#false gods

[acoraxia]

may i offer you some requiem au during these trying times?

edit: decided to add a little context to this for the fun of it

The Ivory Lady is not that openly emotional with other people for her own reasons. She comes off as cold and reserved towards everyone, Erlang included, but when Wukong was taking in under Erlang's wing, she changed a little.

Wukong was loud and could get out all the emotions Hua Yuan couldn't.

However sometimes Wukong would go through several emotions and not all of them would be positive - he was always scared he made a mistake in joining Erlang and leaving behind his brotherhood. He's always scared he's not a good brother to Erlang or Hua Yuan. It's moments like that where she manages to voice her feelings and it helped ease Wukong a lot.

She still means those words.

Wonder what changed, though.

masterpost | ko-fi

[royaltrios]

i drew this for me and me alone

[blackswaneuroparedux]

Without art, we should have no notion of the sacred; without science, we should always worship false gods.

- W.H. Auden

[tomorrowusa]

Apparently the GOP House repealed those parts of the Bible related to worshiping false gods. Move over, Baal!

A reminder for voters in NY-03. The special election to replace fabulist Republican George Santos is on Tuesday the 13th. Early voting takes place now through Sunday the 11th. Electing Democrat Tom Suozzi would reduce GOP Speaker MAGA Mike Johnson's majority to a handful. Don't delay making sure that people you know in NY-03 make it to the polls. The district includes parts of eastern Queens in NYC and much of suburban Nassau County.

[officialyourdailyinspiration]

Do Not Provoke the Lord

Don’t follow other gods. Don’t serve them or worship them. Don’t make the Lord angry with the gods your own hands have made. Then he won’t harm you.’ — Jeremiah 25:6 | New International Reader's Version (NIRV) Holy Bible, New International Reader’s Version® Copyright © 1995, 1996, 1998 by Biblica. All rights reserved worldwide. Cross References: Exodus 20:3; Deuteronomy 6:14; Deuteronomy 8:19; 2 Kings 17:35; Jeremiah 35:15; Jeremiah 44:8; Hosea 1:7

[momentsbeforemass]

Called out

What do you do when something hits hard? When it strikes a nerve?

When someone calls you out on your BS? How do you respond?

Deny it? Deflect it, with some “what abouts?”

Or like the Pharisees in today’s Gospel, when Jesus strikes a nerve - get angry at the person who said it?

If we’re honest, you and I have done all of these at one time or another. Just like the Pharisees. Just like every other person in the history of ever. It’s human nature.

None of us like to be called out on our BS.

But none of those responses help. They don’t change anything.

And when we’re done reacting, we’re still stuck in our BS. Just like the Pharisees.  

I like to think of interactions like we see in today’s Gospel as “missing the point moments.” Because Jesus has a point in calling people out on their BS.   

It’s not the point I would have. If it were me, given the Pharisees constant efforts to embarrass and entrap Jesus, I would deeply enjoy publicly humiliating them. And I would do it every chance I got.

But that’s not who Jesus is (thank God). In spite of them absolutely not deserving it, Jesus loves them.

Which is why the point of what Jesus is doing is to hold up a mirror. To get them to look closely at themselves. To get them to ask themselves some questions. Questions like,

“Why am I having this reaction?” “Do I want to be someone who reacts like this?” “What is this telling me about me?”

The same questions you and I need to ask ourselves, whenever someone calls us out on our BS.

Whatever our answers might be, our answers will be pointing us to something that’s getting between us and God.

Something that we need to take to God in prayer. Something we cannot ignore.

Because anything that can make you and me react like that? It’s on the way to becoming the center of our lives. Whether we mean for it to or not.

It’s a subtle form of idolatry (not all false gods have statues) and one of the most toxic.

And if God puts it in your heart to ask whether you should talk to a therapist about it? You already know the answer.

Today’s Readings

[sleeping-w-suicide]

[your-absent-father]

I realized that Beatrix is technically doomed by the narrative. I am... feeling very normal.

[mournivaldisco]

This extract has it all:

- Petronella Vivar getting the horn for Horus

- The surprise revelation that the Warmaster has been a clam all along

[acoraxia]

[NOT SHIP]

Nephew vs Uncle; two dancing immortals

[solar-writes]

i love how horus is literally on his deathbed and the only thing he wants to do is complain about his brothers

[tomorrowusa]

If Stormy Daniels gives Trump another spanking, she should use a Trump Bible – and make him pay for it.

Trump’s Bible Stunt Isn’t Brilliant. It’s Insanely Desperate.

Remember when Trump couldn't recite a single verse from his "favorite" book?

If I had been asked, I'd go with Habakkuk 2:18.

Minor prophets FTW!

[teawithmagician]

dumb ways to die to start a heresy

[spiderpinata]

It’s the My Little Pony episode from, uh, whenever Friendship is Magic started. God. I’m old. And my comic is old. But people are starting to read it. Finally. Hope you enjoyed this outdated nonsense.

[momentsbeforemass]

The saddest Gospel

In today’s Gospel, the Pharisees are trying to set Jesus up. Again.

Jesus’ response to them? It’s a question, “Is it lawful to do good on the sabbath rather than to do evil, to save a life rather than to destroy it?”

You and I don’t have to know what the Pharisees believe to know the answer. We don’t even have to know anything about God to get this one right.

The Pharisees’ actual beliefs? “All cases of saving a life supersede Shabbat, and he who hurries in these matters is praised.”

Great! Just what we would hope for. No horrible, cruel version of God. No toxic nonsense.

We’re all on the same page here – you, me, Jesus. And even the Pharisees.

Which is what makes their response to Jesus so jaw-dropping.

Instead of owning their beliefs? Instead of admitting that they have some common ground with Jesus?

They say nothing. And start plotting to kill Him.

How does that happen? Hatred. It’s all about hatred.

For the Pharisees, their hatred for Jesus is so great that they would betray their faith before they would ever admit to having anything in common with Him.

Which means that their hatred has pushed God off the throne.

Oh sure, they still use the language of their (now former) faith to talk about their new god.

But what they’re really worshipping is one of the most toxic false gods there ever was. They’re worshipping their own hatred.

It’s one of the saddest scenes in the Gospels.

And it kicks off a series of events that will end with people who truly believe they’re God’s favorites screaming at the top of their lungs for death of God’s Son.

The Pharisees may be gone, but the worship of hatred is alive and well. And not just in the obvious places.

If you’ve ever seen “Catholic” or “Christian” social media (especially clergy) spewing hateful garbage about people they disagree with.

If someone you see in Church has a habit of treating people like things, especially people who sin differently from them.

Then you’ve seen this in action.

Something has crawled onto their throne. They’ve let it get into the place in their heart that’s meant for God alone.

Whether they mean to or not, they let hatred become their god.

Something to think about the next time you and I catch ourselves lashing out – in person or online – at someone or something we don’t agree with.

Today’s Readings

[royaltrios]