Today marks 250 years as a Christian country and 406 years as a Christian nation. From the very beginning, Christ has been with us here in America.

America was discovered by Christians. America was explored by Christians. America was colonized by Christians. America was settled by Christians. America was conquered by Christians. America was built by Christians. America was founded by Christians. America was fought for by Christians. Our government was designed by Christians. Our government was designed on Judeo-Christian Biblical values. The Bible was cited more than everyother book combined in the shaping of our government.

The Mayflower Compact is a Christian document. All 13 colonial charters are Christian documents. The Declaration of Independence is a Christ document. The 1783 Treaty of Paris which formally ended the American Revolutionary War and recognized our independence is a Christian document. The Constitution is a Biblically inspired document. All 50 state constitutions reference God, with 46 out of 50 specifically mentioning God. In 1954, under God was added to our pledge of allegiance. In 1956, In God we Trust was added to our money.

And contrary to popular leftist myth, our founding fathers were overwhelmingly Christian.

Congress began with prayer. In 1777, Congress was petitioned and approved to import 20,000 Bibles due to a shortage from the Revolutionary War. Congress later appointed 2 pastors to review the Aitkin Bible for accuracy and then later endorsed this Bible in 1782. These Bibles were then used in schools as student textbooks. Congress funded Christian missionaries to the natives. Until the civil war era, the house of representatives was used for church service from when it was built in 1800 until 1868.

We have always been a Christian nation. We still are a Christian nation. As long as good strong men fight for it, we will always be a Christian nation.

Do not let the left, or the Christians in name only deceive you into believing we are not a Christian country and people. Do not give into the fear of rising "Christian nationalism. Christianity and American nationalism is not only intertwined, but Christian Nationalism is the foundation and default behavior of our country. If we as Christians abandon our duty, we surrender our country to the kingdom of darkness. If we want America to remain a Christian country, we must be bold in both our faith, and patriotism!

Often I see people making claims like "Christianity got me off drugs and alcohol, so I decided to join it", or "Christianity changed my life and the lives of people around me, so that makes it true and you should join it", or something similar.

That's wonderful that people got off drugs and alcohol because of Christianity or that they became more loving or whatever. But that by itself isn't evidence the belief system is true. Many people have gotten off of drugs and alcohol or have become nicer people because of Scientology, or Islam, or Mormonism. Should we conclude those belief systems are true as well?

Here's just one part of many false and misleading claims.

This is one of the more embarrassing threads. Strobel's book cites the "Nazareth decree" and other finds as archaeological confirmation, but the most notorious example is Strobel's citation of "micrographic letters" — supposed tiny inscriptions on ancient coins spelling out "Rex Jesus" — sourced from disgraced archaeologist E. Jerry Vardaman, whose theories were never accepted by mainstream academia and who was removed from his academic position. Strobel quietly revised this section in later editions without much acknowledgment of how it got in there in the first place.

The linked article has a lot of information in it, if you want to know the whole story.

I’m struggling to fully believe in God when I have so many questions about God

How do you deal with it ?

Lately, I've been analyzing the academic consensus on certain topics, and I'm surprised that the strongest argument against Christianity as a faith is that it was all merely the disciples' visions—collective visions, each one personalized—and that Paul believed only in a heavenly Jesus. So, what did they invent to gain some advantage? And, feeling more comfortable in their businesses, their lives, or their traditional Jewish religion, they invented things that, according to the consensus, they, as Jews, neither expected nor desired. This makes us wonder, gentlemen, how far can one go in a supposedly serious field? It also strikes me that the Jews who have the most reason to attack Jesus have never gone down this path (for them, he's just another false Messiah and teacher). It also strikes me that some say the Acts of the Apostles isn't historically reliable when, if we analyze it verse by verse in light of history, Luke knows a great deal about what he's talking about. Anyway, what do you all think, community?

Hi, i really want to get a deeper understanding of Christianity and the philosophy behind it/apologetics so I can defend the faith! I already do small debates on WhatsApp, but my knowledge is limited, please suggest books and things I should research <3

Would You Condemn These Slavery Verses If They Were in Another Holy Book?

Ive been reading the Bible for myself, and one thing that stands out is that it contains numerous passages that says slavery is not bad thing

Some examples include:

**Exodus 21:2-11** Laws about buying Hebrew slaves and rules for their service.

**Exodus 21:20-21** A master is not punished if a beaten slave survives a day or two, because the slave is considered the master's property.

**Leviticus 25:44-46** Israelites are allowed to buy slaves from surrounding nations and pass them on as inherited property.

**Deuteronomy 15:12;18** Regulations for Hebrew slaves and the option of lifelong servitude.

**Ephesians 6:5** Slaves, obey your earthly masters

**Colossians 3:22** Slaves are instructed to obey their masters in everything.

**1 Timothy 6:1-2** Slaves are told to honor their masters, including believing masters.

**Titus 2:9-10** Slaves should be submissive and well pleasing to their masters.

**1 Peter 2:18** Slaves are told to submit even to harsh and unjust masters

**Philemon** Paul sends the escaped slave Onesimus back to his master instead of calling for his emancipation.

Looking at these passages together, I don**n**t see an explicit condemnation or abolition of slavery. Instead, I see a legal and moral framework that accepts slavery as an existing institution and instructs both masters and slaves on how to live within it.

A question that genuinely interests me is this**s** if these same passages appeared in the AL Quran or in another religions sacred text, would people defend them the same way? Or would they be widely condemned as evidence that the text endorses slavery?

Hey, I was debating someone and they asked why did God have to destroy the city if God knew that Jesus would die for our sins and save mankind from sin?

In Leviticus 21:9 it says “When the daughter of a priest profanes herself through prostitution, she profanes her father; she shall be burned to death.”

The verses above talk about holiness, that God who is holy makes them holy if they don’t defile themselves by marrying prostitutes or a divorced woman. That opens another can of worms over who is holy, and why the same God who considers the marriage towards a prostitute as unholy is the same who rescued Rahab, and saved the woman caught in adultery. I find it hard to find a continuity there, as Rahab becomes the ancestor of Christ, but marriage to a priest was considered unholy.

And then verse 9 commands what can only be called as an “HONOR KILLING”.

I say honor killings because it’s clear that the daughter who prostitutes herself be “burned to death” because she “profanes” her father, which can also be interpreted as “dishonors” her father. Honor killings are widely done because of dishonor to the parents in some religions like Islam or Hinduism in some countries or cultures.

So why couldn’t God have the same mercy towards women who prostituted themselves when they are the daughters of priests? Why not show them the same mercy as He did towards Rahab or the woman caught in adultery?

My explanation goes as far as the preservation of the priestly families holiness - their jobs as mediators between Israel and God, and why God would want all of them to be without fault.

But to burn someone? That is cruel. How can we know why a young woman prostitutes herself? What about the priest’s sons who may sleep with a prostitute or marry one? Will they be put to death? What of love? What if the son of a priest loved a prostitute and got married, like the way God commanded Hosea to marry a prostitute and Hosea loved her.

I find it hard to find any continuity in God’s character here.

I cannot conclude that God would ask them to burn a woman alive for prostitution and still believe he’s merciful. Wouldn’t mercy be understanding?

Of course there’s historical context as to why a young woman might become a prostitute. Poverty could be one, or a family breakdown. What of coercion and sexual exploitation? That existed at the time and throughout the time of Israel’s existence. I reject the answer that “the closer a person was to a sacred office like having a father as a priest the greater the punishment” - that is just cruel and has no grace, for who can choose to be born into a family?

The other historical context is that this prostitution was cultic and connected to temple worship.

Now there’s some argument for that, but most scholars do not think Leviticus 21:9 is specifically about cultic temple prostitution.

The Hebrew says: “And the daughter of a priest, if she profanes herself by playing the harlot…” (roughly)… The key verb is זנה (zanah), usually translated “to prostitute herself,” “play the harlot,” or broadly “commit sexual immorality.”

The textual context is also about priestly holiness and family conduct. Not about pagan worship. There’s no language used that denotes foreign gods or shrines or such. And the concern is that “she profanes her father”. That’s the main point.

Yes it’s possible it’s pagan prostitution but the evidence doesn’t support it as much as it being an execution because of dishonor to the father who is a priest.

It doesn’t seem just or fair to burn her to death, nor to kill her for honor.

We are all deplored at the idea of honor killing, so shouldn’t our moral God given conscious also be deplored at this one?

I know that we are in fallen world but it sometimes hard to think why do children have to suffer and god can do anything has well couldn't he had made the world less bad than again he also wants us has people to come together and lift each other

Blessings, fellow Christians. While studying the resurrection of Christ, I’ve realized there is a very solid case for it; hypotheses such as hallucinations, theft, or fabrication seem implausible when considering the evidence of persecution and martyrdom. However, what do you consider to be the best evidence for the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ?

Fellow Christians, I am a Christian who has OCD, this means I constantly doubt Christianity, I doubt sometimes due to the lack of evidence and sometimes due to my condition.

Recently as of this summer, I have got a notebook and started researching the evidences for Christianity, since I am rooted into the scientific method and in empiricalism which means I need evidence to believe, evidence to believe that Jesus will come back to redeem us and give us immortality, evidence that Jesus truly rose from the dead, evidence that according to Jesus in Mark's gospel that whoever believes and is baptized will have eternal life.

I have found, fellow Christians these following evidences for my faith, however today I ask you, if there is more evidence, that you may share with me tell me what other evidences I could research for Christianity that my faith will be much stronger, in fact not faith in the way people think faith means (some people think faith means blind belief) but I want to have 100% assurance that I will rise from the dead when Jesus comes back and that He's God the same way I am 100% sure and have assurance about the existence of the theory of gravity, the theories of relativity, and the fact that 1 + 1 = 2.

these are the evidences I have seen for my faith, (as I research the evidence more the more joyful I am and the fact that I will rise from the dead when Jesus comes back) the following fellow Christians is a list of evidences I have found for Christianity-

1. Evidence from history (historical accounts that show and point to that Jesus was crucified and on the third day his followers sincerely believe that he rose physically from the dead)

2. Evidence from fufilled prophecy (historical accounts written predicting future events (like Isaiah predicting Jesus Christ 700 years before Jesus was incarnated) before the future events even happened pointing to the intervention of a supernatural God)

3. Evidence from Catholicism (yeah, though I am an Eastern Orthodox Christian, once I saw the evidence from the Eucharistic miracles I cannot possibly deny that the Catholic church has the true Eucharist. Evidence from Catholicism also includes not only Eucharistic Miracles verified by empirical science but also 70 plus healings confirmed by the Catholic Church also pointing to the intervention of a supernatural God)

4. Evidence from Philosophy (some aspects of philosophy and logic or even mathematics points to a supernatural God, my favorite philosophical argument for a supernatural God is not the fine-tuning argument, but instead my favorite argument for the existence of a supernatural God is the ontological argument, it's in my view the strongest philosophical evidence for God's existence if God CAN exist He does exist. Also there are even more arguments such as the moral argument, the fine tuning argument, etc...)

5. Evidence from the shroud of Turin (the shroud of Turin points to a literal physical resurrection of Christ, the shroud of Turin possibly is empirical and archaeological evidence for Jesus's resurrection, there's a hypothesis that says that the image on the shroud was formed by severe radiation, now I'm not a physicist to say what I'm saying as for sure, however Resurrection, a human being resurrecting from the dead is physically possible (non-zero probability) due to Quantum tunneling if the atoms of Jesus human body God arranged them in a way (God to be in control of entire wave functions) that resembles Resurrection I think (however I'm not sure since I'm not a physicist) I think lots of radiation would be emitted if a resurrection were to physically happen however I am not sure about all of this since I'm not a physicist, if any of y'all are physicists you might know what I'm talking about (Resurrection via Quantum tunneling))

6. Evidence from modern day testimony (millions of people even from non Christian religions report dreams and visions of Jesus, thousands if not millions of atheists testifying to an encounter with the living Christ. Also, this can include prayers being answered, answers to prayer which look like extremely improbable coincidences could be evidence for the supernatural God intervening with our world)

Fellow Christians, is there more evidence for our faith in Christ other than these six evidences I have listed above? if there is please do share.

May the grace of God be with you all.

The core of this argument rests on a philosophical method known as abduction, or "arguing to the best explanation." In the debate over God’s existence, the primary disagreement is rarely about the raw data itself. Both theist and secular scientists look at the exact same universe, read the same genetic codes, and observe the same human behaviors. The disagreement lies in the interpretive framework.

The argument posits that theism provides a far more cohesive, comprehensive, and elegant explanation for these three specific pillars of reality than a purely materialistic worldview.

Note: this argument is not arguing for the Christian God, but for Theism in general. Once a Designer is established as the best explanation, then we can go on to who the Designer is.

1. The Information in DNA

The Shared Data: DNA contains digital, programmatic information. It is a biological code consisting of four chemical bases (A, T, C, G) arranged in a precise sequence to build proteins and govern life.

• Materialism: Concludes that this code is the result of unguided chemical reactions, natural selection, and deep time.

• Theism: Concludes that the code is the product of an intellect.

Why Theism Offers the Better Explanation: In every other area of human experience, information always traces back to a mind. If you see a sequence of characters on a page, software code on a screen, or even "I love you" written in the sand, you instantly recognize intelligent agency. Materialism requires you to believe that a highly sophisticated, self-replicating digital code arose completely from mindless matter. Theism naturally aligns with our uniform experience: information comes from an informer.

2. The Fine-Tuning Constants

The Shared Data: The fundamental physical constants of our universe (such as the strength of gravity, the electromagnetic force, and the mass of electrons) are balanced on a knife-edge. If any of these values were altered by even one part in 10^60 or more, life would be impossible, and stars or planets wouldn't have formed.

• Materialism: Concludes that we either got incredibly lucky in a single universe, or we live in a "Multiverse" where an infinite number of universes exist, and we happen to occupy the winning lottery ticket.

• Theism: Concludes the universe was intentionally designed to sustain life.

Why Theism Offers the Better Explanation: To avoid a Designer, materialism is forced to invent a "Multiverse", a concept that cannot be 1) observed, 2) measured, or 3) tested. Postulating an infinite number of unobservable universes just to explain the precision of this one violates Occam’s Razor (the principle that the simplest explanation with the fewest assumptions is usually the best). Theism offers a single, elegant explanation: the universe looks fine-tuned because it was tuned.

3. The Existence of Evil and Suffering

The Shared Data: The world is filled with objective moral atrocities, suffering, and a profound human intuition that things are "not the way they are supposed to be."

• Materialism: Concludes that "evil" is just an illusion or a byproduct of evolutionary biology to help our species survive. In a purely material world, there is no objective right or wrong—only survival of the fittest.

• Theism: Concludes that evil is real, representing a departure from a good God's original design, often tied to human free will.

Why Theism Offers the Better Explanation: Materialism actually undercuts the very concept of evil. As Richard Dawkins famously put it, in a universe of blind physical forces, there is "no evil, no good, nothing but pitiless indifference." Yet, human beings across cultures have a deep, unshakable conviction that certain things (like torturing a child) are objectively, factually wrong, not just socially inconvenient. Materialism cannot account for this moral reality. Theism accounts for both: it explains why we intuitively know what "good" is (it mirrors God's character) and why "evil" outrages us (it breaks His moral law).

Conclusion: The Explanatory Power of Worldviews

When you stack the two conclusions side-by-side, the materialistic view requires a series of mismatched, ad-hoc explanations: DNA is a fluke of chemistry, fine-tuning is a fluke of a multiverse, and evil is a fluke of evolutionary psychology.

Theism, by contrast, provides a single underlying cause that elegantly unites all three pieces of data. A supreme, intelligent, and morally good Mind perfectly accounts for why there is complex information, why the universe is precisely calibrated for life, and why objective morality exists. Therefore, based on the superior explanatory power of the conclusion, the data points directly to God.

I've seen him in debates on slavery, and oh man, is it so bad, right?
He tries all kinds of excuses and justifications and sleight-of-hand techniques, and I'm wondering if he realizes he's doing this, or does he do this on purpose, or what?

This is the kind of apologetics that makes actual scholarly apologetics look very bad.

First, he tries to argue that slavery wasn't Antebellum slavery. Not relevant, and biblical slavery was chattel slavery.

Then, he tries to argue there wasn't chattel slavery, that it was only indentured slavery- wrong again.

Then he tries to use the kidnapping verses that are supposed to show the bible is against the institution of slavery, which is just getting more ridiculous.

And then he goes to the New Testament and tries to argue that Jesus and Paul prohibited it, both wrong again.

OH my, be careful of this apologist, young Christian brothers, because if he can be so wrong, or misleading on this simple topic, what else is he wrong or misleading about?

Just curious

TL;DR: Former LDS member (M24), returned missionary, left the church ~3 years ago. I’m now exploring Christianity, deconstructing LDS beliefs, and trying to understand biblical Christianity through the New Testament. Looking for pastors, former LDS Christians, churches, podcasts, books, or resources—especially in the Idaho area.

Hey everyone!

M24 Idaho

I’m relatively new from leaving the faith. I stopped attending about 3 years ago after my mission and didn’t pursue a church or faith for a couple of years. I had curiosity about Christianity, but I hadn’t made a decision about whether I even believed in God.

I had inclinations about attending another church but didn’t know where to start. While trying to deconstruct and break down the beliefs I had been indoctrinated with, I felt completely lost and directionless. Instead of pursuing a church right away, I focused on working on myself and becoming a better person.

When I was finally ready for a relationship, my fiancée and I met and couldn’t spend a day apart. It was kismet. She grew up Christian and wanted a partner who was Christian. I wanted those values and standards for my future family as well. That became a great starting point for me to begin attending church again.

We’ve attended small and mega churches and are still exploring. Most churches have been wonderful. However, the larger churches have been difficult when it comes to finding someone who can really help me because the communities are so large and there are naturally many casual attendees.

I reached out to a pastor to talk and learn new concepts and break down doctrine. As I did that, I realized I couldn’t fully break down my beliefs in a way that someone could unless they both understood LDS culture and doctrine intricately while also having a strong understanding of biblical Christianity and were willing to dedicate time to helping me through that process. I am grappling with the Holy Trinity vs The Godhead and if I need to be baptized again. Full respect to him and others—I know that’s a very specific request and many people don’t meet those requirements.

What I have really desired is a pastor, mentor, former LDS member, or someone deeply rooted in biblical Christianity who can help me break down my old beliefs and rebuild new ones.

I am very weary of the word of man because of my experience with Joseph Smith. I am also weary of denominations, creeds, and traditions. My desire is to understand true biblical Christianity the way God intended through Jesus and His apostles in the New Testament as written. I want to seek truth wherever it leads, even if it challenges my assumptions.

I also hope to find a community that is godly, fulfilling, and deeply invested in one another, similar to what many people experience in the LDS Church.

Are any of you aware of churches, pastors, former LDS Christians, armchair scholars, apologists, podcasts, books, YouTube channels, or other resources that could help me on this journey?

Please don’t comment with hate. I love many members of the Church and want to approach this journey with acceptance and understanding rather than hostility or derogatory remarks.

Thank you! Any advice, recommendations, experiences, or comments are welcome.

Let’s talk about Original Sin. I believe that sin must have been literally introduced through Adam for MOST Christian theology to be true.

To claim that sin (acting against God’s will) is something that actually happens we must also claim to know God’s will. Where we find information on God’s will (the Bible), is where we also receive direction on how to regulate the slavery of humans and also direction on how to slaughter animals (In the Old Testament), for atonement of sins, to satisfy divine justice. In the present day, most understand slavery as a sin (for obvious reasons), and I would argue that animal suffering is a sin.

I bring up slavery and animal killing to show how I believe the definition of sin objectively evolves and is likely manmade, dependent on human understanding, empathy, experience and social progression - and NOT defined by a perfect beings unchanging standards. Which (the latter) is what would have to be true to support the majority of Christian theological claims.

So the cornerstone of Christianity is Jesus’ sacrifice to atone for all of mankind’s sins. This is understood by most Christians to be a LITERAL EVENT. To my knowledge, Jesus spoke of Adam as a historical figure. In the gospel of Luke, Jesus’ genealogy is LITERALLY traced back to Adam. Many writers in the Bible assume the historicity and literal existence of a man named Adam. In my opinion, there is no understanding of sin without the story of Adam and Eve.

It’s beyond complex, but what I’m getting at is that this theology was built over a VERY long time, and was built on the concept of sin. The concept of sin being defined by mortal men. Once we understand that we can’t objectively define sin (because we’re not a perfect God), and understand that our ethics and morals objectively change over time, only then can we start to see that the Christian theology (Majority theology) starts to fall apart.

I open the floor to respectful discussion and debate.