Bowing, scraping, singing praises, telling God how great he is...?

Question

...sounds like he has an ego issue. Did you ever think for a second that it sounds a lot like what royalty used to expect of their peasants? Or for that matter, what the Bishops expected of their flock?
"Help! I'm being repressed! ...Come see the violence inheirant in the system!"

Answer 1

Christianity makes a mockery of God. At the same time that Christians claim to worship God as an omnipotent, omnipresent, omnibenevolent being, they make him out to be incompetent bumbler. Or worse. Simple forgiveness is beyond his capacities. God must "sacrifice himself to himself to change a rule he made himself!"

This is not only an absurdity, it is an essential absurdity. It is present in almost almost all forms of Christianity, and one can scarcely remove it and remain a Christian in anything but name. By definition, all Christians worship Christ - in some form - and most worship him as a saviour.

But what, exactly, is he saving us from? Though it varies from church to church, no matter what they call it, it's God himself. A hell created by God, a world fallen as a result of God's negligence, a separation from God imposed... by God.

"It is a counterfeit love that is contingent upon authority, punishment, or reward. True love is respect and admiration, compassion and kindness, freely given by a healthy, unafraid human being."
- Dan Barker, Losing Faith in Faith

Christianity certainly isn't the first religion to promote appeasement of its gods, and if it were merely another supernatural protection racket, it would be bad enough. Unfortunately, it doesn't stop there. Christians elevate appeasement to the realm of "personal relationship", transforming their religion into a true monstrosity.

This is the type of "relationship" that abused wives have with their husbands, that brainwashed hostages have with their captors. It is known in clinical circles as Stockholm Syndrome. Should it come as any surprise that the cries of the church, "The Bride of Christ" sound much like the cries of an abused wife attempting to protect her husband?

"He must beat me."
"I deserve it."
"He has no choice."
"It's for my own good."

These excuses don't work for human abusers, and they work even less well for God. For if God is omnipotent, he must have a choice. And if we are flawed, we are only flawed because that is the way he made us. (No excuses that we ruined his perfect creation. A truly perfect creation does not self-destruct.)

If the Christian God does exist - and I see no reason to believe that he does - he's not worthy of the name.

And that is the ultimate absurdity of Christianity.

- Jason
August 19, 1998

Fear is learned...created. Religion is fear and therefore is also a creation of man.
jesusreligion.com

Answer 2

a person with mental(spirtual) abuse whould be too blind to see it if they were brainwashed enough. they wont thank you for setting them free they whould attack and demonize you. they indoctorinate thier offspring before they are old enough to think for themselves and call it saving thier souls. But little kids dont need that kind of thing to corrupt thier minds.



THE LIE
by Janet O'Neill

A child is born, his father beams
Another chance to live his dreams.
A new life now to guide and mold,
He'll tell the child what he's been told.
An intellect to quickly seize.
Embrace the faith while reason flees,
So much of life spent on your knees.
So much of life spent on your knees.

* * *

Baptize the innocent with tricks
Of sacrifice and crucifix.
Whispered prayers and chanted psalm
Deliver fear and guilt with calm.
Behind nonsense of ritual
Words tempt of heaven, threaten hell.
Reality is hard to sell.
Reality's so hard to sell.

* * *

Truth is harder still to find.
To keep the faith you close the mind!
And faith, not intellect, is chief
When minds are frozen in belief.
Smear the ashes on the brow
Starve, but feed the sacred cow.
Torah, Koran, bible scribes
Recite the dusty diatribes.
Recite, recite the diatribes.

* * *

Quote endless scripture, Pray the beads,
Worship countless deities.
Proclaiming love dispense the hate,
Banish - excommunicate!
Scorn the man whom reason rules,
Congregate with holy fools.
Celebrate all martyrdom.
Capture minds while they're still young.
Be sure to get them when they're young.

* * *

Cathedrals vaulted ceilings high
Regally dress up the lie.
Burn the incense, sing and sway
Superstition saves the day!
Ring the bells and genuflect
Dance with snakes around your neck.
Wail at the wall, bow to the east
Ignorance is a senseless beast.
Shout fire and brimstone, heaven and hell,
But fear the individual.
Fear most the individual.

Answer 3

Being a fan of English comedies as well, I always liked the scene in "Monty Python and the Holy Grail" where God talks to King Arthur, and then gets ticked because Arthus won't look at him. I also like the scene in the original "Bedazzled" where Peter Cook (as the Devil) explains that one reason he left Heaven was because he was tired of having to praise God all the time.

Answer 4

Churches, i think want to run our lives by saying that if your gay,bi,lesbian or not a christian your going to hell.
Why can't people let us make our own decisions and decide our own destiny/Fate without having to scare people by saying there going to a bad place if you don't worship so and so.
Now there finding new evidence all the time saying"Jesus Christ was just a regular man and didn't do anything extrodinary". And churches are getting scared because more and more people are going to Wicca instead of Christianity and so there tightning there lease of lies on everyone so people won't convert into Wicca.

Answer 5

Psalm 150

150:1 Praise ye the LORD. Praise God in his sanctuary: praise him in the firmament of his power.

150:2 Praise him for his mighty acts: praise him according to his excellent greatness.

150:3 Praise him with the sound of the trumpet: praise him with the psaltery and harp.

150:4 Praise him with the timbrel and dance: praise him with stringed instruments and organs.

150:5 Praise him upon the loud cymbals: praise him upon the high sounding cymbals.

150:6 Let every thing that hath breath praise the LORD. Praise ye the LORD.

Answer 6

Sitting in heaven and praising god for all eternity. Wow, I think I'd rather pass a twisted rusty sardine can. Does God know the air speed velocity of a coconut laden swallow? How about my favorite color?

Answer 7

God deserves all the praise and glory hes to great of a God not to be acknowledged. Read a little further

Answer 8

Have you never thanked someone for a great favor...or shaken hands with someone? All human communication is not verbal.

These prostrations and exclamations to God are for OUR benefit...not His. God doesn't need us...we need Him!

Now go away, foul temptress!

Answer 9

Whatever you might think of God does not matter. It's what God thinks of your that matters. He loves you whether you love Him back or not.

Just like you, if you have kids you don't ask them to love you back or praise you. Nonetheless, if your kids love you back without you asking them to, how would you feel?

Answer 10

God doesn't MAKE or EXPECT anyone to bow, worship or sing his praises. It's a choice. I do it to thank him for all he has given me.
God Bless You!