FUN RELIGION FACTS
-The Pagan pentacle is a protection symbol
-Halloween began Pagan and was sort of taken and altered by numerous religious, one being Christianity, and went from a day where spirits could come to visit (also the end/start of the year) to a day to chase spirits away
-“Satanism” =/= Cults. Satanism was created by people in Christian societies who didn’t agree with the “giving” lifestyle. Satanism is about putting yourself first, respecting yourself and others, and being kind to yourself and others
-Satanism is the only religious group to state that you should never engage in intimate acts without full consent from all parties involved
-The “iconic” Bindis of Hindu faith, commonly thought of as simple red dots between the eyebrows of Hindu women, represent the guidance and protection of the Third Eye
-Most Hindu women (~60%) think of a Bindi just as tradition and cannot say what it’s real meaning is, mainly because they started being sold worldwide as small, colorful stickers in huge varieties of shapes, usually bejewelled, and are worn more as a traditional accessory
-Buddha was actually very skinny from fasting, not fat as we tend to view him
-Blackfoot natives believe the earth was created by the sun, and we are his children
-Jesus and his disciples, in Christianity, were in fact not Christian
-Jewish people are still not Christian despite being the homeland of the Christian bible
-The upside-down cross, hated by most Christians for being “evil,” is actually St. Peter’s cross, from Catholicism (the root of Christianity)
-The Satanic cross is a sideways infinity 8 with a stem coming up in the center, and it has two lines just above the 8, the upper one being shorter than the lower
-Christianity states that women can/are to be sold to a man who rapes them
-Muslim religion states that women are not allowed to dance or otherwise perform
-Muslim women have multiple styles of dress- the best-known hijab, a simple square scarf wrapped around the head; the burka, a full-body cover with a mesh patch over the face for vision; the shayla, a long rectangular scarf drped or pinned around the head and over the shoulders; the niqab, which covers the face and head except for the eyes; the al-amira, a close-fitting cap paired with a veil; the khimar, a long veil that covers head and hair and reaches almost to the waist while leaving the face clear; and the chador, a full-body cloak
-Muslim women wear these by choice outside of the Middle East
-Christianity asked people to practice privately- though they were to educate as much as possible, they were not to force it on others or put it in their face
-Jesus spent his days with the poor, homeless, thieving, or otherwise less fortunate/sinful people, rather than the well-off and pure
(Source: tmairex)
Another rant for another time #1: Repentance vs Religion
I made a promise and I’m that honest that I have to at least try to see it through. All grist for the thing-a-day. I will make a concerted effort to stay on topic, because otherwise this theme could last me the rest of my life.
Stand back. I’m about to get outspoken.
Here’s a bombshell for you. You do not have to be religious to repent.
Amazing.
I know, I know. The word “repent” is usually mnemonically linked to YHWH-flavoured evangelists and you know in just a few moment’s they’re going to miraculously relieve you of the contents of your wallet, your bank account, and possibly your house.
Repent is not a religious word. It’s frequently used as one, but it’s not owned by any faith at all.
Look:
re*pent(1) [ri-pent] verb (used without object) 1. to feel sorry, self-reproachful, or contrite for past conduct; regret or be conscience-stricken about a past action, attitude, etc. (often followed by of): He repented after his thoughtless act.
It’s only in the secondary definition that the concept of sin is mentioned. Pretty much every faith on the planet uses the concept of sin. I know atheists tend to avoid the words “repent” and “sin” because of the faith-related connotations.
Really, a sin is something you or society thinks is almost unforgivably wrong. Note the use of the word “almost”. You can be forgiven if you are sufficiently repentant.
Which means you pretty much hate yourself for what you’ve done, you never do it again - or at least try your hardest to avoid the temptation to repeat the mistake - and you put a determined effort into doing better.
Harder than it sounds. Ask all the people who’ve had to call their sponsors in AA.
Anyway, I’m drifting off topic. You don’t have to be religious to make a decision like that. In fact, such a decision is even more admirable without the concept of a higher power watching your every move, because the decider did so entirely on their own.
And when you think about that, that’s pretty darn huge.
You can be a charitable atheist. Just like you can be an arsehole christian [or insert your chosen faith here]. And I’m moderately certain there’s just as many of the former as there are of the latter.
We all choose how we act.
So take a good look at yourself and repent.
It’s OK to trust in God…
You know damn well there’s a huge, neon rainbow “but” attached to that title.
It’s okay to trust in God (or the Higher Power of your choice)
BUT…
Trust, also, that God gave you brains to think with, ears to listen with, and eyes to see.
Any Higher Power worth the time/energy/effort of worship would know that a bunch of rules written down thousands of years ago may not hold as technology improves, populations build and society changes.
It’s why Jesus said, “If you eat the meat, and believe that you shall die, then you shall die. If you eat the meat and believe that you shall live, than you shall live.”
Like most things written down in the new testament, this is a parable. I see it not just as a parable about food choice, but the laws that are supposed to be “immutable” all over the rest of the Good Book.
I’ve always found it a little odd that various flavours of Christians hold that the words in the Bible are incorruptible… Yet there are more versions and translations and re-vamps of a scripture that’s allegedly incapable of being changed.
If the Bible was completely incorruptible, we’d be reading the old testament in Hebrew and the new in Aramaic, and it would be impossible to translate it into anything else. If God meant the rules written down there to be followed forever, both forbidden food and forbidden deeds would be harmful to those who eat/do them.
Thus, Jesus’ get-out-of-hell card. If you believe a “meat” - a food or a deed - is sinful, then indulging will send you to hell. Death is the standard metaphor in the New Testament for going to Hell, as far as I understand things. If you don’t believe that it’s a sin… Then doing so will not send you there.
Note, however, that there is not one word about your beliefs having any influence whatsoever on anyone else’s journey to Heaven or Hell.
If you, personally, believe that being homosexual is a sin, fine. Don’t be a homosexual. And leave everybody else to believe what they believe.
It’s the same thing Jewish folks do if they see someone eating a ham sandwich. They don’t picket delis or diners. They don’t try to pass laws outlawing the consumption of various portions of dead pig. They don’t spend millions making noise about destroying the pork-eaters.
They get on with their lives. And these guys don’t even follow the New Testament.
You, yes you, the loudmouth my-way-or-the-highway pseudo-Christian, sitting there getting your hate and bile riled up about a handful of rules in the old or the new books… Jesus flat out told you to follow the rules you find divine and shut the fuck up about everyone else.
Remember - the Bible also outlaws consuming shellfish, blended fabrics, shaving, tattoos, wearing gold, braided hair, and endorses slavery, polygamy and many others. If you’re going to cherry-pick the rules to follow, allow others to share the same privilege. And you must also therefore allow that the Christian next to you may have picked a different set of rules to follow.
So trust in God, and the gifts of sight, hearing and most especially thought that He gave you. Use thought the most. Please.