In China and Japan, we have ghost festival every summer, basically it's pretty different from halloween: we put food in front of the doors for wandering hungry ghosts, do not allow children to swim in the water coz there are water ghosts who drowned themselves when they were alive, those lonely ghosts eager to drag the children into the water to stay with them, we put the paper lanterns on the surface of water to point the direction for lost ghosts....and we do not wander in the street after sunset coz if a ghost sees you and follows you back home, you and your family will have bad luck all year.
We celibrate this festival every year, though I myself don't buy it at all....but when I talked about this with my American friend, he thought this festival is "offense" against God....Can someone explain it to me?.....
2006-12-05 00:25:45 · 5 answers · asked by Anonymous in Society & Culture ➔ Mythology & Folklore
a few people believe that theirs is the one true religion, that all others are sinners who will go to hell, etc. i've heard it a hundred times on this site alone.
they have almost 0% religious or cultural tolerance, and ur friend is of the type that thinks anything going against his own rather narrow minded view of god is wrong, and to make his opinion have more influence, he says it offends god instead of him.
he is entitled to his opinion, but tell him to live with the fact that other people believe different things. whether or not he likes the festival, its part of a culture, and a major one at that (i think i know the festival u mean) and he should have some restraint in his comments. i get the feeling he's the type who'd fly off the handle if
u say the slightest thing that conflicts with his view of a perfect world, and i advise u be a little careful with people like that.
The American Heritage Dictionary defines fundamentalism as a usually religious movement or point of view characterized by a return to fundamental principles, by rigid adherence to those principles, and often by "intolerance of other views and opposition to secularism."
is ur friend a fundamentalist?
2006-12-05 00:52:18 · answer #1 · answered by implosion13 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Cripes, another person wearing their religion on their sleave. Nothing like enjoying learning about a different culture. Some religious zealots look for things that don't follow their religous "code" and then use it as an excuse to preach. I swear that thier "faith" is so weak that they can't hadle the thought that maybe they chose the wrong faith.
2006-12-05 05:02:36 · answer #2 · answered by lbuajlw 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
People in Mexico have Dia de los Muertos - Day of the Dead - where they make food and celebrate the life of the deceased loved ones. They make alters of memories of their loved ones.
Your American friend needs to open his mind that each religion is different and Culture is just as important as religion. If he thinks your culture and religion is offensive to God, then he is offending God by not accepting other people's beliefs.
2006-12-05 01:50:12 · answer #3 · answered by KJ97Y100 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Many people think that any holiday or practice that isn't shared by their religion or belief system is sacreligious, even if the holiday has nothing to do with gods or deities. This is usually because they don't understand the belief systems of others and because of their unfamiliarity with the practice they assume it's offensive to their belief system.
2006-12-05 00:43:48 · answer #4 · answered by Max 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Quite a few Americans are totally mad. I wouldn't worry about it. Just ask him why dressing little children up as demons isn't a "sin".
2006-12-05 00:29:10 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋