Posted by SpeckX at diamondback.brooks.af.mil on November 09, 1999 at 13:33:00:
In Reply to: Educating Kevin Smith posted by Stevie B on November 09, 1999 at 12:12:36:
With regard to the claim that Catholics have been persecuted throughout history, I must bring up the fact that, of all world religions known to me, Catholicism is the ONLY religion preaching of zero tolerance towards those of another faith. And yes, in Irish and Scottish history, Catholics were fought against. Of course, what is left out of that individuals post is that at the time, the Catholics were the oppressive ruling majority, and the Protestants were fighting for what many believed to be a religious independance. In Elizabethian England, the Catholic Church declared heresay punishable by death. How many Jews, Protestants, and other such "false faiths" were put to the stake to burn because they had their own faiths? And to my knowledge, even the Crusades were of Catholic origin. You want to talk about a bloody quest. Conversion by forced attrition does not seem to me to have been Jesus's message.
Of course, I myself am an atheist. I do not believe in, nor worship a higher power. I do believe in peace, and sanctity for other people. I worship respect for my fellow man, and all creatures of nature (except when individual survival is at stake. Then it's every dog for himself). The point is simply thus: For people to preach about injustice in a movie, a work of fiction, is simply ludicrious (apologies for any misspellings).
This movie, which, thanks to all the hype the Catholics are giving it, I am very excited to go see, is merely a comical, satrical view of an organized establishment. The movie Wag The Dog was a satirical depiction of White house tactics at covering up a controversy by staging a false war. Did the President have a stink about it? Did congressmen and women cause a scene? No, they did not. And why? Because they saw this movie for what it was. Satire. Not a message to promote distrust for their establishment. The same applies to Dogma. This is a work of fiction meant to satire the Catholic faith and get a chuckle out of people with a sense of humor. Not a hidden message to insight people to violence against Catholics. It is not sneding a subliminal message to be anti-Catholic! Please. In the name of freedom of expression and all that we as Americans hold dear, stop preaching about how your rights as religious individuals has been tainted or squashed. You are not being oppressed, as Catholicism has historically oppressed others. You can still attend Mass, sing your hymns and go on with your lives. If you cannot see humor in the institutions you base your life course on, do not go see this movie. But do not hold yourselves in such high esteem as to pass judgement on a man, or an artistic creation of his based on ignorance or blind sheepism (by sheepism, I mean following blindly the whims of what another tells you - i.e. saying the movie sucks because a friend thinks so). Stand on your own, form an educated opinion, or shut the hell up and sit in your pew with your face in your bible. Thank you, that is all.