From: nobody@REPLAY.COM (Anonymous)
Date: Wed, 5 Nov 1997 14:31:03 +0800
To: cypherpunks@toad.com
Subject: Re: Taxing Churches for their views?
Message-ID: <199711050615.HAA16549@basement.replay.com>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain



J.F. Christ wrote:

>   I feel that Tim is correct, in terms of "opinions," but the Christian
> political agenda goes beyond 'opinions' and into the realm of political
> activism which is regulated by law.
>   It is a fact that the Moral Majority/Christian Right/Felons For Jesus,
> etc., make no bones about using their tax-deductible resources to mount
> political campaigns that illegally skirt the rules pertaining to the
> direct support of political parties and candidates.

So, perhaps the modern-western idea of separation of Church and State
is based on an unreasonable optimism that such a thing is possible.
Perhaps it's actually more honest to admit that the state will always
reflect the religious framework of the rulers, as (I believe) Muslim
countries tend to do.

Of course, there's no reason to believe that honesty actually
determines social structures, and so one might say that it's just more
useful to _claim_ that church and state are separated.

::Boots

                               Hug an abortionist today!