Christianity's Great Achievments

[chequita guevara]

All right, this is for even-handedness. I'm going to limit the poll to Christianity itself, and not purported motives of Jeshua ben Jospeh, aka Jesus Christ. However, if you really feel that the greatest achievement is the chance for eternal salvation, feel free to punch other.


Damn! I forgot Liberation Theology.

[BeBMan]

I thought you would list the same as in your other thread

[loinburger]

Re: Christianity's Great Achievments

Originally posted by chegitz guevara
All right, this is for even-handedness.

In other words, you're going soft in your old age. What next, praise for capitalism? Will there be no end to your madness??

[DinoDoc]

Re: Christianity's Great Achievments

Originally posted by chegitz guevara
Damn! I forgot Liberation Theology.

Good, because it belongs in the same category as the Christian Identity movement.

[monolith94]

Nice list, although one ought to mention the Quakers and their innovative pacifism and tolerance.

[Shi Huangdi]

I voted other because it's greatest achievement is being the one true faith. But other than that, probably how the Church moved to protect the natives of the Americas.

[Natan]

I'm going to say the concept of universal human rights and human dignity.

[Adam Smith]

I think the Quakers come closest to getting it right, but I would include movable type as being at least as important and as plausibly connected as some of the other options.

[chequita guevara]

You know the Quakers were heavy into whaling.

[Lincoln]

"You know the Quakers were heavy into whaling."

They were also pretty heavy into oatmeal I think.

[MrFun]

Thanks for initiating this thread, Chegitz.

I voted for three things:

1) abolitionism

2) human dignity

3) charity networks

[Adam Smith]

Is the dignity of the individual original or unique to Christianity? Did other religions such as Bahai or Buddism have similar ideas or sooner. (sp? Its just too late at night to worry about it.)

Also question whether Crusades-engendered trade had anything much to do with the formation of Capitalism. The Crusades did bring about increased trade. Venetian traders realized gains from trade, and used the proceedes of a successful expedition to finance the next. But gains from trade is not Capitalism. Capitalism usually refers to the use of monetary capital as a specific factor of production. This requires some sort of external market for capital and payment for capital, ie, interest. What the Venetians had was an internal finance mechanism. Their capital was not available for a price in a market, so it was not Capitalism. The Church's discouragement of charging interest inhibited the growth of such markets. When capital markets did develop, they usually came thorugh Jewish groups such as Florentine goldsmiths and, later, the Fugger banking family.

[MrFun]

Originally posted by Adam Smith
Is the dignity of the individual original or unique to Christianity? Did other religions such as Bahai or Buddism have similar ideas or sooner. (sp? Its just too late at night to worry about it.)

I don't think any intelligent Apolyton member would claim the concept of human dignity is EXCLUSIVELY a Christian contribution. Surely, there were other philosophies, religions, and ideologies before and afterwards that introduced and reintroduced the concept of human dignity.

[Ethelred]

Human dignity. Hmm that goes well with Auto-de-fes for Jews in the inquisition.

Charity. Islam is better at. Its major article of that faith.

I voted other, as in, there is no none of the above.

However the cathedrals are pretty impressive. I think of them more as a major waste of time though.

Bach and Christian hymns (Ave Maria)

Well that one is much better than the cathedrals. I think of it as Bach's achievment. One heck of an achievment though.



Some of those looked suspisciously like satire.

The Jesuit missions in Latain America which protected the indians

Maybe the Jesuits did that but who where they protecting the indians from. The Fransicans?

Thomas Aquinas' City of God and the idea that all Chrisitans are one people

That would be an achievement if it had affected any of the christians that got busy killing each other later.

Abolitionism

That one has REALLY got to be satire. The South used the Bible to support slavery. They had a point. The Bible has a lot of instructions on how to treat slaves. Manumission was not one of the instructions.

Polls around here have a strong tendency to be anything but unbiased creations.

[DinoDoc]

Originally posted by Ethelred
That one has REALLY got to be satire.

Someone doesn't appear to know his history.

The South used the Bible to support slavery. They had a point. The Bible has a lot of instructions on how to treat slaves.

The Bible contains no verses that specifically approve of slavery.