"Christians" want to burn book

[operafan]

Okay -- they want permission to burn a book? Isn't this what Christians do -- and without asking first?

A group of Wisconsin Christians filed a lawsuit seeking the right to burn a gay teen novel. The group claimed the novel is "explicitly vulgar, and anti-Christian". The novel in question is Francesca Lia Block's Baby Be-Bop, a young adult novel in which a boy, struggling with his homosexuality, is beaten up by a homophobic gang.

http://www.examiner.com/x-10853-Sea...ristians-sue-for-right-to-burn-gay-teen-novel

 

[Ram]

I'd love burn some bibles but I realize I would be wasting fire.

 

[unloadonme]

It's exactly the sort of shitty behaviour I'd expect from Christians.

 

[briefboy86]

they can do what ever they want.. i'll just go out and ask for permision to burn a bible from a group of "concerned queers about the effect of christianity and how its raping the minds of children" lets see how that goes over with them

 

[DonQuixote]

I am a practicing Roman Catholic, and moderately active in my parish - one which I have often told people is the "most Methodist Catholic church I've ever been to".

My meaning/comparison is with my grandparents' rural Methodist church where, probably over 1/2 the congregation is related to me within 3rd-5th cousins at most. They are a close knit group who truly care about their neighbor, and live their Christianity in their daily lives.

I appreciate the OP putting Christian in Quotes at the top of this thread. I would appreciate the rest of you also doing that. The group in question would, undoubtedly, deny me the moniker of Christian, since I am "Catholic", and we all know that the Church of Rome is really the Devil's den.

It is slow and stable in its teachings - just as a church should be. It can change - it only took 500 years for them to "forgive" Galileo for his heresy! LOL.

It's too bad, really. The Jesuit order of priests, perhaps one of the strictest, has also been one in the forefront of scientific research over the millenia -- believe it or not. Educators, and not just in the horse-blinders on theology.

You see, one of the reasons the Catholic church is frequently despised by "fundamental" Christian churches is because the Catholic Church recognizes that the bible is an interpretive text - not a fully literal one. The parables and teachings are just that -- metaphors for life.

They also recognize that, despite best efforts, the Bible is the Word of God as filtered by the man doing the transcribing or translation at the time. It is impacted by our human vision. And that is flawed. Even the Popes, the "heirs to Peter's throne", if you will, have been flawed - many with consorts and heirs.

The whole question of celibacy is tainted by the cloud of knowing that ONE of the reasons for the Church promulgating celebacy was to keep the power within the Church, not with a line of heir priest in a parish who accumulated wordly wealth and following over the generations, as was happening, for good or ill.

This "Christian" group is misguided. It is anything BUT Christian. It, clearly, is NOT what Jesus would do. Please do not bash Christianity for their misguided actions. It is inappropriate. TRUE Christians would be much more considering of the individual, and loving/caring in their actions.

I know it's hard, but please try to keep the focus on the specific, misguided group, and remove them from "Christians" at large.

Thank you. Jesus does love you, even when you don't love yourself. I know. He loves me, too, even when I haven't been too fond of myself!

 

[gsdx]

Are they serious?

According to the American Library Association the complaint also demands $120,000 in compensatory damages. The complaint has been lodged by a group identified as the Christian Civil Liberties Union. Their suit claims that "the plaintiffs, all of whom are elderly, claim their mental and emotional well-being was damaged by this book at the library."

If this case even makes it to the courtroom, there is something seriously wrong.

How about suing them for false advertisement and making false assertions?

"You promised me God would answer my prayers. He didn't. You're still here."

 

[Puzuzzu]

I'd like to burn their houses

 

[gsdx]

Saaaaay, didn't the nazis have book burning parties?

Yeah, they did. Party central, and the magic number is Four-Five-One:

 

[gsdx]

I found another article on it:

The plaintiffs, all of whom are elderly, say their mental and emotional well-being were damaged by the book at the Library, the claim states.

In the claim, they cite Wisconsin’s sexual morality law. Under the law, obscene material is a publication or recording that:

“The average person, applying community standards, would find appeals to the prurient interest if taken as a whole.”

“Under contemporary com- munity standards, describes or shows sexual conduct in a patently offensive way.”

“Lacks serious literary, artistic, political, educational or scientific value, if taken as a whole.”

The claim states that specific words used in the book are derogatory and slanderous to all males, and dangerously offensive and disrespectful to all people. The claim says the words can permeate violence, and puts one's life in possible jeopardy, adults and children alike.

The plaintiffs have also requested in the claim that West Bend City Attorney Mary Shanning could commission a grand jury to investigate whether the book should be declared obscene and inappropriate since it uses racial language that offends the plaintiffs' Christian beliefs.

The plaintiffs believe the book should be kept out of the Library and constitutes a hate crime, and they feel the book is inappropriate for the elderly and their minor grandchildren, and degrades the community, the claim states.

“We don't want it put in a section for adults,” said Braun, who is the president of the CCLU branch. “We're saying its inappropriate to have it in the library, and we want it out or destroyed.”

http://activepaper.olivesoftware.co...MDAxMDE=&Mode=HTML&Locale=english-skin-custom

 

[bankside]

The Jesuit order of priests, perhaps one of the strictest, has also been one in the forefront of scientific research over the millenia -- believe it or not. Educators, and not just in the horse-blinders on theology.

I'd believe it. You can't suppress what you can't understand.

 

[gsdx]

And yet another report. This little story is being noticed in other countries as well:

Siems said there was clearly "a bit of theatre" in the lawsuit which followed. "They've filed a lawsuit which has little possibility of going forward legally, and they're asking for damages which include the right to burn a book. It does seem more to gain publicity than a real serious challenge." But, he said, PEN remained very concerned about the impulse behind the claim. "This is a group of people trying aggressively to rid the library of these books and that's very serious - it needs to be fought."

The claimants, he said, "have a right to continue to express their views, and this in a way is a creative attempt to express those views". But it's "also a dangerous game when you're talking about something like book burning, calling on the law to burn books. It's certainly completely un-American, and if they paused, I think they would agree."

It was not possible to reach the Christian Civil Liberties Union for comment.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2009/jun/12/christian-group-sues-burn-gay-teen-novel

 

[gsdx]

Yet, presumably, these people find books containing homophobic hate-speech such as this perfectly acceptable?

"If a man also lie with mankind, as he lieth with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination: they shall surely be put to death. Their blood shall be upon them."

Leviticus 20:13 KJV.

From Religious Tolerance dot Org:

This is almost identical to Leviticus 18:22. In transliterated Hebrew, the verse is written: "V'ish asher yishkav et zachar mishk'vei ishah to'evah asu shneihem mot yumatu d'meihem bam." However, it adds a compulsory death penalty to the participants.

<snip>

Over the last few centuries, most Christians and Jews have rejected Leviticus 20:13. They no longer call on the death penalty for homosexuals. Only Christian Reconstructionists and a few Christian hate groups wish to revert to mass executions of gays and lesbians today.

http://www.religioustolerance.org/hom_bibh3.htm

Still, there are those who believe it.

 

[cklover]

Okay -- they want permission to burn a book? Isn't this what Christians do -- and without asking first?

This is all just generalizations. One small group does not constitute every Christian, let alone the thoughts and actions of every Christian. The news article could just as easily have stated Wisconsin citizens want to burn a book or U.S. citizens want to burn a book. Would everyone here be just as upset and make such outrageous statements if a small group of Muslims wanted to burn a book, or a group of Jews, or how about a group of Sikhs, Hindus, etc.?

 

[JasunStrikesBack]

Bibles are always made with very thin pages. It's why I always ask the Gideons to send them to me. They make great kindling.

 

[gsdx]

Bibles are always made with very thin pages. It's why I always ask the Gideons to send them to me. They make great kindling.

And, apparently, they make a great substitute for when you run out of Zig Zags.

 

[JasunStrikesBack]

And, apparently, they make a great substitute for when you run out of Zig Zags.

And toilet paper.

 

[2243]

And, apparently, they make a great substitute for when you run out of Zig Zags.

And paper mache.

 

[JasunStrikesBack]

And paper mache.

Hm.. maybe make a pinata shaped like a dick made out of bibles and filled with condoms and lube?

 

[2243]

^Yes + all kinds of porn.

 

[LiquidSky]

Such ignorance. These "Christians" should also throw some Beatles and Led Zeppelin albums in with the book.

When I was a kid, we went to a church just a couple of times. The pastor wanted us to burn Carole King's Tapestry album!! That's when we never went back (to that particular church).