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Voodoo comments

Silly Almo, don't you know that everybody everywhere has the same access to education as do the people in the United States? And all of those people use that education to enlighten their minds. If you were do to something as ignorant as voo-doo, it's your choice and has nothing to do with the culture you grew up in.
Some people have zero perspective.
 
Yeah, ignorant savages aknowledging the sacredness of life before eating it. It is much more charitable to let them starve, get thirsty and be covered in feces before killing and eating them.
 
Almo said:
Holy crap! That's just an amazingly ignorant argument.
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When someone utters these words:

As a Christian I believe in Jesus and ...
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Brace yourself for some ignorance[1].


[1] DISCLAIMER: Lest someone misconstrue the comment, I am not calling Christians ignorant. It's just that, in my experience, people who preface a statement with this phrase are using it to justify ignorance and intolerance, similar to the claim of "doing God's work" to justify an agenda of hatred. Just like when someone says, "hold my beer and watch this". Get out the camcorder because a really funny injury is about to transpire.
 
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/4588262.stm
I firmly believe that voodoo is a force for bad. As a Christian I believe in Jesus and nobody else, and cannot understand how in the 21st century Africans keep doing such practical sacrifices. I think it's really horrible.

Berthie Matona, Bristol, England.
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I always find it strange when some Christians express outrage at another religion's rituals. Communion, particularly First Communion, is patently bizarre.

"Here child, this is the flesh of Christ. Before all your friends and family, put his flesh in your mouth."

Ritual cannibalism, or ritual pedophilia? You decide.

Or, is it possible that the impression a religion's rituals first gives an outsider isn't the purpose or meaning, and maybe knee-jerk responses are a bad idea?

Edit: Added the word "some", because I never meant to intend that all christians are this reactionary.
 
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Belz... said:
Oh, no. Please, by all means, do.
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To be fair, I know plenty of Christians (and others for that matter) who are educated, intelligent and perfectly capable of reconciling their faith with known facts. They are also least likely to state their opinion or make an argument with the phrase "Well, I'm a Christian..." or "it says in the Bible...". Unfortunately, it seems the most visible and vocal of the group are also the most ignorant.
 
ImaginalDisc said:
I always find it strange when Christians express outrage at another religion's rituals. Communion, particularly First Communion, is patently bizarre.

"Here child, this is the flesh of Christ. Before all your friends and family, put his flesh in your mouth."

Ritual cannibalism, or ritual pedophilia? You decide.

Or, is it possible that the impression a religion's rituals first gives an outsider isn't the purpose or meaning, and maybe knee-jerk responses are a bad idea?
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Well, speaking as one who studied with a Gris-gris Mambo for a while (a little less than a year), I can tell you that, to a Christian, they would look weird. Prayers are to be spoken ALOUD. The Loa don't like mumbled prayers.
The reliance on "sinful" items like tobacco and alcohol is a touch strange, until you realize that the slaves were around those two things alot, so they used what they could get a hold of.
Sexuality isn't shunned, but revered. I'm not even going to comment further on this one.
The idea that your ancestors are important for something other than making your name for you, is a bit weird.
Some of the characters involved are bizarre. Just look at the Guede, especially the Baron Samedi. Worshiping DEATH!!?? Ok, not really, but a top hat wearing skeleton who's a HUGE perv, isn't "normal". Fun, but not normal.
 
ImaginalDisc said:
Or, is it possible that the impression a religion's rituals first gives an outsider isn't the purpose or meaning, and maybe knee-jerk responses are a bad idea?
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No. Knee-jerk reactions are a always good idea. Anything else requires thought.
 
tsg said:
To be fair, I know plenty of Christians (and others for that matter) who are educated, intelligent and perfectly capable of reconciling their faith with known facts. They are also least likely to state their opinion or make an argument with the phrase "Well, I'm a Christian..." or "it says in the Bible...". Unfortunately, it seems the most visible and vocal of the group are also the most ignorant.
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But really, isn't that true of most groups? I'm reminded of a cartoon (I'm 90% sure that it was the Far Side) where a group of cavemen were standing around, looking ruefully at an obvious idiot that got trapped in a glacier or tar pit or something.

The thoughtful person will take pause before commenting, propmting the cameraman to move on to the jackass waving the "God Hates Fags!" placard standing next to him.
 
kmortis said:
But really, isn't that true of most groups? I'm reminded of a cartoon (I'm 90% sure that it was the Far Side) where a group of cavemen were standing around, looking ruefully at an obvious idiot that got trapped in a glacier or tar pit or something.

The thoughtful person will take pause before commenting, propmting the cameraman to move on to the jackass waving the "God Hates Fags!" placard standing next to him.
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Yes, it does seem to be a universal constant that the more emphatic a person's opinion is about something the less they understand it.
 
Not that I side with Christianity (for it is mine mortal enemy), but those African religions are a little crazy, from the perspective of a city dwelling chicagoan anyway.

Personally, I have no problem pointing out backwards, ignorant, silly beliefs, whether they are found in Africa or not.

It's all the same stupid, and people will bicker over who's stupid is the best.
 
tsg said:
Yes, it does seem to be a universal constant that the more emphatic a person's opinion is about something the less they understand it.
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I've noticed that the people who are good at science, engineers, physicists etc., tend toward "hedging". Here at work it's a common complaint from the program managers that they can't get a direct answer out of the engineers. We will couch our analysis in terms like "if this holds true...", "it would seem...", "apparently, ...", or "once the goat died...". The reason for this is simple. If you take a stand, you'll be knocked down...

nonoonono

We understand that there are too many variables in what we do. We cannot possably take them all into account, so we hedge. WE've gotten this way, almost universally, through experience.

Relgious people don't have the same issue. Since religion isn't a testable thing, you cannot be shown to be wrong, until it's way too late to do anything about it. (unless, of course the Hindus are correct, but then your mind is wiped anyway, so it amounts to the same thing) So, there's no penalty for being wrong that hits you on a daily basis with religion. What impetus is there for them to read the silly thing? Cause WE tell them to? P'shaw, don't make me laugh.
 
bagtaggar said:
Not that I side with Christianity (for it is mine mortal enemy), but those African religions are a little crazy, from the perspective of a city dwelling chicagoan anyway.

Personally, I have no problem pointing out backwards, ignorant, silly beliefs, whether they are found in Africa or not.
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The Mambo that I learned from....lived in Calumet. Just FYI...
 
kmortis said:
We understand that there are too many variables in what we do. We cannot possably take them all into account, so we hedge. WE've gotten this way, almost universally, through experience.
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It absolutely infuriates my boss when I do this. He asks me, "will it work?" to which I respond with the conditions where it will likely work and the conditions where I don't think it will. His response is invariably, "yeah, but will it work?"
 
tsg said:
To be fair, I know plenty of Christians (and others for that matter) who are educated, intelligent and perfectly capable of reconciling their faith with known facts.
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Perhaps, but if they believe that the gunderscored hypothesis is more likely than not, then they are missing key data, willingly or not.
 
Belz... said:
Perhaps, but if they believe that the gunderscored hypothesis is more likely than not, then they are missing key data, willingly or not.
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For these people, I think it has less to do with how likely they think it is and more to do with how they would like things to be. Wishful thinking? Sure. But they understand the difference between belief and evidence and use whichever is appropriate for the given circumstances.
 
tsg said:
It absolutely infuriates my boss when I do this. He asks me, "will it work?" to which I respond with the conditions where it will likely work and the conditions where I don't think it will. His response is invariably, "yeah, but will it work?"
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I have exactly the same problem.

Can you do X?

Well, there is a good chance I can do X unless conditions Y and Z prevail which will make X very difficult to do.

So, you're saying to me that you can't do it?


Sigh ...
 
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