Simon Cozenssimoncozens@typo.social
Aug 22, 2026, 1:39 PM"Christian Nationalists" came to Gloucester again, so this year's sign had to be a bit less subtle.
Replies
Aug 22, 2026, 3:00 PM@simoncozens I'm glad to see this, but I'm not optimistic. If it was going to work, it would have worked long ago.
- Simon Cozenssimoncozens@typo.socialAug 22, 2026, 3:01 PM
@Steve Yeah, I know. Still worth my while pointing out their hypocrisy to others though.
Aug 22, 2026, 10:47 PM@simoncozens @Steve It's about truth, not optimism, adn it *does* matter that others see that no, THAT CRAP IS NOT RIGHT.
- Aug 22, 2026, 11:08 PM
@geonz @simoncozens If you're hoping to establish a firm and final foothold on a theological point of any nature, all I can do is wish you luck. Not that you believe in luck, of course.
Su_GSu_G@aus.socialAug 22, 2026, 11:51 PM@simoncozens
A very good point. Your sign is great! 😀👍
Aug 22, 2026, 9:03 PM@Steve @simoncozens While this might be true. It also may help them to understand. So in one to one discussions you can use this, but you need to have read the parts and have a bible ready (which is easy theses days, bibles are available in any language online).
Aug 23, 2026, 11:09 AMoverly pessimistic, for anyone of genuine faith it can sow a seed of doubt about which crowd they associate with
think children, spouses, etc. who are bound to racists but not themselves strongly committed racists
PsychePsyche30_@mastodon.socialAug 22, 2026, 3:07 PM@simoncozens since when do they follow what the bible says?
AI is Woke ™mmm_kay@kolektiva.socialAug 22, 2026, 3:22 PM@simoncozens Alt text is a little harsh, we want to encourage people to protest and make signs. Be happy it was hand painted and not al generated.
- Simon Cozenssimoncozens@typo.socialAug 22, 2026, 3:24 PM
@mmm_kay I made the sign. I work in typography which is very annoying because I can easily spot all my mistakes. 😄
- Aug 23, 2026, 11:10 AM
Plutopluto@chaos.socialAug 22, 2026, 3:30 PM@simoncozens is it true 'though? I don't have a clue about the bible but my search yields three instances of 'love the foreigner'
- Simon Cozenssimoncozens@typo.socialAug 22, 2026, 3:37 PM
@pluto Yes. "As the rabbis noted, the Hebrew Bible in one verse commands, “You shall love your neighbour as yourself”, but in no fewer than 36 places commands us to “love the stranger”." (Rabbi Sacks, The Dignity of Difference, p. 58)
- Simon Cozenssimoncozens@typo.socialAug 22, 2026, 3:38 PM
@pluto The Hebrew word "ger" is very specifically someone who has come seeking refuge from a foreign land.
derptroncrazyeddie@mastodon.socialAug 22, 2026, 4:14 PM@simoncozens @pluto That's great if your target audience is Jews.
I don't even know if you're correct or not. This is silly. You're saying you're arguing with Christians and then you insist the conversation be about the Hebrew "Bible" (do you mean the Torah?). I guess if you want to feel smug that people don't buy your reasoning this is a good way to do it.
And fuck 'em. They deserve the frustration.
- Simon Cozenssimoncozens@typo.socialAug 22, 2026, 4:19 PM
@crazyeddie @pluto I'm not insisting anything. I'm saying where the numbers came from. The Hebrew Bible (Tanakh) is the Christian Old Testament. That's where the 36 "Love the foreigners" are. There's one extra "Love your neighbour" in the New Testament, hence twice. For the "Love your God", I counted in both.
WellsiteGeoWellsiteGeo@masto.aiAug 23, 2026, 12:02 AM@simoncozens @crazyeddie @pluto
Isn't that the bit of the BuyBull which has the pastors salivating over raping female prisoners of war, of all ages?
They do pay attention to it. When it suits them.- Aug 22, 2026, 4:32 PM
@crazyeddie @simoncozens @pluto If you look at the Biblical justifications for the things Christian Nationalists want, they skew pretty heavily toward the Old Testament (and, of course, even those are cherry-picked). You really don't hear right-wing Christians quoting Jesus very often.
- derptroncrazyeddie@mastodon.socialAug 22, 2026, 4:38 PM
@Steve @simoncozens @pluto They do indeed have their bias but you're still not going to convince them by being factually wrong about the bible. To then quote a Rabi about the OT to be "correct" ... not sure what they're going for with that.
It's trivial. Just do a web search. There's plenty of Bible database thingies that will search it out and provide the context. There's a bunch more than two.
Swiftswift@sunny.gardenAug 22, 2026, 7:22 PM@crazyeddie @Steve @simoncozens @pluto dunno what your beef is here. Are you an unconvinced Christian nationalist who might otherwise have been convinced had the stats not come from a Rabbi?
I've been an evangelical Christian in the past. Rabbis know their scripture. I'd have listened.
i agree Christian nationalists are not open to having their minds changed (and generally not interested in truth in my experience) but I think this sign is wonderful because people are diverse and this helps remind us all of this.
- derptroncrazyeddie@mastodon.socialAug 22, 2026, 10:27 PM
@swift @Steve @simoncozens @pluto My beef is really just with people giving me shit because someone else is wrong and won't admit to it.
Whatever though. Have fun.
- Simon Cozenssimoncozens@typo.socialAug 23, 2026, 9:05 AM
@swift @crazyeddie @Steve @pluto What I love about this discussion is that quibbling over the exact numbers is the Mastodon equivalent of the guy who said to Jesus "but who just *is* my neighbour, eh?", to which Jesus replied "Here's a story about taking care of a foreigner JUST IN CASE IT WASN'T CLEAR ENOUGH."
Ike Seblonike_seblon@mastodon.socialAug 22, 2026, 10:27 PM@crazyeddie @simoncozens @pluto "Derp" indeed, LOL
- derptroncrazyeddie@mastodon.socialAug 22, 2026, 4:17 PM
@pluto @simoncozens The NT at least is riddled with the command, especially if you go by meaning rather than exact wording, but I guess we're not counting that :p
I feel silly looking it up.
- WellsiteGeoWellsiteGeo@masto.aiAug 23, 2026, 12:04 AM
@crazyeddie @pluto @simoncozens
This is what concordances were invented for.
(Decades ago, Dad picked up a copy of Cruden's at a second hand book shop. Quite useful for upsetting the pastor in Religious Education classes.) 
Michel PatriceMichelPatrice@jasette.facil.servicesAug 22, 2026, 4:39 PM« So it said "love your neighboor" first. » (A christian fascist who just doesn't want to get it)
Neil MoffattNicelyManifest@mastodon.socialAug 22, 2026, 6:06 PM@simoncozens So much anger operates on simplistic and/or polarised views of matters. The world tends to be too complex for that.
Imagine complex systems and critical thinking taught in every school!
Tech is now damaging what little such cognitive skills do exist ...
Nyan Maxmaxxcan@mastodon.socialAug 22, 2026, 6:24 PM@simoncozens the bible is only a alegoric book for children very bad.
NumerfoltNumerfolt@kirche.socialAug 22, 2026, 6:26 PM@simoncozens This is the way.
Evelyn Estelledragonfi@social.jsteuernagel.deAug 22, 2026, 6:47 PM@simoncozens By the way, reading the alt text, I have to ask you:
Please educate us how to correctly align hand-painted signs.I have an idea on how to manage the vertical space, but how do I align centered text horizontally?
Aug 22, 2026, 7:03 PM@simoncozens Reading the Bible really is the best argument against Christian Nationalism. The entire story is how God wants to bless us and for us to love one another, but then we go do horrible things instead.
Nazonazokiyoubinbou@mastodon.socialAug 22, 2026, 10:32 PM@ned @simoncozens Uhm... If I had to average out what it says as a whole and summarize, I would say it's more "humans are horrible sinful terrible creatures and deserve to suffer for being what they were made to be, but if you try really really *REALLY* hard, you'll be forgiven for being what you were made to be."
Honestly, there is an awful lot of hate and destruction in there, but at least all the points these people use to excuse their claims and activities are completely wrong.
FediThing :progress_pride:FediThing@chinwag.orgAug 22, 2026, 7:08 PM...and the specific example given of loving thy neighbour is someone helping a foreigner!
Aug 22, 2026, 7:49 PM@simoncozens Ooh, that’s an improvement on my Leviticus-quoting sign. You are hereby notified of my impending theft of your intellectual property!
Aug 22, 2026, 7:53 PM@simoncozens tbh, I'm having trouble verifying the numbers on bible websites. There are some differences in wording across translations (foreigner/stranger/etc) so this might be not straightforward.
Anyway, the bible does state 'love the foreigner' very prominently and in no uncertain terms in e.g. Leviticus 19:34.
GerlittledekGerdlittledek@mastodon.socialAug 22, 2026, 8:28 PM@simoncozens These people aren't Christians, but Satanists, They don't say love youre neighbour, but rape and kill your neighbour.
RiaResists❌ 👑RiaResists@mastodon.socialAug 22, 2026, 9:16 PM@simoncozens Well done!
- WellsiteGeoWellsiteGeo@masto.aiAug 23, 2026, 12:25 AM
@simoncozens I like the subtle comment from Amazon : "HEAVY"
arceuthobiumtheothersimo@mastodon.socialAug 23, 2026, 2:58 AM@simoncozens Go ahead and hate your neighbor, go ahead and cheat a friend.
Do it in the name of Heaven, you can justify it in the end.
Aug 23, 2026, 7:00 AM@simoncozens repost to isreal
James Wallbanklowtech@tldr.nettime.orgAug 23, 2026, 9:57 AM@simoncozens Those quotation marks are a load-bearing component in that post. The phrase "Christian Nationalists" is a complete contradiction in terms.