Comments on Want to be a free thinker but still a nice person: A vicar's musings

But had Jesus read Isaiah properly? I know there ...

2008-05-05T08:00:00.000-07:00

But had Jesus read Isaiah properly? I know there were Torah scrolls lying about the temples, but do we know whether Jesus was literate? This isn't a tricky rhetorical question; I honestly never heard this discussed.

When I converted to Catholicism, one of the really interesting things Sr. Michele (an 80+-year-old nun, sharp as a tack) stressed during those endless RCIA classes was that the Old Testament had been written over centuries, very crude and violent times, and the writers' slants were to be taken in context: preservation of a safe unified society was the driving focus. Not having the privilege (?) of existentialism, moral relativism, nor any of the other fancy philosophical embellishments we enjoy (?) they did the best they could, and then of course a good bit has been mis-translated/mis-transliterated over time.

So I object to Antichrists (not you, Mel, jamais!:):) pointing laughing fingers (whoooops, what an image, but I'll leave it as I think a Laughing Finger would be as much fun to have as Obiwan Kanobe's light thingie:):) at how silly the Old Testament laws were---you know, getting your eyes yanked out for this, getting stoned for that, blah blah. The whole point of Jesus is that he---whether one considers him the Messiah or just another wise teacher---came along and---well, that stuff's pretty well-documented. But vicars like this Sherborne guy aren't really helping spread the word, are they?

Certain Christians do seem fond of this "filthy ra...

2008-05-03T11:38:00.000-07:00

Certain Christians do seem fond of this "filthy rags" idea.

I remember at a prayer meeting I once went to (yes, Not The Antichrist has attended such events) the speaker said sonething about our own righteousness being like filthy rags compared to Jesus's perfection. Obviously he hadn't read Isaiah properly either!

ELIZ A, THANK YOU, THAT IS FACINATING, FOOD FOR TH...

2008-05-02T01:00:00.000-07:00

ELIZ A, THANK YOU, THAT IS FACINATING, FOOD FOR THOUGHT!

Eliz A, thank you for doing the research on that c...

2008-05-01T23:35:00.000-07:00

Eliz A, thank you for doing the research on that comment because it does make a person feel bad to think all their good deeds are filthy rags, esp if they aren't believers. You helped me a lot today.

Well, but now you have opened up the forum for all...

2008-05-01T12:21:00.000-07:00

Well, but now you have opened up the forum for all sort of questions: 1) from whom did he/she steal the $50,000? Was it from an "evil" corporation (cruel abattoir:) 2) Who gets to define "good works"? and 3), what if this terrible corrupt person hastily shoves a huge pile of money (for tax reasons, of course) into a program for the poor/homeless whomever? He/she may not be pure of heart, nor anywhere close, but if his/her dirty capitalist lucre feeds a few of the the homeless/dienfranchised, then...the moral issue gets a bit blurred, and so it should.

I'm by no means a biblical scholar, so I did a bit...

2008-05-01T11:48:00.000-07:00

I'm by no means a biblical scholar, so I did a bit of research on this comment, which comes from Isaiah. I believe the vicar has misintepreted the text.
"The filthy rags" comment in fact refers to people who do evil, then quickly try to make up for it by doing good. Imagine, for example, the man who steals $50,000, then gives $1,000 to charity but keeps the rest and feels good about himself. That $1,000 is the "filthy rag."

THIS REMINDS ME OF CLASSIC MEDEVIL CHURCH SPEAK. J...

2008-05-01T01:44:00.000-07:00

THIS REMINDS ME OF CLASSIC MEDEVIL CHURCH SPEAK. JOIN, CONTRIBUTE OR BE DAMMED FOR LIFE, NICE! TODAY WE ARE MORE FREE IN THOUGHT (SOMETIMES TO DETRIMENT) BUT THIS SORT OF "PERSUASION" WILL HAVE LITTLE EFFECT TODAY. SHAME I WAS LOOKING FORWARD TO SOMETHING MORE THOUGHT PROVOCING.