I also would like to think that Lestat, rather than Frodo, might be the new Jesus Christ. The same way that the Vampire Chronicles, the new Bible and Anne Rice, the new God. It just feels sexier that way. The emotional part of The Vampire Chronicles feels so real that you might think that vampires do actually exist. Each book was well written enough to portray the very dept of each character – kindness, loneliness, pain, corruptness and savagery. You always stop and think that somehow, they are human-like, yet at the same time, not at all.

But then again, I think that The Lord of the Rings would fit the Bible-like image more than The Vampire Chronicles – probably due to the good-vs-evil sort of thing, more than anything else.

I remembered those days back in my early years in college. When Chette and Philip met Ran-nii, and got them converted to Christianity, there were so much drama going on that things became way too serious that I kinda got annoyed, but decided to simply stepped down. "It was their choice to begin with, they looked happy with it, so let them be." was what was in my thoughts and remained quiet. Freedom of self-expression is the one thing I wanted to grant to people around me, at least.

Several months after that, things started to settle down. Yet, to my surprise, I found Ran-nii (that friend who converted Chette and Philip to Christianity) posting in the Pinoy Atheists group. I got curious and started to wonder why would somebody of that status (religious-wise), post in the group. I simply welcomed him to the group and left him alone since I don't want to get myself involved with their religious drama. And then, several months later, he told me that he officially converted from an Agnostic to an Atheist.

Isn't it ironic?

Last Saturday morning, we received a call from my cousin, Yan that our grandmother was sent to the ER. Luckily, I was done with the moving, arranging and cleaning of my stuffs to my new pad that Friday night. We rushed to the hospital to find out what happened and how she's doing so far. When we arrive, she can't move nor speak. Her eyes were open but she doesn't recognize us. It's as if she doesn't even see us. We stayed there for a few hours and left right after. While on the way home, I thought that feeling that same pain was very quick to hit me back. I'm on that edge of being helpless again where I can't do anything but stay silent and wait for the results. The feeling of those hours were like years and waiting for those decade-like days were painful that it nulled my entire body. Then and there, it reminded me of that same thought I was having - on this same situation, would I end up kneeling down and pray?

Then, the next day, as we were talking with my cousin, she was saying that at worst case, she could end up in a comma. If that would be the case, she says, she would be better off dead than in pain. I agree to her point that if she would live the remains of hr life in pain, it would be better for her to just die instead of suffer, but of course, I remained silent. My mom, however, disagreed and went on a rampage. She said, who are we to question what God has decided. God gave her life, who are we to just take it like that. I wanted to tell her that if God gave her a life where she suffers so much pain and she doesn't even have a choice but to just accept it, where she can't even move for a fact, then God is cruel. But of course, like usual, I remained silent. As they were arguing in the phone, I left to take a bath. As I was in deep thoughts and wondering what would happen in a few days and thought if somewhere deep inside me, do I still believe in God? After a while of thinking, as I was drying myself, I realized that a divine being, no matter how small or big something came to me, is something I will no longer have faith in. Evey single thing, no matter the size of it, it will need our own efforts, our own strength to go through and putting it all up to a divine being would be the same as having someone by your side. Having God hear your burdens is the same as sharing your pains with your friends and family. To make it simpler, it's like wanting someone to hear you and be there for you to make you feel a little better.

Then and there, I thought that if God was real, I would feel pity over him. That people just call unto him whenever it is convenient for them. When people are at the edge of everything else, they would remember to call his name, other than that, it's as if, he isn't even there.

PS: My grandma's fine now. :)

Will someone tell me why a god wouldn’t do something as simple as that to prevent the existence of infidels and thus human barbecues in hell? I mean, dude.
- Martin's post Dear God.

You see, God is a great marketing strategist. Of course, because He is God. Since he created everything your eyes could see, everything your nose can smell, everything your ears could hear, everything your skin could feel and everything your hands would touch. To make it short, damn everything! And because he is such an omni-everything, thinking of a good marketing plan is as easy as kicking a lifeless stone lying around your path. And so he thought of a good plan to promote himself and he gave us this thing called "freedom." (I would like to emphasize the word "FREE.") This "freedom" gives us the ability to choose. We can choose weather to believe in Him or not. (I would like to point out that not believing doesn't mean denying.) But of course, like any other product promotion, it has a catch. Of course, there is no such thing as giving without getting something in return. The mere idea of it is just plain stupid. Anyway, here's the catch: if you choose to believe in him, you would be entitled with a free ticket to heaven. But of course, this ticket still depends on how you lived your life on Earth. If you broke the promo mechanics a.k.a. the Ten Commandments, that ticket wont be awarded to you. And of course, if you did not believe in him, there's no ticket for you. Nyeh. Therefore, you'll die suffering in the fires of hell for all eternity. Very easy to follow conditions, no? Even if you're not educated, you would still be able to understand. But then since I am a person with a limited logical capability, a.k.a. a retard, all those would mean the same thing to me as "Love me/believe in me or suffer forever in the fires of hell."

Oh and since we're talking about hell, Satan is promoting his new and improved oven that would fit about 500 trillion people inside. He said, he was expecting a lot in his door by the time the world ends so he'll have the need for a few thousands more of such ovens so the other ovens are still under construction.

If you want a demonstration, just follow these 3 easy steps:

1. Get a knife. The sharper, the better.
2. Stab yourself. Anywhere is fine just make sure you die, okay? Half dead and under a vegetable state in a hospital doesn't count. If in case your hands start to shiver, even before you stab yourself, better give it up because you're a wuss. You can try again later, however.
3. Wait until the end of the world comes. I'm pretty sure, someone will pick you up or better yet, you'll fall?

Look, I have nothing against you nor I have anything against Iglesia ni Cristo people. And frankly, I don't even give a damn about your religion.

You don't understand me because you are born and raised as an INC and I suspect you would even die an INC. Since you were young, you were taught tirelessly by the people around you that God is good, God is the omni-everything in this world, and that when the world comes to and end, you would have an eternal bliss. You would not feel pain nor suffering. And God himself will welcome you with arms wide open to His kingdom in heaven. But, if you aren't one from those few chosen people, you would drown in the rain of fire, when the world comes to an end. You would cry endlessly in pains of burnt. All you would hear are the screaming voices of people in agony of the same fate you are facing. The blood the comes our of your cuts would never heal. You will witness your very body slowing rotting away as the worms eat your flesh slowly. Ah... err... *ahem* I think, I went a little too far there. But you get the idea. To make it simpler, you would feel exactly how chickens feels when you try to barbecue them alive.

Anyway, back to what I was saying, since you were a child, you were taught things like that. Unlike you, I wasn't originally born a Christian. I was a Buddhist originally. In fact, according to my grandmother, she made me a godchild of her bodhisattva, Guan Yin. My grandmother is a faithful follower of her and drags me to temples every time. Every single day at 6 pm, I got up at the small temple built at the top of our house to pray to her. But then sometimes, you have to grow up and decide for yourself. You have to learn to be on your own. You have to believe in things you believe and not because you were brainwashed that way.

Did you even once had the initiative to question what is given to you? You're like a child being given a bottle of acid and drank it straight without even knowing what it was or asking if you could drink it. So I lack the faith, huh? Then I would have to correct you there. It's not that "I lack the faith", rather, "I don't have it" in the first place. Also, you don't have that right to tell me that I lack faith. Someone who just say yes and nods their heads always in agreement to what an elder or a pastor says, who has never even doubted or questioned what he believes in, who never even think or feel if they are even right or wrong has no such right to tell people who arrived at their conclusion that they are wrong.

In my opinion, there was never right or wrong. It's all about acceptance of what each of us believes in. Why does the fact of me being an atheist bothers you so much as to try to "rebuke" me in the most senseless manner? I am shutting my mouth up for that fact that I am an atheist. But, it doesn't mean that I am denying the fact that I am one nor it means that I wouldn't rebuke you. It doesn't bother me that you are an INC, a Born Again Christian, an Evangelist, a Wiccan, a Satanist or whatever. Why would it bother me anyway? Bluntly, who the hell do you think you even are so that I would need to be bothered? O_o

Just a friendly advise, friend, you keep your God to yourself and put Him out again if the topic arises or when someone asks you. For a fact, I am not even asking. I am actually not even interested. If you believe in the existence of God, then so be it. You don't have to rub it to me that your God exists. I don't believe that your God exist nor any other gods exists. I believe that God merely exists because people wanted him to, people needed him to. God is a proof of our existence. But we are not proof of His existence. And that;s my opinion, and I'm not rubbing it to you.

Pls read Acts 15:28 and Leviticus 17:10-12. If you have your Bible at home.. Would you still eat blood or "dinuguan?"

Of course I have a Bible at home. My Bible is well kept, clean of dust and put up nicely in my shelf. It's one of my so-called valued possessions like any other of my mythology books. Before I would answer that hanging question of still wanting to eat blood, I would like to point out that I am fond of eating blood, internal organs (even brains, yes), exotic dishes, raw and half cooked stuffs simply because they taste good (at least for me). That is also safe to say the Dinuguan is one of my favorite Filipino dish.

Now, to explain what the heck a Dinuguan is, Dinuguan, for all Filipinos are aware of, is a kind of Filipino dish on which, pork blood is cooked with some pork meat and chili and made into stew. For more info, read this and don't ask me for a recipe.

Going back to the topic at hand, let me post what the King James Bible has to say with the verses left for me.

Acts 15:28:

²⁸ For it seemed good to the Holy Ghost, and to us, to lay upon you no greater burden than these necessary things;

Given that first statement, I couldn't even sleep properly thinking about what relation does it have to do with "blood." So in conclusion, I still do not get why that statement.

Leviticus 17:10-12:

¹⁰ And whatsoever man there be of the house of Israel, or of the strangers that sojourn among you, that eateth any manner of blood; I will even set my face against that soul that eateth blood, and will cut him off from among his people.

¹¹ For the life of the flesh is in the blood: and I have given it to you upon the altar to make an atonement for your souls: for it is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul.

¹² Therefore I said unto the children of Israel, No soul of you shall eat blood, neither shall any stranger that sojourneth among you eat blood.

That said, I would accept that his reasoning for not eating blood is because, God says so. Therefore, as an obedient child, one must heed his fathers words. Although, if you would read the later verses 13-15, you would have a clear explanation of why the Bible says so. I guess it's a form of respect to every living being not to eat their blood. For according the Bible, eating a blood of no matter what being it is, it would mean that you are cutting off of his life because his life/soul lies within it's blood.

Thus, I concluded, on this day forth, I would continue to eat blood, in respect to all beings of the Earth. This would mean that I am cutting their life/soul and they will suffer no more for the sake of this eternally damned world. And such is my way of kindness.

You see, the moment you were born is this world, the moment your first cry was heard, is that very moment that you are bound to invisible chains that binds you to this world - chains that binds you to sin, suffering and misery. Even if you reach your death, you would still be kept bounded to this world. And if what the Bible said was true, I would gladly eat your blood. For in that moment, a mere me, a sinful me, could at least free you of those chains.

I wouldn't care less if God's children couldn't see my empathy on this, but as an Atheist, I love other things more than I love God.

- edit -

Err.. I just received a text message from Gabby saying that he's given me a wrong verse. *lol* Here's the right one.

Acts 15:29:

²⁹ You are to abstain from food sacrificed to idols, from blood, from the meat of strangled animals and from sexual immorality. You will do well to avoid these things. Farewell.

How would you know if the food served to you was from a strangled animal? Define "sexual immorality." How would you know if something is sexually immoral and not? Does that include S+M? "You will do well to avoid such things" would be a good advice, though. :)

Quran 9:11 - For it is written that a son of Arabia would awaken a fearsome Eagle. The wrath of the Eagle would be felt throughout the lands of Allah and lo, while some of the people trembled in despair still more rejoiced; for the wrath of the Eagle cleansed the lands of Allah; and there was peace.

This is not a fact. That "eagle" is not the United States of America, that 9:11 thing is not the September 11, and there were no peace. Peace didn't exist then and never will. Therefore, peace cannot be achieved. Period. It only exists in idealist's dreams. These "facts" are all a hoax. It's just some damn gossip from some cheap chain letter who's started by some anonymous someone who doesn't have a life. So don't believe it. The orginal context of the Quran 9:11 clearly says differently and the topic is way too different.

But if they repent and keep up prayer and pay the poor-rate, they are your brethren in faith; and We make the communications clear for a people who know. (Original Quran 9:11)

Besides, this is another one of those old chain letters I recieve once in a while and deleted for like, a thousand (of course, exaggerated) times already. Also, if you plan to argue with me, please make sure I would benefit something from it. If it would be just another one of those, "come back to the bright side", no thank you.

To you! You know who you are! Shut up and read. What do you care if I do not believe in God? For so you know, I do not even believe there exists one! You can flame me all you want, rage me. I'll take it. But never mock me for it. Those flame e-mails are always the priority in my mailbox. I always read them first because they honestly make my day. I read them when I'm stressed out, I read them when I am not in a good mood. Because they always leave me with a smile.

Don't you dare educate me about God and tell me I am close-minded. What do you know about your God? You don't even know your bible. You dont read it. You don't even pray. You pray only when you need him. What do you think of you God? An operator - that will answer your ever call? Your nanny - that would reach everything to you? Your house helper - that you call and ask for anything whenever you need something? You guidance councilor - that you would go into whenever you need someone? If I would be you God, I would not feel sad but rather, I would pity you. At least, even though I am an atheist, I read the bible, every other day. I just don't pray.

Isn't it more painful that you have to hear this from an Atheist? And, a proud one at that.

You hypocrite! First take the log out of your own eye, and then you will be able to see clearly to take the speck out of your brothers eye. (Mat 7:5)

Oh, hell is such as sweet place and I even belong to the 5th level. Come with me? ;)

Person: I'm ready to receive my judgement, God.
God: I know. I'm omni-everything, you know.
Person: ...
God: Do you believe in me?
Person: Yes.
God: Do you love me?
Person: Since you are God, lying would be useless, so no. I just believe in you because I'm afraid.
God: You know, I drowned an entire population in a mega high flood because they don't believe in me. I burned my creation in the fires of hell and let them suffer through eternity because they don't love me.
Person: God, you're ruthless.
God: How dare you, you infidel! I am your creator and you are merely a creation. Be thankful I even gave you your freewill to decide whether to love me or suffer the consequences of not loving me.
Person: God damn it, God! Do I even have a choice?
God: Thou shalt not use my name in vain. Didn't I wrote that in an ancient stone?
Person: Ooops...
God: Here's another one for you Satan.
Satan: Thanks God, you've been very kind.

Judgement Day Scrore Board
Day - 2
God - 0
Satan - 199,999,987,759,456

And so people, should you fail something, blame yourself for your own faults. How dare you blame God for your faults! How very inconsiderate of you blaming something who doesn't even exists. Considering the fact that it was your irresponsibility that lead you to that situation.