Img description: caligraphy which reads
"Belief
Initiates and guides action--
Or it does nothing"
This is part of a series of verses from Octavia Butler's Parable of the Sower.
seen from Saudi Arabia
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Img description: caligraphy which reads
"Belief
Initiates and guides action--
Or it does nothing"
This is part of a series of verses from Octavia Butler's Parable of the Sower.
Fuel for Bad Dreams
When I was young, I really considered becoming a priest or pastor. In the end, it certainly wasn't for me. The abject hypocrisy and belief that only humans had souls, and therefore only they would be allowed into heaven sent me packing pretty quick. Man, if my cat or dog wasn't in heaven I didn't want to be there.
With that aside, I have some terrible news for modern day Christians. In 100 years there will be a church dedicated to the worship of Donald Trump. We already have lots of "fundamentalist" churches preaching that he is the new King Cyrus or worse that Trump is the new Messiah.
Our country is so fond of creating cults and new religions for one reason or another that I can absolutely guarantee that we will have a church somewhere in this country that sings the praises of Trump long after he dies. They will accredit him with all sorts of miracles and good deeds. However, they will be especially fond of stories about his wrath against his enemies.
Now, here is the nightmare part. Where will this new religion be in 500 years? Maybe 1000? Are we witnessing the rise of the next major world religion? If Trump gets assassinated, yeah I can see he lives long past his life in the memories of his cultists. Hell, even if he isn't, some freaks are going to be worshipping him anyway, just as the modern day Nazi's still worship Hitler.
Shitposting absurd tlt theories/headcanons until I get Alecto News: day 7(if I missed a day oops my bad)
Do you think that the original Jod Squad left like, random notes around all over the place that became like, sacred texts randomly? And they might not even know it. Mercymorn, leaving snarky notes to Augustine in a language that became so archaic that it completely took on a different meaning; or maybe Pyrrha leaving G1deon bad jokes for him to try and get the answer to. All of these things became religious and without context, to the point that say, G1deon is known as “father to all”, after Pyrrha left a note tacked to a wall saying “Gideon, I am everyone’s father,” and they were like “welp, saint of duty, fathers have duties, the Saint of Duty also protects fathers” or something
Less shitpost-y that a lot of this has been, but hey, there aren’t any rules because I made them all
random 2am divinity/angel/religion concept
Angels are composed of bones of the creatures on this planet, contorted and moulded to look nothing like the animal source of their bones (i.e. stingray skeletons look vaguely angelic already, however, what if you put more weird shit in there to make them more "biblical accurate)
Another thing of note tho: because angels are composed of the bones of earthly beings, that means that the skeleton is the most holy/divine thing in the human body, therefore there'd be burial practices where either a) it'd be forbidden to touch a human skeleton post-death, or b) there'd be a burial practice where people skin the subject of the burial is defleshed (possibly with the flesh being fed/eaten, or put in jars like with Egyptian mummies), and the raw skeleton is buried. The thing about this also, is that certain angels (particularly the higher angels that aren't ment to interact with humans) may be jealous of earthly creatures simply because they have something soft to cover the harsh reality of their form.
Also also, I guess this'd mean that flesh isn't really divine/holy, excusing the whole eating-flesh stuff, where as long as a skeleton is untouched/worshipped/thanked, the act of eating/taking of another animal is excused
Is there any discussion on how god can be work in mysterious ways and be definitely all-loving at the same time?
As terrified Ukrainians were fleeing Russian bombs, the head of the Russian Orthodox Church, Patriarch Kirill, stood in the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour in Moscow and offered his now infamous statement of support for Vladimir Putin’s invasion: “We have entered into a struggle that has not a physical, but a metaphysical significance.” What has gone largely unnoticed by Kirill’s critics is the way the Orthodox Church, in its theological systems and organisational structure, has enabled the Ukraine war.
Comment:
A fascinating essay on not only the collapse of legitimacy of Russian Orthodoxy in the wake of the Ukraine conflict, but a wider crisis of Orthodoxy as a religeon in the contemporary world.
Extract 1:
A small minority of Russian clergy has bravely turned against their leader, and much of the Orthodox communion worldwide (with the disgraceful exception of the churches of Serbia, Bulgaria, and Jerusalem) has condemned the invasion and Kirill’s part in it.
Extract 2:
For even if the church relates to the world through democratic means (persuasion, not coercion), this does not necessarily mean that the church will also relate to itself (to its own members) in democratic fashion. And this is precisely the problem today: the Orthodox Church eschews democratic forms of (self-)governance. The laity, especially women and LGBTIQ+ persons, continue to be marginalised, while diversity, doubt, and dissent continue to be viewed as dangerous rather than as necessary elements of a flourishing, self-critical community. Is it any wonder, then, that Putin’s police-state, where protesters are arrested and detained every day and war coverage is heavily censored, would find its most faithful ally in the autocratic Russian Church?
Extract 3:
‘Pussy Riot’ song:
Virgin Mary, Mother of God, drive Putin away, we pray thee! Drive Putin away Putin, drive him away!
Black frock, golden epaulettes Parishioners crawl bowing Freedom’s phantom has disappeared to heaven Gay Pride is sent to Siberia in chains.
KGB’s chief saint descends To lead protesters to prison vans Don’t upset His Holiness, ladies Stick to making love and babies /…/
Virgin Mary, Mother of God Become a feminist, we pray thee! Become a feminist, we pray thee!
The Church praises rotten leaders The Cross-bearing procession of black limousines A preacher on his way to your school Get to class and give him money!
Patriarch Gundyay believes in Putin [Kirill’s secular surname is Gundyayev] Would be better, the bastard, if he believed in God! The Virgin’s belt won’t replace political gatherings The eternal Virgin Mary is with us in our protests!
Virgin Mary, Mother of God, drive Putin away, we pray thee! Drive Putin away Putin, drive him away!
Really unpopular opinion here, but this is coming from someone who was brainwashed by Religeon for many years and was spoon fed some toxic beliefs.
I just hope Chris Pratt will be able to get out from under the claws of Hillsong. It is a cult of a church and their teachings are so toxic, and that's not to mention the interior social hierarchies.
I used to be in a small home group church that took a lot from Hillsong. It was abusive and controlling and the fear of ostracization was so real when it came to agreeing or disagreeing with teachings, only outweighed by the fear of hell.
This isn't to excuse Chris Pratt for defending the church, not at all. He needs to see that the views of the church are incompatible with modern society. But I've been in the same position. I know how controlling these groups are and I just hope for his sake that he gets the hell outta there and doesn't look back. I was so sad when I heard he was there. It's not ok for anyone, celebrity or not, to be drawn into such a web of deciet.