Why is Demonology considered Religious?

And why is it most tied to Catholicism?

Demons aren’t inherently tied into abrahamic religion and faiths, so why is it considered religion studies?

I genuinely don’t understand why things that are generally encompassed have to be tied into specific religions. (Ie christianity)

Unique Kupatan Tradition in East Java, Indonesia: A Blend of Silaturahim and Religious Significance

SANTRI EN – In the village of Durenan, Durenan District, Trenggalek Regency, East Java, Indonesia, the Kupatan tradition has been passed down for over two centuries. This tradition is not just a celebration, but an opportunity for meaningful silaturahim (family gathering) after observing a 6-day fast in the month of Syawal. Unlike Kupatan traditions in other regions that are filled with…

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The Healing Power of Ficus Religiosa: A Dive into Ayurvedic Wisdom

Ficus Religiosa, commonly known as the sacred fig, is a revered tree native to the Indian subcontinent, playing a pivotal role in Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism. Also referred to as the bodhi tree, peepul tree, or ashvattha tree, this species goes beyond its religious significance, offering a plethora of health benefits according to Ayurvedic texts. Religious Significance Hindu and Jain…

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Who was the priest of On

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The Ironic Odyssey: Why Israel is More Than Just a Plot of Land for Jews

Ah, irony—the universe’s favorite literary device, and the Jews have been its unwilling characters for centuries. From being the “Chosen People” who often found themselves on the wrong side of history, to yearning for a homeland while others laid claim to it, the Jewish narrative is rife with ironies. But let’s cut to the chase: why is Israel so darn important for Jews? ## The Historical…

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It's wild how many people took Kristen's line of questioning as her saying Tracker isn't taking her religion seriously instead of what I heard her asking which was:

How many of these people would be here if it wasn't religious Coachella?

श्रावण मास में हम क्या करें?

श्रावण मास में हम क्या करें?

हमारी भारतीय संस्कृति में प्रत्येक व्रत त्योहार का केवल धार्मिक महत्व ही नहीं है वरन् पौराणिक तथा आध्यात्मिक महत्व भी है। स्वास्थ्य की दृष्टि से भी लगभग सभी मास तथा त्योहार महत्वपूर्ण है। ऋतु परिवर्तन के कारण हमारे स्वास्थ्य पर भी प्रतिकूल प्रभाव पड़ता है, ऐसे में खान पान में परिवर्तन तथा दैनिक जीवन में भी परिवर्तन आवश्यक प्रतीत होता है। ग्रीष्म ऋतु, वर्षा ऋतु तथा शीत ऋतु के खान पान में अत्यधिक…

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I was raised in the People of Destiny cult (later renamed, and more well-known as, Sovereign Grace Ministries, now Sovereign Grace Churches).

The valorization of martyrdom and The End Times was so ubiquitous it was ambient noise. We stood in the church lobby theorizing about who the antichrist would be, we argued about whether Jesus would rapture us all before, after, or during the Tribulation Period where Satan would be given free reign over the earth. There was a strong Christian Zionist fixation on Israel as the final battleground and capital of the coming Messianic Age. But the one thing we were all certain of was is that we were in the End Times, that we were not of this world and couldn’t get too attached to our lives here.

We were raised to believe our sin nature made us undeserving of life, that we deserved death and eternal conscious torture.

My parents read us the Jesus Freaks books (a series by Christian Rap group DC Talk about martyrs). I spent “devotional time” reading Fox’s Book of Martyrs. We had guest speakers from Voice of the Martyrs, their pamphlets were often stocked in our church’s information center. We grew up with our dad listening to right wing talk radio and making us listen to songs about how the Godless atheists were outlawing Christianity in America, that we could all become martyrs soon.

The group’s theology was damaging & traumatic in a lot of other ways that contributed to the suicidality I have continued to struggle with for the rest of my life. For a long time I did not believe I would live past 20. There are times when the idea of giving my death meaning by using public suicide to make a political statement has appealed to me.

So now, seeing so many social media posts glorifying the suicide of a US Airman this week, I have been furious. Reading his social media posts, I recognize so much about the way I was raised in his all-or-nothing, black-or-white mindset, the valorization of death-seeking & martyrdom, and the apocalyptic fire-and-brimstone imagery of self-immolation. The moment I saw people I followed celebrating his self-immolation, I said to myself “this feels like a cult”

So when I learned he was raised in a cult too, nothing could have made more sense to me. His political orientation may have changed, but his mindset did not—it was no less extreme or cult-like.

I’ve talked about so many of the reasons this response from the broader left scares me, including how it’s laundering that airman’s antisemitic beliefs, but I cannot think of anything that would hit me in a more personal place than this specific response to this specific situation has.

When I see the images, I think: that could have been me. That scares me, and what scares me more is that so many prominent people are overwhelmingly sending the message to people like me that there is nothing else we can do that would have a more meaningful impact than killing ourselves for the cause.

I do not believe that. I will not even entertain it. And having to see his death over and over and over again, to argue against people who are treating this like an intellectual/moral exercise or a valid debate we all have to consider has been immensely triggering and fills me with a rage I rarely feel. It’s unconscionable that we are even putting self-harm on the table, and that pushing back against that is somehow controversial.

There is hope. Our lives do have meaning. There are far more effective means of fighting injustice. And the world is a better place for having you in it. Don’t fall into believing this is a way to give life purpose.

a huge point in orv is the relationship between parents and their children, creators and their creations, writers and their stories, and i think we need to talk about how just as a child's parents cannot dictate who they become, just as god cannot rob humans of free will, just as a writer cannot control how their story is experienced, yoo joonghyuk is no less real just because he was created

forgive me if this has been answered previously, but what were the circumstances around vasco finding out about machete's death? i'm heartbroken but fascinated to think about what his immediate reaction could have been

They don't live together, Vasco was at home in Florence at the time. Either someone who knew of their relationship managed to alert him of the murder, or he showed up in Rome to visit him just like countless of times before, and one time he was just gone. He would've missed the funeral for sure, and since Machete doesn't have family, his belongings would most likely end up escheated and subsequently liguidated by the church. He certainly wasn't remembed fondly, for the most part it was like he had never been there in the first place.

I don't want to get into the details but of course he was devastated. The threat of death was a constant presence in Machete's later years, he survived at least a couple of assassination attempts and his health kept getting worse. I think he tried to keep Vasco in the dark about how bad things were exactly, but Vasco didn't miss how his fear of death ramped up in intensity towards the end. So it wasn't a complete surprise when he found out they had finally gotten him. For a long time he had hard time not blaming himself for it, thinking whether he could've done something to prevent the outcome, whether his presence would've changed how things played out. Over the years he learned to live with the sudden and violent end of their relationship, but the first few years were extremely rough, the whole ordeal broke him in unprecedented ways and he never fully recovered to his previous state.

I've been reading Exodus lately and I've just gotten to the portions where God gives the first commands to the people via Moses (twice), and then goes on to give detailed instructions about the tabernacle and how it should be built, and I'm just... we think art is unimportant?? we think things only mean as much as their functionality?? we so easily fall into the trap of believing that beauty means nothing, that it's cheap and only worth whatever mindless distraction it brings, that it's barely more than a cheap sensual thrill, that buildings should just be practical and plain and cheap, that everything should be functional but ultimately disposable, that paintings and dresses and mugs and curtains and carpets are just pretty but have no real value, that beauty is fleeting and vain and therefore shouldn't be thought about too much, if even looked for at all... we fall into these traps so easily, and we forget that there are chapters upon chapters of painstakingly detailed plans to build one portable worship tent, and those plans have been handed down through thousands of years of human history, because beauty and art and skill in craft is important

my favourite thing to do when designing outfits for characters is for sure thinking like. “can i imagine this guy taking the time to put this on in the morning.” cuz this DOESNT mean that characters won’t ever have fancy and fun outfits, but i feel like it does mean that if they DO then that’s also gotta say something abt the character

conservatives are the worst!