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Peace on Earth

God as Janeway?

That would make Jesus Captain Kirk, would it not? Or, perhaps... The Captain of the Exeter? Beaming down to a planet, going native, and affecting the whole planet's culture?

Of course, God isn't really good at obeying His Directive, if you've got miracles all over the place, prayers being answered, spiritual healing, and all that rot.

No, the analogy simply doesn't work.

A Prime Directive God would be a Deist God, who never touches the Earth or its inhabitants, not a Christian God who interveses only when the whim strikes Him.

(Unless you're saying God is as imperfect as Starfleet officers.)

Personally, if I were formulating in my mind a Starfleet Analogy of the Christian idea of God as my reality seems to reflect it, I'd have to say

Commodore Matt "there was... BUT NOT ANYMORE!" Decker.

Good intentions, tried to save the crew... but didn't think it through, and fed 'em all to the planet-killer. A bit too concerned with wrath. Ended up saving the day by destroying himself, thus allowing others to proceed unhindered.

But back to your original answer:

How does a God who "allows" horrid things to happen to the innocent differ from no God at all?

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Calvin: "No efficiency, no accountability... I tell you, Hobbes, it's a lousy way to run a Universe." -- Bill Watterson

I WOULD however like to say this... just as a note..... a lot of attention is called to the fact that bad things happen to good people in religious debates. Over and over again it's heard that "If God loved his people so much, then why does he allow bad things to happen to good people?"

All I'd like to say about that is that bad things don't only happen to good people. Things like that happen to bad people, as well. And also, to reverse the statement, consider the point that God allows good things to happen to bad people and to good people alike.

I don't know what my point was with that. Well, I do... but it's 1am and I can't seem to get it out... maybe I'll edit the poist later and make it more coherent... maybe not... but I just wanted to get that out in the open. We are all children of God, and whether we're "good" people or "bad" people, we are in the same lot for whether good or bad things will happen to us. I don't know why that is, and I'm not about to just take a guess at it. Someday, when each of us meets God, we can ask him that ourselves, I suppose....

Anyway.. that was my personal (though barely coherent) opinion... consider me done with this thread now.....

~LOA

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"The battle is raging inside my weary heart
screaming for me to let it all go...
My body is weak and I can't take the struggle anymore...
the love that was here is filled up by anger and rage..." ~FOM

I'm gonna go pout

With not a whole lot of research, I'm sure you could find within each of the last four administrations an example of one part of the govt. or another breaking MOST of the 10 Bill of Rights amendments, to say nothing of the rest.

1. Freedom of speech, the press, religion.
Well, this one's pretty constant. Everything from sending the IRS after your political enemies to the so-called Internet Decency Act to the so-called Religious Freedom Restoration Act.

2. The right to bear arms shall not be infringed. (the 'well-regulated militia' part, being a subordinate clause, is irrelevant.)
Constantly attacked from all sides. Moreso now that it becomes evident that the unarmed are not only vulnerable, but gullible.

et cetera.

as to LOA's comment: I'm afraid I must insist on parity. Some of us have suffered enough.

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Calvin: "No efficiency, no accountability... I tell you, Hobbes, it's a lousy way to run a Universe." -- Bill Watterson

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"All in all is all we are" - Kurt Cobain
All Apologies, Nirvana

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Peace on Earth

How do you think Clinton got elected in the first place? He ran on the platform of being a conservative, or at least a moderate. You know, a "New Democrat". Of course, he kept none of the promises he made during his campaign. And according to George Stephanopolis, "The president has kept all the promises he intended to keep." I honestly can't see how the people elected him twice. He's a liberal. Period.

Anyway the Bill of Rights have been stomped on for years, why it wasn't until the 1950's that there was a push to really enforce the Bill of Rights, before that the Constition Gave rights only on the Federal level, the states on the other hand could do what they pleased. In fact even today while most rights have been extended to the to cover all Americans, the entire Bill of rights have not. The best example is that the Right to Bear Arms is only guranteed a Federal Right, however any state could ban firearms. Moreover, just because the Supreme Court has extended most of the Bill of Right to a state level they can also revoke that at any time.

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"Think of all the delightful aspects of the reproductive process: menstruation, pregnancy, labor. And the part we're trying to eliminate is sex?" Cecil Adams the guy who does Straight Dope.

Anyone who claims that Jesus of Nazareth was a great moral teacher but nothing more is a fool, period. How can a man who claimed over and over again to be a god be a great moral teacher? How can a person who taught that belief in his diety was the only way to get into heaven be a great moral teacher? Many Bible quotes come to mind, but the most relevant is probably John 14:6. "Jesus replied, 'I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me'" (quoted from the New International Version).

There are only three possible logical opinions on Christ, if you accept that the words that the four gospels accredit to him are actually his:

1. He is a liar.
2. He is a lunatic.
3. He is Lord of the Universe.

I'd recommend you get all the facts before you make up your mind which opinion to espouse. As for which one I espouse, well, does my signature quote give you any idea?

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Dane