I know many progressive and thoughtful Christians.
Many of my friends are such people. All are people with strong intellects who apply critical thinking and logic to their decision making. I am also acquainted with a number of right-wing, fundamentalist Christians who are completely incapable of using reason to form opinions about much of anything. Both groups are self-described Christians, who adhere to the doctrines and beliefs of that religion, in one way or another. Beyond that, they are not alike at all.
I have no brief with Christians, per se. Each such person finds his or her own comfort zone with regard to religious belief or non-belief. I have huge problems with the second group of Christians I mentioned above. Not because they are Christians, but because they appear not to think clearly about much of anything. They try my patience.
I also have friends and acquaintances who are either atheists or who have no affiliation with any religious organizations or particular beliefs about religion. Most of them are progressives politically, but that may have to do with my preference for associating with progressive people. I assume there are non-believers or non-religious people who are also knee-jerk right-wingers. I just don't know many of those.
As everyone here knows, I'm an atheist. I find religious beliefs interesting, and have studied, broadly, the religions of the world for decades, out of that interest. I enjoy discussions about religious beliefs, so I come to the Religion Group, because that is its purpose. I've been joining in religious discussions online since the mid 1980s, on various forums. In doing so, I have observed that the same arguments, misunderstandings and cast of characters exist and have existed on all of them.
The discussions are always similar in nature, and the people involved in those discussions always have the same groups of people involved in them. The Religion Group on DU is almost identical in that way with the Religion Forum on CompuServe back in the 80s. If I didn't know better, I'd think the same people were on both groups. The discussions and arguments are identical. The cast of characters participating are functionally identical as well. That cast includes the full gamut of personalities, intellectual capabilities, and temperaments.
I'm a veteran of such discussions. I find them interesting, frustrating, and alternatively hilarious and anger-inducing at times. This Religion Group has nothing about it that makes it unique in any way. It's just another online Religion Forum. As such, it's a place I plan to continue to frequent. I like such forums. Sometimes I find them fascinating and full of thoughtful discussions. Other times, they are fractious, annoying, and full of senseless disputes.
So such forums go. The gang's all here on the DU Religion Group. Let the melee continue.
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