god, jesus, religion, comfort, ray, atheism, atheist, egypt, pharoah, plagues, religion, religious, christian, christianity,
Ray Comfort's fan club is generally harmless. Their comments on his blog normally amount to nothing more than cheerleading and vague threats that atheists will burn- BURN!- for all eternity. (Which is terribly rude when you think about it, but we're used to it.)
Payton Dooley, commenting as Euaggelion, on the other hand, reminded me of one of the most disturbing episodes in the bible- the Plagues. This story has many disturbing aspects: the tortures and killings of completely uninvolved innocents (Pharoah wouldn't let the Israelites go, the average egyptian citizen had no say whatsoever. why punish them?), the slaughter of animals (twice), and the deaths of newborn children.
However, by far the most disbturbing element of the story is highlighted in Payton Dooley's comment:
Keep it up Ray!! The atheists really don't see that they are helping to increase the Kingdom of God. God is using them, even with their hardened hearts, to accomplish His plan. Just like He used Pharaoh. I will continue to pray for you Ray.In Him,Payton
You see, more than once during the plagues, Pharoah was perfectly willing to let the Israelites leave Egypt, which was their stated goal. All that was asked of Pharoah was "let the Israelites go." But, every time Pharoah was ready to let them go, god "hardened his heart", forcing Pharoah to keep the Israelites and thus continue the plagues, and the suffering and death therefrom.
Exodus 9:12 But the LORD hardened Pharaoh's heart and he would not listen to Moses and Aaron, just as the LORD had said to Moses
In Exodus 10:1-2, we find out why God does this : Then the LORD said to Moses, "Go to Pharaoh, for I have hardened his heart and the hearts of his officials so that I may perform these miraculous signs of mine among them 2 that you may tell your children and grandchildren how I dealt harshly with the Egyptians and how I performed my signs among them, and that you may know that I am the LORD."
Think about this for a second. God knows that Pharoah is willing to let the Israelites leave Egypt. God deliberately changes Pharoah's mind for him, thus condemning everyone in Egypt (except the Israelites) to enormous suffering, just to prove to the Israelites that he is indeed god. That's just? That's loving? No, that's psychopathic. It's cruel and evil. God could have proven he was god by healing all the sick, or making everyone's eyes purple, or something equally good or benign. No, god goes straight for undrinkable water and painful diseases and dead children.
Think about what Payton Dooley is saying about god and atheists. Atheists will burn in hell. Forever. Atheists could believe in god, may even want to believe in god (it's a load of crap, but it is what he is saying), but god is making sure they don't just to prove a point.
What the fuck is good about that? Why is believing in that better than believing in nothing at all?
Monday, February 16, 2009
4 comments:
Comments are for you guys, not for me. Say what you will. Don't feel compelled to stay on topic, I enjoy it when comments enter Tangentville or veer off into Non Sequitur Town. Just keep it polite, okay?
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ReplyDeleteput that way, it makes god seem EVIL. and also, it means that god MADE you an atheist, and these wingnutwackjobs are trying to go against god. who will, apparently, come and kill their children and livestock because god made you not believe in him.
just. wow.
you know how you said my religion is hard? better hard that FUCKEDUPSTUPID. just sayin'.
"God is an iron."
as in, the person who commits theivery is a thief, the person who commits adultry is an adulter, the person who commits irony is an iron. (Spider Robinson, in the Lifehouse Trilogy)
wait. did he say this to YOU, attacking YOU, or was it just a general statement?
general statement. that site has this bizarre dichotomy of atheists (especially Steven J, he is well worth reading for) saying really well though out, researched, interesting things, and ray's fans yelling "Ray rocks! Atheists suck!" over and over.
ReplyDeletethat story in the bible bothered me when i was like 6.
They can say what they will, but there are far too many Christians gleefully anticipating the punishment meted out to those of us who didn't share their opinions.
ReplyDeleteSchadenfreude as metaphysics. How novel.
Wasn't there a christian philosopher (back when all christians were catholic) who said that one of the greatest pleasures of heaven was watching the damned suffer in hell? I forget who that was.
ReplyDelete