Yes I see what you did there, in both senses. There's the trump/Trump pun, and then there is the article taken as a whole. I want to continue with, "...as a whole, in which you attack the usual straw men." but I like you, and I can identify. I'm figuring you are in your forties, something like that? When I was in my forties I went on the same rants.

That bit about salvation by faith alone in protestantism, you know that's a reaction against the granting of indulgences by the RC church in Luther's time, right? Which may have started with good intentions but morphed into a system whereby the rich could buy their way out of Hell.

By means of a series of happenstances involving music, now that I'm in my 70s I'm a practicing Christian. I attend church and sing in the choir (my church has an amazing music program) every Sunday, but not for the hope of heaven.

People who maintain the hope of heaven haven't thought it through, if you ask me. Eternal conscious existence would be a catastrophe. I'm like, God, if you give me another ten or fifteen good years, that will be quite sufficient, thank you. I've heard you are merciful, so that has to mean when I die it will be lights out.

Not only is this conclusion inescapable to anyone who, like me, has had a scientific education, but it is backed up by biblical text. “And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain:”* Oblivion satisfies those conditions.

Some day I will discuss all this with my pastor and see what he thinks.

I hope you don't think I'm giving you a hard time. I'm not. I get it. I don't want to go into any detail about the contradictions inherent in conservative Christianity because James Finn did such an excellent job in his response. I have nothing to add.

* Rev. 21:4