Belief Kills

In debates/discussions with the deity-inclined, I often hear that religion, at least these days, doesn't really hurt anyone.  The Old Testament is really old and it doesn't carry the weight that the New Testament carries.  God is loving and caring of his human creatures now.  

Bullshit!

Below is a link to a story about several pastors telling their parishioners with HIV/AIDS to STOP taking their medication because they were healed.  I am going to give you a moment to let that sink in.  Now, just so we are clear, let me repeat that: below is a link to a story about several pastors telling their parishioners with HIV/AIDS to STOP taking their medication because they were healed.  If you are fucking enraged by now, you should reread this paragraph.

My mind is blown against the wall.  How are you going to tell me or anyone else that religion doesn't poison the world?  The thing is that you can't.  And do you want to know why?  It's because in the Bible it says that if you have enough FAITH you WILL be healed.  These pastors may have lied to the folks with HIV/AIDS, but how are they in the wrong, dogmatically, by pursuing the road of faith to heal these people?  Now this doesn't mean I condone what these pastors did, don't get me wrong.  But what I am saying is that their belief that god heals people for believing the impossible is not an out of the ordinary idea for Christians, but this is a rather mainstream belief.  And after reading the article (below), maybe Christians should start rethinking this idea that religion doesn't really harm anyone.  In this case, belief literally kills.

D

Link: http://news.sky.com/home/uk-news/article/16117269

Let's Try This

I, recently, was left a comment on the Shermer Vs. Lennox Debate post which gave me some advice:

"Patmos Pete said... Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters."

Wow, never thought of that before.  Don't worry, I am not going to go off on some atheist tirade about this obnoxious, pompous, blah, blah, blah, believer.  I am sure that in real life, not internet life, he is a cool dude, but he shouldn't be leaving behind internet trash on my blog.  I do not much care for those who litter.  However, here is what I am going to do: I will warn Pete of the impending doom of Thor.

To Pete,

Fear Thor (he is a god, you know), and glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come: and worship him that made thunder.

Cheers!
D

Jesus In Playboy

Jesus has made an appearance on (and in) a Playboy magazine in Portugal.  I don't really have much to say about the situation that hasn't already been said by either side.  Though I am now a firm believer in resurrecting the WWJD but with a slight change.  Instead of "What Would Jesus Do," it should be "Who Would Jesus Do."  I mean really, which of the following ladies (pictures after the jump) would Jesus spread his love on?  Really, I think that these lovely ladies need to feel the spirit of Christ deep inside of them.

I sometimes wonder what hell is going to be like, and then I think, "It's good thing that hell doesn't exist."

You can see the naughty pictures if you click the 'read more' tab at the bottom of this post.  The pictures do contain nudity, and many will find the following pictures to be offensive.  If you do not want to see what you may consider to be offensive material then do NOT click on the 'read more' link.  You have been warned.

D  

What Religion Should You Choose?

I forget where I found the following diagram, it may have been on PZ Myers' blog or Phil Plait's.  I don't remember.  Anyway, I hope it helps.

D

The Rapture

I have been following a breaking story on PZ Myers blog about the coming Christian rapture.  I know everyone is already tense about the 2012 end of the world scenario (yeah right!), but the news is that the end is going to happen on September 21, 2009.........October 21, 2009.........on or before December 14, 2009...

Wait, I think they have the date right this time; now it will happen on December 21, 2009.  So unwrap and return all of those Christmas presents you bought or give them away early, because we aren't going to see Christmas this year.  Actually, considering the track record of the fella (gal?) running this website predicting the rapture, I wouldn't.  Though I will be happy to take any early Christmas gifts if you want!  Any guesses on what the next date will be?

D

Jesus, Interrupted Part Two

I wanted to expand a little bit on the "Jesus, Interrupted" post.  I really felt like I left the reader (you) hanging a bit.  I didn't come full circle as it were.  I really wanted to finish the post with, what I consider, a very important point that Dr. Ehrman puts forth.

As I recall I left off with the point that you have to read each gospel writer for themselves.  You can't read John for Luke or Mark for Matthew.  To do so is to miss the theological point that the writer was trying to convey (e.g. In John's gospel Jesus' divinity is of extreme importance compared to Mark, for instance).  From here, while it is implied, when you mash gospels together you end up making your own gospel (e.g. the nativity story or the crucifixion).  Therefore, in making your own gospel you inadvertently (or, for some, on purpose) change what was described by the author.

It is true that there are many discrepancies and errors in the Bible; this is to be expected, since it was written by many different authors; with different theological views; over large expanses of time.  Because there are errors, does this mean that we can say anything about the existence of god?  Absolutely not.  The big idea to grasp here is that the Bible is a very human book.  So this leaves us with a question: Have those who believe that the Bible is inerrant misplaced their faith?  In other words, do people have faith in the Bible or god?

Collision

I would really like to see this.

D


"Collision: Hitchens vs. Wilson" - EXCLUSIVE 13 minute preview from LEVEL4 on Vimeo.

Rick Warren, will you find your way?

I just learned of this story as I was watching the Rachel Maddow show.  Apparently, the Uganda wants to pass a law which will put homosexuals to death and those who know of homosexuals in the country in prison for three years.  So what is the connection to famous television pastor and bestselling author Rick Warren?

"Now Warren's on the defensive again, this time for his affiliation with Martin Ssempa, a Ugandan pastor who has endorsed proposed legislation in Uganda that makes certain homosexual acts punishable by life in prison or even, in some cases, death. Ssempa has made appearances at Saddleback and has been embraced warmly by Warren and his wife, Kay."   

To Warren's credit, he has supposedly distanced himself from Mr. Ssempa this past October.  This would generally be considered a good thing, next you would expect Pastor Warren to condemn such legislation.  That has not happened.

"The fundamental dignity of every person, our right to be free, and the freedom to make moral choices are gifts endowed by God, our creator. However, it is not my personal calling as a pastor in America to comment or interfere in the political process of other nations."

AND

"On Meet the Press this morning, he reiterated this neutral stance in a different context: "As a pastor, my job is to encourage, to support. I never take sides."

 Wait, what?  As a pastor in America you feel that it isn't your calling to comment or interfere in the political process of other nations?  Even when a government, in this case the Ugandan government, wants to imprison or put people to death for being or knowing a homosexual?  So what would have Pastor Rick done during the holocaust?  What are pastor Rick's views of Iran murdering homosexuals or non-believers?  Rick Warren's refusal (at this point at least) to condemn such inhumanity and brutality says something not only about his personal character but also his theological views.

D

All quotes were taken from the original story on the Newsweek website found below:

http://blog.newsweek.com/blogs/thehumancondition/archive/2009/11/29/pastor-rick-warren-responds-to-proposed-ugandan-legislation.aspx 

God On Trial

This should provoke some thought!

D

The Trials of Ted Haggard

I just watched the documentary, "The Trials of Ted Haggard". It is excellent. I actually don't know what to say at the moment. I think I need to let it sink in a bit before I comment too much. However I will say this, the church and the evangelical movement raped Ted Haggard. For a group of people who profess to believe what they believe and then turn their backs on someone who was in need. That was very Christ-like of them. So what do you think? Let me know! Also, when you click on the play button, an annoying pop-up web page is going to appear, just exit out of it. Sorry, but this was the only copy of this film I could find.

D

Cartoon Time

Busy Busy

Sorry for the lack of posting as of late. I am rather consumed by my college workload and have not really had a chance to post anything. However, I have been able to participate in a wee little debate over on Christina's blog. If you would like to see what's going on, then you can check it out here.

D

The Easter Challenge

This in a way is kind of like an Easter egg hunt. So take part if you like, if not, have a wonderful holiday anyway. You will need a bible, it can be any translation (KJV, NIV, and so on). You will also need a few sheets of paper and a writing utensil. After you have all of your supplies and you are in settled into a comfy chair, open up your bible to the gospels. I suggest starting with Matthew (it will be the first you come across) and work from there till you get through Acts. I want you to read through the Crucifixion to the Resurrection. This where you will need your pen and paper. Write down some if not all the details of each gospel side by side on your paper (or write them down in a way that makes it easy for you to compare them). What do you find?

D

Hitchens Takes On Four.....

Hitchens just destroys these guys. One against four....Hitchens=the win.

D

David Wilkerson = The Lose

According to David Wilkerson, there is going to be an earth-shattering calamity soon (his words: about to happen.....I take this to mean soon). The holy spirit told him this and only him because god is just to busy to send out this calamity memo to everyone else. Ever notice that prophets, messiahs, and holy men in general get to have these secretive one on one conversations with god when they are alone with no one else to witness the event? If there is going to be riots, famine, looting and so on, why doesn't god bother to tell the rest of us? God is all powerful, why not email, text, or call us? God apparently is too busy doing whatever it is god does.

I'm not worried though. If you read David's warning below, you will notice an incredible lack of details for this impending doom. I guess god was in a rush, you know, had places to be and didn't have time to explain in detail what is going to happen. Or, David could just be making this stuff up. That way, when none of this happens, he can say something like, "God said it was going to happen soon. Soon is different for god than it is for us mere humans.". Or because he is sooooo vague with the details, almost any event can fit into what he is describing. Now, with little effort he can say. "Look, all of this happened as the holy spirit said it would.".

Look, I don't know if god exists or not. But I know that if god does exist, he isn't talking to this guy.

D

Reposted from: http://www.worldchallenge.org/coverletter/an_urgent_message

I am compelled by the Holy Spirit to send out an urgent message to all on our mailing list, and to friends and to bishops we have met all over the world.

AN EARTH-SHATTERING CALAMITY IS ABOUT TO HAPPEN. IT IS GOING TO BE SO FRIGHTENING, WE ARE ALL GOING TO TREMBLE — EVEN THE GODLIEST AMONG US.

For ten years I have been warning about a thousand fires coming to New York City. It will engulf the whole megaplex, including areas of New Jersey and Connecticut. Major cities all across America will experience riots and blazing fires — such as we saw in Watts, Los Angeles, years ago.

There will be riots and fires in cities worldwide. There will be looting — including Times Square, New York City. What we are experiencing now is not a recession, not even a depression. We are under God’s wrath. In Psalm 11 it is written,

“If the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do?” (v. 3).

God is judging the raging sins of America and the nations. He is destroying the secular foundations.

The prophet Jeremiah pleaded with wicked Israel, “God is fashioning a calamity against you and devising a plan against you. Oh, turn back each of you from your evil way, and reform your ways and deeds. But they will say, It’s hopeless! For we are going to follow our own plans, and each of us will act according to the stubbornness of his evil heart” (Jeremiah 18:11–12).

In Psalm 11:6, David warns, “Upon the wicked he will rain snares (coals of fire)…fire…burning wind…will be the portion of their cup.” Why? David answered, “Because the Lord is righteous” (v. 7). This is a righteous judgment — just as in the judgments of Sodom and in Noah’s generation.

WHAT SHALL THE RIGHTEOUS DO? WHAT ABOUT GOD’S PEOPLE?

First, I give you a practical word I received for my own direction. If possible lay in store a thirty-day supply of non-perishable food, toiletries and other essentials. In major cities, grocery stores are emptied in an hour at the sign of an impending disaster.

As for our spiritual reaction, we have but two options. This is outlined in Psalm 11. We “flee like a bird to a mountain.” Or, as David says, “He fixed his eyes on the Lord on his throne in heaven — his eyes beholding, his eyelids testing the sons of men” (v. 4). “In the Lord I take refuge” (v. 1).

I will say to my soul: No need to run…no need to hide. This is God’s righteous work. I will behold our Lord on his throne, with his eye of tender, loving kindness watching over every step I take — trusting that he will deliver his people even through floods, fires, calamities, tests, trials of all kinds.

Note: I do not know when these things will come to pass, but I know it is not far off. I have unburdened my soul to you. Do with the message as you choose.

God bless and keep you.

In Christ,
DAVID WILKERSON

Friday The 13th

Happy Friday the 13th everyone! Below are some interesting facts (all from wikipedia) about the 13th, so, check them out. Have a great day, and watch some horror movies!!

D

The fear of Friday the 13th is called paraskavedekatriaphobia,^[1][2] a word derived from the concatenation of the Greek words Paraskeví (Παρασκευή) (meaning Friday), and dekatreís (δεκατρείς) (meaning thirteen), attached to phobía (φοβία) (meaning fear). This is a specialized form of triskaidekaphobia, a simple phobia (fear) of the number thirteen, and is also known as friggatriskaidekaphobia. The term triskaidekaphobia was derived in 1911 and first appeared in a mainstream source in 1953.^[3]

In numerology, the number twelve is considered the number of completeness, as reflected in the twelve months of the year, twelve signs of the zodiac, twelve hours of the clock, twelve tribes of Israel, twelve Apostles of Jesus, twelve gods of Olympus, etc., whereas the number thirteen was considered irregular, transgressing this completeness. There is also a superstition, thought by some to derive from the Last Supper or a Norse myth, that having thirteen people seated at a table will result in the death of one of the diners.^[5]


The Superstitions Origins:

1) Friday has been considered an unlucky day at least since the 14th century's The Canterbury Tales,^[3] and many other professions have regarded Friday as an unlucky day to undertake journeys or begin new projects. Black Friday has been associated with stock market crashes and other disasters since the 1800s.^[6][9] It has also been suggested that Friday was the day that Jesus was crucified. ^[10]

2) The actual origin of the superstition, though, appears also to be a tale in Norse mythology. Friday is named for Frigga, the free-spirited goddess of love and fertility. When Norse and Germanic tribes converted to Christianity, Frigga was banished in shame to a mountaintop and labeled a witch. It was believed that every Friday, the spiteful goddess convened a meeting with eleven other witches, plus the devil - a gathering of thirteen - and plotted ill turns of fate for the coming week. For many centuries in Scandinavia, Friday was known as "Witches' Sabbath."^[11]

3) The Knights Templar were a monastic military order founded in Jerusalem in 1118 C.E., whose mission was to protect Christian pilgrims during the Crusades. Over the next two centuries, the Knights Templar became extraordinarily powerful and wealthy. Threatened by that power and eager to acquire their wealth, King Philip secretly ordered the mass arrest of all the Knights Templar in France on Friday, October 13, 1307 - Friday the 13th.^[4]

Saturday Movie: Hell House

I won't give an analysis before this documentary. I don't want to skew the results, though I think after you watch this you may know what my opinion is anyway. So watch and share your opinions here. Now for "Hell House"

D



MORE AT ATHEISTNATION.NET

Jesus Is Green

Apparently, there is a new bible out, and it is eco-friendly. The new bible (which is seemingly a lot like all the others, you know, ten commandments, the great flood that killed all the inhabitants of the earth except for the one rightuous man and his family........oh yeah, and two of every species on the planet or is it seven? but that is really neither here nor there, that is for a later post) puts focus on the passages which humans are supposed to be taking care of the earth. That sounds nice and all, but isn't god going to destroy the earth? I might have that wrong, but if that is true, then why bother to be eco-friendly? Though, maybe I shouldn't say anything, we really need all the people we can to take care of our earth. It is the only home we know. So, I will stop peeing on their parade, at least they are doing something to try to fix the problem as opposed to their right wing counter parts.

D

Story Reposted From:

http://media.www.bcheights.com/media/storage/paper144/news/2009/01/26/Features/Green.Bible.Incorporates.Environment.Into.Religion-3596440.shtml


Green Bible incorporates environment into religion

Many evangelical Christians have been trumpeting creation care, which is the idea that God gave people this earth to protect and nurture. With the recent widespread awareness of the human-constructed problem of global warming, this topic, which has always been a hot-button issue, is now more controversial than ever. Creation care goes beyond immediate environmental problems and states that the bible specifically tells humans to be the caretakers of the earth, whether or not the planet is in dire straits. The new edition of the Bible, coined "The Green Bible," is a representation of Christians highlighting these concepts. While creation care had previously been thought of as merely another fad, the Green Bible has moved beyond such limited popularity. Customized bibles are a token of every Christian group, whether they be angst-ridden teens or working moms. Now, the environmental group has its own cohesive text.

James Martin, SN, a Jesuit priest, calls the Bible "imaginative, innovative, and inspiring. The Green Bible may change the way that you live in the world." The site for the Green Bible provides a video that says, "It makes 490 references to heaven and 530 to love, yet it makes over 1,000 references to the Earth." The concept of heaven is one of the central foundations of the Christian faith. And yet, references to caring for the Earth in the Bible are more than double to those of these key elements now focused on by the Christian church.

The book highlights quotes such as, "The LORD God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it" and "Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the Earth, and subdue it; and rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over every living thing that moves on the earth." The book was first published last October, on recycled paper with soy-based ink with the 1,000 eco-friendly versus written in green ink. Out of the 37,000 copies printed, 25,000 were sold within the first few weeks.

The Bible's purpose is not merely for people to recognize the passages concerning nature within the book, but it is meant to encourage its readers to become active in environmental issues. The Web site greenletterbible.com reads, "The Green Bible will equip and encourage people to see God's vision for creation and help them engage in the work of healing and sustaining it." The Web site also shows the supporters of the publication, not only the religious group Eco-Justice Program, but also secular organizers such as the Sierra Club and The Humane Society. The endorsement from these secular groups can be taken one of two ways. To begin with, it might provide an image of unity between the secular and religious world toward a common goal and pave the way for future alliances.

On the other hand, it can inspire secular-fearing Christians to think they are being tainted by "outsiders" twisting the words of God. The controversy of a green Bible has brought up a great deal of debate in the Christian world. While its existence shows a trend toward a more eco-friendly religion, some view the book as a ploy. Many Christians against the green movement consider the bible to be created by those who want to speak for Christianity but have no real religious authority. Not only is there the concern of outsiders corrupting the religion but also about environmentalism detracting from "true" worship. If environmentalism is not the main purpose of human existence on Earth, then efforts to care for the planet are steps away from God's teachings. Despite these disheartening claims on the side against the new green Christianity, this debate can be seen as quite encouraging for the environmentalists out there. It shows that there is discussion on the merits of creation care, which may lead to widespread acceptance in the future.

The Christian right has frequently played the role of both a useful ally as well as a formidable foe in the political realm. As proved in the example of the recent Mormon initiative against gay marriage in California, a religious group with a mission is strong adversary. These groups hold their beliefs as closely as one can; the vindication for their cause is held to their very core. These groups always seem to play the children's game "follow the leader." There are "Christian fads" that come and go. One that caused a great stir in the liberal left was the "The Way God Intended It" T-shirts. With the recent memories of the clash created by the seemingly simple T-shirt, one can conversely picture the power behind the united liberal left and the Christian right. This is becoming a reality with environmentalism.

The United States, however, has been nowhere near the forefront of the green movement. The power of corporations and strict government budgeting leaves no room for "indulging" environmentalism. The startup cost seems too great for the skeptics, and the concept of doing things for the greater good is foreign to the hearts of the majority of capitalists. Capitalist tendencies are what rule most of our lives in the United States. Those of us who have a deep love of credit cards make up nearly 100 percent of the population. But, Protestantism is still a powerful force in the lives of 51 percent of Americans. If the Green Bible slowly permeates through this group, the impact could be great.

If America were to become more proactive about environmental issues, there could be a clear effect on the rest of the world. As the superpower for the past hundred years, the United States and the ideals it embraces seep through the globalized market of ideas and goods. The ripples can be seen with a small movement in one part of the U.S. which then travels first across the country and then abroad. While other countries may be more eco-friendly, the world still lacks a global leader. If Christians embrace environmentalism, the movement could evolve into an American initiative and then lead to a global shift toward environmentalism.

The Great Debate: Does God Exist (Lennox vs.Shermer)

Here is a great debate (and is the great debate!) on the existence of god. John Lennox (taking the side of theism) versus Michael Shermer (taking the side of atheism) is in my opinion one of the better god debates that I have seen. It is very even handed, both debaters are cordial and polite, they are clear and concise, and most of all there is a great sense of humor with all of the people involved. The debate is serious but everyone keeps it lighthearted enough for the audience to not go nuts.

The debate is broken up into ten parts and it runs about an hour and a half. If you are interested in the god debate, then I suggest you get yourself some popcorn and park it right here.

D

PART ONE



PART TWO



PART THREE



PART FOUR



PART FIVE



PART SIX



PART SEVEN



PART EIGHT



PART NINE



PART TEN

Oh Ray Comfort........If You Only Had A Clue

Anyone know who Ray Comfort is, anyone? For those of you who don't know, Ray is a rather famous Evangelical Christian Proselytizer. He has his own evangelical T.V. show called "Way of the Master", which is co-hosted by none other than Kirk Cameron (yes, the Kirk Cameron of 1980's t.v. classic Growing Pains). They have brought us such intellectual gems like:



Do a quick Google search, and you will find that the banana Ray is holding is not a wild banana (they look very different). The kind of banana we usually find in the grocery store (the kind that Ray is holding) has been cultivated to be that look and shape over many generations. It was human guided selection (as opposed to natural selection) that gave us the banana we know today. But on to more important things than Ray's misunderstanding of the cultivation of bananas.

I found out from P.Z. Myers blog, that Ray has a new website called Pull the Plug on Atheism.
It's a slick looking website, easy to navigate, and it's full of short ignorant diatribes about atheism and science (especially cosmology, biology, and chemistry). For Example:

An atheist is someone who believes that nothing made everything. He will of course deny that because it's an intellectual embarrassment, but if I say that I don’t believe that a builder built my house, then I am left with the insanity of believing that nothing built it. It just happened.

There are a few things wrong with that statement:

1) An atheist is someone who believes that a god does not exist, and that's it. But, let's go ahead and play Ray's game. I can't speak for all atheists but here is my perspective. I don't know how the universe or anything for that matter, came into being. Cosmology has some interesting theories such as our universe could have been started because of a black hole in another universe. That is, if we belonged to a multi verse (Think of our universe as one among many, kind of like a slice of bread in a loaf.). This says nothing about how the multi verse came into being. So, it's back to I/we just don't know(yet?). Atheists will (or at least they should) admit their ignorance when it comes to this issue. But ignorance in science is OK, it is something it strives to conquer. As you can see, there is no belief there, it is simply a "I don't really know". Now, Ray is the one who believes something, he posits that a god created the universe. And Ray has to believe or have faith in his position because there is no evidence for such a position. Besides that, I could just as easily turn and ask who created Ray's god. If everything has to have a creator, then this line of questioning will end up in an infinite regress. The argument really gets us nowhere, and it is an instant draw in a debate on the god hypothesis.

2) Of course Ray believes that a builder built his house..........he understands the process of building a house. So, he makes no viable point here. He is just trying a bait and switch here. First, he uses the house metaphor and then switches the house with our universe. He and no one else knows how the universe came to be (in the sense of where all matter came from, the big bang is a very solid theory), so he uses god to make what is called an argument from ignorance.
He doesn't know how matter came to be, so he uses god (this is known as the first cause argument).

And then there is this gem:

So the next time you hear the word “atheist” and the word “intelligent” in the same sentence, you will know better.

At least I'm not positing certitude in the face of ignorance, I would say that that is a pretty intelligent thing to do.