6 ms·

You’d be surprised. A lot of religious people are extremely knowledgeable about historical stuff related to their religions. They might draw the absolutely wo

by Teever 6mo ago

You’d be surprised. A lot of religious people are extremely knowledgeable about historical stuff related to their religions. They might draw the absolutely worst conclusions from their historical knowledge and have incredibly biased takes but they’ve actually read and discussed these things which is more than you can say for your average person. It ultimately comes from their personal identify being so intricately tied to the religious organization that they are a part of — on some level they view these historical events as their own personal history as they identify as a ‘evangelical Christian’ or ‘orthodox Jew’ more than they view themselves as a person named Dave who has a family and stuff. At the end of the day it’s all just more Hatfield and McCoys or tribal warfare over a goat that was killed centuries ago bullshit.

CamperBob2 6mo ago
Best analogy for religion I've ever heard: "A D&D game that went too far." If you've seen diehard gamers go on for hours about the minutiae of various editions of countless rulebooks, you can imagine what it's like when devout Catholics get together to talk shop. There are subtleties to this particular pissing match that aren't immediately obvious. The Vatican is starting to rein in the Opus Dei cult-within-a-cult. After John Paul II canonized its founder in 2002 on shaky grounds, later Popes have started to think that maybe they went a little too far. Meanwhile, Opus Dei has focused on gaining more secular influence in government (https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/article/2024/jul/26/kevin-roberts-project-2025-opus-dei https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/article/2024/jul/26/kevi...).
- fhdkweig 6mo ago
  CollegeHumor (now Dropout) made a sketch covering this "Religious People are Nerds" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ucHxl9QwbX8 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ucHxl9QwbX8
- pavel_lishin 6mo ago
  Funny, that's how I tend to view my religious Jewish friends. I have a few Catholic friends, and I feel like I never have conversations about the technicalities of their religious views, but it comes up more with my Jewish friends, and it's always basically as much fun to chat about that with them as it is to chat about D&D with my D&D friends (which is a lot!)
- toyg 6mo ago
  Opus Dei is an issue but it's not the only 'cult within a cult' in the Catholic Church, not even the first. They just happen to be the most recent fashion. Popes have always had to balance the power and influence of this or that organization - franciscans, dominicans, benedictines, any one of these (and more) had to be contained at some point.
mturmon 6mo ago
I believe you are correct. The person who delivered this threat is a grandson of William Colby (ex-CIA director, ex-OSS, arch-Catholic). Elbridge Colby is also Catholic, and some of his religious beliefs factor into his policy preferences. Groton, Harvard BA, Yale Law, hard-to-get service medals. I’m not saying I like the guy, but his knowledge and background should not be underestimated as some nearby are doing.

by Teever 6mo ago

CamperBob2 6mo ago

Best analogy for religion I've ever heard: "A D&D game that went too far." If you've seen diehard gamers go on for hours about the minutiae of various editions of countless rulebooks, you can imagine what it's like when devout Catholics get together to talk shop. There are subtleties to this particular pissing match that aren't immediately obvious. The Vatican is starting to rein in the Opus Dei cult-within-a-cult. After John Paul II canonized its founder in 2002 on shaky grounds, later Popes have started to think that maybe they went a little too far. Meanwhile, Opus Dei has focused on gaining more secular influence in government (https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/article/2024/jul/26/kevin-roberts-project-2025-opus-dei https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/article/2024/jul/26/kevi...).

fhdkweig 6mo ago
CollegeHumor (now Dropout) made a sketch covering this "Religious People are Nerds" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ucHxl9QwbX8 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ucHxl9QwbX8
pavel_lishin 6mo ago
Funny, that's how I tend to view my religious Jewish friends. I have a few Catholic friends, and I feel like I never have conversations about the technicalities of their religious views, but it comes up more with my Jewish friends, and it's always basically as much fun to chat about that with them as it is to chat about D&D with my D&D friends (which is a lot!)
toyg 6mo ago
Opus Dei is an issue but it's not the only 'cult within a cult' in the Catholic Church, not even the first. They just happen to be the most recent fashion. Popes have always had to balance the power and influence of this or that organization - franciscans, dominicans, benedictines, any one of these (and more) had to be contained at some point.

mturmon 6mo ago

I believe you are correct. The person who delivered this threat is a grandson of William Colby (ex-CIA director, ex-OSS, arch-Catholic). Elbridge Colby is also Catholic, and some of his religious beliefs factor into his policy preferences. Groton, Harvard BA, Yale Law, hard-to-get service medals. I’m not saying I like the guy, but his knowledge and background should not be underestimated as some nearby are doing.