Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!wuarchive!mit-eddie!rutgers!aramis.rutgers.edu!athos.rutgers.edu!christian From: jhpb@granjon.garage.att.com Newsgroups: soc.religion.christian Subject: Re: Reincarnation Message-ID: Date: 14 Dec 90 09:37:05 GMT Sender: hedrick@athos.rutgers.edu Organization: AT&T Bell Labs (Liberty Corner) Lines: 76 Approved: christian@aramis.rutgers.edu Mark Sandrock quoted Cardinal Mercier (with some editing by me): Under the term *Wiedermenschwerdung*, [again-human being-becoming], metempsychosis, [the passing of the soul at death into another body], or the transmigration of souls, a great variety of ideas may be understood: either a series of repetitions of existence under the twofold condition that the soul maintains consciousness of its personality and that there is a final unit in the series of trans- migrations; or a series of repetitions of existence ... So far as concerns the first assumption, we do not see that reason, if left to itself, would declare this to be impossible or certainly false." One thing is eminently clear from the last paragraph: The Cardinal is speaking in the last paragraph without reference to Christianity. St. Thomas Aquinas spoke similarly with regard to the age of the world. He said that reason could not demonstrate that the world did not exist from eternity. However, he also said that it was clearly known from Scripture that the world was created in time. Cardinal Mercier is making a similar sort of statement. If queried about what Faith says regarding reincarnation, he would say reincarnation is erroneous. Also, the famous Konnersreuth Case, the stigmatism of Therese Neumann, is in fact a case of "sowing and reaping" from a former lifetime, but I have heard that many chose to view this poor soul as a "saint" rather than one in dire need of atonement for a past transgression. (For those who do not know, Therese Neumann was a Bavarian mystic who lived within the last 100 years or so. Like all mystics, she underwent *great* suffering.) It is indeed possible that Therese Neumann may be a canonized saint some day, but the explanation for her sufferings does not lie in a previous life. Aren't you familiar with the Christian doctrine on suffering? Soon the iron hand of the 'Holy' Inquisition was to descend over most of Europe, and for several centuries heretic-hunting on the part of the masses and clergy alike raged with unparalleled fury, sending to the stake, as sons of Satan, hundreds of thousands of these brave, free-thinking Christians. Gradually the night of enslavement over the human mind came to an end. Hmmm. Revisionist history. Sigh. It sure is wonderful that we live in the late 20th century, where the pure unadulterated light of the Gospel shines forth clearly through the Holy Bible, cleverly twisted by any demagogue who can lay his grimy paws on one, (Hey! That wasn't in the script!) and free people from any truly unfortunate grasp they may have had on the truth in these matters, (Slaves! They're slaves, I tell you!) (Hey! Stop that!) dragging them away from the wisdom of their Christian forefathers (but we're really *so* much more clever now than Augustine, Nazianzen, Chrysostom, Jerome, Bernard, Aquinas and the rest, you know. *We* have electric toothbrushes! Can you imagine theology without McDonald's french fries?) (No use. Must be a virus. Time to reboot.) Joe Buehler :-)