Bill Maher questions religion, God in 'Religulous'

Newsday ^ | Sept. 28, 2008 | John Anderson

[gost2]

I wonder about your definition of original sin. I have always figured it was simply a lack of trust and obedience for God. Did Eve buy the whole “you shall be as God” lione or did she just fail to listen to instructions and wanted to try something new? I dunno.

[soupcon]

That’s true, and this is definately her season to shine. I hope she’s well, you’d definately think she’s be front and center with time running out.

[Matchett-PI]

Thursday, September 25, 2008
Irreligulouse
https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=8580258&postID=3277867847579662305

“Apparently, Bill Maher’s absecular new film, Religulous, mainly features him doing man-on-the-street interviews with stupid people, asking them about religion. This is done with the intent to demonstrate how stupid religion is, when it actually demonstrates how foolish and shallow Bill Maher is.

For example, what if he had conducted the identical exercise with regard to the U.S. Constitution, or the Theory of Relativity, or art ,or literature, or economics? Would the answers he elicited be a useful reflection on the value of these subjects? No, of course not.

But Bill Maher is not a serious man. Well, perhaps seriously bitter. Which is another point. Maher does not have the insight or depth of character to delve into the roots of his own bitterness and anger, which pose insurmountable obstacles to any understanding of the Subject of the subject he pretends to explore in Religulous. Thus, the whole exercise is one of triumphant self-justification and narcissistic exultation. Obviously, if he were truly curious about God, he could have dialogued with serious intellectuals possessing valid gnosis. But if he were to do that, he would look like the unlearned rube that he is. ...

...In the case of Maher, it doesn’t take a psychologist to see that he isn’t actually curious about religion. He has no desire to actually understand the Divine, much less to humbly take the steps necessary to develop an open relationship with That which transcends him. Rather, he is bound by a kind of childishly arrogant, intrusive, and presumptuous curiosity that imagines it can know All without any work or preparation, much less humility and surrender.

This is not at all like proper curiosity, which is much more analogous to patient openness to the Real, embodied in faith... Thus, Maher does not — and cannot — reach any useful conclusions about God, only foreordained ones that are implicit in his original arrogance and omnipotence. As such, the film will be a memorial to his own cosmic stupidity, nothing more. No wonder he’s so bitter, because the bitterness is merely the residue of some kind of deep disappointment. Bitterness is a “presence” that always conceals a “present absence.” So, what is absent in Maher?

It would be uncharitable to go down that route. We’ll just leave it alone for now. Rat faced homunculus. ...

....Often, when someone is speaking about a subject, the more important communication is the emotional tone of the communicant, not the supposed subject matter. Or, you could say that the subject matter is just a superficial excuse for the person to evacuate a primitive emotion. For example, we vividly see this in the left’s unhinged reaction to Sarah Palin. What is most noteworthy to the discerning listener is the primitive emotionality that she provokes — very similar to the primitive emotionality that women provoke in the Islamic world.

In the case of the latter, no men in the Islamic world seem to have the insight or maturity to turn inward and wonder at the source of the violence and contempt in their attitudes toward women. Likewise, with the left vis-a-vis Sarah Palin. There are actually some noteworthy exceptions who are alarmed and appalled at the primitive display, but for most of the left, their reaction is all about their own narcissistic trinity of envy, contempt, and triumph.

Imagine the envy Sarah Palin must provoke in desiccated old feminist hags such as Maureen Dowd, Erica Jong, or Gloria Steinem. The envy is intolerable, so it is quickly transformed into contempt and then triumph. But again, it is the triumph of a sick part of the mind, so it is obviously a pyrrhic victory; if you win, you lose. ....

.....Maher represents it as the bitter transformation of Paradise Lost to Paradise Doesn’t Exist and I Didn’t Want it Anyway; or, to put it another way, I’m Back in a Triumphant and Contemptuous Narcissistic Paradise of My Own Making. Plus, Hugh Hefner Invites Me to His Parties, So I Can Pretend That Those Airheaded Bimbos and Porn Stars Would Ever Be Attracted to a Rat Faced Homunculus Like Me if I Didn’t Have All This Money. ...” ~ Gagdad Bob bttt

[DouglasKC]

"What we're saying," Maher said, "is we insist that we do have a rational conversation about the irrational, and these questions. Like 'Why is faith good?' And 'Why doesn't God get rid of evil?' And 'Why doesn't he speak to all of us?' And 'How do we benefit from having multiple warring religions?' Really basic questions. Like, 'Who did Cain marry?'

I feel sorry for him. These are questions that are really simplistic. I suspect he just doesn't like the answers he gets.

[Verginius Rufus]

A lot of Monty Python's humor is in making fun of the Hollywood portrayals of Biblical stories. I don't see "The Life of Brian" as mocking religious belief. Mocking Cecil B. DeMille, maybe.

"Blessed are the cheesemakers!"

I guess that could be considered vicious, if you're lactose-intolerant.

[La Enchiladita]

Wow, well stated, although of course the likes of Maher are not worthy of such elegant prose.

The writer hits on that essential point of the eagerness with which the leftist commie scum tear at Sarah Palin like ravening wolves.

There is no thought process involved, but a competition for the most depraved utterance, a la that bitch Ariana Huffington calling Sarah the “Trojan Moose” and Maher’s drooling proclamation that his “film” is a “message to the Sarah Palins that we are taking our country back.”

Yeah, Bill you bitch, there’s a message waiting for you at the end of time.

[potlatch]

[Seriously, I believe he does or did have a tv show of some sort.]

Thanks for the ping on #33 L.E.! Lol, I don’t have a devil to post but Maher needs an exorcism badly. He hates everything good, faith, family and children.

Years ago he had a late night show on one of the ‘alphabet’ channels and I did watch him all the time. I watched him because he was so outrageous that I just wanted to see what he said next!! It would infuriate me.

He would have 4 guests, 3 liberals and one conservative, so they could gang up on the one. Barbara Olsen used to be on that show, that’s how I came to know her and like her so much that I bought her books.

I believe Ann Coulter was on his show too but she never made the impression on me that Barbara did.

When 9/11 happened, I finally cried when I learned Barbara was on the plane that crashed into the Pentagon....

[La Enchiladita]

I never knew the whole story of Barbara Olsen as you just told it. I had seen her name mentioned here and there. What a loss. I think I may have watched that “show” a few times long ago. It was so obviously rigged though. Maher and his ilk would never be able to handle a level playing field. Even when they outnumber us, they’re no match. Feh!

[potlatch]

She was a lovely lady, super smart and had the sweetest smile. We won’t forget her.

[devolve]

.

I remember those shows

Ann Coulter would smoke the libs

I missed the show with Barbara Olson

[potlatch]

Lol, you were probably watching Ann flip her hair around!
Barbara was pretty in a ‘sweet’ way.

I watched every weeknight and even though I couldn’t stand him I almost hated it when his show was shut down. Guess he was the most shocking person I ever saw on TV at that time.

[devolve]

.

He always stacked 3 radical libs against 1 Republican

[potlatch]

[He always stacked 3 radical libs against 1 Republican]
Lol, you missed my post #47 to L.E.

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/2093536/posts?page=47#47

[La Enchiladita]

Oh my, I really like your tagline. I believe.

In fact, I had the opportunity this past weekend to give testimony of Jesus Christ to a muslim.

He thought the Cross is just a nice reminder of God that everyone, whatever religion, can pray to. I said, No, the Cross is for those who believe that Jesus Christ is the only Son of God. You should have seen his face.

[Matchett-PI]

I'm not involved with this effort, but, like me, you guys may be interested in this. You may want to ping any others you know who might be also.

"A "clearinghouse" has been set up for information on the Bill Maher film Religulous which will be opening October 3 nationwide. I expect to have a report on it up no later than next Monday. This may get a lot of attention, and it is so crazy that it even promotes the idea that Jesus didn't exist!"

[potlatch]

That was a very nice thing La Enchiladita!

[potlatch]

Thanks Matchett. I read through your linked site. Maher is too far gone to ever be reasoned with. The only thing that works with him is to have his shows taken away from him and his ventures to be unsuccessful.

But - there are too many like him who will always support him. Makes you wonder why people like him can't just live their evil lives and let others live theirs, but he is like the muslim terrorists - they want you to live it their way, or else!

I hope his film, “ Religulous “ bombs big time and causes a furor against him!!