Weird and Religious
Among certain Celtic groups in Iron Age Europe, classical writers claimed that prisoners of war were sacrificed in large wicker structures sometimes described as “wicker men.” The victims were burned as offerings to the gods, though modern historians debate how literal these reports were.
Religious image of the day.
In the name of religion
1860, Mount Lebanon and Damascus. Druze and Maronite Christian communities clashed, with massacres of civilians. Combatants justified violence as defence of their religious communities, protection of honour, and retaliation, turning local power struggles into explicitly sectarian bloodshed.
Fact
In Sikhism, belief centres on one formless God, and Sikhism teaches that this divine reality is beyond images and present everywhere.
The power of rituals
Studies show no consistent evidence that prayer alters external outcomes beyond chance, yet personal prayer reduces stress and improves subjective wellbeing because it functions like meditation. It provides reflection, release, and focus. The benefit lies in introspection, not divine intervention. Religious ritual amplifies these effects through repetition and structure. Fixed prayer times, fasting, and communal observances create stability. Believers often feel secure and ordered, comforted by the idea that a divine plan governs their lives. The sense of surrender to external control reduces anxiety even though the control is imagined. The illusion can become psychologically addictive but remains effective in producing calm.
Quote of the day
“You can safely assume that you have created God in your own image when it turns out that God hates all the same people you do.” Anne Lamott.
Ask the right question
If a soul is immaterial, how does it interact with the physical brain without violating what is known about physics?
Religious Crooks
Kirtanananda Swami, a leader in the Hare Krishna movement in the United States, oversaw a large commune and was later convicted on racketeering related charges, with the community also associated with abuse and exploitation under religious authority.
For more information, google the name.
If a real God existed, would he allow crooks to act on his behalf?