‘religion’ Articles
Written by Damian Hospital on 22 June 2009
French President Nicolas Sarkozy:
“In our country, we cannot accept that women be prisoners behind a screen, cut off from all social life, deprived of all identity. The burqa is not a religious sign, it’s a sign of subservience, a sign of debasement—I want to say it solemnly. It will not be welcome on the territory of the French Republic.”
In 2004 France enacted a law banning the Islamic headscarf and other conspicuous religious symbols from public schools.
Okay, bear with me here- I believe that all people should be free, and I believe in women’s liberation. I don’t think a husband forcing his wives (literally) to hide in public is cool; I think it’s unhealthy, but that’s from my own perspective here in sunny South Florida. I wasn’t raised in that environment or society where it is socially accepted; I was raised in a liberal multicultural city. Heck, I think burqas are sick from here, but what do I know?
At the same time, I don’t believe in forcing other countries to subscribe to my Western beliefs, or mixing up religion and politics like France is trying to do here.
It’s ironic how liberated France wants to *impose* their view their view on other culture (there are 5 to 6 million Muslims in France).
On a much smaller scale it’s kind of like an IT Frenchman I used to work with at Tashman Technologies; he was a cool, laid-back, liberated dude, until he was in control of the network. Once in control he imposed his will over us and became an Internet cop, checking cookies, banning mp3s, disabling access. Not a coincidence: secularism (atheism) is the religion of contemporary France, and my former co-worker was also against organized religion.
Kinda along the same wavelength are liberal democrats who believe in equality, justice, and an exchange of ideas- just as long as you don’t listen to AM talk radio.
What’s next, “liberating” nuns? What about the millions of women that like wearing the burqas, and don’t see it as oppression? Does France really want to piss off Muslim extremists even more?
The truth is the powers-that-be in France are just hoping to see what’s under the burqas. We all know France is “sexually liberated”. They want to see this, yet are hiding behind an “enlightened morality”:
Posted in politics, religion | 2 Comments »
Written by Damian Hospital on 21 May 2009
Being raised in Brooklyn and living in South Florida, I’ve always been exposed to Jewish people and customs. When you toss Hollywood and TV shows in the mix, you can say I’ve been bombarded with Judaism.
With Israel always in the mix with U.S. foreign policy and Middle-East wars- not to mention the Jewish special interest groups here in America, you’d think Judaism was the #2 religion in the world in terms of practitioners. It turns out it’s ranked 12th, and only have around 13 million people who identify themselves as Jewish.
However, after reading this post, you’ll find out that there are a lot less Jews- it all has to do with the definition. Right now, there is no satisfying definition; it all depends on who you ask. Some define Judaism as a culture, race, ethnic group, or family, or inherited trait, as opposed to a religion (an organized faith-based belief system).
What this does is incorrectly label a girl as a Jew just because she has a Jewish mother- even though the girl herself has no idea about who Yahweh is, doesn’t go to temple, doesn’t know if Jews believe in Hell, and observes no customs or holidays. If your name is Josh Goldstein, you are labeled as a Jew, even if you never had a bar-mitzvah.
To me, religion is about FAITH, KNOWLEDGE, and BELIEFS. You can’t be Catholic if you don’t believe in Jesus. You can’t be a Muslim if you think Muhammad was a fraud. You can’t be a Jew if you don’t have faith that God exists and is watching over you.
And I can take it to the next level: frankly, if you don’t know what the Ten Commandments are, you probably should get some religious instruction, especially if you claim you’re religious. A Catholic priest who molests children are abominations. Adolf Hitler was “Catholic”.
But all religions should be more than rules or memorization. If you go to Church every day, yet prejudge someone based on their skin color or condemn someone for being homosexual, you are a glorified hypocrite: Jesus- and Jesus alone- is the Judge.
Recent times have seen a growth of those who identify themselves as “spiritual”, which means they believe in something greater than themselves, but don’t adhere to an ancient text or have strict rules to obey. And that’s fine- at least they are not hypocritical.
Getting back to Jews- to me, the only “real Jews” are in Israel (around 5.5 million practicing) and the orthodox ones in Europe in America (Florida + NY/PA). Unorthodox Jews retain the culture from their grandparents but just aren’t strict enough to force it on their children or grandchildren. The number of bar mitzvahs in the U.S. is decreasing. It seems like mainstream American Jews just celebrate a couple of major holidays, weddings, funerals, and birthdays. No TV on Friday nights? Lighting the candles? That’s asking too much for a mainstream Jew. Yet they are first in line to defend Judaism and shout anti-antisemitism at the drop of a hat. (Kinda like New Yorkers who defend their city from any criticism.)
Yiddish as a spoken language will become an archaic language soon. Young Jews turn to other belief systems that are more spiritual rewarding. Let’s face it- most of my Jewish friends are depressed; I mean that in a joking way, but Judaism is an eye-for-an-eye religion. It’s about keeping it within the tribe, and destroying enemies. It’s about subjective love, as opposed to loving all people. It’s about obeying Rabbinical Law or risk being ostracized. It’s not fun at all. Look at Michael Savage. Is he a happy man?
There is no selling point to it anymore. Jews have long since waited for their Messiah. Even Baby Boomers had problems with it. Things are more liberal now- for all religions. Teenagers rebel and don’t like to be indoctrinated with ANYTHING that doesn’t make sense. Modern generations like to ask, “WHY?” and will reject a system that is just out of “tradition”.
It’s not like Jewish leaders actively recruit new members or attempt to modernize the religion. Their definitions are too rigid; it’s an exclusive club based on too many requirements, none having to do with what you actually believe in. They want to stay “The Chosen People”.
Most Jews I know are agnostic- they believe in “God” and the Bible, but don’t relate to the Old Testament God or the rules. They can’t get into deep discussions about the particulars in the Bible. They think that as long as they don’t buy into this Jesus character or Allah, that they are “Jewish”. One joked to me, “I’m only a Jew when someone dies, and then I have to follow the mourning and funeral traditions.”
In the end…it will become a niche folk religion, retaining some customs. As the world truly becomes global, and so many religions and cultures mix, this “you must meet a genetic requirement” religion will die out.
I’m not trying to rip Judaism; the truth is I am concerned that such history and tradition will be lost due to close-mindedness and- yes, a lack of trying. I mean, most of the exclusiveness had to do with competing with other tribal religions thousands of years ago. In B.C. times, most people worshiped the god who would grant them the most fortunate with crops or fertility. Judaism was the first monotheistic religion to “ban” other gods. Early Jews felt that allowing a “non-member” in would corrupt the community and lose followers due to exposure. Well, in 2009 every Jew has been exposed to Christianity, Islam, spiritualism, atheism, and secularism.
Centuries of persecution, forced conversions, and the Holocaust dwindled the numbers. Cultural assimilation is the biggest threat now, but Judaism and the Jewish people may survive- but their sphere of influence (in national politics and popular culture) will continue to decrease. Unless there is a new Jewish prophet that re-energizes the religion and makes it more mainstream (something all Jews are against), I wouldn’t be surprised if only a very small number continue the traditions, kind of like gypsies.
Posted in religion | 3 Comments »
Written by Damian Hospital on 13 December 2008
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Posted in buzz, religion | No Comments »
Written by Damian Hospital on 01 August 2008
Christian Wright Q&A
Christian Wright is a DailySkew contributer who to answer religious questions submitted. If you have religion questions, you’d like Christian Wright to answer (“he’s always Wright”), post a comment.
Q-Were dinosaurs on Noah’s Ark? I mean, how the $#$%@ could Noah have fit those big suckers in a ship?
A- Yup.
Oh, you want more details? Fine. There were only 55 different kinds of dinosaurs, and not all them were huge. You also have to consider that the dinosaurs on the Ark were teenagers or young adults- maybe even eggs. t Noah had 8,000 animal pairs. Horses, zebras, and donkeys descended from ONE horse-like kind, so Noah did not have to carry two sets of each such animal. Also, dogs and wolves are from a single canine kind, so hundreds of different dogs species were not needed.
The Ark measured 460 x 75 x 44 feet, with a volume of about 1.52 million cubic feet. 16,000-plus animals would have occupied much less than half the space in the Ark.
There’s another more progressive theory that the dinosaurs had already died out before Noah’s time.
Posted in christian wright, religion | 31 Comments »
Written by Damian Hospital on 17 June 2008
Christian Wright answers religious questions submitted to the DailySkew. If you have religion questions, you’d like Christian Wright to answer (“he’s always Wright”), post a comment. Damian Hospital and Tony Vahl usually do not agree with, or condone, Reverend Wright’s opinions, but we do believe in freedom of speech.
Justin Chamberlain: Reverend, what do you think about California legalizing GAY MARRIAGE?
Christian Wright: It’s an abomination, to start. The Catholic Church takes a very high view of marriage and what proper sexuality is. As the account of Genesis shows, marriage and sexuality were created by God and given to mankind as gifts for our benefit- for a man and a woman in holy union, not a MAN and a MAN or a WOMAN and a WOMAN or a MAN and a HORSE. As I’m sure you know, scripture records God’s statement that “it is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for him” [Gen. 2:18]. Thus, “a man leaves his father and his mother and cleaves to his wife, and they become one flesh” [Gen. 2:24]. Of course, some- like myself- may forego the good of marriage to serve a higher calling [cf. Matt. 19:10-12].
Justin, marriage is a conduit through which God’s holy and good grace flows to the couple and their children, and their children’s children. The Catholic Church understands marriage between a baptized man and woman to be a sacrament, and is a visible sign of the grace that God gives them to help them join Him in eternity. For Catholics, marriage is social as well as religious. The Bible compares the relationship between MAN and WIFE to that between God and Israel [cf. Hos. 9:1] and between Christ and his Church[(cf. Eph. 5:21-32].
Marriage is basic to the health of society, and therefore a public institution that must be protected. Marriage is not just a private matter of emotion between two people, no matter what these gays say on TV with their rainbow flags. Marriage’s success or failure has measurable impact on all of society, and we can’t have gay people marrying each other.
The Catholic Church opposes this sinful activity because it is disordered, is an abuse of our human nature, and legalizing same-sex marriage spreads these harmful effects on society.
The Devil runs California now, Justin. It is best that you do not venture there. Pray for them, Justin. God’s fury hath no equal. We can never know God’s plan, but we do know that earthquakes are common in California.
Posted in religion | 49 Comments »
Written by Damian Hospital on 14 May 2008
DailySkew used its time machine and went back to 1954 to speak with Albert Einstein, who the masses see as the smartest man who ever existed. To see the news article that inspired the DailySkew to travel back into time, see this: Albert Einstein: Jew Hater?
DS: Hi Al. Now with such statements that you have made in the past, such as “Science without religion is lame, religion without science is blind” and, speaking of quantum mechanics, “The theory says a lot, but does not really bring us any closer to the secret of the ‘old one’. I, at any rate, am convinced that He does not throw dice” it shows that you believe in God.
AE: Of course, I do.
DS: And you are Jewish, correct?
AE: Yes…however, I do not believe in notions of a personal God. God is unknowable.
DS: So you reject religious traditions?
AE: Of course.The fact that man produces a concept “I” besides the totality of his mental and emotional experiences or perceptions does not prove that there must be any specific existence behind such a concept. We are succumbing to illusions produced by our self-created language, without reaching a better understanding of anything.
DS: I am pleased to be on the same page as you.
AE: I have always believed that Jesus meant by the Kingdom of God the small group scattered all through time of intellectually and ethically valuable people. To take those fools in clerical garb seriously is to show them too much honor.
DS: Interesting theory…you know, I’m smiling now because if you existed in my time, 2008, you would be branded anti-social and a communist. You’d be “excommunicated” from the mainstream.
AE: That’s okay. I’m branded a socialist now. Because I am. Doesn’t matter to me.
DS: I see. So what does the word “God” mean to you?
AE: The word God is for me nothing more than the expression and product of human weaknesses, the Bible a collection of honorable, but still primitive legends which are nevertheless pretty childish. No interpretation no matter how subtle can change this.
DS: See, in my time period, the MEDIA would spin this interview and the headline would read: “Einstein: Jews are childish”.
AE: For me the Jewish religion like all others is an incarnation of the most childish superstitions. And the Jewish people to whom I gladly belong and with whose mentality I have a deep affinity have no different quality for me than all other people.
DS: Wow…again…again, Al, in 2008, saying that the Jewish people are not the Chosen Ones would be political suicide. In fact, if the MEDIA gets a hold of this in my time period, your legacy may be tarnished. Historical revisionists will label you as an anti-semitic, a turncoat, like Bobby Fischer. Al, you are in 1954…you’re past your prime..are you sure you want your views to be known?
AE: As far as my experience goes, Jews are no better than other human groups, although they are protected from the worst cancers by a lack of power. Otherwise I cannot see anything ‘chosen’ about them. Anyway, can we conclude this interview? I would like to ask you questions about what the world is like in 2008. I am glad to see my time traveling theories were proven correct; your presence here is indicative of that.
Posted in misunderstood, religion | 12 Comments »
