Weird and Religious
Among the Dinka people of South Sudan, cattle are deeply woven into spiritual life. Cows are given personal names, songs are sung to them, and their colours and horn shapes can have ritual meaning. A person’s identity and spiritual world can revolve around their cattle as much as their family.
Religious image of the day.
In the name of religion
2014, Peshawar in Pakistan. Islamist Muslim Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan gunmen attacked a school, killing many children and staff. The group justified the massacre as revenge against the army and part of jihad, claiming even children of soldiers were legitimate targets.
Fact
In Jainism, strict self discipline is valued, and Jainism encourages control over desires, speech, and physical actions.
Shifting from the absurd
When some stories in the scriptures were exposed as ridiculous and absurd, religion explained them by shifting from literal meaning to metaphors.This shift reveals something important. The meaning of the stories did not change because new insight was discovered; it changed because the old interpretation could no longer survive exposure. Literalism was abandoned only when it became indefensible. The authority that once demanded belief in the impossible now demanded reinterpretation of the same text, and the claim of divine clarity did not survive contact with human understanding.
Quote of the day
“God is a concept by which we measure our pain.” John Lennon.
Ask the right question
If a god is beyond human understanding, how can humans confidently make detailed claims about that god nature and wishes?
Religious Crooks
Jim Bakker was a US televangelist who built a massive ministry empire and a Christian theme park, then was convicted of fraud and conspiracy after soliciting money from supporters through misleading financial claims.
For more information, google the name.
History tells us that wherever fools gathered, there was always a religious crook to take advantage of them. The best way to stop the crooks is not to be a fool.