Fungus, not Jesus Magic, Causes Communion Wafer "Miracle"
From the people who still believe in demonic possession in the year 2015 ...
http://www.patheos.com/blogs/friendlyatheist/2015/05/13/illinois-catholic-church-assumes-red-stained-communion-wafer-is-miracle-unaware-of-scientific-explanation/
Illinois Catholic Church Assumes Red-Stained Communion Wafer is Miracle, Unaware of Scientific Explanation
There’s evidence of a “miracle” at St Patrick’s Catholic Church in Rochelle, Illinois.
Get this: A communion wafer “was placed in water by the Deacon to dissolve on May 1, 2015, [and] four days later, May 4, 2015, it appears to have turned into flesh and blood.”
You know, this exact thing happened years ago in Minnesota. Wafer. Water. “Blood.” And there turned out to be a perfectly good explanation for it that had nothing to do with ridiculous Catholic theology.
The archdiocese sent the host to an unnamed laboratory to be tested and released the results Wednesday in a statement from archdiocese spokesman Dennis McGrath.
“Exhaustive biological analysis by an independent scientific laboratory has determined that the reddish coloration on the Holy Communion host fragment that was kept in a water solution after it was discovered on the floor of St. Augustine Church … was caused by a fungus. The host in question has been disposed of in a manner prescribed by church law.
“While the Catholic Church fully recognizes the possibility of miracles and remains open to their possibility, it does so with extreme scrutiny, investigation and care. This incident was the result of natural biological causes and should not be considered in any other way.“
But rather than even consider a rational explanation, this Illinois church jumped straight to “miracle.” Church officials say they’re awaiting “an official ruling” from, I assume, the Vatican.
(Actually, since they believe the wafer is literally the body of Christ, wouldn’t the wafer turning red be the opposite of a miracle…?)
In any case, how long do you think it’ll take before they figure out God’s not really sending them a sign? I call dibs on “never.”
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I saw several when I lived in Egypt, since they were always covered in the local paper.
Every once in a while, a farmer would discover a melon, or a baker a loaf of bread, etc., that appeared to have a verse from the Qur'an on it, in Arabic. Those miracles were always covered, with photos.
The Egyptian Gazette had a woman columnist who was not only a devout Muslim, but a believer in all kinds of woo. (Which she insisted were "scientific."
She claimed to know, with absolute certainty, that the animals sacrificed during the Eid festivals felt no pain and were happy to be sacrificed. My lying eyes call bullshit on that one, too. I've seen animals sacrificed for those festivals and saw no evidence of happiness.
No apparitions of Mo, for the obvious reasons you point out. Though the Quitbay Mosque in Cairo, built in 1492 IIRC, has a preserved footprint of Mohammed on display. I saw that miracle myself. It was just a footprint in dried plaster or mud. Didn't glow or levitate while I was there.
But we all know miracles are allergic to skeptics. Or as some smart-ass once flipped that idea - reason only visits where it's welcome.
as an atheist I demand free drugs to hallucinate as much as religio dweebs.
Because ... Harry Potter.
I think they prefer 'supernatural'.
Grand Wizards, at least...
