Fannie's Room
I will be looking forward to Part II, as this is one of my favorite subjects.
My own views are very similar to yours, but I am even more a "blasphemer".
I cannot reconcile the miserable, imperfect, stupid prick that Jehovah was the gentle first century Rabbi, whom men claimed to be the Son of said asshole.
I feel very much as Thomas Jefferson did, when he said:
"To the corruptions of Christianity I am indeed opposed; but not to the genuine precepts of Jesus himself. I am a Christian, in the only sense he wished any one to be; sincerely attached to his doctrines, in preference to all others; ascribing to himself every human excellence; & believing he never claimed any other."
"To the corruptions of Christianity I am indeed opposed; but not to the genuine precepts of Jesus himself"
I like that quote.
Brilliant, Fannie. As always.
This is perfect, fannies. I have really nothing to add at this point b/c i think you hit the nail on the head. it's frustrating to be called "bad" because you question what seems to be blatant injustice. But this is (i know i always say this) one of your best posts. I look forward to pt. II and thank you for so perfectly articulating what I think about/feel/struggle with several times a day. Once again, glad you're on my side (usually 
)
oops *"fannie". i'm pretty sure there's only one of you.
As to your observation that Christianity is inherently sexist, just this minute I was reminded of just how deep this sexism runs.
I just read an article about the decline of Catholicism in Ireland, of all places. The article speaks to the decline in the number of priests and nuns and discusses some of the possible causes.
One of the commenters said:
"Today - rescind the blasphemous presence of little girls in the sanctuary. Restore the "garden of vocations."
Tomorrow - abrogate the Novus Ordo, and restore the Traditional Mass.
Anything less will leave empty churches and hellbound souls.
Patrick weeps."
"the blasphemous presence of little girls in the sanctuary."????
Good grief.
The decline of the Catholic Church is caused by the presence of female altar servers?
Thanks for your kind words Grace and rem.
And John, yes, contriving ideas like the "blasphemous" presence of girls in holy places is exactly what I'm talking about.
Great article, Fannie.
When you said this "Such a God is ultimately not worthy of my devotion, because to worship such a God is to worship the human beings who created "him" as they have created "him" in their own image."
It reminded me of a quote I saw yesterday: "Do not expect the men who created the world's problems to be the ones to solve them."
Such men (religious/political leaders) have created a world of their own convenience, one that ignores all other races, religions, socioeconomic status, sexual orientation, etc. Why do we keep expecting these same people to help anyone but themselves and "their own?"
I never have an articulate answer for people who ask why I do not adhere to an organized religion, and ultimately do not "believe in" the concept of organized religion. This is absolutely perfect - it explains the sexism and hypocrisy that have driven me from ever wanting to "be religious." Well done.
Thanks anonhottie- it was sort of my goal to finally articulate why I no longer "believe in" organized religion- and I had a feeling that many people feel similarly...
Jane,
I like that quote. It reminds me of commentary I recently heard surrounding the election. A conservative commentator said something along the lines of "Our country is going to shit, and now is not the time to try something 'new' by electing Democrats." As if, because the Republicans got us into this mess, only they can be expected to get us out of it. LOL!
Republicans stand for change.
That is why they are offering us a 72 year old straight white guy.
I know. That's just never been done before!
If God had a gender, which do you think it would be? Does the world exibit characteristics that are more male or female?
Do you think men have been given advantages over women by Nature/God?
I think the very fact that we try to assign a gender to god/God is proof that we want to understand him/her/it in terms of ourselves, assigning human-like characteristics to something that is by definition separate from humanity. If there is a god, I believe it is genderless and beyond our comprehension.
Fannie hit the nail on the head when she said (I think referencing another author) that god was created in man's image rather than the reverse.
Just my beliefs though.
Celtic Chimp,
I try not to think of god as a "who"- but more of a what, so it's difficult to assign a gender. But I think you get that as you ask whether the world exhibits characteristics that are more male or female.
My view is that characteristics that are "male" or "female" are social constructs. In other words, we say that some characteristics are male (like, for example, aggression) or female (like, for example, intuition) and then we would assign them to different natural phenomenona. But that doesn't make the phenomenona male or female. I think it just means that we call it male or female. If that makes sense.
Celtic Chimp,
ps- What do you think with respect to the questions you asked?
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