There's an entire evangelical wing called 'Prosperity Gospel'. It's led by people like Joel Osteen. The entire schtick is that you don't have to wait until the afterlife to get your just rewards. God wants you to succeed, and if you believe and pray really, really hard, you will. And if he doesn't help you, that means you're doing it wrong, but a $9.99 prayer scarf, a $19.99 DVD, and pay-by-the-minute calls to a prayer help line will set you on the right path.
It's sickening, but I can't help but applaud the sheer audacity behind it. And I've actually watched some of their paid advertising sermons as a way to better know my enemy. It's always the same:
A generic sermon about how all things are possible through Jesus, with paint-by-numbers "when I was down (in a vague, not convincing way), he lifted me back up" claims and a ton of repetition designed to get the crowd in a lather.
A taped segment, where the pastor in question talks to a member of their flock, who overcame some sort of mundane struggle through Jesus. And I mean mundane, like "I was out of a job, but then got an interview." Gee, you think maybe having a decent resume and doing some legwork helped? Idiots.
The final section, where some smarmy narrator tries to hawk the pastor's crap. Usually without naming the price, which means it's likely embarrassingly expensive for what it is.
It's a twist in Christianity aimed for the ADD, instant gratification crowd. God's awesome because he helped me find my car keys, let me slither out of a speeding ticket, put an extra donut in the box at work, etc. As illogical as faith is, this kind of thing is purely, painfully idiotic. And it's becoming very popular because idiots like to think they're special.
It's sickening, but I can't help but applaud the sheer audacity behind it. And I've actually watched some of their paid advertising sermons as a way to better know my enemy. It's always the same:
A generic sermon about how all things are possible through Jesus, with paint-by-numbers "when I was down (in a vague, not convincing way), he lifted me back up" claims and a ton of repetition designed to get the crowd in a lather.
A taped segment, where the pastor in question talks to a member of their flock, who overcame some sort of mundane struggle through Jesus. And I mean mundane, like "I was out of a job, but then got an interview." Gee, you think maybe having a decent resume and doing some legwork helped? Idiots.
The final section, where some smarmy narrator tries to hawk the pastor's crap. Usually without naming the price, which means it's likely embarrassingly expensive for what it is.
It's a twist in Christianity aimed for the ADD, instant gratification crowd. God's awesome because he helped me find my car keys, let me slither out of a speeding ticket, put an extra donut in the box at work, etc. As illogical as faith is, this kind of thing is purely, painfully idiotic. And it's becoming very popular because idiots like to think they're special.
"I was thirsty for everything, but blood wasn't my style" - Live, "Voodoo Lady"
