Panta Pei

"Actually I was giving you an opportunity to show that you would be appropriately sensitive if face to face with a bereaved person. "

Well, then, if that truly was the motive behind your highly encrypted message, might I point out that I work in violent crimes and have to deal with bereaved family members of murder victims on a weekly basis.

Again, I calls 'em as I sees 'em.

ManM

Don and Arrowman,
It is noble because it is an expression of love. Do you have a problem with these people expressing their love through prayer? Would you rather them go buy flowers or ice cream?

Panta Pei

A petition of support through real physical embrace and soft words spoken directly to the bereaved is noble.

Petitioning a non-existent fairy king removes the true nobility of human contact, love and compassion.

Again, IMHO.

HelenM

My 'highly encrypted message'? Hayden seemed to understand it...quoting her (?) "I know what you mean". I guess she (?) must be an excellent code breaker...

If you deal with bereaved family members regularly then I trust you don't debate the wrongness of their belief system with them in that context.

love
Helen

[ June 25, 2002: Message edited by: HelenSL ]</p>

The Other Michael

Hi Hayden,

I guess it is safe to presume that your aunt wasn't a strict Baptist?

cheers,
Michael

[ June 25, 2002: Message edited by: The Other Michael ]</p>

MadMordigan

My question is-What's the rational way to respond to this?

The rational response would be to dispassionately analyse the cause and nature of the accident, looking for ways to prevent similar occurances in the future.

What would you do in their shoes? (I'm not suggesting that you would pray.)

I'd probably make jokes. At my uncle's wake (3 weeks ago), we sat around talkng about all the ways cancer was better than women, how funny he sounded in his last weeks as he squeeked while he talked, and about all ways the crazy son of a bitch should have been killed years ago. It was a hell of a lot more cathatic and human than sitting around going "ohm, oh great sky pixie, we are unworthy blah blah blah blah blah"

HelenM

Perhaps they do both, though?

love
Helen

Secular Pinoy

The hands that help are better far than the lips that pray. - Robert Ingersoll

Opera Nut

My BF Ray (also an atheist) made a WTC commemorative plate, inspired by Photoshop Phridays at somethingawful.com.

In the center is the WTC burning, and around it a
quote from The Mysterious Stranger by Mark Twain: "Not a sparrow falls but God sees it. But it falls just the same."

To see this lovely creation, go to Monday's Bartcop Entertainment page at <a href="http://www.suprmchaos.com/home.index.html" target="_blank">http://www.suprmchaos.com/home.index.html</a>

This was inspired by Senator Clinton asking the Big Cheese at General Mills to put NYC firemen and policemen on the Wheaties box to show real American heroes, and the cheese said it was "not appropriate".

We're sick of Xtians saying things like "God allowed the WTC tragedy to happen". Blaming action or inaction on God is really stupid. Humans inflict this hell on each other in the name of their God. Humans can work to make life better on earth or make it a hell on earth.
I used to be a Xtian and praying didn't do a bit of good, and the people in the church didn't do anything to help me either, though they thought it was their privilege to criticize me.
Saying that something tragic is "God's Will" is a cop-out.

<img src="graemlins/banghead.gif" border="0" alt="[Bang Head]" />

Hayden

&lt;checks profile photo&gt;

He, actually.

HR