Rants and Raves

[GreenEyesToo]

Well......maybe not ALL weekend....? So sorry about Danny - I know we're no substitutes, but {{{hug}}}

[tipou]

thanks for the hug. i needed that.
well, no, not letterally ALL week end. i have to sleep and eat too!!!!
and also i will go harass my mom until she makes my favourite mac and cheese casserole with wieners. only this will cure my broken heart for the time being.

[peach]

Organised religion has been the cause of more problems in this universe than I care to mention. It's their invisible man in the sky versus our. The Palestinians and the Jews have been fighting for centuries; the Protestants vs. the Catholics; the Muslims with just about everyone. These reasons and some private ones are the reason I too do not belong to any church. When I went to Sunday school for my first communion a nun, in full habit, told us that if you don't pray in God's church he won't hear your prayers, nice thing to teach an impressionable 7 year old. Scare the hell out of them and teach them to fear not love. I knew right then and there that this religion stuff was not for me. I told my parents, at 7 years old mind you what had happened, they asked me what I thought, I have a faint recollection that I told them I thought she was crazy. I said I would go through with the communion stuff but that it ended there. Thus, I was never confirmed, and my parents let me decide for myself. My parents remember the Latin mass, in all honesty I would go back if that mass ever came back. It all hit home again recently. I work in a large office, a co worker is quite religous, she doesn't force her views but if she knew what I really thought about any given subject outside the church she'd never look at me the same way (not that I really care), I digress, as I said she's very religous, always talking about daily mass she goes to and that even her son is an altar boy, and how very pious she is. Only problem with that scenario is that she's the worst gossip in the world and sees nothing wrong in bad mouthing everyone she works with. I usually end up walking away when she starts in with her quips or I tell her that she's going to give herself a stroke because of the way she works herself up. Isn't there something in the Bible that touches upon things like this?

Tip, no need to appologize, besides the radish thing has been quite funny!

[rueful]

Tipou, I'm sorry for your disappointment! Many hugs and much support to you from one of your partners in crime (but not partners in radishes, since I prefer my vegetables green, not red)!

[dirtygirldiva]

well i happen to love your radish comments Tip! We're always here for ya! and I know what it feels like to be distanced from the ones we love. My father was a career sailor, retired after 21 years in the Navy. He was gone all the time, took a toll on my mother and me, but he made up for it when he was here. He was even gone on WestPac for the first 4 months of my wee little life...lol

And ITA on the organized religion thing. My fave movie about religion is Dogma, so that tells you where I stand.

[lizap]

tipou, I'm so sorry your hopes were raised and then dashed. I for one love all your comments, radish or otherwise. And I'm glad to hear your mother is close enough to cook comfort food for you!

[Vittoria]

Oh, Tip... So sorry.. ~hugs~ Go on about radishes 'til your heart's content.

DGD, Dogma friggin' rocks, man!

Peach, I hear you loud and clear and concur. The only reason I was Confirmed was out of neccessity due to the work I have to do spiritually. I had to be Confirmed RC and initiated into Darkness as well. Organized religion has always caused more harm than good, imho and I could never stay within it no matter how I might want to at the time. I realize that now.

[rueful]

I don't want to start a religious war or anything. I just want to say that I am still Catholic. I think I'm an average Catholic, with some doubts and some questions sometimes and a lot of faith at other times. And there are some appallingly evil priests, and some rotten, ignorant nuns, and then again some truly good-hearted and self-sacrificing ones who have died to save others. Clergy are people, like anyone else. Much evil has been done in the name of organized religion, and much good too. We also have an abundance of vile, greedy, self-serving politicians in this country, but I'm not ready to go back to the monarchy. Many or most of the large corporations in this country are also greedy and don't care about their employees or even the consumer. I'm not ready to try communism though. I personally am not ready to throw out the baby with the bath water. Again, not to get into a big controversy, but I just felt I had to represent, yo, as the young people say

[peach]

I am sorry if I offended anyone with my views concerning the RC Church. My mom's best friend was a priest, when I met him in my pre teens I never realized that he was one. He came to our house wearing sandals, a t shirt and shorts, he knew my mom in the 50's she hung out with a really neat group of people, while her contemporaries drooled over Elvis my mom and her friends were into the Moder Jazz Quartet, anyway, he was an amazing person, and for a long while I wrote to him when he moved out west to San Francisco. Yes the church has done much good but unfortunately, it's the bad apples that always get the most press.

Re: big biz, I work as I'v e mentioned in the financial field, my co. was taken over by a bank, while I'm dissapointed at those turn of events, I am quite fortunate and thank the man above on a daily basis for my gainful employment. My sister says that while I am not outwardly religious she does consider me to be one of the most spiritual persons she knows. I'd like to think that there is a being higher than us, I guess I'd classify myself as an agnostic. I see what greed does to people, it turns them into ugly people starting from the inside then working it's way out. It's not pretty. Five people I work with were let go on Thursday, that day all told 27 people lost their jobs, I knew 26 of them. I went home that day in a fog, I hate what my industry has become, and what it will turn out to be. Socialism is not the answer nor is any other "ism" other than capitilism, IMHO, that is what makes any civilised country run. The ceo's get their stock options and all the perks that go along with it while the people who toil everyday and try to answer for their bosses mistakes end up paying big time. Consumer confidence is at an all time low with apparently no end in sight.

Things happen for a reason and this is our wake up call, time to take stock and start again.

[rueful]

I really wasn't offended by anything you said, Peach. People are entitled to their own opinions, and luckily in this country as well as others, free to state them. I know plenty of people who have had truly bad experiences with the RC church as well as other churches. I also know good people of tremendous faith who are positive examples of "living the life." I think it's important to be understanding of both kinds of people.

[Vittoria]

Feb 22, 2009 0:47:24 GMT rueful said:

I don't want to start a religious war or anything. I just want to say that I am still Catholic.

Cool! Mind you, how can anyone regardless of viewpoint become RC and not forever be RC? It's forever there even if one becomes agnostic or atheist. No power or person can remove the "seal" that is given in Confirmation. That's a little secret that some people in Satanism would like to have hidden. It's a little something I discovered. It was necessary for me to be sealed before I went into darker places- in order to safeguard me.

Hey, personally, I love conversation on controversial topics. I love reading or hearing other peoples' experiences and thoughts on certain ideas. It makes life more interesting. The only time it's not a good idea is if people get totally offended and begin to fight. However, if we hear one another out fairly, there is no reason to fight. Respect is so neccessary. I find mutual respect being displayed throughout these boards here and it's so refreshing!

[tipou]

let's not sit on our laurels.
i am slowly getting out of an online art group because of discussions on religion. someone posted traditional jewish art, and all hell broke loose (no pun intended). and prior to that every one had been sooooo friendly.it is my experience that online group discussions on religion or politics almost always end up in fights.
i certainly hope it will not happen here, somehow i dont get that vibe.

[rueful]

I don't like shouting matches, even virtual ones. That's why I won't listen to talk radio--everyone talking over each other, never even considering the opponent's viewpoint, waiting with their answer before the other person has even finished speaking. I've always said, if I wanted to listen to people shout at each other, I could just go home ;D

The main reason I posted my opinion was because there were a few posts leaning the opposite direction (sort of not interested in organized religion), and I was worried that others in my situation might feel uncomfortable or outnumbered (?--not the right word, probably). Anyhow, although everyone here is totally friendly, open, kind, and understanding (after all, you've so far been tolerant of my sometimes extremely lustful Rufus posts), I tend to stay away from controversial stuff in general, and I'll probably maintain "radio silence" on this one in the future.

[tipou]

I DISAGREE!!!
sorry, i could not help myself !!!!

[Vittoria]

ROTFL! Tip!

Well, I hope I haven't offended anyone with my views (non-religious type). I'm surprisingly in awe of science more than religion anyway. Anyone want to talk about science? Any takers?.... Oh wait... maybe not... there's the whole evolution thing and that could get raw.... Erm.... Anyone want to talk science without mentioning evolutionary theory? ;D

No?.......

Erm... the meaning of life?.... threesomes with radishes?