God will sort it out...

[Gob]

A COMIC strip that tells children who are bullied to pray, because teachers are too lazy and callous to help them unless God intervenes, was advertised as a ''resource'' by the group that teaches Christian education classes in primary schools.

The cartoon has enraged teachers, who claim they have been vilified by Christian education provider Access Ministries, and reignited debate over the controversial special religious instruction program.

Experts also warn it sends the wrong message to children and undermines the education department's anti-bullying guidelines, which urge students to seek help from teachers.




The comic strip, You're Asking for It, features a brutish teacher who is indifferent to the suffering of a student whose head was flushed down a toilet by school bullies. The teacher only reluctantly punishes the bully after God intervenes. The comic strip, by Rene Pfitzner, says ''Luke 18: Jesus told them all a story to show they should keep praying to God.''

Until mid this week it was available to download for $2 from the ''resource shop'' on the website of Access Ministries, which runs 96 per cent of special religious instruction classes in Victorian primary schools.

The comic strip was pulled from the website after Melbourne teacher Mike Stuchbery described it as ''offensive to hard-working teachers'', ''anti-educational'' and ''dangerous'' on a high-profile blog.

''It tells children that the adults around them are not to be trusted and that the only way to save themselves from persecution is a prayer,'' he wrote.

''What other destructive messages are being imparted to our children? This rubbish demonstrates that Access Ministries need to have their funding revoked.''

The state government - which announced in this week's budget it would provide an extra $200,000 a year to Access Ministries for chaplaincy services in government schools - said it did not endorse use of the cartoon.

''I believe the cartoon is a regrettable error of judgment on the part of Access Ministries,'' Education Minister Martin Dixon said. ''I appreciate just how hard-working and dedicated our teachers are and how committed they are to stamping out bullying.''

Read more: http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/teach ... z1LW1s474k

[Crackpot]

Of What are you speaking? the content of the article or your double post?

[Gob]

LOL!! God sorted the double post He works in mysterious mouse clicks,.

[Timster]

Sad indeed. But God will sort it out. Trust in the Lord asshopper(not a typo.) ; and all these things shall be added unto you. See? Sarcasm is good!

Another fucking tempest in a PC tea pot.

OH! And it's called a "Swirley" Get with the program...

[loCAtek]

Right, God told me to swirley you, it's in the Bible ...I think.

[thestoat]

I think they should ask god for help. Judging by past actions, he'll not only kill the bullies but murder their entire town too ...

Then the people of Israel made this vow to the LORD: "If you will help us conquer these people, we will completely destroy all their towns." The LORD heard their request and gave them victory over the Canaanites. The Israelites completely destroyed them and their towns, and the place has been called Hormah ever since.

Numbers 21:2-3

Don't mess with God

[thestoat]

Mind you, seems that the poor bullied might be better to stay clear, incase he then gets angry with them. Seems to have a bit of a temper if things don't go his way ...

The LORD himself will send against you curses, confusion, and disillusionment in everything you do, until at last you are completely destroyed for doing evil and forsaking me. The LORD will send diseases among you until none of you are left in the land you are about to enter and occupy. The LORD will strike you with wasting disease, fever, and inflammation, with scorching heat and drought, and with blight and mildew. These devastations will pursue you until you die. The skies above will be as unyielding as bronze, and the earth beneath will be as hard as iron. The LORD will turn your rain into sand and dust, and it will pour down from the sky until you are destroyed. "The LORD will cause you to be defeated by your enemies. You will attack your enemies from one direction, but you will scatter from them in seven! You will be an object of horror to all the kingdoms of the earth. Your dead bodies will be food for the birds and wild animals, and no one will be there to chase them away. "The LORD will afflict you with the boils of Egypt and with tumors, scurvy, and the itch, from which you cannot be cured. The LORD will strike you with madness, blindness, and panic. You will grope around in broad daylight, just like a blind person groping in the darkness, and you will not succeed at anything you do. You will be oppressed and robbed continually, and no one will come to save you.

(Deuteronomy 28:20-29)

Ouch!

[dgs49]

I had an interesting conversation with my daughter-in-law (a public school teacher) yesterday.

She says that they are devoting (by state mandate) many, many hours with students in an effort to reduce and deal with bullying.

But most people don't understand what the problem is, she says. Most people have the idea that "bullying" is mainly big kids beating up on, and threatening smaller, younger kids. and there is some of that, but the WORST of it, according to her, is girls psychologically "beating up on" other girls through the pervasive social media.

It used to be that harrassment and bullying pretty much stopped when you left the area of the school. If someone wanted to bother you at home, they called your house, your dad answered the phone and told them not to call any more. And that was about it.

Now, the girls get harrassing cellphone calls, VM's, and text messages, they are threatened, abused, and insulted on facebook (etc.), and it simply never ends. There is no overt action that the parents or school can take, because the kids are much more sophisticated about how it's done.

My DIL's students are dumbfounded when she tells them that "when she was a kid" (she's 29), they did not have cell phones, facebook, blogs, or any of the other things that are so pervasive in their lives now.

When EYE was a kid, we had to use tom-tom drums or smoke signals to communicate after school. Phones hadn't been invented yet. Imagine how difficult it was to communicate with smoke signals in Pittsburgh. At night.

But we were better for it, and didn't complain.

[loCAtek]

Old Testament thestoat, Jesus was the New testament beginning 2000 years ago; for Christians that is. Old Testament is taking Judaic text out of context of the Torah.

[thestoat]

Thanks lo. I thought Christians also thought the Old Testament was gods word too (I'm not suggesting you are Christian, of course). If you want a quote from the Torah, though, how about god killing someone because he did not try to make his brother's wife pregnant?

8 Then Judah said to Onan, “Sleep with your brother’s wife and fulfill your duty to her as a brother-in-law to raise up offspring for your brother.” 9 But Onan knew that the child would not be his; so whenever he slept with his brother’s wife, he spilled his semen on the ground to keep from providing offspring for his brother. 10 What he did was wicked in the LORD’s sight; so the LORD put him to death also.

Genesis 38:8-10

Hope he never asks this of me

[Crackpot]

Considering that the whole reason for sleeping with his sister in law was to get her pregnant so that his deceased brother would have an heir. (he was doing this in order to pretend to do his duty) yet secure his brothers inheritance for him and his offspring

And the Torah is the first 5 books of the bible.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Torah

[thestoat]

Considering that the whole reason for sleeping with his sister in law was to get her pregnant so that his deceased brother would have an heir. (he was doing this in order to pretend to do his duty) yet secure his brothers inheritance for him and his offspring

Ah yes, I kinda understood that. To me, forcing Onan to sleep with anyone isn't a good thing, and then killing him for not doing it right is a bit harsh. Also, why didn't god "do a Mary" and give her a son anyway?

[Sean]

I thought Christians also thought the Old Testament was gods word too

At least some of them do. The two readings at the Catholic mass consist of one from the Old and one from the New Testament.

[Crackpot]

THat wasn't the only chance the guy had he kept promising sons to his SIL for marage and then backnig out. The guy made a long standing habit of looking like he was being faithful but backing out come time to deliver. (pun intended literally and possibly even biblicaly).

It's a classic misinterpretation that this had anything to do with where he blew his load and has everything to do with his intentional deception. Truth be told even though it was considered his duty he had every right not to supply his SIL with offspring the caveat being that in doing so He'd lose any claim to his brothers inheritance (once she remarried anyway). He was trying to bide his time using deception until she was at least out of child bearing age so he could take over his brothers estate.

[thestoat]

Still seems harsh to kill him, CP. And if god was so keen on the line continuing then he could surely have "done a Mary".

[Crackpot]

How many sons of God do you want running around?

besides Onan would have good claim that the kid was illegitimate and get the land anyway.

[Scooter]

That passage also sets up the contradiction between Lev 20:21 (forbidding a man to marry his brother's wife) and Deut 25:5 (obligating a man to marry his brother's wife if the brother died without heirs) which became the pretext for the Anglican schism.

[thestoat]

How many sons of God do you want running around?

I don't see 2 being a problem? Jesus is supposed to pop up again sometime anyway, so could he not pop up a few times through history? Save an awful lot of rape and murder.

besides Onan would have good claim that the kid was illegitimate and get the land anyway.

Well then let god do some smiting and remove him from the equation

That passage also sets up the contradiction between Lev 20:21 (forbidding a man to marry his brother's wife) and Deut 25:5 (obligating a man to marry his brother's wife if the brother died without heirs) which became the pretext for the Anglican schism.

Contradiction in the Bible?? Surely not

[Crackpot]

Not really since that exception is also laid out in Leviticus. The purpose being tp provide an Heir in cases where one doesn't exist. Besides I thught the anglican schisim was based on Henry VIII's quest to get some strange.

[Sue U]

To me, forcing Onan to sleep with anyone isn't a good thing, and then killing him for not doing it right is a bit harsh.

Not married, are you?