mam cuts off his....

BACOLOD, Philippines (Reuters) - A 32-year-old
Filipino farmer who believed his penis was
driving him to sin sliced it off with a machete in a
fit of religious fervor, family members and
doctors said on Friday.

Relatives said they found the former security
guard lying on the floor, covered in blood and
with a portion of his penis missing when they
went to his hut on Negros island in the southern
Philippines on Monday.

"He is a good son, and one of seven children,
He indulged himself by reading the Bible," his
mother told reporters in Bacolod City 300 miles
south of Manila, where the man is now in
hospital.

"His act was probably triggered by the book of
Matthew 18:8," she said.

The verse, from the New Testament, reads "If
your hand or your foot causes you to sin, cut it off
and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life
maimed or crippled than to have two hands or
two feet and be thrown into eternal fire."

Family members said they rushed the man to a
nearby hospital in Bacolod where doctors said
they had stitched up and reconstructed his
penis, although it is now 20 percent shorter.

Relatives said they were unable to find the
severed portion.

Doctors said the man's penis showed several
wounds, indicating that the man had hacked at it
several times before it detached.

"The mere act of cutting his penis signifies that
he is psychotic," the doctor said, but did not
indicate whether the man would undergo
psychiatric evaluation.

He is now in stable condition and his wounds
were expected to heal in two and a half weeks,
doctors said. The man will still be able to have
children, the doctor added.

The man's mother said her son had been
depressed and obsessed with the Bible since
his wife moved to Manila to work as a
housemaid, leaving their young child to live with
her family.

"He said he wanted to be nailed to a coconut
tree," the man's mother said. "He had
memorized the Bible and preaches with the
pastors in our place.

"He also advised other people to remove nude
photos from their walls so that small children
will not become sex maniacs later," the mother
said.

Today newspaper quoted the man as saying he
had no regrets about cutting off his penis
because it was driving him to sin.

Local radio and newspaper reports said the
man had visualized his penis as a "cobra"
drawing him toward women.

& i thought that i knew some crazy people... shite!
"for you have sinned child, pick a limb and hack don't slice"

*sigh* it's late and i can't sleep

I blame religion! *nods*

That's some crazy shit!
I wonder what good old TechStockTony would say about this?

He'd probably approve of it.

Regilion shit...,

Yes send this to TST...

Religon seems to drive people to do the craziest things. I think the whole concept of sin (in Christianity in particular) is just to scare people into supporting churches etc through the fear of going to hell. I'm not saying that the idea of killing someone is not bad, but seriously, what the hell is wrong with sex before marriage?

Yeah, I agree too. I actually have some incredibly strong views on/against organised religion, but in some ways do not want to get into a massive argument about it with any religious types on here.

Unfortunately, religious belief is something that's very hard to argue rationally with due to its inherent irrationality.

And I would tend to be on your side Voice, but sometimes I think religion is the only answer to keep some people on the straight and narrow... I dunno, it just seems some people cannot be "good" people without the fear of god. Not saying this well, but, y'know what I mean?

Good point Smiley. These people you're talking about, are, of course, pathetic and weak. But I can see that there is value in getting some of these pathetic and weak peeps to susbcribe mentally to a set of beliefs that are better than the alternative, which is have no morals at all.

Uh oh, anti-religious elitism! Go me! :-/

Heh! We'd get on well. : )

Hehe, especially if you gave me smiley stickers. *grin*

Don't write these people off as weak and pathetic Voiceinsideyou, just because they believe in something. That's offensive to me, and I'm not religious.

I think what Voice was refuring to were people with the "True Believer" mindset. People who will jump to a cause, any cause, whether its religous, political, or whatever. They will then follow that cause to fanatical ends. Give those people a nice tolerant religion to follow, and keep them out of trouble.

J: My post was deliberately inflammatory. I was trying to start a flame-argument to get this place going.

Nevertheless, if you actually read my post, you would see that I was referring to the kind of people who need to "be kept on the straight and narrow", as Smiley puts it, not people who believe in a religion, or a god. Some of these people would otherwise be breaking into your home and stealing your TV and stereo - everyone's seen the (good) evidence regarding some people who are turned around by their love for god etc. Typical young people who've "lost their way" in life. I was saying that their conversion to religion was a good thing if it keeps them clean and gives them direction, while also noting that these people are weak and pathetic, in general.

I'm not writing them off /because/ they believe in something, but due to the fact that they /need/ to believe in a religion in order to acquire any direction whatsoever, or any moral convictions and sense of responsiblity to society. I think that's pathetic, personally.

My complaints are to do with the hierarchy and history of some religons, not so much the people at the bottom.

Looking back through history organised religons has been responsible for some shocking things. Crusades, Inquisitions, holding back science (prime example being preventing Galileo from publishing a book even though he was batatntly correct).

Anyone heard the story about the Childrens Crusade? A whole pile of children were organised to go on a crusade to the "holy land", they all sailed out the from England, where they were all promptly sold into slavery.

Most religons are based on good ideals. It just seems that things always get a bit messy.

Agreed, nice in principle (in some respects) - like communism. Unfortunately, in practice things get fucked up with both. I have many more 'complaints' I suppose.