So WHY is America more religious? Seriously?

[Admiral Johnason]

Even the swaztika is an acknowledged occult symbol.

The Swastika was stolen, the finnish airforce had it before Hitler did.

The swastika has existed in almost EVERY culture on the face of the planet, in multiple permutations, from the dawn of time.

I believe it originated in Ancient Greece or Phonecia.

[Darth Wong]

Hitler also very pointedly was baptaized Catholic, the dominant social structure in his Bavarian-Austrian home region. He wasn't excommunicated until 1947 or '48, postumously. He looked to the churches to assist in the implementation of his social policies... and nearly all of them complied...

Not surprising, since the Catholic church was historically one of the greatest oppressors of Jews in the world (a fact conveniently forgotten by people who would pretend Hitler's views were hopelessly incompatible with those of Catholicism). And the Protestant Lutheran church in Germant was named after Martin Luther, who once wrote a book called "On Jews and their Lies" and who was a personal idol of Hitler. I don't see much resistance coming from that front either ...

[Admiral Johnason]

It was Leo IV who started the persecution of the Jews. He didn't want them to be killed outright nessecerly, but to feel pain for the persecution of Christ and Christians. Considering that Rome was to blame for most of these things and the fact that they should be respected as the older brothers of Christanity, I feel safe in saying that he was a total nutball.

[Peregrin Toker]

The Swastika was stolen, the finnish airforce had it before Hitler did.

The swastika has existed in almost EVERY culture on the face of the planet, in multiple permutations, from the dawn of time.

I believe it originated in Ancient Greece or Phonecia.

It's older than that. It originated in India according to most sources.

[PainRack]

The swastika has existed in almost EVERY culture on the face of the planet, in multiple permutations, from the dawn of time.

I believe it originated in Ancient Greece or Phonecia.

It's older than that. It originated in India according to most sources.

Sumerian,or some other Central Asian civilisation.

India was the first to begin incorporating it as a religious belief,rather than a pagan symbol.



As for why America is so fundie at the moment,I blame the moral revolution.Not of the sixties,but an earlier liberalisation period in the 19th century.After the repression of the Victorian period,the sexual and moral attitudes of men were being lifted in Europe.Many of these ideas were brought into America via trade and immigrants.

Life in America was easy for the majority{compared to Europe} and most of the upper class rejected the moral ideas as Europeanism.Furthermore,the fact that immigrants were mostly poor and uneducated meant that these ideas could be condemned to the social trash pile and all who practicised such ideas,like the idea that a women isn't just a child machine had been contaiminated.

Guess where they turned to to stop the moral rot?

[PainRack]

Just a sidenote:I read a book by some British guy who studied end of the world conspiracies.He noted that there has been no other christian end of the world conspiracies in any other place save for America.Not even in Palestine/Israel,despite the fact that many of these conspiracies usually mouth crap about Jesus descending on a mouth of fire at Mount Arraet or some other sacred mountain in Israel.

[Coyote]

Just a sidenote:I read a book by some British guy who studied end of the world conspiracies.He noted that there has been no other christian end of the world conspiracies in any other place save for America.Not even in Palestine/Israel,despite the fact that many of these conspiracies usually mouth crap about Jesus descending on a mouth of fire at Mount Arraet or some other sacred mountain in Israel.

Welcome, Painrack, I suppose from the wonderful world of SpaceBattles...

Apocalyptic End o' the World faiths do seem to root primarily in America, and I wonder if that is some sort of distopian commentary on our "ungodly" behaviour? We are a liscentious lot, I suppose, and they love to acarp on the "moral decay" of our "decadence"....

BTW, Mount Ararat is in Turkey, where Noah supposedly landed; in Israel I think the Christians say Jesus is supposed to come back in Jerusalem, while the Jewish groups that care to study this (there is not much interest in Apocalyptic Revelation/End Times speculation in Judaism) say that the Messiah will arrive in Tzfat (up by the Sea of Galilee) and then travel to Jerusalem... whatever....

[Coyote]

... the Catholic church was historically one of the greatest oppressors of Jews in the world (a fact conveniently forgotten by people who would pretend Hitler's views were hopelessly incompatible with those of Catholicism)....

While doing research for my paper on the roots of anti-Semitism in German culture, I found an interesting story of an SS officer, one Colonel Gerstein. Apparantly in the course of his career during the war he became disturbed at what was going on with the Jews and the mass murder. Apparantly, Col. Gerstein used his position to gather all kinds of documents-- photos, death reports, logbook-- that proved the existence of the Final Solution.

Evidence in hand, he made a pretext to go to Rome (he was Catholic) and went to the Vatican to present his evidence, insisting that the Pope (Pius XII if I remember correctly) use his "moral position" in the world to decry what was going on. Apparantly, Gerstein got an icy reception from the Pope's advisors, who took the evidence and promised to handle it...

The evidence never saw the light of day, and Col. Gerstein's career pretty much came to a halt from then on...

The book was "Ideology of Death", by John Weiss, although I can't recall the publisher or date (it was recent, in the '90's...).