{"id":4970,"date":"2012-01-12T12:06:28","date_gmt":"2012-01-12T18:06:28","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/theamericanjesus.net\/?p=4970"},"modified":"2012-01-12T12:06:28","modified_gmt":"2012-01-12T18:06:28","slug":"why-i-hate-religion-but-love-jesus-the-false-dichotomy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/zackhunt\/2012\/01\/why-i-hate-religion-but-love-jesus-the-false-dichotomy\/","title":{"rendered":"“Why I Hate Religion, But Love Jesus” – The False Dichotomy"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

My apologies for the long post, but I thought this video, which is quickly going viral, is in need of some thoughtful reflection.<\/p>\n

If you have Christian friends and you\u2019ve been on Facebook in the past 48 hours, then chances are you\u2019ve already seen it.<\/p>\n

<\/iframe>\n<\/p>As of \u201cpress time\u201d the video was already closing in on 1 million views on Facebook after having only been posted on Tuesday. No question about it that\u2019s impressive.<\/p>\nAesthetically speaking it\u2019s not hard to see why. It definitely has \u201cthe look\u201d \u00a0and \u201cfeel\u201d (however you define those words) that appeals to a 18-35 year old demographic (with a little leeway in both directions).<\/p>\nAs a Christian person in that demographic I should probably \u201clike\u201d it and share it with all of my Facebook friends.<\/p>\nBut I don\u2019t like it.<\/p>\nAt all.<\/em><\/p>\nNow, to be fair I do think Jeff Bethke (the guy in the video) makes some good points about voting Republican, sexuality, and Christian identity being defined by your Facebook status.<\/p>\nAnd, once again, the production quality is great and the speaker is very articulate. That\u2019s not my issue.<\/p>\nMy issue with this video is that it panders to a false, but widely accepted Protestant Evangelical narrative; one which has come to supplant Christianity itself as the \u201ctrue gospel.\u201d<\/p>\nHere\u2019s the narrative in brief:<\/p>\nJesus came to abolish religion. Then the church came along and\u00a0re-instituted\u00a0it, telling people there was a particular way to live in order to be a Christian. Now, we need once more to be liberated from the shackles of religion in order to be able to \u201cfreely\u201d worship Jesus.<\/em><\/p>\nIt sounds nice. And if you were to survey most people walking out of Protestant churches this Sunday morning, I feel pretty confident is saying that most of them would agree it\u2019s the gospel, or at least pretty close to it.<\/p>\nBut it\u2019s not. In fact, there\u2019s very little in either that narrative or the narrative presented in the video above that are actually true.<\/p>\nHere\u2019s the problems as I see them\u2026<\/p>\n1.\u00a0We don\u2019t know what our target is.<\/strong><\/p>\nReligion is not the evil Bethke or so many others portray it to be. Simply defined religion is \u201ca cause, principle, or system of beliefs held to with ardor or faith.\u201d See? Not that scary.<\/p>\nIn fact, religion can be very good.<\/p>\nFor example, how do we know what Jesus taught? We read it in the Bible. Where did that book come from? Well, as much as we may not want to hear it the Bible is a product of religion. It didn\u2019t magically fall from the sky one day. It was written by men (and possibly a few women) who were members of a religious community which was marked by a common \u201ccause or system of beliefs.\u201d It was that religious community that gave importance and meaning to these particulars books, letters, and writings and not others. Then that religious community organized and appointed\u00a0councils to canonize those books and called them the \u201cHoly Bible.\u201d In other words, without religion there is no Bible.<\/p>\nLikewise, there are countless soup kitchens, food pantries, medical clinics, and schools that minister to countless men, women, and children across the globe every day. Who organizes, funds, and operates the vast majority of these places? Religious organizations.<\/p>\nSimply put, Christianity is and always has been a cause (Jesus) or system of belief (the gospel) that we hold to with ardor and faith. And that\u2019s ok.<\/p>\n \n2. When we seperate Jesus from the religious community then we are left with a Jesus out of context whom we are free to shape and mold in any way we see fit.<\/strong><\/p>\nIn other words, the \u201cJesus and me\u201d gospel this video and so many of us proclaim is a path that has only one destination: idolatry.<\/p>\nNot the kind of idolatry that has us bowing down to golden calves, but the kind that has Jesus looking and acting\u00a0suspiciously\u00a0like ourselves.<\/p>\nAt the end of the video the claim is made, as it is in so many of our churches, that when Jesus was \u201cdangling on the cross he was thinking of you.\u201d As nice as this might sound I find it to be the height of egomania. Aside from the fact that we have no way of knowing what Jesus was thinking on the cross (not least of all because the Bible doesn\u2019t tell us), when we direct all of Jesus\u2019 thoughts and actions to ourselves as individuals, then both the narrative of Jesus as well as the understanding of that narrative are exhausted by our own personal experience. In other words, Jesus becomes all about \u201cme\u201d, so we shape and form him in our own image, in ways we see best to meet our own needs and desires.<\/p>\n\u201cI\u201d don\u2019t own Jesus and neither do \u201cyou\u201d. Jesus belongs to the church and the church to Jesus. This is why we are \u201cthe body of Christ.\u201d A hand cannot say to the body \u201cI don\u2019t need you\u201d. Likewise, we can not take Jesus outside of the church and have any hope of truly understanding him or what he taught.<\/p>\n \n3. Jesus didn\u2019t have a problem with religion, he had a problem with legalism.<\/strong><\/p>\nObviously legalism stems from religion, but anything can be turned into legalism, even grace. People have been spreading the \u201cJesus is here to abolish religion\u201d message since the beginning of his ministry on earth. Since he was around to actually respond we should probably listen to what he thought about this message. It may come as a shock, but he wasn\u2019t a fan. In fact, he rebuked these people saying \u201cDo not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.\u201d<\/p>\nJesus\u2019 issue wasn\u2019t with the Jewish faith, i.e. religion, which he himself was a part of. He took issue with those who would use God\u2019s commandments to exploit and oppress others. This is a profoundly important distinction.<\/p>\nFurthermore, what do we do with Jesus\u2019 declaration \u201con this rock I will build my church\u201d if we think Jesus hated organized religion? Sure, we could take the popular sentimental route and talk about how the church isn\u2019t a building or an institution. Which certainly has some truth to it. But if we go in that direction we\u2019re going to need to explain our reasoning to the early church who would strongly disagree with us. Likewise, we\u2019ll need to go ahead and toss out the New Testament since all of Peter and Paul\u2019s writings (along with at least Luke-Acts) address the life, structure, and function of the church both spiritual and physical.<\/p>\n \n4. If you\u2019re looking for the person that hated organized religion, by which you really mean \u201cthe institutional church\u201d, \u00a0then you\u2019re looking for a guy named Martin Luther, not Jesus of Nazareth.<\/strong><\/p>\nWithout Martin Luther Bethke doesn\u2019t make this video. Likewise, without Luther we\u2019re all Roman Catholic. Not that that would be an awful thing.<\/p>\nIt is Luther, not Jesus, who raises such a fuss about the institution of religion and rightfully so. The church during his day was profoundly corrupt at the highest levels and was in deep need of reform. Note, however, that even Luther was interested in \u201creform\u201d (thus the term \u201cReformation\u201d), not \u201cabolishment\u201d.<\/p>\nLikewise, nowhere in the Gospels does Jesus say he hated religion, neither does he ever call anyone fools for being religious. That\u2019s the popular mythos, but go back and actually read the Bible. It\u2019s not there. Certainly Jesus wasn\u2019t a fan of Pharisess and Sadducees, but once again he hated their legalism and exploitation, not the religion to which he, as a Jew, was also a part of.<\/p>\nIf you say that Jesus, who was a devout Jew, hated religion then you also have to say that Jesus hated himself because he was religious.<\/p>\n \n5. Jesus never preached that we are saved by faith alone. \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/strong>[UPDATE: <a href=\"http:\/\/theamericanjesus.net\/?p=5011\" target=\"_blank\" class=\" decorated-link\" rel=\"nofollow\">Click here to read what I mean by this statement<\/a>]<\/em><\/p>\nIf there is anything that is at the heart of the modern Protestant Evangelical gospel it\u2019s the belief in \u201csola fide\u201d; the idea that we are saved by \u201cfaith alone.\u201d Once again, your champion for this cause is Martin Luther, not Jesus. Jesus didn\u2019t preach this idea and if you think there is such thing as a \u201cChristian life\u201d, then you don\u2019t really believe in sola fide either.\u00a0Absolutely, it is Jesus\u2019 faithfulness to the Father that is the mechanism for our salvation, but we cannot willfully continue in sin and claim to have accepted this free gift.<\/p>\nBethke says that religion is just \u201cbehavior\u00a0modification, like a long list of chores.\u201d I think this speaks to a profound \u201cdon\u2019t tell me what to do\u201d attitude that dominates, if not defines, my generation. If you don\u2019t want to be told that you\u2019re not perfect and are in need of change, then Jesus is not the guy you want to speak to. To claim that \u201creligion\u201d is trying to tell you how to behave, but Jesus doesn\u2019t want to tell you what to do demonstrates at best a profound ignorance of the Bible, in particular the Gospels themselves, and at worst a dangerous self-centeredness that is fundamentally antithetical not only to the Christian faith, but to Jesus himself. Jesus\u2019 entire ministry was centered around how to live a particular way of life, or as Bethke puts it \u201cbehavior modification.\u201d To call it \u201ca long list of chores\u201d reveals a true lack of interest in fulling Jesus\u2019 command to bring the kingdom of God \u201cto earth as it is in heaven.\u201d<\/p>\nLikewise, Bethke says \u201csalvation is freely mine and forgiveness is my own.\u201d Well, yes and no. As Dietrich Bonhoeffer would be quick to remind us \u201cye were bought with a price\u2026and what was costly for God must also be costly for us.\u201d Likewise, we don\u2019t have ownership of our forgiveness. If we did then it would be something we purchased or earned which would be\u00a0counter-intuitive\u00a0to Bethke\u2019s argument. And while he\u2019s right that that forgiveness stems from the actions of Jesus and not our obedience, our obedience is the demonstration of our acceptance of that forgiveness. The two are not as\u00a0separate\u00a0as we have come to believe.<\/p>\nOf course, Jesus does tell us exactly who will be \u201csaved\u201d and who will not and he makes he clear that \u201cnot everyone who says \u2018Lord, Lord\u2019 will enter the kingdom of God.\u201d When Jesus does describe how he will decide \u201cwho gets into heaven\u201d he is pretty clear that he\u2019s not all that interested in who \u201cbelieved\u201d that he existed. Rather, according to Matthew 25, he will ask each of us \u201cI was hungry. Did you feed me? I was thirsty. Did you give me something to drink? I was naked. Did you clothe me? I was sick and in prison did you come and visit me?\u201d These are the questions we need to be really worried about answering \u201cyes\u201d to, not whether or not we think Jesus existed, was crucified, and rose again. For, \u201ceven the devil and his angels believe these things and shudder.\u201d<\/p>\n \n6. The premise of this video and the gospel it proclaims is simply\u00a0disingenuous.<\/strong><\/p>\nIf you go to, participate in, and support a local church, whether it\u2019s a huge mega-church, an \u201caverage\u201d sized rural church, or a small house church that meets in somebody\u2019s living room then you support organized religion. And that\u2019s ok.<\/p>\nEven Bethke says he loves the church, but I think completely destroys the case he is trying to make. The church is organized religion.<\/p>\nWhen we try to deride \u201corganized religion\u201d as the instrument of Satan out to deceive the world, and then joyfully participate in organized religious activities like sanctuary worship on Sunday morning, Sunday School, Bible studies, mission trips, volunteering at the church\u2019s soup kitchen, or even playing church softball then we ourselves are just as\u00a0duplicitous\u00a0and hypocritical as the message of this video.<\/p>\n \n7. When we create a dichotomy between Jesus and religion we simaltaneously create an unnecessary and dangerous antagonism towards the church and the people that participate in it.<\/strong><\/p>\nBethke says \u201cIf religion is so great, why has it started so many wars? Why does it build huge churches, but fails to feed the poor?\u201d I\u2019ll give the guy a pass for the first half of this statement. I assume he\u2019s a product of our American educational system and if so, it explains his understanding of history or lack thereof.<\/p>\nIt\u2019s popular, if not cliche, to say that religions are the cause of all the world\u2019s wars. Have they been that cause from time to time? Sure. But if do a little more digging (beyond what you see on the History Channel or in this case what Richard Dawkins tells you) you will discover that the vast majority of battles that have been fought were not started for religious reasons. And even those that supposedly were, often simply used the guise of religion in order to gain more territory or wealth for the king who went to battle. Obviously, we have the Crusades and the Protestant\/Catholics battles in\u00a0Britain, but beyond that the pickings get slim at least as it pertains to battles or wars that you\u2019ve heard of. For example, did the conquest of the Roman empire (that\u2019s several centuries of warfare) have anything to do with religion? Nope. Revolutionary War? Nope. Civil War? Nope. World War I? Nope. World War II? Nope. Korea? Vietnam? The Gulf War? Nope. Nope. Nope Sure you could make a case that the current battles in the Middle East have religious connotations, but it\u2019s murky water there and that\u2019s the point. Religion isn\u2019t the great starter of war we\u2019ve been told it is.<\/p>\nAs for the second accusation that church fails to feed the poor. I don\u2019t know how to label this charge anything but absolute ignorance. Even the biggest mega-churches that so often get ridiculed for any number of reasons, almost always have ongoing outreach ministries. There are very few outreach organizations in this country or any other that are not faith-based or at least affiliated with a religious organization.<\/p>\n\u00a0<\/p>\nThere are several other points in this video that I could nit pick, but to sum it all up, what I think we have here, if not across the greater swath of protestant evangelicalism, is lazy,\u00a0soundbite\u00a0theology. We take bits and pieces of information that we hear on the news, read on the internet, or hear about through gossip at church and in turn create a narrative of a lost and dying church that is in need of our<\/em> rescuing from the evils of religious\u00a0boogeymen\u00a0out to take over, or at least corrupt, the world.<\/p>\nThat\u2019s not to say there aren\u2019t bad churches or bad church leaders out there. There are. But to make such broad sweeping claims is naive, arrogant, ignorant, and dangerous.<\/p>\nDespite what Bethke claims religion and Jesus are not \u201ctwo different clans\u201d full of all the\u00a0dichotomies\u00a0he lists. The religion called Christianity exists only because of Jesus. It is certainly \u201cman searching for God\u201d (which is in no way a bad thing), but it was founded by \u201cGod (Christ) searching for man.\u201d Simply put, false dichotomies do far more harm than good.<\/p>\nTo make a long story, just a bit longer, I don\u2019t think Jeff Bethke is evil, or that he\u2019s out to\u00a0deceive\u00a0anyone. In fact, I\u2019m sure there are plenty of things we would agree with. He\u2019s just off-base with his theology.<\/p>\nSo, please don\u2019t get your theology from the internet. Find a church, also known as a religious community, to be a part of them. Listen to what they have to say. Learn from them. If they\u2019re connected to the broader, orthodox church (and they probably are even if they play the \u201cnon-denominational\u201d card) then they\u2019re part of a people who have been doing this for at least 2,000 years. There will be bad apples in the bunch, but they are good people who have organized around a common cause (Jesus is Lord) and system of belief (the gospel) in order change the world. And in many corners of the world they are doing just that.<\/p>\nGrace and peace,<\/p>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/theamericanjesus.net\/?s=Zack+Hunt&submit=Submit\" class=\" decorated-link\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\">Zack Hunt<\/a><\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"My apologies for the long post, but I thought this video, which is quickly going viral, is in need of some thoughtful reflection. If you have Christian friends and you\u2019ve been on Facebook in the past 48 hours, then chances are you\u2019ve already seen it. As of \u201cpress time\u201d the video was already closing in […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3437,"featured_media":8615,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4970","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\n<title>"Why I Hate Religion, But Love Jesus" - The False Dichotomy<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"My apologies for the long post, but I thought this video, which is quickly going viral, is in need of some thoughtful reflection. If you have Christian\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/zackhunt\/2012\/01\/why-i-hate-religion-but-love-jesus-the-false-dichotomy\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\""Why I Hate Religion, But Love Jesus" - The False Dichotomy\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"My apologies for the long post, but I thought this video, which is quickly going viral, is in need of some thoughtful reflection. If you have Christian\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/zackhunt\/2012\/01\/why-i-hate-religion-but-love-jesus-the-false-dichotomy\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"The Semi-Official Blog of Zack Hunt\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2012-01-12T18:06:28+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/wp-media.patheos.com\/blogs\/sites\/941\/2012\/01\/bethke.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"768\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"432\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Zack Hunt\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Zack Hunt\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"14 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/zackhunt\/2012\/01\/why-i-hate-religion-but-love-jesus-the-false-dichotomy\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/zackhunt\/2012\/01\/why-i-hate-religion-but-love-jesus-the-false-dichotomy\/\",\"name\":\"\\\"Why I Hate Religion, But Love Jesus\\\" - The False Dichotomy\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/zackhunt\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2012-01-12T18:06:28+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2012-01-12T18:06:28+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/zackhunt\/#\/schema\/person\/92d888feb798c511bc3c9cb2fc4a4226\"},\"description\":\"My apologies for the long post, but I thought this video, which is quickly going viral, is in need of some thoughtful reflection. If you have Christian\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/zackhunt\/2012\/01\/why-i-hate-religion-but-love-jesus-the-false-dichotomy\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/zackhunt\/2012\/01\/why-i-hate-religion-but-love-jesus-the-false-dichotomy\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/zackhunt\/2012\/01\/why-i-hate-religion-but-love-jesus-the-false-dichotomy\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/zackhunt\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"“Why I Hate Religion, But Love Jesus” – The False Dichotomy\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/zackhunt\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/zackhunt\/\",\"name\":\"The Semi-Official Blog of Zack Hunt\",\"description\":\"Zack writes about the intersection of faith and politics\u2026and sometimes BBQ.\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/zackhunt\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/zackhunt\/#\/schema\/person\/92d888feb798c511bc3c9cb2fc4a4226\",\"name\":\"Zack Hunt\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/zackhunt\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/d7a3db085a35a483a38418a4937abcd6?s=96&d=identicon&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/d7a3db085a35a483a38418a4937abcd6?s=96&d=identicon&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Zack Hunt\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/zackhunt\/author\/zhunt\/\"}]}<\/script>\n","yoast_head_json":{"title":"\"Why I Hate Religion, But Love Jesus\" - The False Dichotomy","description":"My apologies for the long post, but I thought this video, which is quickly going viral, is in need of some thoughtful reflection. If you have Christian","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/zackhunt\/2012\/01\/why-i-hate-religion-but-love-jesus-the-false-dichotomy\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"\"Why I Hate Religion, But Love Jesus\" - The False Dichotomy","og_description":"My apologies for the long post, but I thought this video, which is quickly going viral, is in need of some thoughtful reflection. If you have Christian","og_url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/zackhunt\/2012\/01\/why-i-hate-religion-but-love-jesus-the-false-dichotomy\/","og_site_name":"The Semi-Official Blog of Zack Hunt","article_published_time":"2012-01-12T18:06:28+00:00","og_image":[{"width":768,"height":432,"url":"https:\/\/wp-media.patheos.com\/blogs\/sites\/941\/2012\/01\/bethke.png","type":"image\/png"}],"author":"Zack Hunt","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Zack Hunt","Est. reading time":"14 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/zackhunt\/2012\/01\/why-i-hate-religion-but-love-jesus-the-false-dichotomy\/","url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/zackhunt\/2012\/01\/why-i-hate-religion-but-love-jesus-the-false-dichotomy\/","name":"\"Why I Hate Religion, But Love Jesus\" - The False Dichotomy","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/zackhunt\/#website"},"datePublished":"2012-01-12T18:06:28+00:00","dateModified":"2012-01-12T18:06:28+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/zackhunt\/#\/schema\/person\/92d888feb798c511bc3c9cb2fc4a4226"},"description":"My apologies for the long post, but I thought this video, which is quickly going viral, is in need of some thoughtful reflection. If you have Christian","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/zackhunt\/2012\/01\/why-i-hate-religion-but-love-jesus-the-false-dichotomy\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/zackhunt\/2012\/01\/why-i-hate-religion-but-love-jesus-the-false-dichotomy\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/zackhunt\/2012\/01\/why-i-hate-religion-but-love-jesus-the-false-dichotomy\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/zackhunt\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"“Why I Hate Religion, But Love Jesus” – The False Dichotomy"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/zackhunt\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/zackhunt\/","name":"The Semi-Official Blog of Zack Hunt","description":"Zack writes about the intersection of faith and politics\u2026and sometimes BBQ.","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/zackhunt\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/zackhunt\/#\/schema\/person\/92d888feb798c511bc3c9cb2fc4a4226","name":"Zack Hunt","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/zackhunt\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/d7a3db085a35a483a38418a4937abcd6?s=96&d=identicon&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/d7a3db085a35a483a38418a4937abcd6?s=96&d=identicon&r=g","caption":"Zack Hunt"},"url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/zackhunt\/author\/zhunt\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/zackhunt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4970","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/zackhunt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/zackhunt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/zackhunt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3437"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/zackhunt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4970"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/zackhunt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4970\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/zackhunt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8615"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/zackhunt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4970"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/zackhunt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4970"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/zackhunt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4970"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}