Weird and Religious
In ancient Rome, priests known as augurs interpreted the will of the gods by watching birds. The direction of flight, their calls, and even how chickens ate grain could influence state decisions such as whether to go to war.
Religious image of the day.
In the name of religion
2015, Paris in France. Islamist Muslim extremists linked to Islamic State killed civilians at multiple sites. The group claimed the attacks were punishment for Western actions in Muslim lands and framed mass killing as religiously sanctioned jihad.
Fact
In Christianity, faith is considered essential, and Christianity teaches trust in God and in Jesus Christ as the basis for a restored relationship with God.
Faith forbids error
Faith shields belief from accountability. When religious ideas cause harm, responsibility is shifted to misinterpretation rather than to the belief itself. Terrorists are branded as misunderstanding their own religion when in fact they are following it to the letter. Faith is immune to anything. When predictions fail, the failure is reframed as divine mystery. When prayers go unanswered, the believer is told to have greater faith. The belief is never blamed. This produces a closed system incapable of learning because correction would require admitting error, and faith forbids such admission.
Quote of the day
“When one person suffers from a delusion, it is called insanity. When many people suffer from a delusion it is called religion.” Robert M. Pirsig.
Ask the right question
Why is questioning religious claims often discouraged if those claims are supposed to be true?
Religious Crooks
Claude Vorilhon, known as Raël, founded the Raëlian movement claiming extraterrestrial revelations, building an international organisation that critics say operates as a personality centred system sustained by member donations and paid events.
For more information, google the name.
Almost all of the crooks appearing in this section have their own wikipedia page.
Throughout history and still to this day, there has never been a shortage of religious leaders who were not always following their own spiritual advice.