[lit-ideas] Re: Ask the Ayatollah
- From: "Steve Chilson" <stevechilson@xxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Sat, 07 Oct 2006 06:06:37 +0100
thanks for those memories, Andy.
I know it's not the same thing but I used to live on 7th street b/w 1st
and 2nd aves, a nice mix of orthodox ukraines and catholic poles. There
was this great Ukranian religious edifice almost directly across the
street from McSorley's, arguably one of the oldest pubs in NYC. I
remember many a Sunday morning standing between the two thinking to
myself which door do I go for Gene, the religious severity or the double
half pints? Masturbation or fasting? Oddly, I always went for the half
pints.
One of the underrated things about fasting is the feast.
I think it could be argued that masturbation is fasting in a sense. In
fact, masturbation could be considered prevention. Nevermind, I'm
losing the plot. Certainly it's wasted sperm. Sperm that could be used
to create little four year olds you could strap a fake pack of
explosives to and take photos of.
I'm sorry, I just can't get past this fasting and masturbation
juxtaposition.
and just so you know, Andy - when I typed thanks for those memories, I
wasn't being sarcastic - you made me remember a few years I thought I'd
already forgotten. Ta.
On Sat, 7 Oct 2006 00:42:29 -0400, "Andy Amago" <aamago@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
said:
> > [Original Message]
> > From: Steve Chilson <stevechilson@xxxxxxxxxxx>
> > To: <lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
> > Date: 10/6/2006 11:26:47 PM
> > Subject: [lit-ideas] Re: Ask the Ayatollah
> >
> >
> > Why don't Christians fast?
> >
>
> Christians do fast. Some Christians do, anyway. Russian Orthodox
> Christians (me, once upon a time) fast in the weeks leading up to Easter.
> I don't remember exactly anymore (been an atheist since about 19 and my
> family of origin is nearly gone) but Easter is a real big deal in the
> Russian Orthodox Church Overseas (that's the name of it, an offshoot of
> the
> one in the SU that was banned, for the diaspora; it's got its own
> Metropolitan outside of Russia, but it's exactly the same religion). The
> fast is rather strict if done correctly, no meat, no fish, no chicken, no
> dairy (I believe) for about six weeks. Needless to say most people don't
> adhere to it, at least we didn't. The week before Easter everyone cooks
> and cleans furiously. The cooking is at feast levels. Holy Saturday is
> very somber and I think you're not supposed to eat on Saturday at all. A
> basket is put together of all the goodies and taken to church and after a
> marathon 4-hour service that begins at midnight (even though people
> arrive
> earlier; the church is mobbed) and ends at 4:00 am, the baskets of food
> are
> blessed and you go home and you eat. When we were kids it was fun, we'd
> hang out in the church yard. We all knew Russian fluently. Most people
> didn't make it to the end. The church would be pretty empty by 4:00
> a.m..
> Now it's all different. The older people I grew up with are gone, and
> mostly everything is in English. It's no fun anymore. American Easter
> is
> a nonevent. A chocolate bunny is Easter? Orthodox Christmas is like
> American Easter, a big nothing, where American Christmas is like Russian
> Easter, a huge deal. Everybody's Christian on Christmas I guess.
>
> Mike, do Catholics fast? No meat on Fridays, but that's not really
> fasting. Protestants seem so bland to me. Except maybe the Puritans
> when
> they burned the witches.
>
>
>
>
>
>
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--
Steve Chilson
stevechilson@xxxxxxxxxxx
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