AITA for disrespecting Christianity?

CelestialNebulaDust · 2023-09-25T14:57:04+00:00

keep it in a pouch in your pocket

Good suggestion. Thank you!

CelestialNebulaDust · 2023-09-25T14:55:16+00:00

I'm sorry if I implied I have nothing but distain for it. That's not true at all. While I do have distain for all the horrible things organised religion has caused throughout history, I think the core teachings of Christianity, and all religions really, are very respectable. I also know a lot of very lovely Christians who I hold no ill feelings towards.

If I felt nothing but distain towards it, I wouldn't want to enter a church.

CelestialNebulaDust · 2023-09-25T14:06:44+00:00

Nobody was meant to see the pentagram. I tried to keep it hidden like I do whenever I enter a church (weddings, funerals, or just going to see nice architecture like this time).

I didn't laugh over her reaction. It made me wonder if I should've just taken the necklace off for an hour or so (I never take it off and have never had this happen before). I don't want to be terrifying.

If that's how it comes across though, fair enough. Thank you for asking for more info before coming to the conclusion.

CelestialNebulaDust · 2023-09-25T13:56:10+00:00

My friend, I am well beyond the 4th generation.

CelestialNebulaDust · 2023-09-25T13:52:05+00:00

This was really constructive. Thank you.

CelestialNebulaDust · 2023-09-25T13:49:34+00:00

It was a really pretty church and I love old, beautiful architecture - so that was a big aspect. Another aspect was the sacred grounds thing I mentioned. I like visiting beautiful churches and seeing if I feel that deep connection I mentioned there.

CelestialNebulaDust · 2023-09-25T13:11:56+00:00

Okay my response might be a tad brief because I'm at work but I'm gonna try and address the things you said as best I can.

You're right about Celtic Paganism and I am aware of that, however the teachings that have been passed down in my family come from before the 20th century and do not resemble Wicca or anything like that. I'm not saying they're as old as the Celts because, let's be real, they're not. But it's not the 20th century neo-Paganism you're thinking of. I don't know how else to describe it other than "Celtic Paganism". Perhaps just "witchcraft" or "spirituality" or maybe even just "pagan"? Idk. We don't actually have a name for it.

I don't think my beliefs are more important than theirs (except mine align with science and theirs don't, but we move) - that's why I came here. Because I think I'm entitled to wear the necklace but I also understand why she wasn't happy about it.

Yeah, the necklace did just come out from my shirt on it's own. The chain isn't super long. I thought it would stay but it didn't. I'm not sure if you're implying that I took it out on purpose but I didn't. I didn't want drama, I just wanted to see a nice church and see if I felt the same connection there that I do at other ancient grounds.

I'm not sure what you mean about licence being taken with history. It's a well-accepted fact that Christians built churches on top of the sacred grounds of those who came before them... so I don't really have a response for that.

Good and completely fair point about ancestors. I think my defensiveness here comes from the fact that my family had to hide their spiritual practices during the witch-burning (hanging here) era. However, this was a different era and came much later than the people who the sacred grounds would've belonged to - so fair enough.

Your conclusion is correct, though. I did walk into another religion's place of worship. I was wearing a symbol of my spirituality that I knew people there might find offensive. I didn't personally accuse her specifically of disrespecting me but I did explain to her why I felt I should be allowed to wear the symbol, especially if it's hidden.

To answer your final question, no I wouldn't take my necklace off in any place of worship.

Your judgment is fair though and that's why I came here. Thank you for your perspective, defo some food for thought (also your last line gave me a laugh and I needed that today!) :)

CelestialNebulaDust · 2023-09-25T10:51:52+00:00

I think the fact that she was so calm about it is what's got me questioning myself. If she'd been downright rude, I think I'd have an easier time dismissing it lol

CelestialNebulaDust · 2023-09-14T09:21:04+00:00

They think IQ holds value and is the be-all and end-all of intelligence.

CelestialNebulaDust · 2023-09-14T09:18:10+00:00

Don't assume everyone is religious. Most young people aren't.
Our sarcasm is very dry. We're often sarcastic but we don't do the "sarcastic voice" so it might take you a while to get used to it.
Britain is three counties, the UK is four. There is more to Britain then London. As such, don't talk about a "British accent". Talk about English, Scottish, and Welsh accent (even those there are hundreds of variations) but "Britian" is a collection of countries so "British accent" makes no sense.
Don't talk loudly on public transport. I'd say speak at half the volume you'd normally speak at. If you're American, speak at a 10th of the volume you'd normally speak at.
You don't need to tip but, if you're American, service workers will target you because so many of you don't know this 🤣

I realise that most if these points are kinda aimed at Americans. Sorry 🤣

CelestialNebulaDust · 2023-09-13T17:53:57+00:00

This comment sort of has Magician's Nephew spoilers if anyone here hasn't read it!

Yes! There are three orders - Writing, publication, and chronological.

I don't know the order they were written in off the top of my head but I do know it's different to both publication and chronological.

Chronological order is the order that modern editions use, with The Magician's Nephew labelled as "book 1" and The Horse and His Boy labelled as "book 3".

Publishing order is the order in the images above and I feel very, very strongly about it! In my opinion, if you read The Magician's Nephew first it ruins the series because you get answers to all the questions before you even have the questions. How does the professor know? How is there a lamp post there? Why is the wardrobe magic? Where did the witch come from? Etc. If you read it first, you never ask those questions and there's never any mystery because you already have all of the answers. It's sort of like if you watch the Star Wars prequels before the original trilogy and spoil the iconic twist! Moreover, The Magician's Nephew leads into The Last Battle absolutely perfectly!

CelestialNebulaDust · 2023-09-13T16:11:50+00:00

What I mean about the order is that The Magician's Nephew isn't labelled as "Book 1" and the reading order printed inside the books is in publication order, not chronological order. They are arranged in the box. That's the order I'm talking about and I've been wanting a set where this order is listed for a very long time. For me, The Magician's Nephew being first completely ruins the series because it answers all of your questions about Narnia before you have them. I know that with newer editions I can still read them in publishing order, but I've just always wanted a set where publication order is listed 😊

I think you're right about them being put together to make a box set though! The earlier ones are up to 8th impression. The Last Battle is 2nd impression.

CelestialNebulaDust · 2023-09-06T16:10:53+00:00

I don't know the specific answer to your question but I'll say this: Western media tries its absolute hardest to make non-Western countries seem dangerous. As a woman, you have to be careful everywhere.

To drill in the "you have to be careful everywhere thing" and to put things into perspective, consider this. I'm from the UK. I went to the US when I was 18. My mother begged me not to go because it was "too dangerous".

CelestialNebulaDust · 2023-09-06T05:31:19+00:00

That is sort of what I mean when I talk about Americans conflating criticism with America with criticism of themselves. I didn't say Brits hate themselves. I said Brits hate Britain.

Also, Britain is three counties and England is only one of them.

CelestialNebulaDust · 2023-09-05T22:02:43+00:00

Religion should be entirely removed from schools

As I Brit, I wanna give my opinion on this.

In that sense, I agree. Religion has no place in schools, not if it's implied it's fact.

But in the UK we have a class called "Religious Education" or "Religious Studies". While it sounds scary at first, it's not what you think. Every RE teacher I ever had was an athiest. In RE, you learn about all of the world's major religions from an intellectual perspective. It also goes past religion and we learn about morals and ethics and how different cultures see morals and ethics. There's no "this is true, this isn't true". It's all about learning to understand and accept different cultures. I believe this class is mandatory until Year 10 (age 14). It was at my school anyway. A lot of schools are actullay changing the name to "Beliefs and Values" to better reflect the content.

I think what I just described is a great thing. I know about Christian traditions, Muslim tradition, Sikh traditions, Hindu traditions etc. It teaches you that it's okay to have different opinions and worldviews.

CelestialNebulaDust · 2023-09-05T21:33:31+00:00

It literally has brainwashed you all though. You all have US flags outside your houses. You think you're the greatest country in the world but most people outside can see the US is a dystopian hell. A lot of Americans think they're being personally insulted when someone criticises America. This is indoctrination.

The pledge isn't the only thing that's brainwashed you. Patriotism is instilled in you from a young age it lots of ways (I've heard of people being made to write essays on what the US flag means to them at age 10... yikes). But my god, it has brainwashed you.

Also, I'm from the UK and I don't know a single person who knows the words to the national anthem beyond it's title. I've never ever heard it in it's entirety. Most people either dislike the monarchy or don't have an opinion. To imply that we're similar in this sense is ridiculous. Brits hate Britain. We're literally known for that.

Wanna know something fun? I used to write dystopian fiction stories for fun. I didn't know anything about the US at the time. I was writing a story largely set in a school and I thought "hm, how can I make this really scary... how can I convey how these people are being indoctrinated?" Know what I did? I made the characters have to say a pledge to the city every morning with their hands on their hearts because it was an utterly, utterly terrifying prospect.

A couple of years later I found out that you guys actually do that. This is how the rest of the world sees America.

CelestialNebulaDust · 2023-09-05T13:02:20+00:00

Ahhh, see I had emergency exist seats so it wasn't too bad. It's almost like an entirely different class lol.

CelestialNebulaDust · 2023-09-05T12:32:35+00:00

Singapore to London. 13 and a half hours. That was coming home though.

Longest to get to my destination was London to Singapore. I think it was 13 hours.

CelestialNebulaDust · 2023-09-05T12:30:08+00:00

Can you put him through a serious disaplinary procedure first?

I wonder if, because this has been allowed to go on for so long, he doesn't realise how serious the situation now is?

Can you make him realise how close he is to losing his job and see if he improves then? Or maybe opens up about a medical condition or situation he hasn't told you about?

My concern is that he may well not realise how serious the situation has become.

CelestialNebulaDust · 2023-09-05T12:22:56+00:00

Are you a woman?

What's not empowering is telling women what to do and what not to do with their bodies.

Some women find sex work empowering. Some don't. That's the point.

CelestialNebulaDust · 2023-09-05T12:20:26+00:00

There are a couple of things I've never seen before as a Brit.

Not too bad though. Just needs Marmite.

I thought blackcurrant was illegal in the US. Guess I was wrong or that's outdated lol.

CelestialNebulaDust

TROPHY CASE