Religion

[knuckledragger]

Roadrunner, that debate has been going on since Christ was a Corporal. Every culture has a belief that there was a Great Flood at some point in history. If you take the story of Noah or Gilgamesh to be true, then perhaps there is a scientific explanation to it all. I do think something did happen, although I tend to think it was before the Bible was actually written. There may have been something to it all with the reports of "Noah's" ark being found on Mt. Aerate. If we take into account the two of every species of animal taken aboard, then from a scientific stand point, it would have to be two from the KNOWN area. How Noah's ark got to the top of the mountain is anyones guess. Too bad the Turkish Govt. wont let anymore expeditions up there.

[knuckledragger]

Legs, the answer is simple. wICCAN IS NOT A "MAINSTREAM" RELIGION. sO THEREFORE PEOPLE DONT KNOW HOW THE PRACTICE OF A FUNERAL WOULD BE DONE IF YOU CROAKED.

[Logan]

Knuck has a point there, how do you dispose of a Wiccan?
Ahh, it's good to be immortal. At least, I think I am. I'm only 638yo. I'll get back with you after I finish my first millenium. If you're still here, that is.

[grouchymom]

The Wiccans do have a funeral rite. Here is part of their ritual. The words are beautiful.

"You are dead. None should ever die alone. I am here to help you
with your death. There is only love, the greatest Mystery. I reach
behind my fear. I open my heart and my eyes in the light of this love.
Our lives are formed of many others and we form other lives in turn.
And when we are here with you after you die we honour your life. There
is only love. The love of the Goddess gives birth to the universe. The love of
our parents gives birth to us. The love of our friends and family sustains our
life. Kindness, love, and pleasure - we are formed from these and we form each
other. When we die we leave them behind us. You have left your family.
You have left sex, and even gender. You cannot be a woman or a man and enter
the other world. You have left behind your body. None who have bodies can pass
into the other world. The Goddess is taking you back now, the Great
Mother. Her womb is the Earth that will recieve your body, your body is a seed
now, a seed of other lives. In a sacred space we have gathered to
honour you and to give you some things to take on the journey with you."

[roadrunner]

legs: first, in this world of warm and fuzzy politically correct and sensitivity trained human resources departments, I cannot believe anyone would be dumb enough to "bat" their eyes at you when you identify your religion. Perhaps you should educate them. Or have a lawyer educate them. secondly, i think it is interesting that when you croak, you are guided by a Goddess because tracking back the spoken histories of cultures before the written word, apparently many "religions" worshiped females as the supreme being. There are wall drawings and crude statues supporting this belief from many thousands of years ago. I have no problem with the female being the supreme being as long as she remembers to give up a litle every now and then.

[wizardborn1]

Happy Valentines

Sometimes Love Can Win Over An Enemy
Little Melissa comes home from first grade and tells her father that they learned about the history of Valentine's Day. "Since Valentine's Day is for a Christian saint and we're Jewish," she asks, "will God get mad at me for giving someone a valentine?"

Melissa's father thinks a bit, then says "No, I don't think God would get mad Who do you want to give a Valentine to?"

"Osama Bin Laden," she says. "Why Osama Bin Laden," her father asks in shock.

"Well," she says, "I thought that if a little American Jewish girl could have enough love to give Osama a Valentine, he might start to think that maybe we're not all bad, and maybe start loving people a little bit. And if other kids saw what I did and sent Valentines to Osama, he'd love everyone a lot. And then he'd start going all over the place to tell everyone how much he loved them and how he didn't hate anyone anymore."

Her father's heart swells and he looks at his daughter with newfound pride.

"Melissa, that's the most wonderful thing I've ever heard."

"I know,"Melissa says, "and once that gets him out in the open, the Marines could shoot the sucker."

[knuckledragger]

Wizard, cute story. But why does it have to marines? UGH! I've always hated those worthless b*stards, lol. Anyway, enough of the inter-service rivalry(U.S. ARMY! MESS WITH THE BEST...DIE LIKE THE REST!! HOOAH!!). It's amazing how STUPID people are sometimes. If someone was to come up to you and say, "Amir, let's go throw rocks at Israeli soldiers armed with machine guns and tanks!" What would you do? I know I'd beat feet the other da*n way! And tell Muhammed to catch a bullet for me. I've worked with Israeli's, and let me tell you, they are some tough, tough m*therf*ckers! It's interesting how all of this seems to have turned into a holy war when its really a political war. Are people really that stupid to believe they commit murders in the name God? Or is God a scapegoat? With all 3 religions, they all have the SAME God. Why is that so hard to comprehend? Do these radicals really think they will be in Gods grace, by really killing their brethren?? I think not. Religion is just a guise, its really about politics.

[Tazz]

Not politics Knuck. Check Abraham's eldest son, Ishmael. What is happening with the Muslims is supposed to happen. Most of America just won't wake up. The Muslims never demonstrated over all the lives lost at the towers, pentagon, USS Cole or any other target of extremists. Why? Because they all believe the same thing. Don't let anyone tell you that Islam is not violent..............BS

At some point, THEY WILL try to take over America.

[knuckledragger]

Tazz, you know how much I hate to disagree with you. But, keep in mind Islam is the newest of the big 3 religions. The Quran has elements of Judaism, and Christianity in it. It's ALWAYS been a political war in that region for thousands of years, and "religion" is just a mask. Legs, the reason why I suspect you get looked at all crazy, is because Christians don't know what a pentagram really means. In "Pagan" tradition, the pentagram is that of a figure of a man. The five points represent a head, 2 arms, and 2 legs. The Church puts its foot down again on anything it deems un-Christian. Our good friends in the Catholic church decided to INVERT the pentagram and say its the devil. Now we have a picture of what most consider to be the god Pan who looks like he might be Satan himself. Two points at the top mean horns, the two on the sides are ears, and the bottom point is a beard like a billy goat. Pan is the perfect adversary because he looks menacing in that way. So the pentagram as most people know it, is due to others twisting it around to make it evil in order for their views to prevail.

[knuckledragger]

Hmmm...Legs, was that a compliment or a shut your stupid a** up cause you don't know what you're talking about?

[Tazz]

You can disagree with me if you like. I take no offense to it at all. But I too, believe certain things that you don't. I do not believe Islam to be "new" by any stretch of the imagination. I truly believe that it is directly descended from Ishmael. That is what bible history teaches. As for theology, it just means that YOU think too much! ;D

[knuckledragger]

Tazz, most people would call the ability to think, question, and wonder a gift. I look at it as a curse. I do think too d*mn much!

[Tazz]

You definitely think too much. You probably know more than you should which is why you feel the way you do. In any case, I enjoy the religious bantering. I learn alot with all this!

[knuckledragger]

Know more than I should? Whatcha mean?

[roadrunner]

In light of events yesterday, I might start to believe in a higher being because as God Almighty as JC and AC thought they were, someone or something has decended from the heavens and shown them a new trick. Life is good.