THE CULTURE OF ABUSE IN FUNDAMENTALIST CHRISTIANITY AND RIGHT WING POLITICS

Copyright 1995-2008,

by Surly

The culture is authoritarian, it's harsh rulers are to be obeyed without question. It is based on guilt, fear, hatred and punishment. It is a culture of dominion: of men over women, of men over Nature and the environment, in the West, of white men and European culture over other races; in the East, of Semitic or Asian men over historically marginalized races. It is also a philosophy of self-denial that engenders self-hatred. Hatred and anger energizes the hierarchy. Its admonitions are always negative. They cannot be escaped.

Fundamentalist abuse lies in sexual denial, denial of the body and its pleasures, denial of the free-ranging mind that can question everything. Ultimately it is a denial of love. It is a harsh view of the world - fear of God on one side and fear of the Devil on the other. There is left little freedom.

That their children are restricted from free expression and access to all knowledge and alternative viewpoints and that hatred and fear of others are taught them must be seen as abusive even if no corporal punishment is delivered to them. But many fundamentalist families do not spare the rod and children are beaten into submission. All this behavior can be hidden behind the recent call for the sancity of the family. This abuse must be passed on from parents to children and to their descendants in a vicious cycle that must not allow itself to be broken, for that would be a sin.

The Right wing has always been anti-therapy. Self-examination, sensitivity training, self-awareness therapies are forbidden because those would call into question the doctrine and dogma and break and cycle of hatred and anger.

We succumb to fundamentalist Christian rhetoric because we are taught to equate anything Christian with goodness and feel guilt if we question or oppose it. We don't think critically, certainly many fundamentalists do not.

Fundamentalism allows unscrupulous leaders to arise who manipulate their followers through guilt and fear for financial and political gain.

Christians are supporters of a rabid capitalism and right-wing dictators who are friendly to US businesses. It should be a contradiction that Christians often enthusiastically support selfish, power-mongering, materialistic, capitalist enterprises. Where is the duty to help the poor and unfortunate to achieve social justice and a good life?

Christianity operates on a war mentality, always on the evangelical offensive to convert others or destroy them and their cultures.

They rail against perversions and the decadence of society, but it is they and the political right wings they always represent that bring societies down into fascism.