The Austin Stone Church Puts Us In Our Place!? | The Atheist Experience: Throwback

[@briannewton3535]

I still remember this call the first time around. A butt hurt pastor that recognises that the youth in his church are no longer believing the bollox around a magical deity.

[@Skeptic236]

The youth of his church would learn more about critical thinking watching this episode than spending a lifetime in a church listening to preachers like this.

[@Nocturnalux]

There is no church, this was a troll. A very productive one but a troll. By his own admission, eventually.

[@claudiasolomon1123]

​@@Nocturnalux Really😮?? WOW BRAVO👏 Mark he fooled me.

[@Nocturnalux]

@ Yes, just look up “Mark Austin Stone Church”. I find it baffling that the ACA is putting up videos with his calls, I guess the people in charge now have forgotten about this.

[@deanmartin1111]

Seriously? Do you happen to have a link to the episode where he admitted it?

[@claudiasolomon1123]

@@deanmartin1111 I also want this link.

[@MindfulBarbarian]

Such a classic. Mark from Stone Church. I love how he kept calling in using fake voices and pretending to be other people. What a buffoon.

[@pigdog126]

Yeah, recognized his voice right away. He always says he is calling on behalf of his church members.

[@klinnc8910]

Christians are huge liars. So, no one should be shocked by Mark’s behavior.

[@mitchhaelann9215]

I always love re-watching this sequence of calls. It clearly shows the exact state of theological debate. The dishonesty, the ignorance, and the persistent stubbornness. All exclusively from one side of the debate.

[@xknoewx]

The guy keeps hanging up because he can’t even defend his own reason for being a Christian. Probably hung up and then told all the kids watching that they are going to go to hell

[@liamfoote7164]

Mark was a longtime repeat caller who called under many names. He didnt actually go to the austin stone church as far as we know. At least when someone went there no one knew a Mark

[@klinnc8910]

@@liamfoote7164Mark is probably not his real name. I still bet he goes to that church.

[@dianabender7107]

Mark is trying to nail jello to the wall.😂😂😂😂😂

[@RideAcrossTheRiver]

Using a banana as a hammer.

[@Wes-x9p]

Solder is more likely

[@anthonymitchell9793]

And he thinks he's achieved it.

[@elizabethsteer6883]

Someone has said that Mark turned out to be a clever troll. I don’t believe it though. He’d have to be an award winning actor to pull off such a convincing performance.

[@topgunaudio7983]

Sincerely hope that the youth of his church were listening and walked away when they realised he had nothing! Absolutely nothing!

[@gregoryeatroff8608]

"Greek mythology does not have eyewitnesses." According to Livy it does -- he reports in his history of Rome that two battling armies (one Roman, one Samnite if I recall correctly) witnessed the twin gods Castor and Pollux on a battlefield. That's THOUSANDS of witnesses if you accept a book written after the fact as accurate reporting the way Pastor Clarabel accepts the Bible as accurate as a premise from which he works.

[@Germanchu92]

Yeah that's pretty much the issue with eye witnesses in books. Anybody can write that many people saw something. Heck, we have eye witnesses that, somehow, Palpatine returned. And Voldemort.

[@MooseMaunu]

"Academic side of xtianity." 😄😁😆😅🤣😂

[@Adam.Langton]

The "Academic side of Christianity," if it's truthful, is basically admitting that the books of the Bible are old stories that have been changed and plagiarized multiple times throughout history, and that the New Testament is a highly curated text written by unreliable narrators centuries after the supposed events. Sure they exist, but they don't argue in favor of the Bible being accurate.

[@Svnipni]

And then brings up Ray Comfort. Oh dear

[@thenaturalmidsouth9536]

All Christian churches are New Testament churches. If they were Old Testament churches, they'd be synagogues.

[@golach420]

I disliked him within 15 seconds. Arrogant fool. His apologetics powers were very weak. 😂

[@smochygrice465]

Good Thursday Morning AXP fans and theists ❤❤❤ Thank God for atheism 🙏 Peace Love Empathy From Australia 🤠

[@alexissmith5589]

Religion is an insult to human dignity. With or without it, you'd have good people doing good things and evil people doing evil things. But for good people to do evil things, that takes religion. - Steven Weinberg

[@MichaelBath-xv5bd]

😂😂 Poor Mark...where is he now I wonder..?

[@briannewton3535]

Indeed, So many are challenged with their calls to AXP. Some do call back a few months later to say they are out, though sometimes still have the fear of hell or the like, knowing it's irrational, yet feeling it anyway.

[@w4rsh1p]

Eternal conscious torment.

[@Simon-nv5zj]

From 19:00 onwards, is for me the single greatest speech against religion and a God existing.

[@quotedotes]

"Faith is not a virtue. Faith is gullibility."

[@l-_-lShadowCat]

Oh, Mark, Mark, Mark… why did you do this to yourself? I wonder what’s become of this chap. Better yet: I don’t care much.

[@AdamBladeTaylor]

I just hope he's stopped raping children.

[@Wix_Mitwirth]

I would love for any of the kids from his congregation to call in now, over a decade later, to let us know what they thought of these episodes when this guy called in. He got beat down. I miss Jeff.

[@dalecs47]

"God is real, but not just any god, only OUR own personal god is real.” “So that means YOU have to listen to US, do what WE tell you to do, live your life the way WE say and give US your money, all in the name of "OUR god!" Isn't religion and faith a wonderful thing? Gives people power over you and your life and while it costs you plenty it costs them nothing. They talk, you listen, you obey!

[@RideAcrossTheRiver]

Mark's squawky voice on speaker sounds exactly the same in person.

[@brucebaker810]

So... you're saying you've heard Mark without electronics? ie face to face??

[@RideAcrossTheRiver]

@ No, he has the electronic squawk in person.

[@johnfleet1854]

"we are worried that the youth are being tricked by your program" ... REALLY ??? Stop preaching then and don't watch if it offends you. There is nothing worse afaiac thank constant preaching to those of us who find it extremely offensive AND we choose NOT to watch (become involved in your religious nonsense).

[@Garfieldlysanya]

7:45 I find it entirely ironic that Mark is continuing to use Slick’s (aptly named) argument despite the hosts pointing out that you can insert another deity in its place and it still be sound when earlier, yet he completely discredited Bigfoot’s existence due to lack of evidence in missing links. If you can’t link that solely to Christianity, you’re doing the exact same thing.

[@ric3hfishman565]

Hey kids from the stone church, read science books!

[@AdamBladeTaylor]

"Greek mythology doesn't have witnesses." Neither does the bible.

[@mitchhaelann9215]

There's more and more reliable evidence for Greek Mythology than there is for Christianity. Mount Olympus exists. You can go there. Does Heaven?

[@lazloholt262]

Tf is a new testament church? You don't get a new testament without an old testament

[@brucebaker810]

Lots of churches keep about 6 pages from the OT and ignore/excuse away the rest. Lots of excuses. New Covenant blather is a common one. They need the foundation. But they (well, some) don't like the baggage. Ha! 13:00 "We're pretty much By The Book". Uhhhh...the last 1/3 of the book.

[@brucebaker810]

Lots of churches keep about 6 pages from the OT and ignore/excuse away the rest. Lots of excuses. New Covenant blather is a common one. They need the foundation. But they (well, some) don't like the baggage. Ha! 13:00 "We're pretty much By The Book". Uhhhh...the last 1/3 of the book.

[@Apotheosis-1981]

This call is hilarious.

[@ministryofarguments3525]

Yes it is. He sounds like all the Christian trolls that come here. 😂

[@smochygrice465]

I think the caller is just larping as a Christian theist 😊

[@Apotheosis-1981]

@ministryofarguments3525 That's an opinion. That's to say there's no difference in Christian beliefs. What happened to the 44,000 different ideas and beliefs about how Christians should perceive the Bible? Many people say this guy's just an atheist acting like a Christian. In any case he's acting like a Christian who thinks the Bible is the word of God, but not all Christians believe that.

[@ministryofarguments3525]

@@Apotheosis-1981 Actually it's an observation on how stupid this guy and all the Christian trolls that come here are. They rely on a book that is profoundly wrong on so many things, such as how the solar system formed and Earth's place within it. They ignore the fact that Jupiter, the largest of the planets, was the first to form over 4.5 Billion years ago and then systematically all the other planets were formed from what was left of the gas and rocks. If it hadn't been for Saturn going in to resonance with Jupiter to stop them both migrating in towards the sun then the inner planets themselves wouldn't have been able to form. And Earth and those inner planets are much older than the pathetic Bible has to say.

[@amontrealpaul226]

True, Apot. Christians can't even agree on what the rules of Christianity are and yet some of you are trying to say that we ought to made to live according to those rules! 😆 🤣 😂

[@junodonatus4906]

"The Academic Side of Christianity"....time to grab the popcorn.

[@cmvamerica9011]

The the same old: I’m going to heaven, but I don’t know about the rest of you.😂

[@Big-Papa-Smurf]

This is Dane Cook

[@canderson5098]

How is Mark any worse than any of the other believers that god supposedly sends here to convince us he's real and that he loves us?

[@AStupidPersonn]

Mark is special. He's been a troll for a long time. The Bigfoot convo here is awesome lol😂

[@coreyc1685]

If I remember right Mark, who also once called in claiming to be English, putting on what seemed to be a strange mixture of English and Australian accents, turned out to not be a real Christian. He was calling in pretending to believe this stuff for the fun of it.

[@NickGagnon-y7e]

I feel sorry for him. So brainwashed.

[@cmvamerica9011]

The happy person assumes the beliefs that makes them feel the most powerful.

[@chrisgale5634]

This is hilarious. God is real? Really,OK, give me his phone number.

[@JzeroGarzo]

Didn't he send you a photo of himself? Oh by the way he's invisible.

[@MbosaRitchie]

I think it is 00000000001.

[@kellyrestiaux9846]

Austin 3:16 laid it out pretty distinctly back in the 1990s era WWF.

[@klinnc8910]

There is a million dollar prize for the proof of God. Why hasn’t Mark claimed that along with his Nobel Prize?

[@SubZ33R0]

This was so bad

[@marjorieanderson8626]

Good 'ole Monotone Mark...

[@brucebaker810]

Monotone. From Austin Stone. Got owned. And now has flown.

[@russellbrown7024]

Isn't there a biblical passage that says something like faith is evidence of things not seen? Of course, faith is not evidence of anything.

[@savianhendrix5325]

Makes me afraid for the kids at that church if they go by the book considering all the bad things that says you can and should do to them

[@canderson5098]

Mark may be a big ol' phony but he's still a million more times convincing than any of the believers that compulsively regurgitate their scripts here on the daily.

[@damonkenny7818]

Walk away from the keyboard.

[@canderson5098]

​@@damonkenny7818prove me wrong. Or better yet, keep spewing out your pre rendered script and prove me right.

[@deanmartin1111]

He's a frikkin' buffoon.

[@w4rsh1p]

21:38 Mark finally admits he needs faith. 😅

[@jamescampbell2521]

“Your tricking our kids that we are trying to groom.” There are no 5 year old democrats there should be no 5 year old christians. Teach them critical thinking.

[@marasmusine]

"Everything is either physical or conceptual" is not correct. It should be "Everything is either physical or not physical", and "Everything is either conceptual or not conceptual". (I also think that concepts are physical, they are patterns in neurons).

[@SaintD382]

Okay, this is that impostor that called in a bunch of times in the early days of the show, pretending to be a Christian, right? I kind of wonder why AxP continues to re-post these "Mark" calls...we know the guy was a fake, so what's the purpose of posting the video? At the very least, maybe note in the description that you're aware the guy was a phony...🤔

[@T358-p4x]

They post it because it attracts new viewers

[@MichaelBath-xv5bd]

😂😂😂 🎖

[@KuHunAha]

Wait... how was he exposed!? This is the guy that gets a new accent in the latest appearances, right?

[@tonyclements1147]

@@KuHunAha He was exposed way back in 2011. “Update: "Mark" came clean in comments, pronouncing that he's an atheist who is deliberately prank calling. He repeatedly states that he will only stop if we devote 75% of the show to theist callers. He is now banned from this blog for all the previous posts in which he's lied.”

[@AdamBladeTaylor]

Because the arguments proving that the Christian god cannot exist and that religion is a blight on humanity is epic.

[@VooshSpokesman]

Love from a DarkMatter2525 and Vaush fan!

[@cmvamerica9011]

You can’t prove a certain thing doesn’t exist.😂

[@meatsak-v7s]

Thirteen years later, still lol.

[@Orochi_001]

This guy is the best caller to any show of this variety.

[@glenliesegang233]

Christ taught His followers that all people have an inherent value which makes them more than "things." He taught that every human should try their absolute best to treat all they have contact with with love, understanding, and free of prejudice. He taught that this applies to everyone, even their enemies. I think that many atheists, like the hosts of this show, Hitchins (RIP,) Dawkins, Dennet, actively seek to eliminate faith in anything but what science can prove. Sure, Jesus called people who did not understand that some things are precious, priceless, holy, and transcendent, "d😅ogs" and "swine." He said, "Don't bother with them." Yet he calls dogs and swine every adult who would teach every child that they should view themselves as cosmic accidents in a meaningless, purposeless, cold, empty reality. He calls evil any who would to desire to darken, then shutter every church in the dead of winter and in the spring at Easter, turn every cathedral and synagogue into places of ridicule because , as irrelevant, as they were built by stupid superstitious peoples "to the Glory of a non-existent imaginary ridiculous god." Are you arrogant? Do you believe you possess a certain rightful superiority, fully justified, as you look down on people of faith as sub-human relics of a superstitious past chapter of human history? Does this superiority lead you to laugh at the concept of all people are somehow equal? Is Imago Dei, which is the founding principle which ended "The divine right of kings," now a relic? If so, you do not "love your neighbor." And you certainly do not love your enemy. Please do not advocate the darkening of every Christmas candle. Please do not end Evensong, which even Dawkins found comfort and pleasure in. Please do not teach by you example (yes you to, Bart Ehrman, destroyer of impressionable college student's faith) your haughty superiority. Do not make Handel's Messiah, nor the Sistine Chapel, Notre Dame, Winchester Cathedral into nothing but outboard testaments to inferior humanity. Human evil is the use of personal power to destroy what is beneficial to human flourishing ( M. Scott Peck, MD) Please learn what Neitzsche clearly saw. Please do not replace " the equality and uniqueness of every human" with the utilitarian use of every human being. End your show. If you do not, you are not practicing loving your neighbor, and, especially, loving your neighbor.

[@markwoods4439]

Don’t you just love it when theist put atheists in their place even if it’s Mark😂😂😂

[@Captain101-x1o]

Haven’t seen it happen yet so I don’t know….

[@quotedotes]

Go away troll 🙄

[@markwoods4439]

@ Ok, name calling and can you prove the existence of any god😡

[@quotedotes]

@@markwoods4439 go away troll

[@markwoods4439]

@ 🤬

[@mindhead2005]

Wasn't this guy an atheist who was playing pastor?

[@tonyclements1147]

He was exposed back in 2011.

[@mindhead2005]

@ so one would wonder why are they reposting this without noting that in the title?

[@jufulu7066]

SSDD

[@michaelbyrnee9584]

As soon as I hear "gawd", I know I will be doubled over with laughter soon.

[@raywatkins4227]

Why do you show off Poes and claim you dont want them calling in?

[@cynthiaabbott1945]

Thanks for getting rid of the pronoun nonsense on your show. 👍

[@mitchhaelann9215]

This clip is from twenty years ago.

[@deadpool3982]

What’s wrong with pronouns?

[@wyldink1]

Too bad you couldn't "get rid of" pronouns in your own post, eh?

[@shrews12001]

@@cynthiaabbott1945 Your

[@cynthiaabbott1945]

@shrews12001 ??

[@5eba]

The Atheist Experience keeps posting calls from this guy knowing he was an atheist possing as a theist. Seems disingenuous.

[@chrisgrill6302]

@@5eba I never got the impression that "Mark" wasn't a Christian, he was only dishonest in that he called in under multiple aliases.

[@septixskeptix1107]

Who mark is doesn't devalue the conversations. They answered Mark's arguments in the same way they would anybody else.

[@5eba]

@chrisgrill6302 oh but he was definitely an atheist fan of the show, he was exposed back in the day! It's a pity because he generated some of the best and funniest calls, wich is why they are playing dumb and still posting his content.

[@5eba]

@@septixskeptix1107 I disagree. The argumentation from the hosts is fine, but part of the charm of the show is the spontaneity and reactivity of the people involved. Knowing its just an act on the part of the caller detracts from it IMO🤷‍♂️

[@chrisgrill6302]

​@@5ebaI guess I missed that episode... I don't suppose you can link me to it?

[@FLORIDA-MMA-FIGHT-TEAM]

Let’s try this again also: Select the most logical answer… A) In the beginning, nothing (no-thing) created everything B) In the beginning, our Eternal, Living, Intelligent Creator produced all things created

[@MooseMaunu]

It's not just two choices. You'd know that if you were educated.

[@mattarnold4903]

I'm going to say C) our understanding of the foundation of the universe is in its infancy and we don't fully understand, YET. Who knows what it will be, we just don't know for sure. What we don't do is, we don't know yet, therefore god.

[@smochygrice465]

B) 😎 Thank God atheism 😊

[@chrisgrill6302]

Wouldn't "B" in full honesty be more like: "In the beginning an invisible disembodied mind popped out of nothing for no reason and created everything out of nothing with magic words"? If you don't understand that cosmology doesn't hold that the universe appeared out of nothing I don't know what to tell you. "Something from nothing" is a religious claim not a scientific one. What a hilarious self-own on your part.

[@johnfleet1854]

@@mattarnold4903 well said !!!!

[@FLORIDA-MMA-FIGHT-TEAM]

True or False We have plenty of scientific evidence, data, models, & patterns, that prove non-living materials resulted in living organisms

[@smochygrice465]

Gonna take another guess and go with: True. Peace ✌️

[@chrisgrill6302]

True. Could it be you don't know very much about this subject at all? ("Prove" might be a slight stretcher but what we have certainly strongly indicates).

[@amontrealpaul226]

Examples of common fallacies used in discussions of science : Appeal to personal incredulity- "Do you really believe that you have a fish as an ancestor? That's absurd!" Appeal to consequences- "If it's true that humans are animals that evolved from other species of animals, that means we aren't special and that's unacceptable." Strawman: "You believe that everything came from nothing by random accident." Appeal to motive: "Scientists are biased because they are paid for their work." - (Yes, people can be biased in favor of whoever pays them, but you can't just assume that they are and dismiss their findings based on that. Their findings- and the methods used to obtain them- need to be evaluated on their own merits.) Argument from ignorance/ God of the gaps: "Science can't explain why there's things rather than nothing, so the answer must be God." Stacking the deck: "True science shows that the Earth is 6000 years old and that the fossil record is caused by the Great Flood"- yes, if you dismiss all the science that shows otherwise and call the alleged evidence that favors it 'true science', you get that conclusion.

[@shrews12001]

No

[@tonyclements1147]

Daily proof that OP is just the MMA team’s towelboy.

[@FLORIDA-MMA-FIGHT-TEAM]

ANOTHER OT MESSIANIC PROPHECY THAT CHRIST FULFILLED IN THE NT David’s Seed 👉👉 2 Samuel 7:12 NT fulfillment by Christ 👉👉 Matthew 1:1 Amen Amen & Amen! Irrefutable! 💪💯👍

[@tonyclements1147]

We refute you every day towelboy.

[@shrews12001]

@@FLORIDA-MMA-FIGHT-TEAM no

[@FLORIDA-MMA-FIGHT-TEAM]

Let’s try this again today… Still waiting for someone here to explain HOW inorganic compounds purportedly resulted in millions of different living species, each with it’s unique PROGRAMMED genome!

[@smackednoodle]

Honey if you can't be bothered to research evolution and abiogenesis in the slightest then nobody is going to give you the time of day to sit here and explain it to you because you clearly don't actually want to know. The answers are out there, and just because we don't know everything scientifically yet it doesn't mean that the Qur'an, the Bhagavad-Gita, the Torah, the Bible, the Guru Granth Sahib, or any other religious text you might happen to believe in depending on what you were brought up in, automatically magically has the answer. You appear like you're trying to sport a God Of The Gaps philosophy.

[@chrisgrill6302]

Well if you can't be bothered to catch up...

[@MooseMaunu]

I did explain it to you. Abiogenesis. Thou shall not bear false witness.

[@alanevery215]

​@@MooseMaunuBear is a big furry animal that eats honey!

[@MooseMaunu]

@@alanevery215 Don't tell me. Tell it to the ten commandments.

[@Jeremy-xu3yu]

Repent of your sins. Believe in Jesus Christ for salvation. Become a new person in this life. John 3:16, Matthew 4:17, 2 Corinthians 5:17 KJV......

[@FLORIDA-MMA-FIGHT-TEAM]

God bless you brother 💪💯👍

[@skummisrocker]

😁 YOU'RE FUNNY! 😂 Call the show. 👍🏻😉

[@skummisrocker]

​@@FLORIDA-MMA-FIGHT-TEAMSame to you. 😂

[@MooseMaunu]

@@FLORIDA-MMA-FIGHT-TEAM Responding to your own comment from another account. Sad.

[@Jeremy-xu3yu]

@@FLORIDA-MMA-FIGHT-TEAM Keep fighting the good fight bro!

[@FLORIDA-MMA-FIGHT-TEAM]

Atheist - “There is no greater hate than Christian love!” Tell me if the following sounds “hateful”: - While you were still sinning, Christ died for you (Romans 5:8) - For God so loved you… (John 3:16) - By His stripes you have been healed (Is. 53) - God is so rich in mercy, and he loved us so much, that even though we were dead because of our sins, he gave us life when he raised Christ from the dead. (Eph. 2)

[@mattarnold4903]

Tell me, how do you beat your slaves?

[@AStupidPersonn]

Jesus told us to obey our masters. Even our cruel ones, so he told us to be ok with being slaves. He cursed a fig tree because he didn't know it was out of season. Convinced us not to wash our hands because he'd rather tell us a dumb parable that had nothing to do with why we should or shouldn't wash our hands.

[@smochygrice465]

Atheist - There is nothing better than getting out of boring AF God ritual activities like worship and prayer. Thank you God for including the option of atheism into creation 🙏 Peace ✌️

[@AStupidPersonn]

@@smochygrice465 I personally pray to big foot.

[@smochygrice465]

​@@AStupidPersonnI personally find praying boring AF. Would rather be out in the garden or walking the dog.

[@FLORIDA-MMA-FIGHT-TEAM]

Anybody interested in eternal life?? If so, please take heed to the following: 1) Repent (change your mind) = Acts 17:30 2) Believe (trust) = Romans 10:9 3) Receive 👍

[@MooseMaunu]

"Eternal life"??!! Boy, are YOU in for a big disappointment.

[@purgatorygoblin]

receive my load christard

[@smochygrice465]

No, thank you 😊

[@shrews12001]

No

[@amontrealpaul226]

The record's stuck/the record's stuck/the record's stuck/the record's stuck

[@FLORIDA-MMA-FIGHT-TEAM]

Repeating since you guys missed it yesterday: READ THE FOLLOWING VERY CAREFULLY: OLD TESTAMENT MESSIANIC PROPHECY “Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel.” - Isaiah 7:14 “For unto us a Child is born,
Unto us a Son is given;
And the government will be upon His shoulder.
And His name will be called
Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” - ISAIAH 9:6 NEW TESTAMENT FULFILLMENT IN CHRIST “So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet (ISAIAH), saying: ‘Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which is translated, “God with us.” - Matthew 1:22-23 Jesus = Immanuel A M E N ! And yet another KO Victory for Truth! 🥊 💪 💯 👍 🥊

[@MooseMaunu]

Nothing but unproven, Bronze Age fairy tales. Also, the stories in the "new testament" were written deliberately to fool people to think the prophecies in the "old testament" were true.

[@dennish.7708]

Everything you said is fiction, because there is no evidence. BAZINGA! Double K-O for scientific, logical truth!!

[@mattarnold4903]

What you have said there is the book says a thing and the fulfillment is the book saying a thing. Neither have been proven to be true, so what you have said is unprovens confirming unprovens, so basically you've said nothing of proof of god

[@smochygrice465]

Sorry, I'm not into that stuff, I'll pass 😊

[@amontrealpaul226]

The record's stuck/the record's stuck/the record's stuck/the record's stuck

[@markeastlack4180]

Mark just makes baseless assertions and then has the audacity to get indignit when asked for evidence

[@oscarsotelo8548]

Stop breathing into the microphone

[@markeastlack4180]

Mark is such a terrible person Most succinct representative of what Christianity truly is