Is Christianity an evil religion?

It has become something of a common practice for those of the Christian faith to ask whether Islam is an inherently "evil" religion.  I've even heard fundamentalists question whether Muslims worship Satan.  Just type "Is Islam an evil religion" into google and you'll get over 42 million hits. 

Given that the golden rule, 'do unto others as you would have them do unto you' is a core belief of Christianity...I think its only fitting to apply the same question to the Christian faith. 

Rather than pulling quotes from the Koran let's look at the Bible and see what Christians regard as God's revealed word.  Now, before commencing with this task a basic understanding of the Bible and Christianity is warranted. 

The Bible is of course divided into two principle sections or testaments, the old and new.  The old testament, among other things, prescribed a set a rules and ordinances for observance and service to the God of Abraham...this is often referred to as a covenant or agreement. 

For someone wishing to get into heaven it was necessary to adhere to the laws set forth so as to be 'clean' because nothing 'unclean' would ever be allowed in paradise.  Of course given that pretty much everyone sins and becomes unclean, there were rituals and practices for cleansing oneself, and thus ensuring a place in heaven.

The New Testament is said to be a new covenant, one where God provided his only son as a sacrifice.  Jesus is a kind of like white-out for sin, belief and acknowledgment of Jesus as lord is offered as the ultimate cleansing which ensures salvation and a place with God. 

Of course the old testament is still God's revealed word...but if you look at it in legal terms it might be said that: 

In cases where the old and new testaments are in conflict the new testament shall be taken as law.  In cases where a law of the old testament is not in conflict the old testament shall retain its authority.

That's quite the preamble.  Alrightee then, what does the Bible reveal about the God worshipped by
Christians.

From the laws written in Deuteronomy 21:18-21 it says:

 

If a man has a stubborn and rebellious son who does not obey his father and mother and will not listen to them when they discipline him, his father and mother shall take hold of him and bring him to the elders at the gate of his town. They shall say to the elders, "This son of ours is stubborn and rebellious. He will not obey us. He is a profligate and a drunkard." Then all the men of his town shall stone him to death.

Holy child abuse Batman!!!  The Christian God actually advocates stoning???  Okay, maybe not now, the courts would toss God in jail.  But this is still pretty harsh, even for a supreme deity. 

Slavery can be a pretty touchy subject, the concept of "owning" another human being rubs most people the wrong way...but not the God worshipped by Christians.  According to the revealed word of the Lord slavery was honky dory.  Here's what it says in Exodus 21:2-6:

If you buy a Hebrew slave, he is to serve for only six years.  Set him free in the seventh year, and he will owe you nothing for his freedom.  If he was single when he became your slave and then married afterward, only he will go free in the seventh year.  But if he was married before he became a slave, then his wife will be freed with him.  If his master gave him a wife while he was a slave, and they had sons or daughters, then the man will be free in the seventh year, but his wife and children will still belong to his master.  But the slave may plainly declare, 'I love my master, my wife, and my children.  I would rather not go free.'  If he does this, his master must present him before God.  Then his master must take him to the door and publicly pierce his ear with an awl.  After that, the slave will belong to his master forever.

I know slavery still exists in parts of the world.  Perhaps advocates of slavery are just following the teachings of the Bible? 

Now, lest you think Jesus came along and repudiated slavery I'll include a quote from the New Testament.  One that clearly shows that even under the new covenant, slavery is still no problem...so long as slaves and slave owners are obedient followers of Christ.  From 1 Timothy 6:1-2:

Christians who are slaves should give their masters full respect so that the name of God and his teaching will not be shamed.  If your master is a Christian, that is no excuse for being disrespectful.  You should work all the harder because you are helping another believer by your efforts.  Teach these truths, Timothy, and encourage everyone to obey them.

I know many regard Islam as a very misogynistic religion, one where women's right are given little if any respect.  Christians though can turn to their own Bible and read God's holy word in Numbers chapter 31:

Moses, Eleazar the priest, and all the leaders of the people went to meet them outside the camp.  But Moses was furious with all the military commanders who had returned from the battle.  "Why have you let all the women live?" he demanded.  "These are the very ones who followed Balaam's advice and caused the people of Israel to rebel against the LORD at Mount Peor.  They are the ones who caused the plague to strike the Lord's people.  Now kill all the boys and all the women who have slept with a man.  Only the young girls who are virgins may live; you may keep them for yourselves.

There's plenty in the Bible that will give modern, educated and enlightened people cause for concern, and Christians would do well to look at the logs in their own eyes before commenting on the splinters is the eyes of Muslims. 

And as a final point Christians and Muslims actually worship the same entity, the God of Abraham.  Christians make their break with Jesus, Muslims with Mohammad.   

Click the button below to vote for Canadian Soapbox at CanadianBlogosphere, then click green.

(You can vote once every day)

Are emboldended right wingers pushing the agenda? Fraser Institute chimes in on immigration

Maybe its coincidence, or perhaps its just me...but it seems like Conservative minded Canadians have felt their cajones swell with Stephen Harper's electoral triumph.  Yes, sixty per cent of Canadians voted for the so called 'reckless coalition', but in Canadian politics forty per cent has long been the litmus test for legitimate majority rule.

I think right wingers would be wise to take note of those numbers though.  Most Canadians did not want a Harper majority, but our system is what it is and I'm not going to bemoan the result.  It seems that Harper's Reform base is looking to push some issues quietly into the national discourse.

Remember the Reform Party?  They stormed into Ottawa and quickly earned a reputation as being something of a Bible thumping red neck party.  Against a woman's right to choose, against same sex marriage, and against immigration. 

Conservative commentators are starting to bring up topics like abortion, and main stream corporate media outlets are giving them a forum.

A great example of right leaning, corporate media is of course tabloid rags like the Toronto Sun, where headlines such as this are not uncommon:  Anti-abortion protesters hope Harper will re-open debate

Then came this headline today:  Immigration costs Canada billions: Fraser Institute

Everyone knows the old line about: "Lies, Damn Lies and Statistics".  Well the Fraser Institute attempts to use statistics to prove that immigration is a huge burden.  I can just hear Preston Manning's old Reform choir singing...'Hllelujah" and screaming "Amen Brother".   

Now, before going ballistic on a story like this I like to look at the source, in this case The Fraser Institute.  What I found out was interesting to say the least.  While claiming to be non-partisan and interested in doing "meticulous" research into a variety of issues...a look at their 2009 annual report is very telling. 

The numbers they provide show an organization that raised and spent in excess of $12 million that year.  But while individuals comprised 84% of their supporters, those individuals only chipped in with 12% of total contributions.  Where did most of the money come from?  Foundations and organizations at 54%and 34% respectively. 

In other words some very deep pocketed groups looking to push an agenda from where I sit.  One that is cleansed by the guise of being academic and non-partisan. 

Sadly I don't think Canadians are sufficiently engaged to notice.  They'll read a headline about "Immigrants costing us billions" and Canada will become just a little less opening, a little less tolerant and a little more mean spirited. 

I do hope I'm wrong.

Can you help this blog?  Just click the button below to vote for Canadian Soapbox at CanadianBlogosphere, then click green.  Thanks for your support.

(You can vote once every day)

Government probe into gas prices a waste of time....

Oh boy, there's gonna be another government review of the oil and gas industry over sky rocketing prices at the pumps.  And all the while Big Oil continues to rake in record profits.  I bet executives at Shell, Petro Can and Esso are shaking in their Armani suits right now. 

I can tell you the outcome right now and save all the time and expense.  The marketplace, we will be told, is competitive and the prices we pay are a function of supply and demand.  Accusations of collusion and price gouging will be pushed aside and we'll all just have to basically suck it up and dig deeper into our wallets when filling up.

Of course there's no collusion.  How could there be?  The fact that when prices go up across the Greater Toronto Area for example, its merely coincidence that different companies hike their prices by the same amount, on the same day, at the exact same time. 

Our only recourse is the economic principle of elasticity.  What that means is we're going to have to find alternatives to driving, change our habits so that we're driving less, alter vacation plans so that we can afford a meal or two when heading out for a summer break.

I'll reiterate a suggestion I made earlier about causing the gas companies some grief. 

If you're in the process of filling up your car at midnight and let's say the price gets jacked up to $1.50 per litre from $1.38....put your hand up in the air to let passing motorists know that the price at the pumps still hasn't changed, irrespective of the fact that the station has changed the price on their big sign. 

Gas stations first change the big sign to drive away traffic so they can change the actual price on the pumps themselves.  The price on the pump is the price you pay, so if the attendant comes out and says you have to wait until the price is changed, point to the price on the pump and tell them that he/she will have to wait until you're done to change to the higher price.  And while you're pumping put your hand up and maybe a few other cars can make their way in for the cheaper price.

Of course this will cause some grief for the poor gas station attendant, but that's life.  Its not like these guys are making big bucks, even with the Shells and Essos of this world raking in billions they somehow can't afford to pay much more than minimum wage to front line staff who bear the brunt of consumer anger.

I know this is just delaying the inevitable, perhaps by only an hour at most.  And its little more than a pin prick to multi billion dollar international companies.  But even kicking Goliath in the shins brings some satisfaction.   

Can you help this blog? 

Just click the button below to vote for Canadian Soapbox at CanadianBlogosphere, then click green.  Thanks for pushing Canadian Soapbox to the top. 

(You can vote once every day)

An idea for sticking it to the oil companies - No boycotts, just put up your hand

Canadians are getting hosed at the pumps again, just as summer has arrived and we all start thinking about jumping in our cars for a trip to the cottage, trailer or a simple vacation.  Raising prices 10 cents per litre at the pumps means we're handing over an extra $5.00 each time we fill up with 50 litres.  Drivers of mini-vans and SUVs are giving even more to the ESSOs, Shells and PetroCans...all of whom are drowning in record profits.

So what can we do?  We're screwed right?  I mean...we have to drive. 

I used to work at a gas station and I know the procedure when jacking up the price. First you change the big electronic sign.  The price at the actual pumps is still the lower price but the higher posted price on the big sign dries up traffic and then the new price is programmed into the actual pumps once the last car finishes.

You've probably heard the suggestion that everyone boycott one particular brand or another in an effort to effect a price war. Problem is it doesn't work...people collecting Petro points won't stop buying from Petro-Can, likewise with Esso and Esso Points or Shell and Air Miles.  Then there are people who are in the habit of going to the same station every time for reasons of convenience or location. 

Here's something I think might just work.

If you're putting in gas when the price changes, like last night...the station can't actually change the price until the last car is done filling up. Here's what I'm suggesting, when this happens use one hand to pump the gas and put your other hand up in the air...and start waving.

This will serve as a signal to other motorists driving by that while the price on the big sign is high, the price at the pump...the actual price you have to pay, is lower. Last night gas went from about $1.35 to around $1.40 per litre. If you were in the process of putting in gas when the price changed on the big sign it didn't affect the price you were paying...you were still paying $1.35 or so. By putting your hand up in the air you would be signalling to other drivers...

YO!!! THE PRICE IS STILL LOW HERE, IGNORE THE BIG SIGN AND PULL IN AND FILL UP.

If people keep filling up the attendant won't be able to change the price...no matter what the big sign says.  You might be asking..."How can we get enough people to do this"?

Most people know that when an on coming car flashes its lights at you, that the driver is signalling that there's a speed trap up ahead of you.  Not everyone does it but enough people do that its helped me on occasion.

Facebook is a tremendous utility. If you think this is a good idea share it using social media. On your news feed all your friends will see it. If enough of them in turn read and share it as well...I think you get the idea, its the whole '6 degrees of separation' concept.

Conversely you can cut and paste this and email/message it...I don't mind :-) And feel free to make any adjustments you feel are warranted.

Sound Good??? Tell me your thoughts and I'll share mine.

Can you help this blog out?

Click the button below to vote for Canadian Soapbox at CanadianBlogosphere, then click green.

(You can vote once every day)