jimmyboy
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@jimmyboy
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Post by jimmyboy on Apr 28, 2024 1:38:59 GMT
These people are certainly controversial. They seem to annoy a lot people for their antics. They claim to be anti-gay, but end up causing more sympathy for them because they are so annoying.
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Post by amyghost on Apr 29, 2024 11:24:39 GMT
Unless their religion is the newly legitimized Church of The First Complete Bleeding Asshole, emphatically no.
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jimmyboy
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@jimmyboy
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Post by jimmyboy on Apr 29, 2024 22:35:54 GMT
Unless their religion is the newly legitimized Church of The First Complete Bleeding Asshole, emphatically no. Yeah, they seem to annoy almost everyone on both sides of the political spectrum. |
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Post by Rodney Farber on May 3, 2024 18:16:17 GMT
These people are certainly controversial. They seem to annoy a lot people for their antics. They claim to be anti-gay, but end up causing more sympathy for them because they are so annoying. I'd be curious to read anyone's definition of a "legit church". Is it a case of, "I'll know it if I see it"?
Does Kenneth Copeland count? Is he really preaching or just telling people what they want in order to receive donations? Was Jim Jones a legit church? Google, "Bob Whetstone Jesus" without the quotes. Is he a one-man church that hands out pamphlets wherever there's a crowd in Boston (or Miami in winter).
Sometimes I wonder if these Bible beater really believe what they're saying or are they just trying to become your master.
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jimmyboy
Sophomore
@jimmyboy
Posts: 163
Likes: 59
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Post by jimmyboy on May 5, 2024 4:22:39 GMT
These people are certainly controversial. They seem to annoy a lot people for their antics. They claim to be anti-gay, but end up causing more sympathy for them because they are so annoying. I'd be curious to read anyone's definition of a "legit church". Is it a case of, "I'll know it if I see it"?
Does Kenneth Copeland count? Is he really preaching or just telling people what they want in order to receive donations? Was Jim Jones a legit church? Google, "Bob Whetstone Jesus" without the quotes. Is he a one-man church that hands out pamphlets wherever there's a crowd in Boston (or Miami in winter).
Sometimes I wonder if these Bible beater really believe what they're saying or are they just trying to become your master.
Certainly many of these TV evangelists who get caught up in scandals or have a lavish lifestyle make one wonder. |
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Post by amyghost on May 5, 2024 12:17:28 GMT
I'd be curious to read anyone's definition of a "legit church". Is it a case of, "I'll know it if I see it"?
Does Kenneth Copeland count? Is he really preaching or just telling people what they want in order to receive donations? Was Jim Jones a legit church? Google, "Bob Whetstone Jesus" without the quotes. Is he a one-man church that hands out pamphlets wherever there's a crowd in Boston (or Miami in winter).
Sometimes I wonder if these Bible beater really believe what they're saying or are they just trying to become your master.
Certainly many of these TV evangelists who get caught up in scandals or have a lavish lifestyle make one wonder. They're in it for the money. Power is a nice side dish. If they really put belief in the teachings of Their Savior, the lavish lifestyles would be the first thing to go. |
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jimmyboy
Sophomore
@jimmyboy
Posts: 163
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Post by jimmyboy on May 6, 2024 21:59:30 GMT
Certainly many of these TV evangelists who get caught up in scandals or have a lavish lifestyle make one wonder. They're in it for the money. Power is a nice side dish. If they really put belief in the teachings of Their Savior, the lavish lifestyles would be the first thing to go. Certainly a WWJD type of thing. WWJD isn't asked to keep the preachers in line; it's so that the minister can keep their flock in line. |
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Post by amyghost on May 7, 2024 2:08:06 GMT
They're in it for the money. Power is a nice side dish. If they really put belief in the teachings of Their Savior, the lavish lifestyles would be the first thing to go. Certainly a WWJD type of thing. WWJD isn't asked to keep the preachers in line; it's so that the minister can keep their flock in line. Quis custodiet ipsos custodes? Who watches the watchers...the assumption being that self-avowed 'men of God' need no policing; they're the chosen who get to be the stand-in for the Big Shepherd. But often times they need to be far more closely watched than the members of their flocks. |
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Post by captainbryce on May 12, 2024 13:10:42 GMT
I consider them as “legit” as any other Church. All churches are scams as far as I can tell. They are designed so that con artists can manipulate the gullible masses into giving them money, while they pay no taxes. When you get a bunch of people who already believe in magic together in one room, you can capitalize on that if you have a charismatic enough presentation. You can literally convince them that you are helping them, by having them give you their money. The placebo effect takes over from there so they keep coming back.
The same is true for a bunch of people rallying around a cause. You give them a meeting room and a platform to vent their hatred, and they get the same endorphin rush (aka Holy Spirit) as any other group does. But the Westboro Baptist Church is tax exempt, which means they are a legitimate church in the legal sense. That’s the difference between religious temples and cult compounds. Cults pay taxes!
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jimmyboy
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@jimmyboy
Posts: 163
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Post by jimmyboy on May 12, 2024 17:55:32 GMT
I consider them as “legit” as any other Church. All churches are scams as far as I can tell. They are designed so that con artists can manipulate the gullible masses into giving them money, while they pay no taxes. When you get a bunch of people who already believe in magic together in one room, you can capitalize on that if you have a charismatic enough presentation. You can literally convince them that you are helping them, by having them give you their money. The placebo effect takes over from there so they keep coming back. The same is true for a bunch of people rallying around a cause. You give them a meeting room and a platform to vent their hatred, and they get the same endorphin rush (aka Holy Spirit) as any other group does. But the Westboro Baptist Church is tax exempt, which means they are a legitimate church in the legal sense. That’s the difference between religious temples and cult compounds. Cults pay taxes! Regular churches at least pretend to help others. WBC doesn't. |
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Post by captainbryce on May 12, 2024 20:12:23 GMT
I consider them as “legit” as any other Church. All churches are scams as far as I can tell. They are designed so that con artists can manipulate the gullible masses into giving them money, while they pay no taxes. When you get a bunch of people who already believe in magic together in one room, you can capitalize on that if you have a charismatic enough presentation. You can literally convince them that you are helping them, by having them give you their money. The placebo effect takes over from there so they keep coming back. The same is true for a bunch of people rallying around a cause. You give them a meeting room and a platform to vent their hatred, and they get the same endorphin rush (aka Holy Spirit) as any other group does. But the Westboro Baptist Church is tax exempt, which means they are a legitimate church in the legal sense. That’s the difference between religious temples and cult compounds. Cults pay taxes! Regular churches at least pretend to help others. WBC doesn't. Sounds like you’re saying the WBC is more honest and transparent, and therefore less manipulative than regular churches. |
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jimmyboy
Sophomore
@jimmyboy
Posts: 163
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Post by jimmyboy on May 12, 2024 22:11:51 GMT
Regular churches at least pretend to help others. WBC doesn't. Sounds like you’re saying the WBC is more honest and transparent, and therefore less manipulative than regular churches. Possibly; it doesn't make them a legit church. |
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Post by captainbryce on May 15, 2024 0:20:41 GMT
Sounds like you’re saying the WBC is more honest and transparent, and therefore less manipulative than regular churches. Possibly; it doesn't make them a legit church. What would make a church “legit” according to you? 🤔 |
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Post by amyghost on May 15, 2024 11:56:44 GMT
Possibly; it doesn't make them a legit church. What would make a church “legit” according to you? 🤔 I'm intruding a guess here, but I'm thinking that Jimmy probably means it's a legally constituted entity that's recognized by the surrounding society as such, in the same way 'mainstream' churches are. I don't actually know that this is the case with Westboro, they may be renegades in the legal sense (this is the IRS actual definition of what are 'legal' churches in the bureaucratic definition: www.irs.gov/charities-non-profits/churches-religious-organizations/churches-defined#:~:text=They%20include%3A,code%20of%20doctrine%20and%20discipline), but if not, they'd qualify, technically if not morally, as a 'legitimate' church. |
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jimmyboy
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@jimmyboy
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Post by jimmyboy on May 15, 2024 22:45:15 GMT
Possibly; it doesn't make them a legit church. What would make a church “legit” according to you? 🤔 See below what Amyghost said. Plus this isn't a legit church in the video below. |
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