A Few Random Observations

We’ve probably all seen videos of evangelical or fundamentalist prayer, revivalist, etc., etc. meetings. Now I assume that God, assuming a God of course in the first place, has 20/20 hearing. So why is it necessary for all and sundry leading these meetings to scream their bloody fool heads off? Who are they really trying to impress by risking not only laryngitis but their vocal cords? I mean it’s not small and normal “hallelujah, praise the Lord!” but “HALLELUJAH, PRAISE THE LORD!!!” only in even larger type than this.

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Is it my imagination or have I noticed that the extreme religious right wing, those vehemently anti gay, anti same-sex marriage, anti abortion, anti national health care, anti environmentalism (i.e. – climate change), anti gay-adoption, always happy to attack non-religious institution and people for their bucketing or ignoring of Biblical teachings, are absolutely silent when it comes to giving a thumbs down on the child sex abuse issue by various religious institutions and personnel. Any religious institution is good and God-fearing by definition; anything else isn’t good and has turned their back on God.

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Christianity, be it the extreme right wing variety of fundamental evangelism or the more middle-of-the-road varieties, is based on one and only one thing – that God exists. Yet they never, ever, offer up any proof, or even evidence of that alleged ‘fact’ except to endlessly and endlessly quote the Bible – a very suspect document IMHO. From the pope right on down the theological line to your local vicar, no proof, even evidence, is in the offering. 

If I accuse someone of something, say murder, then the burden of proof is on me to show beyond any doubt that that someone is guilty as charged, not on that someone to prove anything to the contrary. In like fashion, if someone claims that God exists and has certain attributes, then the burden of proof is on that person to prove his or her claim.

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Latest loony bit from the religious right – God does not want you (or anyone) to retire, because the word “retirement” or “retire” does not appear in the Bible! God does not want you to retire because people who retire begin to then suffer the consequences of rapidly deteriorating health – God doesn’t want that!

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There have been numerous attempts to find the Biblical Garden of Eden; all have failed. But all you really need to do is find the Cherubim and the Flaming Sword that God left to guard the east access to the Garden and the Tree of Life after He gave Adam and Eve the boot out of Paradise (Genesis 3:24). What could be easier? I mean how many Cherubim and Flaming Swords do you see day to day? There’s nowhere in the Bible that states that they have been relieved of duty, so they must still be standing guard. Surely someone must have seen them in recent times.

See Also: Wilensky-Lanford, Brook; Paradise Lust: Searching for the Garden of Eden; Grove Press, New York; 2011.

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There are many hundreds of alleged relics associated with Jesus, his family, disciples, the evangelists, etc. Unfortunately, none surfaced until hundreds, sometimes many, many hundreds of years after the fact. There are often multiple copies of relics, ach claiming to be THE one true relic. There are enough pieces of the holy [wooden] cross floating around to build Noah’s Ark! Anything subjected to actual scientific analysis and dating has failed to date to the relevant time frame or when it should of. Most churches refuse to allow holy relics in their possession to be subjected to scientific analysis – they probably don’t want their illusions shattered. But no amount of proof that a relic is a fraud will shake the belief of the true believer.

See Also: Nickell, Joe; The Jesus Relics: From the Holy Grail to the Turin Shroud; The History Press, Gloucestershire, U.K; 2008.