tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1926891106758008587.post7438255018032661356..comments2024-01-01T21:57:26.021-05:00Comments on Where the Rubber Hits the Road: Comments on the discrimination against Christians in EuropeFr. Tim Moylehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18030197987469327645noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1926891106758008587.post-15739721797763602592011-01-29T07:46:36.224-05:002011-01-29T07:46:36.224-05:00STG: You are correct. However please consider this...STG: You are correct. However please consider this: Since the RC Church has been guilty of persecuting, discrimination and even killing in the past, don't you think that we would be the most sensitive to seeing these same forces reasserting themselves today?<br /><br />Yes, it is because we have recognized our sin, and because we have studied how we came to that horrid state. Think of it as a kind of spiritual A.A. You can't blow smoke up a fellow alcoholic because they've tried it themselves many times before. It's the same for the Church. We recognize the smoke of Satan because it once filled our church in the past.<br /><br />Fr. TimFr. Tim Moylehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18030197987469327645noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1926891106758008587.post-12862394664662759982011-01-28T22:47:11.964-05:002011-01-28T22:47:11.964-05:00The discrimination against RCs and Prots today in ...The discrimination against RCs and Prots today in Europe or anywhere is regrettable, but we should also remember that for about 1400 years, Rome ran persecution and killing against Bible-believing christians, Jews, Muslims, witches, and anyone else who didn't bend the knee to Rome. According to some reports as many as 50 million people died over 1400 years, or an average of about 35,000 a year. Large numbers died at the hands of the Spanish Inquistion which was reportedly authorized by Rome, over a period of 400 years from about 1400 A.D. to 1800 A.D. Also witches were killed all over Europe according to some accounts. One of the most evil men in history was Torquemada, the man in charge of the Spanish Inquistion for a while.<br /><br />Instead of genuine sorrow or regret for these events in history, I have heard comments rewriting the history or some even trying to justify or diminish the seriousness of what happened.<br /><br />For videos on Youtube about the Inquistion go to:<br />http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=spanish+inquisition+documentary&aq=3sxSmall Town Guyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13916492142790961736noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1926891106758008587.post-58079895307673214942011-01-28T19:43:49.055-05:002011-01-28T19:43:49.055-05:00"People believe what they will believe. That ..."People believe what they will believe. That is not the problem. When people think they have the right to tell others what THEY have to believe -- that's the problem." <br /><br />That is pure common sense to me Lady Janus.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1926891106758008587.post-14001329574349660202011-01-28T18:08:03.314-05:002011-01-28T18:08:03.314-05:00(...contined from last comment)
(Repeating for co...(...contined from last comment)<br /><br />(Repeating for continuity: And that, my friends, is where the behavior changes and the trouble begins.)<br /><br />Truly, it does not matter whether this intruder is selling (and I use that particular word very deliberately) yo-yos, Ginsu knives, his political thoughts, his religion, tickets to the World Cup, or a seat on the space shuttle, the behavior and attitude is the same: YOU NEED IT whether you think so or not, and HE is the ONLY ONE who can get it for you! And the biggest difference between selling a product and selling an idea is the cost -- an actual physical product only costs you money. Buying the idea will cost you much more than money. And most people don't want any part of a "deal" like that, although what they want is of no importance to the guy trying to make his "sale."<br /><br />And it's that attitude and behavior of, "What you say you want isn't important, I know better than you do what you need if only you'd stop shaking your head and just admit it," that is gonna get this guy whacked every time, but not with a mere newspaper. He'll get whacked with a fist, a brick, a lawsuit, a slam in the local media, a complaint to the cops or politicians, and whatever else it takes to make him leave others alone. Then, of course, not liking being whacked one little bit (but oddly enough, not getting the message behind the whack at all), he whacks back -- with accusations of bigotry and discrimination and tales of being treated like a criminal or a second-class citizen or whatever flava he can claim that will bring sympathy to his side and promote the idea that he ought to be given the legal authority to continue to intrude on those who wish to be left alone. <br /><br />People believe what they will believe. That is not the problem. When people think they have the right to tell others what THEY have to believe -- that's the problem.Janus Bellatorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05467165902363025714noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1926891106758008587.post-64779488389604533572011-01-28T18:05:15.551-05:002011-01-28T18:05:15.551-05:00I have to disagree with the premise that hostility...I have to disagree with the premise that hostility towards anyone is based on his beliefs. It has to do with his <i>behavior</i>. Especially in cities, where we are overcrowded already, and living virtually in one anothers' pockets.<br /><br />We need privacy in order to maintain mental health and stability; and how much each of us requires depends very much on individual attributes, so there's no "formula" that one can use as a measuring stick. I, for example, am a very serious introvert -- I require much more privacy than most people or I cease to funtion at an optimum level. And no, it's not a disease, and it's not something that one can "fix," not being broken in the first place. That's just the way I was born and the way I am.<br /><br />In cities especially, privacy and solitude are really hard to come by, so we tend to create our own emotional and mental worlds in which we hide during our daily lives. We avoid vis-a-vis interaction with strangers, even those we see all the time. A barely polite nod and a tight smile towards a familiar face can actually be considered effusive!<br /><br />And then, along comes this energy-fueled, wondrous experience-inspired, fervent dervish of a being, filled to overflowing with the boundless joy of sharing his newfound enlightenment with EVERYONE, and he bowls into a crowd of people who simply want to be left on their own with their own thoughts, and he INSISTS on intruding!<br /><br />If he were a golden retriever puppy who just piled into your picnic, you'd whack him with a newspaper and teach him sit-stay. But this paragon of discovered virtue is a person, and he believes he has the right to tell you all about his specialness, and that if he can only MAKE YOU LISTEN, then you, too, can be full of specialness. And, oh yeah, somewhere in all that specialness is a game he's playing for heaven points or their equivalent, and the more of his own brand of special he can "share," the more points he gets. But, as I said, this guy is a person, and whacking him with a newspaper is out of the question.<br /><br />So...the usual answer is to hunch inwards, turn away, frown with impatience, and mumble something about lack of time or interest. For most people, that would be enough, and we'd be left alone. No problem. But not for the bent-on-a-mission folk. Our negativity is something they believe they can overcome -- they just have to refuse to take, "NO!" for an answer and try harder!<br /><br />And that, my friends, is where the behavior changes and the trouble begins.<br /><br />(continued in next comment...)Janus Bellatorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05467165902363025714noreply@blogger.com