Confusion over Jewish prayer ritual leads pilot to divert Kentucky flight to Philadelphia

http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/capress/100121/world/us_flight_diverted_6

PHILADELPHIA - A teenage airplane passenger using an Orthodox Jewish prayer instrument caused a misunderstanding that led the captain to divert the Kentucky-bound plane to Philadelphia and prompted a visit from a bomb squad.

A 17-year-old boy on US Airways Express Flight 3079 travelling from New York to Louisville was using tefillin, a set of black boxes attached to leather straps and containing biblical passages, said Philadelphia police Lt. Frank Vanore.

When used in prayer, one box is strapped to the arm while the other box is placed on the head.

"It's something that the average person is not going to see very often, if ever," FBI spokesman J.J. Klaver said.

The teen explained the ritual after being questioned by crew members, but the captain decided to land in Philadelphia anyway, authorities said.

The flight left LaGuardia Airport in New York around 7:30 a.m.; it landed without incident in Philadelphia about 90 minutes later and was met by police and officials from the FBI and Transportation Security Administration.

Authorities said the plane was searched and passengers were questioned. The teen, who is from White Plains just north of New York City, was travelling with his 16-year-old sister.

"They were more alarmed than we were," Vanore said.

Klaver said the teen and his sister were never in custody, and have been cleared to continue their travels.

Passengers on 50-seat regional jet, which was operated by Chautauqua Airlines, were rebooked on other flights, US Airways spokesman Morgan Durrant said.

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Some examples of what it looks like:

http://thm-a02.yimg.com/nimage/9a60032ca7892412

http://thm-a04.yimg.com/nimage/6853fb01d9c9c6fe

http://thm-a03.yimg.com/nimage/2493a75984e61d3c

http://thm-a04.yimg.com/nimage/2e7d9b8373fb312a

http://thm-a04.yimg.com/nimage/e86339e869871070

mozzaok wrote on Jan 22^nd, 2010 at 9:35am:

And usually for the most unspiritual and mundane of reasons - We are mostly by nature solipsistic and egocentric, believing that with enough ritual supplication the cosmos will mitigate in our favour... at least to withhold or defer its ultimate abandonments - poverty, disease and death. And even when reconciled to death, comes the greatest and most pernicious arrogance of faith - belief in life after death. What would a zealot not do to others when he has convinced himself that, regardless of the depravity of his actions, he will live forever?

mozzoak - imho, religion ai'nt got nuffink to do wif spirituality.
spiritual people are not religious and vice versa.

helian - Quote:

if the zealot believes he should do something "agaiinst others" to live forever ( and maybe get lots of poontang thrown in) , the zealot may well do that.

Sprintcyclist wrote on Jan 22^nd, 2010 at 12:27pm:

As if staring at the countenance of a supreme being for all eternity was not ridiculous enough comes this most risible belief of all post-death mythology.

Have they learned nothing from Talking Heads

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