If it weren't for Christians, the actual message of Jesus might get a better hearing.
Seriously. Think about Jesus for a moment. Here's what everyone agrees that he was all about. Mercy toward sinners, a healer of disease, inclusive of the poor in both his friendship and welfare, a friend to children, and a very vocal opponent of greed and wealthy elites who were also religious. Jesus was tolerant with people but brutal toward unjust systems. Nevertheless, given countless opportunities to do otherwise Jesus himself preached and practiced nonviolence. But a goodly number of his followers today are the mirror opposite of his vision and values. It's not just the apocalyptic nut-jobs like the terrorists who formed the Hutaree militia in Michigan, but it's also the neighborhood self-described Bible-believing Christians.
Why have these Christians become so anti-Christ? Let me offer three hints.
The first is really bad and very stupid theology. For example, Christians are still playing a game called literal interpretation of scripture. The pretense is that the Bible is God's unchanging instruction to us. It doesn't matter that one scripture contradicts another. It doesn't matter that the 66 books that make up the Bible were chosen from hundreds of candidates, each of the books written for its own time and situation. It doesn't matter that no one currently alive has ever seen even one original manuscript of the Bible. Nor that the original language was Greek and Hebrew, not English. In the irrational universe of fundamentalism, fact and reason are irrelevant. Just do what I say or I'll kick you out of the club, and maybe even kill you seems to be the basic mode of operation. These so-called Bible-believing churches have screws missing in their craniums and holes in their hearts. Hint: Follow Jesus, not your preacher's interpretation.
The second is those wonderfully sweet Christians who are absolutely convinced that they are living in the last generation before the utter destruction of planet earth. Can you imagine being their kid or grandkid? Here's the good news, son: You have no future. Should it surprise us that Christianity is becoming a crusade of purifying the world given the fact that we've had more than 100 years of this kind of theological slop sloshed into the minds of Christian children? As a pastor I call this spiritual abuse. But many in the church think of it as happiness. Hint: Follow Jesus, not your quest for glory.
And third, Christians really don't like Jesus. He was too much of a wuss. All he did was get himself crucified. Today's Christians want a muscular Christ of kick-ass, take no prisoners vindictiveness. Basically, today's Christians are terrified of death, and have no real experience of resurrection. They think that if they put the fear of God into others, that they themselves will be feared. Hint: Follow Jesus, not your own lack of faith.