Weird and Religious
In parts of Southeast Asia, spirit houses are built outside homes or businesses to give local spirits a place to live. Offerings of food, drinks, or incense are made so the spirits do not cause trouble, creating a parallel unseen household beside the human one.
Religious image of the day.
In the name of religion
1529, Central Europe. Ottoman Muslim forces besieged Vienna. Expansion was framed by leaders as legitimate jihad and extension of Islamic rule, while Christian defenders cast resistance as protecting Christendom from Islamic domination, giving the conflict strong religious meaning on both sides.
Fact
In Judaism, there is an expectation of a future age of peace, and Judaism includes hope for a messianic era of justice and restoration.
The ignorant believer
Most believers know remarkably little about what they claim to believe. This ignorance is not accidental, it is structural. Sacred texts are long, repetitive, contradictory, and often disturbing, and reading them carefully raises uncomfortable questions. Why is this allowed, why is that commanded, why does god behave this way, and why do the rules change. These questions are dangerous to belief, so the safest believer is the one who never looks too closely. Religion knows this and adapts accordingly. Short phrases replace arguments. Ritual replaces comprehension. Identity replaces knowledge.
Quote of the day
“The more I study religions the more I am convinced that man never worshipped anything but himself.” Richard Francis Burton.
Ask the right question
If karma explains suffering in Hinduism and Buddhism, why do people not remember the actions from past lives that supposedly caused their present suffering?
Religious Crooks
Naasón Joaquín García, leader of La Luz del Mundo church in Mexico, was arrested and later convicted in the United States on charges related to sexual abuse of minors, with prosecutors stating that his religious status enabled access and control over victims.
For more information, google the name.
Almost all of the crooks appearing in this section have their own wikipedia page.
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.