-Caveat Lector- ----- Original Message ----- From: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: ric carter <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Saturday, August 07, 1999 9:55 AM Subject: What is Christianity Worth? > You're a bright guy. But do you know the answers to the following > questions? > 1. What is the total value of *all* Christian property; business, > churches, bank deposits, art, real estate (including the entire > Vatican) -- in the World? > 2. What is the total annual revenue of *all* Christian religions, > cults and sects, including publishing, education, interests, funeral, > media, annual income of employees in churches and all other Christian > business in the World? Nope, I can't answer those. Maybe some of our correspondents could have a whack at coming up with the answers. It'd be an interesting research project, eh? A basic problem comes in deciding just what "Christian" means, which groups are *really* "Christian" - where is the line drawn? A Fundy Prod might call the Vatican a Pagan/Criminal organization, etc. Of the thousands of groups that self-identify as "Christian", NONE agree that all the others are indeed "Christian". But for the purpose of answering your questions, we may consider all self-identified Xians/ Jeezoids, no matter how outré or unorthodox. What a mob, eh? Another problem involves individual vs. group ownership. Do you want to count the personal properties of all members of Xian groups as if those were owned by the groups in toto? Do you distinguish between those goodies owned by the Vatican & its archdiocesan/diocesan/parish branches, and goodies owned by individual Roman Catholics? Or do you assume that all RCs and their properties are controlled by Rome? And do we include the worth of intellectual property? For instance, the Church of Scientology and its members own vast amounts of real and personal property, but the Church also claims a great value for the writings and publications it controls, and it vigorously defends that value with very aggressive lawyers. How would you compute the valuation of Xian doctrines, publications, software, media products? One could construe Some Xian dogma as constituting a claim to 'own' the afterlife. What are Heaven and Hell worth? IIRC Mormons claim that their Saints inhabit multitudes of planets around the cosmos. What's the Universe worth? And there's the question of the value of the human spirit. What are souls worth? Are souls software? Ocean, I don't know in what forum you saw my writings; I'm posting this to the SkeptiChat and CTRL lists. You may wish to subscribe to one or both, to see any forthcoming responses. Enjoy --Ric DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion and informational exchange list. Proselyzting propagandic screeds are not allowed. Substance—not soapboxing! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory', with its many half-truths, misdirections and outright frauds is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRL gives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credeence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector. ======================================================================== Archives Available at: http://home.ease.lsoft.com/archives/CTRL.html http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/ ======================================================================== To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Om
