Facebook Affirmations, Vol. II

In my news feed on Facebook I will be served a daily dose of Christian affirmations from friends.  In this series of posts, which I call “Facebook Affirmations™,” I will post and discuss some of these gems. Here’s the affirmation for today:

I personally believe in Jesus Christ. One facebooker has challenged all believers to put this on their wall. The Bible says, if you deny Me in front of your peers, I will deny you in front of my Father. This is a simple test. If you love God and you are not afraid to show it, re-post this…

And, as usual, my analysis of this copypasta:

1. Yes, you personally believe in Jesus Christ.  Fine.  Then you should realize that your belief in Jesus Christ is personal — that is, you can keep it to yourself.
2. How much of a challenge is it, really, to re-post this message as your Facebook status?  Since the majority of people in the United States claim to be Christian are you really risking anything by openly stating your belief?  Are you going to be mercilessly persecuted by the ~9% of non-believers?  If you ask me, it’s safer and easier to post this status on Facebook than not.  As part of the majority you’d have to be incredibly insecure to be “afraid to show it.”
3. Even if you didn’t post this status on Facebook you wouldn’t be denying Jesus Christ.  Inaction is not the same as action.  If you were to just carry on as usual without posting this on Facebook would that mean you no longer believe in Jesus?  Does it take daily affirmations like this just to maintain the bare minimum level of belief?
4. This really is a simple test.  It’s a test of the sheep mentality upon which religion thrives and relies.  You saw a paragraph that included the words “Jesus,” “Christ,” and “re-post” so you did.  The test is not of your faith, it’s of your willingness to follow even though it’s unreasonable or illogical to do so.

As usual, if you’re religious and you’re reading this I’d love to hear your rebuttals.  If you’re irreligious and you’ve seen some gems and would like to pass them along, please send them to me and I’ll discuss them in future installments.  Until next time, this has been Facebook Affirmations™!