Skwim
Veteran Member
Note: This is not presented to denigrate Christianity or Christians, but comes from a revelation I had yesterday. about Christianity
Yesterday I was discussing the subject of what makes something worthy of worship in THIS thread. I was referencing the Christian religion when it seemed that what we were talking about had a familiar ring to it. A few hours later it dawned on me: Christianity seemed to be a form of a codified Stockholm Syndrome. WOW! I had never heard of this before and figured I had stumbled onto something new (I had not). For those not familiar with the Stockholm Syndrome here is a short explanation from Wikipedia.
1) According to Christian belief god created everything.
2) He created people
3) God also created two afterlives for these people when they die, heaven and hell. Heaven is for those who do as he says, and hell for those who refuse to comply.
This, then, is the Stockholm hostage situation: Either do as god says or suffer the consequences.
Christians, wanting to avoid hell and garner a place in heaven, abide by god's demands, which include
So far then, we have an agent, god, who has set up a hostage situation (impending, everlasting hell) and the conditions by which one can escape (love god, believe in Jesus Christ, etc.).
Now, faced by someone promising to do them harm if they didn't do as they say, most people would at least regard such a person as the enemy. Christians, however, embrace this "person": god. They praise and adore him, and even worship this entity who has promised them eternal suffering if they don't do as he says. They bow their heads in thanks, praising him for giving them a way out of the trap he has set for them. They even defend his honor and greatness: none greater or more good, or more loving than this god. Never mind that he admittedly created evil, threatens, is jealous and possessive, misogynistic, and very controlling. This entity, so we are told, is the highest form of righteousness. Not that I'm quarreling with any of this, only that this is exactly how hostages turn from a logical hatred of their captor to having "empathy and positive feelings towards their captor, sometimes to the point of defending them": the Stockholm Syndrome.
And what other reason is there to have empathy and positive feelings, even love, towards this captor other than he promises no eternal suffering if one does as he says? I see nothing else. Yet this "paradoxical psychological phenomenon" has developed into several codified programs that seek to create the Stockholm syndrome in others. Even presenting it as a desirable condition.
This, then, appears to be how Christians have come to exist. Hostages to a captor they have decided to love because Christian Religions have convinced them this is desirable. But is it? Should people embrace the Stockholm Syndrome?
If I've missed something or have gone astray in my analysis here I'm quite willing to listen (this is all very new to me--only a day old---and I may have missed something important.
Thanks for hanging in there.
Yesterday I was discussing the subject of what makes something worthy of worship in THIS thread. I was referencing the Christian religion when it seemed that what we were talking about had a familiar ring to it. A few hours later it dawned on me: Christianity seemed to be a form of a codified Stockholm Syndrome. WOW! I had never heard of this before and figured I had stumbled onto something new (I had not). For those not familiar with the Stockholm Syndrome here is a short explanation from Wikipedia.
"In psychology, Stockholm syndrome is a term used to describe a real paradoxical psychological phenomenon wherein hostages express empathy and have positive feelings towards their captors, sometimes to the point of defending them. These feelings are generally considered irrational in light of the danger or risk endured by the victims, who essentially mistake a lack of abuse from their captors for an act of kindness.
The syndrome is named after the Norrmalmstorg robbery of Kreditbanken at Norrmalmstorg in Stockholm, in which bank employees were held hostage from August 23 to August 28, 1973. In this case, the victims became emotionally attached to their captors, and even defended them after they were freed from their six-day ordeal."
So what is it about Christianity that brought the Stockholm Syndrome to mind? Well, bear with me here while I try to lay it out. The syndrome is named after the Norrmalmstorg robbery of Kreditbanken at Norrmalmstorg in Stockholm, in which bank employees were held hostage from August 23 to August 28, 1973. In this case, the victims became emotionally attached to their captors, and even defended them after they were freed from their six-day ordeal."
1) According to Christian belief god created everything.
2) He created people
3) God also created two afterlives for these people when they die, heaven and hell. Heaven is for those who do as he says, and hell for those who refuse to comply.
This, then, is the Stockholm hostage situation: Either do as god says or suffer the consequences.
Christians, wanting to avoid hell and garner a place in heaven, abide by god's demands, which include
Admit you are a sinner.
Believe In Jesus Christ as Lord
Follow the commandments of Jesus: 1) Love God with your whole heart, 2)Love your fellowmen like you love yourself.
(Depending on one's denomination there may be other or different requirements, but these appear to be the most common.)Believe In Jesus Christ as Lord
Follow the commandments of Jesus: 1) Love God with your whole heart, 2)Love your fellowmen like you love yourself.
So far then, we have an agent, god, who has set up a hostage situation (impending, everlasting hell) and the conditions by which one can escape (love god, believe in Jesus Christ, etc.).
Now, faced by someone promising to do them harm if they didn't do as they say, most people would at least regard such a person as the enemy. Christians, however, embrace this "person": god. They praise and adore him, and even worship this entity who has promised them eternal suffering if they don't do as he says. They bow their heads in thanks, praising him for giving them a way out of the trap he has set for them. They even defend his honor and greatness: none greater or more good, or more loving than this god. Never mind that he admittedly created evil, threatens, is jealous and possessive, misogynistic, and very controlling. This entity, so we are told, is the highest form of righteousness. Not that I'm quarreling with any of this, only that this is exactly how hostages turn from a logical hatred of their captor to having "empathy and positive feelings towards their captor, sometimes to the point of defending them": the Stockholm Syndrome.
And what other reason is there to have empathy and positive feelings, even love, towards this captor other than he promises no eternal suffering if one does as he says? I see nothing else. Yet this "paradoxical psychological phenomenon" has developed into several codified programs that seek to create the Stockholm syndrome in others. Even presenting it as a desirable condition.
This, then, appears to be how Christians have come to exist. Hostages to a captor they have decided to love because Christian Religions have convinced them this is desirable. But is it? Should people embrace the Stockholm Syndrome?
If I've missed something or have gone astray in my analysis here I'm quite willing to listen (this is all very new to me--only a day old---and I may have missed something important.
Thanks for hanging in there.
