patrick.net

Maybe he just got sick of the constant penis-pill ads in his Yahoo! email account...

YesYNot says

the dislike button is right where I put my thumb when scrolling on a cell phone

That's actually a very good point. When designing web pages today, one must consider how the page works on mobile devices.

One solution is to have a separate mobile page. You can tell if the client is a mobile device or a desktop/laptop/tablet. There are properties in the http stream you can query. In ASP .NET, for example, these properties are already parsed for you and exposed in an API.

leo,

If you're trying to prove that Jesus commands self-mutilation, a better passage would be Matthew 18:8-9.

Some translations of Matthew 19:12 say "live like eunuchs" or "renounce marriage" rather than "make themselves eunuchs" (which if taken literally results in lost wangs).

Whatever you think of the practice of papal celibacy, I've never heard a requirement for literal "neutering" in the Roman Catholic Church or any other mainstream Christian group.

wthrfrk80 says

"make themselves eunuchs" (which if taken literally results in lost wangs).

If Jesus said that about bankers, I'd be ok with it.

wthrfrk80 says

If you're trying to prove that Jesus commands self-mutilation, a better passage would be Matthew 18:8-9.

Yes, Jesus does indeed seem to command self-mutilation in several passages. (only when "necessary" to avoid damnation of course!)

Matthew 5:29
And if thy right eye offend thee, pluck it out, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell.
5:30
And if thy right hand offend thee, cut it off, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell.

Matthew 18:8
Wherefore if thy hand or thy foot offend thee, cut them off, and cast them from thee: it is better for thee to enter into life halt or maimed, rather than having two hands or two feet to be cast into everlasting fire.
18:9
And if thine eye offend thee, pluck it out, and cast it from thee: it is better for thee to enter into life with one eye, rather than having two eyes to be cast into hell fire.

Mark 9:43
And if thy hand offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter into life maimed, than having two hands to go into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched:
9:44
Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched.
9:45
And if thy foot offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter halt into life, than having two feet to be cast into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched:
9:46
Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched.
9:47
And if thine eye offend thee, pluck it out: it is better for thee to enter into the kingdom of God with one eye, than having two eyes to be cast into hell fire:
9:48
Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched.

-------------------------------

All the cutting of bits off in order to get into the kingdom of god, coupled with Jesus promoting not having children (or maybe he is just saying you need to be a dead beat dad)...

-------------------------------

Matthew 19:29
And every one that hath forsaken houses, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my name's sake, shall receive an hundredfold, and shall inherit everlasting life.

-------------------------------

All this together makes me think that if the temptation of using a penis, for its natural purpose, is too great then Jesus advises that someone who truly wants to get into heaven should cut it off.

It makes sense if "Desire" is the culprit. But is desire just "bad", in a finger-wagging, moralistic way, or is it the actual impediment?

If the goal of the Christian mystic is to destroy or subordinate the ego, it makes perfect sense. The only thing preventing you from "heaven" is your Ego and its manifestations--pride, greed, lust, or tribalism or burying your father, or your many possessions.

Whatever you hold onto, holds you back. If you desire desirelessness, you need to be willing to cut it all loose.

So, in this sense, it's not morality but more of a binary switch. You're either part of the sheep or part of the goats.

CL says

If the goal of the Christian mystic is to destroy or subordinate the ego, it makes perfect sense. The only thing preventing you from "heaven" is your Ego and its manifestations--pride, greed, lust, or tribalism or burying your father, or your many possessions.

Whatever you hold onto, holds you back. If you desire desirelessness, you need to be willing to cut it all loose.

This sounds very Buddhist.

leoj707 says

This sounds very Buddhist.

Yeah, I know. Obviously Taoist too. (Since Taoism + Mahayana is Zen).

I suppose one school of thought would say that the mystics regardless of tradition, have similar experiences and similar messages.

Of course, Buddha was tempted by Mara, and Jesus by the heavenly attorney. So, it's totally different. :)

That, and Buddha and Taoism are earlier than Jesus. Any similarities must be coincidental!

The question I would posit is, if the experiences are the same and the messages similar, then couldn't they be unified experiences? We all eat, we all drink, we all expire. Couldn't the mystical experience be available to us as well?

Even if it was only psychological?

leoj707 says

This sounds very Buddhist.

That's what I was thinking too. It's pretty far from classical Christianity.

wthrfrk80 says

I can't help but read his (proported) teachings and stand in awe. Even as I remain skeptical of the "weird stuff" like miracles.

Those teachings would completely disarm a man of his natural state if put into use. It would make for a nice person of course. However that state of person would still be a man none the less. If your giving that book any credit for the way things are civilization. I atribute "civilized" society as more men being turned into subservient women through thier indebtedness.

Think about that for a minute. If you owe you have to work. If you work more than likely you will obey that boss like a woman has to listen to her man. That boss tells you to squat well you better. Otherwise you lose your house your food and your transport in many cases if he is displeased. I know that sounds difficult what I just wrote wtf. I am adding this so you can consider this in your thinking if you will. Question that, I hope you will so I can make that even clearer.

That is closer to everyday reality way moreso than any religious righteouness and kindness. Its kind of a oh taking of ones manhood. Boss is upset you have to stroke him. Boss want something done you do it. Its not manly at all to be that kind of creature as a man all because you owe. Add that to the way you think about society you may see a little more clearly. So what I am saying basically that society for the most part is in debt. Their behavior is more like that of beaten men. Men that serve in subservient roles which others just might see as a "Christians society" with do unto others and love one another as being the underlying cause of their timidity.

leoj707 says

If you're trying to prove that Jesus commands self-mutilation, a better passage would be Matthew 18:8-9.

The whole thing dosen't make sense. Christianty upgraded that to meet with maturity of course. A mature man is going to look at things like that and say hey WTF that isn't reality. Make booboo's Jesus has you covered with that miricle stain cleansing action. Sort of like soap for the squirts. lol. Jesus gets out pecker tracks. You may not think fast thinking preachers that got to make the loan payments can come up with stuff like that. Its sort of Christian vs. Catholic in a way. Well if your a "perv" Jesus has that covered sort of. If he did there would be no use for religion then again now would there? Don't be a fool. So Billy Graham says you can jerk off just don't do anything he wouldn't do.

wthrfrk80 says

leoj707 says

This sounds very Buddhist.

That's what I was thinking too. It's pretty far from classical Christianity.

I agree. But there are really only four options, right?

One is accept classical Xtianity with all of it's contradictions, moralizing, hypocrisy and miracles.

One is to reject Xtianity altogether.

Another is to reject all religion, despite the commonalities between them.

The last is to see the commonality in the religious faiths and myths, and embrace that commonality.

I think that if you strip off the tribalism and religious partisanship, it's increasingly difficult to see that they are all that different.

The only question that would remain would be if the root of them all has something to offer, or if it is just nonsense at its core.

Or accept your new benefactor the U.S. Government who will fight night and day for your rights. Not that they aren't in debt up to their ass. Who you really might ask is the people that they owe. They could do away with all this religious crap. Then again they have way to many churchs financed to go with that.

CL says

The last is to see the commonality in the religious faiths and myths, and embrace that commonality.

This was or is a basis for the Bahai faith. They celebrate the idea that there is one deity who sent (or inspired) different messengers or prophets to different places and times and they seek to consolidate religions as we transition towards one smaller world.

It's a beautiful idea, but they lose me with their belief that the founder,
Bahá'u'lláh is the most recent prophet.

All in all CL I like your insights.

CL says

The only question that would remain would be if the root of them all has something to offer, or if it is just nonsense at its core.

I don't think it's nonsense at its core, but truthfully I really don't know. I like the question though. As I have tried to assert many times, I can respect someone who decides for themself personally that it's nonsense at its core. But if one goes a step further to proselytize against religion and to hold no respect for these beliefs which seem almost integral to the human experience (at least for a majority of humans), this is something that I find to be wrong headed (arrogant, self righteous, and on the same kind of level as the very worst fundamentalists).

Is sexuality a belief? Its certainly not. Its something that can't be changed. You like steak. Thats what you want. Sexuality isn't a belief. Its a waste of time to argue with someone that won't disclose theirs. Then the whole matter would become really clear. Their sexuality has never changed. They have no excuse making fun of you.

marcus says

It's a beautiful idea, but they lose me with their belief that the founder,
Bahá'u'lláh is the most recent prophet.

The question is, if there is a God, what would he/she want from you? Blind partisanship? Tribalism?

We have the fruits of consciousness, and the ability to look at things logically. Do we use them to their full extent?

If one believes in Classical Christianity, and the importance of God acting in human time and events, the resulting question defy credulity, right?

What happens to those who never heard of Jesus' message? Can non-Christians go to heaven? What about indigenous peoples, so remote they've never communicated beyond their tribe? Watch the partisans do cartwheels!

Is God limited to ONLY acting in history?

This all lends itself to one psychic message--one spiritual reality, echoed throughout each individual. One message, many flavors. That's why the mystics from disparate traditions seem to have an awful lot in common (much, much more than the legalists do).

Could it be that the commonality is just the relationship of the Id, Ego and Superego? We'd all have that in common.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Id,_ego_and_super-ego

And maybe subordinating parts of the psyche causes the mystical experience?

In the end, you can have these beliefs without a "main prophet". In fact, the "main prophet" is probably just a facet of a much larger picture.

But it's really difficult for people to see beyond the religion of their birth, or their cultural inheritance. And we just can't risk going to hell! :)