The Hobby Horses of Belief (and assorted hazards)

Hotblack Desiato

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123132271#Comment_123132271

There's waaaayyy more to it than that, P. The equation of a sports team with a religion is nonsensical. Nobody was ever threatened with going to hell for supporting the wrong sports team.

Peregrinus

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123173096#Comment_123173096

You clearly haven't met some of the sports fans that I know.

But, yeah, you're right. There is clearly more to it that that. But the fact remains that, as I said, churches and sporting bodies have a common interest in learning how to manage the fallout from sex abuse cases. Where's the lie?

Igotadose

#MAGA,ftw. https://www.pillarcatholic.com/p/visa-program-used-by-thousands-of

Nuns gotta leave the US. Go, CFTrump!

smacl

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123238734#Comment_123238734

The comments also make for an interesting read. Trump seems to be attacking so many different large groups at the same time he could end up very isolated. While the conservative Christians that support him tend not to be Catholic, I'd imagine any attacks on the church will go down like a lead balloon.

Igotadose

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123239720#Comment_123239720

Deport them under armed guard on military transports and make sure there are photos on the front page of the Catholic Reporter! Woot!

Hotblack Desiato

Is this the first year in living memory there are shag all articles about Ash Wednesday and not even a single boards thread about it?

The square root of shag all people care about it any more. For those who do, fine, and nobody would have any problem with that whatsoever if that religion didn't continue to control 89% of our taxpayer-funded primary schools.

Hotblack Desiato

https://www.irishexaminer.com/news/munster/arid-41588809.html

Bishop Fintan Gavin hailed the success of the Maranatha 2025 event in Cork City Hall which was attended by 500 students from 20 secondary schools

I wonder how much choice they had in the matter.

There certainly wouldn't be 500 there if this wasn't organised via the schools they are required to attend

Hotblack Desiato

Apparently telling people they're going to burn in hell is "humour".

Old story but I came across it via an unlikely series of internet links.

https://archive.ph/20130703160707/http://www.3news.co.nz/DB-to-buy-church-a-new-billboard/tabid/423/articleID/159193/Default.aspx

NZ brewery had a long series of ads over many years with a phrase followed by a sarcastic "Yeah right." (is there such a thing as a non-sarcastic "yeah right"?)

Church decided it'd be a wheeze to erect a billboard saying :

Atheists have nothing to worry about! Yeah Right

Well that's definitely going to prod me to reconsider my philosophical world view…

Brewery sued and an amicable settlement was reached, the brewery offered to get their adversing agency to come up with some cool slogans for god. 👍️

Reverend Jim Wallace was presented with the agency-developed concept yesterday, which included the phrases "God tweets too. Just look up in the trees" and "God, the ultimate search engine".

🤮

I've always got a reply back when using a search engine, even if it's a crappy reply…

The church had since taken down the contentious billboard. "We are not in the business of fighting copyright law. We are not here to make enemies, we are here to tell people about Jesus and to do it with a sense of humour."

You guys are gonna burn in hell, hahahaha! That sort of humour.

These people really do not have any idea how they are being complete pricks. In their minds, pretty much anything is justified if it "spreads the word" 🙄

Another slogan the brewery used was

"Our father in Heaven, Tamaki be your name – Yeah right"

For those who are not finger-on-the-pulse with the NZ extremist-evangelical / cult scene, Brian Tamaki seems like a very pleasant individual to make one's acquaintance with. [Caution - post may contain sarcasm]

In July 2008 TV3 broadcast "Inside New Zealand: The Life of Brian", a documentary by reporter Ross Jennings.

Talk about an open goal 🤣

Hotblack Desiato

"I've heard about those cults, Ted":

https://www.rte.ie/news/2025/0330/1504800-society-of-st-pius-x-derry/

The Catholic Bishop of Derry has warned parishioners that someone posing as an ordained priest who is part of a breakaway fundamentalist faction of the church is conducting illicit Masses in the diocese.

SSPX, the Society of St Pius X, was founded in 1970 by a Bishop and group of priests who believed the Catholic Church was becoming too modernist. [Yeah, right]

In 2012 a much more fundamentalist breakaway faction, SSPX Resistance, was formed.

…

Bishop McKeown said he "wanted to make people aware" that members of the group who are ministering mass "may not have gone through vetting and safeguarding procedures, which is a legal requirement, as well as the fact that they reject everything to do with the Roman church at the present time".

"They would refer to the Mass in English as the Protestant Mass," he said.

Fr Michael Canny, parish priest for the Waterside parish in Co Derry, said it was important to warn parishioners that people may be dressing as priests and purporting to be priests, but are not.

Bit rich of the RCC to be pointing the safeguarding finger, n'est-ce pas?

robindch

Oops, Gardaí probe safeguarding issues following complaint about fundamentalist Catholic group

A Garda complaint has been made about a fundamentalist Catholic group based in Cork, which has allowed a defrocked priest to say mass despite alleged safeguard breaches. The Society of St Pius Resistance, a splinter group of the controversial SSPX which was founded in 1970 by a former bishop who clashed with the Vatican over reforms, has operated from a farmhouse in Drinagh, Co Cork. Gardaí have confirmed that enquiries into the group are ongoing on foot of a complaint which alleges safeguarding breaches in relation to the defrocked priest. It is understood that at least one safeguarding organisation has also referred the matter to Tusla. The Irish Examiner further understands that the defrocked priest is not currently in Ireland.

https://www.irishexaminer.com/news/arid-41603506.html

Igotadose

Fcuk Richard Williamson's group. Just another bunch of Xtians that rely on their antisemitism to recruit. Loathsome bunch.

robindch

In entirely unrelated news, The Recusant, one of the inhouse magazines of the SSPX, reported in 2015 concerning one Fr Stephen Abraham, who was reported by a number of SSPX websites some years ago to have visited Ireland. See page 14 - "Concerning Fr. Stephen Abraham, by Greg Taylor". Item (14) on page 16 may be of interest to Gardai.

https://www.stmaryskssspxmc.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/The_Recusant_Issue_31_Nov_Dec_2015-Copy.pdf

Hotblack Desiato

Don't wanna give them the click… Wayback Machine has it though

https://web.archive.org/web/20170225124214/https%3A//www.stmaryskssspxmc.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/The_Recusant_Issue_31_Nov_Dec_2015-Copy.pdf

14. When rumours of a very serious nature concerning Fr. Abraham began to circulate in the early summer of 2015, two faithful who attended his Mass in Broadstairs decided to ask Fr. Abraham directly and in a face to face conversation, if nothing else so as to give him a chance to defend himself in the event that the rumours were malicious and unfounded. They therefore arranged a private interview with him at the house in Broadstairs. At this private interview, Fr. Abraham admitted to them that it was true that he had been the object of two separate accusations, and that the accusations were what had led to his suspension. Furthermore, he admitted that the accusations were true and that he was guilty of what he had been accused. He also said that he was not ‘cured’ of the temptation, that he still laboured under it, and that such incidents could happen again in the future. To one of the two faithful, a family father, he said that if ever the man were to catch him looking at his children in an unusual way, he was to give him a stern look or a sign so as to make him snap out of it.

Hotblack Desiato

Article about an autocratic repressive regime's deal with an autocratic repressive regime…

https://www.irishtimes.com/world/asia-pacific/2025/04/05/we-try-to-assist-the-seed-of-belief-popes-deal-with-communist-party-draws-criticism-from-some-catholics-2/?

The "unofficial church" with bishops approved by the Vatican but not the CCP is being gradually replaced by the "official church" where bishop candidates are selected by the CCP (!) and, since the 2018 agreement, approved by the Vatican - the Vatican can decline to approve but has never done so so far.

Meanwhile the Vatican maintains diplomatic relations with Taiwan rather than Beijing - a sticking point.

Hotblack Desiato

40 years ago this summer. Mad stuff

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k9uNpszPV7s

The bishop complaining that "genuine religion" might be brought into "disrepute" is comically ironic though

Hotblack Desiato

https://www.rte.ie/news/dublin/2025/0423/1509158-closure-of-islamic-centre-after-unprecedented-incident/

The Islamic Cultural Centre in Clonskeagh in Dublin has been closed to the public after an incident at the weekend.

RTÉ News understands that it occurred as a result of internal issues.

A notice posted on the gates said that the centre will remain closed until a full investigation is carried out and it reviews and implements robust safety and security protocols.

The notice said the incident was "unprecedented and distressing" and left it with no choice but to temporarily close the south Dublin centre and the mosque to the public.

Odd one this.