[net.religion] My previous warning

stanwyck@ihuxr.UUCP (Don Stanwyck) (05/11/84)

With regard to my statement noting that not all Christians support the types
of actions carried on in the name of God by some people, I wish to issue a
first clarification (first, because I expect I will have to defend it yet
more).

1.  D. Seifert put it very well when he noted that before disobeying a
    government one should be absolutely certain that one is actually
    acting as God would have you.  I would go a step further and note
    that sometimes our understanding of timing and priorities is only
    our own, and may not be what we want it to be - God's.

2.  The specific action referred to in the original article would be just
    as illegal in the U.S., Canada, or most (if not all) so-called free
    countries.  Smuggling anything across a border, whether it be books,
    drugs, people, or anything else is illegal everywhere.  It is an
    intentional attempt to avoid the tariffs, import quotas, etc., of 
    the target country.  If someone were to attempt to bring a load of
    Bibles into the U.S. for distribution to the citizens of the U.S.,
    and the Bibles were discovered at the border, they would be jailed
    for smuggling, copywrite violation, import law violations, and (most
    likely) a host of other charges.  Would those who encourage it elsewhere
    try to defend their actions here?

3.  Bibles, yeah, even Russian language Bibles, are available in the USSR.
    They are incredibly expensive, not only in terms of money, but also
    in terms of the expected results of purchasing one (persecution of
    various sorts, etc.).  None the less, the USSR has copywrite laws
    that make it illegal to bring in books published elsewhere unless
    the proper permits are obtained.  

I, for one, am not sure that what is being done (smuggling of Bibles)
is what God would have these people do.  I think it could almost as
easily be argued that we should smuggle people into the U.S. so that
can have more "religious freedom" (and some are doing so - see recent
news reports on churchs smuggling in Latin American refugees), another
act I find very difficult to justify.

This is long enough, and I am sure I will be flamed for it, so I will quit
for now.
-- 
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 (      )					Don Stanwyck
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barry@ames-lm.UUCP (Kenn Barry) (05/14/84)

[*************=8>:)         (snort)]
	You're right, Don, you get flamed for this one (but on low heat;
that's my style). Regarding the smuggling of Bibles into the USSR, you
say:

> 2.  The specific action referred to in the original article would be just
>     as illegal in the U.S., Canada, or most (if not all) so-called free
>     countries.  Smuggling anything across a border, whether it be books,
>     drugs, people, or anything else is illegal everywhere.  It is an
>     intentional attempt to avoid the tariffs, import quotas, etc., of 
>     the target country.  If someone were to attempt to bring a load of
>     Bibles into the U.S. for distribution to the citizens of the U.S.,
>     and the Bibles were discovered at the border, they would be jailed
>     for smuggling, copywrite violation, import law violations, and (most
>     likely) a host of other charges.  Would those who encourage it elsewhere
>     try to defend their actions here?

	I submit that it is not the same here. I doubt anyone would bother
to smuggle Bibles into the US, since they're already available in every
hotel room in the country, but if someone did smuggle them in, it would
have to be with the intent of making a profit, not to fight religious
oppression. Side note: smuggling, even just smuggling for profit, has
a most romantic history, and has often been an informal weapon in the
fight against tyranny.

> 3.  Bibles, yeah, even Russian language Bibles, are available in the USSR.
>     They are incredibly expensive, not only in terms of money, but also
>     in terms of the expected results of purchasing one (persecution of
>     various sorts, etc.).  None the less, the USSR has copywrite laws
>     that make it illegal to bring in books published elsewhere unless
>     the proper permits are obtained.  
 
	The Soviet approach to copyrights (note spelling) is quite one-sided.
Ask any Western writer who has had his books published in Russia. Royalties
are often not paid at all; when they are, they are usually made in rubles,
which can only be spent in Russia. Also, please note, I doubt that this
is really an issue. Copyright laws are to protect the authors of books;
the Bible, per se, is not even copyrighted (though any given version
may be). The laws being broken by the Bible-leggers relate to smuggling,
not copyrights.

> I, for one, am not sure that what is being done (smuggling of Bibles)
> is what God would have these people do.  I think it could almost as
> easily be argued that we should smuggle people into the U.S. so that
> can have more "religious freedom" (and some are doing so - see recent
> news reports on churchs smuggling in Latin American refugees), another
> act I find very difficult to justify.
	
	The reports I have heard on the smuggling in of Latin American
refugees by church groups described it as a matter of saving these people's
lives, not just insuring their religious freedom.
	In closing, let me add that I do not see this as mainly a religious
issue - if I were smuggling books into Russia, they wouldn't be Bibles.
But I applaud the efforts of anyone willing to put their lives on the
line in the struggle against tyranny.

        [The opinions expressed herein are my own foolishness, and do not
necessarily reflect the views of anyone that matters.]

                                                Kenn Barry
                                                NASA-Ames Research Center
                                                Moffett Field, CA
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