I mentioned the other day that this low-class, low-rent, low-IQ fanatical fundie church was going to broadcast their version of Richard Dawkins’ funeral service. Well, it’s up.
Rarely will you find such a sterling example of the cretinous minds that fester like rotting mushrooms in the sickly, benevolent glow of Christianity. The preacher is awful: he is visibly reading from his script, and he can’t even do that competently. This is no St John Chrysostom; it’s a stumbling oaf who reads and writes like a pissed-off sixth-grader. The content is predictable, beginning with a few utterly insincere compliments, and descending quickly into gloating over the fact that the ‘deceased’ is now burning horribly in hell. And it ends with Dawkins in effigy, soaked in gasoline, and lit on fire while horrible screams play in the background.
Skip it. These are awful, evil, wretched people living a life of fear and anger.
Alec T says
Hmm…they really wasted a good suit with the burning of that effigy
Dan says
I feel let down. These are stock sound bytes. I’ve heard at least a few of them in low-budget video games already.
I mean really. The crazy overtones I can handle, but not stock sounds.
James says
I’m not in the mood to watch it, but here’s an idea: steel cage match between these guys and the Westboro Baptist Church! It’s the Rage in a Cage! Llllllet’s get ready to rrrrrumble!!!
Red Dragon says
Poor cat in the background got the crap scared out of him. Does this preacher remind you of Larry from Newheart? Where’s Daryl and his other brother Daryl?
Engima says
I’m lovin’ how the preacher can barely read his notes…
The Flying Trilobite says
I feel filthy just reading this post. I need a shower. Or a roll in the fresh snow.
I feel lucky to live at a time when Richard Dawkins and yourself, PZ, are at your best, calling evil what it is. Wretched indeed.
Grimalkin says
I wonder what the Biblical Jesus would say if he could see this… Compassion, embrace your enemy, turn the other cheek, don’t judge others because you have plenty to be judged for yourself, etc… Do you suppose these people have even read the Bible?
Helblindi says
I wonder if these people would appreciate a public burning of Christ’s effigy to balance things off…
Nightcap says
Why does this remind me so much of the Naughty Kitty-mouse from Alcott’s “Little Men”?
From Chapter 8:
Daisy and Demi were full of these whims, and lived in a world of their own, peopled with lovely or grotesque creatures, to whom they gave the queerest names, and with whom they played the queerest games. One of these nursery inventions was an invisible sprite called “The Naughty Kitty-mouse,” whom the children had believed in, feared, and served for a long time. They seldom spoke of it to any one else, kept their rites as private as possible; and, as they never tried to describe it even to themselves, this being had a vague mysterious charm very agreeable to Demi, who delighted in elves and goblins. A most whimsical and tyrannical imp was the Naughty Kitty-mouse, and Daisy found a fearful pleasure in its service, blindly obeying its most absurd demands, which were usually proclaimed from the lips of Demi, whose powers of invention were great. Rob and Teddy sometimes joined in these ceremonies, and considered them excellent fun, although they did not understand half that went on.
One day after school Demi whispered to his sister, with an ominous wag of the head,
“The Kitty-mouse wants us this afternoon.”
“What for?” asked Daisy, anxiously.
“A sackerryfice,” answered Demi, solemnly. “There must be a fire behind the big rock at two o’clock, and we must all bring the things we like best, and burn them!” he added, with an awful emphasis on the last words.
“Oh, dear! I love the new paper dollies Aunt Amy painted for me best of any thing; must I burn them up?” cried Daisy, who never thought of denying the unseen tyrant any thing it demanded.
“Every one. I shall burn my boat, my best scrapbook, and all my soldiers,” said Demi firmly.
“Well, I will; but it’s too bad of Kitty-mouse to want our very nicest things,” sighed Daisy.
RT says
“Do you suppose these people have even read the Bible?”
Well judging from that man’s reading skills, they probably got as far as god destroying everything in the flood and simply assumed the rest was similar and that was how you were meant to treat anyone different from you.
molecanthro says
complete nutcase. and i just watched the heath ledger one they did….which is one of the most distasteful things i’ve ever seen!!
they certainly scared the hell out of that cat in the dawkins video :) but that’s probably about it.
they’re ministry website is just nuts! king of terrors ministry?
i do think crap like that makes quasi-believers less likely to jump in with the crazies.
raven says
This is what happens when:
1. You live in the DFN somewhere and your parents are closely related.
2. You have little or no education.
3. The sherrif gets mad when you’ve been drinking and vandalize something.
4. You can’t burn down the black church because your cousins in the KKK already did that.
5. There is nothing good on TV and you are bored out of your mind.
6. There is nothing going on in your life and you have no future.
Just looking at near illiterate lost souls stuck in the 19th century with no way to get out and nothing to do.
Dutch Vigilante says
Pathetic little men, they are. I kinda hope some “Moderate” christians get unconfortable by this as well.. then they might see what all the fuss is about.
MAJeff says
I wonder what the Biblical Jesus would say if he could see this… Compassion, embrace your enemy, turn the other cheek, don’t judge others because you have plenty to be judged for yourself, etc… Do you suppose these people have even read the Bible?
And that part about killing a fig tree because it didn’t have anything for him, accepting him as the way or suffering an eternal gnashing of teeth, well, that’s no “nice Jesus” so we’ll skip it. And then I wonder if they read Paul, with all his hatred of the human body and intense misogyny….
Cuttlefish, OM says
The message from the pulpit
(well, the one I got) was this:
That hatred hooks like heroin,
And ignorance is bliss.
Hank Fox says
I hate all this terrorist-this and terrorist-that crap in the political rhetoric of recent years, but …
How is this NOT terrorism? I mean the thing contains a clear threat of murder in it, and it was deliberately broadcast so as to frighten Dawkins and every other freethinker alive, AND to tacitly encourage religious think-alikes to commit further such acts.
These guys are banjo-plucking idiots, but the intent behind what they’ve done is as clearly malignant as that of any serial killer.
Ryan says
Did anyone else notice the DOOM scream was used?
Matt LaCrosse says
This idiot represents the worst of Christian community. I’m no longer a practicing Christian. I still hope you don’t hold this type of thing against every Christian.
Dan says
It’s scenes such as this that make me wish we’d go back to the days when Christians were nothing more than lion chow. These are some first-class sick bastards.
Cathy in Seattle says
Dammit! ( clicked the link before I finished reading the rest of PZ’s note – to skip it.
Hank says
It’s a trainwreck. Campy production, bumbling delivery of lines and incredibly stupid script. Impossible to take seriously due to the sheer incompetence of the “yourfuneral” people.
Crudely Wrott says
Corny. Pure, unadulterated, 100%, USDA inspected and rejected corn.
Poor production. Unrehearsed and forced acting. Immature camera work. Lousy backgrounds. Uncertain continuity. Animal abuse (poor kitty). Ripped off sound effects. But the fire was not to bad. ‘Course, any idiot can start a fire. As demonstrated in this video.
Is this a trend? I mean are the god-botherers, finding their message of dog’s love increasingly ignored, subtly changing their message from one of hope and joy to one of despair and suffering? If so, is this due to their frustration and a growing sense of obsolescence or is it due to their true nature, hatred of humanity? Inquiring mids want to know.
danley says
Awsome! Fucking morons of the highest order. Is this the Bob Mathews crowd of Aryan Nations? gawwwwwwwwwdamn! aaaaawwwwww sheeet. I-d-i-o-t-s.
billybob says
I loved it, a fine example of life in the dark ages.
Would Richard Dawkins wear such a cheap suit?
Reminds me of the Blackadder witch smeller episode.
Avatar says
And people wonder why the US is a laughingstock. These guys are one more embarassment for us to live with.
Jeff Foxworthy once joked: “Southerners are just as smart as any other people. We just can’t keep the most ignorant among us off the television.”
Rick says
Just a quick note on the burning of Dawkins in Mythic hell. In Canada we do have a law in the Criminal Code against “Hate Speech” , This christian twaddle may well be illegal in Canada.
Chemist says
Baptists Behaving Badly. :-)
Must have studied at the Rev. Estus Pirkle School of Theology.
(Go to YouTube and search for Brother Estus. The save yesterday, the same today, the same tomorrow.
Amen.
Gobear says
Are we sure this isn’t performance art?
There’s no way anyone can take that primitive display of Jesusland “turn or burn” twaddle seriously, so this “Preaching Your Funeral” business has to be an elaborate lampoon of fundagelical superstition. The “preacher” in the video has to be the Stephen Colbert of fundamentalism, because such an over the top act can’t be viewed as anything other than satire.
Let’s get these guys an NEA grant and a performance space in the East Village!
Adam Nelson says
“Did anyone else notice the DOOM scream was used?”
That, and the “WELCOME!” thing was from Unreal Tournament, and the whole quote is “Welcome… to the funhouse!”
I sincerely hope they keep believing that such productions are actually helping their cause. Let these folks keep it up, and they’ll drive everybody else away!
p.s. Check out their Heath Ledger vid. Their comments about “f*g supporters” seem ripped directly from the WBC.
castletonsnob says
Charming.
Are they available for children’s parties?
Mike O'Risal says
Anyone who could be swayed in their thinking by this sort of infantilism wasn’t any good to society to begin with.
Peter Mc says
So that’s the result of incestuous couplings in a toxic waste lagoon. I always wondered.
colin says
well maybe Jesus will save home from the lung toxins he’s getting from
burning that plastic chair.
Rey Fox says
Railing against the abominations of homosexuality and atheism while using sound effects from violence-glorifying games. Ain’t that America?
Janine says
This is a bad idea for one very simple reason; it plays into their view that atheists see Richard Dawkins as a revered leader much as they see Jesus as their leader. This is a bad analogy. Many of us like and respect Dawkins but we are not his followers. It is best not to act in their misguided stereotypes.
Prazzie says
Grimalkin: “I wonder what the Biblical Jesus would say if he could see this…”
As a thief, liar and racist, I think he would’ve wholly endorsed this lot, depending on which Bible verse you’ll allow me to cherry pick! As for them reading the Bible – no, few of them ever advance beyond the children’s version, which relates only the middle parts of the sick stories. Then they grow up thinking Lot, Abraham and David were paragons of virtue. And then they act offended when I make gagging noises when they wish they could be just like God’s chosen ones of yore. (As far as I can tell, good Christian men should offer their virgin daughters up to be gang raped by mobs, deny their wives and claim them as sisters and sacrifice their first-born sons, unless rams suddenly appear. But I could be wrong.)
No need for the “skip it” warning, PZ, the initial post sickened me enough.
Janine says
Somethin’ to see!
MAJeff says
Just a reminder
Kristine says
Thanks for the summary; I’m not going to watch it. Too disturbing. The Heath Ledger condemned-to-hell was enough.
I guess hatred gives life meaning to ignoramuses who have nothing else to do with themselves.
Adrienne says
I bet this preacher has a pair of support-the-troops camo nutz hanging from his truck.
c says
My only question is, in the age of “terrorism”, could such a thing be legally actionable by Dawkins (if he cared which I’m sure he doesn’t)? Wouldn’t burning someone who is alive in effigy be something of a threat?
Cephus says
MSJeff writes: Just a reminder
Heck, if you’re going to do that, go for the version with video!
http://bitchspot.jadedragononline.com/?p=86
Hugh Williams says
Further proof that the only purpose of religion is to give it’s practitioners a false sense of importance.
Ebo Tebo says
What a bunch of fucktards!! They couldn’t poor piss from a boot with the instructions on the heel and a faucet at the toe!!
Ebo Tebo says
pour
Troylus says
I think this sort of thing is great fun! It reminds me of Halloween Hell Houses. They’re trying so hard to be SCARY that they come across like a B-grade horror-movie that is far more funny than frightening.
So, I posted a request to be burned in effigy in their Youtube comments. I think y’all should do the same!
Can you imagine their response if dozens of atheists came forward REQUESTING their very own spooky eulogy and fiery funeral service?
Lilly de Lure says
Just twenty seconds of the Heath Ledger one was all I could stand – do these people have any sense of decency at all?
kristen in montreal says
This is one of the sickest things I’ve ever seen.
RT says
“I still hope you don’t hold this type of thing against every Christian.”
Don’t worry. I got a pretty good view of the “average christian” (at least in britain) from the 12 or so years my mother made me go to church.
95% were over 65, and they just complained about anything new/different. Religion hardly ever came up. It was just a social coffee morning for the Methodist version of the Womens’ Institute. They got concerned about the lack of young people, yet whenever we tried anything to encourage people to join they just moaned.
Shelama says
Jesus would roll over in his grave if he ever found out what even the very best of Christianity and the Christ Myth had done to him. These clowns would get the “Get thee behid me, Satan” treatment.
October Mermaid says
Hey, good news! One of the, uh, “members” (and they ARE pretty big members if you know what I’m saying. Yeah, you know what I’m saying.) has hinted that he may set up an interview for me with the, erm, “head member” so that they can do a funeral video for me.
Apparently they want to branch out to average folk. I kind of doubt it’ll go through, since I’m not notable, but I would really get a huge kick out of it if they did it.
RamblinDude says
You do have a way with words, don’t you? : )
phantomreader42 says
Hank Fox #16:
It’s not terrrism because they’re talking about Jebus instead of Allah. The dangerous, scary terrrists are identified by their religion, not their actions. How could burning someone in effigy or threatening murder or planting bombs be terrrism if good god-fearing christians did it?
And Lilly de Lure #47:
At long last, have they left no sense of decency?
RamblinDude says
These are some well meaning guys who are just trying to do the Lord’s work the best they can. Those who don’t believe in Jesus are going to burn in hell–FOR ALL OF ETERNITY!!. If this scares people into believing then more power to them. (/channeling the real thoughts of a typical American fundamentalist Christian) Blechh..ack..ptooie, ptooie…shudder…so… c c cold….
Buffy says
LOL. It’s like he’s a low-budget version of Fred Phelps who hates atheists.
Buffy says
LOL. It’s like he’s a low-budget version of Fred Phelps who hates atheists.
foxfire says
@ #4 Red Dragon – I saw the poor cat too!. The dude was rambling on and I was watching the cat – he interrupted its investigation of the puddle. Anyway, thanks to ERV’s “Life on the Delist” blog entry, I posted this response on YouTube for the video:
These people are so warped….
Joe says
“fester like rotting mushrooms…”
You have horribly insulted mushrooms! Our nearest non-animal relatives! I, for one, am deeply offended.
Jennifer says
That was hysterical!
These guys live in terror of a god who’s such a pussy that he has to rely on slack-jawed morons to attack anyone who believes differently? Things like this merely underline the lack of rationality that allows fundamentalist religion to cripple second-rate minds.
Scott Hatfield, OM says
You know, I’m in my 40’s, and I must still be in some ways the most gullible person I know. Despite being a Christian, despite having quite a bit of familiarity with the lunatics who inhabit many churches, I still retain the capacity of being absolutely stunned in the face of stuff like this. I suppose I should know better, but I honestly just can’t understand the mind of anyone who would do this, how they could possibly imagine that anything so vile and low-rent would provoke a positive response of any kind. I’m a babe in the woods where these types are concerned, yet I already long for my lost ignorance.
TX CHL Instructor says
Christianity may indeed be hateful and ridiculous. But they are not the most hateful, nor are they the most ridiculous. The prize for most hateful goes to Islam, and for most ridiculous, Scientology.
Burrow Owl says
>Charming.
>Are they available for children’s parties?
>Posted by: castletonsnob |
Now where have I heard that before? ;)
Stewart Ware says
This is obviously a parody of a fundie. We need more of these: it’s only fair; the fundies are always making parodies of evil atheists.
James says
Man you know these dirt bags would just love to be able to drop the word effigy from this event. The good old days of burning witches beckon these dimwits.
AJS says
TX CHL Instructor wrote:
You speak as though christianity, islam and scientology were distinct concepts. They are not. All monotheist religions are equivalent. It is from the ideas that there is exactly one god, that this one god must be worshipped exactly as per their ancient holy books and that anyone who deviates from this prescription is evil, that all their problems stem.
holbach says
Incredible! This only proves that all the morons afflicted
with insanity are not locked up. Even a religious person
with some semblance of sanity can perceive that this
ranting idiot is projecting a picture of religious
insanity run amock. Even the cat had to run away from this
raging insane rabble.
robhoofd says
It’s like listening to an eight-year-old hick-to-be reading his first book with words with more than two syllables.
How can they feel so superior when clearly these ‘funerals’ have no other function than to express hatred and discontempt toward people who say things they don’t like? These nutcases are like the Ku Klux Klan for atheists.
Whatever the case, I’m really jealous of Richard Dawkins. Funerals are expensive these days, and he just gets a free ride. Yay for being a militant atheist!
robhoofd says
Oh, and LOL @ the cheap sound effects.
Graculus says
In Canada we do have a law in the Criminal Code against “Hate Speech”
The “hate speech” law only applies to identifiable groups, and it pretty strictly defined. The law (as in, “Criminal Code”) is a wee bit different from civil actions undertaken before the HRC, and people get them mixed up.
As Dawkins is an individual, this one would fall under good old-fashioned “uttering”. I assume that there are similar laws in the US of A.
PiscusFiche says
Oh, man, that poor kitty cat.
…
One thing I noticed is that the preacher man says that Richard Dawkins most heinous sin is his public disbelief of the god of Christianity. Which reminds me of the quote from the jacket flap of the God Delusion that reminds us that most men are atheists to most religions, atheists just do them one god better.
Fundie Christians really are narcissists. It’s all about them and their god.
g says
AJS: Scientology, last I heard, doesn’t have gods at all, and in particular isn’t a monotheistic religion in the mould of Christianity or Islam. It is, however, possibly the craziest religion in the world, despite the stiff competition.
Elwood Herring says
PiscusFiche: “Fundie Christians really are narcissists. It’s all about them and their god.”
Absolutely.
Isaac Asimov used to say that whenever anyone asked him if he believed in god, he’d ask “Whose?” He knew that the asker of the question is always inquiring if you believe in THEIR god, and his reply cleverly made that point in a single word.
Since some religious types use the argument that atheism is “just another belief”, my answer to that same question should make the point that I don’t believe in either “A” god or “NO” god. Belief doesn’t come into the equation at all. So I reply innocently; “What’s a god?”
That throws ’em!
Skwee says
If I were Richard Dawkins, I would see this as a death threat. I mean, how is it not?