Some of you have let me know that you are having problems leaving and reading comments. Some of you are getting “nonce” error messages.
I apologize for any inconvenience this has caused you.
I’ve switched to the default theme to see if this fixes the problem. The design is incomplete, but I’m more concerned with fixing the access errors than making the site look pretty. Once I put my finger on the problem, I will design and update the theme/site accordingly.
Your help testing this theme is greatly appreciated. Please flush your browser cache before doing so. I have a sneaking suspicion that the cache system is not working as it should with the old theme — which is 12 years old.
One goal is to simplify the site while at the same time improving functionality and page load speeds. Just changing the theme dramatically reduced page load speeds. Yea, a small victory for Bruce.😜
I’ve been a WordPress user for 20 years. I’m not an expert, but I do know my way around the software. The problem now is that I’m way too sick to spend a day or two trying to figure things out. I’m at that place now where my active window each day is limited. Some days, I never make it out of bed. Two weeks ago, I was in bed for five straight days. Not good, to say the least. These days, I look for small time windows to write and care for my personal responsibilities. Yesterday, was a “good” day. Today is a “not good” day. I’m doing what I can, but I’m losing the battle. No, I’m not on death’s door — I don’t think, anyway — but I am facing serious physical problems which also affect my cognitive functions. This, above all, frustrates the heaven/hell/shit out of me. My once sharp mind has turned into a dull knife, though I have moments of sharpness, and that’s when I write. I hope you’ll understand.
I’ve had thoughts about hanging it up, but most days I desire to write. I can’t guarantee how things will be going forward, but for today I still desire to write and help as many people as I can.
If you happen to be a WordPress designer and are interested in helping me, please let me know.
Please let me know if you encounter any errors or problems.
Many Americans never asked “why” after Muslims hijacked planes and flew them into buildings on 9-11.
Many Americans never asked “why” after Hamas killed over 1,200 Israelis on 10-7 — most of them civilians— and kidnapped several hundred people.
And now the United States is waging war against Iran, and few Americans bother to ask “why?”
The U.S. government is currently controlled by fascists, oligarchs, theocrats, and technocrats. Donald Trump and his feckless, immoral administration only care about personal financial enrichment and political power. Trump, Vance, Rubio, Hegseth, and company show no care or regard for the American people. These fascists self-righteously say they are protecting the American people from nuclear weapons and Muslim terrorism. Never asked is “why?”
Robert “I’ve Got a Brain Worm” Kennedy, Jr., has decimated Health & Human Services and is currently promoting distortions, conspiracy theories, and lies about vaccines, COVID, autism, and dietary guidelines. Why aren’t more Americans asking “why?”
Donald Trump is doing away with federal support of wind and solar power, giving millions of dollars to oil, natural gas, and coal companies. Dare we ask, “why”?
Americans tend not to be too big on answering the question “why?” Why? 😅 Cuz, we are AMERICANS! We are a people divinely chosen by the Christian God of the Bible. We are a shining light on a hill for all the world to see. Manifest destiny! Might makes right, right? Right? There’s no need to ask “why?” when God is on your side and you are always right.
Name the last president who admitted to the American people he was wrong. Trump, for instance, has never been wrong. He’s an expert on e-v-e-r-y-t-h-i-n-g, including swimming pools, ballrooms, and grass. Trump doesn’t apologize to anyone. Instead, he blames others for his mistakes, failures, and errors in judgment. Trump is an impetuous man who cannot and will not tell the truth, even when a lie is not necessary. Does anyone doubt, then, that Trump NEVER asks “why?” (And the same can be said for MAGA in general.)
Post-Jesus, answering the “why” question has been vital in helping me better understand the country and world I live in. And let me be clear, understanding both is essential to a well-rounded view of the world. If all we wear are Pro-American glasses we are going to have a false, truncated view of the world. This is why the majority of Americans are illiterate about countries, peoples, religions, and politics outside of the United States.
Sadly, way too many Americans wrongly think the answer to the question, “Why do so many people hate us?” is “We’re America!!!!! And other countries hate the American Dream and our way of life!” Rarely do Americans step beyond the facade and wrestle with the hard questions about what our nation has become and why.
As an Evangelical-pastor-turned-atheist, I am seldom asked “why?” by my critics, who ignore my attempts to answer the question without them asking. Their minds are made up, so there’s no reason to ask me “why” or read my biographical writing. In their minds, “The Bible says,” end of discussion. What they really mean, of course, is that their churches, pastors, and favorite podcast hosts interpret the Bible for them. Most Evangelicals do not daily read the Bible, and their go-to source for Bible knowledge is their pastors — who rarely preach exegetical sermons and are more focused on “felt needs.” The goal? Make people happy and their wallets lighter.
If we are going to be skeptics, it is essential for us to ask “why?” even if the answers we receive are painful to hear. Part of the deconstruction process for me required asking “why” questions. I suspect that was or is the same for many of you. Evangelicalism taught us to trust and never doubt, especially in matters of faith. Want to be “happy in Jesus”? There’s only one way: “Trust and obey, for there’s no other way to be happy in Jesus.” Of course, the “obey” part is conditioned on obedience to the theological edicts of pastors and churches. Never ask “why,” just obey.
Over the years, attempting to answer “why” questions has taken me down many paths, forcing me to confront my ignorance, biases, and bullheadedness. When the “why” question arises, I try my best to answer it, regardless of what I might find.
Motivations matter to me. Personally, anyway, it was not enough to rage against Islam when Muslims flew planes into buildings on 9-11. “Why” did they do this? Is the United States culpable in any way? What about the “war on terror” that followed, to this day? Dare we ask “why” the United States is waging war on multiple fronts, killing scores of innocents with our bombs and bullets? So much so that we are running out of munitions and Hegseth is asking for billions of dollars of additional war funding. Surely you aren’t so stupid as to believe all the violence, bloodshed, and war crimes are “protecting the American way of life.” Do you feel safe? Now that undocumented immigrants are literally running for their lives, are we better off as a nation? Asking “why” about these issues and others is essential if there’s any chance for the “land of the free, and the home of the brave” to survive.
Please share your pithy thoughts in the comment section. And if you don’t, let me ask, “Why?”? 😜😜
Excerpt from The Question Every Christian Must Answer, by Dr. David Tee, whose real name is Derrick Thomas Thiessen. The grantor of Thiessen’s alleged doctorate is unknown. Make of that what you will. Regardless, Thiessen views himself as an expert on the Bible, history, science, archeology, LGBTQ issues, and why I’m no longer a Christian. Doubt me? Just ask him.
If science is pursued correctly and honestly, then science agrees with the Bible. What turns young minds away from biblical truths are the theories, opinions, and conclusions that are generated from unbelieving scientists.
It is their assumptions, leaps to conclusions, conjectures, and hypotheses that say the Bible is wrong, not true scientific exploration or facts. Once believers understand this truth, then holding on to their faith in the face of the onslaught from secular science becomes much easier.
It is their assumptions, leaps to conclusions, conjectures, and hypotheses that say the Bible is wrong, not true scientific exploration or facts.
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When Christians take unbelieving or secular science over God’s words, then they are not exercising faith.
Instead, they are rejecting what God has said in favor of what unbelievers have claimed to be true. This is not just doubt but clear rejection of God’s words. Since God cannot lie, then we can take his word over what unbelieving scientists, archaeologists, anthropologists, and other unbelievers claim.
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These institutions need to get back to God and rein in their science teachers/professors and get them to teach the truth, not unbelieving science.
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The Bible is not wrong. It is the unbelieving scientists who are.
Repost from 2015. Edited, rewritten, and corrected.
Several years ago, I spotted this t-shirt at my grandson’s tee ball game. Most residents of rural northwest Ohio are Evangelicals or conservative Protestants or Catholics. Jesus is on display everywhere one looks. There’s at least one church for every three hundred Defiance County residents. Republicans hold every major office. Atheists and agnostics are endangered species. Declaring your godlessness is a sure way to be socially ostracized and marginalized. If there is place where Jesus is King of Kings and Lord of Lords, this is it. Why then are local Christians obsessed with wearing Christian bling and displaying Jesus junk?
Take the woman wearing the Jesus Loves Me t-shirt. Does she wear it to remind herself that Jesus loves her? Or perhaps she wears it to let her fellow Christians know that she is on their team. I wonder if she has thought about who made the shirt, how old they were, how much they were paid? Like American flags made in China, most Christian bling and Jesus junk is made by impoverished people who are paid poor wages.
My wife works for a manufacturing concern where Christian bling and Jesus junk is on display everywhere one looks. Christian slogans and Republican one-liners are prominently displayed on office walls and desks. I’ve often wondered what the response would be if someone put on their desk a sign that stated There is no God or There is no God but Allah. This will never happen, of course, because doing so would be career suicide. But, knowing how Evangelicals love to whine over having their feelings hurt, I wonder how Christians in the office might respond. Would they demand the offensive signs be taken down?
Any cursory reading of the Bible reveals that Jesus preached a lifestyle of moderation and simplicity. I wonder if Evangelicals bother to consider what Jesus thinks about their bling and junk. Would the apostles have worn Jesus Loves Me t-shirts or adorned their wrists with WWJD bands? The apostle Paul went from community to community preaching the gospel and establishing new churches. I wonder what he would think of twenty-first-century entertainment Christianity? If Matthew 5-7 — the Sermon on the Mount — is the essence of what it means to be a follower of Jesus, where can one find such followers? Rare are Evangelicals who verbalize their faith in the hope of leading a person to Christ. Even in IFB churches — a sect that puts a premium on soulwinning — most church members never verbally share their faith even one time. If Jesus is the greatest story ever told, why is it most Christians never share it?
Christian bling and Jesus junk are meant to identify one as part of the club. The purpose isn’t to evangelize, it’s to let everyone who gazes on their bling or junk know that they are part of Club Jesus®. When Christians put on their Jesus shirts and go to the mall, grocery, or restaurant, everyone will know what club they belong to. Granted, atheists can do the same, but most atheists I know are content to quietly live their lives. And Muslims? When’s the last time you’ve seen a Muslim wearing a shirt that says Allah Loves Me or Allah, the One True God?
It is primarily Evangelicals who are obsessed with public displays of affection for Jesus. It is Evangelicals who co-opt culture and turn it into shirt-worn slogans such as This Bloods for You or Jesus died for MY SPACE in Heaven. Corporate slogans and logos are turned into cute clichés and plastered on t-shirts and bumper stickers. Why? Are Christian bling-wearing Evangelicals over-compensating for something they lack? What are they hiding behind the bling and junk?
Remember the manufacturing concern I mentioned above? Why is that some of the most hateful, argumentative, and critical people are those who have the most Jesus junk on their desks? Why does the car of the asshole who cuts you off in traffic often sport a Christian bumper sticker? I love to stand back and observe the behavior of God’s chosen ones. While certainly there are many thoughtful, polite, helpful, and humble Christians, why are so many of them arrogant, rude, and unkind? Ponder for a moment the comments left on this blog by warriors for God, soldiers who likely have Bible verse screen savers on their computers and tablets. For every Evangelical who has left a thoughtful, respectful comment, there have been a hundred Evangelicals who’ve left hateful, argumentative, judgmental ones. Why is this?
While I was still a Christian, I concluded that hundreds of millions of Americans might be Christian, but most of them have no interest in following after Christ. They are more interested in avoiding Hell and gaining political and social power than they are walking in the steps of Jesus. According to orthodox Christian doctrine, the Christian is indwelt by the Holy Spirit. Simply put, this means Christians have God living inside of them as their teacher and guide. If this is so, then please explain to me why few Christians behave in a way that evidences this? Galatians 5:22,23 says:
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.
Bruce, the fruit of the Spirit is the goal. God sanctifies the Christians and they grow and mature, evidencing the fruit of the Spirit later in life. Why is it then that so many people who have been Christian for decades behave as if they have never heard of the fruit of the Spirit? Besides, Galatians 5:22,23 says the fruit (singular) of the Spirit is (present tense). Not a future hope or desire, but a present reality. Can one be a Christian and not show any evidence that God lives inside of them? The same could be said of the Biblical qualifications for being a pastor. I Timothy 3:2-7 states:
A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, vigilant, sober, of good behaviour, given to hospitality, apt to teach; not given to wine, no striker, not greedy of filthy lucre; but patient, not a brawler, not covetous; one that ruleth well his own house, having his children in subjection with all gravity; (for if a man know not how to rule his own house, how shall he take care of the church of God?) Not a novice, lest being lifted up with pride he fall into the condemnation of the devil. Moreover he must have a good report of them which are without; lest he fall into reproach and the snare of the devil.
A bishop then MUST BE. Not hope or aspire to be, but must be. I am sixty-nine years old, and I have yet to meet a pastor who meets the qualifications found in 1 Timothy 3. Why is this?
By all means, exercise your first amendment right to wear Jesus bling and display Jesus junk. But, if you want to convince me that I should be a Christian, you better start living according to the teachings of the Bible you say you believe. Until then, you have nothing to offer the unwashed, uncircumcised Philistines of the world. As long as Evangelicals continue to publicly state that their religion is the one true faith and the Bible is THE moral standard by which Christian and non-believer alike must live, I plan to point out to Evangelicals how hypocritical they are. I’m just practicing what the Bible says . . . judging Evangelicals by their fruit (Matthew 7:16-20). So far, all I see are barren trees.
Bruce Gerencser, 69, lives in rural Northwest Ohio with his wife of 48 years. He and his wife have six grown children and thirteen grandchildren. Bruce pastored Evangelical churches for twenty-five years in Ohio, Texas, and Michigan. Bruce left the ministry in 2005, and in 2008 he left Christianity. Bruce is now a humanist and an atheist.
Your comments are welcome and appreciated. All first-time comments are moderated. Please read the commenting rules before commenting.
Dr. David Tee, whose real name is Derrick Thomas Thiessen, recently wrote the following about the nature and construction of the Bible. Thiessen denies human culture had anything to do with the writing of the Bible. He even goes so far as to say that “The Bible’s content is from God’s culture, not a Jewish one.”
Thiessen says he has Bible college education (and a doctorate), yet his writing reveals beliefs that bear little resemblance to Christian orthodoxy. That’s fine, Thiessen can believe whatever he wants, and college educated people can and do believe stupid things. However, Thiessen would be hard pressed to find any of his professors who would agree with what he has written here, or any of his ministerial colleagues who would say, “Fine work, Dr. Tee.”
I have a lot of Evangelical readers, including preachers. Drop a note in the comment section detailing what you think about Thiessen’s claims. Can you square them with the Bible?
This question is related to what our professor said in class one day: ‘You have to understand the culture of that time’ when referring to how the Bible was written. There are two related answers to that question.
The first answer would be that no human culture shaped the Bible. The second answer explains why that is so. The second answer is that God’s culture shaped the biblical content. The Bible is a divinely written book transmitted through inspired authors who happen to be human.
There was no human culture involved in the writing of the Bible. Every word came from God and his culture and what he wanted humans to become. Human culture cannot create instructions enabling and helping other humans to become holy.
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The Bible is not part of Jewish literature. It is part of God’s literature written to provide humans with God’s holy culture so that all people would know how to live in the kingdom of God.
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There is no human culture involved in the writing of the bible. Every word recorded reveals God and what he wants his people to do and live. The Bible is God’s literature whose content reveals what God wants us to know.
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The style of biblical writing does not change or influence the message. The style is just the style that is used to communicate important information. Many scholars, etc., feel that the style of writing changes the message, but it does not.
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The message transcends the style of writing, keeping the Bible a book from a divine culture and not a human one. Once Christians understand this, living the Christian life becomes much easier and less confusing.
Christians know exactly what they are to do and what God wants them to do. This divine culture origin ensures that everyone throughout history has the will of God at their fingertips. They can also avoid the trap this common mistake leads them to.
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The Bible’s content is from God’s culture, not a Jewish one. One could say that if the Jews correctly followed the Bible, they would be living God’s culture, not a Jewish one. The same goes for the NT.
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The NT was not created out of a Jewish culture. It was created out of God’s holy culture.
— end of excerpt —
I have read a lot of theology in my almost 70 years of life, but I’ve never read the above before. How do you answer someone who says “no human culture — including Judaism — wrote the Bible? I can’t think of any way to square this with what we know about the nature and history of the Bible.
I had rules that governed my study of the Bible. If I found myself coming to a conclusion that was not supported by experts in the Biblical text, my interpretation was likely wrong. If Thiessen followed this rule, what would experts be telling him? Of course, he has the Holy Ghost on his side, so he has no need to listen to experts.
Bill Maher said he would vote for Sarah Palin before he would vote for a Democratic Socialist. Who is Bill Maher?
James Carville said he would leave the Democratic Party before supporting someone like Michigan primary winner Abdul El-Sayed. Don’t let the door hit you in the ass on your way out, James. YOU, and others like you — centrist Democrats —are choking the life out of the Democratic Party.
Democratic Socialists are not communists, and anyone that suggests otherwise is a liar. Are some DSA members communists? Sure, but that’s not the official party position. I, for one, am not a communist.
One more month until the NFL season begins. Will this be the year for my Bengals, also known as the Bungles?
It’s been a rough year for the Cincinnati Reds, mainly due to injuries and malfeasance by the front office. I hope ownership cleans house. Better yet, sell the team to someone who is willing to spend the necessary money to field a winner.
I’ve concluded that tens of millions of Americans love Jesus and hate Muslims. And Blacks. And Mexicans. And immigrants. They hate anyone who doesn’t think and look like them.
High school football starts in less than two weeks. I love high school football, so I’m looking forward to attending as many games as possible this year.
Trump said today that the American economy is booming. Really? Where? Not in rural Northwest Ohio.
Most Americans say they wouldn’t vote for a Democrat Socialist. This is not surprising since most of these people voted for Trump three times. They wouldn’t know a good candidate if their lives depended on it. Way too many ignorant voters in this country.
Monty Fritts, a MAGA Republican gubernatorial candidate in Tennessee, argued that the First Amendment does not apply to state governments. If elected, he plans to ban mosques and non-Christian religions. Go ahead and tell me again why we shouldn’t consider a candidate’s religion when deciding whether to vote for them?
Bonus: God’s Store House Food Bank in Bluefield, West Virginia refused food donations from LGBTQ people. Why? Cuz the Bible says . . .
My God, we live in the land of stupid, and we are getting stupider by the day.
Bruce Gerencser, 69, lives in rural Northwest Ohio with his wife of 48 years. He and his wife have six grown children and thirteen grandchildren. Bruce pastored Evangelical churches for twenty-five years in Ohio, Texas, and Michigan. Bruce left the ministry in 2005, and in 2008 he left Christianity. Bruce is now a humanist and an atheist.
Your comments are welcome and appreciated. All first-time comments are moderated. Please read the commenting rules before commenting.
Libel is writing what you know to be false, and which hurts a person’s good name or reputation. As I shall make clear, Dan Gray, a local Christian man, continues to make accusations about me that he knows are false. I successfully rebutted his claims years ago, yet Gray continues to spread harmful lies about me and my family.
In 2020, a man named Michael Kitchens asked the following question in the Fighting for Faith Crew group on Facebook — six years ago. Here’s what he said:
Has anyone here heard of ex-pastor-turned-avowed atheist Bruce Gerencser?
No one answered this question for six years, and then, nine weeks ago, someone answered.
Here’s the conversation so far:
Joyce: Yes. But no sermons or video of his preaching available. Can anyone verify the 25 years evangelical part of his life? I just want a couple of sermons to review.
Michael: Joyce Boyd Bruce has (or at least had) a website called “The Way Forward”. If it is no longer active, you might be able to find it via the Internet Wayback Machine. The site may have info on his evangelical years.
Joyce: Michael Kitchens found nothing so far.
Michael: Joyce Boyd Hmm okay. He probably wanted his info to be scrubbed. If that’s the case, I’m not sure why.
Bruce: https:brucegerencser.net
Bruce: Michael Kitchens, You can’t find anything about me on the internet? Lots of stuff, including media interviews I’ve done and stories I’ve appeared in.
Daniel “Dan” Gray: Joyce Boyd no such person exists. The closest he ever got to the clergy is when he claimed to be a pastor when he got his fake license from an internet website called the Monastery. A place tha over 45 states refuse to recognize including Ohio.
I’m sure he will answer any questions you might have. I’ve known him for fifty years. We took this journey together.
Dan Gray: Polly Gerencser a complete pile of horse crap. Why is it that no Baptist sect will claim him or admit he worked as a pastor? Why isn’t he listed on any state licensing registration list as is required by law? Why has he continually refusing to name even one church? Sounds like a major fantasy on his part.
Bruce: Dan Gray, the only fantasy is in your head. All of this information is readily available on my website. Or, since I’m from Bryan, pastored local churches in West Unity and Alvordton, and lots of locals have heard me preach, I’m sure you can find plenty of people who know my back story. Further, I attended First Baptist Church in Bryan. I was attending there in 1976 when I went to Midwestern Baptist College in Pontiac, Michigan.
I suppose my wife was lying too? Or maybe you could contact my older children, Jason or Nathan. They attended every church I pastored except the last one in Clare, Michigan. Or are they liars too?
I have plenty of relatives and friends in this area who also know my backstory. I suppose they are all liars too?
Not sure why you have this axe to grind with me, Dan. I don’t know you, yet you have repeated these lies for years. I value honesty, don’t you? So much so that I’ll give $100 to your favorite charity if you can find one error/mistake/lie of consequence about my storyline on my website. I’m confident you will find none. And when you come up empty, I hope you will return to this group and admit you are wrong. That would be the honorable thing to do.
Bruce Gerencser
Three years ago, Michael Kitchens asked this question:
Has anyone here ever heard of ex-pastor-turned-atheist Bruce Gerencser? He had (and maybe still has) a website called “The Way Forward”. I happened across it while doing an Internet search several years ago. However, it seems that BG isn’t nearly as well known as say, Richard Dawkins, Sam Harris, Bart Ehrman, Christopher Hitchens, Stephen Hawking, etc.
Has he been disavowed by other atheists or something?
Joni: He mainly points out the hypocrisy…. Black collar crime!
Polly: He’s still around. I just slept with him last night. 🤣🤣❤️❤️
He’s a pretty open guy. Contact him, and I’m sure he will respond.
Dan Gray: Never was a pastor and when you challenge him to prove it, he either refuses or just goes silent
Never ends. Gray deliberately libels me. Why? What does he hope to gain? Isn’t lying a sin, one that, according to Revelation 21:8 lands you in the Lake of Fire?
This is so silly, yet damaging at the same time. Worse, it really annoys me when people like him call Polly or our children liars. Of course, Gray does this to try and hurt me. He is a pettifogger extraordinaire, so I don’t expect him to confess the error of his way.
Some time ago, a man who says his name is Andrew Beltz left a troubling comment on the Why I Hate Jesus post. Beltz wrote:
So Bruce admits he is a hater. O.K. He has legitimized hate.
Now I can tell you Bruce that I hate you, you fat disgusting thing, because you were no good as a pastor and you hurt our family.
Yes, Bruce, I remember.
I immediately sent Beltz an email. Unfortunately, he used a fake email address, so my email to him bounced. Here’s what I wrote:
Andrew,
Before I post your comment, I would appreciate it if you would elaborate more on the claims made in your comment. I have no recollection of pastoring anyone with the last name Beltz. I see that you currently reside in the Goshen, Kentucky area. I have never lived in Kentucky. Perhaps you moved away from one of the areas I pastored. Which church were you a member of or at which church did you have a negative experience with me?
Thank you for taking the time to respond.
Bruce Gerencser
Comments such as this always trouble me, and here’s why: I readily admit that my preaching, beliefs, and ministerial practices were harmful. When I have been able to talk with offended/hurt congregants privately, I have apologized to them for the harm I have caused. While I could justify myself by saying that I too was abused, and that I was simply a product of the religious environment I grew up in, I choose, instead, to own my behavior. I now know I hurt people. I didn’t at the time, but years of reflection have led me to conclude that I hurt my wife and children, along with the hundreds of people who once called me pastor or preacher. While I was a loving, helpful, kind, and compassionate pastor, I know that what I preached and what I modeled to congregants was psychologically harmful. And in some instances, patriarchal beliefs about child-rearing and family structure caused physical harm. That is what Fundamentalism does. It hurts the hurting, harms the harmless, and causes untold damage to people who sincerely buy into the lies. A lifetime of days is not enough for me to say I am sorry. There’s nothing I can do about the past other than speaking about it openly and honestly. In Beltz’s case, I will gladly talk with him if he wants to talk. I WANT to know about how I hurt people. I can’t make things right if I don’t know for sure what I did or who I hurt.
Former congregants who have contacted me have been, so far, children who grew up in the churches I pastored. Now adults, they too are trying to come to terms with the past. In every instance, they accepted my apology and forgave me. They also told me that I was too hard on myself, that no one forced their parents to attend one of the churches I pastored. They willingly became members, believing as I did that God, the Holy Spirit, empowered my preaching. Many of them just wanted someone to tell them what to believe or how to live their lives, and, being a good Baptist pastor, I was quite willing to fill this need. After all, this is exactly what my pastors, churches, and college professors did for me, shaping me into a man who would then take their teachings and harm several more generations of people.
While I find Beltz’s words hurtful, I bear them because I know how harmful my preaching, way of ministry, and demands for conformity were to people such as him. I don’t run or try to hide from my past. Anyone who wants to contact me can send me an email via the contact form. I respond to every email, though I can be somewhat slow in doing so. Health problems often keep me from being as timely as I would like to be, but I do answer every email sent to me.
Now, Beltz may be just a troll. Several commenters over the years have said they knew me or were members of one of the churches I pastored, only to be exposed as liars. One man went so far as to say that my whole story was a lie, that he knew people who lived in several of the areas I pastored, and none of them knew who I was. In Beltz’s case, I am, until I know otherwise, giving him the benefit of the doubt. I hope he will contact me using a valid email address. I sincerely want to, as much as lies within me, right past wrongs. I hope Andrew will give me a chance to do so.
Bruce Gerencser, 69, lives in rural Northwest Ohio with his wife of 48 years. He and his wife have six grown children and thirteen grandchildren. Bruce pastored Evangelical churches for twenty-five years in Ohio, Texas, and Michigan. Bruce left the ministry in 2005, and in 2008 he left Christianity. Bruce is now a humanist and an atheist.
Your comments are welcome and appreciated. All first-time comments are moderated. Please read the commenting rules before commenting.
The Democratic Socialists of America have never been more relevant. And with this rise comes an inevitable backlash—not so much from the voters themselves as the Democratic elites wary of the insurgency and the media organs that, more often than not, reflect their blinkered conception of the world.
Why are Democrats panicking so much about DSA? Why has at least one Atlantic columnist labeled them a “parasite”? This is the price of victory—of becoming, at last, a threat. The socialist left, for almost a century, was nothing more than a footnote on the American political scene. A major force in the Eugene Debs era, with more than a thousand elected officials scattered across the country, the Socialist Party withered in the 1920s and ’30s, a victim of the first Red Scare and attacks from the major political parties. Franklin Roosevelt had weakened them as well, dragging the Democratic Party left and adopting many of the economic policies they had supported. As anti-communism took hold in America, there was no place for any prominent politician using the “s” word, and even when Michael Harrington founded DSA in the early 1980s—unlike the old Socialist Party, his DSA would compete in Democratic primaries—there was little hope that the organization, with just a few thousand members, could decide elections.
The rise of Bernie Sanders changed all that, reinvigorating DSA. Membership boomed. Sanders himself wasn’t a DSA member, but he called himself a democratic socialist. Still, the Democratic establishment could worry only so much. Sanders was defeated twice. DSA members like Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez did begin to win congressional primaries and a handful of socialists entered statehouses and city councils, but there were only so many of them. A centrist Democrat repeatedly denouncing DSA would have seemed a bit silly. Who really cares about DSA? When Donald Trump was defeated and Joe Biden returned to office, DSA maintained its small foothold but effectively stopped growing, and the Democratic establishment could exhale. The socialist fervor, it seemed, had passed.
Zohran Mamdani changed all that. A socialist winning America’s largest city was a great shock to the establishment Democrats who believed the DSA moment had come and gone. The primaries last month proved that Mamdani’s victory wasn’t an anomaly, a political fad. Darializa Avila Chevalier, Claire Valdez, Melat Kiros, and Chris Rabb are all heading to Congress. DSA is continuing to grow its presence in state legislatures. As in the 1960s, “when a graying Democratic establishment backed the Vietnam War while the youth revolted, many Democrats today clung far too close to Benjamin Netanyahu’s Israel and are paying the price. Pro-Palestine sentiment has reinvigorated the left. This success has driven some pundits and political leaders to declare that DSA members should be thrown out of the Democratic Party. Jamie Harrison, the former chair of the Democratic National Committee, said on X not long ago that socialists who “hate the Democratic Party” should not “run for our nomination.” “Don’t use our resources. Don’t rely on our volunteers,” he posted. “Don’t use our infrastructure. Don’t ask Democrats to invest their time, money, and energy in your campaign.” In his “parasite” Atlantic column, Jamie Kirchick argued that the Democrats should be “prohibiting DSA members from joining their party and throwing out the DSA members already honeycombed within it.”
For an anti-socialist liberal, it’s a nice idea. Make the Democrats the party of Rahm Emanuel and Tom Suozzi and leave it there. The trouble for them is the American political system, one that is flawed but does permit quite a bit of grassroots democracy.
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“Harrison’s argument is especially absurd because there are few “resources” or “infrastructure” a centralized Democratic Party deploys for most races. It’s up to candidates themselves to raise money and recruit volunteers.
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They just understand, as Harrington did, that running in the Democratic Party primary is a much better way to make tangible change than forming a third party and losing more often than not. Ironically, many of the same political leaders and pundits who call for a DSA purge today would be equally livid if they formed a third party tomorrow, contested general elections, and potentially siphoned votes from Democrats.
Come on, what’s a little gallows humor in the midst of a dark, trying, and at times overwhelming, season of life. Sometimes, laughing in the face of suffering is all any of us can do. I know that’s the case for me, anyway. Not that I sit around laughing as I writhe in pain. No, in those moments I want to swallow a handful of pills and drift into sweet, peaceful nothingness. I want to think better days lie ahead for me, but my gut and seven decades of life suggest otherwise. I could be wrong, as I oft have been over these many years, but, at the very least, I’m on the short end of life. Instead of grand plans for the future, managing health struggles consume my daily life, often demanding I live by the hour instead the day.
I won’t give you a long recitation on the current status of my health. Doctors remain perplexed, and while scans and blood tests reveal oddities here and there, nothing that screams: Eureka! We found the problem. You are still going to die, but at least you will know what killed you.
I see a new endocrinologist next month. One doctor wonders if some of my symptoms might hormone related. More tests, looking for the proverbial needle in a pile of almost identical needles. I find myself thinking, “Can’t I be on the winning side of the odds just once before I die?” 🤣 A raspy, heavy voice from the dark laughed and said, “Surely, you jest. God is punishing you for saying God Dammit in 2005.” Well, God Dammit, Jesus, must you be so petty? It’s not like I ate a forbidden apple, picked up sticks on the Sabbath, or masturbated. Now, those are some “sins” that require severe punishment, right?
Long term readers know my medical history, so I won’t recite it here. Everything remains the same on that front, albeit somewhat worse depending on the day. What is of more immediate concern is my profuse sweating (especially at night), unregulated feeling of hot/cold, and precipitous drops in blood glucose levels for no apparent reason. As you might imagine, these problems are far from ideal, 🤣 so that’s why I’m seeing another endocrinologist.
Fatigue, chronic insomnia, and increasing immobility all make getting out of bed in the morning difficult, and some days impossible. Pleas from my life partner, “Bruce,You have got to get up,” followed by some sort of bribe hoped to draw me from my bed, no longer work. I know I’m at a bad place, but that’s where the car broke down with a blown motor, so here I remain. I try. What more can I do?
In February, I was diagnosed with melanoma skin cancer on my neck. The cancer appeared suddenly and quickly grew. It was successfully removed. I have a nasty scar to prove it.
Last month, I was diagnosed with basal cell cancer on my left hand and squamous cell cancer on the right side of my neck. I had both growths surgically removed. I also had a large cyst on my back removed at the same time.
Well, enough of this. I’m not whining or complaining. Just talking to my friends; letting them know that I’m down, but not out. I haven’t quit blogging, and I still hope to write again. Maybe even today or tomorrow. Until then, I appreciate your love, kindness, and support.
If you have written or texted me and I have not responded, please accept my apology for my negligence. I’ve had several people get irate with me because I haven’t responded to them. Sorry about that, but I’ve been forced to cut a lot of things out of my life, and that includes responding to emails, texts, social media messages, and voice mails. I hope to do better in the future, but I can’t make any promises. It’s interesting to note what’s not so important when death is stalking you. Life is quickly reduced to bare essentials; people and things that matter to you.I have thought about farming out contact form responses to someone who has read my writing for a long time and has an in depth knowledge of my political, social, and theological views. Someone answering for me would be speaking on my behalf, so it’s important they understand my beliefs. If this is something that might interest you, please let me know and I’ll put you in touch with Carolyn, my editor. As my longtime editor and friend, she knows what I needon this front.
I appreciate your understanding.
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