On Becoming Bruce Ellis Benson

Both Christian and secular commentators have remarked on and questioned the close relationship between Trump and Evangelicals. Supposedly, there are such great differences between them that it's hard to see how they connect. But Trump and Evangelicals share a deep sense of ressentiment toward the world around them. In this episode, I argue that faith in Trump has replaced faith in Jesus. I use the term 'Trumpianity' to indicate something like a new religion (rather than simply a different version of Christianity). My reading of Trumpianity is primarily shaped by Nietzsche's account of the development of slave morality. But I believe that Trump has provided a way for Evangelicals to leave Jesus behind in favour of a new version of master morality in which Evangelicals are the masters. Whereas Jesus teaches love, Trump teaches his followers to hate.

All of our ideas and concepts come from somewhere. So where did the notion of 'sinner' come from? In this episode, we explore the distinction Nietzsche makes between master and slave morality. We'll begin by explicating the idea of master morality and then see how that morality compares to the morality of the slave or those on the bottom of the hierarchy. Nietzsche credits the slaves with a revolt that turns the values of the masters on their heads and replaces them with a very different conception of morality. It's that revolt that constitutes a change in values that begins in Judaism and continues into what we now call 'Christianity'.

This episode is the first in a new series titled 'Deconstructing Christianity', in which we will be examining fundamental Christian doctrines. We begin with the notion of sin, since that basic concept provides much of the scaffolding for Christianity as we know it. After explicating the Evangelical notion of sin, we then consider the extent it can be seen as abusive.

You may have heard that the governor of Louisiana has decreed that the Ten Commandments must be posted in all public classrooms. In this episode, we'll consider what the effect of such a move might be. But we'll also take a look at the actual commandments themselves, which turn out to be somewhat less 'moral' than one might expect.

It's Pride Month!  We begin the month with a reflection on pride as a vice and a virtue. My own experience of teaching Evangelical students is that they often don't know what to do with compliments since they are trying to avoid being 'prideful'. But there is nothing in the Bible that indicates that having a healthy self-respect is bad. Indeed, things that both Paul and Jesus say suggest the opposite. In this episode, we consider what something like 'proper pride' might be. I also spend some time considering the recent speech given by Harrison Butler, since he specifically mentions the kind of pride associated with Pride Month only to say that it's 'the deadly sin sort of pride'.

In this episode, I discuss some aspects of my thinking. Although I've never been a rebel, I have always asked questions, including questions that have gotten me into trouble. While I believe that most human knowing isn't certain or indubitable, that doesn't mean that there can be no sense of 'knowledge'. Finally, I discuss how improvisation is the key to my thinking.