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From: rcd@opus.UUCP
Newsgroups: net.religion
Subject: Re: Buddhist relationship to other religions
Message-ID: <484@opus.UUCP>
Date: Wed, 16-May-84 04:29:06 EDT
Article-I.D.: opus.484
Posted: Wed May 16 04:29:06 1984
Date-Received: Fri, 18-May-84 06:21:29 EDT
References: <7757@decwrl.UUCP> <1089@qubix.UUCP>
Organization: NBI, Boulder
Lines: 32

This began with Chris Isbell's quote suggesting tolerance and respect for
other religions, ending with:
>>...Let all listen, and be 
>>willing to listen to the doctrines professed by others.

Bickford responds with the orders from HIS God:
>...(And His command to Israel upon going into the Promised Land was the
>opposite of the above quote: "Exterminate the worship of other gods.")
>Isbell's quote implicitly assumes some human control over religion; my
>"religion" is neither subject to nor authorized by man.
I see a contradiction (or two:-) here - Bickford the human has been
commanded to control other humans, but his commands come from a source
outside humanity.  To put it bluntly:  Force others to your beliefs; "God"
is on your side.
How does one reconcile "Exterminate the worship of other gods" with the
US doctrine of freedom of religion?  That is, since our laws expressly
provide for this freedom, they expressly oppose this doctrine which would
"exterminate" (yack, that's offensive) other forms of worship.

>Lest someone address the question of Christian denominations: there is a
>difference between *central* theology (also known as the fundamentals of
>the faith) and *peripheral* theology (the source of many denominations).
>Peripheral theology is debatable; central isn't, without going into a
>different religion.
...and you can debate minor theological points, subject to Bickford's
personal definition of what is a permissible subject for debate.
Interesting idea, especially since including Roman Catholicism with the
other denominations makes the status of the Pope a "minor issue".  But I
guess that if it's your system of reasoning you can make up the rules.
-- 
...A friend of the devil is a friend of mine.		Dick Dunn
{hao,ucbvax,allegra}!nbires!rcd				(303) 444-5710 x3086