Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rutgers!aramis.rutgers.edu!athos.rutgers.edu!christian From: jrossi@jato.Jpl.Nasa.Gov (Joe Rossi) Newsgroups: soc.religion.christian Subject: Re: a small question Message-ID: Date: 7 Oct 90 01:07:10 GMT Sender: hedrick@athos.rutgers.edu Organization: Jet Propelled Lab - Pasadena CA Lines: 36 Approved: christian@aramis.rutgers.edu In article lionti@ecs.umass.edu writes: > jmoon@lehi3b15.csee.lehigh.edu (Jonggu Moon [890911]) writes: >> If we are supposed to love our neighbor, >> how come we're born with the killer instinct ? > >In Saturday Night Live "Church Lady" voice: > >"Could it be...SATAN?" if you want to equate SATAN with the LifeForce, yes, than maybe. I've been dwelling on this for some time. We are both physical beings and spiritual beings. It is our spiritual being that can love our neighboor, but it is our physical being, as governed by Natural Laws, that dictates what do as an animal. And in this I find a room for compassion. Our actions are governed by our nervous systems and its programming. One of those programs is the survival imperative. When put in a life threatening situation, we are thrown into a fight or flight situation. Adrenalin is released into the brain. Its the way the LifeForce in us demands that we do what we need to survive and its the same thing that causes my cats to hiss at other cats, or to fight, or even kill. On one level as animals we are slaves to these laws, as we compete with other life forms including our own in competition for territory, "turf," food, resources etc. in a limited and hostile natural world. But as spiritual beings, we learn that we must rise above our natural instincts. It has to do with our awareness of the eternalness of life and God. Rising above the animal and embracing the divine is not an easy thing to do which is why I have compassion for those still trapped by the animal. Its also why I'm a pacifist. -- [new sig.file coming to this space very soon]