Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!usc!elroy.jpl.nasa.gov!swrinde!mips!dimacs.rutgers.edu!aramis.rutgers.edu!athos.rutgers.edu!christian From: jclark@sdcc6.ucsd.edu (John Clark) Newsgroups: soc.religion.christian Subject: Re: Calendar Time and Euro-centric reasoning. Message-ID: Date: 12 Jun 91 02:37:06 GMT Sender: hedrick@athos.rutgers.edu Organization: University of California, San Diego Lines: 35 Approved: christian@aramis.rutgers.edu In article mib@geech.gnu.ai.mit.edu (Michael I Bushnell) writes: + +I'm posting this because I think it can clear up a common +misconception about the way many Christians view the Bible. I'm sure +John Clark already knows this, but so many don't... The 'reason' for my somewhat 'fundamentist' interpretation is because of the following logic that was given to me recently as 'proof' of the significance of the 7-th day. "God made the Earth in 6 days and rested on the 7-th, therefor in honor of this and in acordence with other texts I keep the 7-th day Sabath". I pointed out that from the time of the Creation (using the literalist interpretation) to the giving the of the Laws at Sinai there is no mention of any 'Sabbath-keeping'. For that matter, there is almost no ritual or observances mentioned at all. So what is now practiced as THE 7-th day is merely a custom like anyother which may observe the '1-st' day relative to some reckoning which could be traced to Babelonian customs. Hence the mention of observations about how one could arrive at the significance of 7/52/360 etc. which is coded into our time keeping methods independent of some assumption about the Creation or any 'reveled' statements to a particular people. I am aware that most Christians would probable agree to some aspects of an 'evolutionary' explanation of the universe with some 'help' from the Diety. Speaking of some different developments in Christian thought, some years ago the name 'Tillard de Chardin' was popular. Has anyone continued in his line of thought. Something about some emergence of some spirit. It's been almost 20 years so I can't hardly recall anything about him or his writings. -- John Clark jclark@ucsd.edu