From: mike@inti.lbl.gov (Michael Helm)
Subject: Re: Religion and history; The real discuss
Organization: N.I.C.E.
Lines: 38
Reply-To: mike@inti.lbl.gov (Michael Helm)
NNTP-Posting-Host: 128.3.128.82

Matthew Huntbach writes:
sm[?]>a real Christian unless you're born again is a very fundamental biblical
sm[?]>conversion and regeneration are 'probably' part of some small USA-based cult

>the "born-again" tag often use it to mean very specifically
>having undergone some sort of ecstatic experience (which can in
>fact be very easily manufactured with a little psychological manipulation),
>and are often insultingly dismissive of those whose
>Christianity is a little more intellectual, is not the result

Some of these "cults", which seems like a rather dismissive term
to me, are pretty big here in the USA.  Most of them
are quite respectable & neiborly & do not resemble Branch Davidians
in the least; confusing them is a mistake.  What about "live &
let live", folks?  I'm sure we can uncover a few extremist loonies
who are Catholic -- the anti-abortion movement in the USA seems to have a
few hard cases in it, for example.

>I've often heard such people use the line "Catholics aren't
>real Christians". Indeed, anyone sending "missionaries" to
>Ireland must certainly be taking this line, for otherwise why
>would they not be content for Christianity to be maintained in
>Ireland in its traditional Catholic form?

I have to agree Matthew with this; I have certainly encountered a lot
of anti-Catholic-religion propaganda & emotion (& some bigotry) from
members of certain religious groups here.  They also practice their
missionary work with zeal among Catholics in the United States, but to
someone who is or was raised Catholic such rhetoric is pretty
off-putting.  It may work better in an environment where there's a lot
of popular anti-clericalism.

Follow-ups set elsewhere, this no longer seems very relevant to Celtic issues
to me.
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