Perhaps one of the most current attackers of the Christian faith is Comedian and HBO talkshow host, Bill Maher. Maher denies being an atheist but has been extremely outspoken about his synicism and hate of religion, it's history and anything symbolic of faith.
As a comedian and a talk show host, he's able to reach a large audience to spread his attacks by way of the media. He claims religion is the foundation of lies, and that it hinders rational thinking and scientific development, and the cause of social and worldwide violence over the course of our human history.
To an extent, I agree with him.
Religion is a by-product of mankind's expressions of faith and unfortunately that doesn't exclude people's inperfections, passions and anything that encompasses their opionions and ideologies. People create religion and people then interpret those beliefs out of their passions and their personal interpretations of their religion.
Maher fails to understand that outside of religion, people are always going to be likely to create their faiths (whether they call it faith or not) based on personal opinions, politics, etc. There is enough history to prove that wars and the worlds evils have also be the result of Godless ideologies and tyrants who lashed out against religion ,and embrased evolution - based thinking like Hitler, Stalin, Pol Pot, etc.
These Tyrants lashing out against faith-based beliefs didn't do much to bring peace on Earth let alone for their own people.
But worst, a Godless ideology is only open to conform to who knows what ... and perhaps more evil.. because people will open themselves up to anything according to their relative morality.
But the point is that religion and non religion will always be carried out by human interpretation and human passions.
It's no coincidence that people by the billions have a need to worship something. They're either going to worship themselves or something else (again, whether we know it or not). It's innate within humanity to worship and the need to fill a void inside of us that will give us comfort and answers to life's questions.
I believe the evidence of this is that we as humans just cannot get it together with or without religions. It's a human problem not a problem of religion. And this is what Maher just doesn't understand. He's as synical as they come.
Maher mocks people of faith and takes comedic shots at them for not being able to prove what they believe in their hearts.
But perhaps the biggest challenge to the Christian faith however, is not synical non believers like Bill Maher but instead people who themselves consider themselves to be Christian yet misrepresent the Christian faith by their lack of Biblical knowledge and their exaggerated zeal for it.
People say America is a "Christian" nation but this is just not true. America is a Christian Idealistic nation and even that is rapidly changing. Most Americans don't read their Bibles and most Americans are willing to push Christian principles without being able to biblically defend those principles. It's when the foundations of the faith are destroyed that the ideals will fade with time.
So when Bill Maher makes fun of Christianity, sometimes I feel that in most cases, it's only inevitable especially when some so-called Christians are burning down abortion clinics and others are burning korans... pure nonsense. This is not Christianity, this is over-zealousness and people interpreting Christianity to suit their own agendas.
The Bible states that we should strive to enter through the "narrow gate" because it's the true way and very few will be that find it. When we sway away from the truth (the Bible) or add to the truth to accomadate our own passions and opinions outside of God's will, all we have is religion and anything is up for grabs in terms of whatever mankind can muster up with their creativity and ideologies, etc.
People like Maher can always criticise even true Christianity as they rebel from the Truth of God's Word but people's religiosity will always give sceptics soemthing to point at. The Bible states that as true Christians, we have to examine ourselves by God's Word to make sure we're in God's will. Anything less than a true relationship with Christ is religiosity and a stumbling block to non believers and other Chrsitians alike.
Jesus stated that one will know who you are by your fruits. Those fruits he mentioned are the fruits of the spirit; love, peace, dicipline, long suffering and obedience.
Although some people might find comfort in saything they're "religious" or "spritiual", outside of a personal relationship with Jesus Christ one can never measure up because Jesus Himself said "their works are as filthy rags". Whatever good is done outside of Christ is done for self or done in some other name and for some other motive.
