From: rhinoceros (rhinoceros@freemail.gr)
Date: Sat May 04 2002 - 19:56:34 MDT
[Jonathan]
Came across this whilst researching Toynbee.
http://www.angelfire.com/ma/karlek/neodeism/nd00.html
[rhinoceros]
I don't know... It looks like some kind of soapbox philosophy. There are a lot of arbitrary claims.
[Hermit]
Unfortunately, it makes the assumption that the mythical "Jesus Christ" is somehow worthy of emulation. I'd suggest that anyone subscribing to the Virian principles is vastly prefereable to "Jesus" as described in the Christian or gnostic works any day of the week. By all accounts, the "Jesus" of the Bible is a nasty, rude, ignorant, uneducated and intemperate person. Any other interpretation requires massive degrees of spin. While one might be tempted to forgive such spin on the part of a believer attempting to maintain their delusions, there is no reason to tolerate it from somebody who is not a believer but merely swallowing a cultural stereotype. And this, it seems to me, is where the entire pack of cards proposed by "neodeism" falls down.
[rhinoceros]
I would agree that Jesus Christ is not someone to emulate unconditionally, but this looks like an overreaction, and somehow lacking in historical perspective. Why "mythical"? That happened in historical time, and there are cross-references about some of the teachings and social activities of Jesus Christ. A rude, ignorant, uneducated and intemperate person? How, and compared to whom? And when? We should not forget that knowledge and ethics are evolutionary and have a historical perspective. Stated like this, it seems just like an attempted insult, and the only result will be losing communications with the person you are talking to.
[Hermit]
Luke 19:27 But those mine enemies, which would not that I should reign over them, bring hither, and slay them before me. [Attrib to "Jesus" KJV]
[rhinoceros]
I did a google search and found out that this quote is part of a parable where a "nobleman" is talking to his servants. In fact, a very interesting parable!
Well, that man went away for a while and left one pound to each of his servants. When he came back, he asked them what they had done with the money.
One servant said that he had made good use of the money, and now he had 10 pounds; this servant was rewarded.
Another servant said that he had kept his pound so that he could give it back if asked to; he was ordered to give his pound to the one with the 10 pounds!
Other servants had revolted, and the boss had them slaughtered (apparently a well understood punishment for a parable at that time).
Putting aside the intended interpretation of this parable, it looks like a caricature of success and failure in capitalism.
---- This message was posted by rhinoceros to the Virus 2002 board on Church of Virus BBS. <http://virus.lucifer.com/bbs/index.php?board=51;action=display;threadid=25454>
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