XPost: alt.books.cs-lewis, rec.arts.books.tolkien   
      
   John W. Kennedy  wrote:   
   > stephen@nomail.com wrote:   
   >> John W. Kennedy  wrote:   
   >>> stephen@nomail.com wrote:   
   >>>> John W. Kennedy  wrote:   
   >>>>> darylgene@aol.com wrote:   
   >>>>>> I would simply say,   
   >>>>>> again, that if the concept of God has any referent it must have   
   >>>>>> boundries. Unless you think everyone worships the same God you have to   
   >>>>>> make distinctions. If a person is a Christian, no matter what they   
   >>>>>> believe, just because they say they are, the term is meaningless, no?   
   >>>>> I quite agree that I would be happy if such devil worshipers as Pat   
   >>>>> Robertson and George W. Bush would stop calling themselves "Christian",   
   >>>>> but it remains the case that if you deny that Jews worship the same God   
   >>>>> that Christians do, your /own/ Christianity is put into serious doubt,   
   >>>>> "for Salvation is of the Jews".   
   >>>> How exactly have you concluded that Pat Robertson and George W. Bush   
   >>>> are devil worshipers?  They seem to believe that they are worshiping   
   >>>> the God of the Bible.  Do you think that they secretly address their   
   >>>> prayers to Satan?  Or do you think that despite their belief that   
   >>>> they are worshiping the Christian/Jewish/Muslim God that their actions   
   >>>> indicate they are mistaken, and are instead worshiping something else?   
   >>   
   >>> Tashlan. They have their reward.   
   >>   
   >> That does not really answer the question.  Do you think Robertson and Bush   
   >> think they are worshipping the Christian/Jewish/Muslim God, or do you   
   >> think they think they are worshipping the Devil?   
      
   > I suppose that depends on what you mean by "think". There can be no   
   > serious doubt that Robertson believes that he is, in some sense of   
   > historic continuity, a Christian, but the evil-twin-of-Santa-Claus that   
   > he has in mind when he says "God" can hardly be reconciled with that.   
      
   And some people cannot reconcile the God Muslim's apparently have in mind with   
   the Christian God they have in mind.  Why are you right about Robertson and   
   his "God",   
   but those others are wrong about Islam and the Christian God?   
      
   > I   
   > am not sure about Bush's religion at all; he might fall into the same   
   > category as Robertson, or (according to some rumors) it might be all an   
   > act to fool the proles.   
      
   > But what they both actually worship is power and pride, Mammon and Moloch.   
      
   So the fact that someone thinks they are worshipping "God" does not   
   necessarily mean they are in fact worshipping "God".  So the fact   
   that Muslims, or Jews, or Christians, or whoever, think they are worshipping   
   "God" does not necessarily mean they are in fact worshipping "God".   
      
   If you are free to conclude that Pat Robertson is in fact worshipping the   
   devil despite his belief that he is worshipping "God", then it seems   
   quite hypocritical of you to criticize someone for concluding that Muslims   
   do not worship the Christian God.   
      
   Stephen   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)