How "Christian" of him!!

[Kidlicious]

Why does a whore have to change occupations but not one who collects oppressive taxes on the poor?

[Ben Kenobi]

Why does a whore have to change occupations but not one who collects oppressive taxes on the poor?

Is the collector given the authority to decide whom can or cannot be taxed?

[Imran Siddiqui]

So if the whore has a pimp who decides everything, it is ok?

[Ben Kenobi]

Kid's arguing that taxation in and of itself is not sinful, merely done to excess.

If it's all about the level, and the tax collector has not control over how much, or whom, than it's not his actions which are sinful.

[Dr Strangelove]

St. Martin's goes all the way back to the Roman period.

As for the US, Maryland was a Catholic colony, well before anything like the district of columbia existed.

Therefore, the Catholic church, at least in Maryland has prior authority. The DoC can't touch them because they owned their properties before the DoC was formed.

Maryland was Virginia territory.

[Dr Strangelove]

Why not provide abortions too? Oh wait, then they'd be episcopalians.

Catholic actually means something Doc. I know you find that hard to understand, but Catholic means no abortions, and it also means, no benefits for gay marriage. It's called freedom of religion.

No, Catholic refers to the universality of Christ's church. Roman Catholic might mean no abortions and no benefits for gay marriage.

As for professionals, do you honestly think they run the show? Professionals can be replaced. They either play ball, or go practice with someone else.

Professionals do the hiring of professionals. A hospital has to have a chief of medical staff who does the hiring and oversees the professional competence of the medical staff. Likewise for nursing and the related professionals. This is a requirement of the Joint Commission on Hospital Accreditation.
I practised in Baltimore for awhile. I knew some of the staff at certain Catholic hospitals in the area. They employed Jews, Muslims, and Gays. When you're hiring professionals you generally don't ask about their sexual orientation.

[Dr Strangelove]

That only advocates traditional marriage, which no one here claims is a sin.

Actually Matthew 19 is about the Christian concept of acceptable divorce. Christ repudiates Mosaic law because God allowed it only because men were so "hard hearted", and states that only infidelity is an acceptable cause for divorce.

[Nikolai]

Of course, one can discuss what constitutes infidelity. Is it only sexual? Or should him being a wife beater have something to say? I'm sure; one cannot be too strict. There are lots of reason for a marriage to be ended. This is how I read the Bible: Literary, but by the spirit of the letter, not the letter itself. If you follow the Bible letter by letter, all kinds of bad stuff eventually happens.

[Ben Kenobi]

Maryland was Virginia territory.

Maryland was founded by the Calvarts in 1626, very early. Jamestown was only 20 years prior.

Colony of Virginia didn't occupy all the land from Maryland to Virginia along the coast until 1686.

[Ben Kenobi]

Professionals do the hiring of professionals. A hospital has to have a chief of medical staff who does the hiring and oversees the professional competence of the medical staff.

I'm aware of that, but the chief is hired by the hospital board. The chief of medical staff is responsible to the board.

I practised in Baltimore for awhile. I knew some of the staff at certain Catholic hospitals in the area. They employed Jews, Muslims, and Gays. When you're hiring professionals you generally don't ask about their sexual orientation.

Did they do abortions?

[MrFun]

I practised in Baltimore for awhile. I knew some of the staff at certain Catholic hospitals in the area. They employed Jews, Muslims, and Gays. When you're hiring professionals you generally don't ask about their sexual orientation.

Wait! You mean to tell me that Catholic hospitals care more about how qualified a person is for the job/profession than anything else!?

[Kidlicious]

Kid's arguing that taxation in and of itself is not sinful, merely done to excess.

If it's all about the level, and the tax collector has not control over how much, or whom, than it's not his actions which are sinful.

I'm not arguing that. Collecting tax is always a sin (not to be confused with paying tax). Men should have no ruler over them but God. The ancients chose to be ruled by a King, despite the counsel of God. God told them that if they chose to have a king that the king would tax them and oppress them.

Back to the case of Zacchaeus. There are details in the text that need consideration. What kind of person is Zacchaeus? Why would Christ permit him to sin, and yet declare his salvation?

He's a tax collector, rich, successful, short (midget?), weak, and generous. All of those details about him tell me that he was the victim of great public scorn. Even the other tax collectors might scorn him because he gives his money to the poor.

Also, he sought the praise of Christ not that of men. When the people called him a sinner he did not respond to them, but to Christ.

Also, he is enthusiastic and in good cheer.

The most important thing is that he "Seeks Jesus for who he is" (King James), and he does so with much vigor. He runs, and he climbs up a sycamore tree (might have had some difficulty because of his size and strengh.) Jesus said I'm the way, the life and the truth. To seek Jesus is to seek the way, the truth, and the life.

All of this means that Christ saw favor with him. When he saw him, he didn't just say come down from the tree. He said come down immediately. Christ was eager to be with him.

[N35t0r]

My argument is that unless you somehow lose jurisdiction (ie, through war), the fact that they were there before the DoC is significant.

That is why the native peoples in the US do not have jurisdiction, which is why they do up here. But then, you already knew that.

You were subjects of the British crown, and lost jurisdiction to the USA after the independence war.

[Ben Kenobi]

Uh, no. War of 1812 ended that.

They tried to come and take it but they failed.

[Ben Kenobi]

I'm not arguing that. Collecting tax is always a sin (not to be confused with paying tax). Men should have no ruler over them but God.

Christ argues that God has appointed the authorities. Christians are to respect authority provided that said authority does not force them to deny him, or work in opposition to Christ.

The ancients chose to be ruled by a King, despite the counsel of God. God told them that if they chose to have a king that the king would tax them and oppress them.

And in the end, God established the kingship of the house of Israel according to Godly considerations, out of mercy for the request of his people. I agree, that God's original intention did not involve a King, but he established one.

The most important thing is that he "Seeks Jesus for who he is" (King James), and he does so with much vigor. He runs, and he climbs up a sycamore tree (might have had some difficulty because of his size and strengh.) Jesus said I'm the way, the life and the truth. To seek Jesus is to seek the way, the truth, and the life.

All of this means that Christ saw favor with him. When he saw him, he didn't just say come down from the tree. He said come down immediately. Christ was eager to be with him.

His heart, he valued Christ. Yet Christ did not tell him he was sinful for being a tax collector. Matthew was the same.