Steve you are so anal..... but so bloody right everytime

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Happy New Year dude

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lol.
I asked our local priest and he said it ws not directed at snakes, but alotof people interperate it like that.

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lol the number of times I've been asked why not a cat or dog instead doesn't bare thinking about (same answer everythime btw, I'm actually allergic to dog and cat hair).

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Of course I didn't get to ask the entire population, this is information that I got from British and Cypriot friends who we were visiting, people who have lived there for many years if not their entire lives.

I also asked the internationally respected herp expert Hans-Joerg Wiedl, known to locals as "Snake George", and he confirmed what I'd been told. It was precisely because of this attitude that most Cypriots have towards snakes that he set up a reptile park and education centre Untitled Document on the island.

I'd have thought that these two sources were pretty reliable, but maybe you have a better one?

I'm also quite aware that the original wording of the bible didn't mention a serpent, but a serpent is what most people have come to know it as. It's also well documented that this hatred of snakes amongst Cypriots has it's roots in religious teaching, I refer you to the story of Saint Helena who supposedly brought a ship load of cats to the island in the middle ages to kill all the snakes and lizards. The story is well known and is taken quite literally by many locals.

The church in general. Teaching that man is above all the animals, and that they are put on earth for our use doesn't really help the cause of animal welfare.

Interesting looking park... can't find anywhere where he lays the decline of the reptile population at the door of the church though. Also seems a little odd to open a commercial reptile park in a country where the majority apparently go out of their way to kill every snake they see. Do they not attack the snakes in the park ?

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We cant froget that quite a few religions worship snakes, eg hinduism think of the naga etc. i gto this from answers.com about snakes in hinduism
Shesha (Adisesha, Sheshnaga, or the 1,000 headed snake) upholds the world on his many heads and is said to be used by Lord Vishnu to rest. Shesha also sheltered Lord Krishna from a thunderstorm during his birth.
Vasuki allowed himself to be coiled around Mount Mandara by the Devas and Asuras to churn the milky ocean creating the ambrosia of immortality.
Kaliya poisoned the Jamuna / Yamuna river where he lived. Krishna (Balakrishna / infant Krishna) subdued Kaliya by dancing on him and compelled him to leave the river.
Manasadevi is the queen of the snakes.
Ananta is the endless snake who circles the world.
Padmanabha (or Padmaka) is the guardian snake of the south.
Astika is half Brahmin and half naga.
look at this hindu statue:

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my god there are some anal people on this forum lol

i see both peoples points as valid.

no disrespect, but things such as kosha meat have been taken literally from theold testament, and that is not particularly humane.

i also know plently of greek cypriots that like snakes.

as mentioned above, some religions worship snakes.there are snake temples, such at the snake temple at sungei kluang in penang, malasia. live trimesurus wagleri are kept and worshipped here.

Alex

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Not quite sure what you mean by a "commercial" reptile park? Yes there's a small admission fee, to help cover the costs of running the park, but it's hardly a money making venture.

The point of the park is to educate people about snakes and other reptiles, to show them that they aren't something to be feared and killed, there would be little point opening such a facility in a place where no such antipathy existed would there?

No he doesn't publicly blame the teachings of the church for the antipathy towards reptiles, not on his website anyway, that would be counterproductive in a country where the vast majority are believers. And we all know what can happen to dissenters in countries where faith has the upper hand, the man's not an idiot!

The point is though that this hatred of snakes in Cyprus stems from a story about a major figure in both the Greek Orthodox and Catholic Churches, far from being "ludicrous and misinformed" it's a historical fact. And I wonder where Saint Helena, an early Christian, got her opinions on snakes from?

The ludicrous and misinformed part is the sweeping statement that most Cypriots go out of their way to kill every snake they see. This is obviously a gross exaggeration as if it were the case then all the snake species in Cyprus would surely be extinct.

In fact, Snakes of Cyprus by Hans-Jorg Wiedl (Feb 2003) quotes the following snake species
The Large Whip Snake (Coluber jugularis)
The Cyprus Whip Snake (Coluber cypriensis)
Worm Snake (Typhlops vermicularis)
The Cyprus Grass Snake (Natrix natrix cypriaca)
Coin snake (Coluber nummifer)
Cat snake (Telescopus tallax cyprianus)

Montpellier snake (Malpolon monspessulanus insignitus)
Blunt-nosed viper (Macrovipera l.lebetina cypriensis)


So they seem to be holding out rather well against such overt human persecution.

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