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[DeadTrees]

where are the Master Chief with a regilous theme photoshops? i am disappointed

Spoiler

beaten by Something Awful:

 

[Chrono]

I fail to see a substantial difference between America's Army and this scenario. The "intent" of the game is sort of a moot point. It's how the game is being used that we're taking issue with, no? This is totally a double standard.

Army creates army games for people who want to join... the army.

Church of (the prince of) "peace" makes use of violent, bloody games to promote itself among teenagers.


Yeah, same thing dude.

 

[speculawyer]

I was only suggesting that referencing that band of intellectuals and magnifying incredibly marginal and fractured "public figures" is liable to get you laughed at in most places. You don't want to look silly, do you?.

Just listen to Hegge's own own words . . . like the Iranian President, you really don't need interepretation to see that these guys are nuts.

 

[lastendconductor]

Should've been Diablo 2, or even better, Painkiller. At least get your themes right.

 

[speculawyer]

Spoiler

beaten by Something Awful:

Nice . . . one blasphemic Christ (Buddy Christ) made into another Blasphemic Christ.

 

[Herpes Reasons]

His title is 'president' but he's not their leader . . . he has little power. He did say wipe Israel off, but not the USA. And when he says that stuff, he is just playing to his base of local right-wing Iranians. He actually ran on a platform on economic populism and he's been losing popularity heavily lately. He's the George Bush of Iran these days . . . overly right-wing and not very popular.

He is certainly an a-hole and clown . . . . but he's nothing to be afraid of. He is to be laughed at. It as awesome when he said "There are no gay people in Iran" and the student body of Columbia all erupted into a huge round of laughter.



The far-right-Christians deserve worse, IMHO. I was brought up Christian and the Jesus I know is completely different than the person these homophobe war-mongers seem to worship. 90% of what Jesus talked about was peace, love, compassion, helping the poor, etc. . . . . You try to help the poor and these 'Christians' call you commies. You advocate peace and they call you traitors.

To tie it all back to the original topic . . . I'm not surprised in the least to see a violent videogame used for recruitment.

Ahmadinejad (trying saying that 3 times fast, lol) has enough of the "right-wing" in the assembly for his march towards the 12th imam. But yes, i do agree the extremists in iran do no represent the whole of the nation. And when you consider they are currently working on the next generation ballistics shahab missles namely the shahab -5 and shahab -6 that can reach excess of over 12,000km. and rumours of a shahab -7 that can reach across the atlantic. Clearly he has enough political power and military force to do his bidding and like i said, hellbent into going to war, there is enough to warrant a serious american national security threat. i can't see how one cannot take him seriously.

90% of what Jesus talked about was peace, love, compassion, helping the poor, etc. . . . .

and dont' forget the small percentage where HE talked about judgement of sins and an final battle.

There are no gay people in Iran" and the student body of Columbia all erupted into a huge round of laughter.

he also talked about the myth of the holocuast. lol. yeah, we're dealing with a complete nutjob.

but back on topic, i agree, im not in the least surprised to use videogames as a medium to "recruit" as you eloquently put it.

 

[Slurpy]

This is so, so fucking stupid. Shows the church is willing to bend over backwards and abandon principles it has taught just to get new 'converts'.

 

[Pureauthor]

Wrong religion.

Protestants =/= catholics

*sigh*

IMHO, since teens should be able to think for themselves.

You never been around teenagers before if you think such a thing.

That aside, the core idea, is, I believe, theoretically sound (portraying the church not as a bunch of uptight killjoys but as people who know how to crack some jokes and enjoy themselves a bit), but the execution of this is all wrong.

 

[a Master Ninja]

Somebody please replace the raptor head with a Master Chief helmet.

 

[Dina]

Jesus Camp v2

 

[WickedLaharl]

fucking awesome

 

[Eteric Rice]

Someone change the Raptor's head to Master Cheif's head. :lol

 

[camineet]

Finish The Fight, Against Religion.

 

[Azure Dream]

I fail to see a substantial difference between America's Army and this scenario. The "intent" of the game is sort of a moot point. It's how the game is being used that we're taking issue with, no? This is totally a double standard.

Halo 3 is intended for Mature audiences. The Church is abusing the fact that some of these kids can't buy the game themselves, or their parents won't, to woo them over. "I'm going to church" doesn't necessarily tell the parents "I'm going to go play a violent shooter you wouldn't let me have, but they'll give me so I'll go there more."

 

[Jackson]

I'll take playing Halo with Christian gamers who restrain the need to tell me about their genitals over 90% of the e-tards on Live ANY. DAY. OF. THE. WEEK.

also... you all should be happy chruches are embracing gaming culture, especially one that is about "death matches" and "fragging" instead of blanket shunning it on stupid grounds out of fear or ignorance.

If I posted an article saying Christians are banning Halo from their churches you'd complain about that too... most of you are just looking to hate on someone else out of your own ignorance on the subject... disagree with Christianity, who cares? No one, do what you want, believe what you want... but stop the blind, ignorant hate... also stop telling me about your genitals over LIVE!!!!

 

[randomwab]

Nothing new here, I used to go to a Protestant church run Youth Club to play Goldeneye deathmatch back in the day. They had some pretty dodgy games, the height of which would have been Doom 64 :lol

 

[mentalfloss]

Thread needs some whacked out Glenn Beck.

 

[Pureauthor]

I'll take playing Halo with Christian gamers who restrain the need to tell me about their genitals over 90% of the e-tards on Live ANY. DAY. OF. THE. WEEK.

I think part of the issue here is that a large portion of these kids aren't 'Christian' gamers, they're just kids who want a Halo fix and went to church to get their hands on the game.

 

[Mr.City]

Jesus wept.

 

[Dirtbag]

I wonder how they feel about the fact that the story revolves around destroying 'the Covenant.' And how the prophets are using the lie of the great journey to attempt to destroy the universe.

Also see the flood and the ark....

:lol

 

[Staccat0]

The moment I saw this thread, I knew it was a train wreck.

Covenant Zealots vs. Atheists

Good times for all, except the people who are in the middle of the bitching and moaning.

Storyline of Halo...:lol
Edit: Fixed

 

[Count Dookkake]

Hurpa Durpa. Do I need to add a scientology line? Or have you figured out by now that it doesn't fucking matter which one it is, they're all in the same boat.

It's like when you tell someone that you used to be a fan of Superman comics, but now you no longer read comics. Then someone tells you that they read Batman and that you shuold too. For some reason they can't grasp that the minor differences between Batman and Superman don't really matter to someone who finds comics a waste of time. You can use fast food as an example as well.

 

[TigersFan]

How else would they spread the word of the good book? Rational and honest discourse? They're inherently incapable of such a thing. Otherwise they wouldn't be here.

Well to be fair, we're talking about how to recruit 12 year olds into your sect here. Its an important demographic for the Christian community.

 

[UnholySpectacle]

WHAT!?

You have to watch it all for full "WHAT!?" understanding.

 

[X26]

Seems kinda desperate. And if there's one thing that I got out of Halo's story, it was the portrayal of religion, which makes this all pretty hilarious.

 

[1-D_FTW]

Reminds me of when the original Xbox launched and the newspaper ran the obligatory launch story and had a quote from a 30 year old pastor who was waiting in line for an XBox and Halo.

 

[Count Dookkake]

I love when America's Army came out gamers pretty much unanimously defended it from criticism being used as a recruiting tool, but the second a church (god forbid!) lets people play Halo 3 they're some sort of mindwashing mega-evil conspiracy hellbent on raising a bunch of zealots.

Difference is that AA was designed as a recruiting tool and is only used as one by the organization that commissioned its design.

I also love the double standard of saying "It's just a videogame!" whenever gamers are called out on how violent their choice of entertainment is, and are here decrying hypocrisy in the church by saying they're ignoring thou shalt not kill.

That is not a double standard. Those who do not adhere to the decalogue are not beholden to its prohibition on killing.

 

[Staccat0]

It's like when you tell someone that you used to be a fan of Superman comics, but now you no longer read comics. Then someone tells you that they read Batman and that you shuold too. For some reason they can't grasp that the minor differences between Batman and Superman don't really matter to someone who finds comics a waste of time. You can use fast food as an example as well.

Yeah I know! Seriously though, Green Lantern is pretty sweet you should read him.

 

[3rdman]

Difference is that AA was designed as a recruiting tool and is only used as one by the organization that commissioned its design.



That is not a double standard. Those who do not adhere to the decalogue are not beholden to its prohibition on killing.

Some people are actually aware of the difference between reality and fantasy...there is no "killing" going on in a videogame.

 

[NekoFever]

The organization recently sent e-mail messages to 50,000 young people about how to share their faith using Halo 3. Among the tips: use the game’s themes as the basis for a discussion about good and evil.

So this is why they added a quick mute feature.

 

[Prine]

I think part of the issue here is that a large portion of these kids aren't 'Christian' gamers, they're just kids who want a Halo fix and went to church to get their hands on the game.

but obviously 1000 times more polite. I approve if it means my little cousin can game online without worry of encountering net hooligans

 

[Count Dookkake]

This is so, so fucking stupid. Shows the church is willing to bend over backwards and abandon principles it has taught just to get new 'converts'.

This is not new. Take a look at www.christianitymeme.org if you would like to know more. From my youth, I recall things like pizza parties being the lure for the kids.

Some people are actually aware of the difference between reality and fantasy...there is no "killing" going on in a videogame.

That's not the point I was addressing. The accusation of a double standard levelled at critics was my focus. I understand and completely agree with your point , but it is not relevant to mine.

 

[Crushed]

This is not new. Take a look at www.christianitymeme.org if you would like to know more. From my youth, I recall things like pizza parties being the lure for the kids.

(clicks link)

# Christianity is a meme--a mind virus that lives in the minds of people and is spread through proselytization and other means.
# The Christianity Meme has been shaped purely by natural selection--the law of survival of the fittest--as it has played out in human minds. It is a sophisticated product of cultural evolution.
# Being a "true Christian" infected by the Christianity Meme will subject you to aid its survival through its adaptations that allow it to exert control over human behavior.
# As a consequence, the more Christian you are the more you are prone to certain kinds of immoral behavior. The Christianity Meme is not bound by the moral principles it carries.

...

(closes tab)

 

[freethought]

Is it worth pointing out that no religion in the history of the world has ever objected to killing one's enemies. The commandment is thou shalt not murder, it shouldn't say anything about killing (which is just as well since death was generally the punishment for breaking one of them.).

edit: beaten, kinda.

 

[3rdman]

This is not new. Take a look at www.christianitymeme.org if you would like to know more. From my youth, I recall things like pizza parties being the lure for the kids.



That's not the point I was addressing. The accusation of a double standard levelled at critics was my focus. I understand and completely agree with your point , but it is not relevant to mine.

Yeah...sorry about that. I was really responding to the jist of many of the posts in this thread and I simply used yours as a springboard.

 

[snacknuts]

With all the GD's and JC's (and some JFC's) I throw out during a poor match of Halo, I don't think I would be welcome to play for very long.

 

[Count Dookkake]

Yeah I know! Seriously though, Green Lantern is pretty sweet you should read him.

:lol

I would have gone with a line about "But this is a graphic novel!"

Is it worth pointing out that no religion in the history of the world has ever objected to killing one's enemies. The commandment is thou shalt not murder, it shouldn't say anything about killing (which is just as well since death was generally the punishment for breaking one of them.).

Read the last bullet point in the post above yours.

Yeah...sorry about that. I was really responding to the jist of many of the posts in this thread and I simply used yours as a springboard.

No worries.

 

[C4Lukins]

Somebody please replace the raptor head with a Master Chief helmet.

The raptor head makes it, but is funny for reasons I cannot explain.

 

[siamesedreamer]

My church does this.

There's a group for "young adults" (20-35 year olds) that meet every Wednesday and they have Halo lan set up. I've never been, but I have thought about it.

 

[Eric P]

Jesus Camp v2

fucking campers

 

[perfectchaos007]

Athiests use lures too you know.

One athiest told me when I was a kid. "Hey you like pokemon? Why don't you come over here and I'll teach you why pokemon evolve."

 

[Des0lar]

Disgusting

my thoughts exactly.

 

[Count Dookkake]

The raptor head makes it, but is funny for reasons I cannot explain.

Perhaps you are responding to the black humor to be found in watching a first-world country willingly setting itself back a few centuries of thought and science?

Athiests use lures too you know.

One athiest told me when I was a kid. "Hey you like pokemon? Why don't you come over here and I'll teach you why pokemon evolve."

:lol Very good.

 

[C4Lukins]

The local church has a banner outside advertising a "Jesus Smackdown" over the next few weeks. I cannot imagine what that means, but I am thinking of joining up just to find out.

 

[shinsnake]

So wait, Christians set up shop with Halo to recruit people to Christianity and they are roundly criticized for trying brainwash today's youths. Dennis Kucinich sets up shop in Second Life to recruit people to his beliefs and he's roundly praised for trying to reach today's youths.

ICWUTUDIDTHERE, OMGWTFBBQ

 

[Link Man]

I play Halo at a church, but that's only because my friends live in an old church. We put kegs in the baptismal, and smoke a lot of pot.

 

[speculawyer]

Athiests use lures too you know.

One athiest told me when I was a kid. "Hey you like pokemon? Why don't you come over here and I'll teach you why pokemon evolve."

Joke?

 

[freethought]

Read the last bullet point in the post above yours.

Kind of reminds me of the way the nutty PMD crowd don't believe the teachings of JC apply to this world but instead apply to the millenial kingdom that will be created once we're all in hell (playing GTA). My point, by the way, was that Christianity itself doesn't (or maybe I mean shouldn't) have any sort of moral objection to killing people, as long as God (or whoever is in control of the dogma) say's it's cool. Of course, meme theory certainly has something to say about that.

 

[Count Dookkake]

So wait, Christians set up shop with Halo to recruit people to Christianity and they are roundly criticized for trying brainwash today's youths. Dennis Kucinich sets up shop in Second Life to recruit people to his beliefs and he's roundly praised for trying to reach today's youths.

ICWUTUDIDTHERE, OMGWTFBBQ

The difference is that Halo is a violent videogame being used by an organization which claims to be against violence. Second Life is a big room full of weird people peddling their shit and so a politician is not out of place there.

 

[shinsnake]

The difference is

Of course, there's a difference. rolleye.gif

that Halo is a violent videogame being used by an organization which claims to be against violence. Second Life is a big room full of weird people peddling their shit and so a politician is not out of place there

Violence is acceptable in Christian doctrine, thus Halo would not be out of place at all. Unless you think that Master Chief is guilty of murder. Then I could see where something like a church using Halo as a recruiting tool would be confusing. Actually, if you believed that, I could see how a lot of things would be confusing.