Weird and Religious
Among the ancient Israelites, a ritual described a “scapegoat” onto which the sins of the community were symbolically placed before it was driven into the wilderness. The idea that guilt could be transferred onto an animal became a lasting metaphor in many cultures.
Religious image of the day.
In the name of religion
1992, Ayodhya in India. A large Hindu nationalist crowd demolished the Babri Masjid, followed by deadly communal riots. Participants justified the act as reclaiming the birthplace of the god Rama and correcting a historic religious insult, framing violence as sacred restoration and defence.
Fact
In Islam, ritual purity is important, and Islam requires washing before prayer and sets out rules concerning cleanliness of body, clothing, and surroundings.
Religion and agriculture
When humans began to settle and agriculture emerged, belief systems changed in response to new dependencies. Land, seasons, and fertility became central to existence, and gods became specialised according to the needs of the moment. One governed rain, another crops, another birth, and another death, reflecting the growing complexity of human labour and the vulnerability of settled life to forces beyond control. Success now depended on coordination, patience, and long-term planning, and religion adapted by providing calendars, festivals, and rituals that synchronised human effort with agricultural cycles. The divine thus became a management tool for time, labour, and community.
Quote of the day
“Belief in a cruel God makes a cruel man.” Thomas Paine.
Ask the right question
If religious experience proves a god, which god do the conflicting experiences of people in different religions prove?
Religious Crooks
Kakande Samuel is a Ugandan pastor known for dramatic miracle healing claims, with critics and former members alleging staged cures and heavy financial demands tied to promises of supernatural intervention.
For more information, google the name.
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.