Jeff,

Shallow? God alone shall decide, according to those who claim best to know Him.

I'm just trying to have some fun with this otherwise serious (?) topic. I'm about as Christian as I am American. That is, I was born in America, and I was born into a family that more identified with Christianity than Buddhism, Islam, Shinto, Judaism, etc. But it was typical Scandinavian Christianity, wherein men attend church at least 3 times, for Christening, for marrying, and for burying. Not a lot of Bible reading went on, but most of 'em practiced the Golden Rule most of the time.

Then in the 80s I noticed the emergence of that cult that has come to be the Christian Coalition, the Fundamentalist Right, or, as I like to say, the fundy right wing whacko Christian cult. These hypocrites espouse the same piety that TK and Rory do; they accept Christ as their personal Lord and Savior, and then the rest of the time they behave like the biggest jerks on the block. The general intolerance and self-rightousness is nauseating. However, I've come to understand it and them better. That seems to be the real beauty of Christianity, at least in their fundy flavor. Accept God, and be an a$$hole. Which gets back to how the story of the Prodigal Son left a bad taste for this flavor of Christianity in me. Hence, the shallowness of my response. Boozin', whorin', and the racous living of a general reprobate is entirely consistent with the kind of piety that TK and Rory espouse and exemplify on this BB.

Now comes Rory to suggest that my pursuit of boozin, whorin, and racousness are only temporary forms of happiness. Life on earth is temporary. Eternal life may or may not exist, and if it does exist, is obtainable only by faith. Boozin, whorin, and racous living don't preclude access to this eternal life. Only the alledged failure to accept God, etc. precludes it. And for all I know, acceptance of God might not offer any more than a temporary high, also. It's that lack of proof and counting on faith alone, thing.

Further, I can be a Christian and or a Pagan and still be a good father, husband, and citizen. And I'll vouch for myself that I've been good at all three. And boozin, whorin, and racous living aren't inherently needless addictions. Too much of any of those typically proves unhealthy, but they can add dimension and quality of life experiences that cannot be known any other way! And in candor, altho I booze, I limit it to healthy doses cuz I like my life. And altho I might like to go whorin'(figure of speech here), I don't have the energy to invest in chasing lots of women, as fun as it sounds, and it does detract from serious fishing time, same as when I was young. And then there is the whole health factor to consider. As for racous living, I've achieved more than I ever set out to do, so now I'm just looking for another mountain to climb.

And lastly, always remember that reality is over-rated.

Sincerely,

Salmo g.