Fundamentalism

[Golden Meadows]

Today I changed my Avatar to the Goddess Maa't of Egypt who personifies truth and wisdom. Today is her feast day. When I was a xtian Egypt and the pharoah were symbols for hell and the devil. I despise how fundamentalist xtianity poisoned my whole outlook on other people, religions and cultures, how it demonised everything outside itself. Fundamentalism is in reality a religion of its own. You can be xtian, muslim or Jew but in reality be better described as a fundamentalist. If it was not for accidents of birth a fundamentalist could be Jew, xtian or muslim without any interior conflict. After all the layers of hypocrisy are removed fundamentlism is seen as a religion of hate, anti-social, anti-human being, smug, superior, hypocritical, stupid, proud and a blight on the whole of mankind.

 

The ancient Egyptians who were demonised by jews/xtians had their own code of ethics which I have copied below. They are far superior to the biblical commandments. The fundamentalists who live their life strictly by the book, rather than by the spirit, would be better people, and the world a better place if they observed the Egyptian code rather than their own, but that is something they could never even begin to consider.

 

THE 42 COMMANDMENTS OF ANCIENT EGYPT

 

I.

Thou shalt not kill, nor bid anyone kill.

II.

Thou shalt not commit adultery or rape.

III.

Thou shalt not avenge thyself nor burn with rage.

IV.

Thou shalt not cause terror.

V.

Thou shalt not assault anyone nor cause anyone pain.

VI.

Thou shalt not cause misery.

VII.

Thou shalt not do any harm to man or to animals.

VIII.

Thou shalt not cause the shedding of tears.

IX.

Thou shalt not wrong the people nor bear them any evil intent.

X.

Thou shalt not steal nor take that which does not belong to you.

XI.

Thou shalt not take more than thy fair share of food.

XII.

Thou shalt not damage the crops, the fields, or the trees.

XIII.

Thou shalt not deprive anyone of what is rightfully theirs.

XIV.

Thou shalt not bear false witness, nor support false allegations.

XV.

Thou shalt not lie, nor speak falsely to the hurt of another.

XVI.

Thou shalt not use fiery words nor stir up any strife.

XVII.

Thou shalt not speak or act deceitfully to the hurt of another.

XVIII.

Thou shalt not speak scornfully against others.

XIX.

Thou shalt not eavesdrop.

XX.

Thou shalt not ignore the truth or words of righteousness.

XXI.

Thou shalt not judge anyone hastily or harshly.

XXII.

Thou shalt not disrespect sacred places.

XXIII.

Thou shalt cause no wrong to be done to any workers or prisoners.

XXIV.

Thou shalt not be angry without good reason.

XXV.

Thou shalt not hinder the flow of running water.

XXVI.

Thou shalt not waste the running water.

XXVII.

Thou shalt not pollute the water or the land.

XXVIII.

Thou shalt not take God's name in vain.

XXIX.

Thou shalt not despise nor anger God.

XXX.

Thou shalt not steal from God.

XXXI.

Thou shalt not give excessive offerings nor less than what is due.

XXXII.

Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's goods.

XXXIII.

Thou shalt not steal from nor disrespect the dead.

XXXIV.

Thou shalt remember and observe the appointed holy days.

XXXV.

Thou shalt not hold back the offerings due God.

XXXVI.

Thou shalt not interfere with sacred rites.

XXXVII.

Thou shalt not slaughter with evil intent any sacred animals.

XXXVIII.

Thou shalt not act with guile or insolence.

XXXIX.

Thou shalt not be unduly proud nor act with arrogance.

XXXX.

Thou shalt not magnify your condition beyond what is appropriate.

XXXXI.

Thou shalt do no less than your daily obligations require.

XXXXII.

Thou shalt obey the law and commit no treason.

[BTDT]

Today I changed my Avatar to the Goddess Maa't of Egypt who personifies truth and wisdom. Today is her feast day. When I was a xtian Egypt and the pharoah were symbols for hell and the devil. I despise how fundamentalist xtianity poisoned my whole outlook on other people, religions and cultures, how it demonised everything outside itself. Fundamentalism is in reality a religion of its own. You can be xtian, muslim or Jew but in reality be better described as a fundamentalist. If it was not for accidents of birth a fundamentalist could be Jew, xtian or muslim without any interior conflict. After all the layers of hypocrisy are removed fundamentlism is seen as a religion of hate, anti-social, anti-human being, smug, superior, hypocritical, stupid, proud and a blight on the whole of mankind.

 

The ancient Egyptians who were demonised by jews/xtians had their own code of ethics which I have copied below. They are far superior to the biblical commandments. The fundamentalists who live their life strictly by the book, rather than by the spirit, would be better people, and the world a better place if they observed the Egyptian code rather than their own, but that is something they could never even begin to consider.

 

THE 42 COMMANDMENTS OF ANCIENT EGYPT

 

I.

Thou shalt not kill, nor bid anyone kill.

II.

Thou shalt not commit adultery or rape.

III.

Thou shalt not avenge thyself nor burn with rage.

IV.

Thou shalt not cause terror.

V.

Thou shalt not assault anyone nor cause anyone pain.

VI.

Thou shalt not cause misery.

VII.

Thou shalt not do any harm to man or to animals.

VIII.

Thou shalt not cause the shedding of tears.

IX.

Thou shalt not wrong the people nor bear them any evil intent.

X.

Thou shalt not steal nor take that which does not belong to you.

XI.

Thou shalt not take more than thy fair share of food.

XII.

Thou shalt not damage the crops, the fields, or the trees.

XIII.

Thou shalt not deprive anyone of what is rightfully theirs.

XIV.

Thou shalt not bear false witness, nor support false allegations.

XV.

Thou shalt not lie, nor speak falsely to the hurt of another.

XVI.

Thou shalt not use fiery words nor stir up any strife.

XVII.

Thou shalt not speak or act deceitfully to the hurt of another.

XVIII.

Thou shalt not speak scornfully against others.

XIX.

Thou shalt not eavesdrop.

XX.

Thou shalt not ignore the truth or words of righteousness.

XXI.

Thou shalt not judge anyone hastily or harshly.

XXII.

Thou shalt not disrespect sacred places.

XXIII.

Thou shalt cause no wrong to be done to any workers or prisoners.

XXIV.

Thou shalt not be angry without good reason.

XXV.

Thou shalt not hinder the flow of running water.

XXVI.

Thou shalt not waste the running water.

XXVII.

Thou shalt not pollute the water or the land.

XXVIII.

Thou shalt not take God's name in vain.

XXIX.

Thou shalt not despise nor anger God.

XXX.

Thou shalt not steal from God.

XXXI.

Thou shalt not give excessive offerings nor less than what is due.

XXXII.

Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's goods.

XXXIII.

Thou shalt not steal from nor disrespect the dead.

XXXIV.

Thou shalt remember and observe the appointed holy days.

XXXV.

Thou shalt not hold back the offerings due God.

XXXVI.

Thou shalt not interfere with sacred rites.

XXXVII.

Thou shalt not slaughter with evil intent any sacred animals.

XXXVIII.

Thou shalt not act with guile or insolence.

XXXIX.

Thou shalt not be unduly proud nor act with arrogance.

XXXX.

Thou shalt not magnify your condition beyond what is appropriate.

XXXXI.

Thou shalt do no less than your daily obligations require.

XXXXII.

Thou shalt obey the law and commit no treason.

 

I love these, I'd like to turn them into art and frame them. Do you have a valid source for them, and a date on them?

[pandora]

Thanks for posting that. I totally understand your sentiments on Christianity... I feel it warped my view of other people for a long time too.

 

So... why can't we post these instead of the Big Ten? They even seem more moral.

[Golden Meadows]

"I love these, I'd like to turn them into art and frame them. Do you have a valid source for them, and a date on them?"

 

Theres lots on the internet but Wikepedia is a good start under the entry for the Goddess Maa't

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ma%C3%A0t

 

The Egyptian format for them usually begins: "I have not ...." but these are commonly translated as "Thou shalt not...." for the sake of xtian readers who must be very surprised on seeing that the ethical code Moses took out from Egypt was only a subset of a much finer original that long predates the OT.

 

For art work based on them:

http://www.personal.psu.edu/users/w/x/wxk116/maat/maat.gif

[Ouroboros]

Very cool. Thanks GM.

 

I think we should demand the 42 commandments to be put up to display in the court rooms instead!

[Young Mother Atheist]

Wow. That sheds some light on the 10 commandments...since they supposedly had just come from EGYPT! How CONVENIENT! Sheesh. Of course that whole Exodus thing is also rumored to be a crock so who knows.

[BTDT]

The Egyptian format for them usually begins: "I have not ...." but these are commonly translated as "Thou shalt not...." for the sake of xtian readers who must be very surprised on seeing that the ethical code Moses took out from Egypt was only a subset of a much finer original that long predates the OT.

 

Thanks! Precisely for Christian visitors to my home, I'd like to have a little decorative something that will catch their eye, so I can make your point about Moses being a bad Egyptian student and only remembering a piddly few of them That's why I also want to find the actual age of these to make sure I've got my facts straight about these existing well before the Moses hero was ever invented. Thanks for the links.

[Golden Meadows]

The Egyptian format for them usually begins: "I have not ...." but these are commonly translated as "Thou shalt not...." for the sake of xtian readers who must be very surprised on seeing that the ethical code Moses took out from Egypt was only a subset of a much finer original that long predates the OT.

 

Thanks! Precisely for Christian visitors to my home, I'd like to have a little decorative something that will catch their eye, so I can make your point about Moses being a bad Egyptian student and only remembering a piddly few of them That's why I also want to find the actual age of these to make sure I've got my facts straight about these existing well before the Moses hero was ever invented. Thanks for the links.

 

The "Negative Confession" as the 42 commandments are commonly known, form part of what is called the Egyptian "Book of the Dead", they are amongst the most ancient texts we have.

 

Here is an extract from an on-line book

 

"The ethical development indicated in the ‘‘Negative Confession" does not seem particularly remarkable from the standpoint of modern Christian civilization; but it is necessary to recall, as one reads it, that this antedates by hundreds of years the time of Moses and the earliest possible date given for the Ten Commandments."

http://www.religion-online.org/showchapter...e=704&C=944.

 

Notice the author has to bring in the ethics of modern developed xtianity in order to compare with what Egypt had several thousand years ago.

 

Edit: Added the following .

 

Also Notice XXIII. "Thou shalt cause no wrong to be done to any workers or prisoners" but Moses would have us believe that the Egyptians were cruel to the Hebrews. To break such a commandment willfully is not something the Egyptians would have done casually because they believed in a form of judgment after death - not the hellish xtian kind - and they actually had the texts of the negative confession buried with them to show how seriously they took these ethics and applied them in their daily life.

 

 

 

[Beowulf]

Hmm, 42 Commandments. Douglas Adams must have been onto something.

[Lycorth]

Excellent post, GoldenMeadows - and good points, moreover.

 

Any belief can go fundy. Whether you have a religion or no religion at all, anything a person holds can be taken to intolerant extremes. I've encountered Atheists who act just as smug and bizarre as your average Xian Babble™-thumper. What is common in all instances is that the believer places his or her beliefs before one's own ethics, ie, they care more for their beliefs than they do for any basic sense of decency or mutual respect.

 

And a fine choice for a God, GM. Following the example of a deity of wisdom will perhaps lead you to greater wisdom, yourself

 

Hail Ma'at!

[Karl-777]

Golden Meadows:

 

Thank you for your thoughtful opening post.

 

….. They are far superior to the biblical commandments. The fundamentalists who live their life strictly by the book, rather than by the spirit, would be better people, and the world a better place if they observed the Egyptian code rather than their own, but that is something they could never even begin to consider….

Well said. The fundie's "faith" is in his "only true" dogmatic concoctions. The fundie is generally completely clueless as with regard to Esoteric Gnosis, and is rather content in the infighting regarding "doctrine" and frequently associated absurdities. The myriad "Abraham"ic sects demonstrate this. Of course, true Spirituality Transcends religion. As has been said, there are fundies in many areas.

 

…. Of course that whole Exodus thing is also rumored to be a crock so who knows.

It is…..all of it.

 

PAGAN ROOTS

 

(Norman F. Cantor - 'The Sacred Chain' - page 51)

The first millennium of Jewish history as presented in the Bible has no empirical foundation whatsoever.

(M. Grant- 'The History of Ancient Israel' - page 32)

Ur was Sumerian and had no connection with the people known as the Chaldaeans until a thousand years after any possible date to which Abraham can be attributed.

(Harold Leidner - 'The Fabrication of the Christ Myth')

The gospel story is an artificial, non-historical work. It has been fabricated from source materials that can be identified and traced to their incorporation in the gospels. There is not a particle of hard evidence that "Jesus of Nazareth" ever existed.

(Magnus Magnusson - The Archaeology of the Bible Lands - BC, page 76)

"The Bible writers projected backwards into time the kind of political rivalry that was happening in their own day (6th c BC) in order to explain that rivalry and perhaps justify the Israelite position over current border disputes."

 

Karen Armstrong writes in ~ 'A History of Jerusalem' - page 23

"Israel emerged peacefully and gradually from within Canaanite society."

 

El was a chief Deity in the Pagan Canaanite Pantheon. The name was in use from at least 2,300BCE. (about 1,700 years before the OT was fabricated in the 6th century BCE) For more on that, you can go here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/El_%28god%29 The Hebrews retained the Pagan Deity name EL in their bible with EL Elyon, EL Shaddai, ImManuEL, etc., but the patriarchal culture removed Asherah. Additionally, the term "LOGOS" (John 1:1 Greek) was already in use in Pagan Greece c.500 BCE! For more on that see this: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heraclitus

 

A good book on the Pagan origins of Xtianity is 'Who is This King of Glory?' by the late Dr. Alvin Boyd Kuhn viewable and readable on line at: http://members.tripod.com/~pc93/kuhn.htm ....Xtianity is a mutilated and defective literalization of Pagan Esotericism, (mixed in with a little Eastern Thought) and nothing more.

 

The following link will illustrate similarities between the sayings of "Jesus" and Siddhartha Guatama (about 500 years EARLIER):

http://www.johnworldpeace.com/budjesus.html

 

See this link also with an interesting perspective and references to "Jesus" in regards to the much more ancient Hinduism:

http://www.atributetohinduism.com/Hinduisms_influence.htm

 

Shaitan was a Sumerian Deity, and Lucifer was a character from Roman Mythology, where he was the Son of the Dawn Goddess, Aurora. Both were absorbed and then demonized by the "Abraham"ic religionists, even though their myths had been around much longer.

 

FUNDAMENTALISM - A CANCER ON THE FACE OF HUMANITY

 

Here are a couple of goods links which monitor lunatic fundie activity:

 

http://www.theocracywatch.org/

 

http://www.jihadwatch.org/

 

The reader will do well to stay informed with regard to these issues, which are certainly insane, but never the less very real. The rabid, insane fundie will not be satisfied until everything and everyone is under his control, so he can apply his "only true" religionism and associated "commandments", using fear and control-mongering tactics.

 

Of course, horseshit like this doesn't help:

And Moses spake to the children of Israel, that they should bring forth him that had cursed out of the camp, and stone him with stones. And the children of Israel did as the LORD commanded Moses.

 

Some may think that the aforementioned barbaric twaddle from the crock of crap said to be the "inerrant" "divinely inspired" pentateuch, was just another piece of awful ancient literature, and no harm done. Think again.

 

I thought about not posting the following link, as abominable as it is, but it serves as a clarion call about the horrific aspects of fundamentalist "Abraham"ic religionism and the fanatical animals who adhere to its literalist interpretations. This is not a Hollywood movie, ala "Passion of the Christ". It really happens. This is about people being stoned to death in Iran, and is one of the most revolting things I have ever seen. The footage was taken and somehow smuggled out of the country. I almost vomited after I viewed the footage, so I am putting this up first:

WARNING: The video at this link contains barbaric violence and death.

You WILL be nauseated if you watch it, but more than that….you will be very angry. The link is:

http://www.iran-e-azad.org/stoning/index.html

 

We must do everything we can do to stop "Abraham"ic fundamentalist religionism and associated ignorance and dementia. If it isn't checked, it will just keep destroying, just like it has always done…..

 

K

[pseudovillain]

Hmm, 42 Commandments. Douglas Adams must have been onto something.

Exactly what I was thinking.

[Lycorth]

We must do everything we can do to stop "Abraham"ic fundamentalist religionism and associated ignorance and dementia. If it isn't checked, it will just keep destroying, just like it has always done…..

 

I'm with you on that; I didn't even click that link, knowing precisely what I'd see. Just the fact of its existence is enough for me to get riled up. And these scum call themselves "humans"...

 

Everywhere Abrahamic religion goes and is seriously taken, oppression and hardship always seem to follow. Cultural stagnation, religious discrimination, persecution, religious in-fighting - these and more are the gifts of the Abrahamic cults to the world. And the worst crime today is that so many people still believe in the Abrahamic cults, even after thousands of years of evidence against them.

 

Though of course they do not believe as they once did, and the cults are in a state of decline. Yet they still exist, so they are still something to contend with. They'll kill themselves eventually, but helping them along is the best thing we can do.

[Guest Mr. XC]

"I love these, I'd like to turn them into art and frame them. Do you have a valid source for them, and a date on them?"

 

Theres lots on the internet but Wikepedia is a good start under the entry for the Goddess Maa't

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ma%C3%A0t

 

The Egyptian format for them usually begins: "I have not ...." but these are commonly translated as "Thou shalt not...." for the sake of xtian readers who must be very surprised on seeing that the ethical code Moses took out from Egypt was only a subset of a much finer original that long predates the OT.

 

For art work based on them:

http://www.personal.psu.edu/users/w/x/wxk116/maat/maat.gif

Here is the text from Wikipedia with just the references to the 10 commandments for convenience:

1. I have not killed, nor bid anyone kill.

2. I have not committed adultery or rape.

10. I have not stolen nor taken that which does not belong to me.

14. I have not beared false witness, nor supported false allegations.

15. I have not lied, nor spoken falsely to the hurt of another.

28. I have not taken God's name in vain.

32. I have not coveted thy neighbor's goods.

34. I have remembered and observed the appointed holy days.

[Golden Meadows]

Any belief can go fundy. Whether you have a religion or no religion at all, anything a person holds can be taken to intolerant extremes. I've encountered Atheists who act just as smug and bizarre as your average Xian Babble™-thumper.

Yes, in a way they are "spiritual" cousins even though the atheist thinks they are radically different.

 

And a fine choice for a God, GM. Following the example of a deity of wisdom will perhaps lead you to greater wisdom, yourself

Thanks, even when I was a xtian I always had a sense of the Goddess love but I had to suppress that that because of heresy and all that stuff. Now as a pagan I can love her in her many forms without fear.

 

Hail Ma'at!

Hail the Goddess!

 

 

 

Karl: Well said. The fundie's "faith" is in his "only true" dogmatic concoctions. The fundie is generally completely clueless as with regard to Esoteric Gnosis, and is rather content in the infighting regarding "doctrine" and frequently associated absurdities. The myriad "Abraham"ic sects demonstrate this. Of course, true Spirituality Transcends religion. As has been said, there are fundies in many areas.

Thanks Karl for all the information and links. I think the religions of the book tend to worship the book rather than God. Its also a great way of legitimising hatred through divine sanction. It makes me sick to see what people are prepared to do in the name of God. I agree that we must not let fundyism roll over all our cultures, not to let the fanatics set the agenda, to be ready to oppose it in all its forms -xtian, muslim, Jewish.

[euphgeek]

I thought about not posting the following link, as abominable as it is, but it serves as a clarion call about the horrific aspects of fundamentalist "Abraham"ic religionism and the fanatical animals who adhere to its literalist interpretations. This is not a Hollywood movie, ala "Passion of the Christ". It really happens. This is about people being stoned to death in Iran, and is one of the most revolting things I have ever seen. The footage was taken and somehow smuggled out of the country. I almost vomited after I viewed the footage, so I am putting this up first:

WARNING: The video at this link contains barbaric violence and death.

You WILL be nauseated if you watch it, but more than that….you will be very angry. The link is:

http://www.iran-e-azad.org/stoning/index.html

 

We must do everything we can do to stop "Abraham"ic fundamentalist religionism and associated ignorance and dementia. If it isn't checked, it will just keep destroying, just like it has always done…..

 

K

Wow. That video was just awful. I think it's probably a good thing that it was hard to make some things out, even in the high bandwidth video.