Uproar Over Pilot's In-Flight Religion Comments

foxnews.com/AP ^ | 2/8/2004

[gdani]

I don't know what you mean by "so tolerant".

"So tolerant" of the pilot's rude, unprofessional & counterproductive behavior.

Matthew 6:1

[Down South P.E.]

I'm familiar with the verse. When did I say anything about Islam or advocate Islam? I'm an atheist. I disbelieve in all religions equally.

I understand. I wasn't implying anything just making a distinction. Given your familiarity with the Bible, I see that wasn't necessary.

[NYC GOP Chick]

This is in NO WAY as entertaining as the overhead comments made by the conducter on the R train a week ago when the doors wouldn't close:

"We would be able to move if that blind f--k and the fat f--k in the back would get their asses on the train."

I guess he forgot to shut off his communicator.

OMG! I've heard some strange stuff on the subways, but nothing quite like that!

[Down South P.E.]

"So tolerant" of the pilot's rude, unprofessional & counterproductive behavior.

Matthew 6:1

I disagree with you. And we can agree to disagree. This man's witness really bothers you. I wonder why?

Second Timothy 3:1-7

John 15:17-20

Mark 16:15-16

[Down South P.E.]

Oops left one off there...Second Timothy 3:12

[Stone Mountain]

http://www.religioustolerance.org/santeri.htm

Santeria is a syncretistic religion of Caribbean origin. It incorporates the worship of the Orisha (literally "head
guardian") and beliefs of the Yoruba and Bantu people in Southern Nigeria, Senegal and Guinea Coast. These are
combined with elements of worship from Roman Catholicism.

Its origins date back to the slave trade when Yoruba natives were forcibly transported from Africa to the
Caribbean. They were typically baptized by the Roman Catholic church upon arrival, and their native practices
were suppressed. They developed a novel way of keeping their old beliefs alive by equating the each Orisha of
their traditional religions with a corresponding Christian Saint. Many traditions within the religion recognize
different equivalencies. One common example includes:


Babalz Ayi became St. Lazarus (patron of the sick)

Shangs became St. Barbara (controls thunder, lightning, fire...)

Eleggua or Elegba became St. Anthony (controls roads, gates etc)

Obatala became Our Lady of Las Mercedes, and the Resurrected Christ (father of creation; source of
spirituality)

Oggzn became St. Peter (patron of war)

Oshzn became Our Lady of Charity (controls money, sensuality...)


Location and numbers of followers of Santeria:

Santeria is currently concentrated in:


Cuba and other Caribbean islands.

The Hispanic population in Florida, Puerto Rico, New Jersey, New York City and Los Angeles.

Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Mexico, and Venezuela.

France, and the Netherlands.

It had been actively suppressed in Cuba since the communist revolution - particularly during the 1960's. However,
oppression has now largely ended, and the popularity and practice of Santeria exploded in Cuba during the 1990's.

The number of followers of Santeria in North America have been variously estimated:

According to Adherents.com, various sources have predicted:

Florida: 60,000

U.S.: 800,000

North America: 500,000


J.E. Holloway, the author of "Africanisms in America" estimates:

New York City: 300,000


Egbe Lukumi estimates:

U.S.: over 5 million.


The "American Religious Identification Survey, (ARIS)" by The Graduate Center of the City University of
New York computes:

U.S.: 22,000

We suspect that the ARIS survey is reasonably accurate. It involved telephone interviews of over 50,000
individuals. Apparently five of them responded that their religion is Santeria. An unknown number of Santerians
probably refused to answer the question. If we assume that three refused to answer, then one might estimate
that there are a total of 35,000 Santerians in the U.S.

[gdani]

This man's witness really bothers you. I wonder why?

Perhaps it's because I try & live by the Golden Rule.

I don't why it's so hard to grasp the notion that preaching your beliefs & telling other that don't share them that they are "crazy" to a captive audience is rude & boorish.

Apparently you would have no problem if a white supremacist pilot did the same thing as this pilot.

[sinkspur]

Again, not something I would expect unbelievers to understand.

With all due respect, you can shove your condescension.

I'm a Catholic (likely not a believer in your warped version of Christianity), and I think it is bizarre for a Christian to jeopardize his job, and thus his family's welfare, to evangelize.

If you think it is, I'd like to hear your justification for that.

[kaboom]

Now, suppose the pilot were an atheist, and his comment was "There is no God". Would it be time to panic yet?

[Roarkdude]

I'd start wondering: What does this pilot know that I don't...is the plane about to fall apart...is there a terrorist in the cockpit...why is the pilot so concerned with my faith...yikes! Mass-hysteria ensues...

[Down South P.E.]

Somewhere deep in the back of my mind I knew that you wanted me to ask that question so you could explain it.

[Down South P.E.]

With all due respect, you can shove your condescension.

I'm a Catholic (likely not a believer in your warped version of Christianity), and I think it is bizarre for a Christian to jeopardize his job, and thus his family's welfare, to evangelize.

If you think it is, I'd like to hear your justification for that.

There are people on this forum that clearly state they are unbelievers. They've made their positions clear and I don't want to waste time arguing because my position will not change either. Thus my comment. As far as you go, I don't know what your relationship with Jesus Christ is and I'm not your judge. There was no intent whatsoever to be condenscending towards anyone.

I don't know the man's heart and neither do you. Evidently, he felt compelled to witness for Jesus Christ which in my belief is consistent with what christians are supposed to do. Men and women throughout history have given up more than their jobs to witness for Jesus Christ.

It's his zeal for the Lord. You use your zeal for the Lord your way and let him use his zeal for the Lord his way. Show me where in the Bible that it says that Christians should attack one another nay the word of God says the opposite (John 13:35)?

[sinkspur]

You use your zeal for the Lord your way and let him use his zeal for the Lord his way.

American Airlines will determine how much Rodger Findiesen can use his zeal for the Lord, when he's in a cockpit of a plane that AA owns.

[Down South P.E.]

I don't why it's so hard to grasp the notion that preaching your beliefs & telling other that don't share them that they are "crazy" to a captive audience is rude & boorish.

Apparently you would have no problem if a white supremacist pilot did the same thing as this pilot.

I don't know if he really said they were crazy or not. I do know that people, particularly when they hear something that angers them tend to stretch things a bit. Were those really his words or her paraphrase of what she thought he was saying?

[Down South P.E.]

American Airlines will determine how much Rodger Findiesen can use his zeal for the Lord, when he's in a cockpit of a plane that AA owns.

Apparently not that trip. And so what about future trips. If AA doesn't like it, the Lord can use pilots in the missions field. I know some of them. It would be AA's loss. The Lord blesses businesses that don't try to muzzel His people.

[griffin]

"As a Catholic, let me say that I am FED UP with fundamentalists who have decided that everyone who doesn't believe as they do is going to hell. "

So people who read and live out Scripture you call "fundamentalists"? That fits right in with the liberal Media. Congrats!
Guys like you give believing Catholics a bad name.

[sinkspur]

"As a Catholic, let me say that I am FED UP with fundamentalists who have decided that everyone who doesn't believe as they do is going to hell."

I said this.

Then, you said this:

So people who read and live out Scripture you call "fundamentalists"?

As is typical, you distorted what I said.

Read CBG's posts, especially his Pope-bashing posts.

Those are the fundamentalists I dislike. They're stupid, ignorant bigots.

[Torie]

Being rude is not a virtue in my book (Christian or otherwise), except under rare circumstances. That was Sink's point. And Sink is right (in my book).

[Prodigal Son]

You probably know why if you've read True Believer by Eric Hoffer.

Thanks for the book recommend.

[nutmeg]

This is in NO WAY as entertaining as the overhead comments made by the conducter on the R train a week ago when the doors wouldn't close:

"We would be able to move if that blind f--k and the fat f--k in the back would get their asses on the train."

I guess he forgot to shut off his communicator.

LOL! Was his "announcement" garbled - like what comes through the P/A systems on so many of those trains? Probably not, since you understood him. He probably wished it was garbled!