#christian privilege
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All right, thoughtful friends of Tumblr, I have a question particularly for those of you who are religiously observant, and particularly for those who follow what are minority religions in the US. The question is about how to effectively use my Christian privilege, and the backstory is this. This semester, my teaching schedule conflicted with Maundy Thursday (start of the Easter Triduum, commemoration of the institution of the Eucharist, officially a Big Deal; also the start of three days of non-normal sleeping, fasting, and church-going.) So I asked my supervisors about policies for rescheduling an evening seminar. "Work it out yourself," I was told.
I was mad about this. I like to think that maybe someone following a minority religion would have received more support, if only for reasons of optics or fear of a lawsuit, but... I don't know. I rescheduled the seminar ("What do you do on Maundy Thursday?" asked a student.) Partly out of spite (!), I put on automatic replies to last from Thursday evening through Sunday, explaining that my email response time will be delayed. Because if a hand-wavy "oh, you can work it out" is the response of the higher-ups, my wild guess is that asking for reasonable religious accommodations is not an institutional norm. I still have a niggling feeling that, while I don't want to make a stink on my own account, this might be a situation that I could/should use to benefit others.
#religious accommodations#adventures in academia#holy week#christian privilege#is part of the reason this WORRIES me tbh.#maybe other people asking for their religious observance to be taken seriously receive more compassion/respect. but then again.#triduum
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Religious Privilege
In Italy, during the 2020 spring lockdown many schools provided Catholic teaching among the other remote learning classes, but omitted to do the same with an alternative subject for students who opted out of the Catholics class, despite having an alternative class being a legal right of students.
#italy#italian politics#world politics#did you know#christianity#religion#religious privilege#christian privilege#lockdown#covid 19#little known fact#catholicism#abrahamic religions
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Stone me to death if I’m wrong I guess but I really feel like any privilege comes with the responsibility to distribute that privilege downward any way you can and not hoard it exclusively for your own benefit. but idk who am I to say
#intersectional social justice#social responsibility#accountability#intersectionality#privilege#economic justice#wealth inequality#wealth redistribution#systemic violence#systemic injustice#systemic oppression#social equity#racial justice#christian privilege#male privilege#straight privilege#white privelage#grassroots activism#intersectional activism#equitability
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By: Stephen Evans
Published: Dec 17, 2021
The UK is one of the 'most intolerant' countries in Europe towards Christians. That's the extraordinary claim of a report published this week by Observatory of Intolerance Against Christians in Europe (OIACE).
The report identifies the UK, France, Germany, Spain and Sweden as the top five countries driving what it describes as a "rising phenomenon" against Christians.
The scientist Carl Sagan famously said, "extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence". This report offers little.
A few examples of the supposed "discrimination" and "intolerance" faced by UK Christians illustrate just how scant the evidence is.
One of the more bizarre examples provided by the report is schools being "pressured to provide atheist content".
What's being referred to here is one instance of a Church of England controlled multi-academy trust agreeing to provide a meaningful alternative for pupils withdrawn from Christian collective worship after two parents launched a legal challenge. The parents simply wanted their local (non-faith) school to provide a more inclusive environment for their children.
The authors are looking through the wrong end of the telescope here. Those on the receiving end of intolerance and discrimination when it comes to state education are the pupils locked out of local faith schools due to discriminatory admissions policies – and those compelled to take part in Christian rituals by a law that forces all schools to hold daily acts of Christian worship.
But this report never lets the reality get in the way of its victim narrative.
The report's authors go on to cite 'buffer zones' as further evidence of victimisation of Christians. These are the zones introduced around abortion clinics by a handful of local authorities where women were facing harassment and intimidation when accessing healthcare.
It takes a very myopic mindset to refuse to recognise that the right to oppose abortion shouldn't interfere with the fundamental right for women to make individual reproductive choices and access sexual health services.
The report goes on to claim the requirement on schools to provide LGBT inclusive relationships and sex education; the refusal to allow religion-run adoption agencies to discriminate against same-sex parents; and even the inclusion of places of worship in measures to curb the spread of coronavirus indicate a "decline in religious freedom".
The point entirely and intentionally missed by this report's authors is that human rights are the basic rights and freedoms that belong to everyone, not just Christians. In pluralistic societies, competing rights sometimes clash – and a balance needs to be struck. When the practicing of your religion encroaches on the rights and freedoms of others, a restriction on your right may be reasonable. The belief that not always entirely getting your own way amounts to discrimination is a highly narcissistic and flawed approach to human rights.
The appalling treatment of Christians and other religious and nonreligious minorities in countries such as Afghanistan, Somalia, Libya, Pakistan, Yemen, Iran, North Korea, China, and Nigeria is deserving of everyone's attention. This year's #RedWednesday campaign did a fine job of highlighting the persecution faced by millions of Christians, not least the girls and women living under the constant threat of abduction, sexual violence and forced conversion.
But claiming that the human rights of Christians are "under pressure" in a country where, in almost all walks of life, Christianity is uniquely privileged, is simply absurd.
Nevertheless, hardline Christian advocacy groups continue to push a false narrative of Christians being persecuted here. So loud became their calls that in 2016, the Equality and Human Rights Commission carried out a comprehensive review of equality and human rights law relating to religion or belief.
The Commission's findings gave lie to the claim that Christians are being unfairly treated. Their report said the law strikes the right balance between protecting religious freedom and upholding the right to non-discrimination.
The labelling of National Secular Society backed legislative attempt to end the automatic right of 26 Church of England bishops to seats in the House of Lords as an 'incident' of anti-Christian intolerance is further evidence of the crybully tactics deployed by unscrupulous Christian campaigners.
But the cries of persecution will undoubtably grow louder as those wanting to impose their beliefs on others see their privileges challenged.
Secularism isn't intolerance of Christian beliefs. It's the view that those beliefs shouldn't be elevated or privileged above others.
All around the world well-funded Christian activists are lobbying for laws to allow them to discriminate and impose their beliefs on people who don't share them – all under the guise of 'religious freedom'.
Human rights advocates everywhere need to be wise to these bad actors claiming victimhood to gain special privileges to trample on the rights of others.
#National Secular Society#secularism#christianity#christian privilege#crybully#persecution#persecution complex#victimhood#victimhood culture#Observatory of Intolerance Against Christians in Europe#OIACE#religion#intolerance#discrimination#religious discrimination#Equality and Human Rights Commission#human rights#religious freedom#freedom of religion#freedom from religion#religion is a mental illness
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trying to do more wip (work in progress), random, off the cuff stuff.
because I have so many thoughts and they always remain in draft form.
working toward the dream to “die empty”. get it out, even if it’s shit. share the draft that might never get touched up.
I process so many ideas every day. I want there to be at least a little bit of a record of some of them.
this note was me thinking about privilege, centering. the idea of what it means to check all the boxes.
white. male. straight. cis. able-bodied. neurotypical. christian. etc.
they don’t make you bad. but they do make you vulnerable. vulnerable to a very warped sense of reality.
note from mcdonald’s parking lot.
#cis privilege#white privilege#male privilege#straight privilege#christian privilege#empathy#worldview
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Sometimes I think about all the shit that Xtians have straight up stolen from Jewish customs (communion wine/bread, Alleluia, Amen) and don't even know it or acknowledge it and I'm just—
#it's all ours!!! it's always been ours!!!#judaism#christian privilege#y'all stole everything and don't even fucking realize it
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Family, Grief, Religion & Manners
So the day (or day after) my Mom died exactly two months ago, one of her favorite cousins of her age group called me to offer me his condolences. This cousin lives in Hampton, VA and is a retired, married professional living a solid middle class, boomer life. Yet he never called to check on me/her (except once in the hospital), never came to see about her or send a birthday card or flowers in the year and some months she was home.
Until she passed. Then he calls me; after initially offering condolences, he quickly launched into his own grief narrative around his mother some years back (centering himself), going on and on…and on.
Then he asks “Are you a Christian?” I say “No, we’ve had this conversation before” (re: we talked extensively about my non-belief in 2022, though he didn’t recall). He then begins to say, “Iook, I know you don’t believe, but I want you to know if you just call on the name of Jesus and say his name 3x every time you miss your mother, that feeling will go away!”
Stunned, I say nothing. He pauses and goes on. “Trust me, it will work! I promise you.”
He kept repeating this and centering his own story of grief-rather than saying something helpful or consoling. I could go on….but the point is, in the immediate aftermath of my mom’s death, I was being forced to engage his theological views and false gospel…even though he knew I was not a believer. In fact, BECAUSE I am not a believer. As the call drew to a close, I remained mostly silent, placated him a bit, made no promises and ultimately, politely ended the call.
___________________
The point of this story? As I have been wrapping up sending the thank you cards to those who came to the service (or couldn’t come)-today I kept the promise I made to myself following the call with this cousin and decided to send him a very customized, special message. Let’s just say “it’s been in my spirit” to address him.
This is how I put my feelings into words:
Dear Cousin,
I hope you have had a good holiday season and start to the new year. Thank you again for your condolences last November, and for the loving card you mailed.
I write however, both to acknowledge and draw attention to a great offense I took during your phone call in the immediate days following my mother's transition. Out of respect for the loving friendship the two of you shared, and my grief and shock, I listened to your evangelism over the phone but chose not to offer a rebuttal at the time.
However, following critical reflection I am afraid there is one. Saying "Jesus three times" to alleviate the grief of my mother (or any loved one) does not and did not "work". But it did serve as a crude and misplaced effort to wield power and privilege over someone who has politely already expressed to you their disbelief in the tenants or claims of your faith. Imposing Christian mantras upon someone who expressly does not share Christian beliefs -for a variety of reasons- is inappropriate, offensive, and unbecoming, in fact. You did this repeatedly over your phone call. Had I been Muslim, Jewish, Hindu, Yoruba or of any other faith, I imagine you might have extended more courtesy and respect for my beliefs than what I listened to on the phone. But apparently to you, a secular humanist and atheist does not get afforded the same courtesy or consideration-even given the death of his mother some 48 hours prior.
The truth is, I am not only a non-Christian, but I am also a secular activist, congressional advocate for Black Freethought, and a Black, Queer secular community organizer on these issues specifically: religious freedom, interfaith advocacy, anti-religious stigma, and linkages to Black and minority communities in health, sexuality, education, etc...You show no interest in the "why" of my non-belief; only that I am a non-believer and effectively targeted me for a Christian conversion on a call where I was grieving the loss of my mother.
Might you ever wish to understand why I am-or others like me are no longer a Christian (or religious, generally), please consult my work; one of which is entitled "Where We're Headed" (wwh.podbean.com), an award-winning narrative podcast that takes a deep dive into Black history covering the legacy and phenomena of religious dissent as political resistance all around the African diaspora. There I engage in these and other related topics for anyone interested, no matter their faith. My mother knew these things about me-my non-belief and religious skepticism were no secret. And though she kept her faith (and I respected it), she also celebrated my work and was proud of my activism and political and cultural advocacy.
Please know I have no interest in your conversion or de-conversion; I respect and support your choice to believe -or not- based upon your autonomy if nothing else. But like many before me raised a believer who then changed my mind about their faith tradition, so have I. The right to change one's mind about any faith tradition at any moment-given sufficient and/or empirical evidence against it, is a right I claim proudly for myself. Losing a parent is not an opportunity to affirm your beliefs- but an opportunity to show care, interest, comfort, and sensitivity to those who cared for, and showed up for that loved every day during their last years-even to those who are atheists.
Given those two options, an unequivocal "I'm so sorry for your loss" will always suffice for a better message of condolences.
Sincerely,
-R
Podcast: “Where We’re Headed”
W: wwh.Podbean.com // Produced by Fibby Music Group, LLC
Sponsored by the DC Commission on the Arts & Humanities
I said what I said. This was wholly inappropriate; I will say what deserves to be said.
Besides, he didn't even come to the funeral.
#rogiers#fibbymusic#blackness#secular humanism#secular humanist#black atheist#atheist#deconstructing religion#interfaith dialogue#Christian privilege#evangelical#black queer#Religious skepticism#queer black
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The United States, deeply influenced by early Puritan settlers and other assorted Christian fanatics, has been slow to secularise relative to European countries. In fact, the rapid increase in the proportion of religiously unaffiliated Americans at the expense of Christianity – a trend that has generated significant buzz in recent years – can be traced back only to the 1990s. Since then, however, the shift has been stunning.
I’ll put my cards on the table here: I consider that a good thing, given that frequent church attendance consistently correlates with voting Republican, especially among white Americans. At the same time, I understand that religion is far more diverse than Christianity alone, and that even Christianity – despite its heavy imperialist baggage – comes in pro-social forms. I advocate embracing pluralism and emphasising shared values rather than shared beliefs in building coalitions to work for the common good.
In order to understand American secularisation, however, it is necessary to understand that because of Christian dominance and pervasive Christian privilege, many Americans’ primary association with religion is Christianity, and that shapes their responses to the questions about ‘religion’ they encounter in public opinion polls.
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Religious Privilege
In Finland, the state Church plays a central ceremonial role within government with the Opening and Closing of parliament being marked by an act of worship in Helsingin Cathedral.
#religion#christianity#christian privilege#religious privilege#finland#world politics#finnish politics#did you know
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Until We Are All Free
T.W: Child Sexual Abuse
He took my innocence,
All my hopes, my dreams, my youth.
He took my very soul.
What could have been,
I will never know.
But it wasn’t just my childhood that he stole,
It was all the other kid’s too.
Their scared faces each forever burned into my mind.
I remember what he did to them...
To me...
To us.
Even to his own kids.
I was just barely five years old
When he took interest in
The little hazel eyed blonde haired kid
In the compound next door.
I’ve noticed a phrase that people like to say
About kids who go through shit...
They like to say
“Kids are resilient”
But what I’ve learned is that
We are only “resilient”
Because our tiny brains cannot yet
Comprehend our own lived experiences,
Our resiliency always runs out
The moment are minds mature enough
That we finally gain access
To the words we needed to describe our pain,
And we feel safe enough to express the trauma
Our weary bodies have been bearing all this time.
You see,
We aren’t always taught this but
Our bodies hold every ounce of pain
We have ever had to endure.
That is until some of us are
Granted the privilege of acknowledging we even have trauma...
And then,
If we are lucky...
We receive the great privilege of
Actively being able to seek out and maintain
Professional outlets of healing.
But not everyone has these privileges.
Oppression is a real raging bitch and
When your suffering from within it
It’s almost impossible to escape.
You’re just forever stuck
In a system that is only aimed to keep
You from living, learning, growing, thriving,
And succeeding in this world.
So when I remember how
My innocents was taken by him,
I’m struck with immense survivors guilt
Because even though
No one knew about what was happening to me
For four and a half years...
I eventually got out.
I got out.
I was the only privileged one to escape
The system of oppression that
I only knew and could relate to from a
Tiny white missionary kid’s view point.
Now when I close my eyes
I see a surge of little Black and Brown faces.
So beautiful in nature
Yet,
So hopeless, beaten and battered.
Some of these kids
Were my friends.
Everyday,
We would play together
Outside the compound
After school
Until the sun was just about to go down.
Their faces edged into my memory.
I remember the fun we had and the smiles we shared.
I remember the sounds of our collective laughter
And the joy we found in each other.
But
I also remember seeing and recognizing
The joint fear on our faces
As He led us into his compound,
Then into his house ,
And then his bedroom.
I remember their desperate cries.
Cries
That no one heard.
I remember the
Deep bruises, cuts, and sores on the bodies of the children
That left that dreaded room.
Kids with excruciating wounds
Sometimes invisible
Unless you’re trained to see the clues.
The haunting red flags.
Yet I was the one
That got out.
While they all stayed
And their painful stories continued.
I think a lot
About what if I could go back and change things...
If I could have spoken up and reached out for help.
If I could have only just told my parents.
I know without a doubt
That my parents would have gotten me out of
That situation
So fucking fast.
They would have raged and aggressively advocated for me
And would have seen to it that He be dealt with.
I would have gotten help sooner.
But then I think to myself about
Who would have advocated for
All those other kids in the village..
In the surrounding villages...
In the town..
In the country...
All over the continent...
All over this world...
Who have a
“Him”
Who has stolen their autonomy
And shattered their story.
Who would have gotten them
All the help they so desperately needed
In order to heal their
Hearts, minds, bodies and souls??
Who would grant them that privilege?
The only way I would change anything about
Those dark years...
Is to somehow fiercely eradicate the systems of oppression
That enable evil men to gain the power
They use to suppress the rest of us.
To eradicate the patriarchy that
Encourages men to think they
Can get away with mortally wounding
Women, Transgender, Nonbinary people, Other LGBTQ people,
And children.
To eradicate white supremacy and the effects of colonialism
That have plagued and devastated
The lives of People of Color
Since the beginning of time.
To eradicate the systems of power
That side with, shelter and protect
The abuser and
Not the victim and survivor.
To eradicate and remove the barriers
That keep God’s children
From succeeding and thriving
In this world they placed them in.
Those kids deserve to get out
Just like I did.
Those kids deserved a story that didn’t
Involve an evil man obsessed with
The power granted to him by
His ability to silence those around him
And strike fear into the hearts of the community.
A community that frightfully elevated his stance
Based on his
Financial status , level of education and
His arrogant persona.
Those kids deserve a better story than they one
They unfortunately were placed into.
So even though I was privileged to escaped,
And receive professional help
That is allowing parts of me to heal...
Resiliency comes with a heavy cost.
I will never be truly free
Until the day that
All the people with stories like us
Are finally set free.
#UntilWeAreAllSetFree#childsexualabusesurvivor#sexualassault#systemsofoppression#bodily autonomy#prochoice#abortions are healthcare#hopeandhealing#privilege#white privelage#christian privilege#missionarykid#thirdculturekid
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getting some responses on my post about kristen and her parents conversation, specifically the "isn't it kinda funny that helio chose you and you were the one to bring the daytime back" and I think it's really interesting how different people responded to it like. maybe it's because I live in the southern united states but. there is a lot of religion, specifically christianity, as that is the obvious analogue to the helioic faith, that is downright evil, I agree. and obviously the prevalence of it is harmful to a lot a lot a lot of people, just as it's harmful to kristen in fiction.
but you have to understand that the individual people are deluded, they genuinely believe what they're doing is right. it's really easy to be like "ugh they sicken me it makes me so mad" in a theoretical sense but. do you have drive through workers wishing you a blessed day. do you have people see your kt tape and offer to pray for your pain to go away. like. idk I just think we have to have a little bit of compassion and understanding for people that are so entrenched in their faith that they do truly believe from the bottom of their heart that what they're preaching is true. especially in a world where divine magic is real!! kristen TALKED to helio. she makes literal miracles happen on the daily. so faith in that world is gonna be heightened to a crazy degree.
obviously I condemn their human-supremacy and their cult practices etc etc etc but in that little moment I felt for the applebees. it didn't make me mad or disgusted or annoyed. it made me sad. because they saw their daughter perform a miracle of the sun and it meant nothing to her. that "that doesn't feel special at all to you?" wasn't from a place of arrogance. they weren't lauding it over kristen. they were pleading. begging her to see it from their eyes: she is the chosen one. she is a prophet of helio and has been doubting and they want what's best for her. she's their savior. she brought the sun back from the endless night. that doesn't feel special at all to you?
#im fucked up.#i mean maybe this is a privileged position to take because i wasnt raised religious#i dont have personal connections to the harm it does#but i know that most people who practice christianity genuinely love their neighbors#however they can.#it's easy from an outside perspective to be like 'theyre so evil i cant believe they were manipulating her like that'#but. i dont think they thought they were.#theyre not evil. they're trying to help her.#they are misguided YES. but intention has got to count for something#if you cant see the difference between mac and donna applebees and bobby dawn. i can't help you#fantasy high#d20#dimension 20#fhjy
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The whole transandrophobia discussion thing is weird bc it feels like it's a bunch of poc and jewish trans people being like "here are my experiences of how specifically being MASCULINE had affected me, and the discrimination and violence I experienced based on that. And here is how that relates to me being a racial/ethnic minority"
And then a few loud white trans people going "ohhh you wanna be oppressed so bad you *slur*. This is why there aren't any poc in your movement it's because REAL poc understand intersectionality"
#hot take white culturally christian or athiest leftests do not properly interpret white jewish ppl#like as a poc i and other poc understand that white jewish ppl often get racial privilege#but a) not always b) they experience oppression based off of their ethnicity#idk from my perspective it seems like white goyim either see jewish ppl as 'the disgusting exotic enemy' or 'basically WASPS but they#wanna feel special'#with no nuance. no recognition#look maybe this next part is bc i didnt grow up with jewish ppl and therefore didnt know until I was 18/19 that jewish ppl can count as#white. but like. idk how to say this. i dont wanna speak over white jewish ppl. but like.#jewish ppl that have obvious jewish features (whether Ashkenazi facial features OR they dont have those but wear eg kippahs)#arent like. white. idk pls correct me if this is antisemitic or incorrect or something.#but like. light skinned =/= white obviously.#i just struggle to see how my bestfriend with her lovely dark eyes and curls and nice nose counts as 'white' when ppl call her the k slur#across the street. ykwim?#like white doesnt mean light skinned. it means 'part of the in-group of white ppl'#like my ex who is white and jewish? yeah hes white. if he didnt wear his necklace then goyim wouldnt know. you know#like obvs he still experiences ethnic oppression but he doesnt experience racial oppression#but other ppl with more prominent eg ashkenazi (im singling them out bc most jewish ppl here are ash.) like i dont GET how they have racial#privilege.
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