Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.1 6/24/83; site ulysses.UUCP Path: utzoo!linus!decvax!genrad!wjh12!foxvax1!brunix!ulysses!smb From: smb@ulysses.UUCP (Steven Bellovin) Newsgroups: net.religion Subject: Re: Yet another "Judaeo-Christian" discussion Message-ID: <773@ulysses.UUCP> Date: Sun, 12-Feb-84 23:40:29 EST Article-I.D.: ulysses.773 Posted: Sun Feb 12 23:40:29 1984 Date-Received: Tue, 14-Feb-84 01:29:11 EST References: <919@pegasus.UUCP> Organization: AT&T Bell Laboratories, Murray Hill Lines: 19 In my own rather cynical opinion, the phrase "Judaeo-Christian" (when not used in a strictly technical sense, i.e., "Islam is a Judaeo-Christian religion") is used primarily by public figures who want to speak of "our" Christian heritage, but have had it drummed into them that not everyone here is a Christian, or even of Christian ancestry. Since Jews are the largest organized non-Christian religion in this country, we get include -- and there's this comfortable historical link besides... I wonder what phrase would be used if some other religious group became numerous here. On the other hand, maybe I shouldn't bother wondering about such things. There was an interesting article in the NY Times last week about a Buddhist community in a small, mostly-Baptist town in Texas. The Buddhist community -- comprised of refugees from Vietnam -- is seeking permission to build a small temple. Among the more logical reasons cited for opposing the request is that "they're a bunch of communists".... The really amusing part, though, is that this particular group *deliberately* chose to move to a small Baptist town, because of all the shared values: no alcohol, no dirty movies, etc... Don't mind me, it's been a bad several weeks.