Anything is acceptable in the name of religion

[HAB911]

Killing 50,000+ chickens, goats, and Jesus in the name of forgiveness

What do chickens, goats, and Jesus all have in common? If they are killed in the right way, your sins can be forgiven.

Kapparot, the ritual slaughter of chickens, coincides with Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, October 11-12 this year. Participants and PETA estimate that 50,000 chickens will be slaughtered in Brooklyn alone. The bird carcasses are supposedly donated to the poor, though they are often thrown in the trash. [WARNING: There is video evidence of the birds being thrown away, but it is disturbing. It shows bloody, dying birds on the ground, and trash bags full of dead chickens being thrown in a dumpster. It also shows the actual killing of the birds.]

For the ritual, Hasidic Jews grab a chicken by the wings and swing it around their heads three times to transfer their sins to the bird. According to the Jewish Encyclopedia, while swinging the birds, the soon-to-be-redeemed supplicants chant, “This be my substitute, my vicarious offering, my atonement. This cock [or hen] shall meet death, but I shall find a long and pleasant life of peace!” If you know religion, you should know what comes next. The bird is ritually slaughtered. The slaughterer is vicariously redeemed—cleansed of all sins.

http://www.patheos.com/blogs/freethoughtnow/killing-50000-chickens-goats-and-jesus-in-the-name-of-forgiveness/