OldNemesis - I am over this thread and I do want to spend more than a minute or two replying to you. I get the distinct impression that your mind is made up no matter what anyone else says and that is ok. You seem to have a hard on for Christians and the Catholic church in particular and I am not interested in trying to convert you, nor was I ever.
- Christian values, of course nothing is 100% perfect. Of course you could show some hypocrisy in what some interpret as Christian law and our punishments of those who break those laws, but when talking about "christian" values and laws, we can simply say that we designed our laws after the basic principles of good behaviour as listed in the 10 commandments. Though there is a seperation of Church and state, what rules were most laws based off of? Unlike other cultures which migh stone you to death for a theft or allow you to barter your way out of a crime with a goat, we actually try and protect our society from theives, murderers, rapists etc. by atleast somewhat fair punishment. Again this is relative, as I know that many of our laws in the USA are out dated and I agree we have some strict laws on petty crimes which need to be repealed, but if you compare it to what some other Countries do, we are fairly progressive in some areas while still remaining tough on other criminals where places like Western Europe has failed.
- You do seem to keep returning to Slavery. Again Slavery was one of the Cultural changes that I tried to use as an example of a bad cultural change, however I do not see the relationship between Slavery and Christianity as direct as you are suggesting. Slaves were held in most cultures/religions and in certain parts of Africa (where we learned the Slave trade to start with) they still hold slaves, not a Christian influence that caused it, though you make it out to be so.
- Cultural Change..again you describe cultures as ever "evolving" but that is not always the case. Nazi Germany was a huge cultural Change..would you call it good? Stalin and the boys in your home country, a bit of a Cultural change? I would say. Positive, I think not. Also I might add both of these cultural changes started with power resting in the hands of a totalitarian government and absolute disregard for individual states or counties rights which you also seem to have a problem with.
- Christian values, of course nothing is 100% perfect. Of course you could show some hypocrisy in what some interpret as Christian law and our punishments of those who break those laws, but when talking about "christian" values and laws, we can simply say that we designed our laws after the basic principles of good behaviour as listed in the 10 commandments. Though there is a seperation of Church and state, what rules were most laws based off of? Unlike other cultures which migh stone you to death for a theft or allow you to barter your way out of a crime with a goat, we actually try and protect our society from theives, murderers, rapists etc. by atleast somewhat fair punishment. Again this is relative, as I know that many of our laws in the USA are out dated and I agree we have some strict laws on petty crimes which need to be repealed, but if you compare it to what some other Countries do, we are fairly progressive in some areas while still remaining tough on other criminals where places like Western Europe has failed.
- You do seem to keep returning to Slavery. Again Slavery was one of the Cultural changes that I tried to use as an example of a bad cultural change, however I do not see the relationship between Slavery and Christianity as direct as you are suggesting. Slaves were held in most cultures/religions and in certain parts of Africa (where we learned the Slave trade to start with) they still hold slaves, not a Christian influence that caused it, though you make it out to be so.
- Cultural Change..again you describe cultures as ever "evolving" but that is not always the case. Nazi Germany was a huge cultural Change..would you call it good? Stalin and the boys in your home country, a bit of a Cultural change? I would say. Positive, I think not. Also I might add both of these cultural changes started with power resting in the hands of a totalitarian government and absolute disregard for individual states or counties rights which you also seem to have a problem with.