Me puking.
I found this post in my bulletin board posted today by four different people. I wanted to leave it alone, but I just couldn't.
A girl went to a party and she ended up staying longer than planned, and had to walk home alone. She wasn't afraid because it was a small town and she lived only a few blocks away.As she walked along under the tall elm trees, Diane asked God to keep her safe from harm and danger. When she reached the alley, which was a short cut to her house, she decided to take it.However, halfway down the alley she noticed a man standing at the end as though he were waiting for her.She became uneasy and began to pray, asking for God's protection.Instantly a comforting feeling of quietness and security wrapped round her, she felt as though someone was walking with her.When she reached the end of the alley, she walked right past the man and arrived home safely. The following day, she read in the newspaper that a young girl had been raped in the same alley just twenty minutes after she had been there.Feeling overwhelmed by this tragedy and the fact that it could have been her, she began to weep.Thanking the Lord for her safety and to help this young woman, she decided to go to the police station. She felt she could recognize the man, so she told them her story. The police asked her if she would be willing to look at a lineup to see if she could identify him. She agreed and immediately pointed out the man she had seen in the alley the night before.When the man was told he had been identified, he immediately broke down and confessed.The officer thanked Diane for her bravery and asked if there was anything they could do for her. She asked if they would ask the man one question. Diane was curious as to why he had notattacked her. When the policeman asked him, he answered, "Because she wasn't alone. She had two tall men walking on either side of her." Amazingly, whether you believe or not,you're never alone. Did you know that 98% of teenagerswill not stand up for God? Repost this as A GIRL RAPED IN (your city) if you trulybelieve in God..,
PS: God is always there in your heart and loves you no matter what"If you deny me in front of your friends, I shall deny you in front of my Father"STAND UP FOR HIM93% wont repost this
(INSERT LOUD SCREAM HERE)
Okay, off I go. Growing up in a very religious environment, I hear this story and variations on it my entire life. I guess it's been circling the religious drain for at least as long as I've been alive. It seems to happen to a lot of people as a matter of fact. The story is crap. Crap crap crap. The apocryphal nature of it is revealed within the post itself as it instructs you that if you are a believer repost it as having happened in your city. Well guess what, it didn't happen in my city, and it didn't happen in yours. Hell, when I first hear the story it happened at the same college my mom went to. This event never occured anywhere at any time.
Now, that being stated up front, and having established the urban myth status of the story itself my response to that fact is...so what. Other than being a rather stupid story I have no problem with it, and had it been just the story in the post I would have ignored it entirely and none of the rant would have been necessary. We are by nature of our humanity story tellers. The stories don't have to be true to make a point, in fact most of the best stories are fiction. Hell, half my life is fiction. Whoopty fuckin doo. I encourage story telling. I think it's a great thing, even those crappy faith promoting bullshit stories people tell each other to sell the idea of God to each other.
I actually have a few problems with the post. So first...That little tag thrown on at the end...here it is again in case you missed it while skipping along the blog.
PS: God is always there in your heart and loves you no matter what."If you deny me in front of your friends, I shall deny you in front of my Father
What what what??? I can't even begin to explain how much this bothers me,,,and on so many levels. So to begin let me state in laymans terms what is being said here.
God's love is unconditional...excepting the condition you don't love him back.
The first thing bothering me about this should be quite obvious. It's a full faced hands down full blown contradictory statement. And that's the problem. The contradictory nature of that is the foundation principle of Christianity. God loves you and has a special place in Hell reserved just for you is the common thought prevailant throughout. I guess my question is...
1) Do the people who believe this crap really not even notice the contradiction?
2) Are they so blinded by their own moral high ground taking bullshit rhetoric that they don't notice the contradiction.
3) Are they just that stupid? or... worst of all
4) Do they notice it, and yet still find a way to wrap their brains around it to make it make sense. Self induced stupidity.
It hurts my head, and induces me to this kind of verbal vomit. Ultimately I don't care if you have an imaginary friend. Call him God, Jesus, Allah, Kermit, The great Nabob, Just Bob...or whatever else. I really attempt to live and let live, I just can't get around it when people wear their contradictory, judgemental, I'm better than you, but I'll pretend to accept you anyway, attitudes around, and then blatantly show their own stupidity...then expect me to follow along.
A girl went to a party and she ended up staying longer than planned, and had to walk home alone. She wasn't afraid because it was a small town and she lived only a few blocks away.As she walked along under the tall elm trees, Diane asked God to keep her safe from harm and danger. When she reached the alley, which was a short cut to her house, she decided to take it.However, halfway down the alley she noticed a man standing at the end as though he were waiting for her.She became uneasy and began to pray, asking for God's protection.Instantly a comforting feeling of quietness and security wrapped round her, she felt as though someone was walking with her.When she reached the end of the alley, she walked right past the man and arrived home safely. The following day, she read in the newspaper that a young girl had been raped in the same alley just twenty minutes after she had been there.Feeling overwhelmed by this tragedy and the fact that it could have been her, she began to weep.Thanking the Lord for her safety and to help this young woman, she decided to go to the police station. She felt she could recognize the man, so she told them her story. The police asked her if she would be willing to look at a lineup to see if she could identify him. She agreed and immediately pointed out the man she had seen in the alley the night before.When the man was told he had been identified, he immediately broke down and confessed.The officer thanked Diane for her bravery and asked if there was anything they could do for her. She asked if they would ask the man one question. Diane was curious as to why he had notattacked her. When the policeman asked him, he answered, "Because she wasn't alone. She had two tall men walking on either side of her." Amazingly, whether you believe or not,you're never alone. Did you know that 98% of teenagerswill not stand up for God? Repost this as A GIRL RAPED IN (your city) if you trulybelieve in God..,
PS: God is always there in your heart and loves you no matter what"If you deny me in front of your friends, I shall deny you in front of my Father"STAND UP FOR HIM93% wont repost this
(INSERT LOUD SCREAM HERE)
Okay, off I go. Growing up in a very religious environment, I hear this story and variations on it my entire life. I guess it's been circling the religious drain for at least as long as I've been alive. It seems to happen to a lot of people as a matter of fact. The story is crap. Crap crap crap. The apocryphal nature of it is revealed within the post itself as it instructs you that if you are a believer repost it as having happened in your city. Well guess what, it didn't happen in my city, and it didn't happen in yours. Hell, when I first hear the story it happened at the same college my mom went to. This event never occured anywhere at any time.
Now, that being stated up front, and having established the urban myth status of the story itself my response to that fact is...so what. Other than being a rather stupid story I have no problem with it, and had it been just the story in the post I would have ignored it entirely and none of the rant would have been necessary. We are by nature of our humanity story tellers. The stories don't have to be true to make a point, in fact most of the best stories are fiction. Hell, half my life is fiction. Whoopty fuckin doo. I encourage story telling. I think it's a great thing, even those crappy faith promoting bullshit stories people tell each other to sell the idea of God to each other.
I actually have a few problems with the post. So first...That little tag thrown on at the end...here it is again in case you missed it while skipping along the blog.
PS: God is always there in your heart and loves you no matter what."If you deny me in front of your friends, I shall deny you in front of my Father
What what what??? I can't even begin to explain how much this bothers me,,,and on so many levels. So to begin let me state in laymans terms what is being said here.
God's love is unconditional...excepting the condition you don't love him back.
The first thing bothering me about this should be quite obvious. It's a full faced hands down full blown contradictory statement. And that's the problem. The contradictory nature of that is the foundation principle of Christianity. God loves you and has a special place in Hell reserved just for you is the common thought prevailant throughout. I guess my question is...
1) Do the people who believe this crap really not even notice the contradiction?
2) Are they so blinded by their own moral high ground taking bullshit rhetoric that they don't notice the contradiction.
3) Are they just that stupid? or... worst of all
4) Do they notice it, and yet still find a way to wrap their brains around it to make it make sense. Self induced stupidity.
It hurts my head, and induces me to this kind of verbal vomit. Ultimately I don't care if you have an imaginary friend. Call him God, Jesus, Allah, Kermit, The great Nabob, Just Bob...or whatever else. I really attempt to live and let live, I just can't get around it when people wear their contradictory, judgemental, I'm better than you, but I'll pretend to accept you anyway, attitudes around, and then blatantly show their own stupidity...then expect me to follow along.
3 Comments:
At 6:59 PM,
annette said…
Ah...religious propaganda. It angers me, too. I consider myself a religious person, but hearing fictitious stories does NOT increase my faith--and it's far worse when they're blatantly hypocritical.
Bah!
At 10:22 PM,
Curtis said…
I'm always appalled at the intolerance that is perpetuated in the name of religion (most notably, given my own background, Christianity)--Yes, JayC, I do actually believe that a lot of people don't notice the inherent contradiction. Look at all the evangelicals that got up in arms about the idea of gay marriage--it was a clear-cut case of 'love thy neighbor...unless he happens to love another man.' This, from followers of the same man that spent his life walking and talking among the beggars, prostitutes, and most of the other, less-than-savory elements of society in Roman-controlled Israel.
I'm equally irked...if less vocal about it. ;) And, yeah, I really get a sour taste in my mouth when I find one of those 'Forward this if you truly Believe!' messages. Guess you've gotta do what feels right to you--I just wish they'd think a little more about WHY they think it feels right.
At 4:19 PM,
F.G. Shaw said…
i blame Paul....
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