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#1439757
Table Rock
built the most prosperous, beautiful societies
Really?
the bloody holocaust of God himself has forever obviated the death either of scapegoats or innocents
Seriously? SERIOUSLY!?
It offers the best chance at maintaining robust and flexible societies.
Ok, now you have drove the crazy train off of a cliff.
8/28/2012 3:55:25 AM
#1439764
Often Partisan
Because Christianity has never supported, I dunno, AntiSemitism?
8/28/2012 4:11:05 AM
#1439765
Leighton Buzzard
No, there mustn't. And the rest of it made no sense whatsoever.
8/28/2012 4:12:10 AM
#1439775
michael3ov
"because its tradents have built the most prosperous, beautiful societies and conquered the world"
And they did this in such a Christian way, didn't they?
8/28/2012 4:28:12 AM
#1439783
" But the best practical reason to establish Christianity is that alone among religions it has solved the problem that the cycle of blood sacrifice threatens always to destroy even those societies otherwise most sane."
I'll not mention the blood that Christianity has spilt to become a dominant religion then...
8/28/2012 4:42:21 AM
#1439789
Doubting Thomas
what religion is it best to establish? I say Christianity. Not because I am a Christian and think it true
No, of course not. It's just a happy coincidence, I'm sure.
My question, though, is why does there need to be an established religion?
8/28/2012 5:12:58 AM
#1439791
Churchy LaFemme
Please explain how conquering is a good thing. If Christianity is such as good thing, others should see that and join voluntarily, not as conquered people.
Oh, and I can think of a few episodes in the history of Christianity that involved the death of scapegoats and innocents.
8/28/2012 5:15:39 AM
#1439800
Canadiest
Stop taking credit for a social democrated society that arose by removing power from the churchs.
Crack a history book from an accredited historian
8/28/2012 5:27:39 AM
#1439805
The_L
" its tradents have built the most prosperous, beautiful societies and conquered the world."
China, the medieval Middle East, the friggin' Mongols.
"alone among religions it has solved the problem that the cycle of blood sacrifice threatens always to destroy even those societies otherwise most sane."
Not only does this make NO syntactical sense, but there is exactly one religion, as currently practiced, that uses blood sacrifice. It's Santeria. They use goat blood. And they only bleed the goat a little, they don't actually kill it. I fail to see how bleeding a goat could possibly destroy a society.
"Christianity therefore provides the best chance of maintaining a high degree of traditional social order that yet leaves room for creative genius to make its contribution"
Athens. Rome. Thebes.
"It offers the best chance at maintaining robust and flexible societies."
Flexible like the Amish, perhaps.
8/28/2012 5:35:39 AM
#1439815
Mudak
I call Poe. Ignoring the glaring historical inaccuracies, this person seems to have used the word "obviate" correctly.
8/28/2012 5:56:18 AM
#1439824
Mister Spak
IOW christian religion is best because it the most similar to my christian religion.
"or because its tradents have built the most prosperous, beautiful societies and conquered the world."
That would be atheism not christianism. Only atheism was able to generate the advanced technology that overwhelmed all other societies.
8/28/2012 6:15:54 AM
#1439841
dionysus
Christianity is that alone among religions it has solved the problem that the cycle of blood sacrifice
Yeah, all of those blood sacrificing Jains are REALLY a huge problem (Jains are nonviolent and try not to kill anything, if you don't understand my sarcasm).
In Christianity alone the logic of sacrifice is turned back on itself: the bloody holocaust of God himself has forever obviated the death either of scapegoats or innocents
Seriously, what religion still has human sacrifice? Oh, and why did your god have sacrifice in the first place if it's so bad?
And only a society that manages to survive has a shot at being good
If you're looking for raw survival, again, Jainism is probably your option, not Christianity with its bloody history.
its tradents have built the most prosperous, beautiful societies and conquered the world
Uh, conquering kills people. I thought you were against bloodshed. Plus, "the most beautiful" is debatable and the most prosperous depends on the context because while England had the largest empire ever Rome had an extremely large and prosperous empire for the technology that was available at the time. And China is the longest-lived empire of all time existing in some form or another for about 5000 years without ever completely falling.
8/28/2012 6:27:25 AM
#1439889
Ebon
But you don't have to have an established religion so the rest of your post is moot.
8/28/2012 7:15:58 AM
#1439905
John_in_Oz
If there must always be an established favourite TV show, which TV show is best to be established? I say 'Buffy!, because it makes no less sense than your proposal.
8/28/2012 7:29:41 AM
#1439906
Arctic Knight
"conquered the world" is a good phrase to use when talking about Xianity. Xianity has conquered with the spilling of blood in order to become the dominant religion.
8/28/2012 7:29:44 AM
#1439940
pete
He's almost right at the start. Christians have constructed prosperous societies, at least for the ruling class, by slaughtering the members of beautiful societies.
As for this bit: "God himself has forever obviated the death either of scapegoats or innocents". Someone forgot to tell all those pillaging Christians about that part. Crusades? Holocaust? Genocide? Any of these ring a bell?
8/28/2012 8:06:23 AM
#1439959
Stonespiral
WTF are you talking about? Christians perform blood sacrifices all the time. Every time Christians call for war, or hold an inquisition, or a witch hunt, it becomes a sacrifice of lives to their god. And it still does happen today in the third world and Christians in the first world wish dearly they could get away with. Christians are all about blood and death, the death of their savior, their own death, threatening pain and torture for anyone they don't like along with the death of the world.
Why else is a torture device their preferred symbol?
8/28/2012 8:33:07 AM
#1439971
rubber chicken
First, that is a fucking big "If".
Second, only in your faptasy universe is 'the cycle of blood sacrifce" even a thing, never mind a problem.
8/28/2012 8:54:10 AM
#1439972
Indicible
"In Christianity alone the logic of sacrifice is turned back on itself: the bloody holocaust of God himself has forever obviated the death either of scapegoats or innocents."
You seem to have missed the last 2000 years of history.
8/28/2012 8:55:14 AM
#1439978
VoiceofKane
"If there must always be an established religion"
And that is where you started being wrong.
8/28/2012 9:04:15 AM
#1439993
Thinking Allowed
I wonder if Kristor realizes there are other religions that don't do blood sacrifices.
8/28/2012 9:22:20 AM
#1440001
Adrian
"If there must always be an established religion, what religion is it best to establish?"
But there is no need for an established religion; as a matter of fact, history shows us that establishing a religion is a terrible idea, so the rest of your drivel would be moot even if it wasn't at odds with reality.
8/28/2012 9:30:25 AM
#1440042
Oh My Dog!
You failed all your history classes didn't you?
8/28/2012 12:32:46 PM
#1440055
checkmate
I say Christianity. Not because I am a Christian and think it true
No, of course not.
I say Islam. Not because I am a Muslim and think it true.
I say the Jewish faith. Not because I am a Jew and think it true.
I say Bahai. Not because I am a Bahai and think it true.
I say Hinduism. Not because I am a Hindu and think it true.
...
8/28/2012 12:59:10 PM
#1440065
nazani14
"high degree of traditional social order that yet leaves room for creative genius "
Sure, that's why creative geniuses are just pouring into Christo-fascist regimes.
8/28/2012 1:15:38 PM
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