Atheist Bible Study 1: Genesis

[vulcanlogician]

That's what I meant. They perceive it any way that suits their already-established lifestyles.

This. It pretty much sums up all of Christianity in one sentence.

Yup. Although I do think that individuals can adopt Christianity as a real value system, on large scales, the religion often becomes a rationalization for one's inherited lifestyle... to make it seem like there is some kind of value system in place where there really isn't one... only cultural norms with "divine justification."

But I'd like to reiterate that many people actually do treat Christianity as a genuine value system. It's just that they are the exception, not the rule. It has to be difficult for these individuals. On the one hand, they really believe in the stuff, so they want to be a part of it... on the other hand, the thing they want to be a part of is largely disingenuous. A distortion of real values often occurs the larger a cultural phenomenon a thing is. The same thing happened with the hippies. It became more about bell bottoms and reefer than peace, unity, and transcendence. There is no real way to fix this facet of Christianity except to make Christianity less popular.