Faith in Action
I was born in Manila and my mother used to regale me with stories about the local Filipino rituals of self-flagellation and crucifixion. At the time I was convinced it was all part of the Roman church's incorrigible barbarism. Obviously over time my ideas about most things have changed.
Protestantism left me, but my revulsion at self-flagellation and crucifixion in the modern era hasn't altered at all. So when I read stories like this one, it does make me cringe, no less so for the pictures.
I'm sure that there are no evangelicals and extremely few Roman Catholics and Orthodox who would support this practice. Yet it shows what happens when faith goes bad. These are people who I see as extremely misguided, even from a Christian point of view. Yet I imagine many good protestant missionaries (like my parents) have tried to convince people out of this ritual and we see they have not had much success. I also feel the Roman Catholic church should do more than "frown" on the practice. They should denounce it and excommunicate anyone who participates in it, just like they would if they married an atheist.
Protestantism left me, but my revulsion at self-flagellation and crucifixion in the modern era hasn't altered at all. So when I read stories like this one, it does make me cringe, no less so for the pictures.
I'm sure that there are no evangelicals and extremely few Roman Catholics and Orthodox who would support this practice. Yet it shows what happens when faith goes bad. These are people who I see as extremely misguided, even from a Christian point of view. Yet I imagine many good protestant missionaries (like my parents) have tried to convince people out of this ritual and we see they have not had much success. I also feel the Roman Catholic church should do more than "frown" on the practice. They should denounce it and excommunicate anyone who participates in it, just like they would if they married an atheist.
4 comments:
From the link given, I see that they take very stringent sanitary precautions, such as soaking the nails for a full year, and then someone takes the nails with their unwashed bare hands and use a hammer that they borrowed just having been used to construct a pig sty with.
They should be made to hang there for the full term, so what if they die, coming down from the cross is not being Christ-like. That is, highly assuming a Jesus ever existed in the first place.
I think this practice casts doubt on the cliams about jesus crucifixion in the bible. As I pointed out in my article from last easter Reasonable Doubt About The Resurrection, since Jesus was only on the cross for six or so hours, his crucifixion was exceptional. Anyone that reads up on historical information about crucifixion can see that it is exposure to the elements and slow asphyxiation that kills people over a long period of time. The Muslims say that Jesus didn't die, and the lack of a body would be consistent with that. We know that church authorities will burn heretical texts, so we can presume that any texts that describe jesus getting away would have been destroyed had they been discovered.
conspiracy theory aside...
The Church is quite apathetic to the greater good as long as it is consistent with their dogma, moral or not.
The promote Exorcisms and will not dissuade it even if it leads to murder
The church will not take a stand against or expend any resources in stopping the Nigerian witch hunts that are maiming childern
The church will not take a stand on faith healing and other frauds committed in its name.
The Gospels show Jesus apathetic to slavery if not promoting it by telling slaves to obey their masters
The church would rather promote the spread of aids by dissuading the use of condoms in thier ministry in Africa. People will have sex anyway. Why not tell them to use a condom to prevent spreading aids, rather than telling them it is birth control? It is birth control, but whats more important? Preventing the spread of aids, and not increasing an impoverished population or spreading aids and increasing an impoverished population.
This kind of stinking thinking can only be supported by religious dogma.
The Church is like the Mafia.
oops, one of my links didn't work. My stupid apple mac anticipated incorrectly what it was I wanted to do and undermined its whole existence (as it does day to day....sorry, don't get me started on the 'CULT OF APPLE')
I meant to say.....
They promote Exorcisms and will not dissuade it even if it leads to murder
Lee Randolph said...
sorry, don't get me started on the 'CULT OF APPLE')
My reply...
Thou hast defied the sacred order of MAC! Thou are a venomous and hideous presence...depart thou wicked one! Get thee hence!!!
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