Chak you do surprise me. If you mean the bit about Pontius Pilate being a saint, I was a bit surprised to discover it myself. The really interesting thing is that the church in Egypt (Coptic church), according to tradition, was founded by the Apostle Mark in about AD60. Also according to their tradition, their church is the fulfillment of a prophecy o
I am finding that I am getting more info from many of the Coptic teachings and their expanded use of the gospels For me, one of the more interesting beliefs of the Coptic and Ethiopian churches is that Pontius Pilate was converted to Christianity. In fact, in both of these churches he is venerated as a saint
Actually on the subject at hand, from what I can gather the upcoming Judas Gospel programme is about the discovery of a copy of an early(ish) version of the gospel in which Judas was apparently asked by Jesus to "sacrifice the man that clothes me" i.e. help to bring his death about. The work seems to be a gnostic writing, one of many produced at a time when the gnostics were in theological dispute with christian orthodoxy. There were a large n
would like to see some of these people lay their lives on the line if they were to be forced to, or would these lily livered bastards just turn tail and bow to whatever looking like saving their sniviling spinless hides. Reading this I was a bit bewildered by the ferocity of the writer. Hardly an eloquent expression of Christian love and kindnes
No sure if you think I'm a baseball weilding Christian or not It's quite clear to me that you are not. Although I disagree with your argument I can see that it is thoughtful and principled. Thank you for having both th
You seem to forget that the House of Commons passed the resolution authorising the British troops to invade Iraq with the support of the Conservatives. In fact I forget nothing of the kind. I think you have completely misunderstood my argument. First of all, I am not a British Conservative, so I'm not i
[A little 'off-topic interlude] I remember on my last trip back to England going into a really rough after hours pub in Birkenhead, Merseyside where everyone was really drunk and the tension and testosterone were high. A couple of anxious young men wondering when they would get their fight for the night, others so drunk they could hardly stand... ... then out came the guitars - and the old fiddle player tuned up - and the music was raucous
In Canada, one Pastor was in trouble because he preached against Homosexuality. On this issue I have to say that I fully support the right of Christians to honestly express their religious beliefs. On this issue there seems to be a consensus amongst most (but not all) christian denomination that homosexualit
KFC, I see your point of view. I have always understood Christianty's point of view. Its hard to mistake. What I seek is a Christian's willingness to see mine as equally valid. Just re-read this and it immediately raised a question in my mind: why? Why should you seek a Christian's willingness to see your faith as equally valid? First of all, a f
How about we learn how to make our OWN music like people did for, oh, I dunno, THOUSANDS of years before the professional musician made us lazy. Who said anything about professional musicians? The man that hath no music in himself, Nor is not moved with concord of sweet sounds, Is fit for treasons, stratagems and spoils; T
The point was if I were in another culture I'd do my best to learn the language Yes, that's about as much as one can reasonably ask.
We can survive without musicians. It depends on your definition of 'survive'...
I would expect no less myself if I moved to Brazil, Korea or Russia. I would learn the language and do my best to speak it out of respect for my new adopted country. Actually, have you tried to learn Korean? I've been trying for nearly 5 years. I'm finding it really hard and I'm quite a talented linguist. I
And this is precisely the point. The people who lecture on ‘economic reforms’ and the ‘cold, hard realities of the market’ are never the ones who feel the full force of capitalism’s tender mercies. Yes, indeed that is the point. Mr Locks may in fact be perfectly correct about the economics of
Dear Sodaiho, Actually the Christian belief that all those who do not accept Christ will go to hell is a major part of their faith - particularly for those of a fundamentalist persuasion. As I do not accept this doctrine, I am I suppose by definition one of those destined for the great fiery pit. And yet, after a little consideration, I do not think that this doctrine or belief is quite as offensive as it seems to you. First of all the biblical verses that claim that Jesus "is the w
I am not an expert on the current anti-war left, so I shall defer to your experience, but I have to say that your portrayal of a radical left only protesting against American military action does not ring true. Whether it be 'neither Washington nor Moscow' or some other maximalist slogan, the utopian left has always seemed to me to be tilting at every windmill going, like a bunch of Don Quixotes on speed. Still, this is not a world I am part of
To whom then do we entrust the job of "making things better"? Hussein? Hamas? Al Qaeda? Putin? Chirac? This is the thing: those who oppose the war are sure that the post-war programme to bring democracy to Iraq will fail; the pro-war crowd are equally sure that it will succeed, that it is in fa
One thing that interests me about the Iraq War debate in America is how it is usually presented as a straight-forward left/right thing with 'liberals' "against" and 'conservatives' "for". The situation in the homeland of the major US ally is very different... In the UK you can hear all the usual far left suspects decrying the war using the usual rhetoric of stopping 'American Imperialism'. Now, while I agree that it is deeply unfair to say that all those who oppose(d) the war, were supp
better stick with derbies, swallowtail coats, monocles amd walking sticks; a stetson and new store-bought duds could wind ya up being too closely associated with oscar 'the brokeback kid' wilde. And just where can I find a green carnation this time of year?
An interesting analysis. But a little simplistic in places: Without a doubt the European victors of WWI looked at the Middle Eastern region as “spoils of war”, with little or no regard for the desires of the population. Actually there is plenty of doubt. The League of Nations Mandate system was pred
Are you British, Major Maths? I think, judging my some of his previous articles, he is from India - just like the Buddha - which might explain the ferocity of his opinions. Living in Asia I am used to Asian christians who view their shiny new western imported religion as vastly superior to their homegrown varieties, which they see as a princ
Actually I like this new fashion of trying "to be fair" to both sides and I hope that it catches on. I don't take offence to what Sodaiho says because I think that I understand what s/he means (but I could be wrong). Which seems to be about not mistaking the outward trappings, or the intellectual theological concepts for the heart of religious
Dear Major Maths, Once you taste and experience the feeling of nearness to God.Once he bestows you with insight and light all this indignant attacking of other people's religions will appear to you childish and stupid . (But I believe that, deep down, you already know this. Peace)
For me the most interesting sentence in the linked article was: " He [Young] defended his role as entirely consistent with the ideals of the civil rights movement " which I'm sure is essentially true. It's often puzzling as to why some 'issues' activists (be it feminists, gay rights, anti-racism, environmentalists etc) seem to take such extreme stances on the single issues they campaign on. One explanation is
To be fair to Sodaiho I think that he would probably include his own 'religion' as a 'silly thing' and in a sense he would be right. The silliness is not necessarily in the religion itself, but religions are practiced by real flesh and blood people who can at times be vain, self important, self righteousness and at least partially deluded (all of us). Those of us who get really angry defending our various religions of peace and love have
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