Religious cult starves toddler to death
Mikey 31 comments
As an atheist who does his best to be tolerant of religion, hearing stories like this makes the task almost impossible. These sorts of stories make me ask "wouldn't we all be better off without religion?". It's responsible for people performing such grotesque atrocities in the name of and also spawns moronic cults like this.
A religious cult called 1 Mind Ministries has because he did not say the word 'Amen' after meals. Police say they stopped feeding 15 month old Javon Thompson in December 2006.
The boy's mother, Ria Ramkissoon and four other members of a group are being charged with 1st degree murder, and another member coward eludes police and is still at large.
Ramkissoon's mother (the boy's grandmother) says it wasn't her daughters choice to not feed her son. She says someone higher up in the cult ranks made the decision and she had to follow her instructions.
What can you say about this? Really. How dumb, how idiotic and how much of a fricking lunatic do you have to be to follow through with instructions to starve your own child to death? Here's how dumb...
The cult members involved in this despicable crime - get this - actually believed that by praying to God the boy's lifeless body would be resurrected. But instead he began to decompose. Fricking idiots.
This truly makes me sick and sad.
More sources:
makes me sick. Adults can make choices. Children can't. Cults should be banned from having children.
...in response to this comment by storm. "Cults should be banned from having children"
Agreed.
Chris
Tuesday 19th August 2008 | 10:34 AM15 months! Most kids can't even speak at that age.
Truly sad.
I admit Im religious. Im catholic but also like to read up on Buddhism and Hinduism. I think religion (or having beliefs) is very important. I read a long time ago that people who are religious or believe in God (any for that matter) can live longer as it can reduce stress as it offers "answers" ("it's God's will" though I hate this term and never use it, but many religious people often use it).
Religion can be so good, but unfortunately, most of humankind just don't know how to use it, or use it for power/control, with horrendous consequences like this.
Marvin The Martian
Tuesday 19th August 2008 | 10:46 AMyet more proof that the 'moral argument' is not on the side of religion, but on those with common sense.
Debra
Tuesday 19th August 2008 | 11:57 AMThis is truly abhorrent! I simply cannot wrap the mind around this kind of action...
I embrace my religion/beliefs and nothing I believe in remotely relates to any degree whatsoever of coercion or control - just the opposite.
I agree with Chris' statement: "Religion can be so good, but unfortunately, most of humankind just don't know how to use it, or use it for power/control, with horrendous consequences like this."
Interesting that any time a lunatic who commits atrocities and is reported to belong to any kind of religion or cult, someone on RL types it up. :-0
Then come all the comments to support the illogical idea that all religion causes all people who embrace their faith to behave badly, therefore, religion should be wiped off the planet.
Charles Manson declared himself - at least at one point - to be an atheist...
When a lunatic commits an atrocity like snuffing out a young child in kiddie porn (going on everyday) it is not typically by a Christian and the closest these perps get to God is using profanity.
Being insane and a criminal has nothing to do with what you believe in.
Jeff
Tuesday 19th August 2008 | 12:11 PM...in response to this comment by Debra. "Being insane and a criminal has nothing to do with what you believe in."
Apparently it does sometimes. Remember these idiots killed the kid for religious reasons. If they weren't part of the cult they wouldn't have killed the kid because not saying 'amen' would not have been of any consequence to them.
Sure there are people who do bad things without any religious reasons but religion is the cause of so much evil. Civilians are killed in the name of Islam, Homosexuals are persecuted (and executed in some countries) and children are starved to death - all in the name of religion.
Chris made a good point about it being used for the wrong reasons, but ultimately it's like guns. Sure some people use them responsibly, but the portion that don't end up killing someone. And there's plenty of call to ban guns. Why is the concept of banning religion so hard for people? You have to be nuts to think there is a creator anyway. Wake up this isn't the dark ages any more.
Debra
Tuesday 19th August 2008 | 12:31 PM...in response to this comment by Jeff. Your comment is perfect. Thank you.
Frankly, I believe this "mother" would have "obeyed" any type of character, religious or not. You don't need to practice a religion to "give" up your power to control your own life.
I find it a bit foolish to say the mother would have killed her child ONLY in the name of religion. Anyone who would commit such a crime is a mental case. The woman apparently was unable or unwilling to maintain her own power over her life and the life of her child.
People who perp these crimes are mental. Religious or not. She could have just as easily been obeying an atheist cult leader who told her to starve her child because the child cried... You don't freaking know and neither do I.
Jake
Tuesday 19th August 2008 | 01:17 PM...in response to this comment by Debra. I challenge you to find a single educated atheist that has ever joined a cult.
I don't know about insane, but there are plenty of people around the globe that join cults and they're not insane; they're stupid. Plain and simple.
Do you know what scientologist believe is the origin of life on earth?
I command you to not drag me into this.
Jake
Tuesday 19th August 2008 | 01:20 PM...in response to this comment by Xenu. Which incarnation of Xenu are you? Postulate me gone and I wont drag you into this.
Jeff
Tuesday 19th August 2008 | 01:23 PM"I challenge you to find a single educated atheist that has ever joined a cult."
Ergo, only the religious are stupid enough to join a cult, making every bad thing they do the fault of religion.
Jake
Tuesday 19th August 2008 | 01:40 PM...in response to this comment by Jeff. Your words, not mine, though I do believe there is certainly a correlation between a severe lack of mental fortitude or competence and joining a cult.
Debra
Tuesday 19th August 2008 | 01:44 PM...in response to this comment by Jake. Hey Jake,
"I challenge you to find a single educated atheist that has ever joined a cult."
Firstly, we need to define educated...
"I don't know about insane, but there are plenty of people around the globe that join cults and they're not insane; they're stupid. Plain and simple." I agree with the exception that we need to leave room for lunatics that join...
"Do you know what scientologist believe is the origin of life on earth?" No, but you have me curious!
Jeff
Tuesday 19th August 2008 | 01:49 PM...in response to this comment by Debra. "Firstly, we need to define educated..."
How about starting with common sense? Some of these cult members might have actually had an education, but they didn't have any common sense.
Debra
Tuesday 19th August 2008 | 02:09 PM...in response to this comment by Jeff. Are you a former scientologist?
Gong
Tuesday 19th August 2008 | 10:07 PM...in response to this comment by Chris. Buddhism and Hinduism are not actually religions in the normal sense
There is no "God" in these ways
xanz doe
Wednesday 20th August 2008 | 02:28 AM"Religion" and not faith are the culprit in this one. My bet is that idiots and fools will find ways to be idiotic and foolish with or without God's help.
Notice that when a parent fails their child and their beliefs come into question, we hear all about it. How bout just for once posting "One less child died this week because his parents finally figured out that they were not the biggest thing in the universe".
You are no less a sensationalist opportunist just because you are reviewing the news and not writing it.
I am not saying hide it, but that if one is going to blame every cruel,murderous act committed a person of faith on the God they believe in, then your scientific logic and good sense should have the courage to see the other side.
I think you are about your own small agenda here, Mikey, not writing in the interest of real knowledge. I think you want desperately for someone to say... "OH... Sweet Jesus... Mikey was right... there is no God!"
You are an excellent writer... why not find a worthy subject?
And lastly, i guess YOU would be the final authority on just exactly what constitutes a cult?
Gong
Wednesday 20th August 2008 | 03:49 AMmy friend doe, we always discuss topics such as religion. its an ongoing discussion on this site, and probably everywhere in the world. Mikey is definitely not the final authority on anything, and i'm sure he doesn't think so.
"I am not saying hide it, but that if one is going to blame every cruel,murderous act committed a person of faith on the God they believe in, then your scientific logic and good sense should have the courage to see the other side."
other side? what other side? is there a good side to starving an innocent child to death for a really really stupid reason?
...in response to this comment by xanz doe. Thanks for the constructive criticism Xanz.
I did write in anger but I make no apologies for that. It's a subject that deserves us to get angry. But we could argue all day that these people were already stupid, or we could say it's religion that made them stupid. And many people will say that they were low intelligence idiots to begin with and that their religion didn't have anything to do with what they did.
Well, I am having a hard time believing that if they were just your general breed of idiot, not belonging to any religious cult, would they still have starved the boy to death? No way they would have.
Jonathan
Wednesday 20th August 2008 | 07:31 PMEven ants and marginally 'higher' social animals hold the "don't kill or steal from your own" behaviors. Its an evolved, natural survival trait for things that live in groups or packs, as the welfare of the group (in animals; we've got serious issues doing this right as humans, so who's really the smarter side?) improves the welfare of the individual, or at the very least greatly increases the chance that said individual's genes (as offspring or near relatives) will survive and be passed on.
Most of us understand this, though there's certainly the occasional jackass (bats quickly leave such bastards starving, not sharing when it needs the help because it did not do so for others, so why the **** do we hire them as CEOs or elect them instead?) but it seems to me those who have the easiest time discarding such basic understanding and survival techniques are those that believe in higher powers and a non-reincarnation-type afterlife.
It should be painfully obvious to anyone, most especially a parent, that if something's asking you to harm your own frickin child, IT, not you or the child, is most likely the problem/threat here!
amy
Sunday 21st September 2008 | 10:58 AMi think this issue is about something much different than a messed up religious cult. first of all, there are many differences between cults, religions, and faiths. cults are about control in the name of a higher power, maybe God in some cases. religion is also control in God's name, but it is far more convincing because there is some aspect of grace usually tied into religion. such as be a good person and you will receive God's reward for you. and lastly, faith is much different because it is trusting and a relationship. the one faith, or "religion", that follows a relationship (the command is a relationship, only people mess it up - this is key) is Christianity. many, if not most, people don't understand this and many will find this offensive, wrong at least.
why is it that religion is bad? not saying that i'm religious (i have a relationship with God, if you want to know then ask), but why doesn't the subject of evil come up as bad? think about it...Buddhists, catholics, christians, taoists, atheists, humanists, and every other person in the world has done something to hurt another at some point in their life. whether it be having a mean thought toward a classmate or killing someone - everyone has done "bad", or wrong. how we define what's bad is by knowing what's good, or right. a person who says he or she is religious doesn't do any good if you don't know his or her actions that supposedly go with the words from his or her mouth and the condition of his or her heart. what one says is not always true, inside the heart is the true spiritual condition of a person. usually actions are what makes clear the condition of the heart. so for someone to kill her son, even though she says she's religious, her actions do not match up. therefore, her words are not true.
we can't always believe a persons words, we must know them by their actions and the truth they speak that matches their actions. truth is subjective, but there is only one..
Andrew
Sunday 3rd April 2011 | 02:01 PMThis was a gruesome reading for me...I will never understand how people can take religion so seriously.
Henk V
Sunday 3rd April 2011 | 02:19 PMNobody takes religion seriously unless they have a point to prove.
From experience (50+ years) there has never been a point to prove.
Religion is stripped of its relevance, adherents just make up new and interesting discussions. the ones that start with "I believe" are the least interesting.... who gives a fuck what you believe? I deal with facts and so should you.
oh damn, my leprechaun has just met up with the beast. Nobody understands ezekiel and Daniel is playing with antiochus 4..
Fuck I hope the bread dough rises, its cool.
Henk V
Sunday 3rd April 2011 | 02:20 PMand isnt it delicious that Tyler did leave after he realised he lost his bet?
Henk v
Sunday 3rd April 2011 | 02:23 PMMarilyn told me he would leave within two months and set the bet a month later. Maz, you fucking legend!
G
Monday 4th April 2011 | 07:08 AMTracey Sutherland jailed for neglect of baby son found dead at her home
Manchester mother admitted child cruelty to 13-month-old boy who may have died two days before 999 call
http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2010/apr/21/tracey-sutherland-mother-dead-baby-jailed
Sorry its not the sensationalists crap you normally expect from the Lime copy paste experts but I also am sure I read the mother was an athiest....maybe
Pathetic people here who want to excuse these people and blame religion for the problem.
You are all off, off in as much as you have allowed the world to teach you that religion is at fault and not the individual
Brainwashed and pathetic, one day these parents will stand before a judging God and say "religion made me do it" and I would expect God to say "You did it"
There is no difference between these parents and the people who comment on threads like this, you blame others and make excuses
G
Monday 4th April 2011 | 07:16 AMOh and lets talk abortion and killing babys
Oh thats right they are not babys to athiests are they.
How dare you judge
Henk V
Wednesday 6th April 2011 | 05:42 PMWho are you talking to Gilly?
and to the ultimate dumb crack above about common sense... if we relied on common sense you would be sitting in a forest waiting for something to eat to come by. Sorry, common sense is for pub yokels. They worship it, you should know better.
Common sense within a cult is the common sense of the cult. Its not going to fix that burst pipe or rewire the sacrificial hall.
Common sense housing?...sunburn.
Killing babies? Gilly, I would lay low on that and the abortion issue, you clearly do not know what your bible says about it and when it was codified. You carry on as if people who don't believe in your perceived form of religion have the notion of infantiphagy.
Salient point; you are the only one who believes the way you do. Remonstrate this issue duly with yourself before expressing your usual consensus position.
Hey Dumbo
Thursday 7th April 2011 | 04:58 PMI think you missed my point Dumbo
Mike is an athiest imposing his morals, even somebody as mentally challenged as you cant miss that, can you?
Dumbo by name Dumbo by nature I bestow thee Henk V
Henk V
Thursday 7th April 2011 | 06:33 PMas I said in my last post, you are consistent on this grey matter issue.
Bob
Tuesday 19th August 2008 | 10:17 AMAll this boils down too is stupidity not religion. Whether you are religious or not you still know what is right or wrong. Someone telling you not to feed your child because he or she didn't say or couldn't say "Amen" after a meal tends to say to me that if the person was a Power House they would be a walking blackout!