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Pastimes : Let's Talk About Our Feelings!!! -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Rambi who wrote (21233)	5/3/1998 4:24:00 AM
From: Grainne	Respond to of 108807

Well, yes, X's reply was probably a little more succinct, but the two of them are both saying essentially that everyone bears personal responsibility for for his or her actions. I certainly agree with that, and apply it in my life, and teach it to my child. One problem I have is that I believe that if people are taught for a couple thousand years from pulpits to be prejudiced against Jews, I think that religion as an institution does play a strong role, and here I probably disagree with you somewhat. I believe most people are docile followers, not leaders, and that can be dangerous. A child in the twentieth generation of that kind of teaching about Jews, for example, is so far removed from why Jews should be shunned that he only knows they are bad, and to stay away from them. If his whole world is reinforcing a stereotype, I think it is hard for anyone but a free thinker to believe differently. I don't believe most people really examine their lives, or ever sit down and ponder where their belief systems really come from. So I think that religions as institutions can still be very dangerous, and I am assuming you disagree with me on that point. And also, in regard to the Catholics in Europe during World War II, the current charges are that they hid gold for the Nazis, that a prominent priest participated in choosing Jews for slaughter, and that they helped Nazis escape to South America after the war. We are not only talking about helping create a climate of prejudice, but actual collusion with the Nazis. I think these charges are quite serious, and I cannot imagine the Pope apologizing out of graciousness. Where you may misunderstand me is that I would never say to a Catholic that he or she was guilty of any of this whatsoever unless I knew that person actively participated. I am not saying all Christians are responsible in any way, but I am saying that Christianity is not always one hundred percent positive. There is a stereotype in America that if you are a Christian you are good, and if you are a pagan that is evil, and definitely this is not true. But my interest is more in making people aware that they do need to maintain a philosophy of personal responsibility, and question authority and the leaders of their churches when things seem amiss, and that being a part of a particular group is not always a positive. It also obviously bothers me when truly evil people hide behind Christianity, or use tunnel vision and the Bible to discriminate against entire groups. This seems very hurtful and unfair.