Not Weird (So Why Is It Here?)  (Ehh . . .)

And lo, Culture and Religion wed one another and are seen as one so people doth have a hard time separating the two. Thus, upon thee we gift; the christian conservative, the muslim terrorist and pacifistic buddhist, for but a few examples.

Interesting article in the New Yorker Chuck. I find the Bible very, very weird reading along with the beliefs of some of the fundamental and/or mainstream Christian churches. I failed my parents traditional Christian churches youth confirmation class because I questioned what it had to say about creation and was reading the "adult sections" of the Old Testament along with other things. I was like only 10 or 11. The Youth Minister told me I was sure to go to hell and I did in southeast Asia a few years later. He was at least right on that. So they cast me out, (no stones) and the local religious rebels in the Unitarian Fellowship found me and I was saved, well for a while anyway. And yes, Kim Davis does need to read the Bible again along with the couple of politicians and other misguided souls supporting her. I wonder if the people from Colorado brought some of the legal magical green leafy substance with them to help chill out during the protests?

OK,
A. She has beliefs, good for her, everyone needs to believe something.
B. She took an oath to serve the public and uphold the law when she took office.

A clashes with B, so she should:
C. Change her beliefs. (Nope, I wouldn't either.) or,
D. Resign the office that forces her to violate her beliefs.

She should not refuse to give up either, and expect special dispensation from both God and Man, That's sheer hubris.

Just checked. UniversalWeird.com is, in fact, available for purchase. It's kinda catchy. Should we make a change?

Ms. Davis is a Democrat.

Someone is actually expecting her to make sense?

@Chuck: Yes, well written but the theme has been hashed and rehashed ad nauseum. You just can't cure 'stupid' or 'religious fanaticism.'

@Alex: I'd check again and if it was still here for the taking, grab it! If some squatter is sitting on it may they enjoy their possession. I see http://www.photosby.me has, finally be bought by a real person after I checked on the availabilty but once and found out that it was 'for sale' only 24 hrs later.

@An Observation
I was raised up on King James' translation of The Bible in the Mo. Synod Lutheran church. 13years of Sunday-go-to-meetin' without a break. I was baptised Catholic at the ripe old age of 10 minutes, a Lutheran version 9 years later freed me from that stain, and I narrowly escaped with my uniform on when I got married in the Greek Orthodox church down the road. (I guess a double whammy sufficed there.) I've read the Bible a few times cover to cover, visited many a site mentioned in the Book, and, as many of you who frequent this august site have noted I have a marked disdain for organized religion. No religion that I've ever had an opportunity to observe at length sticks to the tenets of their holy book(s). No set or sect of the fanatics of any of them really follow 'the rules' but, pick and choose as they require to forward their ends.

That said I'd like to make that aforementioned observation at this time: The Bible is comprised of several books and writing attributed to various individuals of note and Biblical fame. What most (if not all) adherents of that book don't realize, or are taught, is that not one of those documents, letters, or psalms was translated from an original writing. In fact, hundreds and hundreds of years and no one knows how many times the copy of a copy of a copy was eventually found and retranslated how many times. Further, what was included and (more importantly) what was to be excluded was decided at the Council of Nicaea by a group of men that, by today's standards, could be condemned for any number of reasons. Then, the modern day translations begin and continue.

So, IMO, The Bible is a good book to read. One that tells a good story and, in some cases, can give one the guiding light they need to keep it all together. Organized religion, on the other hand, can be a self serving, power hungry business playing upon those who would accept the ever-changing rules as 'God's Word'

My 2¢.

I probably should have added a winking smiley. Wasn't actually serious about changing name of site to "Universal Weird".

Heaven forfend that ANYONE would think that you'd commit such sacrilege but correlating web names is a good idea. Keeps the riff-raff and hoi polloi at a distance and as the good Lord knows, we don't need any more of either stumbling in here by mistake! 😉

Been wanting to get http://weirduniverse.com for a while, but the current owner wants $2988.00 for it. If he moves the decimal point over several places to the left I might be tempted to get it. But otherwise, he can keep it.

@Chuck that is a brilliant piece of writing! The author references more Bible quotes than most of those KD (she's had more than her 15 minutes no more name recognition from me) supporters including her likely even know. Thanks for recommending the article.


@ Captain DaFt I have said virtually the same thing. She has freedom of religion and if her religion does not allow her to do her Government job then she needs to resign and get one in the public sector. There are many jobs available(would you like fries with that?) just ask the President. When KD went to get her SECOND marriage license, you know, after her divorce good thing the county clerk was not a catholic or that person's religion might have precluded him/her from issuing one to KD. Catholics do not believe in or condone divorce, but those in the public sector (up to now) did not feel the need to be assholes about it to everyone else.

@Alex I like our name! 😉

It's not your fault that you can't understand real truths. See 1 Corinthians 2:14

And for a spiritual perspective on the issue, please read https://harryreeder.wordpress.com/2015/09/08/kim-davis-state-criminal-church-discipline/

The author of the article does not appear to understand common biblical understandings that have been around for 1000's of years. That most of today's religious conservatives would have been considered liberal a hundred years ago. And today's liberals would have only engaged in their debauchery behind locked doors.

So, the common understanding is that civil servants should resign if their consciences will not allow them to follow or enforce the law? Is that true for the President when he refused to enforce DOMA or continues to ignore illegal immigration laws? How about civil servants opposed to apartheid, slavery or the Holocaust?

Civil disobedience is most often used to gain rights for one class or another of people not to keep rights away from a group. Also, if God in his infinite wisdom gave us all free will then where do we get off denying it to each other?

Good point Patty! Let's not deny the free will of murderers and child molesters while we're at it.

Being deliberately obtuse just indicates you have no real argument. Judge lest not ye be judged. Let he who is without sin cast the first stone. Oh that's right, zealots only quote Bible verses that agree with their particular zealotry. When you've attained perfection then and only then should you start looking to the actions of others.

Expat 47,

So I go research the Council(s) of Nicaea, There were 7 over a period of years. Some religious wars had to be fought between them. They sounded much like congress attempting to make a decision about the budget. Much talk about gods, saints, popes, bishops, self castration, Satan and virgins, not sure if it was boys or girls. Lots of speculation about the trinity and if Jesus was a being or non-being. And they did set a date for Easter. So after wading through several pages I got bored and had a beer. If theses guys did the draft for the bible no wonder it is so confusing and hard to read. I'm going back to The Tao of Nature and Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, much lighter reading on religion if you ask me. If any of you out there need to get married I'm a Universal Life Minister so can do it legally most places. I have a friend who is a licensed ships Captain if you need to do it off shore.

I thought all you swamp rats believed in the Great Gator and made offerings to him with frozen chickens to lighten up on the skeeters and love-bugs and your annual meeting was held in Everglades City?

Expat 47,

Yes I do believe in the Great Gator. I lived in that very strange town of Everglades City for over three years. Every year they hold a Seafood Festival, a redneck event that locals demonstrate how much cheap beer they can consume, show off public intoxication, running airboats/swamp buggies around town on the grass or pavement, and well, just being happy, fun loving, good-old-boy rednecks. Like pouring cold beer down the cleavage of unsuspecting female tourists for a instant wet T-shirt effect. It was always packed for two days and raised a lot of money for the local volunteer fire/rescue squad, (I was a member of).
Now on offerings to the Great Gator in Everglades City. Done at night, under a full moon in the spring. Chum waters with cheap liquor and redneck piss. Ensure ample supplies of cheap whisky for participants. Use fresh, not frozen chicken at room temperature. As it approaches toss in the chicken and chant for a mosquito free summer and no Fish and Game Officers to interfere with seasonal poaching. On a side note, the preferred tourist food for attracting gators is extra crispy Kentucky Fried Chicken or marshmallows, or white poodles with rhinestone collars.

GASP!!

<< Judge lest not ye be judged. Let he who is without sin cast the first stone.>>

Exactly right. We should get rid of all our laws, for who are we to judge another's actions.