Thursday, November 18, 2010
Violence in the Bible and Qur'an
The article I found talks about the instances of violence in both the Bible and the Qur'an. The article mostly discusses the differences and similarities of the context in which violence is instigated and what that means for interpreters of each holy book. The article argues that, like the Bible, the Qur'an is full of contradictions and double talk; in one passage it might condemn religious persecution but in another it mite incite a killing of the unbelievers. The choice of passage usually just represents the personality of the person quoting it rather than reflecting on the religion as a whole. The author's main point though is to state that Christianity is a much more peaceful religion that Islam; which I fully disagree with. Many foul things have been done in the name of God by people from all religions. The reason why many people in the US believe Islam is the source of violence against the western world is because they cannot believe that, without some "satanic book," people could come to the conclusion that western culture was bad and needed to be destroyed.
Thursday, October 28, 2010
Why Evolution is wrong
I don't actually believe evolution is incorrect, but the institution for creation research is convinced that some divine being willed us into existence. By analyzing the data from a scientific study on the evolution of eukaryotic cells, the ICR came to the conclusion that evolution was impossible because there is such a small chance for things to happen (like the original engulfing of a mitochondria by another cell and the relationship that formed between them.) What they don't take into account is that conditions could have existed in the past that do not exist today; this includes lifeforms, weather patterns, the chemical composition of the atmosphere and landmasses, and anything else that existed then, but does not now. Just because a result cant be repeated under different circumstances does not make it wrong.
"Fix" Homosexuality Camps
The Sunday Times posted an interesting article about religious camps, Exodus International in particular, that claim to help suppress or even eliminate homosexual desires. Many of these camps just exacerbate the conflict and depression that many religious homosexuals struggle with. The author says that these camps are sponsored by the Church in order for them to ignore their homophobia and say: "We don't hate gays- Just look how we're welcoming them." Most of these camps are located in the U.S., but there are still a few more discreet ones in England and the rest of Europe.
Homosexuality and the Church
While navigating a Anabaptist website (http://www.anabaptists.org) I stumbled across a link to what they claimed was a basic summarization of their branch of Christianity's views on Homosexuality. The main points that the Author made about homosexuality were that he believed any homosexual relationship was sin; people were homosexuals by choice; God and Jesus love homosexuals; Jesus died for homosexuals; the church is the best place for homosexuals; and homosexual relationships should be rejected by the church. I disagree with the author on almost every single level because I believe that anybody, and everybody has a right to engage in any kind of relationship that they want. Who are you to judge what somebody else chooses as their lifestyle; homosexuals are not trying to hurt anybody, their just trying to live like anyone else.
Sunday, October 17, 2010
Mormons
In case anyone was wondering about the differences between Mormonism and Christianity, there is a website that provides a chart showing each major facet that they differ in. It also provides quotes from the major texts of Mormonism and Christianity to give context to the differences the website charts.
Like the Onion, but...
This website is like a religiously based version of the Onion so its articles are humorous, but with a religious twist.
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