Dave Gault is a freelance writer and radio show host from Traverse City, MI This really stuck in my craw. The other night, I was having a conversation with someone I havent seen since I was probably a pre-teen. She is raising two grandchildren of mixed ethnicity in a lily-white community because she described her own daughter as a drug addict incapable of caring for them. The kids, aged 6 and 8 were also there during this conversation. The whole thing started when I asked the kids if they had picked out their Halloween costumes. This is when guardian grandma started railing on and on about how she wont allow the kids to celebrate Satanic holidays. She wont even use the word Halloween or pass out candy for the neighborhood kids. They dont believe in Santa Claus or the Easter Bunny either, because they take attention away from Jesus. Now Im no Biblical scholar, but Im having a hard time finding the passages in the good book that prohibit Spiderman and the Teenaged Mutant Ninja Turtles from shaking the neighbors down for fun sized chocolates. I have a hard time believing that any Disney princess would have a secret life sacrificing goats to her dark master Satan. Try as I might, I cant seem to find that chapter and verse anywhere in the KJV or the NIV. This is disturbing on a couple of levels. As an athiest, I gave up having an invisible friend when I was about 6 years old. Raised in a Christian family, I understand the fear that drives most religions. Fear of spending eternity in the lake of fire, fear of being an outcast in your community, fear of the wrath of God. That fear promotes a mindless conformity that makes control much easier for authorities. These fringe believers are engaged in what I think of as a group psychosis. Guardian grandma is at a point where every decision, every thought seems to be filtered through the most extreme view of a misguided theology. Dont get me wrong, the teachings of Jesus Christ were radically good for his time, and for present times. Its just that most Christians project those messages outward, rather than internalize them to become better people themselves. Ambrose Bierce defined Christians in the Devils Dictionary as People that believe that the Bible is a divinely inspired document perfectly suited to the spiritual needs of ones neighbors. The bad theology isnt even the part that disturbs me the most. Its the social implications for those kids. They are the new kids at this small grade school, and as I had mentioned, they are of mixed ethnicity. Theyre beautiful and sweet kids that crave positive attention. But, they are the raisins in the bowl of cream of wheat. Kids that age can be cruel, especially if youre different and youre the new kid. Add to that a belief system that pushes them further out of the mainstream, and the potential for bullying and teasing rises dramatically. When all of the other kids show up at school in costume, how do they explain themselves? Why would a sane parent or guardian put kids in that kind of a position? As a parent, if you have raised a child that cannot function in society, should you really be the go-to person to raise the next generation? WWJD? So I feel I need to take a totally unscientific survey of all of my Satanic facebook friends. Who among you are planning on making some type of ritual sacrifice on October 31? A goat? A virgin? Ritual stabbing? Toss them into a volcano? Exactly how does Satan rule the night once a year, every year? Do you return to church the next Sunday like nothing even happened? Do you just wake up and go to work on Monday morning with a clear conscience? How many of you worship Satan or have ever attended a Satanic ritual? Grandma believes that these types of people are all over the place, bringing converts to Lucifer. Am I naive, or is she batshit crazy?
Posted on: Fri, 25 Oct 2013 15:54:09 +0000
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