Strange Things

Why do we believe strange things? Why do we believe weird things? We need skepticism so we don't think the earth is flat or space is fake or "the rapture" is imminent. Encounters with Bigfoot [it's a hoot, about 15mins] and space aliens continue to exist in spite of numerous debunkings of fur or footprints. Why do we continue to believe silly unproven or even impossible things? Those who want to deceive you and those who are simply uninformed are almost equally responsible. In these days of division among us, we must find common ground in common facts. You're entitled to your own opinion, but not your own facts. Politicians are famous for distorting facts to suit their scenario. The "church" and other power players regularly use "alternative facts" to sway your opinion to support their platform. The church is famous for forceful or fearful conversion to their way of thinking. 

Primitive stories of feast and famine or deluge and drought become corrupted and intertwined to create the myths and legends of any given group of people. As people mingled and beliefs and stories were traded along with weavings and metalworks, their stories evolved to incorporate others' ideas so people could live in moderate harmony. It took organized religion with government backing to enforce a dogma or doctrine (developed over centuries) on the residents of an area. The ancient story of flooding in Gilgamesh adopted into the story of Noah is probably the most well-known example of this. I love the apologists' arguments for female rights to counter the obvious misogyny in their holy book. I've heard the arguments that their holy text protects the rights of slaves to not be beaten to death but only partially maimed for a day or two as progressive for the time. The stretch of the firmament (I think it is) over the four corners of the earth actually depicts outer space is another of their claims. It's hilarious to me that anyone can say this kind of thing with a straight face... but some people believe it. At least the Hindus have a tiny bit of holy text that actually says the earth or the universe (I forget which) is billions of years old. They're not trying to get their story taught in public schools. 

As for "the church" appropriating existing secular holidays from various Pagan cultures, does it really matter? The already existing celebrations were to recognize the natural patterns of our world with the changing seasons. Stories of many gods who were born on or about December 25 recognize that is about the time of solstice (summer or winter depending on the hemisphere). Yay, the sun is coming back (leaving) so we won't freeze (bake) to death. A bit of history of the 'Christmas Tree' was covered by the History Guy som while ago. I blogged about that since I had not heard some of those stories of how the tree itself came about. I thought it was solely the Pagan Yule. Secular, huh? Interesting. The equinoxes in March and September (on our current calendar) mark the beginning of planting or harvesting seasons. The spring equinox has become Passover or Easter or maybe Ramadan in the Abrahamic religions, or remain purely cultural in many parts of the world. 

You can imagine the contradictions that resulted from combining various stories of different cultures over centuries of time by naturally different authors. You don't even need to imagine; you can read them for yourself. Just read several different versions of the same story in the old or new testaments of the bible (Ezekial 23 for instance). They are readily available online. You will be amazed at how... descriptive some passages are, LOL. The holy texts are not the only ones full of fantasy, but holy texts are most often used to attempt to enforce beliefs on others. Combine rebirth stories from pagans involving rabbits (reproduce like rabbits) and eggs (ducks, chickens lay more in warm weather?) and fresh woodland and greenery growth and you may end up with something like these comics show.  

The crazy things religion can make you believe in leaves you more susceptible to other kinds of crazy things to believe in. Rational thinking is the only inoculation. Isn't it better to live in the world you know than an imaginary one? Take the chance of thinking for yourself. Much more truth, happiness, and wisdom will come to you that way (paraphrasing Christorpher Hitchens in one of his books -- God is Not Great, maybe). You do need a solid basis of understanding, or a willingness to research facts to guide your thinking. See some of the strange things Seth and his callers used to believe (usually when they were young children). I wasn't told as a child that the "color would wear off", but I remember looking at the Crayola 'flesh' crayon and asking why it wasn't the same color as my skin. The thought carried forward to when I'm sun-burned [that cooked-crab red + a touch of purple if it was a really bad one], or when my cousin was deeply tanned? It was very confusing to me then. I hear they've changed the name of that pinky-tan crayon and added more shades of pinky-brown. Rationality comes a little later to some than others, but it's never too late to develop those skills. 

From the video below, the story at about 32min mark is positively heart-breaking. A fear-based culture telling a child they'll lose everything and everyone they've ever known and loved should be illegal (or at least strongly discouraged) IMO. The story of the "holy prepuce" from the catholic church as late as the 1980s cracked me up, hahaha. Ah lordy; we shall speak of it no more, LOL!