Weird and Religious
The ancient Persians practised a ritual in which a dog was brought to look at a corpse. The gaze of the dog was believed to drive away evil forces associated with death. Dogs had a specific spiritual role in dealing with the dead.
Religious image of the day.
In the name of religion
2018, Burkina Faso. Islamist militants attacked churches and Christian villages. Groups justified violence as jihad, targeting Christians and local Muslims who cooperated with the state, aiming to impose their version of Islamic rule.
Fact
In Confucianism, public service is honoured, and Confucianism historically shaped systems where officials were selected through learning.
Apologists
A religious apologist is an individual who engages in the systematic defense, justification, and explanation of religious doctrines, faith, and beliefs, often using logic, scripture, philosophy, and historical evidence. Apologists present themselves as intellectual guardians, calmly correcting critics and clarifying misunderstandings, but in practice they twist language, redefine terms, shift goalposts, and lower standards of evidence until belief can be squeezed through the smallest gap. Their arguments are rarely consistent because coherence is not the goal. Preservation is. The conclusion is fixed in advance and everything else is negotiable.
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 spiritual experiences reveal truth, why can drugs, lack of sleep or brain stimulation produce similar experiences?
Religious Crooks
Johann Tetzel was a Dominican friar in the 16th century known for aggressively selling indulgences, promising spiritual benefits in exchange for money, a practice widely condemned at the time as a corrupt abuse of religious authority.
For more information, google the name.
Every country in the world has its fair share of spiritual crooks.
If a real God existed, would he allow crooks to act on his behalf?