Hassidic Newspaper Photoshops Hillary Clinton Out of Iconic Photograph

The 'shopped image

Oh, brother. My antipathy toward religion is well known, and I don't single any of them out as better or more likely to be true than any other. I think they're all preposterous. But I had no idea that certain Jewish sects are forbiddent to portray images of women. Not scantily clad women, not pornographic images, merely women in general apparently. As I said, Preposterous.

[Excerpt]

Hasidic Newspaper Issues Statement On Photoshopping Of Iconic Image

The original image.

They photoshopped Hillary out. They caught hell. Now here is their 'apology'. . .
 
Read more at: Failed Messiah

Thanks to Stupid Monkey Planet for the link.

And Now For Something Completely Different

By way of my brother-in-law Todd, comes this very strange item available at Amazon.com. It's not the right season for it, but when is the right season for a Mormon Hanukkah song?

Eight Days of Hanukkah by Orrin Hatch
and Madeline Stone (Performed By Rasheeda Azar)



Get yours at: Amazon.com

Religion Tropes: Explaining the Major Religions

I tried but couldn't find the original source for this brilliant analogy, but will be happy to provide attribution if anyone knows. As a fan of "tv tropes" and the idioms and conventions of pop culture, this analogy explaining religions hit me as just perfect. See what you think.

No, Muslims don't believe that Jesus was the messiah.

Think of it like a movie. The Torah is the first one, and the New Testament is the sequel.

Then the Koran comes out, and it retcons the last one like it never happened. There's still Jesus, but he's not the main character anymore, and the messiah hasn't shown up yet.

Jews like the first movie but ignored the sequels. Christians think you need to watch the first two, but the third movie doesn't count. Muslims think the third one was the best.

Mormons like the second one so much that they started writing fan-fiction that doesn't fit with any of the series canon.

Source: Ask 500 People

Israel, Hamas, Gaza and the Clueless WASPy Blogger

Photo from source, Huffington Post

It's amazing how fast "blog time" goes compared to real time when you're on vacation. My intention has been to post a couple of things every day, even in these dog days of blogging over the holidays. But Sunday just slipped right by me! Of course, we had friends over, and were entertaining most of the day. Still, I was surprised to find that I had posted almost nothing for Sunday.

The biggest story going right now is the Hamas/Israel Gaza fight, and I'll confess to it being sooo far off my radar, I have nothing particularly wise or sage to add. I don't know why anybody wants to live there, so I'm puzzled why people put themselves in harm's way. There are many things about deeply-held religious feelings and beliefs that I'll never understand. Still, it is important enough that I feel some mention be made of it, so here you go.

[Excerpt]

ISRAEL WIDENS AIR OFFENSIVE, HAMAS FIRES LONGER-RANGE ROCKETS

Israel widened its deadliest-ever air offensive against Gaza's Hamas rulers Sunday, pounding smuggling tunnels and government strongholds, sending more tanks and artillery toward the Gaza border and activating thousands of reservists for a possible ground invasion. . .

Read more at: Huffington Post

Religious Discovery: Ancient Hebrew Tablet

Photo from source, New York Times

Religious artifacts offer something for everybody. For the devout, they offer affirmation, and excitement. For the irreligious, they often offer a chance for debate. Like, does this prove that the religion is true, or does it merely lay the groundwork for a fabrication that came after it?

Either way, it can be fascinating.

[Excerpt]

Ancient Hebrew tablet sparks debate on Messiah

A 3-foot-tall tablet with 87 lines of Hebrew that scholars believe dates from the decades just before the birth of Jesus is causing a quiet stir in biblical and archeological circles, especially because it may speak of a messiah who will rise from the dead after three days.

If such a messianic description really is there, it will contribute to a developing reevaluation of both popular and scholarly views of Jesus, because it suggests that the story of his death and resurrection was part of a recognized Jewish tradition at the time. . .

Read more at: New York Times

Thanks again to Stupid Monkey Planet for the link.