Good Friday is the day of the year when Catholics try to show that they can be just as crazy and silly as members of most other religions. In the Philippines, some people beat themselves until they bleed, others re-enact the crucifixion of Jesus Christ.
No, this religion can’t be very good for one’s (mental) health.
The Happy Hermit 
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Same things happen in Italy…look for “vattienti” (flagellants in southern Italian dialects!)
Oh oh. Here in Bari, I only saw a normal, non-violent procession with music and statutes being carried around. I live next to a church, so I can see them marching past from my window.
All my Benedictine professors love to make jokes about how some Jesuits, Dominicans, Opus Dei, and a few others still practice flagellation, most of the jokes insinuate it is done out of masochism.
I came from the Philippines, am Catholic, and yes, I do find it disturbing.
Well, at least they are hurting themselves on not torturing animals.On Kapparot some swing a live chicken one’s head three times.
Sucking on bloody infant penis. [metzitzah b’peh]
I am catholic and this has nothing to do with religion this is a “show”. Catholicism do not tell people to go out on streets and make themselves bleed…. Or if you find it in the bible let me know what page because I’d like to know.
Even one of the crucifixions seems to be a very official and annual event: http://www.philstar.com/headlines/791806/20-be-crucified-good-friday
This is a typical defense of religious organizations: radicalize your members, and then once they are radicalized beyond return, you turn your back and say “we don’t condone this”. Well, the Catholic Church doesn’t try to stop them either.
LOL! The catholic church has better things to do than wasting time regulating all the crazy “events” or people or fanatics as you put it across the universe…
This is a show, an event, an exhibition call it as you want, but this has nothing to do with catholicism nor catholics nor faith nor god. this is a show, a tradition that might be cultural (therefore NOT universal) and has nothing to do with being religious as being religious is way more complex and requires a lot of thinking (reflexion) than simply getting out half-naked and beating yourself up until you bleed on april….
Let’s get serious….(by the way, FYI, it’s not because you see someone wearing a crucifix that it is a Christian… )
Anyone who claims to be a member of a certain religion is a member of that religion. That’s the beauty of religion. There is no entrance exam. No membership register. And most definitely, it’s not up to YOU to decide who is a member or not.
I am sure when the Catholic Church in the Philippines needs to collect taxes again, they won’t spare these crazies who nail themselves to the cross.
It’s not because you make some insulting statements that you’re right.
I am a catholic and I won’t feel bad because you express your opinion on a blog.
What happens in Philippines in France or even in Germany are not to be taken as a general rule.
The Vatican May or May not collect money from those guys but once again a religion is a philosophy not a way of life.
I understand that you want to express your hatred of the institution but if you want to assert a serious opinion you can’t express it like an adolescent, out of spite using images or internet links… You have to THINK and don’t take what you see as the incontestable and universal truth!
Come on! It’s not because you insult people that you’re cool or subversive or clever.
It’s like comparing young soldiers of 1914 to Erasmus students.. This is way out of proportions…no common ground, seriously. It’s a lack of respect to some of the soldiers who were involved unwillingly and to those who lost their life.
Come on!!! You can’t be serious…
In no way do I wish to “express [my] hatred of the institution”, because I don’t feel any hatred.
As the article clearly states, I find religion and religious practices silly. That’s all I wish to express. Hatred is a far shot from such an assessment.
FYI (again) it’s not because you claim you’re a member of a religion that you are considered as a member. You have to go through “examination” and “rituals” to be officially considered as a member. (several years are required)
For the same reasons you mentioned it is not YOU who decides if my religion is good or not.
I am catholic and It does not make me a fanatic or a bad person and there’s no need to insult or to react haughtily to it and make fun of people who have faith.
Those people do not represent the whole Catholics and that’s a fact whether you like it or not.
I don’t think all these babies who get baptized against their will have gone “through “examination” and “rituals””. And the Catholic Church will accept anyone as a member, even more so in countries where they get tax revenues based on official membership. They are also happy to accept dictators, murderers and keep all the child molesters in their ranks.
Like non religious Andreas!!!
Yes, but please don’t avoid to mention that Catholics also saved thousands of jewish children during ww2, and also allowed slaves to read (since they were forbidden to read any other book) and also feed children and helped people in need…. Church is not a perfect place dear, since it is led by humans. (what a surprise huh?)
I am catholic and I am not a child molester, I don’t make myself bleed on street and I don’t beat gay people.
Religious are Men! Here again you criticize MEN not religion.
it’s not because you have a certificate that you know your religion or want to be a member! You can have a certificate and be an atheist. You know why? Because religion is a philosophy it has no power on you!!! it takes years to understand religion even if you got baptised as a baby!!!
it means nothing, this is a ritual… I can’t believe you can’t understand that… this is the basis.
Your vision is so biased and monochrome it’s hard to believe !
We are not the same Andreas, we are all different. I am Catholic and I keep it to myself.
Why is it so tough for you to understand that “Those bleeding guys, child molesters and other creepy people DO NOT represent all the Catholics and therefore do not justify to insult EVERY Catholic or any other people who have faith?
The church does not represent the faith, not all priest are child molesters. Furthermore the children that are baptist is because of their parents, just like a parent can consent for a child to have a surgery that the child can later regret, i.e. male circumcision. The catholic church is constantly going thru reformation unlike other religions that strap bombs and become martyrs by becoming suicide bombs and killing Christians. Why must people always attack Christians, the bible does not advocate for pedophilia, and priest are sinners. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DDYOKD0ThHQ&t=22s
The Church represents the faith far more than an anonymous commenter. Or do you have a power of attorney from Mr Jesus?
The Bible is actually OK with pedophilia and rape: http://skepticsannotatedbible.com/says_about/pedophilia.html
The bible does not advocate for pedophilia, at least to my knowledge, and if it does show me the bible verse. The old testament is violent, and barbaric and that is why Jesus came down to rescue mankind in the new testament, when he di for all our sins. I love you blob and as an American I respect your freedom of speech, However you are acting in the same cowardly manner all atheist behave attack Catholic and Christians but stay clear of Islam that is currently making Jezidys women into sex slaves, bombing churches in Egypt, killing Buddhist, and putting women like Bibi Asia on death role with Blasphemy laws just because she is a Christian, You are a coward because you won’t say such vile comment about Muslim who are in constant religious sectarian wars with each other and attacking other religious minorities. Acourse you won’t since you do not want to end up headless, or shot like those that apposed Islam. The bible doesn’t speak of Jesus having sex nor marrying anyone. The Quran Prophet Muhammed married Aisha when she was six years old, and Prophet Muhammed has sex slaves, Jesus didn’t have sex slaves, didn’t marry. It is always the same attacks from Atheist, either in the Atheist manifesto, or the God Delusion, is always an attack on Catholics, Christians but it is not Catholic or Christians beheading people. If you talked about Catholics during the Inquisition I would give you all credit, and agree with you, but at this time Christians are not burning people at the stake like they did in early Christianity, nor are they hunting women in Salem witch hunts. It is ironic that it is in Judaeo-Christian countries that secularism flourish, show me a country in the middle east that you have freedom of though, freedom of religion?
Please feel free to read my articles about Islam if you think that my criticism is one-sided.
By the way, I am not sure how it is “attacking” Christians when I publish photos of an event organized by Christians in public. Surely they knew that someone would photograph it. This is how they WANT to be seen.
We being following you because you are an interesting intellectual, your adventures are cool, and you pictures with the locals gives authenticity to your adventures. The problem is not in publishing the pictures and most Catholics have been to such events the problem is your sarcastic, demeaning comments and comparison of Christians as radicals. Tell me of a Mosque that was bomb by Christian suicide bombers, jihadist. A Catholic Priest had his throat slash during Mass last year in Paris by Muslim radical jihadist.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3708394/Two-men-armed-knives-people-hostage-French-church.html
The killing of Avijit Roy ,a free-thinker in Bangladesh after criticizing Islam violent It was not Catholic radicals, it was Muslim Jihadist radical. The problem people are cowards and use Catholics, and Christian as scapegoat. Violent is innate in humans being, and like Avijit Roy said Virus of Faith can happen to any faith, unfortunately is happening in Islam.
Click to access Avijit-Roy-Final-Free-Inquiry.pdf
http://sadf.eu/new/blog/the-killing-of-avijit-roy-silencing-free-thinking-and-progressive-conscience-in-bangladesh/
But isn’t that the same God telling people what to do? I mean she sure is having fun with all these different people killing each other, trying to please the same being/entity.
I read the writing wonderfully Thank you very much for sharing
Its Paganism and against the law of God, I am from Philippines and a Catholic as well. I also see these practices not Godly. We should mistreat our body for it’s a living temple of God as written in the bible 1 Corinthians 6:19 Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own.
Who are you to say what God meant or wants? That’s heresy!
Deuteronomy 18:9
“When you come into the land that the Lord your God is giving you, you shall not learn to follow the abominable practices of those nations….
Is that the way you define heresy?!