Woolworths South Africa has earned the Almighty’s ire, not to mention that of dozens of their (former) Christian customers on Facebook, by besmirching their delicious, fruity hot cross bun packages with Halaal certifications. If it’s not soft drinks, it’s holy baked goods! Have they no shame?! Full details of this outrage after the jump!
A Cape doctor has publicly condemned the type of pastor-led faith-healing rally that took place over the weekend at the Cape Town stadium. Several people were admitted to Groote Schuur Hospital on Sunday after they fell ill at the mass event, which was convened by controversial pastor Chris Oyakhilome.
The world-wide Red Bull backlash continues, with the Catholic Bishops’ Conference now calling on all Southern African Catholics to “fast” from drinking Red Bull until Easter. The energy drink’s latest advert angered Christians for poking fun at Jesus walking on water. The Conference say they are hoping to show that “when it comes to mocking religious symbols, there is such a thing as bad publicity.”
To mark International Women’s Day today, SlutWalk Founder Sonya Barnett has designed the Nude Revolutionary Calendar. Featuring topless Iranian woman, this move is both a middle finger to political Islam, as well as a fundraiser towards “supporting women’s rights and free expression.” This promotional video has just been released online.
This week, the Catholic Church begins its annual Lenten cycle, culminating in the holy days associated with Easter in just over a month, and given the flagging interest many young Catholics around the world are apparently showing in sticking to their Lenten vows, the Pope is taking his fight for their pledges to the Twittersphere.
Convicted child molester, Darrell Gilyard, has been allowed to preach in the Christ Tabernacle Missionary Baptist church in Jacksonville, Florida. But, Gilyard, 49, is not allowed any contact with minors under the terms of his release from a three-year jail sentence he served for abusing a 15-year-old girl at another church in 2009.
Well, this is embarrassing. A US commander of NATO troops in Afghanistan has apologised after copies of the Koran (and other religious Islamic materials) were sent to be burned in a rubbish tip. The books were found by Afghan Muslims working on the dump. They told friends and this resulted in about 2 000 people rocking up at the US base to assault it with fire bombs and stones.
This past weekend, Catholic parishioners across America were read a letter written by the church leadership urging them to stand up against a new ruling by the Obama administration which would require all employers to provide healthcare plans which include contraceptive coverage.
Following on the heels of the now infamous Swedish Pirate Party – a political group that holds a seat in parliament and lobbies for file-sharing rights – recognition has now been given to a new religion. This is the Missionary Church of Kopimism, which holds Control-C and Control-V as their sacred symbols.
Tomorrow will mark what many Saudi women will consider a small milestone in personal shopping. From this week, only female staff will be allowed to sell lingerie, relieving the embarrassment of buying underwear in the highly conservative Muslim nation. This is by order of the king, incidentally. The new law provides a rare opportunity for the employment of women, which was previously outlawed.
Cardinal Francis George, the Archbishop of Chicago, has warned that the gay movement could morph into Ku Klux Klan. In a breathtaking display of logic he has said that, in the past, both the KKK and the gays have protested against the Catholic Church. Therefore gays equal the KKK.
A recent national census in the Czech Republic turned up some interesting news that might be of interest to the Empire – there appears to be a small population of traitorous Jedi living in the country – approximately 15 000 of them.
After being arrested at a punk rock concert in Banda Aceh, Indonesia, enthusiasts were forced to have their heads shaved, “cleanse” themselves in a lake, change their clothes and pray – because being a punk rocker in parts of Indonesia soils the Islamic image they want to uphold.
A controversial New Zealand church has rolled out a publicity stunt in time for Christmas – with a billboard showing the Virgin Mary holding a positive pregnancy test. Auckland’s St Matthews in the City Church launched its festive advertising campaign to “avoid the sentimental and trite” and “spark thought and conversation”.
TopTV has signed an agreement with Playboy TV to add three adult TV channels from Playboy to their existing line-up in 2012. But Isak Burger and his Apostolic Faith Mission (AFM) is threatening a nationwide boycott campaign against TopTV. Burger says pornograhpy is “the new crack.”
An Islamic cleric has said that women should not be close to bananas or cucumbers, because it can lead to “sexual thoughts.” He has also suggested that should females wish to eat these food items, a third party, preferably a male related to them should cut the items into small pieces for them.
Rhea Page from London was viciously attacked by four other girls last year. They dragged her to the ground by her hair then beat her with kicks and punches. During the act they kept screaming, “kill the white slag”. However, they won’t be punished after a judge heard that the Muslim girls “were not used to drinking alcohol”.
Gabriele Amorth is the Vatican’s chief exorcist. And if he is to be believed, he’s pretty good at it with just under 70 000 banished evil spirits under his belt. He says yoga is the work of the devil and leads to a belief in Hinduism, which, in turn, leads to evil.
Last year a group known as American Atheists erected a series of controversial Christmas billboards reading: “You Know It’s A Myth. This Season, Celebrate Reason.” This year they plan to take it a step further by erecting signs featuring images of Santa, Jesus, Poseidon and the devil next to the message: “37 Million Americans know MYTHS when they see them.”
A book called Islamic Sex, Fighting Jews to Return Islamic Sex to the World has been banned in Malaysia. It was published by the Muslim Obedient Wife Club and urges Muslim men in polygamous marriages to have group sex with their wives as a form of “worship”.
Yet another Tibetan Buddhist monk doused himself in fuel and set fire to himself in China yesterday. This brings to ten the total number of monks who’ve resorted to this extreme form of protest since March this year.
The Advertising Standards Authority has ruled that an Axe deodorant advert be pulled. In the ad, angels can be seen falling from heaven because they are attracted to a man’s deodorant. But a viewer laid a complaint, claiming it offends Christians. According to him, angels aren’t supposed to forfeit their heavenly status for mortal desires.
Susan Sarandon has really rubbed America’s largest Catholic civil rights organization up the wrong way. The actress raised eyebrows the other day when she referred to Pope Benedict as a “Nazi”, and the Catholic League is now lashing out at her. The league claims that what Susie said was positively obscene, showing “unparalleled ignorance”.
Dr Rowan Williams, otherwise known as the Archbishop of Canterbury, delivered what some of his aides are calling the “sermon of his career” when he addressed more than 15 000 Anglicans during his controversial visit to Zimbabwe yesterday. He told them that Mugabe’s tyrannical rule was no better than the colonial rule it had replaced.
If you’re planning to be around to watch the final of the Rugby World Cup this year, then can I suggest you get your sinner on toute suite- something light should do, because Harold Camping has returned with a new prediction for the start of the Rapture. In two weeks time, to be precise: October 21st, 2011. Sorry, rugby fans!
During a speech over the weekend in Germany, the Pope warned of threats posed by abortion and gay marriage. He said that Christian churches “must walk side by side” in the battle against church values. He also added that we must defend the “integrity and the uniqueness of marriage between one man and one woman.”
Starting today, praying in the streets of Paris is against the law. The French interior minister warned that police will use force if anybody disobeys the new rule to keep the French capital’s public spaces secular. However, people have been defying the law all morning.
Constitutional rights don’t hold much water with the Islamic police in Indonesia’s Aceh province. The province’s religious police force have forcibly separated a lesbian couple and warned the two women they could be beheaded under Islamic law. Homsexuality is legal in the rest of Indonesia.
Meet the Teenage Exorcist Girl Squad: a crack team of five girls from Arizona, USA, who are adept at the laying on of hands, and the booting out of demons. They’ve worked all over the world, are about to get their own reality show, and are just a phone call away…
Proteas pace bowler, Wayne Parnell, has converted from Christianity to Islam. And from reports he may well change his name to “Whallid”.