Posted by Declan on May 21, 2006, at 15:50:20
In reply to Re: The Long Withdrawing Roar » Declan, posted by Estella on May 21, 2006, at 4:51:33
I think religion compares well with politics historically. The witchburnings, after all, are not from the medieval period when the church wa in control, but from the early modern period, right at the end really of the Church's power.
Safeguards? Not believing that the end justifies the means, or at least no elevating that to a virtue. I have been particularly influenced by Nadezhda Mandelstam's "Hope against Hope" and "Hope Abandoned", written about the Stalinist terror.What else? Thou shalt not kill (as opposed to 'do no murder'...that's how I learned it). It's not something I obey, eating meat, but I think it's great. A religious sensibility. The church is a human organization and therefore..... If you want to look at vile acts committed in the name of religion think of that minister of religion who stood outside Mathew Shephard's funeral (or burial, I guess) with 2 signs 'God hates f*gs' and 'Mathew Shephard is rotting in hell'. What do you think of Graham Greene's comment about Stalin? 'One bad pope doesn't mean the church is bad' or something. That's taking a pretty long view, way too long for me. Could he have been thinking back to the slave revolts in the Roman Empire?
The interesting thing is how the pretty esoteric teachings of Jesus can be pressed into the service of so many unlikely forces. You know....he believed in the free market and would have made a great sportsman.
Declan
poster:Declan
thread:642679
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/poli/20060417/msgs/646609.html