Are you a Christian who is annoyed by the criticism of your religion from anti-theists?

Get over it.

Honestly. Instead of complaining and telling us to shut up, you should be beside yourself with happiness.

I’m not kidding. I mean, that’s what Jesus says in the Sermon On The Mount (Matthew 5:11-12):

Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven.

So keep your head up and smile, Christians. You should be thankful for this if you follow Jesus. I mean, I, personally, think that’s ridiculous nonsense, but you obviously value the advice very highly, most of you, seeing as how you’re so enthusiastic about Jesus and all, so…why don’t you, like, do it?

Of course, if it’s not about following Jesus, but about your own ego and comfort, I could see how you could be offended. And, frankly, that offense convinces me even more that I should criticize your belief strongly, because it indicates that the belief that people are sinners who need Jesus is not something that you believe because you believe in Jesus, but is really about an ego trip. Your view of others as unsaved is not about God; it’s about you trying to protect a view that makes you comfortable and/or happy. Which seems a bit more selfish than most Christians claim to be. Honestly. If you really are passionate about saving non-Christians, why would you tell us to shut up when our criticisms are most honest, blunt, and frequent? Wouldn’t you be overjoyed that we’re actually being up front and honest with you, and this is your chance to talk about God to save us? So when you complain, that’s proof to us that it’s not about God; it’s about you and your ego. And, more broadly, that ego translates to political power that indicates Christianity is little more than a tool for control, and our criticism makes you afraid of losing it.

I mean, I’ve read your book. I know what the Bible says about responding to people insulting you. When you get all upset about my criticism of religion, I am likely to criticize you MORE, not less, because then I don’t really see you as hiding behind a genuine belief in God. I see you as using that as an excuse for the way you look at people who you want to see as different than you for whatever reason — whether they are atheists, or lgbtq couples, or people from other religions, or people from any other group you may look at differently because of your religious affiliation. I see your choice to love a dead man over living flesh and blood as a sham you perpetuate so that you can lift yourself up while putting others down.

When I see you get upset over criticism, that’s proof for me that you don’t really believe in Jesus, frankly. It makes me think your hiding behind him, using him as an excuse to make decisions that are more selfish than you care to admit.

And I’m not lying to you. For example — when I was a Christian, I loved it, for the most part, when people challenged my faith, precisely because of that verse. Believe it or not, I actually thought that I was serving God by taking the abuse, so I really tried to welcome it.

When I left Christianity, I thought other Christians had the same view of things — and to my surprise, I found that criticisms of their faith were often met with resentment, not the rejoicing and gladness Christ prescribed. The only conclusion I could come to was that this was more about them — Christians — than it was about God. And that makes me have a lot less respect for your religion, because, frankly, that’s indicating that you agree with me — that underneath it all, you don’t really believe in God. You believe in people and in trying to be comfortable and happy regardless of who you offend or hurt with your doctrine along the way, and when you say, “I’m sorry; that’s just what God says about xyz,” you’re lying through your teeth.

Let me say, finally, that my criticism of Christianity is not just selfish. I mean, I have been hurt by Christian people who prefer to respect someone I think is dead over me, who is standing right in front of them, but that is dwarfed by the fact that most of Christendom thinks that we are sinners who need to be saved by God in order to deserve anything more than an eternity in hell; most believe we have to die to who we actually are and sign up to follow and be fundamentally transformed by a God-concept crafted thousands of years ago.

I have seen that hurt the world in many ways and I want to stop it, so I’m speaking up.

Here’s an idea: Instead of throwing a hissy-fit when we criticize your religion this weekend, why not take some time out to actually listen and understand? Maybe, just maybe, we have some legitimate concerns that explain our insults and our anger.

Or you can make your life even more unpleasant by ignoring your Jesus in telling us atheists to tone it down, which will actually increase our cynicism and criticism (rightfully so, I think, because that shows that this is really about your ego), and the vicious cycle can continue.

Your choice.

But I don’t have to follow that “do not judge” nonsense in your book. I’m totally going to judge your choice here, whatever it is.