Praise the Lord and fill my pockets
This email came in response to my post/column, There’s a tiger in his tank. I think it’s quite amusing. So it’s not just the American group-spiritualism/shamanism that has been exported to Malta, but also the principle of ‘praise the Lord and fill my pockets’.
Dear Daphne, that was a great article today. Took me back some years when I was in the travel industry and was organising a group to Lourdes for one of our leading “healing prayer-meeting” leaders. For our profit we normally added up Lm10 … per adult. When I told him about this he told me: of course not on MY people; for all the trouble I take to gather them in prayer groups, meeting on church parvis, or church etc, do you think that I am to get ONLY Lm 10? I want a minimum of Lm25 per person, and that is also on children. Of course I had to revise the selling price … up, to give him his dues. As they say, those who pray …. will get! By the way, this “healer” is till running about … making money.
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In the words of the great George Carlin:
“Religion has actually convinced people … that there’s an invisible man … living in the sky … who watches everything you do, every minute of every day. And the invisible man has a special list of 10 things he does not want you to do! And if you do any of these 10 things, he has a special place, full of fire and smoke and burning and torture and anguish, where he will send you to live and suffer and burn and choke and scream and cry, forever and ever, ’til the end of time! … But he loves you! … He loves you. He loves you and he needs money! He always needs money! He’s all-powerful, all-perfect, all-knowing, all-wise, but somehow – just can’t handle money! “
U dan mhux bhal Edward ta Smash TV. Laundering in the name of Christ.
This could be just hearsay; please allow me to digress:
I drove to the Pyrenees via Lourdes a few weeks ago taking with me my (Moslim-born) partner, and spent the day there.
I am far from being a practising Catholic but the place is an experience for different reasons, and my partner was amusingly into the whole thing probably more than I was. What really annoyed me was the commercialisation of the place. The town is literally a supermarket selling all kind of (kitsch) souvenirs and junk. One shop lady tried to sell us “i dolci della Madonna” and was quite stroppy when we did not buy; that for me was the straw.
I have mixed feelings about the place – while I think that the Church should discourage such commercialisation (to be fair, within the basilica gates, there is little going on), some people need souvenirs and objects to take away with them – and if it works for them, who are we to say otherwise?
http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/janisjoplin/mercedesbenz.html
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q-g7Q7hXn7o
The touch ain’t delicate, true, but there is no necessary contradiction between the services of ritual specialists and payment. Happens in all religions – why should Christianity be so above-it-all?
Well, while we’re again at it! I would like to recommend a great book that I’m reading – “What’s So Great About Christianity” by Dinesh D’Sousa – It’s worth its price!
Guadalupe I think is even worse, its like a swap meet combined with two political meetings “fuq il-fosos” food and all.
One will always find people trying to do “business” from anything , nothing is sacred for them.
Simony has been around from the early times of Christianity . Nothing new under the sun.
wow, so for every 100 pilgrims he gathered to visit Lourdes , he made Lm2500 . Come on name and shame him !
‘Me’ sent in these two links to Janis Joplin’s Oh Lord, won’t you buy me a Mercedes-Benz. They went into the spam folder, so I’m copying them here.
http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/janisjoplin/mercedesbenz.html
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q-g7Q7hXn7o
Its not like the Church doesn’t flaunt it, just look at all the majestic churches it built, lined with marble and gold, that it built with the riches they scammed off naive villagers.
Some years ago we had someone living off the donations of cancer victims . Name and shame as long as you can prove it.
visit ta’ Pinu , all the proof you could ever need.
How could they not be ashamed of creating such moral hazard amongst us?!
I myself, for one, am beginning to doubt my religious beliefs. “insara ta’ l-isem” … that’s what they are.
“For if you give, you will get! Your gift will return to you in full and overflowing measure, pressed down, shaken together to make room for more, and running over. Whatever measure you use to give — large or small — will be used to measure what is given back to you.” {Luke, 6:38}
I’m no religious freak, I admit that I did have to search that quote, but hey, someone’s in dire need of re-reading the Bible and start practising what they preach {or setting a good example, you got the point anyhow} instead of wasting their time working out on new ways in which they could double their income or choosing the most expensive car off the latest catalogues !
Speaking on the behalf of the younger generations {I’m 18 years old},
I’m utterly disgusted by the behaviour of such people,
whom I personally consider to be inhuman … nonetheless, I don’t want to sound immodest … “ghax daz-zghazagh tal-lum arroganti wisq u ma jifhmu f’xejn” {quoting my mother}
I mean … having been made aware of these immoralities [and these individuals really NEED to revise their set of morals, if they’ve ever bothered to shape some up ~niddubita~], how could I not have an antagonistic opinion?
Funnily enough, this post reminded me of two people ;
(1) my aunt. She saves up money so that she can book a place on a Lourdes tour *annually*, her agenda is filled up with prayer group meetings, whenever we argue about religious issues she’s always rephrasing their words (instead of coming up with a valid argument), ah yes, and she says I’m the one who’s materialistic … what a blind follower they have made her turn into !
(2) il-kappillan ! Last time I went to church, during mass, just before the sacristan started collecting money, this parish priest appeared out of nowhere, qisu xi harry potter, and he yelled in the microphone : “Misskom tisthu titfghu dac-centezmi biss! Il-knisja dejjem fil-bzonn … u mintkomx generuzi bizzejjed! Mohhkom biss fl-affarjiet materjali … l-ispiritwalita’ fostkom qed tghib, gheziez huti!” [Back to the inquisition era aren’t we? … I’d better start thinking about buying an empty slot in heaven … good spaces are always the first ones to be taken, hmpfh!]
Sorry if my reply has reached the borders of ‘boredom’, but I had to let it all out somehow.
Way to go Daphne!
I’m a fan of yours.
“When it’s a question of money, everybody is of the same religion” – Voltaire
@CATherine
You’re right here we go again..reading books by people who still cannot quite stomach the Theory of Evolution!
A case of the converted preaching to the converted perhaps?
I am a practicing catholic but I can’t but agree with the views expressed above. Such behavior is deplorable whoever is perpetrating it.
It is a pity that such incidents cast doubts on similar actions by other people who are inspired by genuine motives.
People who behave in this way are abusing of religion and worse people’s sentiments. Anyone who is collecting money for whatever cause must be held accountable for it as well as for the way it is being allocated in the organization falling under his/her responsibility.
Such issues cropped up even in the early stages of Christianity however today we are in a better cultural position to expose these abuses. Since Religion and issues dealing with it, its ministers (or whoever is professing a religion as is the case of these so called healers) are no longer considered untouchable and unquestionable.
I agree with Daphne, this person’s name should be made public for the sake of the people who through some mishap or mishealth cling to such activities and such persons (healing services and the healers)in the hope of improving their situation. When they put their entire faith in such a person they are vulnerable for abuses.
I used to take part in voluntary work in a foreign country. Our spiritual director always used the analogy of the moon and the sun. Just as the moon reflects the sun we had to reflect God’s love and providence to the children of the camp. Unfortunately the impression I get from these “healers” is that they are trying to take the centre stage either for protagonism or for some sort or feeling of a holier status. If you have the gift of healing good luck to you but please don’t try to play God or the saint. Just use it to draw people to God but do not try to make a show for yourself out of it. Back in the gospel Jesus himself deplored such behavior.
(Daphne – I love your first name. I hope it’s real.)
Ishmael is real, I know him personally, he’s a lovely person, and even though I do not always agree with him, he talks sense. (Aw, Ish, kollox sew? Ilni ma narak, sellili!)
Christianity is typically held to higher standards in financial matters, because Christ preached poverty.
If Christ were to come to earth, nowadays, will he go to our over-dressed churches, or to the mudhuts of the third world countries?
Will he go to the upper-class prayer meetings, or to a war-torn country?
Will he be distributing leaflets and badges to over-weight, over-stessed children at duttrina classes, or will he be handing out survival rations in disaster areas?
I was baptised as a Catholic, but until the church practises what Christ preaches… I won’t be setting foot near a church. Weddings and funerals are excepted, as I attend those functions as respect to the families involved.
Yes it is I assure you. I even like its meaning. By the way Daphne on which journal was the column which prompted the first email in question ?
(Daphne – If you mean my column, it was either The Malta Independent on Sunday or The Malta Independent, but I post them all here.)