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In this DG I have learned that some people simply want rules to live by.
In the Islam and Judaism forums, there are some posters who take the rules of their religion very seriously. When asked why they don't eat bacon, they proudly say, "because it is forbidden", and that ends the discussion.
All we can do is accept these people and be thankful they prepare you a great breakfast.
In this DG I have learned that some people simply want rules to live by.
In the Islam and Judaism forums, there are some posters who take the rules of their religion very seriously. When asked why they don't eat bacon, they proudly say, "because it is forbidden", and that ends the discussion.
All we can do is accept these people and be thankful they prepare you a great breakfast.
Yes, although, these days, it's hard to argue against bacon ;-)
Yes, religious prohibitions against makeup are just turning a rational argument for balance into a prohibition, and a ham-fisted and tone-deaf prohibition at that. Religion is great at that. (And yes, folks, I know that this particular prohibition is a minority position even in fundamentalism; that is not my point).
Her aversion to haircolor doesn't seem to have affected her desire to wear make-up, although most of the time she doesn't wear it. I'm not sure what her church teaches about that sort of thing, but you might be right since it's a Church of God I think. Seems rather sad to me to have such restrictions put upon believers, especially the women.
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There's a local establishment in my town that I frequent sometimes as I have a weakness for their breakfast menu items and the quirky, attractive vibe of the place. One Saturday I stopped by only to find a sign, "closed for Sabbath". I assumed the owners were Jewish, but later I figured out that they are members of a religious commune that borrows from both Judaism and Christianity, is very isolationist, etc., which explains the matronly lady at the counter who looks for all the world like someone out of the 1920s with her ankle-length dress, severe gray 'do and facial expression, and old fashioned round spectacles. Here are people who have worship services twice a day every day, appear to be against both makeup and shaving, home school their children and put them to work as waiters of tables ... because they believe the Bible wants them to both live like the "primitive" early church, protect their young from the evils of the world, AND observe Jewish feast days and other customs. Sort of like most Christians might be if Paul had never written his letters or they never became part of the New Testament.
Well living in the deep South I see a lot of this too. Sad and unhappy looking ladies who seem to give you the evil eye if you're a woman wearing pants and make-up. Lots of ankle-length dresses with socks and tennis shoes, no make-up and the beehive up-do's, fortunately you don't see too much of the up-do's anymore but the hair is plain and usually gray. I live close to Bob Jones University and that is how the women dress there and with a Pentecostal church on nearly every corner there's a lot of ladies who dress this way here. And it's just the way you described your hometown lady, stern looking and seemingly just going through the motions, no real happiness or joy to be seen. I don't know how one would break free from that type of hardcore religion that dictates how one dresses and so on, it would be very difficult indeed.
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Mind you I have no issue with them, let them live as they wish, even if it's not my bag. It's just that ... if this isn't deliberate repression of one's self-awareness to avoid the realities of life, I don't know what is. And in its unusualness and extremity (members sell all that they own and have only common property, etc) it is a good metaphor for what religion, at a lower amplitude, does to all comers.
I have no issue with them either it's just sad to me. I want to shake them and say "WAKE UP!!" this is not how you're supposed to live! You said it best in the bolded part above.
I find it very annoying and odd when people say "God wants this" or "Does God want us to do this?" My initial reaction is to tell them that they could not possibly believe him to be all-powerful and read his mind at the same time. Maybe it's just me....
I don't know if I've ever heard someone say this in a personal conversation. I guess it's annoying, but probably at about the same level as hearing someone say "Knock on wood" or some other expression of superstition.
I don't know if I've ever heard someone say this in a personal conversation. I guess it's annoying, but probably at about the same level as hearing someone say "Knock on wood" or some other expression of superstition.
Fair point. I also tend to look at the the entire field of nonsense as a singular phenomena. Whether it is "God wants this", "knock on wood", "What's your sign?", "What goes around, comes around", or athletes explaining that their victory wasn't a matter of muscles, it was their superior spirit or morality, it all flows from the same sewer named "Badthink." It is people making noise.
What really bugs me is when things don't go the way I wanted and someone tells me "God has other plans for you" or something like that. It isn't so much the God reference that bugs me as it is the idea that my life is predetermined. That no matter what I do, some outside force will decide whether a course of action will happen.
It is annoying. It's MORE annoying when people go out of their way and pretzel themselves to JESUS UP everything they do as if doing anything that isn't all about god is a sin. It's actually an obsession for some and I've seen it personally. Very sad.
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