Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2 9/5/84; site uwmacc.UUCP Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!mhuxj!mhuxn!houxm!ihnp4!zehntel!hplabs!hao!seismo!uwvax!uwmacc!dubois From: dubois@uwmacc.UUCP (Paul DuBois) Newsgroups: net.religion Subject: Re: What God Wants Message-ID: <526@uwmacc.UUCP> Date: Mon, 3-Dec-84 14:14:07 EST Article-I.D.: uwmacc.526 Posted: Mon Dec 3 14:14:07 1984 Date-Received: Thu, 6-Dec-84 05:31:19 EST References: <1376@pucc-h> <1731@nsc.UUCP> <><2330@mcnc.UUCP> <2376@mcnc.UUCP> Organization: UW-Madison Primate Center Lines: 57 > In article dubois@uwmacc.UUCP (Paul DuBois) writes: > >> >... One of the great joys of humanity is its diversity, and part > >> >of that diversity is that widely differing groups of people can all worship > >> >the same Being in ways uniquely theirs. > >> > >> I always figured that was part of the Plan. A Deity that truly loved all > >> people in their diversity (and who truly wanted love in return) would > >> understand that different people have different expectations of their > >> faiths, and would provide accordingly. No way is better or worse than > >> any other, and all measure the differences among us. Ultimately, they > >> bring us all to the same place. > > > >At the risk of sounding remarkably like Ken Nichols (which, I should > >say, hardly frightens me, though some seem to think it a fine > >derogation), the above paragraph boils down to this: any God that > >"really" loved us would let us do what we want. God should > >follow the rules *we* make up for *Him*. > > Golly Gee, Paul, I thought we were talking about forms of worship, not > day-to-day moral behavior. Do you mean that if I adopt a different religion > than yours, with attendant behavioral proscriptions and prescriptions, > that I am asking G-d to follow the rules I make up? The paragraph before mine clearly states that God is "supposed" to fit what *we* want. Even if you are talking about worship, this amounts to God following our rules. And then He's not God. > I do wish you guys would stop running around and hollering "unclean" at > anything that doesn't fit your faith, however. It may have a certain > nuisance value, but it wears a little thin and only makes me angry at > you (not at G-d, not at christianity, but at you.) Most folks I know, > of different capital letter and lower case faiths just don't do that, and > it's a whole lot easier to understand them. It's real easy to try to > respect someone elses faith and their feelings about it, to exchange > ideas without threatening or feeling threatened, and to come away with > a greater understanding of G-d. Hopefully we're all a little better off > for it. I'm sorry if I've made you angry. However: I'm not threatening anyone, nor do I feel threatened by you stating your beliefs. Go ahead. But I certainly get tired of reading articles consisting of "let's have religious discussion, but let's not telling anyone we think they're wrong." If you don't consider your beliefs worth transmitting, they're not worth holding personally. Obviously you consider my views wrong, since you feel the need to correct me. I am not going to complain "don't tell *me* I'm wrong!" Why should I? But then you shouldn't go around telling people like me that they're wrong... > Oh dear, I've probably made everyone angry by preaching tolerance again, > so I guess I'll sign off... > > Byron C. Howes Not angry. -- Paul DuBois {allegra,ihnp4,seismo}!uwvax!uwmacc!dubois