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franciscan - Padre Pio? Don't you know when you have been had?
There is not a bigger load of crap, nor has there been a bigger hoax perpetrated by adherants to the catholic church and facilitated by the institution itself, than Stigmata. I've seen a so called Stigmata case first hand and I'm going to bet that you have not. The person I saw, a middle aged lady from central America, showed off self inflicted wounds to anyone stupid enough to buy it and yes her conscience got the better of her when she eventually admitted her fraud. The catholic church used to parade these fakers around as if they were celebrities, right up until the 1960's. That's the 1960's not the 1260's . . . . The majority of Stigmata cases have admitted the fraud that they have attempted to perpetrate, is the remaining small percentage that have not admitted fraud supposed to be taken at their word? The story of Padre Pio is supposed to do something for me somehow? It has, in a big way done something for me. Aside from insulting my intelligence, it has warned me that reality is not your strong suit.
posted by
gomedome
on May 18, 2006 at 2:57 PM
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Extinction
gomedome, google Padre Pio and the 'three days of darkness'. If that doesn't do it for you try Medjugorje and the 'Warning'. Sometimes called the 'Illumination of Conscience' or the 'Judgement in Miniature'. Oh yes, the fertilizer, as Joseph Sobran put it, WILL meet the whipping blade.
posted by
franciscan
on May 17, 2006 at 3:12 PM
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the whole beatitudes thing
the idea -- what this guy Jesus was trying to put across
is that the attitude and actoins that will lead to a true success -- blessing or advantage -- are virtually diametrically opposite of what the general conclusion is.
you look at these sayings -- and I did a thing with the passage -- see Go to ADVANTAGE IN THE HERE AND NOW - THE SERMON ON THE MOUNT IS NOT RELIGIOUS
and then look at how people deal with other people.
what looks like advantage really isn't and what looks like disadvantage . . .
posted by
Xeno-x
on May 17, 2006 at 2:36 PM
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I remember, eons ago, a discussion in a humanities class in college.
I don't recall what brought it on -- I think it had to do with the age old question: "Violence never settles anything." The professor maintained that such a notion is absurd, that violence, raw force, has settled more things in history than any other method, for good or ill.
One of the righteous, already confused with freshman humanities and the whole ideology behind liberal arts education, tried to score a point with that very verse -- the meek shall inherit the earth, and all that. Whereupon our prof smiled and said,"Yeah, well the last guy who said that wound up nailed to a cross."
Without opening a can of worms as to whether or not that guy died for our sins, I'd have to agree that, at least at that moment, violence pretty well settled the issue rather thoroughly, and spawned that little thought I left previously...
Sorry to take up so much space in your comments. But, hell,it's a fun read, and good for the mind. Thanks for your indulgence!
posted by
strat
on May 17, 2006 at 10:31 AM
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strat -- that literal translation of yours cracked me up
Too funny. Of course the "earth" could be simply the dirt used to fill in our graves and that's exactly how it works in life. The meek most times get buried.
posted by
gomedome
on May 17, 2006 at 10:23 AM
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I don't know what He meant, really.
But I tend to take it to mean that those who don't stand up for themselves will inherit the earth all right -- a shallow, unmarked grave trampled upon by those jackasses who bray loudest and exhort the rest of the herd to stampede on any divergent opinion holder's rights --and life.
posted by
strat
on May 17, 2006 at 10:13 AM
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Xeno-x - well said and my sentiments exactly
Everyone's favourite pastor used that line about the meek inheriting the earth once. I refrained from commenting. I didn't see any point in mentioning that the phrase clearly says "meek", it does not say "The crass, loud and stupid will inherit the earth." And yes there are people waiting for God to reward them somehow. While ignoring their own shortcomings, there are people in this world, even here on Blogit, that are actually waiting for the rapture and insist that we are in the end times. Aside from these notions being completely insane, they override a modern day North American education (presumably) while stating loud and clear that those not subscribing to this nonsense are out of luck.
posted by
gomedome
on May 17, 2006 at 9:16 AM
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they aint meek
they just wish they were
but remember the inherit the earth part
it is not what we call meekness, per se, it is an attitude of greatest respect.
no one has that attitude
that i know of
i attempt to respect even these people here on blogit -- and i do to an extent -- it's just their ideas that i have problems with
Eastern religions teach having respect for others.
this is an extension of such -- a gospel spread to 1st century Galillee.
but those who have the greatest respect for not only other people, but for all around them, understand that the earth is sacred -- it is our inheritance.
while those who wish they were meek wait around for god to give them ther inheritance of great tracts of land where no enemyexists and where you and i in particular are absent, having been consigned to eternal punishment, i already have ownership because i do understand respect to some extent.
posted by
Xeno-x
on May 17, 2006 at 7:07 AM
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