(November 6, 2012 at 2:43 pm)Ryantology Wrote: When you subscribe to a superstition which requires you to believe that you are a filthy, degenerate sinner, a stupid beast who cannot function without heavenly authority, who does not deserve salvation whether or not he gets it,
'love thy neighbor as you love thyself' is no bar to committing crimes against others.
Two thoughts for this statement.
1. Regarding the "requires you to believe that you are a filthy, degenerate sinner, a stupid beast who cannot function without heavenly authority, who does not deserve salvation"
*That's just the first part. The second part of the Christian belief is that even though we do not deserve of earn God's affections...He loves us anyway...and for those who trust in Jesus as Lord and Savior He adopts us as His children.
2. Regarding the "love thy neighbor as you love thyself' is no bar to committing crimes against others."
*I don't see how this is sound logic.
(November 6, 2012 at 2:43 pm)Ryantology Wrote: Would not the love of self be classified as the sin of pride? Jesus' application of the Golden Rule, in fact, seems to encourage this sort of thing. Which is, of course, why all the religions of your God are so bloodthirsty.I think you are twisting the words out of their context.
Given the context it seems fair to say he is not stating that selfishness is the greatest quality that the entire Hebrew scripture teaches.
To conclude that what Jesus is really teaching there is that we should we selfish seems just as intellectually fair as concluding that you believe there is a God by your statement, "Which is, of course, why all the religions of your God are so bloodthirsty."
I could say, "Aha! So you do believe there is a God because you've referred to my God as a real being!"
Sidebar: the average church does not strike me as bloodthirsty.
