Religion Randomness

Kraken · Post by **Kraken** » Wed May 13, 2015 11:41 pm

Jeff V wrote:
Kraken wrote:Huh, apatheist describes me pretty well. I don't think I'm going to self-identify that way because it sounds like something they just made up.
Then make up something better!

My FB profile says "I worship Athe" and I'm sticking with that.

Isgrimnur · Post by **Isgrimnur** » Fri May 22, 2015 12:37 pm

Proselytizing in uniform is apparently fine.

The Air Force has rebuffed a civil liberties group that demanded a two-star general be court-martialed for making a speech in uniform crediting God for his career successes.
...
Mikey Weinstein, CEO of the Military Religious Freedom Foundation, wrote a May 13 letter to Chief of Staff Gen. Mark Welsh demanding that Olson be court-martialed for violating an Air Force instruction prohibiting Air Force leaders from endorsing a particular belief. The letter included a link to Olson's speech, which was live-streamed by GOD TV.

Weinstein cited Air Force Instruction 1-1, which covers Air Force Standards.

"Leaders at all levels must balance constitutional protections for their own free exercise of religion, including individual expressions of religious beliefs, and the constitutional prohibition against governmental establishment of religion," the instruction says. "They must ensure their words and actions cannot reasonably be construed to be officially endorsing or disapproving of, or extending preferential treatment for any faith, belief, or absence of belief."

But the Air Force has decided that Olson did not break Air Force Instruction 1-1 by speaking at the "congressionally-supported event," said service spokesman Lt. Col. Pete Hughes.
...
That doesn't matter, said Chris Rodda, senior research director for the Military Religious Freedom Foundation. Olson's remarks still violate Air Force Instruction 1-1.

"Olson was very clearly endorsing – in uniform – and extending preferential treatment to Christianity and the specific brand of Christianity promoted by the event," Rodda told Air Force Times on Thursday. "It makes no difference who it was sponsored by. Either way, that Air Force Instruction 1-1 applies."

Weinstein said the Air Force's decision that Olson was expressing his personal views at the event shows that the separation of church and state in the Air Force is now "nothing but smoke and debris," especially considering that Olson spoke on international television.

LawBeefaroni · Post by **LawBeefaroni** » Fri May 22, 2015 1:07 pm

Speech here, as broadcast on GodTV (no kidding).

Also, the National Day of Prayer Task Force is kind of bullshit.

Isgrimnur · Post by **Isgrimnur** » Fri May 22, 2015 1:09 pm

Task force? They're not performing any tasks. Or is it just a force to provide God with their "honey-do" list?

LawBeefaroni · Post by **LawBeefaroni** » Fri May 22, 2015 4:15 pm

Suck it, commies.

The mission of the National Day of Prayer Task Force is to mobilize prayer in America and to encourage personal repentance and righteousness in the culture.

Jaymann · Post by **Jaymann** » Fri May 22, 2015 4:44 pm

I definitely culture righteousness!

Pyperkub · Post by **Pyperkub** » Wed May 27, 2015 5:14 pm

Pastor shot for LGBT advocacy tolerance?

“Some language used in the incident — and given where it was, in front of a church known to be accepting of our LGBT community — it led us to have concern that this is a hate crime,” Deputy Police Chief Brian Foley said in an interview Tuesday....

...But Adams (the Church Reverend - spokesperson) was not aware of any activity at his church — a congregation of about 150 people — that that would attract anti-LGBT animus, nor did he have a particular reason to think the shooting was an anti-gay hate crime...

...Adams said that at his congregation, “we don’t like the [gay] lifestyle, but we like the people — the individuals. I think we are tolerant of the people. We are very caring of other people.”

Moliere · Post by **Moliere** » Wed Jun 03, 2015 10:28 am

Marijuana church given tax-exempt status in Indiana: ‘Somebody at the IRS loves us’

Unagi · Post by **Unagi** » Wed Jun 03, 2015 4:14 pm

Moliere wrote:Marijuana church given tax-exempt status in Indiana: ‘Somebody at the IRS loves us’

So far, more than 600 members have paid amounts ranging from $4.20 to $1,000 to join the church, Mr. Levin said.

Rip · Post by **Rip** » Wed Jun 03, 2015 4:21 pm

Unagi wrote:
Moliere wrote:Marijuana church given tax-exempt status in Indiana: ‘Somebody at the IRS loves us’

So far, more than 600 members have paid amounts ranging from $4.20 to $1,000 to join the church, Mr. Levin said.

Nice that it starts at $4.20 not $4.10, not $4.15 but $4.20.

Isgrimnur · Post by **Isgrimnur** » Wed Jun 03, 2015 4:22 pm

I'm glad to see RevHempus getting work.

Jeff V · Post by **Jeff V** » Wed Jun 03, 2015 4:28 pm

Rip wrote:
Unagi wrote:
Moliere wrote:Marijuana church given tax-exempt status in Indiana: ‘Somebody at the IRS loves us’

So far, more than 600 members have paid amounts ranging from $4.20 to $1,000 to join the church, Mr. Levin said.

Nice that it starts at $4.20 not $4.10, not $4.15 but $4.20.

The dude who pledged $1000 is bummed out. "Man, I thought there was a decimal in there, it was supposed to be $10! There goes my weed budget for the whole month!"

Pyperkub · Post by **Pyperkub** » Thu Jun 04, 2015 1:26 pm

I think this would be the perfect gift for every 2016 GOP Presidential Candidate (ok, maybe I'll give Fiorina a pass):

Cast that first stone with The Jesus Slingshot

You’ve tried church. You’ve tried prayer. You’ve even sacrificed the fatted calf, but God still won’t smite your enemies. Get The Jesus Slingshot, new from My Left Behind Toys! The Jesus Slingshot will help you do unto others before they can do unto you!

Moliere · Post by **Moliere** » Wed Jun 10, 2015 11:14 am

Canadian siblings barred from leaving Malaysia following earthquake

Deputy Chief Minister Joseph Pairin Kitingan, of the eastern Sabah state, blamed the earthquake on the group that included the Canadians because they “showed disrespect to the sacred mountain” by stripping down to pose naked on the morning of May 30, at the 8 km mark of the two-day trek up Mount Kinabalu, a UNESCO World Heritage site.

Apparently this mountain is a prude.

El Guapo · Post by **El Guapo** » Wed Jun 10, 2015 11:29 am

Ugh, and worse still, they're reinforcing the tired old "Canadians cause earthquakes" stereotype.

GreenGoo · Post by **GreenGoo** » Wed Jun 10, 2015 11:41 am

El Guapo wrote:Ugh, and worse still, they're reinforcing the tired old "Canadians cause earthquakes" stereotype.

We haven't had to use that power in a long time. If Malaysia thinks things are bad now, imagine what would happen if we all activated our earthquake powers at once, huh? Think about that. So, yeah. You don't want that Malaysia.

abr · Post by **abr** » Wed Jun 10, 2015 12:49 pm

Are they sure the spirits were angered and not aroused?

Moliere · Post by **Moliere** » Wed Jun 10, 2015 1:05 pm

abr wrote:Are they sure the spirits were angered and not aroused?

Aroused by a naked Canadian?

GreenGoo · Post by **GreenGoo** » Wed Jun 10, 2015 1:10 pm

Don't make me post some selfies.

El Guapo · Post by **El Guapo** » Wed Jun 10, 2015 1:17 pm

Hey, let's keep things cool before everything gets all San Andreas around here, ok?

LordMortis · Post by **LordMortis** » Mon Jun 15, 2015 4:31 pm

American faith in "Nothing in Particular" is on the rise faster than any other group. Soon we will rule!!!! So suck it!

http://www.pewforum.org/2015/05/12/amer ... landscape/

hepcat · Post by **hepcat** » Mon Jun 15, 2015 4:32 pm

I'm personally leaning towards the "What you got?" faith.

Kraken · Post by **Kraken** » Mon Jun 15, 2015 6:22 pm

LordMortis wrote:American faith in "Nothing in Particular" is on the rise faster than any other group.

This is encouraging.

Trent Steel · Post by **Trent Steel** » Tue Jun 16, 2015 9:00 am

Kraken wrote:
LordMortis wrote:American faith in "Nothing in Particular" is on the rise faster than any other group.
This is encouraging.

I am the son and the heir... of nothing in particular.

hepcat · Post by **hepcat** » Tue Jun 16, 2015 9:05 am

You're Jeb Bush?

$iljanus · Post by **$iljanus** » Tue Jun 16, 2015 9:38 am

Trent Steel wrote:
Kraken wrote:
LordMortis wrote:American faith in "Nothing in Particular" is on the rise faster than any other group.
This is encouraging.
I am the son and the heir... of nothing in particular.

You shut your mouth
How can you say
I go about things the wrong way?
I am human and I need to be loved
Just like everybody else does

hepcat · Post by **hepcat** » Tue Jun 16, 2015 9:50 am

LawBeefaroni · Post by **LawBeefaroni** » Tue Jun 16, 2015 10:39 am

$iljanus wrote:
Trent Steel wrote:
Kraken wrote:
LordMortis wrote:American faith in "Nothing in Particular" is on the rise faster than any other group.
This is encouraging.
I am the son and the heir... of nothing in particular.
You shut your mouth
How can you say
I go about things the wrong way?
I am human and I need to be loved
Just like everybody else does

But I've read well, and I've heard them said
A hundred times, maybe less, maybe more:

To be born the son of a Middlemarch manufacturer, and inevitable heir to nothing in particular.

LordMortis · Post by **LordMortis** » Tue Jun 16, 2015 10:50 am

I am the father, the father of nothing in particular?

How in the world do you guys remember anything from Middlemarch? I had to read that. not once. but twice in college and both times I was assessed over what I ready and all I can tell you about the novel these years later is George Elliot was a she.

LawBeefaroni · Post by **LawBeefaroni** » Tue Jun 16, 2015 11:08 am

LordMortis wrote:I am the father, the father of nothing in particular?

How in the world do you guys remember anything from Middlemarch? I had to read that. not once. but twice in college and both times I was assessed over what I ready and all I can tell you about the novel these years later is George Elliot was a she.

I only remember because I read it after I heard How Soon is Now about 200 times.

LordMortis · Post by **LordMortis** » Tue Jun 16, 2015 11:32 am

LawBeefaroni wrote:
LordMortis wrote:I am the father, the father of nothing in particular?

How in the world do you guys remember anything from Middlemarch? I had to read that. not once. but twice in college and both times I was assessed over what I ready and all I can tell you about the novel these years later is George Elliot was a she.
I only remember because I read it after I heard How Soon is Now about 200 times.

All I remember about that song is the guitar literally sounds like cat being murdered. Let just say I'm not a fan of the Smiths.

So tying it to a book I wouldn't have remembered would have been about impossible... As close as I'll get is "Killing an Arab" which would have been played at the same clubs around the same time and that didn't really grab me either.

I suck at both literary reference unless it comes from cartoons. I can remember and appreciate cartoons with the people who are somewhere around the same zip code at the best of them.

hepcat · Post by **hepcat** » Tue Jun 16, 2015 11:35 am

LordMortis wrote:
All I remember about that song is the guitar literally sounds like cat being murdered.

It's the word "literally" in that sentence that is really disturbing.

El Guapo · Post by **El Guapo** » Tue Jun 16, 2015 11:49 am

hepcat wrote:
LordMortis wrote:
All I remember about that song is the guitar literally sounds like cat being murdered.
It's the word "literally" in that sentence that is really disturbing.

Don't get all high and mighty on us, Mr. "I've Never Strangled a Cat to Compare the Sound to a Song's Guitar Track."

LordMortis · Post by **LordMortis** » Tue Jun 16, 2015 11:49 am

hepcat wrote:It's the word "literally" in that sentence that is really disturbing.

Have you ever heard a cat suffering? You can hear it bellowing in the woods from over a quarter mile away and it sounds just like the guitar from that song.

No. I've never murdered a cat. Even though I was raised on a farm, I had difficulty slaughtering food animals and never took to hunting. My parents seem to be the last of the generation. While cleaning carcasses doesn't bother me in the least, the act of killing is something I am too squeamish for.

hepcat · Post by **hepcat** » Tue Jun 16, 2015 11:51 am

I'm just teasin' ya. I actually do fully support homicide when it comes to cats. You're doing the Lord's work, my friend.

Isgrimnur · Post by **Isgrimnur** » Mon Jun 29, 2015 8:18 am

Churches pilot facial recognition.

About 30 churches in the world in countries such as Indonesia, the US, Portugal, Africa and India are now using a facial recognition software called Churchix to track their congregants from a database of photographs that have been uploaded to the software.

The churches are able to track which congregants are attending services and which are missing events, by using CCTV cameras that scan people's faces as they walk into the building. The video footage is sent to a PC where the software is installed, and this then analyses the footage for recognisable faces.

The idea is that the church can then make contact with congregants to find out why they might not be attending, or even send out a call to action for donations to the congregants who are most fervent in their attendance of church events.

The church can also use the software as a security system, by uploading photos of people who have been banned from the church, local criminals or sex offenders. If someone on the black list enters the church, the administrator will receive an alert letting them know, so they can take action.
...
The software was launched four months ago and is only a small part of Face-Six, which is based in Israel and the US. The firm focuses on high-end video surveillance for law enforcement and large public venues like airports and casinos, as well as facial recognition software that tracks how many unique visitors walk into shopping malls.

Holman · Post by **Holman** » Mon Jun 29, 2015 8:33 am

I once spent a sad and lonely semester at a Christian college where daily chapel was mandatory. They had just switched to a card-swipe system to verify attendance, but before that they had used assigned seats. A ceiling camera allowed the administration to identify empty seats and non-attendance.

hepcat · Post by **hepcat** » Mon Jun 29, 2015 9:16 am

Churches blacklist? That seems counter to their stated purpose.

El Guapo · Post by **El Guapo** » Mon Jun 29, 2015 9:19 am

hepcat wrote:Churches blacklist? That seems counter to their stated purpose.

Well, it would be entirely fair to ban someone who has been harassing other congregants (say), or stealing from the collection basket, or whatnot.

I would worry about what more Falwell-esque churches would do with this stuff (but then, I worry about what a lot of institutions would do with this kind of stuff).

Holman · Post by **Holman** » Mon Jun 29, 2015 9:34 am

Churches are unusual in that they have large, regular crowds but no system (such as ticket sales or ID swipes) of tracking them. Facial recognition promises an unobtrusive (if ham-handed and weirdly Orwellian) way of doing that.

It doesn't really seem a church-specific issue, though. Facial recognition is going to be everywhere soon.