[extropy-chat] Atheist Hymn Book

[Michael M. Butler]

> It helps to know the background of Kumbayah, the origin of the song, the
> meaning of the term, etc.  It had its roots in an ancient language as
> recorded by a Christian missionary who went to an African village and met
> with great success in guiding souls to salvation.  The missionary was
> inspired by the Christian youth of that village who used this term in their
> conversations during church functions, and thus wrote the song, which is
> known and loved in religious circles to this day.  The native speakers of
> that language are always delighted to hear this term used in various parts
> of the world, for the actual meaning of the term "kumbayah" is "go fuck
> yourself."

False, in fact.

It is actually originally a song from the Carolinas that made its way
over to Angola where missionaries with no scholarship assumed it was
African patois.

"Come by here" in "Gully" (aka Gullah) (from a mysterious subrace in
the hinterlands of the US South) is, phonetically, coom bah hya.

It's actually about being very near / in despair because God appears
nowhere in evidence:

"Someone's crying, my Lord, coom bah hya..."  Etc.

Loose translation: show the fsck up, God!

> Now let us sing...
>
> spike
>
>
> {8^D

Well, now that you know what it means, do you really want to do the
invocation? :)


-- 
      Michael M. Butler  :  m m b u t l e r  ( a t )  g m a i l . c o m

'Piss off, you son of a bitch. Everything above where that plane hit
 is going to collapse, and it's going to take the whole building with it.
 I'm getting my people the fuck out of here."
   -- Rick Rescorla (R.I.P.), cell phone call, 9/11/2001