Equality under the law, and the idea that people pick their own leaders rather than god picking them are also major shifts that have occurred in the last couple hundred years.
That idea is the result of the declaration of independence, constitution, and ascendency of the USA, not the result of Christian theology.
No one wants to think their way of life (free citizen with the right to vote) is against the will of god, So people in this country who were born within this system went back and re-interpreted what they needed to in order to say that this was actually the correct interpretation of ancient scripture all along.
The truth is the scripture is so vague and cryptic, and says so much on so many subjects that practically anyone can come up with a theological argument to support anything, and have a solid backing in scripture to support those ideas.
If commies win and completely take over the country, Get ready for communist Jesus who told his followers to redistribute all their belongings to the poor to become the new "correct" interpretation of the bible that was there all long, and no one understood it correctly until now.
Without the step of equality before GOD, there would be no equality under the law, or people picking their own leaders. The enlightenment thinkers, and John Locke in particular, took the logical step, and that step was predicated on equality before God. Oh there was democracy of a kind before Christianity. Solon's reforms were a form of democracy, but those reforms were based on practical matters such as giving as many people skin in the game as possible, not a philosophical or spiritual truth.
Without the step of equality before GOD, there would be no equality under the law, or people picking their own leaders.
Right, I agree with that. One idea grows forth from an existing framework of ideas that came before. I'm not trying to discount the Christian influence on the modern world because it's obviously huge.
I'm just saying that this idea of equality under the law was the result of the constitution and USA as the key factors, not theological study. There were tons of Christian countries for 2,000+ years and this idea never became mainstream until the USA formed it's government around it and started kicking ass on the world stage.
Correct, Christianity only covers equality in God's eyes. That, however, is still a major major shift, particularly in antiquity.
Equality under the law, and the idea that people pick their own leaders rather than god picking them are also major shifts that have occurred in the last couple hundred years.
That idea is the result of the declaration of independence, constitution, and ascendency of the USA, not the result of Christian theology.
No one wants to think their way of life (free citizen with the right to vote) is against the will of god, So people in this country who were born within this system went back and re-interpreted what they needed to in order to say that this was actually the correct interpretation of ancient scripture all along.
The truth is the scripture is so vague and cryptic, and says so much on so many subjects that practically anyone can come up with a theological argument to support anything, and have a solid backing in scripture to support those ideas.
If commies win and completely take over the country, Get ready for communist Jesus who told his followers to redistribute all their belongings to the poor to become the new "correct" interpretation of the bible that was there all long, and no one understood it correctly until now.
Without the step of equality before GOD, there would be no equality under the law, or people picking their own leaders. The enlightenment thinkers, and John Locke in particular, took the logical step, and that step was predicated on equality before God. Oh there was democracy of a kind before Christianity. Solon's reforms were a form of democracy, but those reforms were based on practical matters such as giving as many people skin in the game as possible, not a philosophical or spiritual truth.
Right, I agree with that. One idea grows forth from an existing framework of ideas that came before. I'm not trying to discount the Christian influence on the modern world because it's obviously huge.
I'm just saying that this idea of equality under the law was the result of the constitution and USA as the key factors, not theological study. There were tons of Christian countries for 2,000+ years and this idea never became mainstream until the USA formed it's government around it and started kicking ass on the world stage.