The Ghost of Paley
Posts: 1703
Joined: Oct. 2005
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OK, I've got some free time, so now I can play catch-up.
GTC:
My opinions of Jews are not shaped by the fanciful stereotypes of antisemites (ooooh those Jews -- they're so sneaky and clever), but from growing up in a largely Jewish neighborhood and school. And let me tell ya, nothing hones the mind like Jewish culture. Nothing. This site gives you an idea of what Talmudic study entails:
| Quote | This attitude toward texts had its necessary concomitant in what may again be called the Talmudic hypothetico-deductive method of text interpretation. Confronted with a statement on any subject, the Talmudic student will proceed to raise a series of questions before he satisfies himself of having understood its full meaning. If the statement is not clear enough, he will ask, 'What does the author intend to say here?' If it is too obvious, he will again ask, 'It is too plain, why then expressly say it?' If it is a statement of fact or of a concrete instance, he will then ask, 'What underlying principle does it involve?' If it is broad generalization, he will want to know exactly how much it is to include; and if it is an exception to a general rule, he will want to know how much it is to exclude. He will furthermore want to know all the circumstances under which a certain statement is true, and what qualifications are permissible.
Statements apparently contradictory to each other will be reconciled by the discovery of some subtle distinction, and statements apparently irrelevant to each other will be subtly analyzed into their ultimate elements and shown to contain some common underlying principle. The harmonization of apparent contradictions and the interlinking of apparent irrelevancies are two characteristic features of the Talmudic method of text study. And similarly every other phenomenon about the text becomes a matter of investigation. Why does the author use one word rather than another? What need was there for the mentioning of a specific instance as an illustration? Do certain authorities differ or not? If they do, why do they differ?
All these are legitimate questions for the Talmudic student of texts. And any attempt to answer these questions calls for ingenuity and skill, the power of analysis and association, and the ability to set up hypotheses - and all these must be bolstered up by a wealth of accurate information and the use of good judgment. No limitation is set upon any subject; problems run into one another; they become intricate and interwoven, one throwing light upon the other. And there is a logic underlying this method of reasoning. It is the very same kind of logic which underlies any sort of scientific research, and by which one is enabled to form hypotheses, to test them and to formulate general laws.
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Here's a sample from the Babylonian Talmud. The Summa Theologiae is a comic book in comparison.
Arden:
| Quote | | Racists don't rationalize their beliefs with Christianity? Must have missed the memo on that one. |
Some do, like the Klan and many members of the Christian Identity sect. Most rely on Darwin. But don't take my word for it; log on a neonazi/racist website and run a poll; I predict that Darwin will come out on top. After all, Jesus was Jewish, and most racists dislike Jews.
Flint:
| Quote | Which sounds like something one is more likely to hear:
(1) I'm justified in doing something antisocial because I have been called by God to do it/the Bible says this is proper; or
(2) I'm justified because normal biological variation implies slightly different rates of reproduction in subsequent generations.
Ghost has only heard the second? People actually USE this to justify antisocial behavior? Even the battle over the propriety of slavery involved Christians on both sides waving their Bibles and citing congenial verses.
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Focus on the level of the society. People have a need for transcendence; this leads to a relationship with God. Take God out of the picture if you like, but the need's still there. Where does it go? Does it shrivel up like a raisin in the sun (or like an orbital in information space)? Or does it become sublimated in social/political movements, such as......oh, let's pick an ideology at random.......Communism? Marx brought more pain to the world in one century than Christianity in a millenium. In fact, not only are Christian societies more peaceful than Commie ones, they're more peaceful than Islamic/pagan ones. Pre-Christian Europe was a very violent place. Slavery? What makes Judeo-Christian society unique was not its practice of slavery, but its elimination of the institution. Ask Sowell or D'Souza. As for modern Europe, its civilisation is due to its Judeo-Christian roots; having lost them, Europe is slowly reverting into a state of savagery.
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Dey can't 'andle my riddim.
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