The Life and Times of Bruce Gerencser

Tag: Christianity

  • Questions: Bruce, It Seems Like You Never Really Left Jesus

    bruce gerencser and jesus

    Joel asked:

    Why have you stayed on the topic of God/Jesus for so long? It seems like you’ve never really fully left Jesus. At least, thats what it seems like.

    This seems more like an accusation than it does a question, but I will assume good faith, and answer accordingly.

    I have spent my entire life talking and writing about God, Jesus, the Bible, and Christianity. In 2007, I started blogging, and the following year I deconverted, walking away from Evangelical Christianity after fifty years.

    Joel seems to think I should have stopped talking about Jesus after I left Christianity; that since I am no longer a Christian, I have nothing meaningful to say about the faith once delivered to the saints. Let’s suppose I spent my life as a career military officer. General Bruce, I like the ring of that. After a long career in the Army, I retired. Would anyone expect me not to talk about the military or my service any more? Would I be expected to “move on”? Of course not.

    So it is with me. Christianity made a deep, lasting impression on me, especially Evangelicalism and the Independent Fundamentalist Baptist (IFB) church movement. It is what I know. I can’t excise the first fifty years of my life. Sorry, but that’s not how life works.

    What I have to share is a lived life, and I suspect that’s what upsets Evangelicals so much. I lived, practiced and believed the teachings of the Bible — fallibly, yet sincerely. There was nothing in my life that suggested I was anything but a committed follower of Jesus. Yet, I did insult to the spirit of grace and trampled under my feet the blood of the covenant. I spit in the face of Jesus, rejecting his atoning work on the cross.

    It is this rejection of faith many Evangelicals can’t or won’t understand. How dare I reject he who has made such differences in their lives. How dare I reject that which they devote their lives to. How dare I live without being constrained by the teachings of the Bible. And it is my defiance that pisses off so many Evangelicals, so much so that they turn to violence and character assassination. Just today, a local Evangelical man named Daniel Gray wrote a letter to the editor of the Defiance Crescent-News, saying that I never was a pastor; that he can’t find anyone who says I was a pastor anywhere. (I pastored three local churches in Montpelier, Fayette, and West Unity, respectively.) This, of course, is an unadulterated lie. This same man said several years ago that that I was being investigated by the State of Ohio for performing “illegal” weddings. This, too, was an ugly lie.

    Rare is the Evangelical that can accept me on my own terms. Because they can’t make my story fit in their peculiar religious box, they reject what I say out of hand. Yet, millions of readers over the past twenty years have thought differently. They value my writing, though in dark, depressed moments I wonder why. They find encouragement and help from my words, even though they don’t always agree with me. More than a few people thank me for being instrumental in their deconversions.

    first atheist church

    And this upsets many Evangelicals. Not only did I deconvert, I am leading other people down a path that leads to Hell. Why can’t I just mind my own business, and move on? Of course, lost on these folks is the fact that they, themselves, do not mind their own business. They routinely evangelize and proselytize, whether non-Christians want to hear it or not. Believing they have a mandate from God, Evangelicals fan out across the Internet, putting a word in for Jesus (or Trump) everywhere they go.

    And that’s fine. You know, that First Amendment thing. Evangelicals are free to witness and preach, both privately and publicly. Why should it not be the same for non-Christians, especially atheists?

    Joel has been reading my blog for some time, yet he fails to understand why I do what I do. That’s not my fault. My motivations are clear to anyone who is paying attention.

    Evangelicalism is not neutral. As one of the largest sects in the United States , Evangelicalism has a lot of influence on our culture. None of us can escape this influence. Our current president, arguably the worst ever, was put into office by Evangelical voters. Evangelicals now hold some of the highest, most important political offices in the land. And what are they doing with this power? They are using it to take back America for God. They are using it to enshrine Christianity as the state’s official religion. Worse, they are the people primarily behind Project 2025.

    And dare we ignore who has been behind the raging culture wars for the past forty-plus years? Evangelical Christians. As as father of six children and grandfather to sixteen grandchildren, do I not have a vested interest in their future, especially when I see the United States running headlong into fascism, Christian Nationalism, and an Evangelical form of theocracy? Silence is not an option for me, nor is it for many of the people who read this blog.

    So, to Joel’s false claim that I have never left Jesus, with a British accent I say, poppycock. There can be no question, except for the deliberately blind, that I am no longer a Christian; that the reason I continue to share my story and critique Evangelical Christianity is because it is a threat to social progress and the future of the United States.

    I intend to “stay on the topic of God/Jesus” for as long as Evangelicals drag the dead carcass of Jesus into the public square, touting him as some sort of panacea for the ills of society. I intend to stay the course as long as Evangelicals publicly promote irrational beliefs, especially when demanding everyone believe as they do under threat of eternal fire and brimstone.

    When the Joels of the world retire to their houses of worship to incessantly talk about God/Jesus/Bible/Sin/Salvation, I will shutter this blog. Until then, I intend to speak my mind, as is the right of every American—though fascist Donald Trump, with Evangelical approval, is trying to limit the free speech of those who disagree with him.

    This is a battle of worldviews; a battle for the soul of our country. As long as Evangelicals demand Christianity be the state’s religion and the Bible the law of the land, they should expect pushback from me.

    Unless Joel and his merry band of Evangelicals intends to cede the battlefield, I intend to stand my ground—even when I can no longer physically stand.

    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.

    You can email Bruce via the Contact Form.

  • Does “Baby Christian” Trump Respect God and Pastors?

    baby christian trump

    Warning! This post contains content offensive to easily butt-hurt Evangelical Christians. You have been warned.🤣

    For the record, the animals in my graphic above are “Lemmings.” 🙂 A throwback tip of the hat to the 1991 Lemmings DOS/Windows computer game. 🤣

    According Landon Schott, pastor of Mercy Culture in Fort Worth, Texas, U.S. President Donald “Jesus” Trump is a baby Christian who respects God and pastors. And when he uses the word “God,” he is referring to the Evangelical God of the Bible.

    Video Link

    In what way is Donald Trump a “baby” Christian? He’s attended Norman Vincent Peale’s church as a young man, and in recent years he has professed a squishy, ignorant, Two-Corinthians faith in the Evangelical Jesus. What IS absent is any outward evidence that he is “a new creation in Christ.” A baby Christian, then, is a person whose life shows that “old things are passed away, and all things become new.” There was a time Evangelicals believed in the importance of church attendance, tithing, prayer, tithing, Bible reading, tithing, and fasting for congregants. Has Trump done any of these things outside of a red-meat-for-Evangelicals photo op? The answer is “No” for those of you desperately seeking for evidence to justify Trump’s decidedly non-Christian beliefs and behavior. Shit, he can’t even follow the two great commands of “loving God” and “loving your fellow man.”

    All of us have a front row seat for the Trump Catastrophe — brought to you by politically drunk Evangelicals everywhere. It is alarming how few Evangelicals are willing to speak a word against Trump, a fellow believer. Judge not, right? (Please read Does the Bible Really Say “Thou Shalt Not Judge?”) No one is exempt from judgment (or personal accountability). Why are so many Evangelicals unwilling to give a true, honest accounting of the past decade of Trump’s life? Why have they largely ignored Trump’s prominence in the Epstein Files. Even when he turned himself into “Meme Jesus” or showed himself with “Sexy Gay Jesus,” there was not even a whimper from most of the Evangelicals who voted for Trump three #$W%&^ times. (Translation available for Evangelicals who don’t know Brucean Greek. Text me and I’ll send you the proper translation.) 🤣

    Now, let me demolish Schott’s delusional notion that Donald Trump is a “baby Christian” who “respects” God and pastors.

    First, Donald Trump respects no one, including himself.

    We have overwhelming evidence that says Donald Trump respects two things: power and money (and dick size). I have a draft post in my file about how Trump measures success; how everything in his life can be reduced to a small mushroom dick man craving to be known as “Donnie Big Dick.” I have yet to see Trump respect someone who different from him or who has less than he does. While Trump shows blushing rosy-cheeked respect for autocrats, dictators, thieves, and murderers, it is only because he lusts after their power and wealth. Trump is an American president who actually wants to be king; an iron-fisted ruler over all — not only in this country, but the world. Evangelicals in the 1960s were outraged when the Beatles declared they were “bigger than Jesus.” Oh the anti-Beatles/anti-rock and roll sermons I heard from Evangelical preachers as a child. Yet, Donald Trump recently proclaimed that he is, at least, as big as Jesus or even a modern “Savior” himself. I wonder how many Evangelical preachers condemned Trump from the pulpit last Sunday as their forebears did the Beatles sixty years ago? Not many. Disagree? Cough up the video/printed evidence that shows preachers skinning Trump alive before God and man for his blasphemous mockery of your Master, Savior, Lord, King, and sexy boyfriend Jesus H. Christ. I’ll be waiting . . .

    Second, does anyone really believe he is a Christian?

    Does anyone really believe that Trump is a Christian? Not even Trump believes he is a Christian, yet millions of Evangelicals are hellbent on saying he is! Why is that? To suggest otherwise requires Evangelicals to admit they were wrong — not one time, not two times, not even three times, since many Evangelicals would, if they could, vote for Trump today. No, they have been captured by the MAGA cult, and the only way out for them is to be deprogrammed and, in time, confess they were wrong.

    There was a time in Evangelicalism, when you at least had to attend church on Easter, Mother’s Day, and Christmas to be considered a Christian. Today, Trump never attends church, yet he is considered a Christian. How can these things be? It is quite the thing to watch the Evangelicalism of my youth voluntarily flush itself down the gold right-wing toilet. Politics were rarely mentioned. Today, Evangelicalism might as well be an official arm of the Republican/Libertarian Party. Right-wing politics became fuel for the latest culture war. Evangelicals came to believe that saving souls and personal piety was not enough. Their new goal is to take back the United States for God and institute a Biblical version of Sharia law.

    Third, respect is shown by behavior.

    What in Trump’s behavior remotely suggests he respects God? I am not talking about the shameless superficial plays of Trump to fawning Evangelicals who surround him in the oval office to feel up his crotch, offer Evan-fellatio, or attend worship services (rallies) when he is in attendance. Trump, even in his demented Grandpa state, still knows how to work a crowd.

    Trump has spent the past ten years showing Evangelicals that he is a pathological liar, a racist, a bigot, an ableist, and a “grab them by the pussy” misogynist. There’s nothing more for them to know about his character, morals, and ethics. He is absent all three, as anyone who is paying attention can see (and hear).

    Fourth, Trump is a user, and pastors are useful fools.

    Evangelicals make a mockery of their faith when they continue to fawn over and worship Donald Trump. “Oh, it’s not that bad,” Evangelicals say. Really? Have you watched Trump’s rallies and press conferences? Have you seen his speeches at Evangelical conferences? Have you watched his Christian cabinet members slavishly, lavishly, and disgustingly fawn over him? If these very things happened under Obama or Biden, why there would be Evangelicals rioting in the street; and might I say, rightly so.

    What happens when a person stops being useful? The moment Trump sees no benefit (money/power/worship) he will attack, ridicule, and abandon them quicker than he did Melania so he could have sex with Stormy Daniels.

    Alex Ashley in Rolling Stone recently wrote an excellent article titled, “Trump’s Long, Strange Relationship with Faith.”

    Here’s the money quote:

    What the FULL record reveals is that Trump has never encountered religion as a source of authority over him. He encountered it first as a tool for success, then as a constituency to be managed, and finally as a competing claim to the kind of absolute authority he believes he holds.

    Finally, it is evident that many Evangelicals have forsaken their theological and moral foundation for the crumbs that fell from the rich man’s table or a bowl of pottage after selling their souls to the vicar of Lucifer on earth. Preachers such as James Dobson, Richard Jeffress, and Franklin Graham, among others, have become bootlickers, defenders of virtually everything the “baby Christian” Trump writes, says, posts, and does. The lack of criticism from Evangelical big shots after Trump’s blasphemous memes and violent tweets is deafening and nauseating. My God, most of the atheists I know have better morals and ethics than these modern day Elmer Gantrys. These hirelings only care about having the preeminence, which gives them close access to the god of this world’s political power. Evangelicals learned that they could gain wins in the culture war by controlling the three branches of power. New mantra: “Why Pray When You Can Vote?” or “Why Refrain from Fornication When You Control Legislation?”

    Is Evangelicalism even salvageable? It’s doubtful. Now that larger churches and megachurches dominate the Evangelical church scene, they have become denominations unto themselves. They have amassed tremendous political and social power, and control. Even in rural areas such as where I live, large Evangelical churches are everywhere, and megachurches are but 30 minutes to an hour away — which Evangelicals will gladly drive if they can have metaphorical sex with their musclebound boyfriend named Jesus.

    Rome is burning, but far too many Evangelicals in the safe confines of their religious temples are obsessed with making sweet, sweet love to Jesus. And just think, American taxpayers subsidize their lovemaking, all the while these fine Christians burn 250 years of national secular progress to the ground.

    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.

    You can email Bruce via the Contact Form.

  • How Sad is It That Evangelicals Only Have Purpose, Meaning, and Happiness Through Jesus?

    happiness

    Most people would agree that they desire purpose, meaning, and happiness in their lives. While these terms can and are defined and used in various ways, I think it is safe to say that most of us want to live a good life while on this mortal coil.

    Sadly, millions of Evangelicals believe that only Jesus gives them meaning, purpose, and happiness in their lives. Without Jesus, their lives have no value. Without Jesus, they are but brute sinners deserving eternal punishment and suffering in a lake filled with fire and brimstone. This is what they are told by Evangelical preachers, anyway. Congregants are reminded that their existence depends on Jesus — the second person in the Godhead. They are reminded that most humans are headed for a Christless Hell; that atheists, agnostics, humanists, Buddhists, Muslims, pagans, and others live aimless, helpless, hopeless lives on their slog towards eternity. Never mind the fact that how these people live their lives are repudiations of Evangelical lies about them. Evidence suggests that unbelievers can and do have happy, fulfilling lives without Jesus. Making their own purpose and meaning in life, non-Evangelicals live life on their own terms, often understanding that the journey is far more important than the destination. When gaining Heaven or avoiding Hell is no longer the grand objective, it’s amazing how much more satisfying life can become.

    As a certified atheist and humanist, I struggle greatly every day of my life. There’s no escaping pain, suffering, and death, so while I am among the living, I intend to live life to its fullest, even if “fullest” means some days brushing my teeth, eating a bit, and resting. Every day I hope to write, but all the hope in the world doesn’t change the suffering that often keeps my pen in the proverbial inkwell. Thus, living life to its fullest, for me, is on any given day, is doing what I can. Anyone who struggles with chronic pain and suffering understands where I am coming from. To loosely quote the Bible, “The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.” Years ago, my Independent Fundamentalist Baptist mother-in-law would tell me that I just needed to put mind over matter. I would bristle when she said such nonsense. My partner eventually got her mother to understand that when I said things like “I can’t” or “I need to rest” or “my pain is off the charts today” or “I’m too nauseous to eat” I was stating the fact of the matter. When I can’t, I can’t. That should be enough for people, but sometimes the people closest to you think if they just cheer you up or encourage you to do more, that you will suddenly arise from near death and clear your to-do list. This, of course, is fanciful, and, at times, hurtful thinking.

    At whatever point I find myself in life, I try to live a meaningful life. I recognize and understand that I am on the short side of life. Death stalks me, reminding me that before I know it, I will be his. I long ago determined that I would not quietly go into the dark night. I will do what I can, write what I can, trying to be the best possible person I can possibly be. It matters how we die, so I want to die openly and honestly. cherishing every moment until that day comes. To suggest that my life has no meaning, purpose, or happiness is not only absurd, it’s offensive. I have never said such a thing to a person. If you need Jesus, religion, or the church to make it through life, fine. I don’t give a shit. Just leave me alone. I don’t need Jesus, your religion, and or your club. Why is it that Evangelicals rarely, if ever, grant me the same space to freely live my life? Instead, they feel obligated to tell me how worthless I am or how I will soon spend eternity being tortured by God.To what end, I ask? I know all I need to know about Evangelical Christianity. I know what the Bible says about me. I don’t need believers to remind me of these things. Few Evangelicals seem willing to live and let people live, content to let non-Christians live their lives on their own terms. Surely, this is not too much to ask.

    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.

    You can email Bruce via the Contact Form.

  • Why I Believe There’s an Afterlife

    is there an afterlife

    As an atheist, I believe in the afterlife. Yes sir, I sure do. Not in Christian sense of spending eternity in Heaven or Hell. That sort of thinking is nonsense. I have yet to have a Christian successfully defend their afterlife beliefs. There’s no scientific or empirical evidence for its existence. All Christians have is the Bible, with its contradictory pronouncements about the afterlife. Belief in the Christian afterlife requires faith; a faith I do not have. That said, I do believe in the afterlife, just not the Christian kind.

    Someday soon, I will die. Maybe today, tomorrow, or two years from now, but there’s no question that I will someday soon cease to exist. So, then what? Nothing. When you are dead, you’re dead. I will one day go the way of all people.

    What a minute, Bruce, I thought you said you believe in the afterlife. I do, but the afterlife is for the living. After-my-life-ends, my partner, children, daughters-in-law, and grandchildren will live on. That’s the afterlife I speak of. The life that is lived by everyone but you after you die. That’s why it is important to leave behind good memories for family and friends to remember. Long after you are buried or cremated, those who matter to you will have pictures and memories to remember you by. I don’t know about you, but I want those I love and behind to have a good afterlife.

    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.

    You can email Bruce via the Contact Form.

  • Yes, I Know, “Not All Evangelicals”

    not like those evangelicals

    Evangelicalism is a somewhat broad tent, with sects ranging from hardcore Fundamentalists to liberals who are Evangelical in name only. It is that last group that often emails and messages me, complaining I am wrongly lumping all Evangelicals together. These are the folks who should be mainline or liberal church members, but for some reason they like being Evangelicals or they remain in the cult because of family, employment, or familiarity. I don’t care one way or another, but I am not inclined to modify the word Evangelical just to satisfy their need to differentiate between themselves and the rest of Evangelicalism. Regular readers know that I never mean “all Evangelicals.” In fact, I never mean “all” anything. There will always be exceptions to the rule.

    That said, the core doctrines that bind Evangelicals together are generally held by one and all, with allowances made for soteriological, eschatological, and practice differences. The same can be said for differences regarding Calvinism, Arminianism, Oneness, and cessationism/noncessationism. Worship practices can be very different too, yet core doctrinal beliefs are what bind these disparate sects together.

    The Independent Fundamentalist Baptist (IFB) church movement is a subset of Evangelicalism. They too have a broad spectrum of beliefs and practices, yet most of them agree that there is a set of core doctrines that must be believed to be IFB. There are countless subsets within Evangelicalism, so it takes a good bit of effort and expertise to truly understand to understand the depth and breadth of Evangelicalism.

    Within Evangelicalism, there are sects, pastors, and congregants working hard to reform the sect, but much like the Southern Baptist Convention, I am convinced that significant reform will not happen unless the structure is burnt to the ground. Sadly, Evangelical churches are content to start new programs, spice up their worship services, and hire pastors who are hip, cool, and sexy; men who dress in designer jeans with holes, $300 tennis shoes, and Rolex watches. Further, megachurches are the bane of Evangelicalism; churches that breed passive church members who attend one service a week, hoping their felt-needs are met.

    Are there Evangelical churches out there truly following in the steps of Jesus? Sure, I am certain they exist. I just don’t know of any. The plot has been lost, and I see no way to get it back unless radical deconstruction takes place. This is unlikely since Evangelicals are known for certainty and arrogance. Deconstructing would require admitting you are wrong, and that is not how Evangelicals typically roll.

    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.

    You can email Bruce via the Contact Form.

  • Bruce, Did You Use the “Reverend” Title as an Evangelical Pastor?

    preacher

    Reverend is a title people should look down on, not up to.

    — Christopher Hitchens

    I am an ordained Baptist preacher. I am also ordained through the Universal Life Church, and the Church of the Latter Day Dude. I have every right to claim and use the “Reverend” title. However, I never used the title. I despised the attention the title gave me. I just wanted to be an everyday Joe; a first among equals in the church.I asked congregants to call me by my first name, Pastor Bruce, or Preacher. I preferred the latter. If I was anything. I was a preacher. Besides, it saved me from hearing people horrifically butcher my Hungarian last name — Grr-IN-sir (though there are a few Gerencsers who pronounce their surname Grincer.

    Years ago, I wrote a letter to the editor of the Bryan Times. When my letter was published, it showed my name as The Reverend Bruce Gerencser. Give me a break. A call to the editor let him know that I preferred no title. He was somewhat surprised since many local pastors wanted or demanded the Reverend (and/or Doctor) title be used.

    I was content to blend into a sea of working-class people, ministering to their needs without nary of thought about what they called me.

    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.

    You can email Bruce via the Contact Form.

  • Altering My Policy on Quoting Bible Verses in Comments

    comment guidelines

    Previously, I have prevented Evangelical zealots from filling the comment section with proof texts, often without any commentary. Such people think that the Bible is self-explanatory; which is contrary to what the Good Book actually teaches on the matter. Question? If the Bible is self-explanatory, why are there 900 or so Christian colleges in the United States that train people for 4-6 years to preach the self-explanatory Bible? If the Bible is self-explanatory, why do Evangelical preachers hold multiple services every week to teach congregations the Word of God?

    With that thought in mind, I have decided to alter this site’s policy on quoting Bible verses in the comment section.

    You may now quote Bible verses as long as you do not claim they are supernatural or authoritative. The verses will be treated just like the words of any other written text.

    You are required, then, to state why you are quoting these verses. Don’t assume we know. We are not as smart as you are. I received a Men in Black-like mind wipe when I deconverted, so I lost fifty years of knowledge overnight. I don’t know squat compared to you, oh great one!

    If you invoke God, the supernatural, or some sort of authority, you are required to give evidence for the existence of God; that this God is the God of the Christian Bible; that the God of the Christian Bible supernaturally birthed the Bible, giving it his authority. The Bible is like no other book, you may say, but such faith claims will not suffice. You must defend your God and his Bible on the fields of Evidence and Reason.

    If you cannot do so, your proof texts are not welcome.

    Why should any of us care what your holy book says?

    Well, it’s God’s Word.

    Prove it.

    You wrongly assume your Bible’s words have some sort of magical power or meaning to the non-initiated or those no longer in the cult.

    They don’t.

    Talking about the Bible can be interesting. I enjoy the intellectual exercise. After all, I was a Christian for 50 years — 17 years longer than Jesus was 😂

    But, it’s just a book, no different from hundreds of other books I’ve owned.

    However, once you claim the Bible is supernatural and authoritative, questions are sure to follow.

    I hope you understand,

    signature

    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.

    You can email Bruce via the Contact Form.