Why are xtians so gullible?

[Michael Schubert]

Why can't they see that not just the ones who got caught -- but the conmen who have not yet been exposed like Ken Ham and Ray Comfort are just as sleazy and dishonest?

There's a sucker born again every minute.

[Jacob(smooth)]

True. It's swallowers who are difficult to find!

[CleanShavenJesus]

Our subject is Mike Warnke, author of the Satan Seller. This book describes Mike’s wacky adventures during his time attending a community college in San Bernardino, California. And this is the book that set the stage for the satanic panic.

In the novel, Mike describes going to college in which he is introduced to a witch’s coven and then rose through the ranks to become a high priest of an international satanic conspiratorial cult. Warnke then enlisted in the military, went to Viet Nam where he was “saved.” The Satan Seller, in a nutshell, is the saved-sinner scenario. It’s a book-length Chick tract. Within the Christian sub-culture Warnke made quite a name for himself. The popularity of the book launched a lucrative career for Mike as a stand-up comedian. Then in 1992 the publication of an article, an investigative report on Mike Warnke’s real history, toppled his whole gig. It turns out that the story, which Warnke claimed to be true, was all a steaming pile of shit.

In the 80s Warnke had a tremendous following of true believers -- why?

Why can't they see that not just the ones who got caught -- but the conmen who have not yet been exposed like Ken Ham and Ray Comfort are just as sleazy and dishonest?

It isn't because "the xtians are so gullible", it's because people, in general, are idiots.

If every Christian in the world was a follower of Warnke, you'd have more of a point.

[Raven]

I think that perhaps it fills an emotional need for your hard-core xtians to have evidence of a definite "threat". Put another way, if you've a bunch of crazy Satan worshipping conspirators running around out to upset the Lord's plan, they feel better, sort of a screwy validation for them. And maybe it provides an explanation to them for why society is so "Godless".

[ThePrimeSingularity]

In the novel, Mike describes going to college in which he is introduced to a witch’s coven and then rose through the ranks to become a high priest of an international satanic conspiratorial cult.

Why is it that Witches are always heaped together with Satanists? Satan/Lucifer is a Christian belief.... Satan is a "johnny-come-lately" compared to the Horned One and the Three-fold Goddess. (And for the record... I don't believe in ANY of 'em.)

[Jacob(smooth)]

In the novel, Mike describes going to college in which he is introduced to a witch’s coven and then rose through the ranks to become a high priest of an international satanic conspiratorial cult.

Why is it that Witches are always heaped together with Satanists? Satan/Lucifer is a Christian belief.... Satan is a "johnny-come-lately" compared to the Horned One and the Three-fold Goddess. (And for the record... I don't believe in ANY of 'em.)

Cos the bible lumps them all together as "the rest".

---

I think that perhaps it fills an emotional need for your hard-core xtians to have evidence of a definite "threat". Put another way, if you've a bunch of crazy Satan worshipping conspirators running around out to upset the Lord's plan, they feel better, sort of a screwy validation for them. And maybe it provides an explanation to them for why society is so "Godless".

You've cracked the case Holmes!

It's a strange quirk of society that people are much more likely to unite AGAINST something than FOR something. From the crusaders (the infidel) through the nazis (jews) to the modern religious right (homosexuality and abortion) almost any major populist movement is mainly defined and motivated by its antithesis rather than what it is FOR.

Lovers of George Orwell will remember 1984, emmanuel goldstein and the "two minute hate". In typically incisive fashion the book caricatures this tendency into a ritual. People need more than something to worship, the need something to deplore.


Satanists are just another in a line of boogey men. I don't doubt that they exist, you see some fucked up things on the news sometimes, but I imagine that for the most part it's another sop to the need we christians have to feel persecuted!

[tokutter]

In the novel, Mike describes going to college in which he is introduced to a witch’s coven and then rose through the ranks to become a high priest of an international satanic conspiratorial cult.

Why is it that Witches are always heaped together with Satanists? Satan/Lucifer is a Christian belief.... Satan is a "johnny-come-lately" compared to the Horned One and the Three-fold Goddess. (And for the record... I don't believe in ANY of 'em.)

Because christianity has got to dumb it down into a bumper sticker......that's about all the majority can handle.....christianity 101: make it repeatable........then.......repeat.....repeat.......repeat.....repeat......repeat.....repeat.......repeat.....repeat.......repeat.....repeat......repeat...repeat.......repeat.....repeat.......repeat.....repeat......repeat.....repeat


.

[ThePrimeSingularity]

Satanists are just another in a line of boogey men. I don't doubt that they exist, you see some fucked up things on the news sometimes, but I imagine that for the most part it's another sop to the need we christians have to feel persecuted!

http://www.religionfacts.com/satanism/ch..._satan.htm

Sure they exist! Or at least they did... I remember Anton LaVey appearing on a lot of talk shows in the 60's. Check out some of their stuff.... Pretty cool actually!

[Godlesspanther]

The former FBI agent who investigated these incidents has written an extensive report on it:

http://www.sacred-texts.com/pag/lanning.htm

It's actually a good read.

[Optimistic Mysanthrope]

LaVey was to satanism what Hovind is to science. The guy was a fucking nob. All he did was create a "philosophy" based on selfishness and package it with a load of bullshit psychodrama. He was just a twat with a ming the merciless fixation