Pete Buttigieg shouldn't lead the religious left. There shouldn't even be a religious left.

[radical noodle]

116. I'm not sure what passage you're referring to

when you claim Jesus says that. I suspect you've plucked it out of context. Most of the times he said things about "hell," he's chastising the people for not being the kind of person they should be (taking care of the poor, for example).

Primarily the teachings of Jesus are about loving your neighbor, giving to others and taking care of the poor. Some of his words can be interpreted in different ways, but much of it (at least according to the translated versions) is quite definitive. There are so many denominations of Christianity because there are vastly different views of what a Christian should believe and do.

Look, I'm not necessarily a believer, so I have no fundamentalist fervor or certainty, right or left. At best, I'm an agnostic. I did grow up in the Church (attending almost daily... I won't go into why) and have some knowledge of the Bible and the words of Christ. I also maintain an interest in Christianity as a whole. Jesus tells his followers without equivocation to do things the religious right ignores and on that I base my opinion that the religious right does not represent what Christ preached. Obviously, the "Christian left" feels that way or they would not have actively worked to try to change the Christian narrative the right has espoused.

Religious beliefs can no doubt be dangerous when taken to a level of fervor that everyone must believe the same thing, and in that, I agree with you. My comment about the religious left is what I believe but no one else has to believe it and I'm certainly not going to try to twist anyone's arm. It is also what the Christian left apparently believes and I was attempting to explain that to you.