david@ssc-vax.UUCP (David Norris) (02/09/84)
Steven Aldrich posted an article by Sydney Harris, portions of which I'd like to respond to: > One of the first things you should learn in life-or should learn, if > you mature-is that you cannot divide people by what they believe, or > think they believe, or profess to believe. > Goodness and mercy in people-the kind the Old Testament prophets > preached and Jesus revived-seem to have little to do with religion in > its organized form, as a cult, or a creed, or a canon. > It is basically a matter of character more than creed, or your feelings > and acts toward others more than any articulated philosophy of life or > death. Is it? I would think that our feelings and acts toward others stem from our true beliefs. So, I wholeheartedly agree about the "profess to believe" part. But I think that no one lives up to his own beliefs 100% of the time. We probably all believe in some form of the Golden Rule, but which of us hasn't cursed someone on the highway, or yelled at a friend or spouse for this or that? If Mr. Harris is saying that we should divide people by their actions, we may fall into the trap of putting someone in the wrong catagory because his breakfast disagreed with him, or he has a sore throat, or just lost his job. I also wonder if the word "divide" in the first sentence could be replaced by "judge"? Isn't this what he is implying? > In fact, this is what I think Jesus was trying to get across-and failed, > even with most of his disciples. > When he said, "I am the way," he wanted people to imitate his actions > and behavior, and not to worship him. In my reading of the New Testament, > he had no notion of setting up a new religion, and least of all a new > church. Mr. Harris is going to find himself in contradiction with a great many people here. Jesus told Peter he was the rock on which He was going to build his church (don't the Catholics consider Peter to be the first "Pope"?). But the idea that Jesus wanted people to imitate Him is not really the best way of looking at it; it is putting the cart before the horse. Good works (include being nice to others) stem from "therefore", not "in order to". God considers the motive (belief, if you will), and not the act itself. The same act can be good or bad, depending on the perpetrator's motive. > What is demanded of us is that we be kind and just to one another, even > if there is no redeemer, no hell, and no afterlife. I hope that Mr. Harris is not trying to "put-down" the Redeemer, Heaven or Hell; I do not think that was his intent. But the sentence seems to imply that being good to others is more important than God's sacrifice for men; and that once you accept this statement (very easy to do, since we all agree that we should be unselfishly kind to others), it then becomes easier to believe that we don't need the Redeemer. Remember, Jesus Himself said that we should love others as ourselves, but (in the same breath) said we should love God above all things. -- David Norris :-) -- uw-beaver!ssc-vax!david