Comments on: Bad to the Cone

By: The Bad Astronomer

The Bad Astronomer — Tue, 21 Jun 2005 16:25:35 +0000

Actually, that’s called the North America Nebula, for obvious reasons. It’s a remarkable resemblance. The Witch Head nebula is maybe a little more pagan and blasphemous: http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap010227.html
(ironically, turn it sideways and it looks like a running ghost).

By: Mark Hansen

Mark Hansen — Tue, 21 Jun 2005 06:10:54 +0000

Hi Phil,
I like to visit NASA’s Astronomy picture of the day (as I imagine many other of your visitors do) and I think I have the perfect foil for all the “Jesus is in the nebula” crowd. If you go to http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap000501.html, the image of NGC7000 looks remarkably like a profile of the Devil looking towards bottom right and grinning satanically. Why would a benevolent creator put an image of his arch-enemy in the sky?

By: deanpence » Blog Archive » Carnival of the Godless #14

deanpence » Blog Archive » Carnival of the Godless #14 — Mon, 13 Jun 2005 13:31:53 +0000

[...] w atheists can promote a culture of reason without playing the religious victimhood game. Bad to the Cone Phil Plait of the Bad Astronomy Blog recounts [...]

By: Delance

Delance — Thu, 02 Jun 2005 23:00:17 +0000

This is probably a misguided reflex of man’s hard-wired need to search for the Creator.

Nigel, everyone used beards back then, not just greek mythological deities. The fact that practicing jews and rabis used beards at the 1st century likely palyed a key factor.

As for the Shroud, the Catholic Church has never made an official statement as about its legitimacy.

By: Nigel Depledge

Nigel Depledge — Thu, 02 Jun 2005 20:12:09 +0000

Irishman, thanks, that’s cleared that one up.

One or two other odds and ends…

The Roman Empire was pagan up until some time in the third century, I believe. Certainly, emperors of the fourth century were Christian, and it seems that the earliest churches date from around that time. St. Patrick, who took Christianity to Ireland, was probably a Romano-British official (calling himself Patricus) fleeing from the collapse of Roman law in England (4th century). Christian symbolism is rife with pagan imagery (e.g. the holly and ivy for the midwinter festival, the hare which was the emblem of the goddess Eastre) so it is not too surprising to learn that the most popular image of Jesus derives from pre-existing images of Zues / Jupiter.

Just in case you were interested.

By: Irishman

Irishman — Wed, 01 Jun 2005 18:19:13 +0000

Nigel, Scott was saying that the first coin depiction was 6th century Byzantine, vs. the earlier mosaic showing a bearded Jesus.

Zamboni, I have not heard of this connection to Leonardo da Vinci before. What is your evidence for that? I am aware that the shroud has no provenance before the 14th century, a time that was rife with fake religious icons. I am aware that the Catholic Church investigated it at the time and concluded it was a forgery, and even identified the artist and obtained his statement of authorship. I don’t recall it being Leonardo da Vinci, and I’m sure that would have stood out if I’d heard it.

By: Ken Vogt

Ken Vogt — Mon, 30 May 2005 16:24:48 +0000

I have always wondered why The Almighty chooses to manifest His Power in the modern world by making a statue cry or an image on a piece of toast. I mean, if you’re going to violate the laws of physics, why not do some good: weaken the virus before it infected Mozart; deflect the sperm that fertilized Hitler’s egg. Thus He could still act small scale — and do some good .

At least, this manifestation is *big*: 70 trillion kilometers, and light coming to us from 500 years before He was incarnated! Truly wondrous, though I suppose it is all just made just to *look* that old to confuse us.