In the name of the Lord

We're about a week in to the Islamic holy month of Ramadhan and muslims worldwide are going through half days with no eating and no 'impure thoughts'. All in the name of Allah. Sure, selfless acts should earn you a good reputation from people around you, but if it's for the reason only to be accepted by Allah, is it really worthwhile?

Ramadhan is just one case. Yom Kippur and Lent. All three religions of Abraham [who if you need reminding went past food and sex, and put his son on the line for God] have these sacrifice periods. Why? Because Allah God Yahweh is 'testing', of course. What a champ.

But my main peeve is the fact that people use religion as a means to get out of things. Islamic people who claim they need headscarves to be worn. Hindus who won't touch leather. Jews who won't take part in rest-day work. And then, of course, the Christian dominated world which feels the need to create about 10 public holidays for their cause.

I don't mind if people are religious, many of my closest friends are - good for them. Personally, I'm religious in a scientific sense, as I feel there is a supernatural power, but it is not personal and it only affects the laws of physics. A bit like ancient Hindu philosophy. But it's so fucking selfish of those who are religious to use religious claims for their benefit.

Last week in one of my classes, one girl mentioned how she could not attend her classes the Thursday before because it was Jewish new year. She said that one of her tutors did not accept religious holidays as an excuse (and that's the way it should be), but the others were OK with it. What the fudge. Numerically speaking, there are more Pastafarians in this world than Jews. Yet surely if I or another faux-thiest claims that it was the new year for religion X, we would not be let off, unless the authoritarian was extremely liberal minded.

Now back to Ramadhan - why do these Muslims do it? Don't they get hungry? Don't they realise it's harmful? Don't they know Hell is probably the stupidest idea yet to come from the middle east (where the fuck is hell, by the way? If it's another dimension, and thiests claim that so, then that just gives proof to the multiverse theory which in turn disproves god)?

I'm not going to argue by answering such rhetorical questions, because that task is done very well by Richard Dawkins in The God Delusion [also, on a sidetracked note - I hate whingers who claim to hate Richard Dawkins. If they're religious, they've got justification to hate him. If they're the "oooh look I'm athiest but Dawkin's is up himself" type, then go check up some definitions of hypocrisy and also come up with some arguments to Dawkins. I think he's done an excellent job and his logic as well as rhetoric is perfect, and he has every right to be cocky, though if you check out his videos, he's not really]. No doubt, my little rant here has been fuelled by that book, but it seriously does ring home the message. Do these people just do it for solace? Or do they do it under peer pressure? These acts, although harmless, are signs of belief in doctrines millenia of years old. Just like killing your children if they curse you is acceptable.

Thiests - if it gives you comfort, believe in a personal deity as you wish, and maybe who knows, one day I'll go to hell for being a prick. But don't try to get special consideration for such foolish claims (and -100 points to the authorities who accept the claims).

I think I'm gonna need a root-canal surgery, my tooth kills.