The truth about the religious right

[xpat]

Here's a fascinating article about megachurches and the Republican Party's exurban base. The message that comes through strong and clear is that these so-called churches don't have squat to do with religion. It's only a thin veneer for used car salesmen and community reaction to the failure of public services in sprawl communities.

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/033105D.shtml

Guess what. The religious right is not religious, it's just a bunch of alienated suckers who've been vacuumed into a machine that is manipulating the hell out of them.

[roguevalley]

1. when a church has its own bowling alleys and stores inside of it

you know you aren't in a church anymore.

[undergroundpanther]

2. People are not

Wanting a church,they want a COMMUNITY.A place to interact.
This is why the mega churches are successful

What if there were secular clubhouses,places in every neighborhood to go to hang out with other people who are in your area,a place with no bullies,no booze,no agenda to sell,a place anyone could relax and socialize without paying country club fees,where a donation did-it.?
A place with music fun activities to do.

Then the mega church would die,.Christianity in the fundie form would lose.

A clubhouse community.That kind of space would trump a mega church because you wouldn't have to pretend to 'believe' just to be part of a community.In my experience people go to mega churches for the socialization and fun not religion.

It's something the culture of social Darwinism ,corporations abandoning workers forcing them to move around,and the parasite rich tweaking at groups of poor people having fun,that made up loiter laws and all to separate people..our community and a neutral place to gather together is what they took away from us.

Ever wonder why the net is so popular? It's because we have no place in real life,like a clubhouse to go to connect to others freely.

You don't need to sell god to justify giving people a place to BE.

[PowerToThePeople]

3. Already are

Your local pubs, coffee shops, and pool halls.

[undergroundpanther]

4. Pubs

Problems with pubs , they have booze,all you can pay for you can drink,. Some people don't like drunks.Drunks suck.Also usually music in pubs is so loud you can't talk to anyone without screaming and they are smoky.Can't bring the kids. Only open night hours,Gotta buy something or pay cover all the time. Can't volunteer there to make it a better community because it ain't one..

Coffee shops will shoo you out if you don't BUY something after awhile. And they don't have planned social activities and the patrons don't encourage discussions really.I have been in alot of coffee shops where people read all to themselves or talk in little groups. There is nothing there centralizing people it's very isolating. .Sometimes a poetry group meets but it's just the group people don't join in.

Pool halls don't cut it if you can't play pool,why go? Some people don't bother with pool and at pool halls there are not many comfortable chairs that engender deep conversation.Alot of pool halls and pubs are meat markets too.Some people aren't into playing..

[xpat]

5. No pubs in the exurbs

That's why the megachurches work there. These are housing projects, not communities. Nobody really lives there; they just pass through. The municpal services are minimal. People don't have porches to sit on with the neighbors.

So in move the used car salesmen selling Jesus with latte and a Krispie Kreme.

The megachurches are filling the gap that a well-organized secular municipality should fill. Why should a church have a sports team, for Christ's sake? Jogging of Jesus?

The up side is that if there were sufficient local taxes in these communities to provide the services that people want, there would be less money for tithes to these churches. In fact, people are paying their local taxes to the used car salemen.

With the municipality doing what it is supposed to do, people wouldn't need to submit to the Jesus crap to go bowling.

My reading is that the religious right is only skin deep in most places and could be peeled away by vigourous local organizers who pushed communities to do their job and provide the services people want.

[mmonk]

6. The truth is

republicans are being allowed to fund their base which in turn becomes a get out the vote machine. This is bad law and against church and state separation.