Friday night in Riverside, California, I was helping a friend promote his new clothing line at a local bar & grill. There was a band playing inside and the crowd was enjoying themselves. No babies being sacrificed and no séances were being performed.
It’s 1:30 AM and I’m standing outside at the booth talking to people as they stand around, when I noticed a crowd gathering a block away. I ask, “So what’s happening down there?” No one knows. Then, the crowd begins to move our direction. They’re chanting, “Jesus, Jesus,” and "Ain't no party like a holy ghost party, 'cause a holy ghost party don't stop. What, what." The cult leader is chanting common Christian clichés through a megaphone, “God loves you. Receive the Holy Spirit.” Nothing new here.
The crowd of about 100 Jesus freaks stops directly in front of the bar & grill. They continue to chant loudly. Several people begin convulsing and fall to the ground. A portion of the crowd gathers around them. A truck pulls up with a hot tub in back for baptizing. I suppose they planned on some people getting saved or something. All along the crowd at the restaurant is chanting back, “Get the fuck out of here! Fuck your god!” There were all sorts of hand/mouth gestures coming from our side of the fence. Two of the bikini models open up their tops to reveal pasties. They jiggled their breasts toward the crowd. Several of the male Christians enjoyed this as I saw their eyes light up. Obviously, the people at the restaurant were provoked by these mind-numb, indoctrinated zombies. Otherwise, none of the restaurant patrons would have acted in such a manner.
As the crowd finally began to disperse, I confronted a group of young girls (18-20) at the back. “What did you accomplish here tonight,” I asked. They didn’t have anything to say. They just continued to chant, “Jesus, Jesus.” One older cult leader butts in and I ask him, “What did you accomplish here tonight?” He said, “We did the Lord’s work.” I said, “Looks to me like all you did is reinforce non-belief.” He responds, “Didn’t you see two people receive the Holy Spirit?” I answered, “I saw two people convulsing on the ground. It was an act. It accomplished nothing.” “God revealed himself tonight,” he said. All “he” did was reveal how ignorant and easily manipulated his people are. I asked him if he had ever seen God. He said no. I asked if had ever heard God. He said yes. I said, “You’re delusional and you easily manipulated by flowery words about hell and a non-existent after life.” He turns and continues chanting along with the crowd, “Jesus, Jesus.”
Now, I know you Christians reading this will conveniently say, “Well…that’s not representative of what I believe.” I say it is. All it is a slightly more confrontational version of what many of you believe. Every Christian believes in a zombie magic man, a celestial dictator, and a book written by Bronze Age tribesmen. There is no irrefutable evidence for anything you believe. Your religion is propagated through classic indoctrination methods—dumbing-down the followers, employing fear and moral superiority, weekly indoctrination sessions, claims of miracles, and mantras and clichés. All of this was on display last night in Riverside, California.
To me, most Christians suffer from psychosis stemming from a prolonged, intense indoctrination. Religion alters behavior through delusions of moral superiority and illusions of interaction with a supernatural being. The person is unable to function properly in society. Others are simply pathological and have convinced themselves to believe something they know contradicts reality, yet they adhere because it gives them a sense of authority within a group of less intelligent people.
