Legion of Christ (PRO)Debate Note
We are doing a model debate of a Roman Catholic Church Council. This was done to prevent arguments from going "Christianity isn't true", as this is intended to be less about religion, and more about the morality is crusading. These rules have been set, and agreed to by the opposition, even in our chat logs. If the judges find these limitations unfair, bring that up after the debate.
Introduction
Salutary, to the sixth council of the College of Cardinals and Servants to the Holy See. Our College, holy as we are, have tenaciously resolved to commit to further consultation on the archaic tradition of Christian holy war, crusading. My colleague's at the Apostolic Palace, have a solidified sentiment that the Roman Catholic Church, graciously permit his holiness, Sovereign of the Vatican, Pope Francis, to exert his influence granted from the Lord our God. To crusade for the glory of the Triumvirate Godhead, and bring tidings of the holy spirit to those in opposition to the desire of the Papacy!
This denomination of the College of Cardinals, Sincere devotee's to the spreading of the faith, find credence in two forms of crusading.
- Violent Crusading
- Peaceful Crusading
The College decree's the procedure for our proposition in crystal specification.
- Crusading will only be undertaken conditional on ternary guidelines
- 1. Growing of the Faith
- 2. Protection of the Faith
- 3. Advancement of the Faith
- ----------------------------------------------------------
- Crusading will never be done through violent means, but by peaceful means. Think of it in relation to peaceful jihad.
- Crusading isn't to be taken against other christian's
Appropriate reasoning for the pope, and conceivably the Patriarch to call a crusade, include...
- Establishing a christian base in another country
- Providing safety, support, and solitude to Christians living in dangerous areas
- Defending the faith against influences which seek to debase the christian mindset
Establishing Why Christians Have a Moral Duty to Crusade Peacefully
Every party in attendance to the council believes in Christ, and the Christian faith. The key tenements in the Christian faith, and the one considered most important by our holy savior himself, is to love our neighbors. How can a Christian, who believes in god, salvation, and love, imaginably not believe in helping others reach their level of spiritual consciousness.
It is imperative that we advise Christians to recollect their true purpose, and to love others. No Christian can love others and deny them the love of god.
Therefore, the College and the Papacy, have a moral duty to advance, grow, and protect the faith in which we all establish to be true.
Therefore, the College and the Papacy, have a moral duty to advance, grow, and protect the faith in which we all establish to be true.
Return To Top | Posted:
2014-10-30 05:17:31
| Speak Round
jh1234l (CON)Our group has vehemently been against Crusading in the past, and here, in front of the Pope, our arguments will be presented with faithfulness. We believe that the decision against Crusading would be of greater benefit to the Catholic faith than deciding to Crusade.
Arguments
Violence
This denomination of Cardinals believes that Crusading is, by definition, violent.
A crusade is, in this context, best defined as "A holy war undertaken with papal sanction."[1] The group of pro-crusading Cardinals also persumably agrees, as they have mentioned that the hypothetical future crusades would be based on "the archaic tradition of Christian holy war".
A war is, by definition, violent. It is impossible to crusade by non-violent means: it would be mass proselytization instead.
Impressions
Doing a holy war may negatively influence the impressions that the Christian faith has on non-saved souls, as they will witness the possible violence that may come from "peaceful" holy wars.
The Legion of Christ states that holy wars provide these benefits:
- Establishing a christian base in another country
- Providing safety, support, and solitude to Christians living in dangerous areas
- Defending the faith against influences which seek to debase the christian mindset
However, the action of declaring a holy war would attract radicals from other faiths, causing:
- Terrorist attacks on Christian bases
- Christians being marginalized and discriminated against
- Hatred from the Global Community towards the Catholic Church
- Those who seek to debase the Christian mindset would use the holy war as an excuse to motivate more people to debase Christianity.
- Some Christians would disagree and convert to other Christian sects or even radical Islam because of this
Therefore, this denomination of Cardinals holds that in order for the Christian faith to thrive and grow, it must not declare holy wars but rather use mass media proselytization techniques to convert non-believers.
Sources
[1]crusade. (n.d.) The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition. (2003). Retrieved November 2 2014 from http://www.thefreedictionary.com/crusade
Return To Top | Posted:
2014-11-02 03:00:42
| Speak Round
jh1234lEDB8: Umm, why did you choose cross-examination when there was only one round?
Plutarch: There's two roundsPlutarch: One's is a leader reply, to bypass the one round per teammate rule.Plutarch: Would you consider mass media advertising a form of peaceful crusading?jh1234lEDB8: No, I do not think that is a type of peaceful crusading as crusading is a "holy war"/Plutarch: Do you agree that to crusade is to "lead or take part in an energetic and organized campaign concerning a social, political, or religious issue.". As according to Oxford Dictionary?jh1234lEDB8: No.Return To Top | Speak Round
jh1234l (CON)Here, this denomination of Cardinals believes that we have sufficiently proven Crusading to be detrimental to the Christian faith, by leaving a poor impression on non-Christians.
This denomination of Cardinals holds that Crusading is, by definition, violent, and that "peaceful" crusades are an oxymoron. We hold that the Holy See should decide to spread Christianity through other methods, such as mass media proselytization.
Cost
Crusading would be costly due to the fact that a holy war requires strong equipment. Because crusades cause retaliation by extremists of other religions, costly defensive equipment, such as weapons, are required, even for the so called "peaceful" crusades. The defensive equipment may cause conspiracy theories that they are actually being used for offensive rather than defensive purposes, causing further retaliation by extremists.
However, proselytization through mass media costs less and is less likely to attract unwanted attention. It is also on an international scale: the Church can only crusade in an limited amount of locations, while mass media gets the message far and wide. Also, mass media advertisements cost less because of the lower risk of extremist retaliation.
Return To Top | Posted:
2014-11-05 09:34:28
| Speak RoundLegion of Christ (PRO)
Dropped Argument- Why Christians Have a Moral Duty to Crusade
Peaceful Crusade vs Violent Crusade The Cardinals affirm this definition as holding true, as hinted in the confessionary cross examination process.
"lead or take part in an energetic and organized campaign concerning a social, political, or religious issue"
Mass Media ProselytizationThe Cardinals contend that this is a form of peaceful crusading, for it most certainly fits the affirmed definition. Mass Media Proselytization will most certainly be an enormous contributor to our peaceful and holy crusade to spread the faith. Therefore, we affirm the oppositions great ideas on how to improve the act of peaceful crusading, even if the intention wasn't to help our case.
CostThe opposition claims that a peaceful crusade would be costly. For several reasons this denomination of cardinals rejects this argument.
- Christians have a moral duty to spread the faith
- Christians should stray away from material goods like money
- The Roman Catholic Church has vast resources at its disposal
- Most forms of peaceful crusading don't cost money
Christians Have a Moral Duty to Spread the FaithThe oppositional denomination dropped this assertion, therefore, his holiness Pope Francis should consider it to be true. Christians, as outlined in the biblical scripture, have a moral duty to spread our faith. Since true Christians must have an unbreakable connection with god, we can conclude that everything god demands of us, most be satisfied. For he is our master, and has given us everything.
Christians Should Stray Away From Material Goods "“And he said to them, “Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” - Luke 12:15 (http://www.whatchristianswanttoknow.com/what-does-the-bible-say-about-material-possessions/#ixzz3IFEBzv6O)
As laid out in Luke in Matthews, material goods are worthless in comparison to the glory of god, and delude the purpose he set forth for Christians. Material goods, like money, are something that the Church uses as a means to an ends. We must not get tied to paper, only god, therefore this denomination of the College of Cardinals rejects the assertion that money is a reason to stop fulfilling our holy duty.
The Roman Catholic Church Has Vast Resources at Its Disposal The Roman Catholic Church is believed to have at least a billion dollars in net worth, just including owned assets. If we were to include the wealth of our patrons, we would have billions at our disposal. Billions which allow us to fulfill our set holy goal. Spreading and growing the faith, and allowing others to share in the love of the lord. That is made possible with the wealth at our disposal.
Most Forms of Peaceful Crusading Don't Cost Money- Spreading the word
- Participating in Charity while promoting god
- Passing out bibles
- Opening the doors to patrons of all faiths
Non-Christians Might be Turned Away From God No one is denying this. Some people may be disgusted that the church is trying to share the truth, which is why we must tread with a delicate hand. The oppositional denomination first contended that Christians may leave the faith from crusading. This can't be true, because if Christians are willing to leave the faith, the inevitable proof of god, it can be concluded they never really had the faith.
As for Non-Christians, sometimes the only way to get them to reach the good times is to force them through the bad ones. People will be angry, and confuse our love with the forcing of faith, but they must reject and distance themselves from god, before they realize just how much they need him. The greatest Christians have started out their lives rejecting the influence of people like us. We must not stop pushing the faith in fear of upsetting their ignorance to the lord.
Return To Top | Posted:
2014-11-05 12:03:13
| Speak Round