Wacky religious news: Islamic sex cult and baptism gone wrong

My wife, Laurel, a proud atheist, enjoys finding stories about the bizarre side of religions (assuming there is anything other than bizarre in religiosity).

Recently she came across the tale of Adnan Oktar, a Turkish sex cult leader. 

In the end, it was not the British deep state, Darwinists, Jews, Freemasons or any of the sinister cabals that Adnan Oktar long railed against that defeated him. It was the Turkish judiciary.

On Monday, the notorious 64-year-old preacher, often referred to in salacious headlines as a "sex cult leader," was sentenced to 1,075 years in jail for crimes including sexual assault, sexual abuse of minors, fraud, and attempted political and military espionage.

It marks the end of a long and bizarre career for the preacher, television host, author and filmmaker.

Beginning his career in the 80s as a firebrand orator, railing against Jews, Freemasons and Charles Darwin, he later became (in)famous for his shows on Turkish TV, in which he would discuss Islamic principles while scantily clad women with bleached blonde hair danced around him to popular music. These women Oktar referred to as his "kittens".

Oktar did have some very attractive devotees.

Naturally I couldn't resist looking on You Tube for videos of the "kittens" dancing around Oktar on Turkish TV. Found one!

Another religious story I read about in our local newspaper was much less salacious, but equally weird in its own way. Who knew that a Catholic baptism would be invalid if the priest got one word wrong?

Damn, now I'm worried that my own ticket to heaven (admittedly, a heaven I don't believe in) is in danger, since I was baptized as a baby Catholic. 

When is a baptism not a baptism?

When the cleric presiding at the ceremony alters the ritual language in such a fundamental way that it undercuts its meaning, according to the Vatican.

And even the altering of a single, crucial pronoun can render a baptism invalid, it says.

A Roman Catholic priest, the Rev. Andres Arango, resigned Feb. 1 as pastor of his parish in Phoenix, after acknowledging he had been using the incorrect baptismal formula during more than two decades of priestly ministry in Arizona, California and Brazil.

Arango used the formula, “We baptize you in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit," instead of the prescribed singular pronoun: “I baptize you ...”

Theologically, that makes all the difference, the Vatican ruled in 2020, because it's not the “we” of the congregation doing the baptizing, but rather the “I” of Jesus Christ, working through the priest.

Now the Diocese of Phoenix is putting out a call to anyone who underwent the ritual under Arango to receive “valid” baptisms — and potentially other rites of initiation. The diocese estimates that thousands were affected.

Baptism is the basic rite of initiation into the Christian faith. In Catholic theology, baptism is considered a sacrament — a visible rite conveying spiritual grace — and is “necessary for salvation,” according to the Catechism of the Catholic Church. “The church does not know of any means other than baptism that assures entry into eternal beatitude” — that is, heaven.

For a sacrament to be valid, it has to be presided over correctly, the church teaches.

“Baptism for us is for salvation, so it’s a big deal. We need to make sure to make it right,” said Jay Conzemius, moderator of the Diocese of Pittsburgh’s tribunal and past president of the Canon Law Society of America.

Comments

[TENDZIN]

In a related story, many Americans are continuing to wear masks without any clear idea of why they're doing so. Experts have sourced the origin of this strange social phenomenon to the mask wearer's leader, who also wears a mask even while outside, yet takes it off when he speaks to reporters. Some have theorized that the mask-wearing movement bears a distinct likeness to a religion or cult: a mindless deference to authority in the hopes of salvation from an invisible virus. Some scientists have pointed out that masks have no real effect on stopping virus transmission, and that 2 years of forced mask-wearing has shown no impact on virus transmission. Fortunately, the spokespersons of such evil science misinformation are under attack by aging rock stars, ever-reliable and sage watchdogs of free speech, except when free speech is bad and must be crushed.

[TENDZIN]

Wally Wokenburg: "Religion is illogical, it's madness, it's harmful to society, it encourages social disfunction, even war! Religion encourages people to do terrible things to other people."

Me: "Yes, I can agree with that, though some religions are worse than others. For example, studies https://www.thereligionofpeace.com/
have shown that Islam has encouraged violence for many hundreds of years, and even today there's a clear link between Islamic belief and violence."

Wall Wokenburg: 'YOU RACIST!!! You can't say that about the Muslim people!!"

Me: "Huh"?

[77]

It s all about money
Much more honest are
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77

[umami]

Wokenburg??? Seriously? Why are Jews always to blame?

[Appreciative Reader]

What the actual fuck. That video ...one is left speechless. The term ROFLMAO comes to mind, not to mention LOL. Except I wasn't laughing, what I was is aghast. Not so much as that crazy Bond/Expendables cartoon villain, as at the thought of the absolutely pathetic people that are gulled by this transparent piece of charlatanry.

On the other hand, this is far from the only one. I mean, Scientology? Are those people who're gulled by the Dianetics bullshit any less pathetic? Or the Mormon crazies? But then, is the regular larger Mo-cult any less pathetic, their beliefs any less crazy? For that matter the Jesus-cultists? I mean, virgin birth, guy comes back after three days, God equals Son equals Ghost equals Unity equals Trinity equals gobbledegook? Is that last any less pathetic, any and every flavor of it?

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But one positive note, in the midst of this not-hilarious-because-so-sad dance party: Of the many crimes that the weirdo has been charged with, I don't see blasphemy there. That's good news, in my book.

I'm not familiar with the politics of Turkey. My very sketchy idea is that this used to be a country steeped in religious superstitions, and then Kemal Ataturk dragged them out by their flea-ridden beards and forced them to modernize, but then Ataturk got thrown out and the Mullah brigade came in again (or maybe the entered the scene after the man, Ataturk I mean, passed away peacefully in his sleep, or whatever). And the country descended back into the superstitious religious hell-hole-hood that most of those Islamic countries straddle. Except, it seems I'm wrong. In a country like Saudi Arabia, or Pakistan, someone like this would be hauled up for blasphemy and have their hands or legs cut off, maybe even decapitated, or lynched maybe. The blasphemy part, in their estimate, would be far far worse a crime than trifles like fraud and theft and all the rest of it. Clearly Turkey's above at least that. Which is good news, I guess. This crazy religious session, while it's crazy, but it would fit right in the land of the brave and the free. You can almost see Trump getting up at the end of it and blathering on about drinking bleach to cure Covid, while the crazy preacher anoints him the Chosen One and exhorts his pathetic flock to vote for him, or something.

[True Spartan]

Thank you a lot Mr. Hines.

Very enjoyable info.

What I have discovered so far:

1) Perhaps, the sexiest female dance ever. Maximum sensual expression of female body. Great find!

2) Theoretically and not in a serious mode: The one cult that I could follow and practice as a virile male. The benefits are obvious. ;-)
That's a cult .

3) I have finally rediscovered, the only legitimate and ethically acceptable use of a mask for a HUMAN Being (female being) in a social circle. This is not strictly a mask but a face cover, patch, called yasmak .
Excellent accessory for female submissive role playing games..
Any other use is a symbol of oppression.

Yours in freedom,

True Spartan.

PS.. I feel existential discomfort and experience serious problems with slavery of fear, of mind and body.. I am Greek you know.. My ancestors fought for centuries against barbaric oppression and tyrrany of any form.