[Iggy]

I don't have time to comment on the entire subject.... I'll edit my post later for that.

However, I do wish to state that there is not always a conflict between being "pro life" and supporting the death penalty. Being "pro-life" means you want to give the being a chance at life. Being in favor of the death penalty means supporting the protection of society(not revenge, as many people state) by permanently removing someone who has proven to not be socially adaptable.

Example: A fetus has not commited any crime, other than being the sperm that reached the egg. It has done nothing against anyone/anything else. A murderer, however, has removed forever, the chance for another being to the right to life.... AND adversly affected the lives of those who cared for said being. Generally, this is done without provocation or justification.

Edit: Ok, I said I would get into the deeper meanings when I edited. That's now.

I don't fault anyone for their beliefs, so long as they are not harming anyone else due to their beliefs. If you want to call your God, "George".... that's fine by me.

I am more of a spiritual being. This is mostly due to experiences I have personally had, rather than the teachings of someone following a specific book. Religeon is something that affects you directly, but for the most part, is something based on faith, rather than experience. THIS is where, I believe, most of the problems begin.

Do I believe Jesus lived? Yes. I believe that he lived, in roughly the time frame we are told.

Is he the son of God? Yes, but then again, so are we all. We are all Gods children, in one way or another.

Is there a "Devil"? Depends on how you mean that. The "Devil", AKA; Satan, Beelzebub, and many other names. Religeon touts this entity as the embodyment of evil. Some cultures believe that "hell" is cold, while others believe it to be filled with fire and brimstone.

It all depends greatly on one's individual point of view.

I got into a rather heated debate some years back with a friend of mine... who believed that anyone who either rejects Jesus, or didn't even hear of him, would go to Hell. A child born in Borneo, without being babtised, who died, would go to Hell for all eternity.

Yeah, I find that fucked up. I also defy someone to justify that action as one that a "merciful God" would commit to.