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I have always imagined that Paradise would be a kind of library.
Jorge Luis Borges

So have I become your enemy by telling you the truth?
Saint John, Letter to Galatians 4:16

Freedom of Religion - Freedom from Religion - Freedom of Public Display of Religion and Traditions

We establish no religion in this country, nor will we ever. We command no worship. We mandate no belief. But we poison our society when we remove its theological underpinnings. We court corruption when we leave it bereft of belief. All are free to believe or not believe; all are free to practice a faith or not. But those who believe must be free to speak of and act on their belief.
--
Ronald Reagan (Temple Hillel Speech, 1984)

Thursday, October 30, 2014

On Freedom of Religion and First Amendment, an Essay of Common Sense

A Madison County school board voted unanimously to alter a monument at the entrance of a Georgia high school football stadium in order to remove biblical scripture. The monument was erected in August and two different groups sent letters to the school stating that the monument violates the separation of church and state, demanding it be removed. There were two references to scriptures:
Romans 8:31: If God be for us, who can be against us?
Philippians 4:13: I can do all things through Christ which strengthens me.

 

Sunday, October 12, 2014

Religion as a Racket: Beware of Pastors with Expensive Clothing Allowance Driving Cadillacs and Mercedes

Doug Giles wrote an article about how churches and their pastor/minister takes advantage of their tax exclusive business. He explains the reason why church members went to another church ...
...the reason they fled Babylon was because they found out that their pastor had an elder-approved clothing budget of $60,000 a year built into his financial perks for pastoring. What a dandy. Sounds just like the lowly Nazarene, eh? Five grand a month? Really, dude? Oh, and I almost forgot, he also never wears the same clothes twice when he appears on stage on Sundays. Who does he think he is? Mariah Carey? ... As a 51year-old I’ve had it with the Christian Glitterati obsessed with “success” using ministry as a means to get rich, wear Rolexes and play like they're Ryan Seacrest.
For what it’s worth, my brethren, here’s my advice to saints who might find themselves in a similar silly church situation.
  • If your male pastor wears diamond stud earrings, leave.
  • If your pastor is forty-plus years old and bleaches the tips of his hair blond, leave.
  • If your pastor wears more hair gel than all five guys in the boy band One Direction, leave.
  • If your pastor has a church funded clothing budget of any amount, especially a sixty grand a year allowance, leave.
  • If your pastor quotes Oprah more than Obadiah, leave.
  • If your pastor sounds more like Tony Robbins than the Apostle Paul, leave.