Does anyone else find themselves inwardly laughing at the utter hypocrisy of the subject of holy war? Whose god, and what religion, fully embraces murder as a solution to the problem? I was raised Catholic. There are so many holes in their logic, it makes my head spin. I have only a smattering of knowledge about other religions; I find most of the beliefs, rites, and rules and regulations to be as vaguely absurd as Catholicism. In my view, Christian Nationalism is simple a group of self-righteous people trying to force everyone else to see things their way. Expand full comment |
I’d laugh at the hypocrisy if we didn’t already have so many examples of these groups spilling blood over whose faith is the “Truth.” They point to God smiting people as justification for their wars and killing. Expand full comment |
That’s some holy god that they believe in. Expand full comment |
A little perspective: the Thirty Years War, a religious war between Protestants and Catholics killed more than 8 million in the 1600s, according to most sources. The American Civil War killed less than a million. With all the other armaments available for future warfare (not to mention the invention and re-legalization of bump-stocks), the next religious war will be an armageddon of choice. Expand full comment |
8 million is probably a conservative estimate. Also not to mention Project 2025's call for a new nuclear arms race. Expand full comment |
Kiwiwriter47’s Substack Jun 20Liked by Andra Watkins It'll be megachurches. They're grifters, and so is the Bloated Yam. Expand full comment |
Are there any Catholic mega-churches? Or is that a Protestant/nondenominational thing? Expand full comment |
Kiwiwriter47’s Substack Jun 20Liked by Andra Watkins No, the One, Holy, Roman, Catholic, and Apostolic Church has a very tight organization. It may have cathedrals, but not megachurches. Those are the result of Protestant evangelist grifters. Expand full comment |
Probably just the vatican Expand full comment |
The Vatican is its own city, right? I've been there, but it has been a while. Expand full comment |
Yes it’s is in its own city - I have never been, but might next year, strictly as an admirer of art & architecture. I am not catholic but my parents were strict catholics and tried their hardest to raise us as catholics but none of us are. I don’t like saying “recovering catholic” because I never bought into it in the first place. It’s a cult. Expand full comment |
I hope you can go. Gird yourself. Rome is amazing and jaw dropping and completely overwhelming. I couldn't stop crying (not in a bad way. More "here's another priceless thing I've read about and I thought I'd never see, and now I'm crying again because I can't believe I'm here.") I *think* my husband has an architecture tour of sorts. If you end up going, shoot me a private message, and I'll send it along. Expand full comment |
Wow how interesting! I’ve heard Rome is incredible but to be moved to tears also makes me really want to fit it in if we can! Thank you so much for your offer - I will let you know ❤️ Expand full comment |
I was raised Baptist, and a lot of what you say about your upbringing hits home for me. Expand full comment |
I often wonder what might have happened to me had my parents stayed in the Presbyterian church. Dad was Baptist when they married; Mom was Methodist. Each refused to join the other’s church because of disagreements over dogma. So I was christened Presbyterian. They joined the Baptist church I grew up in when I was 5, largely because it had a school and tithing church members got a discount. Expand full comment |
My father was killed in the mine when I was 5, and by the time I was 9, my mother and I had largely stopped going to church. She suffered from depression/mental illness and had an "excuse" that my grandfather would accept. I wonder what my life would have been like had we continued to attend regularly. I was always kind of independent and something of a rebel, so maybe I would have ended up in the same place ultimately--rejecting the dogma and searching for something real. Expand full comment |
I’m sorry you lost your dad so young, Kelley. We both ended up where we needed to be. Expand full comment |
I wanted to make a suggestion as to how you might get through to a congressman or senator on the hill in order to help out with their education of Project 2025. I am sure you are acquainted with Jessica Valenti of Abortion Everyday as your movements are intertwined. Reach out to her. She has been on the Hill and been interviewed by senators a few months ago. She must have direct contact with some of them. Expand full comment |
Hey Tamarra. Thank you for this. I'm meeting with Jamie Raskin's office early next week. I'll let paid subscribers know how it goes shortly afterward. Expand full comment |
Sorry I can’t help, Andra, as God would most likely ignore my prayer requests.Apparently hell is a given according to the anonymous authors of the snail mail letters I received as I “care little about the *babies* aborted who never harmed anyone”. While John Oliver doesn’t talk about the possibility of a holy war, he is hysterically serious about Project 2025. https://x.com/BlueATLGeorgia/status/1802904289783767542 Expand full comment |
Also the God of Substack often answers. 😂 Expand full comment |
🤣 Expand full comment |
I watched his segment today. The intersections with MILF Manor were hilarious. As were his made-up names for far-right P2025 contributors. I wish he hadn’t spent so much time on Schedule F, but maybe their polling says Americans care more about that than I think they do. Expand full comment |
I hope he does do more segments ! Although talking about Schedule F is important. “Presidential Transition” would first depend upon putting the sycophants in place. So glad eliminating Schedule F was a numero uno priority of President Biden. Expand full comment |
I may have to bleach my eyeballs if he shows more MILF Manor, tho. But yeah, I hope he does more segments, too. Expand full comment |
The strategy of 'get them pitted against each other' has merit and it is not that difficult to do. Look at the MAGA extremist "purity battles" for supremacy that go on today and that's just over politics. They are primed already. Let's make certain that they are ultimately the ones who suffer for their holy certainty, not the rest of us. Expand full comment |
Right. They’re so primed for it. Expand full comment |
I've been thinking about this a lot. So the so-called Treaty of Westphalia, which ended the 30 Years War fought largely because Catholics and Protestants resented each other for dogmatic reasons, killed millions of people and ended without those dogmatic schisms being resolved. The "resolution" was agreeing which plot of land could call itself "Catholic", "Lutheran,"or "Calvin." Nothing decided about dogmatic issues. If you look at the pics of "Faith Leaders" with Trump, not a single Catholic in sight. So my theory is that the Protestant wing of the Christian Nationalists are just (barely) tolerating the Catholic presence, which will evaporate once they have access to the White House again. Catholics could be put on the same enemies list as liberals, "illegal" immigrants, and who knows who else. Leonard Leo probably should have his passport handy. As to the SCOTUS Catholics... I wouldn't put a dogma war breaking out during Trump 2.0 out of the question. These folks don't compromise about ANYTHING, after all. Expand full comment |
I’m sure Leo has thought about that, because he thinks of practically everything. I see it being a more evenly matched fight, though. A lot of P2025’s contributors are Catholic. 45 had Catholics in his cabinet. But Catholics and Protestants definitely do not agree. Expand full comment |
Pardon any typos. I’m in bed with Covid. I’d been wondering which denomination would come out on top, should 45 win. I feel like the Christian Nationalists have been using the Catholics because they have a tradition of early Christian thinkers that has provided a framework for their anti abortion agenda. Also, I am a former Catholic and I have been told numerous times in my life I was going to burn in hell because Catholics pray to intercessories and not directly to Jesus. I can’t see Catholics standing down from that tradition. I go back and forth which one would come out on top. Expand full comment |
I’m sorry to hear you’re unwell, Jen. I think Catholics have been smarter in this long game. Leonard Leo is Catholic and has cultivated a radicalized cadre of Catholic judges and lawyers. The conservative wing of the Supreme Court is Catholic. The Mike Johnsons might team up with them to seize power, but they will never bow the knee to popery. Expand full comment |
Yeah, Catholics have a pseudointellectual tradition that the evangelicals largely lack. Two different manifestations of the same evil, that so far have needed one another to wreak their destruction. Expand full comment |
My husband went to Catholic high school in WI. They taught actual science. My Christian school did not. Expand full comment |
The Catholics always insist logic supports their faith. Since it does not, imo they can't really be trusted on education either. But at least they still claim to value it. Expand full comment |