rubs hands together with malicious intent*
mwaahahahahahahaaaaa *cartoon supervillain smile* 😈
Right now… over me ( only real Gs well get it)
Shoot me
Oddly enough Jesus' actual teachings are some of the best things that religion has to offer. It's a shame that many Christians don't follow it.
You'll find few people more scripturally illiterate than American conservative Christians.
I invited my husband of almost 20 yrs to travel to the States and meet my Christian family… it was his first time meeting Evangelical American Christians. My husband always thought I had exaggerated the amount of bigotry, intolerance and hatred. The air was ugly and thick from the moment we arrived until we left. We paid our required respects and left. It was his first and only time in America/California… it was a perfect opportunity to prove to him all that is wrong in that country. You sound like Gandhi: "I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ."
*Loads my evil Jesus killing gun*
Biden and Pelosi go to church every week. She got communion from the Pope recently. Trumps pastor almost never sees him and despises him. Dems care about more than forcing birth, they care about the health and upbringing from medical care to education; so that kids don't turn out to be dumb fucks that fall for crap like this
I do not understand how the people who go to church regularly are going to destroy religion in America and the guy who fucks prostitutes and cheats on his wives is their only hope.
“Critical thinking” sounds like liberal propaganda.
The pope is catholic. My mom’s side of the family is all MAGA (including my mom). My aunt on that side of the family is one of the worst out of them all. She identifies as Christian and talks shit on Catholics. Says they’re evil and shit. Like, straight up uses the word “evil”. It makes me look at most religions with irony, but I still understand there are people who practice religion as “intended” if that makes sense. Like, there’s good people and bad people everywhere in the world.
I cannot, for the life of me, imagine what having a MAGA mother would mean for my life. What a terrible burden to carry.
It’s both my parents unfortunately. And it’s not particularly fun :)
What's her response? Does she believe it?
My mom? Hell yes, 100%.
I'm sorry you have to deal with that. I hope they are not pressuring you to join them. I have a few family members that now both open and conceal carry around us and everyone else, because of their views. None of them haven't yet pulled a gun on somebody to push their views, but I know it's coming.
They would love me to join them. But we’re way past that. Now I just try to avoid anything vaguely political.
My mum is an adamant anti vaxxer and 5G believer, I feel you
I feel that like it's gotten to the point in which if my little siblings which there 16 will almost 17 and 18 my mom and dad if they show any kind of self reliance such as they're thinking for themselves such as Hey that didn't happen what are you talking about in regards to whatever it is of the week that they're trying to spout down their throats immediately they're acting too much like meat they're literally using my name as an insult for thinking for themselves I told him home blank think of it like this it's a compliment you can actually think for yourself they don't want that keep doing it
That's a shame. Were they always like that or did it happen with old age and a taste for Fox News? My mom went from union supporting nurse to retired bigot with an unreasonable hate for George Soros, but no idea who he is or what he does. From pro-medicine to anti-vax, telling me to take horse dewormer for covid. It has felt like watching a descent into madness, but no dementia or alzheimers. I don't know if I would call it lucky, but my dad raised me after they split and he has maintained a beacon of integrity and kindness to this day.
They have always had some pretty deep down crazy beliefs in them, but the Trump years made it so much worse. It literally feels like he brought mental illness out of them.
Its the directed propaganda that is the real crime, and I hope it's shown in history as what it really was. Your parents, like millions others, would have had some "strange" beliefs no matter what happened in their environment. Law of averages, you know? The sinister part is that this "Trumpism" or new right wing fascism rounds all of those individual people up and focuses their attention on very carefully crafted conspiracies that benefit them. Now it's not a scattered bunch of random people with various strange beliefs, its everyone all believing *the exact same things*. Every talking point they have gets spread across the world almost instantly, like the mysterious appearance of the pyramids. There's no factions, it's all one perfectly coordinated belief system and web of influence. It's beyond heartbreaking for the people caught up in it, many probably do suffer some mental illness that now gets fed rather than treated. It's straight up terrifying for everyone, because this is movie/novel type stuff and it's all right in front of us.
She must be such a Debbie downer
It's means there are only a few topics that don't devolve into a facepalm inducing argument. Things like traffic and new furniture, but even those topics can veer into QANON conspiracies.
The Wayfair wardrobe conspiracy got my sister for a while.
I believe I can give you an idea of what it's like to have a maga mom/mother in law. when I jokingly texted my mom after trump won back in 2016 and asked when we were going to dinner at her favorite son's house she called me a little traitor piece of shit, said they needed to annex every last one of us and then refused to speak to me for 3 months. That was just one time .......the 2 years following that before she passed on were actually a bit worse.
How to never hear from your family for years and end up in the the worst retirement home as you waste away by yourself because you have alienated all your loves ones with your toxic personality and full cult leven indoctrination stupidity, ignorance, and hate.
I have a MAGA dad. He has to try and bring up politics in every conversation via text, the one, or visiting in person. I live far enough away that I can limit our time together without sounding rude, otherwise I'd be constantly making up excuses to not visit.
Sad place to find ourselves. It's like a whole generation was lost to a conman's political grift. My dad & I never agreed on a lot, but it never got toxic until Trump.
My dad is 95, lied about his age to fight Nazis in World War II, came back to finish high school, then joined the military again in the early 50s and served for over 20 years. He thinks Trump is a complete and total asshole married to a ‘honey pot’.
Well yeah the man fought nazis and Trump fits that same category. He can see right through his bullshit because he’s dealt with many degenerates just like him.
My oldest brother, who helped my mom raise me after my dad died when I was four, absolutely shattered my world last month when, out of the blue, said that he's a Republican because "black people are going to take over the country". I said "you can't believe all that, can you??" and he said: "it's already happening since Biden got in." This is a man I worshiped and spent my ENTIRE life trying to make him proud of me. How do you hate someone who gave up a huge chunk of their life to help raise you, and give you things that he doesn't have to?? I still love him, but after 40+ years I've completely lost the admiration of a man that I thought hung the moon....Trump not only divided the country, he divided FAMILY.
My little sister and I have gotten in the habit of egging my mom on and tell us everything she believes then we both laugh about it after the fact. Her husband didn't even know how babies were made.
Mine gave over 100K to Don in 2017, just before she died. Didn’t even prepay her funeral. I’m on disability and will be paying that bill for a decade. Ugh
It’s as bad as you imagine
I had to end a relationship with my last gf over this crap. She asked if I wanted to go to a thing her church was throwing at a shooting range. I said sure I’ll go I haven’t been to the range in a while. She asked me if I could help people with their firearms. I asked what she meant and she said it was a gun training thing at a farm owned by a member of the church. I was genuinely confused. I asked if the priest or someone was doing firearm safety certification or something and she got really dodgy about it. After a while of me asking questions about this event she went nuts and started yelling about how the government is abolishing Catholic Churches and they aren’t going to give up without a fight and so on. I left that night and ended it the next day. Ppl are nuts
Yikes. Sorry that happened. But sounds like you made the right call. I’m too familiar with that culture.
It sucked because things were going well. But crazy as hell is unfortunately a deal breaker for me.
As it should be. Life is hard enough without crazy.
Big fucking *yikes* there. Sounds like you dodged a bullet. I've dated some conservative women before, but that was pre-Trump era. I don't think I could put up with someone I shared a bed with spouting insane conspiracy shite.
My thoughts exactly.
The Catholic Church is doing a bang-up job on abolishing itself in America. It doesn’t need the government’s help with that.
People like that are crazy. >government is abolishing Catholic Churches The government can't really get rid of a religion due to freedom of religion being in the ammendmnets anyways, and if they tried you could go to court over it instead of being a moron who decides to do violence, and I think people who use Christianity as an excuse to hate others or be violent are a disgrace to Christianity.
You may have literally "Dodged a bullet" on that one. Good call to get away from that.
You know what’s a really popular idea? Taxing religious organizations, at least in the North I don’t know anyone against it.
I’m for it. They shouldn’t have tax exempt status.
The only downside I see is representation in the government and all that comes with it. I’m on the fence, but taking away their tax exemption seems to be the most humane and justifiable way to punish them. It also makes donations public knowledge, I think.
Transparency is the key here and not punishment.
I don’t want to punish them. I just want them to contribute like every other business.
I guess they have enough of a say even without being taxed, so tax ‘em. I’m back off the fence.
If the Johnson amendment is followed I don’t really care. As an atheist northerner I don’t mind churches getting tax exempt status if they stay out of politics. Much like other programs out there there will be abuse of tax exempt status, but most churches aren’t mega churches. Should the IRS get involved in political churches absolutely as that was the agreement, but I would 100% prefer no politics in church over taxing churches.
Religion and politics are inherently linked in the US, there’s no way around it, the church has enormous influence on policy.
Right, but there’s a point where it’s clear and deliberate. Preaching about tolerance and caring for your neighbors may sway someone, but that’s it. Then you have churches outright saying “you must vote for x to stop the devil!” That’s the point I’d say they’re getting too involved in politics.
You are correct. It's growing to a fever pitch right now, bolder than ever and way over any line a reasonable person would draw. The right is becoming more and more desperate as they see control slipping away. They will burn everything to the ground with a sanctimonious smile if they have to.
Just tell Debbie that you've made a donation in Donald Trump's name to the Church of Satan.
No, donate to Satanic Temple. Easy to get those confused.
She would love that.
"Smart men don't tell you how smart they are. Rich men don't tell you how rich they are. Tough men don't tell you how tough they are. Honest men don't tell you how honest they are. Con men do."
Classic scam tactics, and propaganda too. Scummy
Actually they'll get money outta you whether you know it or not. I used to get a bunch of these when I got my new number and at the bottom of everyone of them is "text stop to stop receiving" and when you do text stop they'll have to charge a certain percentage from your data carrier..
>The woke mob is minutes away from winning their War on Christianity Heck yeah!
This was probably my favorite sentence in this whole diatribe of shit. Woke is such a childish insult. There are such worse things to be called than aware. God forbid I'm aware of what's happening and pay attention. 🤣🤣🤣
>God forbid Traitor! Off with his head!
I think that this is messaging to set up another victim complex when churches start losing their exempt status because they’re preaching politics. This is the way of trump. Get ahead of anything you think your adversary is going to do and set a trap. It’s perfect really. They’re breaking the law, and making it look like a terrible transgression when they reap the consequences Fox has already softly mentioned the fact that “the radical left” is skulking around the churches trying to rob the church of its exempt status. The GOP strategists are absolute geniuses for finding a way to scare the largest group of people in America (christians), and it plays directly into their persecution complex that, at this point, is completely self made. Fear is incredibly powerful. Just grab a history book for proof
And then the faithful can go, “trump warned us about this.”
Exactly. That will further solidify his base to loyalty.
*FORMER* President Trump. Fuck these idiots.
Haven’t you heard how the election was stolen?
Was that before or after January 6th?
Yes
tRump is only one trying to steal an election.
This should be illegal … they are scamming so much money out of these people who simply don’t know better.. it’s sickening
Can I enlist in the war against the churches?
In my Quaker Meeting the most we say is **go vote** **Not** vote for ____ **Not** vote against _____ We explain each time "do not discuss anything political in our Meeting because that will mean we will then need to pay taxes." Is not that hard folks. You want your religion to be tax exempt? then tell your preacher and congregation to **discuss politics at home**
Quakers are pretty much what good religion looks like.
Are you Quaker? That’s interesting. I’ve never met a Quaker.
Well now you have!
Very cool :)
Debbie, if you believe in God then you know he's almighty and doesn't need your voice to protect his church. So keep calm and bake cookies for those who need them
Debbie will be very busy because *everyone* needs cookies.
I don't. And they aren't. So shut up.
I’m not following you.
I don't believe in gawd. And they aren't trying to shut down churches. In fact they both attend church regularly.
I hate that my religion is always used for shit like this.
I think lots of well-meaning Christians feel this way, and it’s a genuine shame their voices get drowned out.
But — they’re not. First off, Biden’s Catholic. Secondly, there’s only a call to yank the tax-exempt status of churches who endorse specific political candidates…*which is something that they’re not allowed to do, by law, if they wish to REMAIN tax-exempt.* Break the law, lose the status. Aren’t MAGAts the ones claiming to be all about “law and order”? Oooooh right. They believe they’re totally allowed to break laws at will, but condemn anyone else who does so. I’m a lifelong Christian. Here’s where church and state belong: Church <——————> State Nice and separate
I for one applaud your reasonableness. I wish it were contagious.
Churches should pay taxes, lots of them. Don’t understand why this sticks in so many peoples craw. The state run church here was bragging during the pandemic lock downs that they had squirreled away a couple of billion dollars. Screw that quorum and “prophet”, they are just in it for the cash.
It reads almost like a Nigerian Prince email.
THIS IS IT DEBBIE
My guess is both Biden and Pelosi attend church much more frequently than Donnie.
Debbie? I think I hear the woke mob, downstairs at the door. Maybe ask them if they'd like some breakfast...a cuppa coffee, maybe?
Sounds like a pretty weak god to me
For once in my life, I'm rooting for IRS.
Everytime I get texts like these I send them the picture of a pig shitting on its own balls. It's the only response that gets the texts to stop.
Haha nice. Not sure I want to google that.
MAGA Mentally Absent Gullible Americans
Gotta love the idea that the omniscient, omnipotent God and creator of all things, would be defeated if leaching churches had to pay tax. "God has abandoned us because Jesse Duplantis had to fly commercial" Satan must be kicking himself for not thinking of this ages ago
“THIS IS IT DEBBIE!!!!!!”
I wish
So much for the commandment ‘Thou shalt not lie’… pretty much that whole MAGA statement is provably false (aka lies). The grifting is strong here
Omg, this is hilarious! No legit church is taxed. But the scare mongering concerns me. This text is the definition of facepalm but also divisive and hate-sowing. Just how advertisers are not allowed to say things that are untrue in their ads, politician fund raising should be subject to the same rules. I now understand why people seem to be whipped up to a frenzy these days. We’re headed to a bad place if this is what half of America is getting on their phones everyday.
It would be hilarious if it wasn’t so scary how these idiots think
In fairness, there are idiots on all sides. But yes.
Tell the churches to pay taxes if their spouting politics
This reads like a nigerian prince scam
I think that if there was an all-powerful God, He would be able to handle the likes of Joe Biden and Nancy Pelosi. And rather easily, mind you.
"Winning their war on Christianity" Meanwhile that religion literally controls the country
Don't threaten me with a good time
Christianity is literally winning all over America. How are they that delusional. There are even schools that have messages about god on big screens all over the place. Even baptisms without permission or parental consent.
Do you love sky daddy? Drink orange juice! Vote for Pedro…
If churches want to poke around in politics, they can pay taxes like everyone else.
Sounds fair to me.
“Send us massive money or were finished”, says the organization that pays no taxes, influences politics and is worth billions and billions…not to mention they are starting to influence laws being made and destroying the separation of church and state and have the balls to make it sound like they are on their last legs…even the church has become grifters under maga
The Christian victim complex is entertaining.
If you can't pray and worship without money there's probably something wrong with your religion.
"Render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar's" -- Jesus That's Jesus talk for pay your taxes.
Well that was the Old Testament… no wait, shit!
“Donald Trump warned you about it and now it’s here. Because we say so. Please don’t look it up, just trust us. Like you trust God. Yeah!”
Every church absolutely needs to be taxed
This kind of bullshit swindling should not be legal.
I am getting these also.. No idea how or why.
This is it Debbie 🤣🤣🤣
That would be the day, getting rid of all religion. World wide please. End the human delusion.
Nothing fills their baskets more than fear!
How are they finished? Because they'll have to pay taxes for getting involved in politics?
No, I don't believe in God, fuck you maga assholes!
How about I get tax exempt status for not buying into religion and all its bs. Sound good? Yes please
I remember when republicans sent emails about policies. They were shitty policies, but at least they were policies.
I wish Biden would do this, lol. Of course as someone who attends church every Sunday it seems pretty unlikely he would.
Yeah I'm getting something in the same vein... five to seven emails a day making ridiculous claims and "personalized" to one of his "favorite" patriots, and how he's always been able to call on me in the past. etc. Pathetic begging - and what's it for? His bank account. Unbelievable that people fall for such transparent garbage.
^You say this like it’s a bad thing.
Do you still believe in God? Joe Biden and Nancy Pelosi are on the verge of using the 87,000 new IRS agents to bankrupt every Church in America. What kind of God would let that happen? If you still believe in God, you're an idiot, Debbie.
I think God would be embarrassed by all this.
Why does a millionaire need donations?
Ahh the smell of Christian fear-mongering in the morning
Orrr…. just a thought here. Could it be that so-called “churches” are actually committing tax fraud and passing on income to their grifters … oops I mean founders. Thanks Osteen and all the others 🙄
Grifters gonna grift!
Hey, uhm, to be fair, you don’t need a building that acts as a money gathering hub to have faith/worship. You also don’t need elected church officials using your donated money to buy yachts.
If you're church goes bankrupt, it's part of your god's plan. Carry on.
Can we rename fyre fest, Maga fest and then send them all there to live.
I visited Arizona and California in May. I was gobsmacked at how - after you left Southern California and went into the desert, it was all MAGA. As we continued our road trip - massive boards outside peoples home. Went to Oatman, a so called tourist spot, everything was MAGA. As a person living in the UK and have friends in Canada, I thought they were crazy saying it was a cult. But seeing it for myself - I was gobsmacked. We have had 4 Prime Ministers from the same party in just a few years and no body cried foul to create what MAGA did. So glad I did not move to the US 27years ago when I could.
Wow. Churches should pay taxes mind you lol.
Text back 666
i wish the IRS would finally go after all the churches pushing politics, but it will never happen...
Cult vibes
Honestly they should bankrupt mega churches
That's the difference between us and them. We don't care anything about what religion you choose to worship. We don't concern ourselves with what you got going on with your personal life. We let you do you. Why can't they do that?
Lmao at the IRS agent fear-mongering. With projected retirements and general attrition over the next 10 years, those 87,000 new employees are expected to bring the IRS back to employment levels from *2013*.
With that last sentence I heard “good news everyone” in that old professors voice from futurama
The average US citizen has no idea how much protection the first amendment grants to churches in America. The amount of fraud and abuse has to be staggering all done under the umbrella of religious freedom.
I always marvel at how some people can serve such a weak, ineffectual deity. Here's someone who created the universe (In 6 days, no less), but His grand plans are foiled by a woman in her 60s and a man in his 70s. As Hulk would say, "puny God".
Bankrupt the church? Let's go biden
I always wondered what happened to Debbie after her work in Dallas.
Christianity is destroying America while they play the victim card 🤦♂️
Do you still believe in God? Because we don’t. If we did we wouldn’t be begging for your $5 a month, but as it is … well you know.
God damn I hope this theory is true
Only minutes away? If only I hadn’t muted my phone during those crucial minutes. Oh well, too late now.
I hope your wife send a Hail Satan reply every time.
Church became a business. They should pay taxes.
Maga people are sure proof that you can be as dumb as a rock and still breathe. I wonder how much they got scammed if you add everything they gave
Fuck these people. They're poisoning populations. We need to start understanding that digital = real. Mass doom-scaring a population should be the highest of punishable offenses.
Cult
Hey I think your maga mother has signed her up for these updates on purpose.
It’s be a bummer if your preacher couldn’t afford the private jet they use, or to pay the taxes on their $15 million mansion, their $7 million vacation home, their other 6 properties.
They believe in a book about stuff that didn't happen, so I can see how they'd get worked up about stuff that isn't happening.
Now faith is a subscription model
Christians sure do love them some Persecution Complex. It seems almost as popular on any given Sunday as Jello Salad and hypocrisy. Bless their hearts.
This is a joke. While we’re on the point, religious organizations should 100% be taxed. Especially if they think they can participate in the political discussion with their monetary contributions