From a recent post that appeared on FSTDT:

I do not want to stereotype but most athiests i have met were gays. Yet they fail to notice that when they engage in sexual activity that goes against procreation they take part in a ritual that worships baal peor.

Yes, it’s ridiculous to equate sex with worship of specific Canaanite deity.  That’s not the point.  The point is, there’s a lot of this “unknowing worship” buzz going around in certain fundie circles.

One example that immediately comes to mind is the claim that most people who celebrate Halloween are worshiping Satan without even realizing it.  Word is, somehow or another, people are supposed to move on from ignorant Satan worship to deliberate Satan worship.  Of course, how/when this transition is supposed to take place is never really made clear.

Another claim is that environmentalism is secretly Gaia worship, and that most of those who engage in it are unwittingly taking part in pagan religion. And again, at some point they’re supposed to become aware of it and just embrace it.  Why/how is never really explained.

So, what are your thoughts on the claim that accidental/unwitting worship is possible?

thisiswhiteprivilege:

White privilege is having people think you have a legitimate reason to practice Christianity rather than it just being something that was passed onto you from your “white massas.”

Even Jesus said that his thing was not for non-Jews.  Then Paul of Tarsus, a privileged Roman citizen, came along and appropriated it and brought it to the rest of the world.

That’s right guys, appropriation brought us Christianity.

Years ago, I absolutely adored the Paranormal section of About.com.  I eagerly awaited the monthly update of (supposedly true) paranormal stories sent in by readers and read them up as fast as they came.

But there was just one problem: these stories were making me question my Christian religious beliefs.  They described things that should have been impossible based on what I’d been taught.  Now, while were stories that were so absurd I that I was pretty sure the person was making it up, it was difficult for me to dismiss each and every one of them.

So I quit going to the site.

After a long while, I had a thought: Wait a minute.  If I have to keep my ears and eyes closed to all this stuff that’s out there just to maintain my beliefs, there’s something very wrong.

I could only come to the inescapable conclusion that whatever the truth was, it wasn’t what I’d been told.  And I wanted to know just how deep the rabbit-hole went.

There were a couple of times when I was temporarily ‘reconverted.’  But the thing was, I couldn’t keep lying to myself because it went against every fiber of my being.

Years ago, I absolutely adored the Paranormal section of About.com.  I eagerly awaited the monthly update of (supposedly true) paranormal stories sent in by readers and read them up as fast as they came.

But there was just one problem: these stories were making me question my Christian religious beliefs.  They described things that should have been impossible based on what I’d been taught.  Now, while were stories that were so absurd I that I was pretty sure the person was making it up, it was difficult for me to dismiss each and every one of them.

So I quit going to the site.

After a long while, I had a thought: Wait a minute.  If I have to keep my ears and eyes closed to all this stuff that’s out there just to maintain my beliefs, there’s something very wrong.

I could only come to the inescapable conclusion that whatever the truth was, it wasn’t what I’d been told.  And I wanted to know just how deep the rabbit-hole went.

There were a couple of times when I was temporarily ‘reconverted.’  But the thing was, I couldn’t keep lying to myself because it went against every fiber of my being.  I’d seen the man behind the curtain, and there was no denying it.

I am continually searching for answers, and I doubt very much whether I’ll ever have them.  But it’s a great relief to be in a place where I can search instead of being told that I should stop thinking so hard because it will all make sense in some far off Someday.