Weird and Religious
In ancient Mesopotamia, people carried small clay statues of gods in their homes, but if disaster struck they sometimes punished the statue, even throwing it away, as though the god had failed in its duty. The relationship with the divine could be treated like a contract.
Religious image of the day.
In the name of religion
2013, Nairobi in Kenya. Islamist Muslim group Al Shabaab attacked the Westgate shopping centre, killing shoppers. The group said the assault was retaliation for Kenyan military action in Somalia and framed it as jihad against non Muslims and their supporters.
Fact
In Buddhism, loving kindness is cultivated as a mental attitude, and Buddhism teaches extending goodwill and friendliness towards oneself and others without discrimination.
Divine love
Humans have projected love onto gods, yet it is conditional love that resembles approval more than compassion. Divine love is withdrawn when rules are broken, favours insiders while excluding outsiders, and is generous only to the obedient while remaining merciless to the defiant. This is not love in any meaningful human sense but loyalty enforcement disguised as care. The language comforts believers, yet the structure controls them, turning affection into a system of surveillance and reward.
Quote of the day
“Faith means not wanting to know what is true.” Friedrich Nietzsche.
Ask the right question
Why does faith get praised as a virtue when in most other areas of life believing without evidence is seen as a mistake?
Religious Crooks
Mary Baker Eddy founded Christian Science and promoted spiritual healing through her teachings and books, building a tightly controlled religious publishing structure that critics argued turned theology into a highly profitable, centrally managed enterprise.
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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.