Damned Christians

[Fake Messiah]

Russian propaganda finds sympathetic ears among U.S. religious right

Over the last decade, we've charted Russian propaganda efforts to affect elections in the U.S. and overseas. Russian President Vladimir Putin is trying to portray himself and Russia as defenders of Christian and so-called "traditional" values.

This church burned down more than 10 years ago in a remote Russian village on the border with Kazakstan. But since the February 2022 invasion of Ukraine, the video has reappeared all across the Russian Internet. Official sources are falsely claiming it shows a church in Ukraine, with the accusation that Kyiv is destroying churches and going after priests and parishioners across the country.

Although the story is untrue, the message that Ukraine is fighting against Christian values has turned into a powerful narrative used to justify the war to the Russian public. Even the head of the Russian Orthodox Church calls the fighting a holy war and sends Russian soldiers off to battle with a promise of salvation.

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA): This is a war on Christianity. The Ukrainian government is attacking Christians. The Ukrainian government is executing priests. Russia is not doing that. They're not attacking Christianity. As a matter of fact, they seem to be protecting it.

Especially within the MAGA movement, Moscow is no longer the old adversary. It's an anti-woke, anti-LGBTQ defender of Western civilization, a spiritual superpower.

Steve Bannon, Former White House Chief Strategist: Putin ain't woke. He is anti-woke.

Erik Prince, Founder, Blackwater USA: The Russians, people still know which bathroom to use.

Recent polls show that views on Russia are shifting on the right, with Republicans more than twice as likely to see Russia as a partner of the U.S.

Here's one of Russia's most prolific propagandists, Vladimir Solovyov, interviewing notorious American conspiracy theorist Alex Jones.

Vladimir Solovyov, Russian TV Personality: "They don't believe in God. How can they believe in God than before LGBTQ+, minus, divide on something? LGBT is (EXPLETIVE DELETED). It has nothing to do with God."

Alex Jones, Host, "The Alex Jones Show": A lot of Americans admire Russia and admire you and admire Putin because you have been able to fight this off.

And among Americans who admire Putin, you can find the same fake footage of burning churches that were first circulated by the Russian state and its media outlets.

The interesting thing is how, on American podcasts and social media, the pro-Christian message is tailored specifically to advocate against America's support of Ukraine.

Russia is selling a spiritual war in order to win a geopolitical one. The fiction that Russia is a haven for white, straight, churchgoing families is smoothing the way for discussions about lifting sanctions on Russia and cutting off aid to Ukraine.

https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/russia...ious-right

[The Grand Nudger]

Meanwhile, russia has long been engaged at home and in ukraine in the targeted repression of christians and christianity, as it also sends those traditional russian christians to certain death for no cause with nothing to gain.

[Fake Messiah]

2 church leaders with Michigan ties charged in multi-state forced labor conspiracy

Officials say 53-year-old David Taylor and 56-year-old Michelle Brannon, leaders of Kingdom of God Global Church, formally known as Media Ministries International, used physical and psychological abuse to control their victims to get donations.

Taylor and Brannon were reportedly arrested today in North Carolina and Florida in “a nationwide takedown of their forced labor organization.”

Taylor opened the first call center in Michigan and then ran call centers across the U.S., including in Florida, Texas and Missouri, officials say.

Officials say the pair coerced victims to work at the call centers without pay and serve Taylor around the clock. Victims reportedly slept in the call center facilities and were not allowed to leave without permission. According to the indictment, Taylor referred to himself as “Apostle” and "Jesus's best friend."

Taylor also allegedly demanded his victims transport women to his location, and to make sure they took emergency contraceptives.

According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the call centers would bring in millions of dollars in donations each year. Officials allege Taylor and Brannon used the money to buy luxury properties, luxury vehicles and sporting equipment.

https://www.wxyz.com/news/2-church-leade...conspiracy

[Fake Messiah]

Netflix's 'Apocalypse in the Tropics' documentary explores rise of Evangelical Christianity and far-right extremism in Brazil

Today, the evangelicals, representing 30% of the population, have become a powerful political force.

Evangelism, which originated in the US, was pushed into Brazil as part of the strategy of the US war on communism to counter the “ghost” of Communism.

Evangelicals have systematically used their influence on their followers to gain political power and personal benefits. They advise the voters openly who to vote for or against. The evangelical pastor Silas Malafaia had helped the campaign of Bolsonaro. Malafaia had been working even harder to defeat Lula and the Workers Party. Some of the evangelical pastors openly called for the military to intervene and overthrow the elected government of President Lula. They had encouraged their followers to attack the Congress, the Presidential palace and the Supreme Court on 8 January to facilitate the coup planned by Bolsonaro.

Malafaia and many other pastors have become millionaires and even billionaires. They own private jets, live in luxury and make pilgrimages to Miami for shopping and entertainment. They have built business empires with publications, TV channels, and music, among other ways of making money.

The documentary film reveals how the Brazilian democracy has been undermined and eroded by the corrosive influence of extremist evangelical pastors who manipulate and mislead their followers. It has vividly captured the statements, agenda and activities of the Evangelicals and their political accomplices.

The evangelicals brought their advocacy and agenda from the pulpits into the Congress with issues such as abortion, rights of gays and minorities. They turned viciously against the Left, taking advantage of the imprisonment of Lula and impeachment of President Dilma Rousseff. They worked closely with the far-right extremist Bolsonaro and helped him come to power. When he lost the re-election, the Evangelicals would not accept it. They joined forces with the Bolsonarists in the coup attempts.

The documentary ends with the images and videos of the destruction and damage of the buildings of the Congress, Presidency and the Supreme Court and the collection of cement debris and broken glass pieces by the workers. Her final poignant commentary, “Apocalypse does not mean the end of the world. It is an unveiling, a revelation, and a chance to open our eyes.”

The documentary not only opens the eyes of the Brazilians but also those in the rest of the world, which has witnessed the apocalyptic attempts of Trump to hold on to power after losing reelection in January 2021. He had set an example to Bolsonaro by inciting his rogue followers to attack the Capitol Hill on 6 January 2021 in Washington, DC.

The documentary has enough evidence to convict not only Bolsonaro and his military accomplices but even Malafaia and his dangerous ilk. They have incriminated themselves openly and unambiguously with their own anti-democratic and pro-coup statements and incitements to violence. There is no need for any more evidence.

https://www.theweek.in/news/entertainmen...razil.html

[Fake Messiah]

How Politicians and Preachers Turn Persecution Into Profit

In contemporary America, you’ll hear a steady refrain from the pulpits of preachers and the podiums of politicians: “Christianity is under attack.” Christians still constitute the majority and wield significant cultural and political influence, mind you, but that’s never stopped a narrative of systemic oppression.

This talking point, which pairs nicely with shrieking claims of persecution, warns of an encroaching secular agenda that seeks to destroy “traditional Christian values” and turn our families into transgender atheist groomer communists who listen to hip-hop and use paper straws.

Politicians use the “Christianity under attack” rhetoric to secure votes and consolidate power. By framing themselves as warriors in a spiritual battle, they thirstily pander to a sense of tribal loyalty among a certain kind of Christian voter.

Televangelists and megachurch pastors have long capitalized on the victimhood narrative to solicit donations and build obscene personal wealth. And polarizing cultural wedge issues are historically one of the slickest ways to redirect attention away from real social and economic problems.

Examples of “Christianity under attack” have included First Amendment restrictions on public prayer in government settings, restrictions against anti-LGBTQ discrimination, and resistance to teaching creationism in public school science class. Nothing that truly threatens Christian religious practice — just conservative religious domination.

Historically, American Christians have used a Bible to justify the slaughter of Indigenous people, the enslavement of African people, the labor exploitation of Asian people, ignoring the suffering of European Jewish people, cruelty to gay people, the indiscriminate detention and torture of Muslim people, and of course, pushing perpetual second-class citizenship on female people.

It is sadly not a coincidence that some of the most historically bigoted and segregated parts of the country have also been known as the “Bible Belt.” And if there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s that nobody hates like a Christian who’s just been told their hate isn’t Christian.

https://katiecouric.com/news/opinion/chr...p-opinion/

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Department of War Quotes Bible on Social Media. Some Link It to Christian Nationalism.

The department, renamed the Department of War, has joined other branches of the federal government in embracing a Christian Nationalist tone in its official communications. Some warn the new social media strategy could indicate how Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s conservative Christian faith is revamping the military branch.

In an email to RNS, Pentagon Press Secretary Kingsley Wilson said the videos exemplify Hegseth’s efforts to celebrate the country’s Christian roots “despite the Left’s efforts to remove our Christian heritage from our great nation,” and that “Secretary Hegseth is among those who embrace it.”

“Secretary Hegseth, along with millions of Americans, is a proud Christian,” Wilson said in the email.

Michael Weinstein, a former Air Force officer who founded the Military Religious Freedom Foundation, which seeks to ensure freedom of religion in the U.S. military, raised a concern that the DOW’s favoritism of Christian Scriptures in its communications could jeopardize cohesion among armed forces.

“This is completely dividing members of the military,” he said. “We see it around the clock. I’ve talked to generals who said, ‘Look, for the first time in my life, I still love the sailors and the soldiers and the airmen and the Marines that I command, but I hate the Navy, the Army and the Air Force that I work for because I see what it has become.’”

Moreover, the posts suggest non-Christian military members aren’t “worthy or honorable or trustworthy human beings to be able to fight for your country,” said Weinstein, who is Jewish. He was referring to Article Six of the U.S. Constitution, which bans religious tests for positions in the federal government — including military personnel — adding, “but there is a de facto test.”

Recently, his foundation documented an increase in religious freedom violations in the military. He said some of his clients have flagged as examples the DOW’s “evangelization efforts” through events like the lunch break “Christian prayer and worship service” convened by Hegseth’s office in the Pentagon auditorium earlier this year.

The department’s rebranding and its embrace of Christian references on social media could lead to an escalation of conflicts, Weinstein said.

“This is nothing more than a fast-ticking time bomb that will blow up in our faces,” said Weinstein, who served 11 years in the Air Force. “… It is encouraging a tremendous response by our enemies who are out there, many of whom follow their own extremist religious views.”

The DOW also seems to have adopted a Christian Crusader aesthetic, aligning itself with Hegseth’s declarations, Weinstein added. The defense secretary is known for his Crusader cross tattoo on his chest. The Crusaders’ battle cry, “Deus Vult” (“God wills” in Latin), has long entertained an idea of Western Christianity clashing with non-Christian civilizations. And in a March 25 X post, Hegseth showed a bicep tattoo that reads “kafir,” meaning “unfaithful” in Arabic.

https://wordandway.org/2025/09/09/depart...tionalism/

[Fake Messiah]

Operation 'False Prophet': Here's how authorities say church leaders fleeced their flock

The indictments against a 35-year-old House of Prayer Christian Church pastor over child sex crimes capped a flurry of charges this week against church leaders whom authorities say scammed millions of dollars in bogus veterans' benefits and tax refunds for years.

Bernadel Junior Semexant, 35, of Hinesville and Savannah, has been charged with enticement of a minor to engage in sexual activity; sexual abuse of a minor; transfer of obscene material to a minor; receipt of child pornography; and possession of child pornography.

On Wednesday, feds swept through a seven-bedroom, $1.4 million mansion on Honors Way in Martinez occupied by a man known to authorities as HOPCC spiritual leader Rony Denis.

A 26-count indictment shows Denis atop a list of seven other defendants, listed below, with whom authorities say Denis conspired to commit bank fraud, wire fraud and tax fraud.

"The indictment alleges that members were manipulated into turning over personal information; pressured into marriages and divorces arranged by church leaders; and forced to live in properties tied to the defendants that generated rental income," according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.

Prosecutors also say the church pressured members to enroll in its in-house "Bible seminary," then "using their Veterans Administration benefits to funnel money into church-controlled accounts," the office said.

The seminary received more than $3 million in education benefits for its two Georgia locations and more than $23.5 million for all five locations.

"From 2013 through 2021, HOPBS officers fraudulently submitted false certifications to Georgia regulators that claimed the seminary did not receive federal funds, despite receiving millions in VA payments each year," according to the U.S. Attorney's Office. "The scheme funneled funding from VA education benefits to its seminary and related church accounts, enriching the defendants while exhausting some veterans’ benefits, often without students completing their programs."

Then there's the bank fraud scheme, dating back years, prosecutors say. Church leaders would seize control of rental properties for their rental income. Between 2018 and 2020, the church collected $5.2 million.

"The defendants allegedly recruited members of their organization to serve as 'straw buyers' in real estate transactions, concealing the true buyers’ identities," the office said. "They falsified loan applications and closing documents, used forged powers of attorney, and created limited-liability corporations to acquire and transfer properties."

https://www.augustachronicle.com/story/n...099722007/

[Fake Messiah]

Rising Christian nationalism: a threat to us all

Scenes on Saturday of Christian preachers denouncing ‘Secular Humanism’ from the main stage of Tommy Robinson’s radical right Unite the Kingdom rally in London may have been surprising to see on the streets of London, but they are just the latest evidence of consistent attempts in recent years to promote a narrow ‘Christian nationalist’ vision of the UK.

It is opposed to the separation of church and state and to all forms of religious pluralism – such as learning about other beliefs and cultures. More generally, it advocates very conservative Christian social policies, such as rolling back the human rights of LGBT+ people and abortion rights. It staunchly opposes people having choice at the end of life, on the basis that their religion forbids assisted dying.

In an unprecedented move, US Vice President JD Vance intervened in British politics in relation to a Christian activist who deliberately breached a public space protection order around an abortion clinic, and briefings made to the Times indicated that the Trump administration was attempting to influence the UK’s laws in relation to religious protesters and abortion as a condition of free trade. On Saturday, former Trump official and X owner Elon Musk made a televised appearance at the same London rally where other attendees called for the destruction of ‘secular humanism’, with performers on stage ripping up flags saying ‘secular humanism’ and ‘no religion’.

In Matlock in Derbyshire, Reform councillors reintroduced Christian prayer to council meetings on the basis that the UK was a ‘Christian country’. One of their first moves subsequently was to ban Pride flags following a complaint from a Christian bookstore owner in June. The policy, which is similar to ‘LGBT Free Zone’ policies used by local governments in Poland between 2021 and 2023, was later adopted by other Reform-controlled councils, including Warwickshire.

More recently in Northumberland, a Reform councillor and SACRE rep told the council he wanted exclusively Christian Religious Education in schools because this was ‘a Christian country’, calling any other approach to RE ‘brainwashing’.

In a speech in the House of Commons in July, the Conservative MP Danny Kruger – who defected to Reform on Monday – made an impassioned speech to his fellow MPs to back a ‘revival of the faith, a recovery of Christian politics, and a refounding of this nation’. Elsewhere in his remarks he called for Christians to ‘destroy’ and ‘banish from public life’ a ‘woke’ modern creed combining ‘ancient paganism, Christian heresies, and the cult of modernism’. While he did not elaborate on what he was referring to or why it was apparently so dangerous, elsewhere in his speech Mr Kruger claimed that ‘to worship human rights is to worship fairies’.

Humanists UK’s Chief Executive Andrew Copson added: ‘Christian nationalism would roll back the hard-won progress of decades that has been made in pursuit of greater freedom of thought, expression, and choice in our country. We cannot let that happen. The social revolution of the twentieth century that was both caused by and gave rise to the widespread humanist values of our contemporary society has brought lasting benefits to us all.’

https://humanists.uk/2025/09/17/rising-c...to-us-all/

[Fake Messiah]

Holy war: How Russia recruited Orthodox priests to sway Moldova’s voters

Russia paid for Moldovan Orthodox priests to make Moscow pilgrimages and gave them debit cards loaded with hundreds of dollars on their return home. In exchange, priests created Telegram channels to influence Moldova's elections, warning against integration with the European Union and promoting traditional values over ‘gay Europe.’

"The most immoral feature of Russian electoral interference in elections in Moldova is the use of the most trusted institution — the Church." Stanislav Secrieru, national security adviser to Moldova's president

Moldova, a small, deeply religious nation in eastern Europe, holds crucial parliamentary elections on Sunday that could thwart its advance towards EU membership. The country is uniquely caught between Russia and the West: while it gained formal independence from Moscow in 1991, its Orthodox church – a revered institution followed by the bulk of its 2.4 million population – remains a subordinate branch of the Moscow Patriarchate.

Almost 90 new Telegram channels have been established as the accounts of Moldovan Orthodox parishes over the past year, according to a Reuters review of social media data. Most channels have pumped out identical content on a near-daily basis, urging the faithful to oppose the government’s pro-Western push in posts that have reached thousands of followers, the analysis found.

The overarching message is that Moldova’s traditional family values are under threat from an EU that will force citizens to embrace LGBT identities, degrade morals and destroy freedom of worship. While posts aren't explicitly pro-Russian, they echo the narratives pushed by opposition parties that advocate closer ties with Moscow.

“Today our country stands before a fateful choice. We are being advised to abandon faith, language, and our roots in exchange for foreign rules and ‘European values’,” said one message posted on September 18 by 39 of the parish channels reviewed. Russian is commonly spoken in the country alongside official language Romanian.

The targeting of the Moldovan church is part of a broader shadow war being waged by the Kremlin to influence the pivotal election, including online disinformation that pushes anti-Western narratives, cyberattacks on critical state infrastructure and clandestine support for politicians sympathetic to Moscow, according to the Moldovan government as well as many Western diplomats and think-tanks.

Speaking to Reuters afterwards about his differences with the ruling party, Archbishop Marchel said the danger of integrating with Europe was Moldovans having to accept Western values such as permitting homosexuality.

“It’s the worst sin,” he said. “To cultural, Christian Europe, I say yes. To gay Europe, I say no. If you come with gays, then don't come at all.”

https://www.reuters.com/investigations/h...025-09-26/