Clipmarks | Religion Clips

Take your god and shove him

Fri, 22 Aug 2008 05:19:20 GMT

clipped by: ratilfar
clipper's remarks: Or why freedom of religion must also be freedom FROM religion. Prepare to be offended.

Clip Source: www.youtube.com

[Video]

Tags: religion, freedom, rights, gospel

Neo-Coms are the threat

Tue, 19 Aug 2008 13:32:28 GMT

clipped by: jatfla
clipper's remarks: This article makes so much sense!!

Clip Source: www.jpost.com

Neo-coms are the threat

After the Berlin Wall fell, many Western analysts thought the successor to the Soviet Union would willingly give up its satellite states and move inexorably toward democracy.

Then-president George H.W. Bush, who had been head of the CIA and ambassador to China, felt we were moving to "a new world order."

Many in the State Department, especially secretary of state James Baker, felt that the "end of the Cold War" meant an end to the special status of Israel in Middle Eastern affairs, not dreaming that the rise of radical versions of Shi'ite and Sunni Islam exported by Iran and the Saudis might make the country more valuable than ever.

But history does not move in straight lines or dialectical patterns to suit liberal social scientists or Marxist social theorists. Rather, it repeats itself or moves in cycles, based not only on economic factors but those of custom, culture, religion and human nature.

Another fellow POW remembers McCain's cross story

Thu, 21 Aug 2008 17:15:47 GMT

clipped by: n2sooners

Clip Source: corner.nationalreview.com

Yesterday, I talked to Bud Day, a Medal of Honor recipient who was in a POW cell with John McCain in Vietnam. At the end of our conversation, I asked him about the cross-in-the-dirt controversy. He said he hadn't heard of any controversy. So I asked: When was the first time you heard McCain tell this story? His response: "I heard that story in 1970, 1971—back in that time frame. Anybody who says it's not true is full of..." Here he used some salty language.

Tags: mccain, cross, religion, politics, pow

Musim father burns Christian daughter alive

Fri, 15 Aug 2008 03:54:17 GMT

clipped by: Antara
clipper's remarks: what can you say?

Clip Source: www.worldnetdaily.com

Muslim father burns Christian daughter alive

Man slices out girl's tongue, ignites her after 'heated debate on religion'

A Saudi Arabian Muslim father cut out his daughter's tongue and lit her on fire upon learning that she had become a Christian.

The child became curious about Jesus Christ after she read Christian material online, the Gulf News reported.

Her father read of her Internet conversation, detached her tongue and burned her to death "following a heated debate on religion," according to an International Christian Concern report.

The father is employed by the muwateen, or Commission for Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice. The muwateen are police tasked by the government with enforcing religious purity. The man has been taken into custody, and his identity has not been released.

Tags: religion, islam, christianity, another dead girl

Solzhenitsyn Cross-in-Dirt story never happened

Thu, 21 Aug 2008 06:46:39 GMT

clipped by: n2sooners

Clip Source: tpmelectioncentral.talkingpointsmemo.com

There's been a ton of buzz on the web for the last day or so -- beginning with this Daily Kos diary

But it turns out that this episode probably never happened to Solzhenitsyn at all, and according to a Solzhenitsyn biographer it appears nowhere in his published writing. Columbia University professor Michael Scammell, the author of Solzhenitsyn: A Biography, says the episode "never happened," and didn't appear in Solzhenitsyn's book, Gulag Archipelago, either.

One key source being cited on the internets right now for the story that this supposedly happened to Solzhenitsyn is this sermon by Luke Veronis, an American priest who preached it in Albania in March of 1997. It was reprinted in a journal called In communion.

He says Veronis' telling of the tale doesn't fit with what actually happened to Solzhenitsyn "in any way."

"Nobody who's read Gulag Archipelago knows that story,"

This never happened to Solzhenitsyn, and there's no way McCain could have picked it up from his works.

Tags: mccain, pow, solzhenitsyn, campaign, politics, religion

Muslim backlash

Tue, 19 Aug 2008 21:07:23 GMT

clipped by: sillysam
clipper's remarks: We are so afraid of Muslims blowing us up that we are afraid to publish books about Islam.

Clip Source: www.foxnews.com

NEW YORK — A racy, historical novel based on the Prophet Muhammad's child bride A'isha was supposed to hit book stores in the U.S. Tuesday.

But in a rare case of self-censorship to preempt possible violent reaction by Muslims, one of the world's largest publishing houses pulled the plug on the book just before its release date.

Sherry Jones, author of The Jewel of Medina, said she received word from Random House Inc. that the book's release would be "postponed indefinitely." The decision came after copies of her book were sent to stores, her book tour was scheduled and her work of fiction was accepted by the Book of the Month Club (it was scheduled to be in the August selection).

"My book is a respectful portrayal of Islam, of A'isha, of Muhammad. And anyone who reads it with [an] open mind will come away with an understanding of Islam as a peaceful religion," said the American author.

More Sweet Dreams: the Womb project

Tue, 19 Aug 2008 10:22:17 GMT

clipped by: abailart
clipper's remarks: Thanks to John W for initial idea. I thought this project may interest some. I should know by now that flickr doesn't like its images clipped.

Clip Source: www.mommytoo.com

Clip Source: blackcelebkids.com

Clip Source: pro.corbis.com

Clip Source: www.savvy-baby-gear.com

Clip Source: flickr.com

Clip Source: op-for.com

Clip Source: www.jupiterimages.com

Clip Source: flickr.com

Clip Source: sakurabloombabyslings.wordpress.com

Clip Source: raymondlauchengco.wordpress.com

Clip Source: i173.photobucket.com

Clip Source: pro.corbis.com

Clip Source: science.uwe.ac.uk

Clip Source: www.artinliverpool.com

Planet Art eXchange 'The Womb' Project

Dubbed ‘The Womb’, the project is a monumental installation designed by a renown designer and will be created by artists over 4 years’ period, it will explore the birth of our consciousness and the rise of our differentiations. By placing the artistic expressions of our differences in the very core of the womb, the artwork invites the viewer to look at our differences with fresh eyes, foetus eyes. For the initiated viewer, there’s no more ‘I’ and ‘He/She’, but only one connected complex being that embraces the most contradicting views of the world.

Clip Source: www.pax08.com

[Video]

Clip Source: www.pax08.com

Described by her curator Lotfi Kaabi as an artistic Olympic torch, this wholly autonomous and nomad structure of monumental proportions, the collaborative creation of hundreds of established and up and coming artists, will traverse continents over a four year period exploring the birth of our consciousness and the rise of our differentiations: culture, race, religion, politics and socio-economics.

Tags: womb project

Fellow POW remembers McCain telling cross story

Thu, 21 Aug 2008 08:15:20 GMT

clipped by: n2sooners

Clip Source: corner.nationalreview.com

"I recall John telling that story when we first got together in 1971, when were talking about every conceivable thing that had ever happened to us when we were in prison" Swindle told me a few minutes ago. "Most of us had been kept apart or in small groups. Then, in 1970, they moved us into the big cell. And when we all got to see each other and talk to each other directly, instead of tapping through walls, we had 24 hours a day, seven days a week to talk to each other, and we shared stories. I vaguely recall that story being told, among other stories."

"I remember it from prison," Swindle continued. "There were several stories similar to that in which guards — a very few, I might add — showed compassion to the prisoners. It was rare, and I never met one, but some of the guys did."

As for the people who are questioning McCain's account, Swindle said, "That's garbage. These people are desperate."

Tags: mccain, pow, religion, politics, campaign

Bring on an atheist prime minister

Thu, 21 Aug 2008 08:21:46 GMT

clipped by: breweruk
clipper's remarks: Excellent comment piece in the Guardian today by AC Grayling.

Clipped a few sentences, but the article is a must read.

Clip Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Atheist leaders are not going to think they are getting messages from Beyond telling them to go to war.

Atheist leaders will be sceptical about the claims of religious groups to be more important than other civil society organisations in doing good,

Atheist leaders are going to be more sceptical about inculcating sectarian beliefs into small children ghettoised into publicly funded faith-based schools

Atheist leaders will, by definition, be neutral between the different religious pressure groups in society,

Atheist leaders are more likely to take a literally down-to-earth view of the needs, interests and circumstances of people in the here and now,

Atheist leaders will not be tempted to think they are the messenger of any good news from above, or the agent of any higher purpose on earth.

Tags: atheism, politics, religion, church of england

Alleged FLDS Teen Bride Removed; Back in Foster Care

Thu, 21 Aug 2008 00:37:57 GMT

clipped by: wiccantexan

Clip Source: www.ksat.com

A 14-year-old girl allegedly married to jailed polygamist sect leader Warren Jeffs with her parents' blessing at age 12 was removed from her family's home in Converse on Tuesday after a judge ordered her back into foster care.

District Judge Barbara Walther said that there was "uncontroverted evidence of the underage marriage" and that the girl's mother, Barbara Jessop, refused to guarantee the girl's safety. The girl, shown in photographs submitted to the court kissing Jeffs, was taken into custody by Child Protective Services.

In the case of the 14-year-old allegedly married to Jeffs, Walther said she felt she had to place the girl in foster care because Jessop "was unable to provide assurances that she'd be able to protect the child in the future."

On Monday, Jessop, 55, refused to answer roughly 50 questions asked by attorneys for Child Protective Services, including the names of her children, what constituted abuse and whether a parent had an obligation to protect her children.

Tags: flds, polygamy, minor, marriage, religion, belief, teens

DNC smears Cantor for being Jewish

Thu, 21 Aug 2008 06:25:41 GMT

clipped by: n2sooners

Clip Source: www.redstate.com

The Democratic National Committee has a website set up to attack potential McCain running mates as "The Next Cheney"

go to the page on Congressman Cantor,

Where this gets creepy, though, is the persistent focus on Cantor's faith. We should associate Cantor with Abramoff, the Democrats tell us, because "Both Abramoff and Cantor are Jewish". Then we get this item that is supposed to make us fear Cantor:

At Fundraiser, Jack Abramoff Named Sandwich After Eric Cantor -- Cantor Asked To Switch Sandwiches. "At a January 2003 fundraiser for Cantor, who had just become chief deputy whip, Abramoff unveiled the Eric Cantor sandwich, 'a tuna-based stacker,' which, lamentably, was 'not quite [the] power lunch befitting' the only Jewish Republican in the House. Hence a request by Cantor ... to switch his eponymous sandwich to roast beef on challah, 'a deli special that exudes Jewish power.'"

just 660 words

Jewish" appears five times

which I suppose in some circles is a really devastating indictment

Tags: democrats, dnc, cantor, jewish, religion, politics

Holy Hype

Thu, 21 Aug 2008 01:57:10 GMT

clipped by: bmeuppls
clipper's remarks: Now he just needs to enter the convention hall riding a donkey...

"a leader that God has blessed us with at this time"

And I thought the dems were for separation of religion and state...

Clip Source: www.nydailynews.com

No human being can meet the wildly inflated expectations that accompany the rookie senator's every move. It can't help that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi called Obama "a leader that God has blessed us with at this time."

That's the kind of remark that can turn voters into problems. Most Americans famously resent being told an election is over months before the polls open or that God is taking sides.

The fawning coverage exaggerates even routine Obama events, and when he fails to meet giddy expectations, the excuse machine warps into overtime. That, in turn, creates another unappealing layer of media-imposed conventional wisdom.

So The One has been anointed. If I were running the Obama campaign, I'd be terrified. After all, the last person the media declared inevitable was Hillary Clinton.

Proposed FBI rules could allow spying on innocent

Thu, 21 Aug 2008 02:54:50 GMT

clipped by: A53GG4

Clip Source: www.usatoday.com

Proposed FBI rules could allow spying on innocent

WASHINGTON (AP) — Proposed rules to help the FBI catch terrorists could lead to innocent Americans being spied upon by government agents or informants, "all without any basis for suspicion," a group of Democratic senators said Wednesday.

The rules, known as the attorney general guidelines, have not been approved or even released yet, but four Democrats joined a growing chorus of lawmakers raising objections after being briefed on what the guidelines will say.

Among their fears: Americans could be targeted in part based on their race, ethnicity or religion or free speech activities protected by the U.S. Constitution.

"As you know, attorney general guidelines were first implemented in the wake of the FBI abuses of the 1960's and 1970's, and serve as one of the most important bulwarks against future abuses," the senators said in a letter to Attorney General Michael Mukasey.

Tags: politics

The Religeous Right has Co opted Christianity

Wed, 20 Aug 2008 06:36:16 GMT

clipped by: klippety
clipper's remarks: No, Iran does not have the same religion as the US. Is that in itself reason to bomb? According to McCain, apropos Cain, what did he do to his brother?

Clip Source: www.huffingtonpost.com

McCain's "Judeo-Christian Values" References Troubling

On a frozen winter evening at a Town Hall meeting in a school in the Manchester, N.H., suburbs, John McCain expressed surprise and irritation with an intelligence report downplaying the threat of Iran's nuclear program.

At the end of a long list of reasons to be suspicious of the Iranians, McCain declared: "And they sure don't share our Judeo-Christian values."

It seemed at the time to be an odd thing to say about a Muslim country. After all, even if there were no nuclear program, no oil, and no rabble-rousing president, Iran still wouldn't have Judeo-Christian values. And it's troubling to wonder if that alone would be a reason for suspicion.

Read the whole story here.

Doctors Can't Deny Lesbians Care on Religious Grounds

Mon, 18 Aug 2008 23:56:45 GMT

clipped by: wiccantexan

Clip Source: abcnews.go.com

The California Supreme Court today ruled unanimously that doctors cannot cite their religious beliefs as grounds to deny gay and lesbian patients medical care.

Justice Joyce Kennard ruled that two Christian fertility doctors who refused to artificially inseminate a lesbian couple cannot claim a free speech or religious exemption from California's anti-discrimination law.

The ruling extends a state law barring sexual orientation-based discrimination to the medical profession.

In 1999, after a year of surgeries and hormone treatments — all covered by insurance — Benitez was finally ready to get pregnant. But at the crucial moment, her doctor refused to do the procedure for "religious" reasons.

Benitez is a lesbian and sued her doctors under California's civil rights laws, charging that they discriminated against her because of her sexual orientation.

Tags: medical, gay, lesbian, religion, belief, discrimination