Inertia . . .

Then there's Opera. Great prog.

More on the "Blessed" Season . . . .

As Rodney King would say:  "Why can't we all get along?"

From the CBC and other sources today:

Clergymen brawl at Bethlehem church

Fight erupts at traditional site of Jesus' birth

The annual cleaning of one of Christianity's holiest churches deteriorated into a brawl between rival clergy Wednesday, as dozens of monks feuding over sacred space at the Church of the Nativity battled each other with brooms until police intervened.

The ancient church, built over the traditional site of Jesus' birth in Bethlehem, is shared by three Christian denominations — Roman Catholics, Armenians and Greek Orthodox. Wednesday's fight erupted between Greek and Armenian clergy, with both sides accusing each other of encroaching on parts of the church to which they lay claim.

_______________

A fragile status quo governs relations among the denominations at the ancient church, and to repair or clean a part of the structure is to own it, according to accepted practice. That means that letting other sects clean part of the church could allow one to gain ground at another's expense.

_______________

Although the roof has needed urgent work for decades, and leaking rainwater has ruined much of the priceless artwork inside, a renovation has been delayed all these years by disagreements among the denominations over who would pay.

Why is this not at all surprising?

How very moral and upright of them . . . .

bennie Speaks . . . .

But should anyone listen?

From Global Post yesterday:

Pope Benedict XVI urges faithful to see through "superficial glitter" of Christmas

Pope Benedict XVI has urged worshipers to see through the "superficial glitter" of Christmas during the traditional Christmas Eve Mass at St Peter's Basilica in Rome.

Pope Benedict XVI lamented the commercialization of Christmas during the traditional Christmas Eve Mass at St Peter's Basilica in Rome.

“Today Christmas has become a commercial celebration, whose bright lights hide the mystery of God’s humility, which in turn calls us to humility and simplicity,” he said, Euronews reported.

He went on to urge worshippers to "see through the superficial glitter of this season" and to discover its true meaning, "the child in the stable in Bethlehem," according to the BBC.

 

Of course, he was surrounded by the glittering gold in the pic above and in the article itself while making this astute observation.

No doubt wearing the nifty little red numbers to the left, also.

His hypocrisy knows no bounds . . . .

Back to the salt mine . . .

KURIOSITAS IS A SITE FOR THE CURIOUS, and it has a display of pictures of the Wieliczka Salt Mine in southern Poland, and as the page proclaims – An Astounding Subterranean Salt Cathedral. No shit, Sherlock.

Situated in the Krakow area, Wieliczka is a small town of close to twenty thousand inhabitants. It was founded in the twelfth century by a local Duke to mine the rich deposits of salt that lie beneath. Until 1996 it did just that but the generations of miners did more than just extract. They left behind them a breathtaking record of their time underground in the shape of statues of mythic, historical and religious figures. They even created their own chapels in which to pray. Perhaps their most astonishing legacy is the huge underground cathedral they left behind for posterity.

These and more were taken by magro_kr who has a fine Flickr photo stream.

"Bless Me, Father" - There's an App for That . . . .

But Bennie and his Jerks don't like it.

Via the New York Daily News:

Officials in Rome have declared that an app available on Apple's iPhones, iPads and the iPod touch cannot serve as a confessional.

"One cannot speak in any way of confessing via iPhone," Federico Lombardi, the Vatican's spokesman, said in a statement. "This cannot be substituted by any IT application."

_______________


It also keeps track of your sins and the time between confessions, information it keeps locked away via password protection.

Guess the Vatican figured it wouldn't aid in job security for their flock of shepherds* . . . .



*Numerous other descriptive words came to mind, but I opted to not use them. Feel free to enumerate a few in Comments . . . .

Perspectives . . .

WARNING: Not politically-correct. May cause tighty-whitey-wedgie in the hard-of-thinking.

Bennie's Bedazzled . . . .

Check out Bennie's leer at the 0:56 mark and tell me he's not having impure thoughts . . . .

The Stud . . .

Two priests died at the same time and met Saint Peter at the Pearly Gates.

St. Peter said, "I'd like to get you guys in now, but our computer's down. You will have to go back to Earth for about a week, but you can't go back as priests. What'll it be?"

The first priest says, "I've always wanted to be an eagle, soaring above the Rocky Mountains .."

"So be it," says St. Peter, and off flies the first priest.

The second priest mulls this over for a moment and asks, "Will any of this week 'count', St. Peter?"

“No, I told you the computer's down; there's no way we can keep track of what you are doing."

“In that case" says the second priest, “I've always wanted to be a stud.”

"So be it" says St. Peter, and the second priest disappears.

A week goes by, the computer is fixed, and the Lord tells St. Peter to recall the two priests.

"Will you have any trouble locating them?” He asks.

"The first one should be easy," says St. Peter, "He's somewhere over the Rockies, flying with the eagles, but the second one could prove to be more difficult."

“Why?” asks the Lord.

"He's on a snow tire, somewhere in Saskatchewan."

Clean Catholic Cash . . . .

bennie and his Jerks are the gift that keeps on giving.

Check this out via The Guardian UK today:

Vatican bank chief investigated over money laundering claims

In unprecedented move, judge freezes €23m held in account at financial institution with close church links

* John Hooper in Rome* guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 21 September 2010

The head of the Vatican bank has formally been placed under investigation in an inquiry into a suspected violation of Italy's money-laundering laws, judicial sources said today.

At the same time, a judge in Rome ordered a freeze on €23m (£19.5m) held in an account opened by the Vatican bank, the Institute for the Works of Religion (IOR), at another financial institution in the Italian capital. It was thought to be the first time such action had been authorised against the IOR in Italy.
_______________

The Vatican has a long history of withholding co-operation from Italian investigators seeking access to its bank's books. The IOR was involved in a major scandal in 1982 arising from the fraudulent bankruptcy of Banco Ambrosiano, then Italy's largest private bank.

Well.

Maybe now we have the definitive answer as to how bennie affords all those fabulous pumps he struts around in . . . .

Giving God the Gears . . .

ACCORDING TO JALOPNIK, there's a Bible just for NASCAR types. Strangely, it is not NASCAR-sanctioned, but then again, as Jalopnik says, "As an aside — you know you're on shaky ground when you can't even get the whorin'-is-racin' NASCAR to license their name to you."

The original report on this came from REDDIT, and the comments are a hoot:

• And Moses parted the lanes, pharaoh drafting him down the straightaway. But without God, pharaoh's fuel ran out, and was left behind.
• Daniel gets thrown into the lion pit crew.
• Getting into heaven is like qualifying for the Daytona 500.
• Amun-Ra is a terrible pit boss.
  
• Jesus didn't walk on water... he hydroplaned!

Matt Weighs In . . . .

Matt Taibbi weighs in on the "Vati-scum" - aka, "bennie and the jerks" - in action.

A sample:

That’s all the church is. They’re a giant for-profit company using predatory salesmanship to sell what they themselves know is a defective, outmoded, basically unnecessary product.

The full article here.

As usual, his writing is on-target and verbiage more than entertaining . . . .

The Chris and Stephen Show . . . .

Christopher Hitchens and Stephen Fry fire shots across the bow at the catholic church.

These are two clips from the BBC's Intelligence Squared presentation of "The catholic church is a Force for Good." Hitchens is up first followed by Ann Widdecombe - a recent convert to catholocism - and Fry finishes up.





bennie and the jerks: 0

Our side: 1 . . . .


H/T BTO

(Cross-posted from Moved to Vancouver)

Help! It's Here Now ! ! ! !

If you think the influence of the US christian right "wrong" is creeping north across the 49th, there's now proof.

On a trip to the US southland last summer I was not surprised to see this ad on television down there. Unfortunately, it is now here.

Two, count 'em two ads for the item within the past hour on "ahem," "choke," "gasp" CTV.

It appears harper is winning, ya'll . . . .

(Cross-posted from Moved to Vancouver)

Cross Out in Italy . . . .

Today's BBC notes the Italians are a bit miffed at the European Court of Human Rights:

Italy school crucifixes 'barred'
BBC News | Tuesday, 3 November 2009

The European Court of Human Rights has ruled against the use of crucifixes in classrooms in Italy.

It said the practice violated the right of parents to educate their children as they saw fit, and ran counter to the child's right to freedom of religion.

The case was brought by an Italian mother, Soile Lautsi, who wants to give her children a secular education.

The Vatican said it was shocked by the ruling, calling it "wrong and myopic" to exclude the crucifix from education.

The ruling has sparked anger in the largely Catholic country, with one politician calling the move "shameful".

The Strasbourg court found that: "The compulsory display of a symbol of a given confession in premises used by the public authorities... restricted the right of parents to educate their children in conformity with their convictions."

It also restricted the "right of children to believe or not to believe", the seven judges ruling on the case said in a statement quoted by AFP news agency

________________


Vatican spokesman the Rev Federico Lombardi said the European court had no right intervening in such a profoundly Italian matter, the Associated Press reported.

"It seems as if the court wanted to ignore the role of Christianity in forming Europe's identity, which was and remains essential."

He told Italian TV: "The crucifix has always been a sign of God's love, unity and hospitality to all humanity.

"It is unpleasant that it is considered a sign of division, exclusion or a restriction of freedom."

_______________


The government says it will appeal against the decision.

Well, at least little Jewish and Muslim kiddies won't have to stare at "the sign of God's love, unity and hospitality" represented by a guy dying nailed to a couple of boards all day.

Good grief . . . .

H/T Penny

bishop Kiddie Porn . . . .

Another of pope bennie's jerks makes the news.

CBC reports today:

Former N.S. bishop charged with possession of child porn
Wednesday, September 30, 2009 - CBC

A former Roman Catholic bishop from Nova Scotia is facing child pornography charges.

Raymond Lahey, the former bishop of the diocese of Antigonish, is known as the man who oversaw a $15-million settlement with people who said they had been sexually abused by priests in the diocese dating back to 1950.
















He was returning to Canada from the United States when he was arrested at the Ottawa Airport last week after members of the Canada Border Services Agency performed a random check of his laptop computer.

Lahey has been charged with distributing and selling child pornography. No court date has been set.

_______________


On Saturday, Lahey, 69, announced his resignation as bishop of the Antigonish diocese, which the Vatican accepted.

"We are grateful to him for his dedicated and generous service to the diocese," said Anthony Mancini, archbishop of Halifax, in a statement on Saturday.

In a letter to parishioners, Lahey said he needed time for "personal renewal."

I'm guessing some of that "personal renewal" may be renewing acquaintances with an attorney or two from those settlement days. Those were good times, weren't they, raymond?

Poor bennie.

His jerks just keep messin' up . . . .

(Cross-posted from Moved to Vancouver)

Salvation Shopping . . . .

In addition to the local television commercials mentioned here, today's discovery is captured below. Have your credit cards handy, as I know you'll leap at the chance to get your holiday shopping done early.



Since I've not been privy to local US TV in quite some time, this may not be a recently released marketing blitz. It is, however, the first time I've had the pleasure (?) of enjoying it.

"Taxi*!! Airport, please . . . . "


* That's actually an attempt at humour. There are no taxis within 25 miles of here.

(Cross-posted from Moved to Vancouver)

Atheists vs. repugs - Round One . . . .

Let the battle begin.

It's actually not much $$ involved.

It's the principle of the thing.

Per McClatchey today:

Atheists sue to keep 'In God We Trust' off Capitol Visitor Center
Rob Hotakainen | McClatchy Newspapers Posted: July 18, 2009

WASHINGTON — A California Republican congressman wants to do a little writing on the walls of Washington's newest federal building. If Rep. Dan Lungren gets his way, Congress will spend nearly $100,000 to engrave the words "In God We Trust" and the Pledge of Allegiance in prominent spots at the Capitol Visitor Center.

Lungren's proposal drew only a whimper of opposition last week when the House of Representatives voted 410-8 to approve it. Now, however, Lungren finds himself tussling with a national atheists and agnostics group.

The Wisconsin-based Freedom From Religion Foundation Inc. sued this week to stop the engraving, accusing Lungren of trying to force his religious beliefs on as many as 15 percent of all U.S. adults. That comprises "atheists, agnostics, skeptics and freethinkers, none of whom possess a belief in a god," according to the lawsuit.

"It really is a Judeo-Christian endorsement by our government, and so Lungren is wrong," said Dan Barker of Madison, Wis., a co-president of the foundation. "Lungren and others are pro-religious, and they want to actually use the machinery of government to promote their particular private religious views. That is unconstitutional, and that's what we're asking the court to decide."

_______________


The Freedom From Religion Foundation, which has 13,500 members, sued in U.S. District Court in Wisconsin. It alleges that Congress is trying to make belief in God synonymous with citizenship and "discouraging nonbelief" among Americans, a contention that Lungren rejects.

Lungren said that the phrase "In God We Trust" had a long history and was consistent with the beliefs of America's founding fathers. He also said that the Declaration of Independence referred to rights given by a creator.

_______________


Barker said the foundation had been waiting for the right case to challenge "In God We Trust." He said government actions could be challenged on state-church grounds if they had specific religious agendas. In this case, he said, backers of Lungren's plan have provided "the smoking guns" by giving specific, overt religious reasons for doing the engraving.

Barker said that atheists regarded the phrase "In God We Trust" as rude, uncivil and un-American.

"Tens of millions of really good Americans don't believe in God," he said. "In fact, there's many more nonbelievers than there are Jews, and we wouldn't think of offending Jews on our national monuments. . . . Why is it wrong to offend a Jewish minority but it's not wrong to offend those of us who serve in the military and sit on juries but we don't believe in God?"

This Freedom From Religion Foundation sounds like my kind of people.

Makes me proud to be a "Dairy Queen" originally from Wisconsin . . . .

(Cross-posted from Moved to Vancouver)

Does God Hate Women?

A directory of divine misogyny

From a book review by Johann Hari at New Statesman :

"After all the arguments for subordinating women have been shown to be self-serving lies, what are misogynists left with? They have only one feeble argument that is still deferred to and shown undeserving respect across the world, even by people who should know better: "God told me to. I have to treat women as lesser beings, because it is inscribed in my Holy Book.”

Ophelia Benson and Jeremy Stangroom are the editors of Butterflies and Wheels, the best atheist site on the web. In Does God Hate Women? they forensically dismantle the last respectable misogyny. They argue: "What would otherwise look like stark bullying is very often made respectable and holy by a putative religious law or aphorism or scriptural quotation . . . They worship a God who is a male who gangs up with other males against women.
They worship a thug."

Ok, but what about cultural differences? Isn't it racist or imperialist to oppose the practices of other cultures?

Hari :

"This merrily ignores how women within these cultures protest against their treatment – very loudly. They aren’t objecting to being imprisoned in their homes, or having their genitalia cut, or being stoned for having sex, because a white person told them to.
Benson and Stangroom put it well: "Multiculturalism by definition makes a fetish of cultures, and it is almost impossible to do that without treating them as monolithic. As soon as you admit that all cultures have internal dissent and nonconformity, the whole idea of protecting or deferring to particular cultures breaks down into incoherence."

h/t Co-blogger Ed

rick warren "Sick With Exhaustion" . . . .

Does the good pastor really expect us to believe that one?

Per Huffington Post:

Rick Warren Cancels ABC Appearance "Moments Before," Claims "Exhaustion"
The Huffington Post | Rachel Weiner | April 12, 2009

Pastor Rick Warren who last week denied ever supporting California's anti-gay marriage Proposition 8 despite evidence to the contrary, has now bailed on an opportunity to explain himself.

Warren canceled an Easter Sunday appearance on ABC's "This Week" just "moments before the scheduled interview," host George Stephanopoulos told viewers.

Even 2008's winner of the Nobel Prize for Economics Paul Krugman weighs in on this one.

The next time the rev. is preachin' the ten commandments, he may want to pay particular attention to the ninth one . . . .

(Cross posted from Moved to Vancouver)

Religion Rides to the Rescue of Wall Street . . . .

It's about a week late for April Fool's, so maybe this is actually legit.

It ought to have a dramatic effect on the current financial situation, so pay attention.

Per Seeking Alpha today:

New SRI ETFs Will Target Different Branches of Christianity

April 07, 2009

The market for socially responsible investing continues to grow for exchange-traded funds investors. Now, a group based in Oklahoma City, Okla., is proposing a set of faith-specific ETFs to launch in the near future.

FaithShares Inc., which is advised by FaithShares Advisors, is asking the Securities and Exchange Commission for approval to offer five new SRI-themed ETFs. Those would be:

* The FaithShares Baptist Values Fund

* The FaithShares Catholic Values Fund

* The FaithShares Christian Values Fund

* The FaithShares Lutheran Values Fund

* The FaithShares Methodist Values Fund

_______________


The FaithShares will be screened for social values of each faith through KLD indexes. FTSE Group, the well-known international index provider, will calculate the indexes. Various broad FTSE indexes will also be used as benchmarks against the KLD indexes.

Not having the expertise in valuing different christian FaithShares, I'll have to rely on experts such as:

pat robertson, pope bennie, ted haggard, charles stanley, et al.

That oughta handle it, eh ? ? ? ?

H/T "drf"

(Cross-posted from Moved to Vancouver)