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From: garys@bunker.UUCP (Gary M. Samuelson)
Newsgroups: net.religion.christian
Subject: Re: Arguments from Silence: Golden or just Yellow?
Message-ID: <763@bunker.UUCP>
Date: Tue, 26-Mar-85 10:33:41 EST
Article-I.D.: bunker.763
Posted: Tue Mar 26 10:33:41 1985
Date-Received: Thu, 28-Mar-85 00:13:41 EST
References: <1008@phs.UUCP>
Organization: Bunker Ramo, Trumbull Ct
Lines: 39

Jeff Gillette writes:

> It seems that every six months or so we play a little game on 
> net.religion called "bait the Christians."  Someone who claims to be a 
> Christian makes some outrageous statement, or some hideous act of 
> violence has associations with Christian individuals or institutions.  
> The call goes out: "Every Christian had better repudiate this person or 
> that institution, or the whole world will take your silence as agreement 
> with the condemned."  I'd like to take this opportunity to stick my neck 
> into the game long enough to make one comment: count me out!

Hear, hear! and Amen!  It is not my responsibility to publicly
denounce everyone I disagree with.  I don't respond to everything
on the net I disagree with; I don't respond to everything on the
net I do agree with; I don't even read everything on the net.
I have tried to make it clear in the past that I don't approve
of everything which claims the name Christian; who says I have
to provide an exhaustive and up-to-the-minute list of such things?
If anyone wants my personal opinion on any specific issue, ask
me personally and directly, and I will tell you.

As if those making the "call" Jeff mentioned really wanted
my opinion!

> But, back to my original point.  If Don Black (or Rich Rosen, or anyone 
> else) ultimately shows himself/herself to be thoroughly narrowminded, 
> intolerant and bigoted, don't hold your breath waiting for me to make any 
> obligatory denunciations.  And don't waste your breath saying that Jeff 
> Gillette supports intolerance and prejudice because he hasn't denied it 
> loudly enough.  I'm not interested in playing that game.  Truth is God's 
> Truth, and Truth will win out with my comment or without it.  This type 
> of argument from silence is not golden, it's yellow.  And I have no 
> interest in cowering before it. 

Thank you, Jeff.  I hope you saved a copy of your article for reposting
six months from now.

Gary Samuelson
ittvax!bunker!garys