Lately, Kim Davis' refusal to administer marriage licenses to same sex couples has brewed up a storm of controversy. There are fundamentalists on her side who are saying that she is just exercising her religious freedom. It does not help that she has the likes of Mike Huckabee and Franklin Graham on her side saying that we should be a nation under "God's law". When they talk about "god", they are talking about the god of the desert. You know. The one whose most famous pick up line is "have a relationship with me or burn for eternity".
Usually, I can remain calm, but with all this support she is getting from the religious right is starting to enrage me. Not because they are right. But because what they stand for. These Christian groups and individuals are hypocrites. They claim that they are for religious freedoms, yet all the while wanting to Christianize America. As someone who went to a private school for 8 years, I know all too well about how those with power will go so far as to infuse history with lies and Christian propaganda.
Christians love to purport that this is a nation under "god". However that is not true. The "nation under god" segment of the pledge of allegiance was added in the midst of the Cold War. That Cold War contained a lot of propaganda where anything that was not considered American was considered Communist and associated with Russia, things like (atheism, homosexuality, anti-capitalism).
When the Founding Fathers ratified the First Amendment, it was not so Christians could behave as the elitist bullies they had been for centuries. It was to prevent the witch trials, Inquisitions, and persecutions that many faiths suffered under for centuries. If you want to know what Christian theology without pagan influence would be like, here's a clue:
No Halloween
No Christmas
No birthdays
6 work days and 1 day of incumbent worship
Authoritarian rule
Patriarchy
Having children being a mandate, not an option
No freedom to explore spirituality
This is a portion of what Christianity would like in its raw form.
Kim Davis, you are not a hero for the Christian faith. You are a woman who should have relinquish her responsibilities. You may be under your god's law, but I personally am not, and should not be treated as though I am. You are not a modern Civil Rights leader for Christianity. You are the former governor George Wallace who literally blocked the door to the Foster Auditorium of the University of Alabama to keep two black students from enrolling. You are the superintendent who chose to shut down the public schools rather than allow one black student to attend a predominately white school. You are not Ruby Bridges. You are every teacher who refused to teach Ruby because of the color of her skin. You are not for human rights. You are for the right to be a Christian bigot.
Tuesday, September 8, 2015
Tuesday, August 18, 2015
War on "Pagans"
When Halloween rolls around, you hear Christians criticize it vehemently. Some go as far as to dub it "Satan's birthday". For those us who grew up in the church, we attended the church alternative to Halloween, "Holy Ween".
However, Halloween isn't the only holiday that is criticized for pagan origins. So is Christmas. Certain Christian sects and Nation Of Islam criticize Christmas for its pagan origins. Well I must concede. It is true. Everything that is associated with Christmas, Christmas trees, Christmas lights, Santa Claus, presents, Christmas wreaths, Christmas stockings are pagan originated.
Now before you start trashing your Christmas accessories, consider another pagan holiday-birthdays. That's right. Birthdays are of pagan origin. Do you want to stop celebrating your birthday? I sure as hell don't want to stop celebrating my birthdays.
This article from Restored Church of God criticizes celebrating birthdays because of its pagan origins
http://rcg.org/articles/abcc.html
I don't know about you all, but I will not stop celebrating my birthday, Christmas or Halloween. If this should indicate any damn thing, it's that we owe a lot to pagans. Pagans brought a lot of things that we enjoy. What did Christianity bring? A fable, a religion that praised masochism, subordination of women, a history of enslavement, genocide, and killing freethinkers, homosexuals, Jews (sometimes), independent women, etc. All this in the midst of the philanthropic Christians who tried to improve our world.
So for those of you who want to go all out and celebrate these holidays (ethically, legally, and fiscally responsibly), I say let's do it. Let's celebrate them with no compunctions whatsoever. Let's live and be happy. When most people die with regret, they don't regret not being holy enough, or righteous enough, or obedient enough to their religious dogma, they regret not having the courage to live a life true to them. So let's live our true lives.
However, Halloween isn't the only holiday that is criticized for pagan origins. So is Christmas. Certain Christian sects and Nation Of Islam criticize Christmas for its pagan origins. Well I must concede. It is true. Everything that is associated with Christmas, Christmas trees, Christmas lights, Santa Claus, presents, Christmas wreaths, Christmas stockings are pagan originated.
Now before you start trashing your Christmas accessories, consider another pagan holiday-birthdays. That's right. Birthdays are of pagan origin. Do you want to stop celebrating your birthday? I sure as hell don't want to stop celebrating my birthdays.
This article from Restored Church of God criticizes celebrating birthdays because of its pagan origins
http://rcg.org/articles/abcc.html
I don't know about you all, but I will not stop celebrating my birthday, Christmas or Halloween. If this should indicate any damn thing, it's that we owe a lot to pagans. Pagans brought a lot of things that we enjoy. What did Christianity bring? A fable, a religion that praised masochism, subordination of women, a history of enslavement, genocide, and killing freethinkers, homosexuals, Jews (sometimes), independent women, etc. All this in the midst of the philanthropic Christians who tried to improve our world.
So for those of you who want to go all out and celebrate these holidays (ethically, legally, and fiscally responsibly), I say let's do it. Let's celebrate them with no compunctions whatsoever. Let's live and be happy. When most people die with regret, they don't regret not being holy enough, or righteous enough, or obedient enough to their religious dogma, they regret not having the courage to live a life true to them. So let's live our true lives.
Tuesday, August 11, 2015
An Abrahamic Religious Parents' Worries
When many parents hear that their child is happier and find more peace of mind after discarding a childhood religion, it may be hard to take, but the parent marvels that their child is happier. Unfortunately, that's not the case when the parent is of the Abrahamic religions and strongly adhere to the dogma. The latter parent's concern is whether or not their child will do Yahweh's will one day. If one is looking for a reason to say that the Abrahamic religions are pro slavery, one needs to look no further than this.
The Abrahamic religious parent is more concerned with their child doing someone else's will as opposed to being happy. It does not matter if the child wants to do it. All that matters is that the child is obedient and submissive. Last time I checked, slavery is the condition in which one person is owned as property by another and is under the owner's control, especially in involuntary servitude.
Let me paint you a scenario to illustrate my point. A pimp with money, power, and political connections approaches you to try to persuade you to enlist your 15-year-old straight-A, happy
daughter to be his hooker. He has enough money to bribe you, and enough power and connections to cost you your job, your reputation, and even your life. Would you give over your daughter to this man? Most parents would say no, and do whatever it takes to protect their child from this monster. However with Yahweh, for the religious parents, there is no refusal. It is total compliance.
When I was a believer, I remember atheism being demonized, and for the time I bought into it. I remember in private school, non Christians were demonized, however it was atheism that received the worst denigration. I remember that Madalyn Murray-Ohair was the poster child of atheism.
Once I left Christianity and Nation Of Islam, and threw out the idea of Yahweh, I understood why. Atheism poses a threat because it liberates people from blind submission. It causes people to become uncontrollable. In atheism, there is more potential to progress the world in the right direction. In atheism, people get to make their own choices and choose their own purposes. It is quite antithetical with the Abrahamic religions whose main rule is, "Do what you're told, regardless of what's right and wrong,"
For those who think that I am just blowing smoke up your asses, consider the story of Abraham. Yahweh told Abraham to sacrifice his son. Even though Yahweh was just testing Abraham's obedience, and even sent an angel to stop Abraham, one cannot ignore that the experience scarred Isaac, like it would any child. For his obedience, regardless of the cost, Yahweh blessed Abraham with many descendants. Most parents would, and should, be appalled at the idea of killing their child, and thank heavens our society frowns upon that.
Back to my topic, I find it hypocritical that people of the Abrahamic religions desire freedom, and when someone finds freedom outside of religion, the religious people tell nonbeliever, "You must/need to/ought to/should/will submit." I am dealing with this with my mother, who is a Nation Of Islam member. When I asked, "Why must I submit?", the response was because Allah (same monster of the desert as Yahweh, just different name) had power over my life.
Sorry, but might does not make right with me. Even if Allah was to show himself to me, he may get my acknowledgement, but he would not get my respect. I don't respect people or things that use their power to torture people or extort people for favors. If you cannot earn someone's respect without harming anyone or anything, then you don't deserve respect. I'm not one of Ms. Honey's students, and I don't submit to the Agatha Trunchbull theory of "I'm big; you're little. I'm smart; you're dumb. I'm right; you're wrong, and there is nothing you can do about it."
The Abrahamic religious parent is more concerned with their child doing someone else's will as opposed to being happy. It does not matter if the child wants to do it. All that matters is that the child is obedient and submissive. Last time I checked, slavery is the condition in which one person is owned as property by another and is under the owner's control, especially in involuntary servitude.
Let me paint you a scenario to illustrate my point. A pimp with money, power, and political connections approaches you to try to persuade you to enlist your 15-year-old straight-A, happy
daughter to be his hooker. He has enough money to bribe you, and enough power and connections to cost you your job, your reputation, and even your life. Would you give over your daughter to this man? Most parents would say no, and do whatever it takes to protect their child from this monster. However with Yahweh, for the religious parents, there is no refusal. It is total compliance.
When I was a believer, I remember atheism being demonized, and for the time I bought into it. I remember in private school, non Christians were demonized, however it was atheism that received the worst denigration. I remember that Madalyn Murray-Ohair was the poster child of atheism.
Once I left Christianity and Nation Of Islam, and threw out the idea of Yahweh, I understood why. Atheism poses a threat because it liberates people from blind submission. It causes people to become uncontrollable. In atheism, there is more potential to progress the world in the right direction. In atheism, people get to make their own choices and choose their own purposes. It is quite antithetical with the Abrahamic religions whose main rule is, "Do what you're told, regardless of what's right and wrong,"
For those who think that I am just blowing smoke up your asses, consider the story of Abraham. Yahweh told Abraham to sacrifice his son. Even though Yahweh was just testing Abraham's obedience, and even sent an angel to stop Abraham, one cannot ignore that the experience scarred Isaac, like it would any child. For his obedience, regardless of the cost, Yahweh blessed Abraham with many descendants. Most parents would, and should, be appalled at the idea of killing their child, and thank heavens our society frowns upon that.
Back to my topic, I find it hypocritical that people of the Abrahamic religions desire freedom, and when someone finds freedom outside of religion, the religious people tell nonbeliever, "You must/need to/ought to/should/will submit." I am dealing with this with my mother, who is a Nation Of Islam member. When I asked, "Why must I submit?", the response was because Allah (same monster of the desert as Yahweh, just different name) had power over my life.
Sorry, but might does not make right with me. Even if Allah was to show himself to me, he may get my acknowledgement, but he would not get my respect. I don't respect people or things that use their power to torture people or extort people for favors. If you cannot earn someone's respect without harming anyone or anything, then you don't deserve respect. I'm not one of Ms. Honey's students, and I don't submit to the Agatha Trunchbull theory of "I'm big; you're little. I'm smart; you're dumb. I'm right; you're wrong, and there is nothing you can do about it."
Saturday, August 1, 2015
The Abrahamic God: Loving?
Yesterday my mother told me that she was okay that I practiced Buddhism, but she did not want me to dismiss her god, which was the god of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. She said that I needed him because he could protect and affect people's hearts to me. And also because she believes that connecting with him would be connecting to the god part so that I could be able to reach my potential.
I personally find all that to mean nothing. Not just because of my experiences with Christianity and Nation Of Islam, but also because of what I know. I know all too well the lies and deception that Christianity and Nation Islam use to convince people to be more obedient and more submissive; if you love god, you would obey him; full and complete freedom is freedom to be everything god wants you to be; there is peace in submission; happiness comes from submission; there is freedom in submission. I know that both of them are critical of pagans when it is them who should be criticized.
Now about the god of the Bible, I don't want to be ANYTHING like him or ANYWHERE near him. He is jealous, callous, capricious, petty, misogynistic, homophobic, tribalistic, Fascist, genocidal, filicidal, infanticidal, and unjust. He is a narcissist, a sociopath, a totalitarian, and driven by his ego. Read your Bible for what it has to say. And before you think that I am just talking shit about the Bible like an atheist, consider the patriarch of your belief system: Abraham. He is extolled for his act of faith which was when he was willing to stab his own son out of obedience to Yahweh or Allah. Even though Abraham did not successfully stab his son, one cannot deny that the experience more than likely scarred Isaac and possibly destroyed the relationship between Isaac and Abraham. Besides, if the tale had not been written in third person, Abraham would be considered the male caricature of Andrea Yates.
Now back to god, the Bible is riddled with his atrocities. Not just with Abraham. Look at the Tower of Babel story. The people were trying to build a tower that stretched to heaven, possibly so they could see god. And he gave them different languages so they would cease their project.
Look at the story of Moses and when he told Pharaoh, "Let my people go." No doubt after turning the Nile River into blood for a week (which killed the fish and left a horrendous odor), Pharaoh would have had a change of heart and let the Hebrews go. (The Nile River was a source of irrigation and trade for the Egyptians. Blood does not cause crops to grow, and no one is going to go within spitting distance of a river of blood unless they're into vampirism). However god hardened pharaoh's heart so that he would continue to refuse and god could wreak havoc on Egypt from the annoying frogs and lice, to the flies that carry germs, to killing off the Egyptian animals, to giving them boils, to destroying their crops with hail and locust, to taking away their light for 72 hours, and finally the Passover which claimed the firstborn children and animals of the Egyptians.
I think the most damning evidence is the story of Job. Satan makes a bet with god saying that if god was to take away Job's hedge of protection and let Job's life go awry,, Job would curse god to his face. Well, god accepted Satan's bet and allowed Satan to wreck Job's life. This bet cost Job his 10 children, servants, livestock, wealth, and Job's health. Through it all, Job never cursed god, even when his wife suggested it. However, Job began to cry, "Woe is me!" and wonder "What have I done to receive this?" His friends were constantly condemning Job saying that he must have done something wrong. And when god finally breaks his silence, it is not to explain about the bet between him and Satan. It was to berate and belittle Job, and to say in essence, "I am big and mighty and I can do whatever I want, and there is nothing you can say or do about it." And even though god did replace Job's 10 children with 10 more children, they could never replace the original, And ask any parent who lost a child.
These tales truly highlight god's narcissism, egotism, callousness, and bloodthirst. And it does not stop there. Look at some of the laws he gave to the Hebrews in the wilderness: anyone who does not observe the Sabbath Day should be put to death; women on their periods are unclean and should be avoided for a week; those sleep with the same sex should be killed; rebellious children should be killed; anyone who suggests apostasy should be killed; if a woman who is single is raped, her attacker should pay her father and marry her; Hebrews can enslave other people; Hebrews can enslave each other for some time (and there's even a clause where circumstances will allow a slave to remain enslaved forever); Hebrews can rape single women who were of the "heathens".
I don't know about you, but I know for a fact that I am a hell of a more moral than this god, and my life got better when I threw him out of my life.
I personally find all that to mean nothing. Not just because of my experiences with Christianity and Nation Of Islam, but also because of what I know. I know all too well the lies and deception that Christianity and Nation Islam use to convince people to be more obedient and more submissive; if you love god, you would obey him; full and complete freedom is freedom to be everything god wants you to be; there is peace in submission; happiness comes from submission; there is freedom in submission. I know that both of them are critical of pagans when it is them who should be criticized.
Now about the god of the Bible, I don't want to be ANYTHING like him or ANYWHERE near him. He is jealous, callous, capricious, petty, misogynistic, homophobic, tribalistic, Fascist, genocidal, filicidal, infanticidal, and unjust. He is a narcissist, a sociopath, a totalitarian, and driven by his ego. Read your Bible for what it has to say. And before you think that I am just talking shit about the Bible like an atheist, consider the patriarch of your belief system: Abraham. He is extolled for his act of faith which was when he was willing to stab his own son out of obedience to Yahweh or Allah. Even though Abraham did not successfully stab his son, one cannot deny that the experience more than likely scarred Isaac and possibly destroyed the relationship between Isaac and Abraham. Besides, if the tale had not been written in third person, Abraham would be considered the male caricature of Andrea Yates.
Now back to god, the Bible is riddled with his atrocities. Not just with Abraham. Look at the Tower of Babel story. The people were trying to build a tower that stretched to heaven, possibly so they could see god. And he gave them different languages so they would cease their project.
Look at the story of Moses and when he told Pharaoh, "Let my people go." No doubt after turning the Nile River into blood for a week (which killed the fish and left a horrendous odor), Pharaoh would have had a change of heart and let the Hebrews go. (The Nile River was a source of irrigation and trade for the Egyptians. Blood does not cause crops to grow, and no one is going to go within spitting distance of a river of blood unless they're into vampirism). However god hardened pharaoh's heart so that he would continue to refuse and god could wreak havoc on Egypt from the annoying frogs and lice, to the flies that carry germs, to killing off the Egyptian animals, to giving them boils, to destroying their crops with hail and locust, to taking away their light for 72 hours, and finally the Passover which claimed the firstborn children and animals of the Egyptians.
I think the most damning evidence is the story of Job. Satan makes a bet with god saying that if god was to take away Job's hedge of protection and let Job's life go awry,, Job would curse god to his face. Well, god accepted Satan's bet and allowed Satan to wreck Job's life. This bet cost Job his 10 children, servants, livestock, wealth, and Job's health. Through it all, Job never cursed god, even when his wife suggested it. However, Job began to cry, "Woe is me!" and wonder "What have I done to receive this?" His friends were constantly condemning Job saying that he must have done something wrong. And when god finally breaks his silence, it is not to explain about the bet between him and Satan. It was to berate and belittle Job, and to say in essence, "I am big and mighty and I can do whatever I want, and there is nothing you can say or do about it." And even though god did replace Job's 10 children with 10 more children, they could never replace the original, And ask any parent who lost a child.
These tales truly highlight god's narcissism, egotism, callousness, and bloodthirst. And it does not stop there. Look at some of the laws he gave to the Hebrews in the wilderness: anyone who does not observe the Sabbath Day should be put to death; women on their periods are unclean and should be avoided for a week; those sleep with the same sex should be killed; rebellious children should be killed; anyone who suggests apostasy should be killed; if a woman who is single is raped, her attacker should pay her father and marry her; Hebrews can enslave other people; Hebrews can enslave each other for some time (and there's even a clause where circumstances will allow a slave to remain enslaved forever); Hebrews can rape single women who were of the "heathens".
I don't know about you, but I know for a fact that I am a hell of a more moral than this god, and my life got better when I threw him out of my life.
Tuesday, June 16, 2015
The Criteria for Heaven: Just?
One thing Christians love to say is that Jesus is the only way, hence John 14:16 where Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth and the life: no man cometh unto the Father but by me." One might see this as shere arrogance devoid of compassion, but Christians would then explain the whole Adam and Eve story which in itself has a lot of holes. But today, I am going to focus on the immorality of this belief system. Apparently, all you need to do to get into heaven is believe that Jesus Christ died on the cross for your sins and rose from the grave, which in essence is accepting Jesus as your Savior, and having a relationship with god. It is not about what kind of life you lived. It's all about stroking a god's ego. It says that I could spend my life swindling money from the elderly, the infirmed, and the poverty-stricken, and all I have to do is accept Jesus as my savior and I will get into heaven. But if I spent my days working to improve the quality of life for the elderly, the infirmed, and the poverty-stricken,but I did not accept Jesus as my savior, I will go to hell. I don't find that as just and neither do a lot of people. But unfortunately, there also a lot of people who find it to be just. It is so ingrained into their psyches, that when Carlton Pearson, once famous televangelist, changed his views on hell, he became a pariah to the church community. To say that this is just is to stick your head in the sand and close your eyes to reality. Reality is that there are people who have been born and died never hearing of Jesus Christ. Reality is that there are people like me who were once Christian,suffered intolerably, left the belief behind, and are thriving as a result. Reality is that there are people who just don't want to live forever at all. Maybe one day, people will come to these realizations and either reassess their ideology, or trash it.
Wednesday, June 10, 2015
Born Deserving of Punishment
Maybe it is because I was exposed to fundamentalist Christianity, however, the idea is reprehensible. It is an idea that denigrates little children and is an absolute slap in the face of the undeniable fact that in most cases, children are more forgiving than us adults. The idea is that children are born deserving of hell, not for what they could have possibly done, but because of what their two ancestors Adam and Eve did in the Garden of Eden. For the fundamentalist, this is just because it is the work of their god (Yahweh, Jehovah, El Elyon, God) , who is according to them just and wise. For those of us who are not tied to the religion, we should realize the utter depravity in this idea. What kind of a loving and just being punishes children for the misdeeds of their ancestors? I cannot think of one. And interestingly, in spite of this denigrating concept, these Christians are more than likely pro life people. That's right. They not only say that your children are born worthy of hell, but they are also fighting so that you can never have an abortion. Just in case you wanted to dispatch your future baby to heaven before he or she can screw up and be condemned. Parents, if you taught your children that they were born deserving of your wrath, do you believe for one second that you would get away with that? No. Child Protective Services would rightfully deem you an unfit parent and take your children away from you. So in conclusion, let me say that if this belief is true, it then reflects poorly on the creator of this plan. It says that the creator is not secure in itself, so it must make its creations flawed in order for the creator to feel better about himself. How interesting and pitiful.
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