Easier to comprehend when you consider "Christianity"

by ReginaldVelJohnson , Monday, April 13, 2026, 12:13 (6 days ago) @ BillyGoat
edited by ReginaldVelJohnson, Monday, April 13, 2026, 12:19

in this context is much more about political/cultural identity than it is theology or belief. Nice little side benefit of being able to tell other people how to behave (especially groups you find objectionable for other reasons). I mean, just look at this murderer's row of "Christians" that have led us to this point (AI-assisted):

+----------------------------------+------------+----------------------------------------+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Person / Event                   | Year(s)    | Public Christian Role                  | Scandal / Behavior                                                                                                    | Outcome                                                                                                                   |
+----------------------------------+------------+----------------------------------------+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Jim Bakker                       | 1987-1989  | Televangelist, PTL Ministry founder    | Sexual assault of secretary Jessica Hahn; $279K hush money from ministry funds; double-book financial fraud          | Convicted on 24 counts of fraud/conspiracy; originally sentenced to 45 years (reduced on appeal)                         |
+----------------------------------+------------+----------------------------------------+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Jimmy Swaggart                   | 1988, 1991 | Televangelist, $142M/yr ministry;      | Caught with prostitute twice (1988 & 1991); told congregation the second time "it's flat none of your business"      | Defrocked by Assemblies of God; ministry survived in diminished form                                                     |
|                                  |            | vocal anti-pornography crusader        |                                                                                                                       |                                                                                                                           |
+----------------------------------+------------+----------------------------------------+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Tony Alamo                       | 1994, 2009 | Evangelical cult leader                | Tax evasion (1994); transported minors across state lines for sex; "married" girls as young as age 8                 | Up to 175 years federal prison; died incarcerated 2017; church ordered to pay $525M civil damages                        |
+----------------------------------+------------+----------------------------------------+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Ted Haggard                      | 2006       | President, National Assoc. of          | Paid male escort for meth and sex over 3 years; campaigned actively against gay rights; denied everything initially  | Resigned all positions; "conversion therapy" claims quickly collapsed; later admitted to drug use and sexual contact      |
|                                  |            | Evangelicals (30M members)             |                                                                                                                       |                                                                                                                           |
+----------------------------------+------------+----------------------------------------+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Bishop Eddie Long                | 2010-2011  | Pastor, 25,000-member megachurch;      | Sexually coerced teenage male "Spiritual Sons" using gifts, trips, private access, beginning when they were minors   | Settled all four lawsuits confidentially; never admitted guilt publicly; died 2017                                       |
|                                  |            | anti-gay rights preacher               |                                                                                                                       |                                                                                                                           |
+----------------------------------+------------+----------------------------------------+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Mark Driscoll / Mars Hill        | 2014       | Pastor, Mars Hill megachurch (10,000+) | Spiritual abuse, plagiarism, misuse of funds, manipulation of bestseller list, authoritarian/abusive leadership       | Resigned Oct 2014; Mars Hill Church dissolved entirely                                                                   |
+----------------------------------+------------+----------------------------------------+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Bill Hybels / Willow Creek       | 2018       | Founder, Willow Creek (25,000 members);| Decades of sexual misconduct: groping, unwanted advances, extramarital affair with staff; leadership covered it up   | Resigned Apr 2018; entire elder board and both co-lead pastors also resigned; church issued public apology to victims    |
|                                  |            | globally modeled church leadership     |                                                                                                                       |                                                                                                                           |
+----------------------------------+------------+----------------------------------------+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Jerry Falwell Jr.                | 2020       | President, Liberty University;         | Wife carried on multi-year affair with 20-yr-old pool attendant while Falwell allegedly watched; financial scandals  | Resigned Aug 2020                                                                                                        |
|                                  |            | key Trump evangelical endorser         |                                                                                                                       |                                                                                                                           |
+----------------------------------+------------+----------------------------------------+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Josh Duggar                      | 2015, 2021 | Reality TV Christian family star;      | 2015: molested four sisters as a teen; 2021: federal arrest for possessing child pornography of children under 12    | Convicted Dec 2021; sentenced to 12 years 7 months federal prison                                                       |
|                                  |            | Family Research Council lobbyist       |                                                                                                                       |                                                                                                                           |
+----------------------------------+------------+----------------------------------------+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Southern Baptist Convention      | 1998-2022  | Largest Protestant denomination in US  | ~400 leaders charged for sex crimes vs. 700+ victims; SBC kept secret abuser list since 2007; protected leadership   | Guidepost Solutions 205-pg report (2022) confirmed systemic cover-up; DOJ investigation launched; ongoing litigation    |
+----------------------------------+------------+----------------------------------------+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Kenneth Copeland                 | Ongoing    | Prosperity gospel televangelist        | Preaches donations unlock divine blessing while amassing ~$760M net worth, multiple private jets, $17.5M airport     | No criminal charges; widely documented as financial exploitation of vulnerable donors                                    |
+----------------------------------+------------+----------------------------------------+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Robert Morris / Gateway Church   | 2024-2026  | Founder, Gateway Church (25,000+);     | Sexually abused a 12-year-old girl starting in 1982 for four years; used religious authority to silence victim       | Resigned Jun 2024; pleaded guilty Oct 2025 to 5 felony counts; served 6 months jail; released Mar 2026                 |
|                                  |            | Trump 2016 evangelical adviser         |                                                                                                                       |                                                                                                                           |
+----------------------------------+------------+----------------------------------------+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Evangelical Political Bloc       | 1998-2024  | Self-described "Moral Majority";       | White evangelicals willing to hold officials accountable for moral failures dropped from 60% (2011) to 16.5% (2018) | Academically documented as political tribalism displacing theological commitment as primary identity driver              |
| (structural pattern)             |            | guardians of character in public life  |                                                                                                                       |                                                                                                                           |
+----------------------------------+------------+----------------------------------------+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+