Our politically correct society makes it imperative we preface any discussion of jihad by claiming that only a few radical Muslims have perverted the teachings of Islam. Islam is "the religion of peace," the civilized must insist.
However, upon closer look at the Book of Leviticus, it appears that anyone who purports to believe in the Old Testament and is not actively punishing human beings for earthly sins may be perverting their own religion.
I suppose those who still consider the Old Testament a holy book are angered by jihadists because jihadists make them aware of the fact that they are choosing to only read chapters of their holy book that make them feel comfy and cozy. And instead of exchanging the entire book for a warm, marshmallowy cup of cocoa, they must live a lie.
It must be difficult to admit that those who call for the death of persons, who have done nothing other than practice the wrong religion, are far more stringent when it comes to following the strict guidelines set forth by their god.
Instead of claiming that Islamic radicals are perverting their religion, you should be admitting that, because you inherently know right from wrong, you can't abide by every rule in your Bible, and think it should be a given that every religious person ignore verses in their dearly beloved book when those verses contain instructions not acceptable in modern society.
You rightly admonish jihadists, but pretend they are perverting their religion, when it is you who pervert your religion by not acting in a similar manner.
Are you afraid potential converts will be turned off should they learn what's actually in the Bible? Do you only want to show them passages that call for everyone to love their neighbor? Since you're basically removing words from the Bible, why refrain from adding verses? Wouldn't that cute saying that claims little boys are made from puppy dog tails be a great addition to the Book of Zephaniah?
And I suppose it also wouldn't be a great selling point should the prospective converts ever learn that the Bible contains similar instructions to ones listed in the book strictly followed by jihadists.
So keep sweeping the truth under the rug while criticizing jihadists for being truer to their religion than you are to yours.
God Hates These Kids!
Whenever a disaster occurs, which kills people of all ages; you have certain Christian evangelists who claim that God is paying the community back for committing sins of an egregious nature.
I find it fascinating that people assert the same God they worship is responsible for the death of thousands of innocent children!
For some reason I choose to differentiate myself from those who harm children, which is why I'm one of the few females who have never looked for true love by corresponding with inmates at my local correctional facility and/or mental health institution.
I can understand people making up an all-powerful deity in order to keep the masses in line, and perhaps, in ancient times, they felt obligated to pretend the deity was capable of unmistakable horror in order to get their point across.
But for Pat Robertson and his ilk to assert such a directive originates from heaven in 2010, and that Mr. Robertson stands behind the ordering of such disasters, is frankly frightening.
Many of their more rational followers, I suppose, insist God will not harm the soul of the innocent child. I suppose that assumption is similar to a parent telling their kid, "If you go to the dentist today without putting up a fight, I promise to take you out for pizza this evening."
"While you will die a brutal earthly death, when you get to heaven I'll let you watch cartoons until 11:30!"
No sane person would suggest that children should be punished for the sins of their family members, or of those in their communities, yet it's a perfect punishment for a supposedly "perfect" God to enact.
Americans condemn countries that refuse to differentiate children from adults when sentencing criminals.
Yet some in America praise God for imposing capital punishment on children for crimes they didn't even commit.
May I suggest you have standards when choosing a deity?
As an open-minded atheist, I have no qualms with someone who, after pondering the universe, arrives at the conclusion that it was created by an intelligent force.
But to follow a deity who doles out the same punishment a human being would be scorned for even suggesting is ludicrous.
I realize that most church going Christians don't believe such nonsense, but wacko evangelists have too large a following to get away with preaching about similar retribution.
Our stomachs get queasy when we think of former methods by which the guilty were killed. Throughout history condemned persons have been burned to death, crushed to death, sawed in half, decapitated, disemboweled, boiled to death, impaled, and dismembered. In some countries, those found guilty of adultery are still stoned to death.
Yet when God punishes innocent children with similar cruelty, He is somehow teaching us all lessons of value.
Sometimes I want to believe differently.
Sometimes I want to believe there is a god; and when he or she meets Pat Robertson for the first time, he or she will ask him, "You told millions of people I went out of my way to do what to whom for what reason? Where did you come up with such a cockamamie notion and why did you feel the need to preach about things of which you obviously had no idea?"
Although, because Pat Robertson believes God currently speaks to him on a regular basis, if a real God were standing in front of Mr. 700 Club, the evangelist likely would be much too ignorant to realize it.
I find it fascinating that people assert the same God they worship is responsible for the death of thousands of innocent children!
For some reason I choose to differentiate myself from those who harm children, which is why I'm one of the few females who have never looked for true love by corresponding with inmates at my local correctional facility and/or mental health institution.
I can understand people making up an all-powerful deity in order to keep the masses in line, and perhaps, in ancient times, they felt obligated to pretend the deity was capable of unmistakable horror in order to get their point across.
But for Pat Robertson and his ilk to assert such a directive originates from heaven in 2010, and that Mr. Robertson stands behind the ordering of such disasters, is frankly frightening.
Many of their more rational followers, I suppose, insist God will not harm the soul of the innocent child. I suppose that assumption is similar to a parent telling their kid, "If you go to the dentist today without putting up a fight, I promise to take you out for pizza this evening."
"While you will die a brutal earthly death, when you get to heaven I'll let you watch cartoons until 11:30!"
No sane person would suggest that children should be punished for the sins of their family members, or of those in their communities, yet it's a perfect punishment for a supposedly "perfect" God to enact.
Americans condemn countries that refuse to differentiate children from adults when sentencing criminals.
Yet some in America praise God for imposing capital punishment on children for crimes they didn't even commit.
May I suggest you have standards when choosing a deity?
As an open-minded atheist, I have no qualms with someone who, after pondering the universe, arrives at the conclusion that it was created by an intelligent force.
But to follow a deity who doles out the same punishment a human being would be scorned for even suggesting is ludicrous.
I realize that most church going Christians don't believe such nonsense, but wacko evangelists have too large a following to get away with preaching about similar retribution.
Our stomachs get queasy when we think of former methods by which the guilty were killed. Throughout history condemned persons have been burned to death, crushed to death, sawed in half, decapitated, disemboweled, boiled to death, impaled, and dismembered. In some countries, those found guilty of adultery are still stoned to death.
Yet when God punishes innocent children with similar cruelty, He is somehow teaching us all lessons of value.
Sometimes I want to believe differently.
Sometimes I want to believe there is a god; and when he or she meets Pat Robertson for the first time, he or she will ask him, "You told millions of people I went out of my way to do what to whom for what reason? Where did you come up with such a cockamamie notion and why did you feel the need to preach about things of which you obviously had no idea?"
Although, because Pat Robertson believes God currently speaks to him on a regular basis, if a real God were standing in front of Mr. 700 Club, the evangelist likely would be much too ignorant to realize it.
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