What do you think about this?

[Kathryn]

I think they're saying the wrong prayer. LOL

 

[9-10ths_Penguin]

I think they're saying the wrong prayer. LOL

I guess they're non-denominational.

The three graces I've been made to memorize were the one used by my Catholic ex-in-laws ("Bless us, o Lord, with these thy gifts from thy bounty through Christ our lord. Amen"), and then two used by my Baptist grandmother. One for everyday use ("for what we are about to receive, may we be truly thankful. For Christ's sake, Amen") and for special occasions, the Selkirk Grace.

 

[Clizby Wampuscat]

What do you think about this image?
View attachment 90557

It is ok to be thankful for what you have even if others don't have it. I think the point being made here is not about the family but about the god they are praying to. Why would he feed one family but not another if he is good and great? If I do not feed my children when I have the resources to, there would be no reason to think I was a good or great father. Realistically what can that family do to help all the starving children in the world, but their god can feed them all if he wants to.

If you are part of the Christian faith this verse comes to mind: (Matthew 6:28-34)

“So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not [c]arrayed like one of these. Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?

“Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.

I think the children in that picture above are justified to be worried about tomorrow and what they will eat.

 

[Gargovic Malkav]

I see quite a bit of danger in people with means writing off suffering of others as "things they can't control."

Yes, apathy can be a bad thing.
The same could be said about ambition, though.

I'm not sure what saying grace before eating would have to do with finding inner peace.

You couldn't swing a cat on RF without hitting a dozen people who probably say grace before meals but are far from peaceful.

Tell me about it..
I doubt such a ritual magically heals them of all their vices, but I believe it can be helpful.

What does that have to with something being fair or just?

Take the argument in mind of what I said before about the difference between individual opinions and divinity.
It's a form of mindfulness I suppose.

Oh, I agree. I think most people who say grace before eating don't put much thought into it - it's just a habit that they were trained to do.

... but the meme invites us to reflect a bit on the actual meaning behind the practice.

The meme insinuates an irony and/or hypocrisy in such a practice.
I think such memes tend to appeal to those who already have an ax to grind with religion and therefore have more of an effect of complementing one's own perceived superiority and to preach to the choir rather that it encourages people to be more reflective and less apathetic.
I do not believe such things are helpful in bringing out the best in people when such memes are taken seriously.

 

[Madsaac]

Do you ever ask yourself, What am I doing, to address the injustice in the world? Or do you just point the finger at others?

I do sometimes and probably not enough but the the thing I have trouble understanding is that the people praying, a snapshot of the western Christian, think that a prayer is enough to make god satisfied, knowing there are children suffering and in pain.

I think god would be looking at this family and thinking, 'you have to be kidding'

If you believe that you will have eternal happiness in heaven shouldn't you give much, much more than what the typical western family does. And I know your answer will probably be yes but like me, you don't. So what's the point of believing..................

So this meme, shows to me what a half baked religion, Christianity is. And shows that for people like me (bred a catholic) to think of Christianity in this way, shows that Christianity will be dead in a couple of hundred years

 

[Madsaac]

How do you know?



Do you think that it is the Christians that are causing the suffering and not other people or organizations? why?



Above, the fault was the Christians. Now it is God. Where are you in the picture?

Neither…

Mankind

You tell non believers that god is the way. If this is true then I think western Christians should wear the inequalities of the world more than non believers because they believe in god.

And this meme demonstrates that western Christians think that a prayer for their abundance helps, when in reality, all it does, is make them feel good. There is no direct positive result from a thankful prayer, maybe except to help with their guilt?

Do something more purposeful, more than what you're doing now. Wouldn't god want that?

 

[Madsaac]

I tend to compare it more as to why people often say that forgiving someone can be for the benefit of the one you forgive, but is mostly for the benefit of yourself.
It makes it easier to find peace in yourself and to better deal with the things you can't control.
Saying grace can have a similar effect.
Finding inner peace tends to make people more empathetic and altruistic IME.

Yeah, it does help with ones inner peace but doesn't do much for anyone else.

What do you think god would prefer, your inner peace or help with starvation?

 

[Spice]

And on a lighter note:

 

[Madsaac]

Right.

We're not allowed to be thankful for anything in our lives if all other humans don't have what we have. We should all be miserable ingrates, apparently. Never give thanks, never celebrate anything, never take stock of our blessings, ever, under any circumstances. Joy is BANNED.

Please, of course you are, the meme indicates that it's cheap to have a thankful prayer for their overabundance when there is so much suffering in the world.

Some may say, a snapshot of what western Christianity is all about...cheap?

 

[Kenny]

You tell non believers that god is the way. If this is true then I think western Christians should wear the inequalities of the world more than non believers because they believe in god.

And how do you know they don’t?

And this meme demonstrates that western Christians think that a prayer for their abundance helps, when in reality, all it does, is make them feel good. There is no direct positive result from a thankful prayer, maybe except to help with their guilt?

opinion and opinionated

Do something more purposeful, more than what you're doing now. Wouldn't god want that?

And what is it that I do? And, also, what is it that you do since in the measure that you judge you shall be judged (according to my signature)

 

[9-10ths_Penguin]

The meme insinuates an irony and/or hypocrisy in such a practice.

Accurately, IMO.

I think such memes tend to appeal to those who already have an ax to grind with religion and therefore have more of an effect of complementing one's own perceived superiority and to preach to the choir rather that it encourages people to be more reflective and less apathetic.

Maybe. Does that make it false?

I do not believe such things are helpful in bringing out the best in people when such memes are taken seriously.

It seems to me that encouraging someone with hypocritical beliefs to engage in self-reflection has pretty good odds of leading to some good.

And again: even if you don't personally see it as useful, does that make it false?

 

[Kenny]

16 Then He spoke a parable to them, saying: “The ground of a certain rich man yielded plentifully. 17 And he thought within himself, saying, ‘What shall I do, since I have no room to store my crops?’ 18 So he said, ‘I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build greater, and there I will store all my crops and my goods.19 And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years; take your ease; eat, drink, and be merry.” ’ 20 But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul will be required of you; then whose will those things be which you have provided?’

21 “So is he who lays up treasure for himself,and is not rich toward God.”

I think this parable gives a great perspective…

God did His part when He blessed our capacity for surely we have enough harvest to feed everyone who is in need on the face of this earth And still have plenty for himself

But man, in his covetousness, doesn’t want to share the blessing and be rich towards God by being generous towards man.

So the fault is on man’s side and not God’s.

 

[Kenny]

Accurately, IMO.


Maybe. Does that make it false?



It seems to me that encouraging someone with hypocritical beliefs to engage in self-reflection has pretty good odds of leading to some good.

And again: even if you don't personally see it as useful, does that make it false?

And if you don’t see it as useful, does that make it true?

I saw it as useful because, as I viewed it, I see the family with a Compassion International pictures of children they are helping and I see their giving towards the homeless, and their support for “Feed the World” Ministries even as they are giving thanks and praying for those who are hungry

 

[Debater Slayer]

What do you think about this image?
View attachment 90557

One of my first thoughts on it is that it uses a stereotype about starving African kids to advance an anti-religious argument. I don't appreciate that; Africa's (or anyone else's) struggles are not a football to use for scoring points in religious debates.

That aside, I'm largely indifferent to it. I think it's understandable that someone who believes in a tri-omni deity who oversees the universe is going to thank said deity for perceived good fortune in their life. I don't see the abovementioned prayer as an issue, and even if I did, it would be way down the list of issues I would be focused on criticizing or worrying about.

 

[9-10ths_Penguin]

And if you don’t see it as useful, does that make it true?

I think you mixed up me and the poster I replied to. I think the meme both speaks to a true point and is useful, but I don't think that it's true because it's useful.

I saw it as useful because, as I viewed it, I see the family with a Compassion International pictures of children they are helping and I see their giving towards the homeless, and their support for “Feed the World” Ministries even as they are giving thanks and praying for those who are hungry

So... you imagine that the white Christian family donates to a Christian charity (hopefully not a "Rice Christianity" organization), so this makes them not hypocritical?

 

[Curious George]

I think a lot of this represents the profound disconnect between the opulent, insular West and the far less affluent developing world. We're disconnected by distance, geography, and geopolitics - among other things.

Whether or not people are "doing enough to solve the problem" is itself a difficult question to resolve.

The Christian family in the picture thanking God for a nice meal is thousands of miles away from where those starving children might happen to be. If those starving kids were right outside their front door, I'm sure they probably would have taken them in and fed them. But since they're so far away, what can they do, realistically?

These are issues that have to be decided by governments, and in the case of the Western democracies, "not doing enough" could be defined as not supporting the politicians who have political views directed towards solving these and many other such problems facing our world.

I would defer the question of "who" is to blame. I would say we're seeing the consequences of conflicting values and various forms of ideological intransigence where people become somewhat arrogant and overconfident into believing that their way of thinking and their ideological faction is better than others.

So, rather than make any honest effort to reach a solution, many people choose to fight whatever they see as "enemies," "unbelievers," "deplorables," etc. This is especially true in many parts of the world which have been heavily exploited and political unstable, susceptible to civil war, outside agitation, and/or military coups. It's in those kinds of situations where we see most of these horrific, tragic pictures of starving children.

If there is a God who created all of this, then one might observe some design flaws which, hypothetically, could be blamed on the "designer," if there is a designer. Barring that, then, yes, it is a human problem that has to be resolved by humans.

I think that is a good analysis and exposition, but I think the meme itself is a pot shot at Christians who match up with the culture of the top picture.

 

[Kenny]

I think you mixed up me and the poster I replied to. I think the meme both speaks to a true point and is useful, but I don't think that it's true because it's useful.

the reality is that the point can be taken in different ways. It is the half empty or half full glass of water

So... you imagine that the white Christian family donates to a Christian charity (hopefully not a "Rice Christianity" organization), so this makes them not hypocritical?

I didn’t look at race - I only saw Christians… why did you?

The only hypocrisy I saw is how people rant and rave about hypocrisy making themselves hypocritical if they don’t do enough themselves.

 

[We Never Know]

Right.

We're not allowed to be thankful for anything in our lives if all other humans don't have what we have. We should all be miserable ingrates, apparently. Never give thanks, never celebrate anything, never take stock of our blessings, ever, under any circumstances. Joy is BANNED.

That's kinda what I was thinking.
Don't be thankful you can walk because some can't walk.
Don't be thankful you woke up this morning because some didn't wake up.
Don't be thankful etc etc.

 

[9-10ths_Penguin]

That's kinda what I was thinking.
Don't be thankful you can walk because some can't walk.
Don't be thankful you woke up this morning because some didn't wake up.
Don't be thankful etc etc.

It's more "if you're thankful that you can walk, thanking the entity who decided someone else shouldn't walk is pretty self-serving."

 

[We Never Know]

It's more "if you're thankful that you can walk, thanking the entity who decided someone else shouldn't walk is pretty self-serving."

Ah... Then in your eyes no one should be thankful because everyone is different.