I would say the closer in history you go to Christ the more compassionate it gets in practice. In the earliest days it was more about being able to incorporate Romans into a Judaic faith, which would lessen the persecution they faced in Judaea.
Im not a fan of Christianity (which is why im not a Christian, being from the Bible Belt along with the usual arguments) but let’s not confuse the central premises with the behaviors of a select few people (statistically and historically speaking) who abused power just like they would under any system at the time. Jesus commanded people to care for the downtrodden, love their neighbors, and practice empathy. You didn’t have to be born into a specific class to receive his blessing, you didn’t have to perform rituals to access heaven. At its core, his messages were pretty good.
Its the church, which consolidated power, which is largely at fault - as power structures always are.
If you want to argue against Christianity’s validity, there are better ways.
:) I didn’t even realize the pun. Anyways, without the massive church machine, I suspect actual Christianity to be a lot more akin to something Buddhism. Someone seized on it early and made a monster out of it.
I would say the closer in history you go to Christ the more compassionate it gets in practice. In the earliest days it was more about being able to incorporate Romans into a Judaic faith, which would lessen the persecution they faced in Judaea.
Im not a fan of Christianity (which is why im not a Christian, being from the Bible Belt along with the usual arguments) but let’s not confuse the central premises with the behaviors of a select few people (statistically and historically speaking) who abused power just like they would under any system at the time. Jesus commanded people to care for the downtrodden, love their neighbors, and practice empathy. You didn’t have to be born into a specific class to receive his blessing, you didn’t have to perform rituals to access heaven. At its core, his messages were pretty good.
Its the church, which consolidated power, which is largely at fault - as power structures always are.
If you want to argue against Christianity’s validity, there are better ways.
As the saying goes, don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater.
Heh nice
:) I didn’t even realize the pun. Anyways, without the massive church machine, I suspect actual Christianity to be a lot more akin to something Buddhism. Someone seized on it early and made a monster out of it.
Buddhism has a generally favorable view of Jesus for that reason. Thich Nhat Hanh has done a lot of work on the subject.