TresSugar

Does This Look Like Jesus to You?

TresSugar — Tue, 19 May 2009 04:00:00 -0700

Before you accuse me of being sacrilegious, know this: the people who keep seeing Jesus in snack foods are the ones who consider him sacred!

Dan and Sara Bell stopped by a gas station to fill up the tank and pick up a bag of Cheetos, when lo and behold, Sara paused before popping what they now call Cheesus into her mouth. "Oh my gosh," she recalls saying. "Look at this! It really looks like a person in a robe praying." How did she rationalize comparing Jesus to the beloved yet reviled neon orange snack food? "It is a reminder of our blessings from God." Hmmm.

eBay Find of the Day: Elvis and Jesus in Heaven Velvet Painting

GiggleSugar — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 08:00:00 -0800

Ever wonder what Elvis and Jesus would look like hanging out in heaven? Well, the velvet painting artist Ramirez wants to aid you in your reveries. With "lovely purple clouds, Jesus in brown robes, Elvis . . . wearing a jacket with high-collar white shirt [and] a halo behind his head," Ramirez's amazing painting will give you more to go on the next time you daydream about this match made in heaven. As I write this, the auction has only five hours to go, but perhaps it will be relisted. Click here for the details.

Product of the Day: Chocolate Jesus

GiggleSugar — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 10:00:34 -0800

Who says Santa and the Easter bunny have a monopoly on being sculpted in chocolate? Just in time for the holidays, an enterprising confectioner in Germany is making hand-crafted candy Jesus figures. Not surprisingly, German churches have critized the idea as "tasteless" (but did they try the chocolate?!).

According to the company website, the high-quality organic chocolate "is produced without exploitation of our fellow humans or the natural resources awarded to us by God, as this would be unchristian." Biting the head off a chocolate Jesus, however, is a great way to celebrate any Christian holiday, "where they can help to refocus on the real meaning of these events."

Cement Jesus Statue Held for Ransom

GiggleSugar — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 15:05:29 -0800

It all started with a mysterious phone call. The voice on the other end of the line whispered, "Check your mailbox!" That's when this lady discovered a ransom note threatening to withhold and possibly harm her Jesus lawn statue until the neighborhood "weiner poopie" is all cleaned up. But she always picks up after her pets, so what more can she do? More importantly, WWJD? Y'all prepare yourselves cuz all Heaven is about to break loose. . .

A Sign From God?

GiggleSugar — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 14:00:30 -0700

I've seen bacon floss and a bacon scarf, but bacon blessed by Jesus? I bet it's a lot tastier than holy water.

Source

Is It Jesus or Barack? Take This Quiz!

CitizenSugar — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 12:00:00 -0700

Oh my God. Literally. This quiz is hysterical and hard. Radar, perhaps noticing some similarities between the Savior and the Senator, put together this incredibly challenging set of questions.

OK, I say they're challenging because I only got 2/10 and Liberty schooled me getting 8/10 (I'm apparently a godless heathen who knows nothing of Jesus, nor Obama.) It's timed! Go play! For the love of God, beat me!

New Tablet Suggests Christ Wasn't Alone in Resurrection

CitizenSugar — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 00:02:28 -0700

A three-foot tall tablet tells the story, in Hebrew, of a messiah who will rise from the dead after three days. That sounds familiar, right? Well, the messiah mentioned, isn't Jesus. David Jeselsohn, an antiquities expert innocently purchased what looked like an ancient stone with centuries old Hebrew script - until one day a friend visited. This friend just happened to be an Israeli scholar who read the stone and came to the conclusion that the stone may hold another important key to the history of Christianity.

The stone, which was discovered nearly a decade ago, seems to point to a commander in Herod’s army named Simon who was believed to have been resurrected three days after being slain - suggesting that the story of his death and resurrection was not unique to Jesus Christ, but part of a recognized Jewish tradition at the time.

A professor of Talmudic culture says the tablet is causing a stir. To see how, read more.

He says, "Some Christians will find it shocking - a challenge to the uniqueness of their theology - while others will be comforted by the idea of it being a traditional part of Judaism." It's controversial of course; one scholar believes the tablet just propaganda from Simon’s followers. Another believes the Hebrew is too open to interpretation. “I understand tendency to find there keys to the pre-Christian period, but in two to three crucial lines of text there are a lot of missing words.”

The real crux of the debate however, is a historically religious and philosophical one. A self-sacrificing messiah has no precedent in Jewish culture up to that time, instead modeling their savior upon the lustful conqueror, David. In any case, it seems as though the concept of their messiah suffering and dying began during this crucial era as an important step towards a Jewish state free from Rome.

If resurrection, or resurrection stories, aren't unique to Jesus Christ, does this pose a problem to the foundation of Christianity?

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Iowa Flooding and Polygamy Cause Debate Within Religions

CitizenSugar — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 00:00:07 -0700

What do the recent floods in the Midwest, and the attention garnered over the FLDS polygamy case have in common? It might not be obvious on the surface, but they're both instances where headlines are having a big impact on religion. First, the floods:

One grocery-store owner in Iowa, who is a devout Muslim, saw his business of six years washed away along with hundreds of others in the severe flooding last month. But whereas other businesses are signing up to receive federal loans at low interest, he cannot; it is forbidden in the Quran for any believer to pay interest. The store owner claims he will need $18,000 to replenish his stock, a sum he does not have, yet his faith has not faltered: “With all of our losses here, even the loss of a six year effort, I still feel we were blessed.”

In Utah, a somewhat different religious struggle is taking place between the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and the more renegade Fundamentalist groups, most of whom practice polygamy. To see what's causing the debate, read more.

Each group believes they have a rightful claim to the appellation “Mormon.” The LDS Mormons believe that since traditionally the word Mormon has been used to describe their church that they are the ones whom it should refer to exclusively. The more fundamentalist branches, including the group recently raided in Texas, disagree stating that it is their belief in Joseph Smith and the Book of Mormon is all that is needed to be called “Mormon."

Should a religion's name be proprietary - does the LDS Church have a rightful claim to it? Would you refuse government assistance because your religion dictated?

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Few Immigrants Self-Deport, Bishop Says Jesus Wouldn't Raid

CitizenSugar — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 10:00:02 -0700

The federal "self-deportation" pilot program ends today with a scant handful of illegal immigrants volunteering to return home. The three-week program gave illegal immigrants facing court orders 90 days to plan their departure rather than face being arrested, detained, and deported. The program was well-publicized, but in the first week only six signed up.

Immigrant advocates cite few incentives and no consideration for immigrants' ties to family in the US for the reason it was so unpopular. Given the failure of the program, they're worried now that it will be used as a reason to step up the raids since the ICE made an effort to enforce the law in a gentler way.

One religious figure is playing the WWJD game with immigration raids. To see what he has to say, read more.

Rhode Island's Roman Catholic bishop is calling for an end to immigration raids and has asked for a blanket moratorium on them in his state. Bishop Thomas Tobin says,

We often ask, 'What would Jesus do?' I know for sure what Jesus would not do, would be to sweep into a community, gather up large numbers of people, separate them from one another and deport them to another country. In my own mind, in my own conscience, that's crystal clear: Jesus would not do that.

He goes on to say that raids are unjust, unnecessary, and counterproductive. Are they? Why did the self-deportation program fail? Would Jesus really disapprove of raids? Are they the only solution?

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Valedictorian Must Apologize For Jesus Name Drop in Speech

LibertySugar — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 10:00:45 -0700

A Colorado high school valedictorian, Erica Corder, mentioned Jesus in her 30-second graduation speech back in 2006. As a result, the school told her an apology was in order if she wanted her diploma. The school still doesn't have its apology and Erica still doesn't have her diploma.

The resourceful teen took her situation to federal court. The court rejected her petition for an injunction, and now she's appealing that decision. The lower court held that since the speech was school sponsored, restrictions were constitutional.

Erica's address about her Christian faith differed from that presented during graduation practice. Thus, after the Jesus-switch-a-roo, and after graduation had ended, the school said she must apologize if she wanted her diploma.

Leaving legal reasoning aside, I'm surprised neither the school nor the student has been able to swallow their pride and move on. What would Jesus do?

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