This one has to just be my thoughts. It’s one of those nights. So I won’t give research ideas or claim all of it as fact. My back problems have kicked in, and my legs ache so badly. I am feeling sick to my stomach. I need to remind myself it could be so much worse, or get my mind off the pain. You know, whatever works. This may read more like a rant.
I posted quite a bit of controversial stuff on FB today, and I am sure it ticked a few people off. They want to go out and get me a white jacket. Though, they have learned how I am, and stopped saying so. I’ve told them before they can scroll past my posts, click the x that will hide my posts, or delete me from their friend list. Something keeps them there.
Either way it is my facebook page, and I have the right to post whatever I want, at least, until they start them internet regulations; and if everyone keeps getting pissed, and laughing at all of this instead of researching it for themselves, they will.
I am grateful to have met Raychelle. She might get tired of hearing me say this, but she has taught me so much. At a time in life when I was suicidal, full of fear and losing everyone and everything she saved me. And one thing she taught me was that I could research information without fear. That I needed to slow down, file it away for possible future use, and move on. She helped me stop being afraid and listen to reason and logic and common sense. I’ve always had them, but fear interrupts the natural thought process.
It irritates me when people get upset and call Harold Camping’s followers dumb. It irritates me because I have never been dumb. I excelled in school, and do today. I have Trina moments, as Dan likes to call them…lol. But on every level where it counts I am far from stupid. It is fear. It is that fear that is instilled in you, that someone told you when you were young, about an eternal place where a loving God will burn you forever. Forever and ever without end you are going to be tortured, you will burn for your sins, but he loves you.
It is that fear that if you are alive in what they call “the most exciting times” you will be put through worldwide earthquakes and famines. They will kill you for believing in Jesus, but you better die and not deny his name. Muslim children teach their children to not only die, but kill themselves for their God. And nobody sees anything wrong with any of it! Religions that teach their children to die for an invisible man in the sky is terrorism. Children learn the most from ages 0-5. That is why for so many breaking free is the hardest thing they will ever do.
Who in their right mind would pray for an end to the world that would come in such a manner? Who? Do you pray every night that Jesus come quickly, like the bible says to do? Because you do understand that when he comes it isn’t going to be all fluffy love and floating on fucking clouds, right?
That fear can make the smartest people make the stupidest choices. I heard one atheist say that Harold Camping’s followers who gave all that they had should have their children taken away, because that is child neglect. What the fuck? No. They might need a little therapy, some reason, some logic and common sense lessons, but they do not need to lose their children.
And I know myself and others have talked about survival of the fittest. I guess I can’t bring myself to honestly go that far. I care too much about other people. I just do. I believe that as we evolve we gain a higher consciousness. Look how far we have already come from primitive man. And you tell me that we have not gained an appreciation for love, an understanding that we have all needs, and deserve them met as much as anyone? People say the world has grown more evil and selfish, but the truth is…I find more people care about people now than ever before.
And people care about themselves. They are freeing themselves from the thought that to take the slightest pride in what they do is sin. I have learned to love myself. To not care what others think, or say, or do. To appreciate my own needs, while meeting the needs of others. And that is okay. I wish more people would. Because when you are not afraid some God might get pissed if you take a compliment about what you have accomplished it feels good.
And if God is real I am sure he or she would rather you felt good, because feeling bad is linked to physical and mental health problems. And I’m sorry, but why would any God want you sick? You have to admit it does you good to know someone appreciates something you’ve done or created? Accept that you are good at what you do, and own it.
Sure, if you are Christian you don’t like the evil music, the sex on TV, the every day things we do exposed to one another, this generation standing up and believing in themselves, wanting to make the world better…because you know…it’s a dirty secret that people have sex, listen to music, and watch TV. I mean, it isn’t like the whole world does it or anything. And you don’t want the world to unite in love and co-exist. Because your God said one race is superior over all races, and gave a dog a bone.
Matthew 15:22-28 A Canaanite woman from that vicinity came to him, crying out, “Lord, Son of David, have mercy on me! My daughter is suffering terribly from demon-possession.” Jesus did not answer a word. So his disciples came to him and urged him, “Send her away, for she keeps crying out after us.” He answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel.” The woman came and knelt before him. “Lord, help me!” she said. He replied, “It is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to their dogs.” “Yes, Lord,” she said, “but even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.” Then Jesus answered, “Woman, you have great faith! Your request is granted.” And her daughter was healed from that very hour.
But he created us all, and loves all the little children; red and yellow, black and white. BS. The Jews created him. And I am not mad at the Jews. I am mad at the elite men in power who have the world fooled. I am mad that history was re-written. I am mad that people can say and do what they want, and even cause wars; because they say what is written in their holy book is true without proof. Wasted money, resources, and time. The unnecessary death of men, women, and children. Senseless mother fucking acts in the name of a God I wouldn’t worship if he was real.
And I wonder if I come up with a holy book if people 2000 years from now would still use it, and claim it as truth? Would they teach it to their kids? There are so many already though, I might just leave that alone. People are confused enough.
Overall I believe the world has become more loving than it’s ever been. People feed the hungry, donate time, build free houses for those less fortunate, extend shelter, food, and basic needs, the list goes on. But everybody only looks around and sees evil. Nobody mentions the good. And I am quite sick of it all. Because the world was barbarian all them years ago, and look at us today! How is that evil?
When someone does something to me I consider their backgrounds, and I think of it as if I were a psychologist trying to diagnose a disorder. Laugh if you will. But I know I have problems, and that sometimes those problems can make me say and do things I regret. It is why I started using replacement thought therapy. People are just damaged by the shit that happens to them in life. They are angry, or crippled by the fear of something, or so deeply hurt. They build their own protective mechanisms that can, sometimes, feel so damn personal. But the truth is that it really seldom ever is. And looking at things like this not only enables me to truly forgive others, and be at peace, but it’s the truth. Why are others not worthy of the time it takes to heal them from their past if I am?
The things I have done to my children, such as confusing them with religion, I did because I thought it was best at the time. I did it because that is what I had been taught. I did not do it to hurt them. When I snap at my husband he tells me to make a pot of coffee, because he knows I am not upset with him. I simply had a bad day. Open your eyes and feel beyond the pain and realize the world does not revolve around you.
Back to Camping’s followers, they were only doing what their parents did, and passing along a religious tradition. They either fear their God too much not to teach their children, or they don’t think much about it, because it’s just what they’ve been taught. It’s like when two people from different backgrounds try to do the same chore. When I do the dishes I place the tip of the knives downward, so nobody gets any cuts or slices if they reach to grab one. When my husband used to the dishes I would bitch so much, because well, I got cuts and slices from grabbing knives he placed tip up in the drainer. It makes me wonder how people from two different religions can actually make it work. That is far stricter than dishes.
And the people that don’t really take their religion seriously make me the maddest. Some don’t go to church, sleep with folks they aren’t married to, drink loads of beer, do drugs, abuse their children, post half naked pictures of themselves on the internet, and the state they are saved by the grace of God. I want to slap them!
Most of those who call themselves Christians have never read their bible. If they do it’s most likely the less damaging New Testament. The only portions they have heard are from the pulpit Sunday morning, as the Pastor reads about tithes and love and hell. He won’t read shit like this:
Leviticus
And the LORD spoke unto Moses, saying, Speak unto Aaron, saying, whosoever he is of thy seed in their generations that hath any blemish, let him not approach to offer the bread of his God. For whatsoever man he be that hath a blemish, he shall not approach: a blind man, or a lame, or he that hath a flat nose, or any thing superfluous, Or a man that is broken footed, or broken handed, Or crookback, or a dwarf, or that hath a blemish in his eye, or be scurvy, or scabbed, or hath his stones broken; No man that hath a blemish of the seed of Aaron the priest shall come nigh to offer the offerings of the LORD made by fire: he hath a blemish; he shall not come nigh to offer the bread of his God.
In other words, keep those creepy physical defectives away from my holy altar! God is love, doncha know, God is love. God denied people born with physical disabilities, but everyone was formed perfect and wonderfully made according to Jeremiah. How can he create a disabled person, and then punish them for it? Hmmm…how can he create a human race, fill them with desires he doesn’t want them to have, and then burn them forever when they succumb to those desires?
I doubt your Pastor has ever done a sermon on these bible topics, either:
• The punishment of all women because Eve dared to eat from the Tree of Knowledge
• The destruction of nearly every living thing, because God got it in his head that "the wickedness of man was great"
• Completely uncivilized slave-banging and otherwise legitimizing slavery as a legal activity
• A Bible hero offering up his virginal daughters to an angry mob (and the daughters subsequently raping him)
• God insisting that Abraham be willing to stab his son to death on a sacrificial altar, and surely traumatizing the kid in the process
• Members of Yahweh’s favorite family avenging a single act of rape by tricking an entire city of men into getting circumcised and then killing them all
• After killing a young man the Lord deems wicked, killing his brother for not wanting to impregnate his sister-in-law
• God randomly trying to kill his right-hand man, Moses
• The plague after plague unleashed on the Egyptians — including the slaves and animals — because God hardened Pharaoh's heart so he wouldn't let the Israelites go and have a picnic in His honor. And making an annual celebration of the killing of every firstborn Egyptian.
• Yahweh claiming ownership of every firstborn male, including of the human variety, with the seeming implication that he wants them sacrificed in his honor
• Meting out punishment not only on infidels, but on three or four generations of their offspring
• Repeated calls to execute people who work on the Sabbath
• A 9/11-sized massacre of fellow Israelites because they dance around a golden idol
• Endless descriptions of reasons and methods for absolving human sins by ritually sacrificing animals, including rituals where one animal is soaked in the blood of its butchered brethren
• The Good Lord burning two children alive for lighting some incense, and then forbidding their father — His #1 priest — from grieving the loss
• Or a thousand and one countless atrocities that involve the dashing of infants against stones, the ripping of fetuses from their mother’s wombs, the rape and pillage and commanded killing of towns, etc.
But if you bring the passages up they will apologize for their god. They will tell you his ways are higher than our ways, and his thoughts so much higher than our thoughts. We could never understand. They scream pro-life at rallies with their bible in their hands.
Isn’t that retarded? I hate using that word, but think about it. God doesn’t care if you kill a fetus. He ripped thousands from the womb, and even let some be born to dash against stones. They will say God knows your heart, you shouldn’t doubt. Sometimes he is just mysterious like that.
And I say, I would not punish my youngest daughter for something my oldest daughter did. I would not punish the entire world for the wickedness of some. I would not want to own another human being, nor have it legal for others to do so. Nor command them to beat them, so long as they don’t kill them. God certainly had no problem killing innocent babies, but don’t kill the slaves. They were far too valuable.
I would never offer my daughters up to an angry mob, nor approve of daughters raping their fathers. Nor would I sacrifice my son on an altar. Even with the ram God provided I can only imagine the terror that boy lived with after that. I don’t believe it is right to trick people into doing what you want them to do, especially if you are only going to kill them anyway. But that’s God style; hell and all.
What would you think if you watched the news today, and you heard a story about a man? This man took his small son to a mountain, and strapped him to an altar, and was ready to kill him in the name of God. But at the last minute the man chose a ram instead. If you really heard this on the new what would you think? What would you think if your own father took you to a mountain, and said sorry son, but you have to die today; God said so? Even if you were spared wouldn’t you have animosity toward your dad and his God?
I would be real upset if my husband passed away. The last thing I would want is a kid by his brother. How confusing would that be? And when this brother spilled his seed on the ground he killed him…
Genesis 38
8 Then Judah said to Onan, “Sleep with your brother’s wife and fulfill your duty to her as a brother-in-law to rise up offspring for your brother.” 9 but Onan knew that the child would not be his; so whenever he slept with his brother’s wife, he spilled his semen on the ground to keep from providing offspring for his brother. 10 What he did was wicked in the Lord’s sight; so the LORD put him to death also.
I would not kill my right hand man. I would not purposefully make it so someone had no choice but to deny me, and then kill their first born, release plagues, and drown them all in the sea. I wouldn’t sacrifice my children in his honor. Nor would I want them sacrificed to me. You get the picture. My morality far outshines the morality of God, and so does most of the worlds’ morality.
Think about the bible long and hard. The things it says. I am agnostic, so I believe there could very well be a higher power. I do not believe it is any of the Gods we have talked about in the world today.
But I do know that if I said God told me I could dash my babies against those stones I would be in prison regardless. But the same book’s Ten Commandments hang in courthouses. I do know that if I told them God said I could rape those women they would laugh at me. While they sat holding their bibles in church Sunday morning, never knowing how many virgin women God told his special race to rape.
I know that if I said God told me I could kidnap and enslave my neighbor they would lock me up tight. But think nothing of it when God says it was not only okay, but that we can beat them, so long as they don’t die. They can’t have it both fucking ways.
And they cannot sit there and say they are going to heaven when they don’t even know what God has said in his damn book. They say they don’t need to go to church, or read the bible, just believe. Well that isn’t what their bible says, now is it? NO. Because the whole reason I stopped being that type of nonchalant Christian was because the bible said I needed to take God seriously, study to show myself approved, and meditate on his word day and night. So I did. And I cried night after night because I had let my kids read that book after thinking Disney was bad and throwing all their movies away, because I could not accept the answers apologists give, because when my own morality and the innocent sense of justice of my 9 year old daughter outweighed my God my God could no longer be real.
Anyhow, I suppose this is more of a vent than anything. Another thing to thank Raychelle for; linking me to this blog. To be honest I really don’t care if anyone reads this. As someone who writes to communicate, through stories, poetry, letters…sometimes I just need to write. And it wouldn’t matter if I wrote this on paper. I could rip it up and throw it away. It just makes me feel better to get it all out, and I type so much faster than I write. And some things really piss people off on facebook. So this works great.
I am off to do what I should have done earlier. My stomach feels better. The anger fuels me, I suppose…lol.
And if anyone read this far it may have been Raychelle. LMAO Not sure anyone else loves me enough for that. ; )
Thursday, May 26, 2011
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
Survival of the Fittest
I wanted to share what I have learned about how the bible we have today came about. And about the God the bible says you must serve. Feel free to disagree, ask questions, or point out potential errors along the way. But please, do so respectfully. This may take more than one part. So when it ends it will be continued. I don’t want to post too much at once, and forget to mention something I feel pertinent to the discussion.
Before I get started I want to say something. If we prove the bible is contradictory, full of error, and not infallible what does that say about Christianity? If the bible, which is what Christianity is based on is a lie the religion itself must be a lie. And if the religion itself is a lie their God must be a lie, too. Let that sit awhile while you read on.
First, let us consider the concept of God. Since the world began mankind has sought God. Sought to find a shred of proof he\she exists. And today that search continues. Wisdom seeks to find evidence of God through various means. Through the cosmos, nature, the heartbeat of the universe, and more. It seeks but never really finds so much as a trace.
The only thing mankind has found in years of science and space is science and space. There are endless reaches of space, and scientific wisdom only finds nature and the workings of nature. Nothing more has ever been found. In fact, religion and superstition continues to hold science back today. A friend of mine made a good point in a video he did. Without all the religion holding back science, and voting against helpful bills they find immoral with no basis, even in their holy books we are way behind. Science has doubled our life expectancy. Just think what it could have done with all that wasted time had it not been wasted.
And while wisdom was busy searching for God ignorance found him; or shall we say believes he has been found? Not only has ignorance believed it found God, but that it knows what this God wants, thinks, likes, and dislikes. And this ignorance that found God found him well before the religious believers we know today. So we can’t really place the blame on today’s followers. We can only hope to open their eyes and minds just a little bit. To convince them to use the logic, common sense, and reason they were born with. After all, if they believe in God they must believe they were perfectly and wonderfully made, so why wouldn’t God want them to use what he supposedly perfectly and wonderfully gave them?
In the infancy of the human race ignorance found God. Before science, before the wheel was invented, before fires were tamed to benefit man. It was a cold and dangerous world back then. Could you imagine being one of those primitive men? What would you think when it thundered? When lightning flashed before your eyes? Wouldn’t you think some angry creator was showing his wrath? Of course, today we know why it thunders, why it rains, why the lightning strikes and we have used those things to advance our kind.
Back then the human race struggled to survive. To escape enemies, reproduce, feed themselves. We were emerging from darkness with animal instincts and the very beginning of reasoning. The only real thought in their minds every day was surviving it. The world was a dangerous place. Survival of the fittest.
And these simple minds would think of past leaders who had helped them destroy enemies, but were now dead. They were lost without the might and strength of a good leader. So in ignorance and desperation ignorance created faith out of necessity; God was born. Even today we have cliques and those that lead them. We always want a leader. When in reality we should stand up and become one ourselves.
From evidence that has been gathered it is believed that Hinduism is the oldest organized religion. That is not to say other beliefs or Gods did not come before Hinduism, but that it was the first religion to become organized.
Hinduism was brought to life by the Aryan race who migrated to Northern India. They were the first to put their religious beliefs in writing. If you want a holy book I might suggest going with the first one ever written. Just saying.
The writings are the Vedas. They were written around 1500 B.C.E. This was before the common era, and it has greatly influenced Indian culture ever since. Of course, there are other religions almost as old as Hinduism.
Judaism can trace its roots back to Abraham, who lived around 1800 B.C.E. Of course, while they are descended from Abraham, it was Moses who first recorded the Torah, or the Old Testament; which is considered the law of God. And it was with its creation that most consider the beginning of Judaism. And with the atrocities in the Torah it is no wonder Jesus came claiming love and forgiveness. If he was real maybe he was just tired of organized religion trying to control the masses. You have to admit he would get awful angry with the Pharisees.
The world’s oldest prophetic religion is believed to be Zoroastrianism. We know for sure that it is the earliest religion founded by one person. They are always founded by one person…sigh. No scholar is sure when the founding prophet actually lived. Some believe it was in the 6th century B.C.E., while others say they can trace his writings to 13th or 14th century B.C.E.
However you look at it India has certainly cradled many of the religions in our world. Hinduism, Jainism, Buddhism all originated from India. The first sacred Lord for the Jainism’s was called a Tirthankara, and lived in the 8th century B.C.E. The last Lord was Mahavir, and he lived in the 5th century B.C.E. He was the first key figure in the spread of the Jainism religion. Philosophical teachings of Siddhartha Gautama (A.K.A. Buddha) was spread after he died. It was spread around Asia around 483 B.C. E.
It seems quite odd that the dominate world religions today, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam are all fairly new. Christianity started around 30 C.E. with the teaching of a man called Jesus Christ; who some call the son of God. While Islam began in 610 C.E. with Muhammad’s revelations from God.
We covered all of that, and I have not even begun to speak on Pagan cultures, Wicca Cultures, or Scientology. There are more religions than I could ever count in this world. And folks, they can’t ALL be right. And you would think if there were a right way, only one way to find this God, we would know it. Instead, you have to choose and hope you are right.
And if you choose Christianity be careful. For there are OVER 34,000 denominations. They have religions within their religion…and yes, I am shaking my damn head. If you would like to learn more about religion and its origins you’ll have to study it yourself. For my studies I will be focusing on Christianity.
Some might ask why I care, or why it matters to me. And I think I covered that pretty well in my first two blogs. People kill themselves and others in the names of their Gods, and these fairytales are causing wars and havoc on the world. I am weary of it all. I want the world to stop disagreeing on which imaginary friend is real, and just get along. Love and forgive and live and let live.
Maybe you feel I should let Christians believe what they want to believe. That would be fine if they didn’t feel the need to preach to the entire world, and make people in 3rd world countries so afraid of their God that they make a law to serve the death penalty to anyone who dares be homosexual. Don’t you see this has to stop? I focus on Christianity because I live in America, where it runs rampant, and tries to control what all of us do. To remove our right to be free and independent, and to have the freedoms our UN-Christian founding fathers wanted us to have.
This is almost it for part one. In the next part I will cover the bible itself. I want to start with some contradictions and atrocities. Please do not apologize for the bible. There are enough apologists in the world, and I have always believed that if God is as powerful as he says he is, and his followers believe he is, then he doesn’t need people fucking apologizing for him. Wouldn’t you agree?
Once I cover the various contradictions and atrocities I found on my own and through others I will cover how the bible came to be. I am going to try to do this in the same order as I learned it. And I hope someone can benefit from learning what I have learned.
I care because of people like the suicide bombers. I care because of the people of God who hold signs that say God hates fags. I care because those same fucking people holding them signs are hypocrites. They have their own sins to deal with. I care because Jesus told them to remove the log from their own eye, and they refuse to do so. Because they run around calling everyone sinners, and don’t follow a LICK of what their supposed Savior taught. Judge not, lest ye be judged. I could go on.
I care because of people like Harold Camping. I care because I am tired of people smiling when they talk about their God coming back to throw 97% of the world in a fiery hell to burn forever. And smile again when they speak of how horrid it will be for us once they are raptured into the sky. What kind of sick individual smiles at the thought of 97% of the world left behind to deal with the largest worldwide earthquakes ever? What kind of individual would pray that to happen?
I don’t want people to teach their children that they are not good enough anymore. That they were born with a horrid sinful nature, because a long time ago their descendents listened to a talking fucking snake and ate an apple. I don’t want children to be taught that the same Savior that loves them so much is sick of their wickedness. That he is going to come back with fire and brimstone, and earthquakes and death. I don’t want fear to grip the heart of children like that. It isn’t fair.
I want people to stop saying Jesus made a sacrifice for my sins, when he sacrificed nothing. According to their book once he was done suffering on earth he was given a beautiful place next to the right hand of God. He lives in heaven and has it made. His daddy is going to let him rip apart the world, and then rule it with an iron fist for 1000 years.
I am tired of children thinking they are not good enough without Jesus, and that without him they cannot do anything. Tired of them not being able to take credit for their own accomplishments without being called prideful; sinful. Tired of families passing their beliefs onto their children, without giving the children a chance to decide for themselves.
After all, had I been born in Asia I would be more concerned with Buddhism. India and I would have been more concerned with Hinduism. The Middle East and I would be more concerned with Islam. Can’t you see that people only claim religions because they were born into them? Not in all cases, but in most. We just accept what our parents tell us, because well, they are our parents. And we are brainwashed to believe what we end up believing. What is the difference if a Muslim trains his child to tie bombs to his waist, or a Christian trains his child to be a martyr for God? Nothing aside from the bomb. Both teach their children it may be necessary to die for their God, and it sickens me.
Go to you tube and watch the Jesus Camp Documentary. Go. I dare you to watch it, and to tell me that is how we should train our children. And if you say it is not you cannot believe the bible, because according to the bible we should. You tell me as you watch that woman who runs the camp make them children feel bad about themselves that is what any God would want. You tell me how it made you feel inside when you listened to her tell them God said they were one thing at school and another at church. You watch all them children start crying, and come up to have a bottled water poured on their hands to be cleansed, and you tell me their isn’t something twisted about that.
The woman that tried to kill herself and her two daughters to save them from the apocalypse is a prime example of what that fear can do when taught. She was taught these things as a child, and everywhere she looks she sees signs of the times, and then she hears the rapture is coming May 21st. She loved her kids so much that she wanted to spare them a meeting with the God she believed in, and probably taught her children to believe in. See what that fear can do? She would rather face the depths of hell forever than to let God have one go at her children. And she wasn’t the only one.
Until next time…
Before I get started I want to say something. If we prove the bible is contradictory, full of error, and not infallible what does that say about Christianity? If the bible, which is what Christianity is based on is a lie the religion itself must be a lie. And if the religion itself is a lie their God must be a lie, too. Let that sit awhile while you read on.
First, let us consider the concept of God. Since the world began mankind has sought God. Sought to find a shred of proof he\she exists. And today that search continues. Wisdom seeks to find evidence of God through various means. Through the cosmos, nature, the heartbeat of the universe, and more. It seeks but never really finds so much as a trace.
The only thing mankind has found in years of science and space is science and space. There are endless reaches of space, and scientific wisdom only finds nature and the workings of nature. Nothing more has ever been found. In fact, religion and superstition continues to hold science back today. A friend of mine made a good point in a video he did. Without all the religion holding back science, and voting against helpful bills they find immoral with no basis, even in their holy books we are way behind. Science has doubled our life expectancy. Just think what it could have done with all that wasted time had it not been wasted.
And while wisdom was busy searching for God ignorance found him; or shall we say believes he has been found? Not only has ignorance believed it found God, but that it knows what this God wants, thinks, likes, and dislikes. And this ignorance that found God found him well before the religious believers we know today. So we can’t really place the blame on today’s followers. We can only hope to open their eyes and minds just a little bit. To convince them to use the logic, common sense, and reason they were born with. After all, if they believe in God they must believe they were perfectly and wonderfully made, so why wouldn’t God want them to use what he supposedly perfectly and wonderfully gave them?
In the infancy of the human race ignorance found God. Before science, before the wheel was invented, before fires were tamed to benefit man. It was a cold and dangerous world back then. Could you imagine being one of those primitive men? What would you think when it thundered? When lightning flashed before your eyes? Wouldn’t you think some angry creator was showing his wrath? Of course, today we know why it thunders, why it rains, why the lightning strikes and we have used those things to advance our kind.
Back then the human race struggled to survive. To escape enemies, reproduce, feed themselves. We were emerging from darkness with animal instincts and the very beginning of reasoning. The only real thought in their minds every day was surviving it. The world was a dangerous place. Survival of the fittest.
And these simple minds would think of past leaders who had helped them destroy enemies, but were now dead. They were lost without the might and strength of a good leader. So in ignorance and desperation ignorance created faith out of necessity; God was born. Even today we have cliques and those that lead them. We always want a leader. When in reality we should stand up and become one ourselves.
From evidence that has been gathered it is believed that Hinduism is the oldest organized religion. That is not to say other beliefs or Gods did not come before Hinduism, but that it was the first religion to become organized.
Hinduism was brought to life by the Aryan race who migrated to Northern India. They were the first to put their religious beliefs in writing. If you want a holy book I might suggest going with the first one ever written. Just saying.
The writings are the Vedas. They were written around 1500 B.C.E. This was before the common era, and it has greatly influenced Indian culture ever since. Of course, there are other religions almost as old as Hinduism.
Judaism can trace its roots back to Abraham, who lived around 1800 B.C.E. Of course, while they are descended from Abraham, it was Moses who first recorded the Torah, or the Old Testament; which is considered the law of God. And it was with its creation that most consider the beginning of Judaism. And with the atrocities in the Torah it is no wonder Jesus came claiming love and forgiveness. If he was real maybe he was just tired of organized religion trying to control the masses. You have to admit he would get awful angry with the Pharisees.
The world’s oldest prophetic religion is believed to be Zoroastrianism. We know for sure that it is the earliest religion founded by one person. They are always founded by one person…sigh. No scholar is sure when the founding prophet actually lived. Some believe it was in the 6th century B.C.E., while others say they can trace his writings to 13th or 14th century B.C.E.
However you look at it India has certainly cradled many of the religions in our world. Hinduism, Jainism, Buddhism all originated from India. The first sacred Lord for the Jainism’s was called a Tirthankara, and lived in the 8th century B.C.E. The last Lord was Mahavir, and he lived in the 5th century B.C.E. He was the first key figure in the spread of the Jainism religion. Philosophical teachings of Siddhartha Gautama (A.K.A. Buddha) was spread after he died. It was spread around Asia around 483 B.C. E.
It seems quite odd that the dominate world religions today, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam are all fairly new. Christianity started around 30 C.E. with the teaching of a man called Jesus Christ; who some call the son of God. While Islam began in 610 C.E. with Muhammad’s revelations from God.
We covered all of that, and I have not even begun to speak on Pagan cultures, Wicca Cultures, or Scientology. There are more religions than I could ever count in this world. And folks, they can’t ALL be right. And you would think if there were a right way, only one way to find this God, we would know it. Instead, you have to choose and hope you are right.
And if you choose Christianity be careful. For there are OVER 34,000 denominations. They have religions within their religion…and yes, I am shaking my damn head. If you would like to learn more about religion and its origins you’ll have to study it yourself. For my studies I will be focusing on Christianity.
Some might ask why I care, or why it matters to me. And I think I covered that pretty well in my first two blogs. People kill themselves and others in the names of their Gods, and these fairytales are causing wars and havoc on the world. I am weary of it all. I want the world to stop disagreeing on which imaginary friend is real, and just get along. Love and forgive and live and let live.
Maybe you feel I should let Christians believe what they want to believe. That would be fine if they didn’t feel the need to preach to the entire world, and make people in 3rd world countries so afraid of their God that they make a law to serve the death penalty to anyone who dares be homosexual. Don’t you see this has to stop? I focus on Christianity because I live in America, where it runs rampant, and tries to control what all of us do. To remove our right to be free and independent, and to have the freedoms our UN-Christian founding fathers wanted us to have.
This is almost it for part one. In the next part I will cover the bible itself. I want to start with some contradictions and atrocities. Please do not apologize for the bible. There are enough apologists in the world, and I have always believed that if God is as powerful as he says he is, and his followers believe he is, then he doesn’t need people fucking apologizing for him. Wouldn’t you agree?
Once I cover the various contradictions and atrocities I found on my own and through others I will cover how the bible came to be. I am going to try to do this in the same order as I learned it. And I hope someone can benefit from learning what I have learned.
I care because of people like the suicide bombers. I care because of the people of God who hold signs that say God hates fags. I care because those same fucking people holding them signs are hypocrites. They have their own sins to deal with. I care because Jesus told them to remove the log from their own eye, and they refuse to do so. Because they run around calling everyone sinners, and don’t follow a LICK of what their supposed Savior taught. Judge not, lest ye be judged. I could go on.
I care because of people like Harold Camping. I care because I am tired of people smiling when they talk about their God coming back to throw 97% of the world in a fiery hell to burn forever. And smile again when they speak of how horrid it will be for us once they are raptured into the sky. What kind of sick individual smiles at the thought of 97% of the world left behind to deal with the largest worldwide earthquakes ever? What kind of individual would pray that to happen?
I don’t want people to teach their children that they are not good enough anymore. That they were born with a horrid sinful nature, because a long time ago their descendents listened to a talking fucking snake and ate an apple. I don’t want children to be taught that the same Savior that loves them so much is sick of their wickedness. That he is going to come back with fire and brimstone, and earthquakes and death. I don’t want fear to grip the heart of children like that. It isn’t fair.
I want people to stop saying Jesus made a sacrifice for my sins, when he sacrificed nothing. According to their book once he was done suffering on earth he was given a beautiful place next to the right hand of God. He lives in heaven and has it made. His daddy is going to let him rip apart the world, and then rule it with an iron fist for 1000 years.
I am tired of children thinking they are not good enough without Jesus, and that without him they cannot do anything. Tired of them not being able to take credit for their own accomplishments without being called prideful; sinful. Tired of families passing their beliefs onto their children, without giving the children a chance to decide for themselves.
After all, had I been born in Asia I would be more concerned with Buddhism. India and I would have been more concerned with Hinduism. The Middle East and I would be more concerned with Islam. Can’t you see that people only claim religions because they were born into them? Not in all cases, but in most. We just accept what our parents tell us, because well, they are our parents. And we are brainwashed to believe what we end up believing. What is the difference if a Muslim trains his child to tie bombs to his waist, or a Christian trains his child to be a martyr for God? Nothing aside from the bomb. Both teach their children it may be necessary to die for their God, and it sickens me.
Go to you tube and watch the Jesus Camp Documentary. Go. I dare you to watch it, and to tell me that is how we should train our children. And if you say it is not you cannot believe the bible, because according to the bible we should. You tell me as you watch that woman who runs the camp make them children feel bad about themselves that is what any God would want. You tell me how it made you feel inside when you listened to her tell them God said they were one thing at school and another at church. You watch all them children start crying, and come up to have a bottled water poured on their hands to be cleansed, and you tell me their isn’t something twisted about that.
The woman that tried to kill herself and her two daughters to save them from the apocalypse is a prime example of what that fear can do when taught. She was taught these things as a child, and everywhere she looks she sees signs of the times, and then she hears the rapture is coming May 21st. She loved her kids so much that she wanted to spare them a meeting with the God she believed in, and probably taught her children to believe in. See what that fear can do? She would rather face the depths of hell forever than to let God have one go at her children. And she wasn’t the only one.
Until next time…
Tuesday, May 24, 2011
Life After Religion
Since leaving religion I am such a happier person. Most Christians would most likely say that it is because I enjoy my sin. Well, I'll be honest...I enjoy some of what they call sin. I mean my sex life is off the hook good. I am married, but I am not so sure Christians would approve of some of the things we do, or the fantasies we have contemplating fulfilling. I don't care, either. The sharing of our desires as only brought us closer together. We no longer feel isolated and alone, like we are dirty little sinners. Freedom to express ourselves has done wonders. We finally trust each other completely. Do you know how great that is?
And I apologize if you don't care to know that, but the truth is all religions fixate on sex the most. Why? It is human nature to have sex. It is how we pleasure ourselves, how we reproduce, and let's all be honest here...you know you like sex, too. And that you would love to be fully open with someone who is interested in making your dirty little fantasies come true. Well, maybe it's just me...but I doubt it.
Life after religion has proven to be wonderful. And not because I can wallow in my sick little sins, either. If you continue reading you will find the way I live my life to be pretty average. And my self esteem has improved a hundred fold now that I am not told week after week what a horrible sinner I am. Since I am no longer listening to people fill my head with nonsense, such as I was born in original sin that I did not originally commit.
I think about life a lot. The one thing I want to be sure of is that I have no regrets. That I use my mistakes, the times I get it so wrong, the guilt of the past to learn the lessons I need to prevent repeating the same. There are some folks that have said I think too much, and maybe that is true. But my truth is I want to live the best life I can live. And as I learn how to do that I want to share it with the world.
What does the best life entail? That question would be answered differently by almost every person in the world. But for me…the best life I can live is to overcome cycles, learn from my mistakes, and be the best wife and mother I can be. To learn how to be confident in all my relationships. To be the daughter, sister, friend anyone would be proud to claim. To be known for changing lives. Turning light bulbs on inside the darkness that lives within people.
Maybe that his why I like the Biggest Loser so much. People tease me quite often for it, but I don’t watch it to see cellulite jiggle on scales, or because obese people turn me on. I watch it because these people change from the inside out, and that is how it must be done. If we don’t change the inside the outside becomes a lie. I would much rather have overweight positive friends that are beautiful on the inside, than skinny backstabbing friends who are ugly as sin within. And as you watch the show you can tell the exact week a trainer switched on that light bulb; where once lived only the darkest of shadows. It’s a feel good show. And I like to feel good. I like to see others feel good. To overcome things in their life. It gives me hope, inspiration, and the knowing it can be done.
I traveled so many paths to get to the place I am at today. Some of them aided me in my journey; others hindered me along the way. But I wouldn’t change any of it, because it all taught me something. It helped me grow up when I didn’t know how. When I wanted to keep making excuses to stay the way I was. To remain that unhappy, feel sorry for self, insecure little girl I had been for so long.
The one thing I constantly repeat is replacement thought therapy. It really works for me. I know that for different people it might take different measures, but for me it is the ability to choose my thoughts. The realization that I don’t have to let my thoughts control me, my day, the outcome of a situation. I can choose to think differently. And after all, any change in you must begin with a changed thought. If you want to lose weight you don’t give in to the thought that pops in your head to skip that workout or eat that cookie. You tell that thought it has no power over you, and you say out loud I would much rather have this yogurt, and working out is fun. For even if it starts as a lie it will become your truth.
My life is far from perfect. There are days I would rather be anywhere but here. But I have learned life isn’t about perfection. It is about being okay with your best when your best really and truly is your best. It’s about looking behind you to see the progress you have already made, and letting it fuel you to go even further.
We have blow out moments in this house. My daughters fight like WWE champions some days. They get upset and they make us upset. In that moment I always have the choice to be the parent, to keep my patience, to not yell, to handle it creatively. But sometimes I fail to do that. I scream and yell for them to stop, to go to their rooms, to get out of my face. I am not proud of that. But I am proud of the fact that I do it less and less all the time. And when I do get it wrong I am humble enough to apologize to my children. To tell them I am learning as I go, and I need their forgiveness. And then we sit down and we make lists of the bad versus the good in our life, to remind us that we get it right far more than we get it wrong. And the one thing that keeps me doing it is the smile on their faces when we are through. The thank you momma, I feel better that lands on ears.
And isn’t that enough? Isn’t it okay to be human and admit that you are a work in progress? I’d rather do that than to pretend I know it all, that I am perfect, or that I know more than the rest of the world. I’ve been there, done that, and I don’t want the damn t-shirt.
When I think about life I think about what I want to look back on at night when the kids are asleep. Do I want to feel bad about how we handled a situation? Do I want to spend the night feeling guilty that I could have done something different? Do I want to wallow in the guilt thinking I am the only one in the world? Or do I want to make sure all is well in our world, so we can all let it go and be at peace? Do I want to let the guilt fuel me to do better, so I don’t feel it next time? Do I want to remind myself that EVERY PERSON IN THE WORLD gets it wrong sometimes. I am NOT alone.
I think about what I want to remember next week when someone mentions this one. Do I want to look back and cringe? Do I want to look back and wish I would have tried a little harder? Or do I want to look back and smile knowing we gave it our best, and let that be good enough to carry us through?
Because even when Dan and I do snap at each other it is never an actual argument. It is over quickly. And if you knew us five, six, seven years ago…that is fucking progress. And I let that progress remind me that we can take it even further. And even when I do yell at my children I don’t just let them think whatever they want. I go to them. I apologize, and we spend time together reminding ourselves of the good. And so when I look back I think yes, we had a bad moment, but look how we handled it. We didn’t dwell on it, and let it turn into an entire bad day.
And that makes me smile. For if I did not apologize, if arguments were fueled by the snapping, if I did not take time to make my children feel better I wouldn’t be able to do that. I would back and only know I should have, would have, could have done better.
I think of what I want to remember when I am old. When Dan and I are sitting on our porch swing, or in matching chairs on the porch. What will we have to talk about? Will we be silent, knowing our children never come around, because we didn’t love them enough? Will we be able to look back without sorrowful tears? Will we be surrounded by our kids and our grand kids? Will we have family dinners once a week?
I don’t know the answer to some of them questions. What I do know is that I want to love and be loved. That I want to show the world that best things in life are NOT things. That I want my children to want to be around me. I want to know, one day, what it’s like to have a grandchild. I want to be as happy with my husband as I am today; even happier. I want us both to look back without regret. To know that we did our best to change, to teach our children, and to turn around our lives. And the best thing about it is that we talk about it together. He and I both thank each other all the time. It’s amazing that after what we put each other through today we are more in love than ever. Ten years and we have only aged sweet; like fine wine. We still love each other, even more than we did. We are still attracted to one another, and chase each other around the house, and life is good.
And I know that if I want those things in the future I have to work for them now. Because anything you want that bad you have to work to achieve. Getting it wrong is easy. It takes persistence, consistency, and hard work to get it right. But isn’t it worth it?
It’s not that we never get it wrong. We have just learned to let it go quickly, and not take it all so damn personal. Sometimes the kids are mad at each other when they scream at us. They don’t mean to scream at us. Sometimes he had a bad day at work and the snappy reply isn’t meant for me at all. Or maybe I am overwhelmed with school, the house, a cake, whatever; and I don’t even realize I am being a bitch. I would never purposefully hurt him or the kids, and I know they wouldn’t do it to me, either.
When things go wrong it doesn’t last long. If the kids are being ridiculous I don’t say it out loud. Well, I try to remember not to. I am still learning. But what has helped is that instead of saying, “These kids are getting on my nerves.” I say, “I love my kids, and they love me, and this too shall pass.” I take a deep breath or two and tackle the situation.
When school overwhelms me, and I want to give it up I don’t say it out loud. Not in that moment of real frustration. I say instead, “School is a great thing. It will benefit our family so much, and I can do this.” I remind myself of what this education will mean in terms of our financial future and benefits for our family.
When people I love get on my nerves I speak the good things I love about them out loud, and remind myself everyone has off days; including me. It enables me to forgive quickly and not stay focused on things that were never meant to hurt me. Life is so preciously short, and I don’t want to waste it.
So when I post positive things. When I say life is good. When I mention what an amazing husband I have. When I say how proud I am of my kids I mean it. Because life IS good. It wasn’t always, but I have vowed for years that one day it would be. And today I can honestly say it is. Only because I have replaced negative thinking with positive thinking. I have stopped complaining and starting being grateful. Life really does give you back what you put out there. Call it karma, call it reaping and sowing, call it what you will. But even science has a thing or two on the subject you should study.
I have so much more to say, but I am exhausted. I need to start some laundry, and I need to contact paper my kitchen cupboards. And this is a perfect example. I am tired as they come. There was a huge part of me that starting resenting the laundry. But I reminded myself how it was ten years ago. There is one person that can vouch for me if he’s reading this; but he doesn’t have to.
I would sort and put laundry in several large trash bags. Then I would tie those bags to a double stroller, and pack four back packs for four small children, so they would have toys and crayons to stay busy. Then I would walk, pushing the stroller through snow and ice, kids in tow for blocks and blocks to a laundry mat. I would have to spend four hours chasing children, washing, drying, and placing those clothes in clean bags. Tie them all up, pack the backpacks up again, and walk blocks and blocks back home through the snow and ice, with small children in tow. I had to do this once every couple weeks. And it took hours and hours to put it all away.
So I don’t complain. I remind myself how much easier it is to carry baskets, one at a time, to the basement. How I should cherish the fact that I have a washer and dryer in my home. I don’t have to go out in the cold, walk through winter, chase children. Life is always going to be what we tell ourselves it is, folks. Plain and simple.
Have a great night.
Religion is Bullshit
I spent most of my life feeling unloved and unwanted. I had a very unhealthy self esteem, and thought I didn’t deserve, and would never have love. This led me through various paths of trying to seek that love. I tried boys, excelling in academics, throwing myself at men, and self help. Eventually, I was drawn to the christian religion.
My family did not bring me up in a religious home. But there were Sundays here and there where my mother wanted a break, so she sent us kids off on the church bus. So I had been familiar with the basics. I understood the religion to be one of love, but I have found out since that is not the whole truth. In fact, it is far removed from the truth.
When I first came to the religion I wanted nothing more than to please God. So I read my bible about six hours a day. The more I read the more I realized something was not quite right. In one verse in particular Jesus states, “The people draw near to me with their mouth, and honor me with their lips, but their heart is far from me. In vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrine the commandments and traditions of men.” Matthew 15:8-9. This led me to wonder what those commandments and traditions of men were, so I began to seek. After all, the bible says seek and ye shall find. And boy did I find out a whole lot of shit.
The first thing I came across was the commandments. The Catholic Church removed the second commandment completely. Meaning it became okay to have idols. Even christian churches have idols. Ever seen the man hanging on the cross above the pastor’s podium? Think about it. Ever wear a cross around your neck? You are no better than those bowing to the statues of Mary. Anything you have that resembles what Jesus may look like, crosses on your wall, etc are a complete breaking of the second commandment. I threw all my stuff away.
Next I found that the fourth commandment was changed by the Catholic Church. They wanted you to still keep the day holy, but they changed which day that was. Rather than the seventh day, Saturday, they hold services on Sunday. And it doesn’t matter what you tell the Sunday going Christians, because they simply say, “God knows my heart.” You bet he does, I thought. And your heart should be to remove anything considered an idol, and to remove yourself from churches and keep the sabbath at home. So that is what we did. Some of the most boring Saturdays of our lives, but we pressed on.
The more I learned the more heartbroken I became. For next I wondered what traditions Jesus was speaking of. I mean I loved Jesus very much, and wouldn’t want to worship in vain. So I kept moving forward, ever learning, ever giving things up, ever feeling less than good enough. Well, you know how everyone always says they want to put Christ back in Christmas? He was never there. Christmas traditions are pagan in nature, and started as a winter solstice. They burnt their children to the sun god, RA, on yule logs for 12 days. There are twelve months in the year, and December is the darkest. They wanted to make sure the sun would come back for their crops. So they appeased it. Not to mention lying is an abomination to God, and you lie to your children telling them there is a Santa, and reindeer, etc.
Easter has nothing to do with the resurrection of Christ, either. Ever wondered why we use eggs and bunnies in celebration? It was a tribute to Ishtar, the goddess of fertility. So we gave up Easter, and on it went.
I had stopped smoking marijuana for quite some time at that point. But over the course of time my head became so full of voices. Many called, few chosen. I was so afraid. The more I learned about this religion and its God the more I had to give up. And I felt so guilty for what I couldn’t give up. I felt doomed to burn an eternal death in the hell.
I wanted to die. I became suicidal for the first time in my life. I began locking myself in the bathroom at night while everyone was sleeping. I wold smoke weed until the voices hushed enough for me to fall asleep, and not kill myself that particular night. And I pressed forward afraid not to scream what I learned to the rest of the world. Because the bible always tells me to spread the word. So I did.
I alienated people I love. I found out that the christian God’s love comes at a high price, and is not at all unconditional. In fact, it is THEE most conditional love you will ever work to obtain. He is never fucking satisfied. You a worthless in his eyes, and nothing you can do is ever good enough.
Over time I continued to learn. I learned that Constantine is responsible for the bible we have today, and the reason some books were left out. I found out that many of the christian practices were pagan; down to the fish symbolism that represented age of Pisces. Which shouldn’t surprise anyone who knows their history, because Constantine believed in Mithra, and mixed his traditions in with his new found Christianity. And if any of the books were found lacking he threw them out. Google the council of Nicaea.
I found the bible contradicts itself over a hundred times. And if the bible is proven to be a simple book full of error what about the religion? And if the religion is proven false what does that say about their God?
But I tarried on learning and learning and growing ever more mad through the fear. Eventually the anger replaced the fear, and I am now at a place where I find peace in other things. But not in religion and not in any god.
Religion is very geographical. Had I been born in China no doubt my parents would have taught me Buddhism, and I would have became a Buddhist, because after all my parents are people I can trust. And I would have made my own children practice Buddhist traditions. Same goes had I been born in the Middle East. I would today worship Allah. And India I would be a Hindu. But because I was born in America I was taught about Jesus. Family cycles are a curse. From abuse to religion the traditions are carried out, over and again, until finally someone uses common sense and reason, which if you believe in God must be God given. Why in the hell wouldn’t he want you to use it?
Christians in particular use the bible like a buffet. They pick and choose which parts they want to follow. The are hypocritical. Jesus said let all who follow him forsake everything, including parents, wives, children, and follow him. He said to give away all you own, and have no place to lay your head. Jesus said if you lust after a woman with your eyes you should pluck them out, and if your right hand offends you cut it off. See any Christians doing these things? Not any I know. They’ll tell you it’s metaphorical, and you need to say a prayer to ask Jesus into your heart. Where in the fucking bible does it say that? NOWHERE. The sinners prayer is NOT biblical.
Needless to say I am no longer a Christian, and firmly believe it can be harmful to our society if religion interferes with state. There must be a clear separation between the two. I do not need the Ten Commandments on a courthouse to remind not to kill. I do not need a God who is more evil and sinister than any human I’ve ever met to tell me what is right and wrong.
You know it really make you question things when the innocent sense of justice in your child questions God. And all Christians say don’t question God, his ways are higher than your ways, and his thoughts higher than your thoughts. And even the atrocities in the book are okay, because God committed them. He is good even when we don’t understand it.
This is a God who dashed infants against stones, condoned the rape and slaughter of innocent victims, ripped fetuses from the wombs of their mothers, commanded bears to attack and kill children who made fun of a man for being bald, and whose wrath most of America welcomes. And when my daughter says, “Mom, why would God kill innocent babies?” I cannot just tell her what most Christians tell their children.
If I go murder my entire town does it make it okay if I said God told me to do it? Why then, is it okay for the people of the bible to write the same exact words down in a book and you believe it? You wouldn’t believe it if anyone walked up and said that to you today. You would laugh and mock them. But you believe what MAN wrote down thousands of years ago, and it is NO different than today.
Here is why I refuse to continue teaching my children Christianity:
You teach your child when they are born that they are not good enough. You teach them that because of all their horrid sinful shortcomings they need a Savior. You tell them this Savior loves them so much he died as a sacrifice, but the truth is...he didn't sacrifice anything. I mean, he isn't dead, right? He is in a better place, next to the right hand of the Father. So yes, he suffered on the cross, but he was rewarded greatly for doing so, according to your holy book.
But you teach your children this. And they feel as if they are not good enough without Jesus. So they eventually, through the trust they place in you, accept this as fact. Then you teach them that this same Savior who loves them so much is sick of their sin, so he is going to come back one day real fucking pissed off with fire and brimstone. There will be earthquakes and famine and horrors you cannot imagine.
You create a low self esteem and a fear that is unexplainable. A fear that made a mother slice the throats of her two children to spare them the wrath of this fucking god. A fear that made a mother suffocate her six old son to spare him the wrath of this fucking god. A fear that made a grown ass 70 year old man jump five stories to his death, because he believed in the wrath of this god. And you wonder then why atheists take on things such as this?
Today I am happy to say that I don’t need to believe in God to be good. In fact, it was harder to do the right thing when I thought God was watching. The temptation of doing anything taboo was too much. Now I don’t have that problem. Odd, don’t you think?
It is human nature to desire things. It is not the christian place to tell you whether them things are sinful or not. I say just get up everyday, and give your best. And be okay with your best. Let what will be…just be.
If you struggle with negativity or other issues use replacement through therapy, or if your case is severe enough seek medical help. Leave the rules and regulations of religion behind. For the son of God found in the christian religion does not set you free. Rather, you will find more chains to bind you than ever before.
Think about this, wouldn't the fact that Jesus predicted his second coming to happen BEFORE those standing before him tasted of death make him a false prophet? The bible states that you know if someone is from God by whether or not what they say comes to pass. And Jesus DID say he would come back BEFORE some standing there were dead. They’ve been dead over 2000 years now. I bet they’re pissed.
RELIGION and DOGMA and FUNDAMENTALISTS are ALL wrong. It isn't about the damn rules...sigh. If more people stopped focusing on the rules and just learned to love each other the world might be a better place. But GOD FORBID that happen. Because religion says when the world unites it’s a sign of the end. It’s always a sign of the end.
And why would you want to worship a God who accepts child molesters and murderers in the name of his son, but won’t accept a good moral person who didn’t believe? I would rather burn in hell with good moral people, than to spend an eternity with child molesters and thieves.
Sigh...the wrath of god. Why is this damn god so angry all the time? Please, tell me? He knows everything from beginning to end, so you say, right? Then he knew Lucifer would fall. He knew he would take a third of the angels. He knew when he formed me in my mother's womb whether I was prepared for heaven or hell. Why bother creating me if only for hell? To be a pawn in the game of good and evil? Makes no sense.
Makes no sense to allow so many religions and holy books that are anything but good. Have you ever actually read your bible? It is what finally made me stop claiming religion, and move over to agnostic. If god is just he cannot truly place anyone in hell. For fucks sake I did not ask him to form me in my mother's womb. Why do I get punished for using the common sense, brains, and logic he supposedly gave me? Either he was bored one day and we suffer the consequence, or he isn't real. Your call.
And yes God did break his own commands. He told them do not kill and then he killed and commanded them to kill. He told them do not steal but then commanded them to pillage the places they took over once all the men were killed and virgin women claimed. So what does he expect us to do?
And I am sick and tired of people saying America is a christian nation. NO WE ARE NOT! The founding fathers were victims of religious tyranny, and founded America for freedom from religion. You have the right to believe whatever you want. But don’t you dare put it in our schools, courthouses, etc. It’s just plain wrong.
God was not part of America until 1954, when it was added to the pledge of allegiance. In fact, the treaty of Tripoli states that the United States was "in no sense founded on the Christian religion". That in no sense was an idle statement. They said it and meant it. It was written under George Washington and signed under the Presidency of John Adams.
Thomas Jefferson cut out parts of the bible he didn’t like or believe and made up his own bible. The founding fathers were deists, not Christians.
And sometimes, I wonder if Christianity is not the deception that fooled the people of the world.
For today I end with a Thomas Jefferson quote:
“The day will come when the mystical generation of Jesus by the Supreme Being in the womb of a virgin, will be classed with the fable of the generation of Minerva in the brain of Jupiter.”
My family did not bring me up in a religious home. But there were Sundays here and there where my mother wanted a break, so she sent us kids off on the church bus. So I had been familiar with the basics. I understood the religion to be one of love, but I have found out since that is not the whole truth. In fact, it is far removed from the truth.
When I first came to the religion I wanted nothing more than to please God. So I read my bible about six hours a day. The more I read the more I realized something was not quite right. In one verse in particular Jesus states, “The people draw near to me with their mouth, and honor me with their lips, but their heart is far from me. In vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrine the commandments and traditions of men.” Matthew 15:8-9. This led me to wonder what those commandments and traditions of men were, so I began to seek. After all, the bible says seek and ye shall find. And boy did I find out a whole lot of shit.
The first thing I came across was the commandments. The Catholic Church removed the second commandment completely. Meaning it became okay to have idols. Even christian churches have idols. Ever seen the man hanging on the cross above the pastor’s podium? Think about it. Ever wear a cross around your neck? You are no better than those bowing to the statues of Mary. Anything you have that resembles what Jesus may look like, crosses on your wall, etc are a complete breaking of the second commandment. I threw all my stuff away.
Next I found that the fourth commandment was changed by the Catholic Church. They wanted you to still keep the day holy, but they changed which day that was. Rather than the seventh day, Saturday, they hold services on Sunday. And it doesn’t matter what you tell the Sunday going Christians, because they simply say, “God knows my heart.” You bet he does, I thought. And your heart should be to remove anything considered an idol, and to remove yourself from churches and keep the sabbath at home. So that is what we did. Some of the most boring Saturdays of our lives, but we pressed on.
The more I learned the more heartbroken I became. For next I wondered what traditions Jesus was speaking of. I mean I loved Jesus very much, and wouldn’t want to worship in vain. So I kept moving forward, ever learning, ever giving things up, ever feeling less than good enough. Well, you know how everyone always says they want to put Christ back in Christmas? He was never there. Christmas traditions are pagan in nature, and started as a winter solstice. They burnt their children to the sun god, RA, on yule logs for 12 days. There are twelve months in the year, and December is the darkest. They wanted to make sure the sun would come back for their crops. So they appeased it. Not to mention lying is an abomination to God, and you lie to your children telling them there is a Santa, and reindeer, etc.
Easter has nothing to do with the resurrection of Christ, either. Ever wondered why we use eggs and bunnies in celebration? It was a tribute to Ishtar, the goddess of fertility. So we gave up Easter, and on it went.
I had stopped smoking marijuana for quite some time at that point. But over the course of time my head became so full of voices. Many called, few chosen. I was so afraid. The more I learned about this religion and its God the more I had to give up. And I felt so guilty for what I couldn’t give up. I felt doomed to burn an eternal death in the hell.
I wanted to die. I became suicidal for the first time in my life. I began locking myself in the bathroom at night while everyone was sleeping. I wold smoke weed until the voices hushed enough for me to fall asleep, and not kill myself that particular night. And I pressed forward afraid not to scream what I learned to the rest of the world. Because the bible always tells me to spread the word. So I did.
I alienated people I love. I found out that the christian God’s love comes at a high price, and is not at all unconditional. In fact, it is THEE most conditional love you will ever work to obtain. He is never fucking satisfied. You a worthless in his eyes, and nothing you can do is ever good enough.
Over time I continued to learn. I learned that Constantine is responsible for the bible we have today, and the reason some books were left out. I found out that many of the christian practices were pagan; down to the fish symbolism that represented age of Pisces. Which shouldn’t surprise anyone who knows their history, because Constantine believed in Mithra, and mixed his traditions in with his new found Christianity. And if any of the books were found lacking he threw them out. Google the council of Nicaea.
I found the bible contradicts itself over a hundred times. And if the bible is proven to be a simple book full of error what about the religion? And if the religion is proven false what does that say about their God?
But I tarried on learning and learning and growing ever more mad through the fear. Eventually the anger replaced the fear, and I am now at a place where I find peace in other things. But not in religion and not in any god.
Religion is very geographical. Had I been born in China no doubt my parents would have taught me Buddhism, and I would have became a Buddhist, because after all my parents are people I can trust. And I would have made my own children practice Buddhist traditions. Same goes had I been born in the Middle East. I would today worship Allah. And India I would be a Hindu. But because I was born in America I was taught about Jesus. Family cycles are a curse. From abuse to religion the traditions are carried out, over and again, until finally someone uses common sense and reason, which if you believe in God must be God given. Why in the hell wouldn’t he want you to use it?
Christians in particular use the bible like a buffet. They pick and choose which parts they want to follow. The are hypocritical. Jesus said let all who follow him forsake everything, including parents, wives, children, and follow him. He said to give away all you own, and have no place to lay your head. Jesus said if you lust after a woman with your eyes you should pluck them out, and if your right hand offends you cut it off. See any Christians doing these things? Not any I know. They’ll tell you it’s metaphorical, and you need to say a prayer to ask Jesus into your heart. Where in the fucking bible does it say that? NOWHERE. The sinners prayer is NOT biblical.
Needless to say I am no longer a Christian, and firmly believe it can be harmful to our society if religion interferes with state. There must be a clear separation between the two. I do not need the Ten Commandments on a courthouse to remind not to kill. I do not need a God who is more evil and sinister than any human I’ve ever met to tell me what is right and wrong.
You know it really make you question things when the innocent sense of justice in your child questions God. And all Christians say don’t question God, his ways are higher than your ways, and his thoughts higher than your thoughts. And even the atrocities in the book are okay, because God committed them. He is good even when we don’t understand it.
This is a God who dashed infants against stones, condoned the rape and slaughter of innocent victims, ripped fetuses from the wombs of their mothers, commanded bears to attack and kill children who made fun of a man for being bald, and whose wrath most of America welcomes. And when my daughter says, “Mom, why would God kill innocent babies?” I cannot just tell her what most Christians tell their children.
If I go murder my entire town does it make it okay if I said God told me to do it? Why then, is it okay for the people of the bible to write the same exact words down in a book and you believe it? You wouldn’t believe it if anyone walked up and said that to you today. You would laugh and mock them. But you believe what MAN wrote down thousands of years ago, and it is NO different than today.
Here is why I refuse to continue teaching my children Christianity:
You teach your child when they are born that they are not good enough. You teach them that because of all their horrid sinful shortcomings they need a Savior. You tell them this Savior loves them so much he died as a sacrifice, but the truth is...he didn't sacrifice anything. I mean, he isn't dead, right? He is in a better place, next to the right hand of the Father. So yes, he suffered on the cross, but he was rewarded greatly for doing so, according to your holy book.
But you teach your children this. And they feel as if they are not good enough without Jesus. So they eventually, through the trust they place in you, accept this as fact. Then you teach them that this same Savior who loves them so much is sick of their sin, so he is going to come back one day real fucking pissed off with fire and brimstone. There will be earthquakes and famine and horrors you cannot imagine.
You create a low self esteem and a fear that is unexplainable. A fear that made a mother slice the throats of her two children to spare them the wrath of this fucking god. A fear that made a mother suffocate her six old son to spare him the wrath of this fucking god. A fear that made a grown ass 70 year old man jump five stories to his death, because he believed in the wrath of this god. And you wonder then why atheists take on things such as this?
Today I am happy to say that I don’t need to believe in God to be good. In fact, it was harder to do the right thing when I thought God was watching. The temptation of doing anything taboo was too much. Now I don’t have that problem. Odd, don’t you think?
It is human nature to desire things. It is not the christian place to tell you whether them things are sinful or not. I say just get up everyday, and give your best. And be okay with your best. Let what will be…just be.
If you struggle with negativity or other issues use replacement through therapy, or if your case is severe enough seek medical help. Leave the rules and regulations of religion behind. For the son of God found in the christian religion does not set you free. Rather, you will find more chains to bind you than ever before.
Think about this, wouldn't the fact that Jesus predicted his second coming to happen BEFORE those standing before him tasted of death make him a false prophet? The bible states that you know if someone is from God by whether or not what they say comes to pass. And Jesus DID say he would come back BEFORE some standing there were dead. They’ve been dead over 2000 years now. I bet they’re pissed.
RELIGION and DOGMA and FUNDAMENTALISTS are ALL wrong. It isn't about the damn rules...sigh. If more people stopped focusing on the rules and just learned to love each other the world might be a better place. But GOD FORBID that happen. Because religion says when the world unites it’s a sign of the end. It’s always a sign of the end.
And why would you want to worship a God who accepts child molesters and murderers in the name of his son, but won’t accept a good moral person who didn’t believe? I would rather burn in hell with good moral people, than to spend an eternity with child molesters and thieves.
Sigh...the wrath of god. Why is this damn god so angry all the time? Please, tell me? He knows everything from beginning to end, so you say, right? Then he knew Lucifer would fall. He knew he would take a third of the angels. He knew when he formed me in my mother's womb whether I was prepared for heaven or hell. Why bother creating me if only for hell? To be a pawn in the game of good and evil? Makes no sense.
Makes no sense to allow so many religions and holy books that are anything but good. Have you ever actually read your bible? It is what finally made me stop claiming religion, and move over to agnostic. If god is just he cannot truly place anyone in hell. For fucks sake I did not ask him to form me in my mother's womb. Why do I get punished for using the common sense, brains, and logic he supposedly gave me? Either he was bored one day and we suffer the consequence, or he isn't real. Your call.
And yes God did break his own commands. He told them do not kill and then he killed and commanded them to kill. He told them do not steal but then commanded them to pillage the places they took over once all the men were killed and virgin women claimed. So what does he expect us to do?
And I am sick and tired of people saying America is a christian nation. NO WE ARE NOT! The founding fathers were victims of religious tyranny, and founded America for freedom from religion. You have the right to believe whatever you want. But don’t you dare put it in our schools, courthouses, etc. It’s just plain wrong.
God was not part of America until 1954, when it was added to the pledge of allegiance. In fact, the treaty of Tripoli states that the United States was "in no sense founded on the Christian religion". That in no sense was an idle statement. They said it and meant it. It was written under George Washington and signed under the Presidency of John Adams.
Thomas Jefferson cut out parts of the bible he didn’t like or believe and made up his own bible. The founding fathers were deists, not Christians.
And sometimes, I wonder if Christianity is not the deception that fooled the people of the world.
For today I end with a Thomas Jefferson quote:
“The day will come when the mystical generation of Jesus by the Supreme Being in the womb of a virgin, will be classed with the fable of the generation of Minerva in the brain of Jupiter.”
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