Louis wrote:
> Rick, got a question. You say that religion is static. What is so static
> about religion?
The theological basis is, by necessity, unchanging.
A couple examples:
Christianity: The basic tenets of Christianity are that (1) A supreme deity
exists that was responsible for the creation of the Universe and of all
life; (2) That this being is omnipotent and omnipresent and has a direct
interest in the relations between and individual actions of all living
things; (3) humans are possessed of a soul that will be judged after death
to be "good" or "evil" and will either be rewarded or punished accordingly
and; (4) that this supreme being had a child (through an immaculate
conception) who died to attone for the sins of all humankind. There are many
other tenets, of course, but these are the core ones.
Buddhism: The basic tenets of Buddhism are that (1) A man (Siddhartha
Guatama) was enlightened by his meditational experiences under a Bo tree
after a period of self-mortification; (2) the Buddha came to realize that
all life is sorrow and that only through transcending the illusion of maya
(reality) does one transcend this state of sorrow and acheive a state of
bliss; (3) that so long as one continues to perceive the illusion of maya as
reality, one will continue to participate in a cycle of death and rebirth.
Again, there are many other tenets, but these are central to all forms of
Buddhism (Tantric, Mahayana, Theraveda, Hinayana, etc.).
Compare these to the tenets of science from the same period of time
(2000-2500 years ago):
1. The Earth is composed of four elements (air, earth, water, fire).
2. These elements cause all disease, constitute all matter, and serve as
the principles of existance.
3. That which is above is like unto that which is below; i.e., to cause an
effect it is only necessary to mimic the successful conditions in a similar
setting (sympathetic magic).
4. Bleeding an individual is a necessary part of treating him or her
medically.
5. The constellations can be used to fortell the future.
6. "Insanity" is the result of demonic possession.
Again, there are many other principles that could be presented, but these
will do.
Today (2000-2500 years after these religious and scientific tenets were set
forth) those principles of religion remain essentially unchanged
(interpreted differently in some instances, but fixed in principle), and are
hence static. None of these principles of science, on the other hand, is
still viewed as either accurate or scientific.
Unless you argue that the principles of these--and all other--religions are
completely accurate, and thus justify the lack of any change (and the denial
of changeability inherent in the religions themselves), which means you
agree that the world was created 6000 years ago, that a man could live
inside the digestive tract of a whale for days unharmed, that evolution is
invalid, and that a woman can be impregnated completely without contact with
male sperm, or a similar set of beliefs in the case of religions other than
Christianity (used only because it is the most familiar to the readers of
this group as a whole), by necessity you have to admit that religion is
static, rather than dynamic.
There are many valuable features to religion, but a dynamic nature is not
one of them.
Rick
--
Rick Adams
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
Department of Social Sciences
Jackson Community College, Jackson, MI
"... and the only measure of your worth and your deeds
will be the love you leave behind when you're gone."
Michael Callen, the Flirtations, "Everything Possible"
