"What exactly is 'traditional religion'?"
Faith in God (Heb 11:1).
"...[T]eaching moral values etc is obviously a good thing..."
Not Greek values. :shocked:
"...For the Hebrew, an objective, superhuman source of information was an absolute necessity in defining human values. This objective source was the Word of the personal-unlimited God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Understanding this superhuman source of information and applying it to their lives was critical to their well-being. That's how Moses, Solomon, and the Apostle Paul saw it. These men, and others like them, believed that to look within themselves, or to look within one's society , for the standards by which to measure values was to look in the wrong direction. Paul warned that those who measure themselves by themselves are unwise. Man was to look outward, to an objective instrument panel for successful flying in life. Not to understand this instrument panel (the Word of God) was to be uneducated, and to disregard it was foolish. And to say "man is the measure of all things" was stupidity, which explains why the study of Greek philosophy was not tolerated in Hebrew schools (pg. 46, Overman)."
"Are you against professional sport?"
No.
"...Sparta...a place where "no one was allowed to live after his own fancy; but the city was a sort of camp, in which every man ...looked upon himself not so much born to serve his own ends as the interests of his country...[T]hey were to make themselves one with the public good, and, clustered like bees around their commander, be by their zeal and public spirit carried all but out of themselves, and devoted wholly to their country."
...[F]or Lycurgus and his city-state, there was simply no greater good than the good of the group as a while. In Sparta we find one of the most brazen examples of statism the world has ever known. Statism means the interests of the state provide the sole bases of human worth and moral values. In statism, what is good, moral, honorable, and just is defined in terms of the goals and aspirations of the state itself. Under such conditions, the state sets the standards of value, not only for human lives, but for every human activity. Such values are prescribed by the state, and are relative to the purposes of its self-serving existence.
In Sparta, the will of the state was supreme, and its inhabitants were virtually owed by the city-state from the cradle to the grave. The Spartan army provided the cohesive factor of the culture. To be "good" meant to be strong and brave. The measurement of a man's worth was found in how much he contributed to the strength of the group as a whole. And in the process, the individual was minimized (pg. 38-39, Overman)."
"Nothing wrong with women being liberated IMO...."
How do you like
each: Michelle calling her :Nineveh: husband "stinky" in public and correcting him time and time again? Her mother lives in The White House.
"...As for the character of Spartan women, the Greek historian Plutarch described them as "bold and masculine, over bearing to their husbands (pg. 38, Overman)."
"...[H]ey buddy, you're the President. Get down to the Oval Office and call some leaders
sibbie: Michelle Obama)."
People have always had a sex drive and it's pretty naive to think that promiscuity only existed with the introduction of strip clubs...
Our culture is sex-obsessed. Greece was in the end, too.
"The dramas (as well as the films of today) are often hit or miss. Personally I don't want my viewing limited to Mary Poppins and the like..."
O be careful little eyes what you see
O be careful little eyes what you see
There's a Father up above
And He's looking down in love
So, be careful little eyes what you see
"Homosexuality is accepted now. If that equates to being 'popular' then that's your correlation."
Are you tolerant of the Christian view opposing homosexuality?
You are a humanist. You value man's opinion over God's word (1 Cor 6:9).
"Not every woman wants to have children. That's hardly something to have 'just appeared'."
Europe is not reproducing itself. You don't see a problem with that?
"Homosexuality is accepted now..."
"...At seven years of age the Spartan boy was taken from his parents to be brought up by the state. He became part of a military training program which included the most severe forms of discipline. Bearing pain and hardships silently was expected of all. Any signs of cowardice brought days of disgrace. By the age of twelve, they were required to sleep in the open air on a bed of broken rushes from the river band. Underclothing was not allowed, and only one garment was worn throughout the entire year. They knew no comforts of home, but lived in barracks until the age of thirty. These youngsters were often the homosexual objects of older men.
At the age of thirty a man was admitted to the rights of a citizen and allowed to dine with his elders, where he was required from his thirtieth year to his sixtieth to eat his main daily meal in the public dining hall, the food being deliberately small in amount in order to harden him for war (pg. 37-38, Overman)."
"Abortion is hardly new either..."
New morality is old sin.
"A newborn baby's cry broke the early morning air as another human life took breath. A baby boy was born. His deep brown eyes and wavy, coal-black hair bore unmistakable resemblance to his parents. His father and mother were pictures of robust health, and this baby boy seemed healthy, too. Yet, he was considerably smaller than normal, which caused the parents to exchange glances of concern. "We'll let the Council decide," the mother said.
It was the City Council's duty to determine the worthiness of children born into this society. Infants were brought before the Council for official inspection and formal approval. It was for the common good of the city as a whole. The highest standards of strength must be maintained. Even before they brought him to the Council, his parents knew what the outcome would probably be. And they were right. This child was deemed unfit for life.
Removing the baby from his parents (who willingly have him up), the officials took him to a high cliff and tossed him over the edge. His helpless wail was abruptly cut off by the impact of his tiny body upon the jagged rocks below. A fleeting echo remained but for a moment. Then all was silent once again. This grisly scene really happened. Not once, but many times over. The place was Sparta. The time was about 2,500 years ago. The cliff is on Mt. Taygetus, in southern Greece.
What happens in a culture where the dividing line between man and animal is blurry? The answer is: The two blend into one. People lose their sense of humanity, and act more like animals than men. Such was the case in ancient Sparta (pg. 37, Overman)."
