When do you plan to Convert to Christanity?

[Question Mark]

And why the origins of the Common Law in England are pre-Christian.

Yeah really. In later years we actually had common law courts such as the Doctor's Commons, and the ecclesiastical/spiritual courts separate, whilst in many countries ecclesiastical law was held in common with secular law courts.

[Angrboda]

You would be as well if you were a 1930s German. They weren't any different from us other than the culture they lived in.

No, I wouldn't. That's why we couldn't be friends. You are admitting that the masses can change you. I am saying that I would fight against it at every turn. You'd be an enemy to reason and I'd be there to tell you, just like I'm telling you now...

This from the person who belongs to one of the world's largest social clubs and spends 20 pages repeatedly defending the validity of his membership in that club. (Did you forget that your kind are collectively analogized as sheep?) Tell me, unique and personal Christian, how non-conformist is your belief in Christianity relative to your peers? To your family?

That's fucking funny.

[catfish]

I'm glad I amuse you, welcome to my club...
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[Angrboda]

Secular morals are what common law is.

No siree. Common law upholds Christian morals such as forgiveness. Secular morals still have Christian influence. I heard recently forgiveness and Christs example used as a defense against the animal populist pressure for an eye for an eye type justice.

This of course explains why the very phrase "an eye for an eye" comes from the bible. (Exodus 21)

In case there is some confusion here, the term common law refers, properly, to that body of law that resulted from the precedents set by judges and the judiciary. I don't see a lot of relationship between the principles of jurisprudence developed in Britain and America, and that of Jewish law or later ecclesiastical courts. (Off the top of my head, I'm reminded of the doctrine of Crimen sollicitationis, which deals with how to handle charges of sexual abuses by clerics, and of which it was forbidden to publish or write about, and how it, combined with the church's insistence of handling such cases 'in house', contributed materially to the suppression of the awareness of the epidemic of sexual abuse of children by the Catholic clergy. If this is an example of how "Christian morals" undergird the practice of jurisprudence in western democracies, I'm not sure I can agree that such influence is a good thing.) I think perhaps you meant (or would have, if you'd thought of it), that the law and government of popular western governments such as Britain and the U.S. are founded upon Christian principles. Whether that claim itself is more defensible is another matter.

(ETA: Another question arises out of the Spanish inquisition and the European witch craze. During both episodes, the actual business of executing criminals and heretics was often deferred to secular authorities, but at the insistence of the church authorities. This practice of "washing one's hands of the blood" is hardly one I would like to be a stable part of our legal system, and it makes one question the very foundation of Christian claims to morality. I watched the documentary Freakonomics last night, and one of the segments covered corruption in Sumo wrestling. In particular, it noted how Japan boasts that it has a 96% conviction rate in murder cases; however, the authors suggested this high figure was a result, not of effective law enforcement, but rather was a result of a widespread practice of not investigating deaths for which there was not a high probability of successful prosecution. [The documentary pointed out that advancement in Japanese law enforcement is tied to numbers of arrests and convictions, providing strong incentive to "game the system," a practice they claimed is widespread and systematized.])

[Zone]

I would claim that Christian morals have a secular influence not so much the other way around. Unless you think the moral values Christians hold now are identical to say the moral values of the middle ages or the moral values of Christian slave traders. Even if Christianity was a moral influence compared to what was there before it would just be much the same thing as Confucianism which had a positive influence on that society, it wouldn't prove the supernatural claims at all.

[fr0d0]

Ugh you guys are going over the same ground already dealt with. Those purporting to follow a good example shouldn't be held up as proof of it when they do the opposite.

[Esquilax]

Ugh you guys are going over the same ground already dealt with. Those purporting to follow a good example shouldn't be held up as proof of it when they do the opposite.

And if the example turns out to be fairly rotten in and of itself? What then?

[catfish]

Ugh you guys are going over the same ground already dealt with. Those purporting to follow a good example shouldn't be held up as proof of it when they do the opposite.

And if the example turns out to be fairly rotten in and of itself? What then?

You can ignore the guy trying to control you...
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[thesummerqueen]

Simple question.

I know all of you are currently leading a carefree life, enjoying it to the fullest. But a time comes when responsibility takes over and you need to convert to Christianity a become a more responsible citizen and human. My question, is the time right for you to convert or would you wait a little longer?

Sure it's been said before, but I already pay rent and taxes and charity (in both money and time). I think that qualifies me as responsible as a citizen and human being. I have no responsibility to your god or your religion. I certainly don't live "carefree" - I have plenty of cares.

But I suspect it rankles you that rational-minded atheists don't live in the same cowering fear you do, so I suppose we do seem fancy-free. Jelly much?

[LastPoet]

Better yet, I plan to convert this month's day 30