Flashbacks of the weird kind...

Ah, fun of seeing how far I have come! I watched all the parts of the above documentary by Louis Theroux on the Westboro Baptist Church Cult, and it is amazing how much of what they believe were my deeply held beliefs so many years ago. If you take away the vulgar language that marks so much of what the Family says you will hear what I was taught as a child and young adult. I had such a gut reaction to the statements of the members of The Family as the described the dangers of rebellion and thinking for oneself. I instantly identified with the kids who were so afraid that even speaking their hearts would send them to Hell because it would plant a seed of rebellion that would lead them down the wrong road. Even the sense of persecution and future exile that was to mark our transition into the end times was drummed into my head. I love how Louis Theroux let the members of the Family do all the talking so that we get a great view of their beliefs. Having come from a similar background I really believe that this was an accurate portrayal of the Family.

My message from this is that the Westboro Baptist Church Family is probably the best example of obedience to the Bible that I have seen in the USA, and a perfect example of how blind obedience to a book of faith can destroy lives and families. I like the fact that most evangelical Christians in the US actually live according to a more loving ethical standard than is presented in the Bible. I am glad I finally saw the light of Humanism.

Some links and a great virus lesson

As you may be aware I read a bunch on different issues in theology, philosophy, and healthcare. In the last week I have come across a few gems that I wanted to keep and I though you might like them as well. The first is a post on a new method to medically fight viruses in Effect Measure. Some parts of the article are a little heavy on biology, but he starts by explaining how a virus hijacks the cells of the host (read "you"- your the host when the virus makes you sick) with an analogy to the inner functions of an office. It is a great analogy.

Another post that I wanted to save is on raising children to be more able to maintain a moral compass. I warn you that this was bent to support the argument that children raised by atheists are better than those raised by the religious (Raising Children Without God), but the point is still good. Many parents don't take the time to explain themselves to their children because it is more difficult and consumes time, but I (even though I am not an atheist) feel as if I explain myself to my children they are more likely to adapt our moral rules to other situations and not take some authority's word as equal to God's because he/she said so. Think of it as cult-proofing your child, or teaching them to be Bereans. We will leave the argument over whether God's rules are truly arbitrary for another time.

One more gem I was sent by Wonderful is a little more rough cut, but just delightful so I had to share it. It is certainly not original to me.

The Ten Commandments

Some people have trouble with all those 'shall's' and 'shall not's' in the Ten
commandments.

Folks just aren't used to talking in those terms. So, in middle Tennessee
they translated the 'King James' into ' Jackson County ' language....
no joke, (posted on the wall at Cross Trails Church in Gainesboro , TN )

(1) Just one God
(2) Put nothin' afore God
(3) Watch yer mouth
(4) Git yourself to Sunday meetin'
(5) Honor yer Ma & Pa
(6) No killin'
(7) No foolin' around with another fellow's gal
(8) Don't take what ain't yers
(9) No tellin' tales or gossipin'
(10) Don't be ahankerin' for yer buddy's stuff


Now that's plain an' simple. Y'all have a nice day.