Are Christians Really That Dumb?
We often say things to make a point and have no real basis for the comment. This stems from our extreme narcissism in that we believe that all that we see and understand is all that there is to see and understand. In fact, we become so self-absorbed that anyone who thinks differently than us becomes an enemy and is treated with contempt. The idea of dialogue about ideas has been lost because our personal significance has been tied to us being heard and our ideas being right. So, we fight and fight hard to try and convince the world that we alone, or I alone, am right, and thereby valuable.
This notion is most troubling. Recently, Susan Jacoby wrote this in the Washington Post.
There has always been a strong correlation between religious fundamentalism and lack of education. About 45 percent of Americans who have no education beyond high school believe in the literal truth of the Bible, while only 19 percent of college graduates do. Two-thirds of college graduates, but only one-third of high school graduates, believe that living beings have evolved over time. The sneer in Sarah Palin's voice when she calls Barack Obama a "professor" is most evident when she speaks to people who share her contempt for education and learning. (Washington Post, July 22, 2010)
I guess that these "facts" say what you want them to say. She thinks it speaks of the foolishness of those who believe in God, whereas I tend to see it as a failure of our educational institutions to teach truth. She is inferring that those who believe in God and truth are ignorant, dumb, uneducated, and, even a sub-class of citizen. I see it as those who excel in education are most arrogant and rather foolish to think that the universe popped into existence on its own, and have worked at developing and protecting an illusion that man is all there is. With this thought process, we find a system in place that continues to work at creating a "truth" that fits our conclusion, rather than discovering truth as it is.
In general, I would conclude from the facts in this article that higher education makes one more arrogant and estranges him or her from God, and therefore should be avoided since there is no greater tragedy in life than the separation from God.
I personally find this author filled with hatred and cynicism, one who wants to divide people into classes, and one who could ignites hatred--something hate crime proponents wrote the hate crime laws for.
Another writer, DAVID WATERS,FEBRUARY 2, 2010; 9:10 AM ET, wrote this about Susan.
As many Christians and Jews would point to a God-given morality but would still have very distinct views on certain moral questions, even within their own faith (historically - homosexuality, slavery, role of women in church, working on sabbath, capital punishment, etc), Jacoby can lend a voice to those of us who have a morality that is personal and shaped by society but are not driven by Judaic law. In fact, we may argue that the great moral laws cross all religions at their best (Christian, Buddhism, Judaism, Islam, Hinduism) BECAUSE they are universal (give or take) human ideas of how to treat one another and create a stable society that were elevated to the ideals set forth by a higher power. Atheism, in a mature form, is not angry anarchy that lashes out at religion, but simply looking for a collective and personal moral code independent of an external god and an uneasiness with god driven framework that seems to many of us to be extraneous to the equations of 1) How do you treat each other well, 2) How do you set a common sense of morality, 3) How do you set a balance between duty, punishment, etc. Atheists are "evil" but are normal folks who want to build a moral society outside of personal religious worship and the fractionalization that it may cause (your religion or mine!).
Once again, you must get whatever you want out of what is written. To think for a moment that calling all those who believe in God dumb and creating a new class structure is something that shows tolerance and is not angry is amusing at best.
When Jesus came to earth He came as a common man. He was poor and uneducated, but He knew, loved, and obeyed the Father. Jesus, God, showed us how one could and should live, and demonstrated what love was as He laid down His life for others. Jesus became nothing so we could become something. Jesus affected the world.
The apostle Paul knew and loved Jesus and was one of the most educated people of his day. He was abused many times by the elite of his day, the very group he was once a part. Eventually they imprisoned him and killed him.
Jesus and Paul have probably influenced history more than any others in history and the so called elitist, educated crowd put them away. It is ironic that this many years later we remember these two, and many of their elitist torturers are forgotten.
I do not think it is much different today. I think people like Mother Teresa will be remembered forever, for their kindness and love, while those like this Susan will be forgotten. Knowing God and loving God and people is what really matters, and you do not need to have an advanced degree to do this. If an advanced degree stops you from doing this, then perhaps it is not advancing you anywhere.
Dave Wager davewager.com
This notion is most troubling. Recently, Susan Jacoby wrote this in the Washington Post.
There has always been a strong correlation between religious fundamentalism and lack of education. About 45 percent of Americans who have no education beyond high school believe in the literal truth of the Bible, while only 19 percent of college graduates do. Two-thirds of college graduates, but only one-third of high school graduates, believe that living beings have evolved over time. The sneer in Sarah Palin's voice when she calls Barack Obama a "professor" is most evident when she speaks to people who share her contempt for education and learning. (Washington Post, July 22, 2010)
I guess that these "facts" say what you want them to say. She thinks it speaks of the foolishness of those who believe in God, whereas I tend to see it as a failure of our educational institutions to teach truth. She is inferring that those who believe in God and truth are ignorant, dumb, uneducated, and, even a sub-class of citizen. I see it as those who excel in education are most arrogant and rather foolish to think that the universe popped into existence on its own, and have worked at developing and protecting an illusion that man is all there is. With this thought process, we find a system in place that continues to work at creating a "truth" that fits our conclusion, rather than discovering truth as it is.
In general, I would conclude from the facts in this article that higher education makes one more arrogant and estranges him or her from God, and therefore should be avoided since there is no greater tragedy in life than the separation from God.
I personally find this author filled with hatred and cynicism, one who wants to divide people into classes, and one who could ignites hatred--something hate crime proponents wrote the hate crime laws for.
Another writer, DAVID WATERS,FEBRUARY 2, 2010; 9:10 AM ET, wrote this about Susan.
As many Christians and Jews would point to a God-given morality but would still have very distinct views on certain moral questions, even within their own faith (historically - homosexuality, slavery, role of women in church, working on sabbath, capital punishment, etc), Jacoby can lend a voice to those of us who have a morality that is personal and shaped by society but are not driven by Judaic law. In fact, we may argue that the great moral laws cross all religions at their best (Christian, Buddhism, Judaism, Islam, Hinduism) BECAUSE they are universal (give or take) human ideas of how to treat one another and create a stable society that were elevated to the ideals set forth by a higher power. Atheism, in a mature form, is not angry anarchy that lashes out at religion, but simply looking for a collective and personal moral code independent of an external god and an uneasiness with god driven framework that seems to many of us to be extraneous to the equations of 1) How do you treat each other well, 2) How do you set a common sense of morality, 3) How do you set a balance between duty, punishment, etc. Atheists are "evil" but are normal folks who want to build a moral society outside of personal religious worship and the fractionalization that it may cause (your religion or mine!).
Once again, you must get whatever you want out of what is written. To think for a moment that calling all those who believe in God dumb and creating a new class structure is something that shows tolerance and is not angry is amusing at best.
When Jesus came to earth He came as a common man. He was poor and uneducated, but He knew, loved, and obeyed the Father. Jesus, God, showed us how one could and should live, and demonstrated what love was as He laid down His life for others. Jesus became nothing so we could become something. Jesus affected the world.
The apostle Paul knew and loved Jesus and was one of the most educated people of his day. He was abused many times by the elite of his day, the very group he was once a part. Eventually they imprisoned him and killed him.
Jesus and Paul have probably influenced history more than any others in history and the so called elitist, educated crowd put them away. It is ironic that this many years later we remember these two, and many of their elitist torturers are forgotten.
I do not think it is much different today. I think people like Mother Teresa will be remembered forever, for their kindness and love, while those like this Susan will be forgotten. Knowing God and loving God and people is what really matters, and you do not need to have an advanced degree to do this. If an advanced degree stops you from doing this, then perhaps it is not advancing you anywhere.
Dave Wager davewager.com
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