The bible very clearly says that football is a sin
The Saddlesore church on homosexuality.
The Bible very clearly says that homosexuality is a sin…[E]ven if some physical difference were discovered, it would be no excuse for sin. We know that some people can develop a stronger physical addiction to alcohol than others, but that’s obviously no excuse for living an alcoholic lifestyle…It’s not judgmental to say that what the Bible calls a sin is a sin, that’s just telling the truth.
Actually, no, it’s not. To say that what the bible calls a sin is a sin is not telling the truth at all; it’s propagating a delusion, and to say that homosexuality is a sin is propagating a harmful dangerous immoral delusion. ‘Sin’ is not a meaningful concept, and the bible is not a reliable source for much of anything, and it’s childishly obscurantist to pretend otherwise. Yet this guy is playing an important part in the inauguration – of someone from the non-theocratic party. He’s being taken seriously, even though he think an old work of fiction and poetry is a reliable source of knowledge about what is a ‘sin.’ What a tragic joke.
In what way is the Democratic Party the “non-theocratic party”? Ophelia?
The two parties differ little when it comes to pandering to “faith.” I’ll admit that the Dems are less willing to spend big bucks on their pet church projects, but…
Saddlesore church?
There’s coffee everywhere. Well done, OB!
What an interesting set of questions and answers. Apparently everything is bad for you, but jeebus will save you if you tithe. It’s always money, isn’t it?
Happy Festivus!
Thenk you, Chris – I enjoyed my rude little joke.
Yeah isn’t the emphasis on tithing interesting. Also the cheery announcement that if you tithe to us we’ll tithe that to people who could use some help. And…keep the other 90% for personal expenses? Impressive.
Now hold on there, OB. The Bible does indeed call homosexuality a sin. Actually, it calls it by a word that has often been translated as “abomination” – the same word, incidentally, that applies to some 350 other transgressions of Old Testament law, like wearing blended fabrics and eating shellfish. Unclean, doncha know.
And you know what? I am willing to agree 100% with both Rick Warren and the Old Testament here. That is, homosexuality is a sin against God, and it’s just as grave a sin as eating shellfish.
Of course, there is no God, so sins against someone else’s imaginary friend mean as much to me as said imaginary friend’s prohibition against eating yummy seafood…
Even Rick Warren knows at some level that he’s engaging in a kind of fool’s game. (He’s a self-righteous prick, but not a complete idiot.) Note his wording. “It’s not judgmental to say that what the Bible calls a sin is a sin, that’s just telling the truth.” He is absolutely right here. Homosexuality is indeed what the Bible calls a sin, so it’s a sin, and that’s the truth. Of course, it’s a truth in the same way that what Alice in Wonderland calls a Cheshire Cat is indeed a Cheshire Cat.
I think Rick Warren is actually enough of a cynical, self-serving prick to know that he’s playing this game, and to phrase what he says in those terms. He knows that accepting the Bible’s moral claims as valid is completely unjustified – but that his gullible flock does so and will continue to do so nevertheless, and that he will continue to enjoy power and prestige and wealth because of it.
I do believe, on my less cynical days, that some religious leaders are honest believers in the nonsense they spout. But nothing I’ve seen convinces me that Rick Warren is anything but a cynical self-serving con man – which only multiplies the shame that should be heaped upon Obama for choosing to elevate him in this way.
Correct me if I’m wrong but the US is still officially a secular country is it not? Why is there even an opening prayer at all? I presume it is one of those curious anomalies like ‘In God We Trust’ on the currency?
Yeh but G I was disputing Warren’s careful formula – I wasn’t disputing that it’s true that the bible calls homosexuality a sin, I was disputing that it’s true that ‘what the Bible calls a sin is a sin.’ I realize it’s true in Warren’s terms of course, but he can’t rely on that, because he is, precisely, addressing the disagreement of people who don’t accept his terms (like you and me for instance) – and in those terms it is not true that ‘what the Bible calls a sin is a sin.’
Actually it’s not even true that the bible calls homosexuality a sin, because the bible wasn’t written in English.
Dave yes the US is still supposed to be a secular republic; I really don’t know why there’s an ‘invocation’ at all; this is part of my complaint.
It’s a large, multi-part complaint.