Driving with faith
Offline So as I drive to and from work everyday, I am constantly bombarded by peoples beliefs and lifestyles. No, I don't roll down the window and ask them to share, and no, other drivers don't honk for my attention to tell me their stories. It is a rather subtle view...bumper stickers, the music they listen to, a drivers rudeness by cutting someone off, the volume of their voice as they explain how a child needs to shut-up .... and for me, the mother of them all, the dangling crucifix from a rear-view mirror.
I am disturbed to think that i am driving next to someone that may place his/her safety and the safety of other drivers in the hands of an invisible man. Do they think the little silver or gold cross on a cheap ass steel chain protects them? Do they have it hanging there remind themselves of their faith? Maybe it is a symbol of tradition, similar to the ritual of hanging your graduation tassel from the mirror of your car; "hey look at me, I am a young adult now!"
*dangling crucifix* "Hey look at me, I believe in an invisible man and a zombie!"
If these drivers were in an accident and walked away unscathed, they would credit the little piece of metal hanging from their mirror.
I am not sure why I feel the need to rant about this and have no good closing statement.
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I highly doubt they put their safety and the safety of others in the hands of god, especially when they drive. I can't remember where this quote came from but here goes. You can pray and believe that god looks over you and keeps you safe, but when you cross the street you still look both ways.
That is a great point...human nature is to survive and if it were swerve, be killed or just leave it up to 'god' then it makes sense that the majority would probably swerve. So I guess the dangly thing is just for show after all?
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http://obsidianwords.wordpress.com/
We have alot of hindu's and muslims around here. One thing one of them always does(I forget which) is put a tissue box in the rear ledge of the car, by the back windshield. These tissue boxes always have elaborate woven coverings, usualy with lots of gold color. I don't know why I mention it, but I just realised I have no idea why they do it.
Psalm 14:1 "the fool hath said in his heart there is a God"-From a 1763 misprinted edition of the bible
Argument from Sadism: Theist presents argument in a wall of text with no punctuation and wrong spelling. Atheist cannot read and is forced to concede.
I have an Atheist necklace hanging from my rear-view mirror. Not that it would save me in an accident, but it is a comfort to look at when ever I see a cross hanging from a mirror. I don't know if anyone around here in this town even knows what it means.
Maybe they have a runny nose?
But seriously. I hate dangley crap from mirrors (although, as a teenager/college student I did have a cluttered rear-view mirror).
Fuzzy dice are cool though.
In Northeast Texas growing up they had these little crown ornament air fresheners to sit on the dashboard of cars.
All the black people had them in their cars.
All of them.
Once a black friend of ours was talking about another black guy that drove a mustang. We asked him, "The one with the crown on the dashboard?"
He looked puzzled at us and said, "Yeah!"
We just laughed. It was a pure guess because he was talking about a black guy.
I doubt they know why they do it either. It's just a cultural thing that they don't even think about.
"I am an atheist, thank God." -Oriana Fallaci
I'd be willing to bet it has something to do with kingly pimpness.
"Faith, Faith is an island in the setting sun,
but proof, proof is the bottom line for everyone."
Proof, Paul Simon
Nothing this hard should taste so beefy.
Yup, there's another similar one too....something about praying and believing to mend when you're deathly ill, but driving safely to the hospital/doctor instead of dying.
You ever honk at the ones that want to know who loves Jesus? Most of them just get angry, confused, and scared.
Seriously, don't ask for audience participation if you don't want it...
If I have gained anything by damning myself, it is that I no longer have anything to fear. - JP Sartre
Reminds me of riding in a Mexican taxi, the guy had all the Mary and Jesus paraphernalia in an old taxi driving down a wind road like a bat out of hell. I told him I can see you are ready for a meeting with God. Por Favor, I am NOT ready. So he slowed down.
But actually the fact that Christians are not in accidents all the time pretty much proves they don't believe. If you really believed you'd be in Paradise the second you die, wouldn't you just drive recklessly and not care about dieing?
Taxation is the price we pay for failing to build a civilized society. The higher the tax level, the greater the failure. A centrally planned totalitarian state represents a complete defeat for the civilized world, while a totally voluntary society represents its ultimate success. --Mark Skousen
Back in the dark days when I was a believer this was a major issue for me. I liked being alive, but everyone kept telling me I'd be better off dead. I seriously considered getting some very dangerous jobs in the hopes that it would kill me. Glad I'm lazy as I am..
If I have gained anything by damning myself, it is that I no longer have anything to fear. - JP Sartre
But that would be sucidal intent or at least not respecting the life god has given, which might get them in a place in hell.
Psalm 14:1 "the fool hath said in his heart there is a God"-From a 1763 misprinted edition of the bible
Argument from Sadism: Theist presents argument in a wall of text with no punctuation and wrong spelling. Atheist cannot read and is forced to concede.
I always perform a quick exercise for synchronizing my brain hemispheres, when I borrow a car. Which was, so far, about twice. I've got a driving license for about a month, so I'll do anything to keep me less nervous and more focused, when risking my life, the lives of those in car with me and other drivers around. I think it helps, I do less monkey business with the car when my brain is fixed that way. (like trying to drive with a main brake pulled up, and so on)
So yeah, I understand that a driver can be careful enough to get a potential help of a potential divine entity. I wouldn't do that, I rely rather on a prevention, by somethink I know that it works. But yeah, what do they expect, that the cheap piece of metal, shaped as a device by which Jesus was killed, will make any positive difference in God's judgement? Maybe it's a sign who here will go to Heaven and who not, in a case of a car crash.
Beings who deserve worship don't demand it. Beings who demand worship don't deserve it.
That's what religious dogma would tell you. Religion needs to squeeze as much as money as they can out of believers while you're alive. As rational thinkers, we know how human nature is. Christians would be extremely reckless if they really believed heaven was infinitely better than life on earth. A few delusional one's really are reckless and suicidal(like Jonestown).
Taxation is the price we pay for failing to build a civilized society. The higher the tax level, the greater the failure. A centrally planned totalitarian state represents a complete defeat for the civilized world, while a totally voluntary society represents its ultimate success. --Mark Skousen
I just have to add this...I was in line behind a woman in the grocery today who was writing a check. Her pen had a cross on the top of it....she handed the check to the clerk who exclaimed: "OH these are beeeeyouootiful" I of course smile at her and she interprets that as me wanting to see it....the checks had a cloudy background with a crucifix faded into the clouds and some random bible verse.
It reminds me of when I was in High School and buying the "cool clothes" so all of your friends could be like 'I love your shirt!' and you could be in style.
I am in such a mood today!!
Slowly building a blog at ~
http://obsidianwords.wordpress.com/
Should have asked why she doesn't use prayer to pay for her groceries.
Or doesn't she have enough faith?
Psalm 14:1 "the fool hath said in his heart there is a God"-From a 1763 misprinted edition of the bible
Argument from Sadism: Theist presents argument in a wall of text with no punctuation and wrong spelling. Atheist cannot read and is forced to concede.
Signature ? How ?
This is the reason everyone should have a "WOW" bumper sticker.
(stands for "Whipem' Out Wednesdays)
www.RichWoodsBlog.com
Bakersfield is the bible belt of California. The fundys here all let Dog do the driving. Not a day goes by that Dog doesn't pull in front of me when I have the right of way.
"Erecting the 'wall of separation between church and state,' therefore, is absolutely essential in a free society." Thomas Jefferson
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