Rainy day religion blogging
11/15/06 12:07
In a document that was passed at the annual Fall
meeting of Roman Catholic Bishops, the Archbishop of
St. Louis inserted language addressing the
issue of Catholic politicians who support
abortion rights and receive Holy Communion. This
is a direct attempt to influence the laws and
politics of this country by placing pressure on
Catholic legislators. How can the Catholic
church get away with something this blatant and
remain a tax-exempt organization? This is the
kind of stuff that really pisses me off. The
separation of church and state is the basis for
their tax-exempt status, yet they (and various
other invisible cloud-daddy worshipping groups)
routinely try to erode it or go around it or
simply ignore it with no consequences
whatsoever. I want to see the IRS going around
the country making assessments to all those
palatial Catholic churches. I bet if that
happened, the guys with the big pointy hats
would back right the fuck off our politicians.
Self-preservation is the real defining
principle behind any mythology.
In other, better news, the US Marine Reserve's Toys for Tots charity turned down the offer of 4,000 free talking Jesus dolls from the company that made them.
Toys are donated to kids based on financial need and "we don't know anything about their background, their religious affiliations," said Bill Grein, vice president of Marine Toys for Tots Foundation, in Quantico, Virginia.
As a government entity, Marines "don't profess one religion over another," Grein said Tuesday. "We can't take a chance on sending a talking Jesus doll to a Jewish family or a Muslim family."
Now that's more like it. A government entity is refusing to let an evangelical company use them as a proxy to shove their beliefs down the throats of the needy. That's some righteous rational thinking right there. Here's the quote of the day for me:
Grein questioned whether children would welcome a gift designed for religious instruction.
"Kids want a gift for the holiday season that is fun," he said.
Hee-hee. That's good stuff. My guess is they won't take no for an answer, though. They'll probably do something spiteful like file a massive lawsuit that will bankrupt the charity.
In other, better news, the US Marine Reserve's Toys for Tots charity turned down the offer of 4,000 free talking Jesus dolls from the company that made them.
Toys are donated to kids based on financial need and "we don't know anything about their background, their religious affiliations," said Bill Grein, vice president of Marine Toys for Tots Foundation, in Quantico, Virginia.
As a government entity, Marines "don't profess one religion over another," Grein said Tuesday. "We can't take a chance on sending a talking Jesus doll to a Jewish family or a Muslim family."
Now that's more like it. A government entity is refusing to let an evangelical company use them as a proxy to shove their beliefs down the throats of the needy. That's some righteous rational thinking right there. Here's the quote of the day for me:
Grein questioned whether children would welcome a gift designed for religious instruction.
"Kids want a gift for the holiday season that is fun," he said.
Hee-hee. That's good stuff. My guess is they won't take no for an answer, though. They'll probably do something spiteful like file a massive lawsuit that will bankrupt the charity.
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