One of my former theology professors might take umbrage at the title of this piece. As I wrote some time ago, the professor had a problem with slang and euphemisms. Still, there are times when one needs to make a point, and this is one of those times.

Both of my writing personas are a bit put out with the pious, judgmental online finger pointing by some who call themselves Christian. To be specific, these are the folks who post or share memes, snarky comments, and outright criticism of other Christians who disagree with them over social and political issues. While this is in no way a new phenomenon, it is frustrating. In fact, I touched on this matter some years ago in a piece dealing with taxes.

That piece was inspired by people accusing Christians of being hypocrites or worse if they objected to the government taxing them to “help the poor and needy.” A later post, comparing Jesus to middle eastern refugees was inspired by similar attacks on Christians opposed to open borders, chain migration, and accepting asylum seekers who could not be vetted.

Today, some on the left are again attacking Christians who oppose the open borders philosophy being pushed by many so-called progressives. In this case, the critics are using the crisis caused by thousands of Central Americans attempting to force their way into the United States along our southern border. Those in favor of such uncontrolled immigration, or just opposed to anything one might consider conservative, are once again distorting scripture and casting stones at those who believe borders should be secure.

Usually, the best way to deal with such social media criticism is to ignore it. Or, as a last resort, quit following or unfriend the offending source. In this case, it seems ignoring the catcalls and derision is not an adequate way to address the issue.

To be clear, the Bible states, “If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.” (Romans 12:18, NIV) That can mean one should simply turn the other cheek to such attacks, simply walk away, or click the “unfriend” icon. In the cases inspiring this piece, that does not seem appropriate.

Many of those attacking opponents to open immigration are claiming to be Christian. Not only are they claiming to be, or implying they are, Christians, some are members of the clergy in one form or another. With that said, this writer has no problem with someone standing in his or her pulpit stating an opinion on an issue that might be considered political.

Pastors regularly stand up against abortion, and that, to much of the world, is a political or societal issue, not a religious issue. On the other hand, a pastor, lay or ordained, a priest, or theologian saying or posting remarks questioning another’s faith over a political issue such as immigration is a bit much. No! It is more than just a bit much. It is a bit of holy sounding crap.

Take for example one of the posts that was the proverbial straw breaking the camel’s back and inspiring this piece. “Real Christians would be waiting for the caravan with food, water, clothing, and offering any help needed.” This post, by someone who apparently spends more time on social media than most people spend at their jobs, was shared over 100K times and garnered more than 800 comments. A sampling of the comments seemed to indicate most were just as mocking of Christians as the author intended. Funny though. None of the comments and nothing else one can find on social media suggests anyone in this gaggle of trolls packed up and headed to the border, with or without food and water.

My rather long-winded point is this. The author of this comment, the person who brought his post to my attention, and many others are quick to condemn anyone thinking open borders is a problem. If the person in favor of controlled immigration is a Christian, open border advocates are quick to label the Christian a hypocrite or worse. Yet, as far as it is possible to determine in this situation, they do little more than share inflammatory posts, push their particular view of Scripture, and look down their noses at anyone who disagrees with them.

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