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From: tim@unc.UUCP (Tim Maroney)
Newsgroups: net.religion
Subject: Re: A disagreement with Tim Maroney
Message-ID: <6539@unc.UUCP>
Date: Tue, 10-Jan-84 14:26:44 EST
Article-I.D.: unc.6539
Posted: Tue Jan 10 14:26:44 1984
Date-Received: Wed, 11-Jan-84 04:22:08 EST
References: <428@pucc-h>
Organization: CS Dept., U. of N. Carolina at Chapel Hill
Lines: 26

Thanks to Jeff Sargent for his thoughtful response.  I had asserted that
Western religions such as Christianity were more concerned with externals
than internals.  Jeff responded that this was not the case, that the essence
of Christianity is in the emulation of Christ.  In other words, he feels
that the "true Christian" doesn't refrain from sin because ordered to, but
because of an inherent inclination to good.

This is a view that finds a certain amount of support in the Gospels,
particularly in the famous line about committing adultery by the simple
sensation of lust, even without any adulterous action.  However, I did not
say that Christianity ignores internals, only that it places MORE emphasis
on externals.  This is evident from reading the Gospels, and observing that
the pronouncements against those who DO certain things are much more common
than statements that the true sin is internal.  Also, Christianity does not
provide any particular techniques or models relating to internal experience,
unlike the inward-directed Eastern religions such as Buddhism (some forms,
that is -- obviously, I am excludiong the absurdities of the Pure-Landers)
and Taoism, or other inward-directed religions such as Thelemism.

I am sorry that I did not make myself clear.  I do not believe that
Christianity completely fails to deal with internals, only that it is more
concerned with the external.
--
Tim Maroney, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
duke!unc!tim (USENET), tim.unc@csnet-relay (ARPA)