30 May 2010

Old But Interesting

I was looking at tarvu.com for a while and I still don't get it. I'm not sure if the website is making fun of Mormons, Christians, Scientologists or just religion in general (non-Muslim, of course... fear of death and all). It sure seems to me that a lot of work went into this obviously fake website, complete with fake doctrine, prayers, testimonials, videos, etc. And speaking with an octopus? I don't get it. "It's so easy to join," but I'm not getting why anyone would want to do so.

Of course, I had to doodle around the internet to find out more. This is the part of the post where I warn my gentle readers that those with sensitive eyes might want to just hit that little X that's in the top right corner of your screen right now. This post isn't for you... sorry. Onward...

Typed in "religion parody" and didn't find tarvu. I found the flying spaghetti monster religion, to be sure, but that's old news. Even older but less well-publicized? The Church of the SubGenius, having been around since at least 1979, is an oldie. Some lady "reverend" from this pretender pseudo cult lost custody of her child because she's galavanting around indecently at semi-religious parties. From the comment section of this article:

"Nudity - sure.
Owning a dildo - sure.
Mocking religion - sure.

Mocking religion with explicit use of a dildo while nude and being photographed - well, I guess it depends on whether her son actually saw it, or pictures of it."

Or how 'bout this:

"Make fun of religion, lose your kids. It doesn't matter that Kohl (the son) had a healthy, stable home. Nor does it matter that he was home-schooled and tested at a 5th grade level (on par with kids his age). Let's ignore that his family provided chess lessons, art lessons, Tae Kwon Do and boxing lessons. Clearly, this kid was at risk - at risk of not being raised to be a Christian." Source

Um, and the author in this 2006 article is wondering where all the Christians are wanting to defend this person. I'm thinking that no one really heard about it... did they? Anyone else big into homeschooling blogs and stuff who knows about this? Did I just miss it? That's about when we began homeschooling, so it would be easy to miss. Certainly I was just getting my homeschool ducks in a row and only a few weeks from delivering Woodjie.

I looked around some more and found that no, she didn't really lose custody permanently. It sorta looks like she got custody back because the father had some problems, including drunk driving (scroll way down). Wow.

But what if someday Christianity became that offensive to judges? Do you think people like this would come to our defense? Would we want them to?

5 comments:

  1. How did the media miss this one? It even had their favorite villain--the Catholic Church, at its forefront.

    It's an unnerving story. While I (of course) don't agree with the woman's outlook on Christianity, I do believe in her right to practice her own (barring true, proven, physical child abuse). I'd like to think there's more to the story than this, some kind of abuse that no one is discussing, but, the truth is, DFS and the courts have taken children for far flimsier reasons and while leaving others in terrible conditions, even in the face of constant phone calls from school officials and relatives. I do think that their mission needs to be redefined.

    Lately I find myself relieved that my children are growing up and will soon be out of DFS's reach. While I can't say that I've exactly lived in fear of them, it is one of those things that crosses your mind when you're already lying sleepless the night after you take one to the emergency room for stitches.

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  2. I know that we shouldn't "live in fear" of these people... but I am afraid of them for exactly the sorts of reasons you cited. I think the cops should be gathering evidence and that child abuse is a crime just like assault. After DUE PROCESS, go ahead and throw the book at 'em.

    But due process. And reasonable tolerance for wackadoo religious folks of any stripe. I am not entirely sure but I think the mom's pics in her escapades were open on the internet for all to see and she is easily googlable (hey, shut up lol). OR it is an estranged father making the most of the Christmas break.

    Not sure how to feel about this case.

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  3. As a Christian, I worry about the day down the road where people might have to keep their faith in the closet because it is not politically correct.

    How do you fight mocking and hating in a way that honors Christ?

    I do it through relationships. I meet an atheist and, rather than bash them with my Bible, I just get to know the person. If God wants me to share my faith, He will orchestrate those moments when the friend is most open. I have seen a person transform very slowly because God worked through several people and loving relationships to help that friend heal and learn to know God.

    It's not the fake friendship, only geared toward making a convert. Just friendship. For me, it's easiest with other families dealing with autism. That is our mutual burden. If sharing my faith is meant to be, I will do so. If that is not the right time and God puts up a block, then I simply focus on being a good friend if I can.

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  4. AH!! SO true! I am who I am, so friends will see "Christian with faults" quite plainly. True friendship is one with mutual respect, and you can't do that by browbeating someone and being disrespectful.

    I also find this idea of "friendship evangelism" disrespectful. Just be a friend. Always be ready with the gospel. If you're called to preach, do that. But that's a separate issue IMO.

    Often you distill complex issues with such wisdom and patience, Tammy, that your faith speaks for itself.

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  5. Uh, yuck . . . garsh! :-)

    P.S. That's not me, but fruit of the Spirit . . .

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Non-troll comments always welcome! :)

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