Johanna

my point exactly... if I were the religious type, I would be suicide-bombing, but since I am sane, I don't feel the need

Jatfla

ah the "callings" arguement... As long as I am a "godly parent" I don't have to think about how my cup of coffee is part of a chain of exploitation that puts some peasant-farmer in South America in dire straights... or even though I am committing war crimes I am faithful to my wife (a la Dick Cheney). The point is that no one in North America, living our luxurious life, can claim to be a true Christian, because even the poorest of the poor over here is 100 times richer than the truly poor in 3rd world countries... the "calling" arguement is just a ...

Johanna

my point exactly... if I were the religious type, I would be suicide-bombing, but since I am sane, I don't feel the need

Jatfla

ah the "callings" arguement... As long as I am a "godly parent" I don't have to think about how my cup of coffee is part of a chain of exploitation that puts some peasant-farmer in South America in dire straights... or even though I am committing war crimes I am faithful to my wife (a la Dick Cheney). The point is that no one in North America, living our luxurious life, can claim to be a true Christian, because even the poorest of the poor over here is 100 times richer than the truly poor in 3rd world countries... the "calling" arguement is just a Christian construct to justify wealth accumulation at the expense of others (essentially the basis of capitalism) - that is why the two go hand in hand... Christianity provides good cover for moral corruption -- see George Bush and the rest of the Republican party for proof.

When we shake off the delusion of religion we will start taking responsibility for our actions, instead of counting on a guy sitting on a throne in the clouds to make it all right in the end. We might not stop the exploitation, but at least we will be able to honestly asses it without the moral confusion of religion.