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Originally Posted by Calgaryborn
But the same can be said for much of the bloodshed done in the name of religion. Was the cause the religion or was it power hungery men who used religion as a vehicle much the same way Communism used atheism as an excuse to kill opposition and take their stuff.
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I won't disagree with you on this point. Prime example is the Pope. I still don't think you're grasping the operation of Communism in relation to religion. I'd wager that a majority of the death created by the Soviet Union was under the rule of Stalin, who had his own motives, unrelated to religion for his murders. In fact, Stalin used the Russian Orthodox church as a motivation tool during the Great Patriotic War (Second World War). But what is it about a totalitarian government that keeps people in line and keeps them from revolting? Education. Who is providing education and ideas from outside the Communist party? Churches.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Calgaryborn
I can't. As a Christian I don't believe man is inherantly good. That includes Christian men. We all sin(miss the mark). That doesn't mean we are excused from our actions or that we can't make the world a better place by applying christian principles to our lives. The book of James says:
James 1:14 But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed.15 Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.
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Big deal. If you read what I wrote earlier I said that man is a part of nature and that it is by definition chaotic. War, violence, murder, those are all part of nature.