Christians: This Friday we celebrate!
Non Christians: Cool! What’s the occasion?
Christians: Our god died. Tortured to death quite horribly, in fact.
Non Christians: You celebrate that?
Christians: There are sound theological reasons.
Non Christians: Bit weird, but ok.
Christians: We call it “Good Friday”
Non Christians: …
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A.L. Blacklyn
in reply to Sarah Brown • • •I had to explain the meaning of the holiday to a child once. We needed recoup time afterward.
The experience changed how both of look at the Bible.
Sarah Brown
in reply to A.L. Blacklyn • • •@A.L. Blacklyn I mean, crucifixion is literal nightmare fuel. A truly unspeakably horrible way to die.
And Christian churches just strew its imagery around like so much torture porn.
Elena ``of Valhalla''
in reply to Sarah Brown • •@Sarah Brown as somebody who grew up christian in a non-English speaking country, the name “Good Friday” also perplexes me.
We call it (a literal translation of) Holy Friday, and it's definitely set aside with specific rites and observances, but not celebrated as a joyous occasion, it's the exact opposite.
And I can get that the sound theological reasons may also apply to the name, but really, the good bit of the whole cleansing humanity from the original sin and stuff is the result, not the process, isn't it?
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David Mitchell
in reply to Elena ``of Valhalla'' • • •@valhalla
It’s the bizarre obsession with the suffering that puzzles me, as if this suffering was uniquely awful and therefore redemptive *because* it went beyond what anyone else has experienced… but it didn’t. Crucifixions were common - they had two other guys to hang beside him. Rome once lined a road with people on crosses. This kind of horror plays out every day, now too, an example of what people do to other people at their worst.
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David Mitchell
in reply to David Mitchell • • •@valhalla
I take the day to remind myself what the alternative to a kind and compassionate society is; that once we accept violence and fear and dehumanization as tools the end result is crucifixions, and immolations, and hangings, and beheadings, and gas chambers, and machetes, and bombs, and disemboweling, and
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Sarah Brown
in reply to David Mitchell • • •@David Mitchell :CApride: @Elena ``of Valhalla'' There are worse ways to die, it’s true. There aren’t many worse ways to die though.
And he wasn’t up there long enough.
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Diego Roversi
in reply to Sarah Brown • •In fact the word good stood for "holy", not the modern meaning:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Good_Fri…
And of course christians don't celebrate good friday, but commemorate it. It's like say that jews people celebrate Holocaust_memorial_days.
Sarah Brown
in reply to Diego Roversi • • •