The Caged Birds
There once was a man named George Thomas, a pastor in a small New England town. One Easter Sunday morning he came to the Church carrying a rusty, bent, old bird cage, and set it by the pulpit. Several eyebrows were raised and, as if in response, Pastor Thomas began to speak. “I was walking through town yesterday when I saw a young boy coming toward me, swinging this bird cage. On the bottom of the cage were three little wild birds, shivering with cold and fright. I stopped the lad and asked, “What you got there son?” “Just some old birds,” came the reply. “What are you gonna do with them?” I asked. “Take ’em home and have fun with ’em. I’m gonna tease ’em and pull out their feathers to make ’em fight. I’m gonna have a real good time.” “But you’ll get tired of those birds sooner or later. What will you do then?” “Oh, I got some cats. They like birds. I’ll take ’em to them.” The pastor was silent for a moment. “How much do you want for those birds, son?” “Huh??!!! Why, you don’t want them birds, mister. They’re just plain old field birds. They don’t sing – they ain’t even pretty!” “How much?” The boy sized up the pastor as if he were crazy and said, “$10?” The pastor reached in his pocket and took out a ten dollar bill. He placed it in the boy’s hand. In a flash, the boy was gone. The pastor picked up the cage and gently carried it to the end of the alley where there was a tree and a grassy spot. Setting the cage down, he opened the door, and by softly tapping the bars persuaded the birds out, setting them free. Well, that explained the empty bird cage on the pulpit, and then the pastor began to tell this story. One day Satan and Jesus were having a conversation. Satan had just come from the Garden of Eden, and he was gloating and boasting. “Yes, sir, I just caught the world full of people down there. Set me a trap, used bait I knew they couldn’t resist. Got ’em all!” “What are you going to do with them?” Jesus asked. “Oh, I’m gonna have fun! I’m gonna teach them how to marry and divorce each other. How to hate and abuse each other. How to drink and smoke and curse. How to invent guns and bombs and kill each other. I’m really gonna have fun!” “And what will you do when you get done with them?”, Jesus asked. “Oh, I’ll kill ’em.” “How much do you want for them?” “Oh, you don’t want those people. They ain’t no good. Why, you take them and they’ll just hate you. They’ll spit on you, curse you and kill you!! You don’t want those people!!” “How much?” Satan looked at Jesus and sneered, “All your tears, and all your blood.” Jesus paid the price! The pastor picked up the cage, he opened the door, and he walked from the pulpit. |
What ?
8. It seems to me that the idea of a personal God is an anthropological concept which I cannot take seriously. I also cannot imagine some will or goal outside the human sphere. … Science has been charged with undermining morality, but the charge is unjust. A man’s ethical behavior should be based effectually on sympathy, education, and social ties and needs; no religious basis is necessary. Man would indeed be in a poor way if he had to be restrained by fear of punishment and hope of reward after death.
Albert Einstein, “Religion and Science”, New York Times Magazine, 9 November 1930
Thankyou for your views Charlie, I wholeheartedly disagree feel free to read follow this link http://www.probe.org/site/c.fdKEIMNsEoG/b.4218297/k.1E71/Christian_Views_of_Science_and_Earth_History.htm
Philosophy is questions that may never be answered.
Religion is answers that may never be questioned.
thankyou for your views and for spending the time to comment
Jeff, I started reading but the link but it lost me. Partly because I don’t care (in a nice way, i care about you, i care about important things, but i am not gonna explode and get angry about anything, I have a strong view, and it’s makes not a jot of difference what I say or do, so a I trim through this world cutting a nice slide through whatever wedges up (with the occasional wipeout)).
More important than whatever is debated here is the freedom of speech, and movement . And it’s lovely and rightous that we can casually riff on this subject without fear, or anything heavy. My business head, which is large part of my current make up, says repair boards, create great things, your’re damned good at it, but religion does not fit well in business, it polarises, as does politics (and goat boating, and those damned shark biscuits)
But then (and this is very important) you should always fly the flag of what motivates you. Don’t be afraid to be honest to yourself. You will find me encouraging folk out of their cars and on to bikes, and i am religous about other things too. Most people have something or some place a bit like a church.
Funny memory…Guy penwarden said to me about 16 years ago in the surf at Bournemouth ” what, you getting married, what are you, religious or something?”. My reply was… I am religous about a lot of things, but religion ain’t one of them”. But that’s just me.
Catch ya later good buddy.
Its all good Charlie, the freedom of expression is important to me, ever noticed the christian fish symbols on the stringer of top quality surfboards?