I came across a video on youtube of a guy talking about how when people pray it actually comes from a gesture used to represent giving god a hand job. Does anyone know if that's true?

Here's the video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b3C3rBvlDt4&feature=related

Christine,

I'm not sure I buy the hand job connection he made. It's my understanding that the praying gesture is all about subservience.

Thanks. It does seem a little too hilarious to be true. Do you think it was the case in that other culture he was talking about though?

It seemed like he had a major grudge. I think there was some truth to what he was saying. Perhaps you can try some searches based on his ideas.

If you look at the comments you can see that he does have a massive grudge and appears pretty crazy. Maybe I'll look more into if there's any truth to what he was saying over winter break but right now I have 5 ginormous assigments and I probably shouldn't be spending too much time trying to find out if there's a connection between praying and hand jobs.

You know... I can understand why he has a grudge. His grudge does not invalidate the facts that he presents. I believe his points are valid.

The grudge, as I see it, is that he is resentful of the power and authority that has been allowed and often handed to the mindless millions of religious believers when he knows darn well that they are idiots. He is angry about it, although he certainly is powerless himself to change it all at once, yet his video is certainly a collective step toward pointing it out for the sake of bringing change, if not to putting an end to the religious madness.

He certainly is entitled to feel as he does and to have a grudge. It is earned, for sure. So many of us have put up with the bullshit for so long that to have put up with it as we have is madness in itself! He is entitled to feel grudgeful. It does not change the facts that he presented. I believe he is correct with his presentation.

That is my opinion.

My 2 cents.

Masturbation is a selfish act that results in a persons self satisfaction yes?

If I pray for someones well being is that selfish?

If you actually think it's helping the person, then it is masturbation. It lets you believe you've done something when you haven't.

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

I will admit that if you don't believe in God, I can see how the two can be alike in some ways. Both focus on making the person feel good while accomplishing nothing. But masturbation actually does harm, actually draining a person of that special energy. Once you've ejaculated you get lazy. Prayer results in calm meditative states that clear the mind which can lead to higher productivity.

For believers times of prayer are periods of meditative thought that strips a person of pride and ego. It demonstrates obedience and humility. Your mind becomes attuned to the most powerful force in the universe. Your body calms in this state. Only now are you truly ready to use your hands to their full potential because you've consulted with and given praise to the God that gave you your hands in the first place.

Until Robert G. Ingersoll knows exactly what created him and his parents, I suggest he swallow his foolish pride and thank the force that gave him his hands.

I guess prayer instead of masturbation leads you to not be lazy: you can go out and rape a woman and impregnate her. According to the Catholic church, that's far preferable to masturbation. They equate masturbation with murder. This is just another way that Christianity hijacks human sexuality to breed more believers. What's interesting is that on another thread, you denied that Christianity is working to control human reproduction, yet you are a tool of that very thing.

There may be mental health benefits to the person praying, but I have yet to see any evidence that it has anything to do with religion or gods. Meditation does the same thing. As far as benefits to the other from prayer, the 2006 Templeton Foundation prayer study proved that there is none.

You're real big on obedience and being a toady to some god. Atheists prefer to think for themselves and take responsibility for their own actions.

If you'd like to know how you were created, just lift up your shirt. You'll see your belly button. That's were your umbilical cord that connected you to a placenta in your mother's womb. For humans, it's called "being born". All humans have them. None were created by your god. It's the other way around. Humans created gods.

Ingersoll's been dead for many years now. You might read some of his writings. He had a lot of good things to say about rejecting superstition.

Well Catholics like to make up a lot of their own rules. Catholicism is a cult and their organization seems very corrupt.

Don B said **** You're real big on obedience and being a toady to some god. Atheists prefer to think for themselves and take responsibility for their own actions.****

It has to be both. First you must fear the most powerful entity in the world so it will put you in check and prevent you from committing more sin. If that fails you must then take responsibility for your own actions. It should be both. That is balanced.

Don B said ***** If you'd like to know how you were created, just lift up your shirt. You'll see your belly button. That's were your umbilical cord that connected you to a placenta in your mother's womb. For humans, it's called "being born". All humans have them. None were created by your god. It's the other way around. Humans created gods. *****

Atheists pride themselves on logic and reason. But as soon as believers claim reason as the purpose for our existence you are quick to discard it out of fear for bowing to a higher power.

I'll look into Ingersoll but that one quote you mentioned shows he may have a lot of pride.

Mr T.,

I don't suppose you realize that the vast majority of what constitutes Christianity today WAS Catholicism several hundred years ago. I agree with you that Catholicism is a corrupt cult. I would ascribe that to all of its derivatives, as well. If you disagree, perhaps you can tell me exactly when (date and place) your particular sect of Christianity took all of the lies it had inherited and arrive at the Truth (TM).

On responsibility: I really don't think someone who is a subservient toady is likely to take responsibility for his/her actions. For example, Bush claimed that God told him to attack Afghanistan and Iraq. No responsibility taken there.

If you put any two of you believers in a room, you can't agree on very much about your alleged (same) god. It's trying to reconcile two fantasies. Add more people, and the room gets dumber and dumber as you agree on less and less. There is no objective reality. There is no god. If there were, you could all give us the impression you have a clue what you're talking about. This is why there are so many denominations of Christianity, Islam, and Judaism that all are supposedly worshiping the same god: the god of Abraham. Then, all you people want to be subservient to this fantasy. It's no wonder why there's so much killing, theft, and lying in the name of your god. It's large-scale irresponsibility.

On being born: When theists try to make claims about their god, they consistently fail to demonstrate its existence, let alone any other attribute. There is no reason there. Sorry.