Is this in any way a contradiction

[Toots]

Most people (not all) consider the USA a Christian Nation yet the USA is the world's largest Arms Distributer. "Kill 'em all, Let God sort 'em out"...I am pretty sure Jesus would have wanted an AK-47 for his protection and that cross thingy may never have happened.....

[benddem]

1. there's nothing Christian about this country

especially with the evil cabal in charge. Besides arms distribution look at the give to the rich starve the poor mentality of the rethugs in congress. I've written my Repub. members of congress and asked how they can call themselves Christian? No answer expected.

[wryter2000]

2. LOL

That nasty crucifixion would never have happened if Jesus had been armed, by gum.

[Caesarmajestic]

3. Jesus taught a course of strength . . .

Nothing makes me sicker than seeing someone who beleives that Jesus will save them (give them a fish). This Mr. Roger-ish version of the man (Jesus) probably is what is responsible for our perceptions of most Christians. They smile with their empty heads and do what Jesus says NOT to do: be weak and mindlessly follow stronger people. Jesus was trying to teach that we must all be strong (learn to fish).

For instance, when Jesus was on the cross, one would think that people would rise up against this BS, as they would not have it for themselves. Instead, we all know what happened and so we see:

Jesus died for our sins. (For the unenlightened, nothing brings out the Mr. Rogers-like visions of Christianity more than this quote)

Jesus died for our sins. And our sin was that we were too weak to help him, to make the righteous stand against the people who nailed him up. To make the obvious choice that we would not have this for ourselves, so we ought not let it happen to Jesus. Jesus died for our sin of being to weak to stand up for ourselves.
-----------------------
Jesus taught a course of strength and if you do not want it, then . . . Do not have it. It is your choice, really. There is no reason that Christians should recruit. If you are strong, and someone else is weak, they will eventually come to YOU and ask YOU how you are so strong.

Anyway, strength is a two part formula according to Jesus, and we see most people missing this (thus the warning that it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter Heaven.) The rich man does not have the perspective to see the second part of the formula.

The first part of the formula is that you must be strong, and that the seven sins will lead to your weakness in one way or another. Sometimes this is not easy to see - but some sins take a while to come back on you. I suggest you also try replacing the words "sin" and "evil" with "weakness" to further your understanding.

The second part is what will you use your strength for? Some sins (of the left) will keep you from accomplishing the first part, above. Other sins are more insidious - you have already accomplished being strong, but you weaken yourself by mis-using this strength in a way that weakens others. Weakening others is a sure-fire way to EVENTUALLY weakening yourself.

Hmm. I am probably not saying it right - read this story and see if it helps you see that strength is a two part formula.

Two men who are 7 feet tall and extremely muscular each go into taverns that are right next to each other. Each is pretty much equivalent in strength, it seems. You have never seen anyone as strong as these two men.

The man who walks into the bar on the right pushes people around with his strength, starts fights, grabs other men's women, steals the pool cue and just starts playing (dares anyone to say anything), intimidates the bartender so he can't call the cops, etc.

The man who walks into the bar on the left patiently waits for a path through the crowd (as anyone would), ends fights and brings stability to the people around him, is respective of the relationships of others, waits his turn, helps others around him, etc . . .

Now which is the stronger man? They are both similar physically, yet one has been thinking a little more about the true meaning of strength, as you see. Which one is like Machiavelli? Which one is like Jesus? Curses, foiled again . . . .

So you can laugh at the freepers all you want, they have simply misinterpreted the simple teachings of this man.

Really, a better way to see this is that someone is mis-teaching the simple teachings of this man, as I have noticed a preponderance of very, very large churches since 1990. I wonder who has paid for these?

Nothing is more right wing than banks and newspapers. It takes a lot of money to have these - you are welcome to try and start one.

Nothing is supposed to be more left-wing than a church, and yet . . .

Every zen idea is supposed to teach balance. But if there is no balance then it is best just to say:

The Eagle cannot fly on just one right wing.

[Toots]

4. So Distributing guns throughout the world is what Jesus would want?

The "Strong Jesus" that is.....

[Deja Q]

7. Wow. And freepers think * is strong?!

Meanwhile, why did Jesus turn one loaf of bread into many? Why did He make all that wine out of water? And while he taught us to fish for ourselves, that didn't stop him from giving out the fish either... particularly to a group of 5,000 as I recall... (Mark 6:37-42? It's been a while... but a poignant story our fat oil cats don't seem to remember...)

And you're right. No eagle can fly on only one wing. Pity that the one wing it's trying to fly on is the WRONG one... and that's known as the "Right Wing".

Welcome to DU. :party: :bounce:

[Caesarmajestic]

8. Valid point

OK, good thinking. I didn't know how to bring these facts into the story and my post was already long. My thoughts then are that you must balance this giving with something a little more enduring or . . . . you will eventually give all your fish away and be overwhelmed.

Just don't be too happy about getting a fish. It is important to be able to provide for yourself.

Big oil gets a lot of flak, but energy is the base of ALL economies, whether it's food energy or chemical energy.

For instance, there is a small group of people who bring the hydrocarbons up. Then they sell them. To us. (I personally do not know these people, do you?)

So then we take this energy and charge our Dewalt Drills up and go build houses, highways, etc. And we think we are great workers.

Just a reminder that it is the chemical energy doing all the work - all we do is direct it.

So everytime you want to blame an oil company, remember all the prosperity that you see around you. Whatever else you might think, they have also given this.

And it is a fish.

Not that oil companies are Jesus or anything. But if they were so evil, you wouldn't have running water.

They have always agreed to trade it, and if gas were $8.00 a gallon, it would still be a good deal. You get something like 170,000 joules of energy for $8.00? Awesome!

The reason for America's prosperity is $1.00 / gallon gas. It is as near to free energy that civilization has ever seen.

Free energy, of course, solves any problem you can bring me. Don't like pollution? If energy was actually free, then that means there is no limit to what we can pay to reduce pollution. For instance, if energy is free, you can just shoot all your trash into outer space. If energy is free, there is no limit to how much you can filter air pollution, etc.

Of course, we havent found free energy yet.

I suggest you re-evaluate how you think about energy. And fish vs fishing.

Most people don't know the cosine of 90 degrees, I bet, but they sure will tell you all they know about energy: Waaah! It's too expensive!

No.

It's too cheap (the true cost doesn't account for pollution), and we have all become litle birds with our mouths open, looking up in expectation of a nice worm-steak from . . . big brother.

Anyway, the one thing I don't like about them is they discourage the common man from helping them carry the load. Since this will eventually lead to their downfall, this is unnaceptable.

They must tell the common man that energy is the source of all wealth, and encourage him to be wealthy by making more than they need so they can put it on the grid.

When every residence in this country is doing this, our oil executives will be wealthier than they ever imagined.

For example, what would you rather be? A wealthy man in a land full of poverty or a wealthy man in a land full of prosperity.

There is now a great imbalance betwen left and right. It is almost like the left pushes away from their responsibility while the right pushes away from their morals and ethics.

Pearl S. Buck, in her book, "The Good Earth", wrote some things about balance between rich and poor. For instance, look for the part where Wang Lung is talking to an older peasant about when the rich get too rich or the poor get too poor.

This imbalance has shown itself throughout history, all the way back to even before Biblical times.

Wealthy men who want to continue being wealthy men will look to see that the following trend is stopped in it's tracks:

Every day, the poor become less and less able to afford the goods and services provided by companies owned by the rich.

[Deja Q]

5. We are a "judeo-christian" nation...

We basically take the (worst?) tenets of both religions and cram them into a new, ersatz, one.

[Warren Stupidity]

6. Uh - hmmm...

most people are idiots? A majority of americans are certainly self-identified christians. The USA is a secular republic - explicitly so by the words and original intent of the constitution.

It is a good question as to how self identified christians can support state violence in the form of wars of aggression and executions, but I return to my original thesis: most people are idiots.

Happy Thanksgiving.

:toast: