-Submitted by David Drumm (Nal), Guest Blogger
While the Duma, the Russian Parliament, is considering laws to “to defend citizens’ religious feelings and national and spiritual values from blasphemy and insult,” Russian Orthodox Christians claim that the Apple logo is anti-Christian and insults their beliefs.
The bitten apple is symbolic of the story of Adam and Eve eating the forbidden fruit from the tree of knowledge, appropriate for a company dealing with the dissemination of information. To Christians, the bitten apple symbolizes original sin and temptation by Satan.
This could be problematic for sales of Apple products in Russia.
The first Apple logo showed Issac Newton sitting under an apple tree with the words “a mind forever voyaging through strange seas of thought — alone,” from English poet William Wordsworth. The rainbow themed apple was selected and used from 1976-1998. The Glass-themed version has been used since 2003.
Apple also had trademark issues with The Beatles and their Apple Corps. Those issues were finally settled in 2007.
Crazy beliefs are not exclusive to religion and are of little consequence until they have the authority of the state behind them. Vladimir Putin seems hell-bent on helping Russian Orthodox Christians turn Russia into a Christian version of Saudi Arabia.
H/T: Austin Cline, Ophelia Benson, Forbes, Xbit Labs, Christian Post, The Register.
Your story about the true origins of Apple Corp’s logo is a bit specious at best. Of course there are many scriptures in the bible that suggest that money has no place in heaven; but that should go without saying – right?
OK the true origins of the logo allegedly has to do with a homosexual British man who helped US win WW2 with his enigmatic decryption of the NAZI enigma machine. He did it with his machine called a “BOMB” – not a real bomb of course. It was done at Bletchley Park in UK. He used the arguably FIRST electronic computer in the world the Colossus. We use his test on A.I. robots today to test for how close to human thinking a AI machine has.
Allegedly, he was ostracized (and jailed) for his homosexuality and his forced estrogen injections so much that on June 7, 1954 he allegedly injected potassium-cyanide into an apple and then committed suicide by taking a bite out of it. Steve Jobs was so moved by that he adopted that Apple Logo with the bite out of it in memory of Alan Turing.
Source: Holden Frith (The Sunday Times)
“Modern Russia was first with socialist thinking—-correct?”
Incorrect. Native Americans in precolonial periods appeared to have a “socialist” style of governance many centuries before Marxism. Therefore SOCIALISM in and of itself is not a pejorative term before US Senator McCarthy (et al) got a hold if it. It’s the TOTALITARIANISM part that is so bad.
You do realize that we have a least one openly Socialist Congressman in US politics don’t you? Bernie Sanders (I-Vt). And despite the Tea Party dullards Mr. Obama has NEVER embraced Socialism. Socialized medicine is NOT socialism – in case you were wondering. Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security are SOCIALIZED American programs in affect and working for several decades.
It would be nice if some people (not necessarily you) would bother to not be so much shallow-thinkers* and do more due diligence in their research of a subject matter. Mr. Obama is basically a good man. I think the REAL issue the Tea Party has with him is that he doesn’t look like them so much (i.e. skin color?).
*See Dr. Scott Edilman’s study on “Low-Effort Thought Promotes Political Conservatism” at: http://psp.sagepub.com/content/early/2012/03/16/0146167212439213.abstract?rss=1
Let me be the first to tell you. Steve Jobs created that apple with the bite out of it. It has significance in the last year of his life. He worked and thought and contrived and finally figured out how to take a large sum of money with him when he croaked. As the Apple shares went up in the past year he got a large amount shipped to him by the new internet device called “Dead Man’s Bite”. It will cost each share holder a small bite out of their own Apple. So tell those Russians not to own any shares because they will be giving to a charity in heaven. Inquiring minds want to know.
What offends me is the Russian hypocrisy. “The Gray Cardinal” (Putin’s nickname) has demonstrated a new level of totalitarianism by violating his own constitution and allowing the illegal mob-like persecution of any Protestant religion that has ANYTHING to say about the Russian Orthodox Church (or ostensibly anything Catholic-esque in Russia) that is not in a flattering light. Propaganda is preferred over the truth in his world.
In recent history outside NGO’s that monitor religious persecution worldwide have noticed that in certain Russian states that a particular American-based quasi-Protestant religion has been treated unfairly and very roughly as it concerns their evangelical work, meeting places, and literature. The American HQ has tried to petition Mr. Putin for intervention as the Russian Constitution (which he claims he endorses) allows for such anti-Catholic rhetoric by OTHER non-Catholic religions.
And this Apple Logo thing is complete and utter claptrap. Why is that? Moses, the divinely inspired author of Genesis, NEVER once mentioned the type of fruit Eve selected to eat in direct opposition (aka disobedience) to God’s directive to avoid that particular tree. It stands to reason that it could NOT have been an apple based on his context and the other geographic details in the account.
Arguably the apple “malus pumila var mitris” found it’s roots in South West Asia just south of the Caspian Sea are in eastern Turkey. That pretty much means in the purported Garden of Eden area. If this particular fruit was so prevalent and abundant in the Garden why would anyone consider it “special” or “attractive to the eye”? Therefore in the account Eve would have not felt it was so special to select as it was common and already known to be “good for eating”.
Also this fruit is not so overly abundant in antioxidants to allow the “fallen one serpent ventriloquist” to suggest it contained properties to “open your eyes” (i.e. have greater knowledge of things not explained yet). That is why God labelled it the Tree of Knowledge. (IMO that is).
So if we are seeking some fruit that has all of these potential virtues I think we would need to look for something that is loaded in antioxidants to the point of toxicity (to normal imperfect humans), has coloration that attracts the eye (i.e. golden or yellowish-brown color), is small enough to gather in bunches to share with others, comes from one of the oldest trees in the world or a <i.living fossil, a very unique tree, that really only has ONE species,
Can you think of a tree that fits that bill? A tree whose fruit is highly pungent and visually appealing when ripe attracting attention to it? What tree has enough flavinoids and terpenoids not only in it’s beautiful leaves but in t’s seeds (the fruit)? All of this divinely “designed” to be the eye-opening vehicle for the first couple WHEN it was deemed “obedient” to ingest, NOT before hand. Moses explained that there was another tree whose properties were even more mysterious and the reason why the 1st couple had to be expelled so that they wouldn’t find it. It has been the ancient occult mantra (in many ancient cultures) for many millennium for the search of it.
I think if Empire Constantine (the 4th century REAL originator of the RCC) didn’t concern himself with integrating pagan symbols into early Christianity so that his new religion called “Universal” (from Greek: Katholikos) could win over more converts (sans compliance), the “apple” would have never wound up a candidate for the nebulous “fruit” Moses never identified.
IMO Apple Corporation’s problem is more of a Russian Organized Crime issue more than a religious issue. They just need to know who to bribe to get a better foothold there. Case in point the American Blue Jean phenomena IMO wasn’t just a big hit there for the reasons you THINK you know.
sonofthunderboanerges The Catholic Church as teachings, and prsctises are not that Jesus would not be happy with. They resemble the religions that were against him The symtom of an idol worshiper is to do battle when the idol is seen as being threatened. That is why people that bowed to the golden calf, and other idols were prone to out bursts of violence. You are right. The type of fruit was not mentioned. Further more it was not the fruit for God never made any bad fruit. It was the fact that Adam, and Eve were at ease enough to even eat it when the devil himself was near them. People are at ease to jail. war etc doing what Jesus would not do. There is no virtue in the fallen angel Lucifer. The toxic one is Satan, not what was eaten.
Speaking of beliefs and believers let me speak of freedom.
How the nations nor the peoples of the world have no illusions about our governments foreign policy deeds,
which clearly drip of their or their neighbors’ blood.
But they do like what they see of the chaos, dynamism, and freedom of speech, and to pursue your own betterment in spite of the government. This the core of American culture of equal value in terms of influence as the pop culture of the decades which we also have exported.
Modern Russia was first with socialist thinking—-correct?
USSR expelled Christianity from its privileged position.
Putin like Constantine sees the need for support, and
concedes as Constantine did the power to repress other religions, including secularism to the pile of destroyed beliefs, which oppose Constantine/Putin’s power.
Christianity was not much more than a marginal drop of water in the Mediterranian of religions, beliefs etc of its time. Where each wanderer was a challenge in collecting believers and tithes (see gnostics), the support obtained for “rendering unto Caesar that which is Caesar’s” was a winner, which gave them dominance.
But it was a battle which lasted for over one thousand years. A winning strategy which is still valid today, for both sides.
NB Republicans and fundamental christians. Soon a state religion, if they have their way.
Alan Burdick,
With all due respect, let me pull an ElaineM on you.
“Do you have any citations, etc which support your contention?”
“Hence, Dark Ages thinking still pervades Russian thought.” —Burdick
The entire theme of the book “The Closing of the Western Mind” is based on the fact that Christianity turned away from the Greek enthusiasm for exploration of every world that they (the Greeks) could think of. For early Christians, there was only one book worth reading and all other books were not only unworthy, but dangerous. Hence the Dark Ages. Remember also that, historically, Russia, like Islam, never experienced a Renaissance or a Reformation. Hence, Dark Ages thinking still pervades Russian thought.
Insanity is apparently not limited to fanatics in the Middle East and the US. Russia is marching back in time to the day of the Divine Right of Putin! Offended by the Apple logo, really.
I see what the Russian Orthodox Christians are seeing. They need to stop letting that symbol bother them. Steve Jobs innocently chose those that symbol. We are fallen into sin having a body that dies. .Lets not show it with a bad spirit so we don’t perish with what man made on the last day.
Oh byte me …
Didn’t Eve take more than one bite out of the apple??
I’d like to donate an apple…. if they’d jam it up their butt!
Putin is Evangelical Eastern Narcissist.
what denomination is Vladimir Putin? just wondering.
Eve, schmeve. But it is area where Apple’s “innovation” will not serve them.
Eve was framed.
The logo offends me too, by the way. It should have TWO bites out of it.
I hate to think of what would happen if somebody created a logo of a fat guy with a beard, wearing a turban, eating an apple, carrying a snake in one hand and a hammer in the other.
I am definitely with Zarathustra on this one.
I’m offended that they’re offering need…. Blasphemy I tell you…..
Christians, around the World… STFU!!!!