Star Wars has always featured a hodgepodge of mythic and religious archetypes from around the world.
Now, however, there’s a new addition to the formula that has some parents and media personalities crying foul.
Critics argue that the new series “Star Wars: Ahsoka” has introduced a whole host of barely veiled pagan influences to the Star Wars canon.
Has paganism come to a galaxy far, far away?
Pagan Padawans
If you’ve only seen the original Star Wars trilogy, you might be surprised to learn that the scope of the Star Wars lore has greatly expanded during Disney’s tenure as the franchise’s shepherds. First, there was just the Force and Jedis. Then, the Sith. Now… magick and witches are in the mix.
Episode six of “Star Wars: Ahsoka” introduced a trio of witches, dark magick practitioners, named after the Greek fates. They are masters of dark magick, which offers them powerful supernatural powers derived from the natural world. “Magick is a living thing,” one character tells another. “It arises from the blood and trees and mist.”
Pagan influences dot the landscape of Ahsoka like hairs on Watto’s chin (any prequel fans out there?):
- The new show features characters with names derived straight out of Norse mythology, like Lord Baylan Skoll and Shin Hati.
- The Inquisitor Marrok’s name comes from Arthurian myth, itself inspired by pagan legends. Their symbol is the triquetra, or trinity knot, used by the ancient Celts to represent the triple goddess.
- There is what appears to be a pagan baptism late in the series, as Morgan Elsbeth pledges herself to the sisterhood and their magickal and ancient way of life.
- You can also throw a little New Orleans voodoo in there too. Characters engage in necromancy, conjurings, and voodoo throughout the series; For the first time ever, there is an entire army of zombie stormtroopers.
Some fans are loving the inclusion of pagan symbols and beliefs in the Star Wars universe:
Join the Dark Side?
However, some critics – particularly people of Christian faith – are arguing that Star Wars has gone to the dark side.
Ahsoka is full of “some of the most spiritually-dark, anti-god, demonic and downright heretical scenes in media history” argues Charisma Media, a Christian-oriented news website.
Ben Christenson of The Federalist lambasts the pagan elements as “especially bizarre considering the rest of the show feels like it’s made for kids,” calling the rituals performed by the witches “genuinely creepy” and the pagan baptism at the end a “Satanic distortion.”
One America News host Kara McKinney also had harsh words for the show, describing it as an attempt to replace Christianity wholesale in the minds of children. "Once again, it sounds like a fun family theme of some nondescript 'Force' is now being retrofitted for adults with a penchant for darker themes," she argued. "It really is sad."
More Religious Representation?
It would seem that Pagan influence is, indeed, all over Ahsoka. But is that a bad thing?
Some fans say it's a natural progression for a world that has always embraced a wide variety of religious themes. Over the years, Star Wars has consistently incorporated earthly religions, myths, and mysticism from around the globe to build its own universe.
The Arthurian hero, a yin and yang of light and dark straight out of Taoism, the contemplative and meditative Buddhist-like Jedis – these are themes that come up over and over throughout Star Wars storylines.
Heck, there's even a messianic “chosen one,” borne of a virgin birth, plucked straight from Christianity.
"There was no father," says Anakin's mother Shmi Skywalker in "Star Wars Episode One: The Phantom Menace," when asked by Jedi master Qui-Gon Jinn on her son's parentage. "I carried him, I gave birth, I raised him," she says. "I can't explain what happened."
(To further drive home the connection between Christianity and the Skywalker clan, both Jesus Christ and Luke Skywalker are depicted with really, really great hair).
The point being: fans of the series can argue that world religions have been a part of Star Wars from the beginning. Is this any different?
Does including pagan messages pose a threat to audiences, as critics claim? Or is it only natural to add another faith to the mix?
166 comments
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Najah P Tamargo
Minister Najah Tamargo USA
ENOUGH IS ENOUGH!!!! Do these religious zealots not know the difference between "religion" and SCIENCE FICTION or ENTERTAINMENT????? So I guess if Star Wars is paganism, I suppose that means Star Trek, The Hobbit (and all of JR Tolkien's work) and all of the fun science fiction things I grew up with are also pagans??? Wait....let me check.............Nope, no tail, no horns, no scales, no demons around here!!!! We are banning and burning classic works of literature, trying to make slavery a "good" thing, not giving our children a well-rounded truthful education..... and now they want to take the fun out of life as well? God save us all!!! And God...while you're at it....go have a long chat with some of your "children"!!!
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Matthew Mastrogiovanni
The witches have been part of Star Wars cannon for years.
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Lionheart
Nah! It’s Christians that have gone to the dark side. I’m not aware of any Pagans that are into removing foreskins from infants, but I could be wrong. 🤔. Some deities have got some real strange ideas when they get bored creating worlds 🤭
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Angelic Realms
Did you mean Jews, Bar mitzva? Western nations do this because someone thought it was cleaner. Or whatever they thought.
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taycomama
Jewish circumcisions are done on the eighth day after birth. Bar Mitzvah is at 13 years old and no cutting is involved.
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Rev Mark D
Well oft times there's cake, that's subjected to cutting.
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ServantOfJudgement
Lionheart,
You do know the foreskin is a source of infection right? God did many things the primitive mind of today can't fathom to keep his chosen people healthy.
Those doctors at the children's hospital chop off the whole whang dhang on a whim nowadays. Take your case against God to them.
Delivery from ignorance is bliss.
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Michael Hunt
Your ears are also a source of infection, SOJ, but no one is advocating for cutting them off. Parents just tell their children to wash behind their ears properly. If we taught proper hygiene for foreskins, there would be significantly less chance of infection and disease. Of course that's too hard for Americans so we just remove it rather than do the work.
And no, hospital doctors are not performing gender affirming surgeries on a whim as the right loves to claim. Years of therapy and work with multiple doctors is required before gender affirming surgery is approved and only as a last resort. Claims to the contrary are just pure falsehood and hatred of someone for being different.
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Kenneth Lafe Eric Sanderson
Conservatives LOVE their propaganda. It seems some just won't live without it.
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ServantOfJudgement
Michael,
Be reasonable and logical. You point is correct but not valid. Good hygiene and diet for the Israelites was paramount for God. Modern though uncivilized man attacks the Bible for these requirements even though the FDA and CDC agrees with nearly all of them even at a time we have antibiotics. There is no reason today to remove the foreskin, not religiously or for hygiene. Americans need not do it, Israelites need not do it.
I don't normally promote the hack-n-slash of the genitalia of minors but the psychotic quacks at this hospital advertise is all day long. You can try to ding God for wanting a clean and peculiar people but I must say, we put ourselves to tragic shame with what we to to the supple mind and body of our youth. What a shameful people we've become.
https://www.childrenshospital.org/bchp/specialty/adolescent-medicine/gender-affirming-lgbtq-care
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Kenneth Lafe Eric Sanderson
"Most surgeons prefer to wait until someone is an older adolescent or young adult before performing these surgeries."
Advertised all day long - and they don't mean maybe.
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Catherine
God makes mistakes? Why would he design humans a certain way, then advise butchery in his name? If God were almighty. and a little kinder, why did God not fix his 'mistake'? Why trust those crazy humans to get such a thing done right?
So many options God might choose as a token of covenance. Why foreskins?
No. A sicko successfully advocated physically altering the bodies of billions of infants. And people let them.
Doctors can make that choice for you, too. When my sons were born, I said, 'no' to circumcision. Doctors did it anyway, without apology. @$$biters.
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Pastor George Day
Catherine Colvin, You don't seem to get it that circumcision equals HEALTH! It is not mutilation. It reduces to zero the possibility of genital cancer. It's not just about keeping the gland clean, whoever manages that in a 24-hr. long day, hats off to them! It is about attrition of the skin as well, especially during intercourse. God created things perfect in their original state of being, both physical things and spiritual things. Then some of them rebelled. Angels rebelled with no possibility of repentance - their state of being makes it such that their fundamental choice is irrevocable. It is part of the way they are. Human beings, on the other hand, have the possibility of repentance. That's because we have inherited a state of imperfection by our blood line. We live in a state of transition. Our Savior came once to give his perfect life for the reconciliation of the entire physical world with God. This bounds the power of the fallen angels to some degree. That explains why some people are born with imperfections, but also why there are tornadoes and earthquakes, beyond our free will. On his second coming, Yeshua will bring back creation to its initial state of perfection.
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Lionheart
You somehow missed out your belief in fairies as well in that fairytale listed above.
I am actually finding it hard to believe that rational human beings can be so irrational in their belief structure, with all that you have just espoused, which has no supporting demonstrable evidence whatsoever.
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Pastor George Day
Lionheart,
Medicine says that circumcision prevents cancer. Not me.
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Lionheart
Me and my son are still alive, Sir George, as are many in the UK who never have that needless procedure.
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Pastor George Day
Lionheart,
I didn't know you were from the UK!
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Pastor George Day
Michael Hunt,
I live with gender dysphoria. I must say you are on that one. But not as far as circumcision. Uncut penises are at risk of cancer.
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Lionheart
Your God has a lot to answer for putting those things on penises of all primates. 🤭
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Pastor George Day
Lionheart,
Not all. Adam and Eve do. God sent his Son to make things right.
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Lionheart
It’s still a fairy tale with no demonstrable evidence. The science of genetics have proved the Adam and Eve myth, as has the science of geology.
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Pastor George Day
Lionheart,
When will you change record??
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Janelda Guido
I did not have my son circumcised. He's managed to live 37 years now without a single peepee infection. Go figure....
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ServantOfJudgement
Lol,
The 30 year old man says "mommy, my you know what hurts"
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Pastor George Day
Janelda Guido,
When he begins to get complications around that area, you only have yourself to blame... not God!
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Lionheart
Hasn’t happened to me yet, Sir George, nor my son. Hygiene is a very simple thing to teach.
I wonder if your god cut his off? 🤭
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Pastor George Day
Lionheart,
He was a Jew. Go figure :-)
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Lionheart
Was he real? 🤭
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Pastor George Day
Lionheart,
For a scientific mind like yours... check the evidence out there. Historic records...
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Melanie L. Sin
Neither my husband (62 years old) nor my son (31 years old) is circumcised. My husband isn’t, due to his parents’ culture at the time of his birth, and our son isn’t, because we didn’t see any good reason to have that done to him. As others have stated, it’s all about good hygiene. If uncircumcised males are taught how to clean that area properly, infection shouldn’t be an issue.
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ServantOfJudgement
You're living in a time we can shower every day. Think about it.
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Lionheart
From your replies to others on this topic you very clearly show a great lack of education, which is resulting in your ignorance on this topic. You’ll next be condoning female genital mutilation like some other religions follow.
To be honest, I’m not totally surprised by your lack of understanding being as you also prefer to not rely on demonstrable evidence to back up your religious belief in a deity. If you like to believe in everything in the book you read, do you also support killing:
Unbelievers (2 Chronicles), Witch’s (Exodus), Fortune Tellers (Leviticus), People who ignore Priests (Deuteronony), Children, for cursing their parents (Leviticus), Sinners (Ezekiel), Sons of sinners (Isaiah), Adulterers (Leviticus), Children that hit their parents (Exodus), Women who are not virgins on their wedding night (Deuteronomy) just to name a few, or do you prefer to think circumcision is more important, and your god wants you to ignore the rest?
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ServantOfJudgement
Lionheart You're letting your opinion of God's character obscure your logical and rational approach to this specific topic, well all biblical topics but were talking about foreskin in a star wars thread so this one specifically.
All medical professionals know there are certain infections that only an uncircumcised man can get. If a man has an infection in his foreskin he will pass that to who he mates with, by the book, his wife. This is basic stuff. We have signs above sinks reminding people to wash after they crap yet many don't. If there is no foreskin to wash, even the filthy men stay healthy or have a better chance of it. God wanted a clean people, like the FDA, CDC and restaurant owners do. All clean people want people to be clean and so does God.
It lets me know I'm bathing in truth when my opponent lobs intelligence insults at me. Keep'em coming, you're doing great.
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Lionheart
Thank you, Sir SOJ, I will keep commenting, but please don’t see them as insults. I appreciate your replies. 🤗
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Pastor George Day
Lionheart,
We love you!
One day you'll be back Home, and SOJ and I will celebrate in your honor!
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Lionheart
Thank you, Sir George. You of course have no demonstrable evidence whatsoever that what you are saying here is true. I do realize you "believe" it to be true, but that's no different to me saying to you that "I know" that one day we will all bend our knees, and bow our heads to, Krishna, or Vishnu, or Apollo. I can believe that as much as I want to, just like you, but it still wouldn't make my claims to be true, just like your claim.
I wonder if there really is a life after this one in some form or other? 🤔 I guess we won't really know until that time comes. Anyway, until then, may Zeus have mercy on your soul. Just kidding...we don't know if Zeus is real either. 🤭
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Pastor George Day
Lionheart,
We will continue this chat in heaven :-)
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Lionheart
And the evidence to your claim that a heaven is real is where, Sir George?
Please don’t tell me you got it from a book.
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Pastor George Day
Lionheart,
And where's your evidence to the contrary? This record is a bit rusty now... don't you think?
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Lionheart
I have no evidence of things that don’t exist. Much like you and I have no evidence Unicorns are real, or Fairies, or the Loch Ness Monster, or Thor, or Vishnu, et al.
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Pastor George Day
Lionheart,
I thought the Loch Ness monster had been proved real. What you call evidence for donators is actually the dragons of old!
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Pastor George Day
Lionheart,
Death is consequential to a state of sinfulness. In fact, a person is first dead spiritually and then deserving death. That is the Law.
The Good News is that in Yeshua it no longer needs to be that way. He took on the punishment of our death on himself.
That is my God, and I would not exchange him for anything else you or anyone have to offer.
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Lionheart
Thank you, Sir George. Sinfulness, or sin, is of course a human construct, mostly applied to the deity one likes to believe in. There are other religions that reference a Hell if we are very naughty. The Egyptian Hell and their associated religions being just one of them.
When you say "That is the Law", the meaning of Law is:
A rule of conduct or action prescribed or formally recognized as binding or enforced by a controlling authority.
You obviously are under the impression that your deity is a controlling authority, when in actual fact no one has yet been able to prove your controlling authority is real. Even your controlling authority doesn't seem able to prove it exists. Until then, the law you refer to is null and void.
Thank you for telling us which deity you like to believe in. It's quite amazing how many deities mankind has created, yours being just one of them. I do of course understand that you believe yours is the real, and only, one, just like all the others do.
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Pastor George Day
Lionheart,
Law is actually a very bad English translation. I use it out of conformity. The actual meaning of Torah is Instruction for good living.
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Lionheart
Good living is of course highly subjective. Islam wants good living to those that believe the way they want people to believe. If you are not one of them, you will be terminated, which, in my opinion, isn’t good, living at all 🤭
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Pastor George Day
Lionheart,
I'm not Islamic. I'm Messianic Jewish.
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Lionheart
Don’t apologize, it’s okay.
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Pastor George Day
Melanie L. Sin,
I'm sure you're an expert on male genitalia hygiene, are you?
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Lionheart
If, Lady Melanie has raised an uncircumcised boy as a mother, she will of course have experience, and thus will be an expert on how boys should cleanse themselves hygienically, as will the father.
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Lionheart
Nah, it’s not a source of infection, Sir SOJ. It’s all about how to teach good hygiene practice.
Your god is perfect…right? Did he purposely create imperfection in humans, just to cut it off later.😀
As an FYI, and as an intact male, I’ve never had any infections in my lifetime, and neither do any other primates, with the same male appendages, or would your god prefer to circumcise monkeys, chimps, baboons, and apes etc., as well? 🤭
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Catherine
@Lionheart
It's been challenging to figure out if God makes mistakes or not. So many ifs, ands, or buts.
Wonder why God didn't use his almighty powers to get it right the first time. And somehow couldn't come up with a better idea as a token of covenance?
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Lionheart
Things that don’t exist rarely make mistakes. 🤭
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Pastor George Day
Catherine Colvin,
God respects you too much to deprive you of free will. He didn't create puppets.
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Lionheart
Of course he did, Sir George, look at Joe Biden 🤭
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ServantOfJudgement
God did teach good hygiene and healthy eating. You slam him for it. I'm sorry you have a hard time realizing you do that. When he wants a clean people, he wants a clean people.
Picture in your mind, traveling back in time. Go back thousands of years in a desert somewhere. Good. Now picture all of the plumbed hot showers everyone had......
I know you're an animal or at least you think you're one but your tongue can't quite hit all the spots an animal tongue can. I'm told Marilyn Manson had some surgery so his could.
I'm not up on animal genitalia but I don't think they have foreskins, they get a WhangDhang garage instead of hanging out....
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Lionheart
First off, no one knows if the particular god you like to worship is real. Even you don’t know if your deity is real. All you have is a “belief”, just like all others have, to believe in their god(s).
Second off, 🤭, primates have been around for over 65 million years. Almost all mammals have a foreskin, this is basic Biology 101, Sir SOJ.
The indigenous cultures of Borneo, the Amazon, and Australasian Aborigines, have somehow managed to have miraculously survived without suffering from your mythical penile infections that you like to think is needed to prevent infections “down there”. I wonder how they did that? 🤔. Could it just be normal hygiene?
Oh, and one more thing….you don't need plumbed hot water showers in the desert for hygiene, as long as you can find water, which clearly everyone needs in deserts to survive. No water, no life.
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Pastor George Day
Lionheart,
The world is only 5784 years old :-)
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Lionheart
LOL, you are too funny, but thank you for your humour. 😂
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Pastor George Day
Lionheart,
You know from former knowledge that God made all things perfect. You also know why we live now in a state of imperfection.
You are just playing a blame game.
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Lionheart
Not at all, Sir George. "Things" have not all been made perfectly, as Charles Darwin realized. Imperfect species die out! That's just how evolution works. Even today, we have imperfect human beings, and animals, being born every day due to corrupt genetic mutations that prevents them from continuing their lineage.
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Pastor George Day
Lionheart,
The world had a different order before the fall. Darwin wouldn't be able to get to that with all his best efforts :-)
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Lionheart
I just love your sense of humour. 🤗
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Pastor George Day
Lionheart,
I think you got mixed up here. It is not the Christians that practice circumcision. It is the Jews.
I happen to be both a Christyan and a Jew, being a Messianic Jew... So, I am knowledgeable on the subject.
And yes, I like being circumcised. It is healthier. It prevents cancer!
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Lionheart
Is that why all other primates with similar genitalia to us males are dying of penis cancer? Which, of course they are not. 🤭
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Pastor George Day
Lionheart,
They do not have sin. We humans do. You will notice that all animal species have their body accurately designed for their living environment. Only humans do not. This is a consequence of dissonance with Creation due to our rejection of God. That's why we wear clothes and need to cut our appendices, including the foreskin. Even our sexual confusion is a mark of our woundedness. So yes things are pretty blink without God.
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Lionheart
Sin, and your God, are all human constructs, unless you can demonstrably prove otherwise, which of course you cannot. There’s a Nobel prize waiting for the first person on earth to do so. Will your name be on the next one?
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Pastor George Day
Lionheart,
You never know!
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Colleen McAllister
Nothing has been added to Star Wars. The "new" characters have always been in the backstop.
Star Wars is a basic good vs evil tale and anyone finding anything else is simply adding their own beliefs into the mix.
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Jeffrey Scott Hunze
I find it a bit telling that although we’ve had Star Wars since 1977 (ULC copyright for this page is 1977 btw😃)we don’t get the satanic panic until a woman is the lead in a show. Additionally, it seems that all the “pagans” are the bad guys in the show.
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Catherine
@Jeffrey Scott Hunze
Good catch.
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Geoffrey C. Olive
The hypocrisy of xtianity is beyond belief when they criticise science FICTION as paganism when they worship their saints who are depicted with HALOS! There’s no cure for stupidity if xtianity doesn’t understand there’s no difference!
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Pastor George Day
Geoffrey C. Olive,
I and no one in my denomination does that. Which Christians are you referring to?
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Janelda Guido
This is hilarious considering the fact that Christianity itself is heavily influenced by and rooted in Paganism.
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Kelliejean Lawson
Most if not all of the churches in Europe are built on Pagan holy sites. The "christians" did this to stop the pagans and force them into the church. Also many of the Christian traditions are based on pagan holidays, I read some where that includes Christmas as this is Yule, the winter solstice. The longest night of the year, the reawakening, rebirth of plants, animals etc for the year to come.
99.9% of Christians do not follow the Bible, if they did this planet might be a better place. I prefer to mingle with pagans druids and witches as they are more honest, down to earth and real in their beliefs.
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Pastor George Day
Kelliejean Lawson,
What you are referring to is the process of kenosis, AKA inculturation. Christianity is rooted on Judaism, but it reaches out to the Gentiles. As such, it adopted local traditions and embodied them into the Messianic kerygma, the Christian fundamental message of salvation.
You may think you know by quoting and misleading with a little digging, but you have to read things in context.
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Pastor George Day
Janelda Guido,
What evidence do you have to back this claim?
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Lionheart
That is very interesting, Sir George, that you are actually asking for evidence to support claims, which you don’t have for your God, and all the claims that go along with that precept.
However, the use of candles, incense, and even architectural gargoyles built into the façade of churches, are all rooted in paganism, and all predating Christianity, not to mention the festive Sabbath of Yule, which christianity now uses as Christmas.
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Pastor George Day
Lionheart,
You are mixing things up with a little confusion.
First, the order in creation is itself evidence of God. All you need is the simplicity of a child to recognize that, not the mind of a scientist.
As for Gentile Christianity, this is a gospel response to the spiritual cry of the nations. Of curse, you will find seeds of Paganism, but that is no indicator that Christianity is from Paganism. The nations are now included in the New Covenant, but Yeshua was a Jew.
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Lionheart
No true, Sir George. Science has proved evolution. I’m sorry you don’t see that. Religious indoctrination can be brutal…..right? Try spending some time at a Natural History Museum sometime, and study evolution.
I never said Christianity is from Paganism. I said much of the Christian symbology, and even some rituals have pagan roots.
The simplicity of children is why they have no reason to not believe in Santa Clause, and even the Tooth Fairy, until their brains mature to allow them to use logic, reason, and critical thought. Much of which is sadly lacking in many religionists.
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Pastor George Day
Lionheart,
That's where you are wrong! Santa Claus is very real... Google St Nikolas!
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Angelic Realms
I love the Night Sisters! They were always Sith and have nothing to do with Paganism. I love seeing them in live action. Mother Talzin is legendary. Even Palpatine didn't tangle with them.
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Joy
Oh FFS. Some Christians must not be too secure in their faith if Star Wars can ruffle their tail feathers. It has ALWAYS been about good vs evil. There has ALWAYS been mysticism and faith in the stories.
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Rev. Mike Eggleston
Christianity certainly seems like a very fragile religion. Its followers aren't even confident that their "Almighty God" is able to defend itself without their help.
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Pastor George Day
Rev. Mike Eggleston,
Your lack of church history is rampant from a statement such as this. Carry on, you have a long way ahead!
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Rev. Mike Eggleston
I know all I need to know about that cult. I was brought up to be a Christian. I've seen the damage it does and the way it rips families apart.
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Pastor George Day
Rev. Mike Eggleston,
As a gay man with gender dysphoria, believe me, I may have experienced much worse than you have - which is why the church I run now is pastorally safe.
We need to appreciate that people mess things up and bring their own stuff into it. But that is true of all religions.
The Gospel is above that.
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Lionheart
The Gospel, as you like to call it, is the cause of that.
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Pastor George Day
Lionheart,
What is the definition of the Gospel?
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Lionheart
Who knows, and who really cares? It’s yet another human construct 🤷🏼
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Pastor George Day
Lionheart,
Not at all It means good news. And to be exact, the essence of this good news is stupidity to the Gentiles and shame to the Jews. Go figure!
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Govannon Thunorwulf
I would have to think that the same Christian's that are complaining about the Pagan themes would do the same as they are suggesting. That is the disturbing part to me. All the Pagan groups that I know, do not proselytize their faith. It is generally looked down upon.
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Howard Randall Bechler
Despite watching hours of Warner Brothers cartoons I easily figured out that falling off a cliff or getting hit with an anvil wasn’t survivable. Even after MacBeth and The Wizard of Oz, I had no desire to convert. If you are trying to shelter your children, good luck. Besides, the are protected by the first amendment: “Congress shall make no law respecting the establishment of a religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof…”
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Theresa C. Marquess
Disney is at it again! I have always thought of Star Wars as being Sci-Fi Fiction and would like to continue to think of it that way. If a movie of any kind would offend me, I simply refrain from buying a ticket and sitting in a theater for a tortuous 90-120 minutes.
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Rev Mark D
Isn't Franklin Graham the guy that got in trouble for hiring that teenage pool boy to have sex with his wife, while he watched in their bedroom those many times over several years? And then what caught him was he filmed some of them?
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Pastor Jody S.
No, that was Jerry Falwell Jr. Maybe STAR WARS made him do it....!
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Elizabeth D'Onofrio Halladay
This article is just plain crazy. It's a TV Show. One of my good friends that was the villain, Baylan Skoll in Ashoka, passed away. I know his family very well and they call him a Super hero. They had a beautiful sending off of his Soul by their home in Ibiza. Their spirituality doesn't have anything to do with the beliefs of one of the many films he starred in. He left behind young children, and they had a private screening for them before the actual Series aired. Were they thinking about paganism as they watched his last film? I know, NOT. As an actor, I have had to play characters that were not in line with my spirituality. Even though I did research on them and their relationship with God, It didn't change the way I actually think. It was just putting myself in other's shoes, so to speak. Which is a good way of exploring other's beliefs and way of life. What are you afraid of, Christians? Your children exploring outside of your tiny box? As they grow you won't have as much control over what they choose anyway. Horoscopes, Harry Potter, now Star Wars? Do you really want your children upset with you over not being to watch a fictionalized TV Show that all of their peers are enjoying? I believe children are smarter than that. Also what adults and children get from various films and shows is so different. Children don't even think about religion when watching. Maybe, The Force, which they will grow to believe is not a real thing. Too Bad really!
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Jessica North-O'Connell
"Heck, there's even a messianic “chosen one,” borne of a virgin birth, plucked straight from Christianity."
Seriously?? Where do you think Christianity got its idea about Virgin Birth from in the first place?
Check your mythology, the religion(s) of older cultures: Roman: Romulus and Remus (founders of Rome) were born to the virgin Rhea Silvia; Persia: Mithras (born on the Winter Solstice, originally Dec 25) was born to Anahita; India: Gautama the Buddha was born to Maya; Phrygian-Roman: Attis born to Nana; Egyptian: Ra born to Neith; Greek: Perseus born to Danae; Aztec: Huitzilopochtli born to Coatlicue. The list goes on...
And there are also several accounts of women who gave birth parthenogenetically (i.e., without being impregnated by a male).
As practitioners and upholders of our particular faiths, are we not obliged to be aware of the faiths and practices of others? If we are educated about the faiths and beliefs of others, we are not challenged nor disturbed by works of fiction.
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Pastor George Day
Jessica North-O'Connell,
Were these myths you quote also God as well as men - bearing in mind the implications that would entail?
The devil doesn't have his own clay. He can only mock.
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Lionheart
Please don't forget, Sir George, that the Devil is also a human construct, unless you can demonstrably prove otherwise.
🦁♥️
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Pastor George Day
Lionheart,
Look how the whole world is again turning against Israel after 10/7! That is telling that the spirit of Amalek that possessed Haman in Persia at the time of Esther is still very real!
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Lionheart
You are trying to make human traits, a spirit, and then assign it to Amalek, and then you try and align that with a human construct called the devil.
Using your flawed logic, you assume someone’s traits can be passed down to others. If of course that was true, Amalek would have got his corrupted “spirit” from Eliphaz, who in turn would have got his from Esau, and likewise down to his grandfather Abraham. Ultimately, let’s blame Adam, but then again he got his traits (spirit) from God. Your god has a lot to answer for being as in your mind he created everything. 🤭
Hey, we could both be wrong and Dionysus (the god of wine) could be the real god and we might one day have a glass of wine together. 🍷
🦁❤️
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Pastor George Day
Lionheart,
You are knowledgeable of Scripture, so I'm not entering a debate here. Yes, Esau is where it all started. As for the spirit of Amalek, we human beings use names for familiar spirits that are associated with events. We don't know his name.
And yes, this is a god of the Arab nation. The spirits of the air of Ephesians 6 are called gods in the Old Testament. Others call them demons.
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Rev Mark D
Well the premise of the article is false on its face, the first Star wars movie established that Darth Vader and the Jedi were a religion, and they worshiped the power of the universe, not the guy who invented and runs the universe... What's not pagan there? An online episodes of The core movies reflect constant addition of various pagan religions, every one of them... At least that's how I remember them.
Now of course it looks like there's a million different offshoots and I have no idea what's in all of them.
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Rev. Mike Eggleston
In the UK, a lot of people identify as Jedi on official forms, such as the census and on admission to hospital. Their beliefs as just as valid as anyone else's.
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ServantOfJudgement
Flawless point D.
The entire movie carries the premise there is no God, no God of Abraham that is. Lucas used biblical names and places but that's it. If a Christian has a problem with witches in the movie they should have a problem with the whole thing. The only reference to the existence of the biblical God was when they warned Han Solo not to go looking for Luke on Hoth, said he'd freeze to death. Han shouts back Then I'll See You In Hell!!
I'll confess, after watching the latest batch of the films I thought I was in hell. Terrible.
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Nicholas J Page
Star wars etc is just science fiction not fact so how come it's a religion and it's all about war's. Get real people it's not fact that is the genre of all these films sci fi not fact .All other religions are hundreds of years old which are based on holy book's. Star wars I only saw the first 3 films then I became bored Is star Trek a religion no nor is our own Dr Who which is the longest running sci fi series here in the UK
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Timothy C Stone
Exactly Nicholas, and by the way. I LOVE DR WHO!
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Timothy C Stone
First of all it is scifi entertainment. If you don't like it don't watch it. I love Rosario Dawson and her charcter. Now, if you remember, 'Majick' was shown in the very first STAR WARS movie. ObiWan had telekenetic powers and could sway the mind with the wave of his hand. But, if you want to explain it to your indoctrinated 'Christian' children explain the witches as the bad guys. Also, I must say, if you believe in magic consider this, All power comes from God. If one has the ability to influence the corporeal world for good or bad, that power comes from God. This kind of debate is silly. People look for reasons to be offended. Look at the source of the first article. Some ultra rt wing propaganda network trying to get attention. What? Is STAR WARS too 'woke'?
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Joseph Abbott Farrar
You’d think they’d be content with the fact that the “witches” are being portrayed as the Villains………again
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Amber Fry
Not really. I mean movies and TV shows are for entertainment. If people are confusing them for reality then they might need to do a little inner work to make out the difference. Aside from that I don't think there is a religion out there that doesn't have violence involved somewhere along the line.
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Thomas Edwin Peterson
Seems a lot of people are dictating much. Quite often damaging the knowledge base of a myriad of subjects that could help those who face the future. Guide your children but allow them to explore the many diverse teachings. Much based on ayurvedic knowledge is used in such story's. Even Star trek. Teach your child to discern and defend themselves as well to seek defensive knowledge whether it be memorizing names and phone numbers to call a friend or two you trust in a situation you can't be reached. Especially 911 for younger. Some practical defense knowledge is good as well such as how to hide ,twist out of someone's grasp etc. Much more can be done. Prepare them for the real world threats out there.
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Katarzyna Jenner
Seriously? So what?
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Michael Blackwood
Archetypes are inherent in religion. Christianity uses a virgin birth; star in the East; and death, burial, resurrection like other religions before it. Even the holidays were around before Christianity and were co-opted. People (especially children) should be taught the power of myth in our lives. Before they become teenagers they need to be taught that are myths are just that. Maybe we pattern or moral codes on certain myths but repudiation of others with different mythos beliefs is wrong. Murder or genocide is worse.
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Pastor George Day
Michael Blackwood,
Check my former comment above.
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John Alex Paxson
You must be kidding me ... movies = pretend ... get it???
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Virginia Joiner
First of all,if they had paid attention to the story instead of looking for something to nit-pick over They would see that these particular witches are on the dark side. They are bad guys. I would think Christians would be happy about that. Second of all, this is not the first time Witches were introduced to the Star Wars universe. Third of all, there are far more adults that watch these series than kids.As a matter of fact one of the main reasons for Disney buying the Star Wars franchise was to get more adult consumers.
I have Disney Plus because of Star Wars. I have no children in the house. Most of these series are written for adults. They have children's series too, mostly about droids.I think some people have nothing better to do than look for evil, and they find it everywhere. Disney received similar gruff over the Lion King. First it was black parents with a white child. When no one joined the bandwagon on that (they were lions not people) then someone reportedly saw the word sex in the swirl of flower petals. You supposedly had to slow it down and watch it frame by frame to see the word one letter at a time. Again only the ones who wanted to find something wrong with an innocent film saw the word.
Basically, these people will always exist. They make all Christians look bad but they don't care. I think the majority of Christians accept the fact that they aren't the only religion, and the media and entertainment industries are going to cater to as many people possible by including a wide variety of beliefs in their programming.
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Pastor George Day
Virginia Joiner,
Christianity has a message that stands out, and we are to act coherently.
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Lionheart
Yes, Sir George, and the Christian message is a corrupted one, camouflaged in a sheep’s clothing, but we all know the real Wolf underneath it. Its that genocidal and infanticidal god that’s some people like to worship as being loving. 🤭
🦁❤️
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Pastor George Day
Lionheart,
Indeed!
You know, we have an Italian saying that goes like this: la ragione si da' ai matti.
Transliterated as follows: the reason one gives to the fool :-)
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Kathryn Darcy Smith
The very SADDEST corruption that damages are children is the lie of Christianity and the death and suffering it's caused over millinia.
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Michael Sciulli
Today we must watch what is happening in world keep you faith in god from minster mike
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Lionheart
Do you have a particular favourite god you like to keep your faith in? I bet yours is the real one….right, Sir Michael? 🤭
🦁❤️
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Rolando Couce
THE DEMOCRATS HAVE SHONE A LIGHT OF THEY ARE BEING PROUD BEING CHILD MOLESTERS
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Rev Ned
HAHAHA!!! 🤔 You are confusing Democrats and the Catholic Church’s priests.
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Kenneth Lafe Eric Sanderson
Wow are you confused.
https://www.barrons.com/news/spain-s-catholic-bishops-apologise-after-report-of-200-000-abused-8b990a01
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Minister Raymond Butterworth
Its a tv show. It's for entertainment. When I see the neighborhood kids outside playing with REAL light sabers, choppin down traffic signals and light poles, i may get a bit concerned. EVERYONE, Christians included, needs to stop nitpicking the world apart trying to find something to be upset about. JUST STOP. Just because we see something on tv doesn't mean we have to go do it. Ive never watched diehard and wanted to go shoot persons. It's just tv. Perhaps parents who are so concerned should take the time teach their children about rite and wrong, good and bad, real and fake, etc. But that would take away from their allotted time for nitpicking.
Just my opinion.
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DianeT
Sorry to repeat but.... Come on...GIVE ME A BREAK!!!!! People need to get on with living and stop all this venom... It is a STORY, a TV SHOW and the bad guys are always there in many forms and mostly there making the good guys shine.... And I for one would like my children exposed to the world, the good and bad so they know it when they see it....
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Tasan
do believe in power beyond human knowledge magick is real nothing evil in it
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Tanya Keller
I have watched all the Star Wars movies and shows and I think it is funny that they lost sight of the fact that the 'dark side', including these witches, are the BAD GUYS. The show is upholding their stance and they don't even get it! How are they attempting "to replace Christianity wholesale in the minds of children"? They are the bad guys, I can't believe the stupidity.
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Pastor George Day
Tanya Keller,
It is not stupid at all. These shows designed for children have an indelible impact on how future adults' minds are formed.
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Devon Atkins
I think with everything going on in the world today, is a TV show isn't something we should be worried about, their are arguments and fighting about religion, territory, and just blaton evil in the world today, TV shows should bring us together, something we all can enjoy, something that brings us out of the here and now, TV shows are something that can bring us out of our stress filled mundane life's, into the mystical realms, with signs of relief and relaxation
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Jerry M Choat
Our heavenly father is not please with Halloween
Although some people view Halloween as harmless fun, the practices associated with it are in direct conflict with Bible teachings. Halloween is based on false beliefs about the dead and invisible spirits, or demons.
Notice the following verses that show how God views the beliefs associated with Halloween.
There must never be anyone among you who . . . consults ghosts or spirits, or calls up the dead.”Read {Deuteronomy 18:10-12, The Jerusalem Bible
Meaning: God does not approve of efforts to contact the dead or even of giving the appearance of trying to have contact with those who have died.
“The dead know nothing at all.”Read {Ecclesiastes 9:5.
Meaning: Because the dead are unconscious, they cannot contact the living.
Do not be participants with demons. You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons too.”Read {1 Corinthians 10:20, 21, New International Version.
Meaning: Those who want God’s favor must avoid any connection with demons.
Stand firm against the crafty acts of the Devil; because we have a struggle . . . against the wicked spirit forces.” Read {Ephesians 6:11, 12.
Meaning: Christians should oppose wicked spirit forces, not pretend to celebrate with them.
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Lionheart
Well, in another book that has equally fictitious stories, Harry Potter, Witches are welcomed.
Dumbledore has some wonderful quotes as well, that are very heartening.
"It does not do to dwell on dreams and forget to live."
"People find it far easier to forgive others for being wrong than being right."
"It is my belief that the truth is generally preferable to lies."
I just love works of fiction, Sir Jeremy. Alice in Wonderland is another wonderful book, and really good for children, and is not as bloodthirsty as the one you possibly read, but I guess it’s what we all enjoy reading from…right?
Oh, and one more thing, no one in these books I’ve quoted require anyone to have genital mutilation (circumcision), so that’s a plus.
Anyway, thank you for quoting from your book. Do you have any other fictional books you’d like to quote from?
🦁❤️
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Pastor George Day
Lionheart,
Which of these other books of fiction have been recovered at Qumran?
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Lionheart
None of them, Sir George. That's not even possible because they were only recently written. However, if someone stumbles across some Harry Potter pages in 2,000 years time buried in a time capsule, we might have a whole new religion being created. I wonder if they will be attributed to the Essenes 🤭
🦁♥️
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Pastor George Day
Lionheart,
Not so. Maybe to the Wisardzenes!
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Lionheart
Not if I go and bury a book in an amphora at Qumran. 🤭
🦁❤️
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Keith
These shows of the mystical and mysterious worlds have been around for decades. I grew up watching some shows with these themes, and the dark forces didn't consume me. It's funny how people worry and complain, and “it's much ado about nothing.” I generally believe if people use some common sense, then they may realize how crazy, stupid, and uneducated they sound. People or groups who create “a mountain out of a molehill” are theory conspiracists who work people into a frenzy of fear with no evidence to prove any of this to be nothing more than mystical, futuristic, or a fairy tale. The best example I can use is The Salem Witch Trials. Some people in the Puritan Christian community told lies about others being witches, which turned the village into hysteria. The accused were found guilty of witchcraft and sentenced to death regardless of their innocence. They were “damned if you do and damned if you don't,” meaning they endured torture for a confession. They confessed to being a witch when they weren't, and others never admitted because they weren't. Either way, they died without any evidence proving otherwise. Recently, the accused witches of The Salem Witch Trials were exonerated of those crimes because none were witches. It was all caused by misplaced conspiracies that turned into hysteria, and the irrationality of it all took over, and people died. My suggestion is, without evidence, keep it to yourself because the harm you provoke can be irreversible. Use common sense. If you don't like something, then don't participate in it. No one is forcing you. Who knows, others may like it. That's what's called being a unique individual; it's when we don't all have to like or dislike the same thing.
Rev. Keith
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Pastor George Day
Keith,
You have clearly never dabbled with the occult, or you would be saying such things.
As for Salem, were you there? Where do you get your evidence of innocence?
The reason why heretics and witchcraft practitioners were burned was because this plague can really affect society. Look at the way our world is going today?
I am no advocate of witch hunts nor of burning people alive. But we need to strike a balance in this.
Witchcraft is real and very dangerous, and to instill it in the minds of children is tantamount to child abuse!
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Lionheart
There is no bigger form of child abuse than religion. It’s the precursor to causing Religious Trauma Syndrome (RTS) when they get older as their brains mature, which allows them to use logic, reason, and critical thought.
🦁❤️
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Pastor George Day
Lionheart,
I agree that this does happen. But it indicates the failure of men.
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Lionheart
Mankind is fallible, as evidenced by those that fall for the dogma of all religions.
🦁❤️
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Pastor George Day
Lionheart,
I'm not Roman Catholic. I do not claim infallibility. Only the Bible is infallible.
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Ok give me a break. If a TV show is enough to cause concern to your religion, then maybe you are not as secure in your religion as you thought you were. I am an avid die hard fan of the Universal Monsters but that does not mean that I am going to allow them to muck up my belief in my religion. These are the same people who tried to claim that Harry Potter was Santanic, or the Rick Riordon series for young readers about the old Olympic Gods. this is entertainment people, just like the yearly showing of the movie the 10 Commandments, or Dickens the Christmas Carol, or It's a wonderful life.
People need to grow a thicker skin as this reminds me of the Tipper Gore nonsense when they tried to claim backword messages in rock music. And the ONLY reason that people listened to her was because she was the VP's wife, not because she made any sense or could prove what she said.
Grow up!
Which Universal “Monster” are you a fan of, people worship so many of them? The Christian one is the worst monster in my book. 🤭
🦁❤️
Universal MONSTERS (Dracula-Frankenstein-wolfman-creature-invisible man-etc)
Lionheart,
You're getting worse!
In what way do you believe I am getting worse, Sir George?
🦁❤️
Lionheart,
You know deep inside you have a heart after God like David, or you would just move on. But here you are yet again :-)
I’m just applying logic and reason for those who seem to lack it. 🤭
🦁❤️
Lionheart,
Even reason and logic point to the Creator. Look at the order in the universe.
Well good for you Daniel, these are all comic books after all. Jiminy!
In your mind maybe
Really? The Hatians have a powder made with a puffer fish that turns you into sort of the living dead. In Miami you have had reports of people actually trying to EAT other people and even took three center mass shots to stop them. History shows us that there actually were people who thought they were werewolves and vampires.. Alister Crowley actually thought he was the Devil.
'absence of evidence is not the evidence of absence' means that just because an investigation does not yield evidence for a certain claim, it does not mean that the claim is actually false. Take for instance a lot of people deny that the creature called Bigfoot exists. And yet my Native American ancestors all over the country have been talking about this creature since your relatives were in europe and painting themselves blue and living in caves. A good 2000 years before the guy in Cali claimed that he started it. The Coelacanths was claimed to be extinct, till they found one in a south african fish market. In Southease Asia, they found a valley that had over 20,000 unknown species of plants, over 5000 species of insects and over 350 new animals...all unknown to science but known to natives. here in the US down in Louisiana they found a thriving colony of the ivory-billed woodpecker, the same one they thought had been extinct for over 150 years. people like you also thought the Kraken was a myth....till they actually found one off the coast of Japan. And they used the pupil of its eye to judge its size...the pupil was the size of a truck tire. And what should worry you is they dont know if it was a child/young adult or a full grown one. The scars on the humpbacks prove these creatures DO exist as dead beached whales have been found to have Kraken beaks in their stomachs that are well over 3 feet long and two feet wide. UFO's were thought to be fake and fantasy....right up until fighter jets from the US Navy showed radar contact with them.
What I am trying to tell you is dont be too quick to judge creatures are myths, they just very well might actually show up and prove you wrong.
So what you are saying DG is you might actually have empathy, compassion, and genuine moral discernment after all?
I'll believe it when I see it.
Kenneth Lafe Eric Sanderson,
Are you still a Catholic :-) ??
Daniel Gray,
They used to say that dragons were myths till they found the bones of those extinct ones that had been too big to enter Noah's ark. That's when they invented the notion of 'dinosaurs'!
Good one!
Yes, people should grow up!
Lucas incorporated tons of biblical stuff in the original Star wars series. Being a huge fan of the originals, I was surprised to find what Lucas did when I read the old testament. Pretty cool.
Well said.
I think it's detrimental to children's healthy growth!
As is teaching children to believe in religions, and to worship imaginary deities, Sir George.
🦁❤️
Lionheart,
What do you think?
My comment is listed above.
🦁❤️
Lionheart,
So is mine. Check it up.
Daniel Gray,
A famous Catholic exorcist once said that Satan's signature is all over Harry Potters books.
That quote isn't from me, mind you... just in case you rant back!