😠 Although... if your productivity this week did *not* include destroying 2nd Century Roman sculpture as a US tourist crying "blasphemy!" at an Israeli museum...
Yeah, go ahead and call this week win for yourself. And thank you for not destroying parts of our collective history!
@MLClark
Another example in a long line of many in religion being a lead factor in mental disease.
@CinnamonGirlE @MLClark Religion is not a mental illness although this person's sense of entitlement might be. Before passing judgement I'd like to know two things: (1) what did the statue look like before the damage and (2) what do archaeologists think its purpose was. Both are conspicuously missing from the article. The Jerusalem Post is not above using yellow journalism to generate ad revenue at the cost of polarization.
Morning, Daniel! I'm not going to speak for Cinny, but I understand that seeing someone align religion with mental illness can be upsetting. A lot of secular folks are deeply frustrated by how many global conflicts, along with forms of domestic abuse, find their foundation in Abrahamic and Hindu texts. However, people find all sorts of lousy reasons to enact intolerance, and giving someone the excuse of their faith "making them do it" definitely detracts from personal agency. 👍
Also, interesting that you think there are times when "blasphemy" could justify destroying ancient history. Most won't agree with you, but it's striking that these are 2nd Century: from a time when Christian leaders were purging every Gnostic text they could find. Personally, I'm curious to see if this person is Jewish (Orthodox), or a vein of Evangelical Christian that appropriates Jewish custom. You certainly find enough of those visiting Israel to "prepare" for the end of days!
@MLClark I did not say that but there are a few civil war era statues that I wouldn't shed any tears over being destroyed. This American acted from a position of privilege or authority that they did not have. (I wonder if they ever visited ANY American museums.) They acted disrespectfully and destroyed an artifact from the past. Even if I disagree with an ancient practice, we are better off preserving the past so we can learn from it.
@MLClark I too am curious about the person's background but they're likely a far-right, pseudo-christian, MAGA-cult, poorly-educated, never-been-out-of-their-hometown snowflake. Reality is going to come as a shock.