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Post by maolsheachlann on May 19, 2014 19:04:14 GMT
I don't know if members are familiar with the work of Jack Chick, the Evangelical writer of comic strip 'tracts' which are (amongst other things) rabidly anti-Catholic. I'd heard about these, and read some on the internet, but I was still surprised when I was handed one on Dublin's O'Connell Street on Saturday, not far from Burger King. It was this sweet little number.Has anyone else encountered these guys? There were four or five of them. I think they were American. I engaged one of them (a pleasant enough fellow) in debate and he was Hispanic-- at one point we were at odds because he was referring to the "Letter of St. Jacob" which I eventually worked out was the Letter of St. James. Personally, I can't help feeling a certain regard for these fellows, and their misguided zeal. They can at least not be accused of being neither hot nor cold. I wonder what reception they are receiving?
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Post by hibernicus on May 20, 2014 19:03:48 GMT
You find this stuff around the place quite a bit in Northern Ireland. At least this particular tract is only making theological claims (i.e. that all Catholics automatically go to Hell); Chick has another one called "The Death Cookie" which reproduces all the Alexander Hislop TWO BABYLONS stuff claiming that Catholicism is not a form of Christianity at all but a continuation of ancient paganism (with all the pagan religions assumed to be the same and to have been founded by the Devil). I've also seen a comic in another series he did (called CRUSADERS) which claimed Mohammed was put up to it by the Papists to exterminate the Bible-believing Christians of the Near East (which is Mr Chick's way of explaining how come present-day Eastern Christians are generally not like the sort of fundamentalist PRotestants he appeals to). I've also heard that in other publications he makes the old Maria-Monk style claims about secret tunnels linking convents to monasteries, with the resulting offspring being murdered at birth and secretly buried. This guy is the lunatic fringe of the lunatic fringe, absolutely eaten up by hate. (BTW the portrayal of JEsus as a faceless giant is a good example of how certain Protestant fundamentalists have a real difficulty with the Incarnation though they don't face up to it.) BTW various atheist groups love to present Chick as the typical Christian because he is so way-over-the-top, and he attracts a significant "camp" following. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack_T._Chicken.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chick_tractThis as a Catholic apologetics site's guide to Chick and his worldview www.catholic.com/documents/the-nightmare-world-of-jack-t-chickThis classic depiction of the antinominian-Calvinist mindset (other forms of this same temptation can be found among Catholics, BTW, and I'm afraid I can think of some fringe Catholics who are quite like Mr Chick) is also relevant: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Private_Memoirs_and_Confessions_of_a_Justified_Sinner
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Post by Young Ireland on May 20, 2014 19:09:33 GMT
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Post by hibernicus on May 20, 2014 19:17:52 GMT
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Post by Young Ireland on May 20, 2014 19:25:28 GMT
My mistake, for some reason I thought he was a supporter of Chick.
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Post by hibernicus on May 20, 2014 19:32:05 GMT
There are similarities and I think one or two of the illustrations are actually derived from Chick. It's an easy mistake to make - like thinking that because the Socialist Party and Socialist Workers' Party are both Trot groups they must therefore be in agreement, whereas they are always squabbling.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 5, 2014 18:40:47 GMT
I think I came across one of these cartoons some time ago, though I can't remember what the story was about. Something anti-Catholic popped up at one point anyway.
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Post by hibernicus on Jun 9, 2014 17:57:39 GMT
There is a longstanding subculture of anti-Catholic hatred and fantasy among evangelicals. I am distinguishing this from serious theological critique, or actual historical accounts of the worst Popes, of historical scandals in religious orders ets; for example, the view that the Pope is antichrist is a serious theological proposition, I'm talking about (say) the idea that all priests are deliberately and consciously in it for the money, that nuns are priests' mistresses, etc. There is a longstanding overlap between that sort of mindset and the similar secularist imagery you get in other contexts (e.g. in the widespread use of religious images and nuns' costumes in pornography etc). Part of this is projection, attributing your own hatred, fears and lusts to the hate-object (and I can think of Catholic examples of this as well). I have seen THE CONFESSIONS OF MARIA MONK, a noted nineteenth-century fabrication, repackaged and on sale in Belfast with cover blurb suggesting that the clerical abuse scandals suggest it might be true after all: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maria_Monk
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Post by hibernicus on Nov 20, 2016 22:59:44 GMT
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Post by maolsheachlann on Nov 20, 2016 23:07:32 GMT
Jimmy Akin's blog recounts a rare (perhaps unique) meeting with the reclusive evangelist. It honestly makes me wonder whether the guy was serious or just tapping into a market. RIP, in either case. Reading his tracts (as I have done), it's hard to wonder if it's not a gigantic leg-pull. jimmyakin.com/2016/10/meet-jack-chick.html
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Post by hibernicus on Nov 3, 2020 20:54:39 GMT
I tend to steer clear of citing Peter OneFive because some of the views expressed strike me as questionable, but this is an interesting discussion of Jack Chick's role in spreading various myths about the demonic origins of Halloween, and the anti-Catholic fantasy history he drew on: onepeterfive.com/did-anti-catholic-jack-chick-ruin-halloween/
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