Thomas More: (restless and excited) Oh? And if the last law fell and the devil turned against you, where would you hide, Roper, since the laws were all flat? This earth is densely planted with laws from coast to coast to coast — the laws of man, not God`s — and if you cut them off — and you`re just the man who does it — would you really think you could stand in the winds that would blow then? Yes, I would give the devil the benefit of the law for my own safety. Because the law “comes from God” and is intended to produce the common good, theology refers to most offenders as a sin. Augustine defined sin as “a word, an act, or a desire against the eternal law.” Ii Thomas Aquinas developed this and showed that sin is also a conflict against reason and society. Humans are social animals and sin violates our bonds with others. iii Ordinary people know this from experience. When we neglect the law that guides our relationships, the result is chaos: society collapses. Jesus warned of this threat with a striking and exaggerated metaphor: Harold, I was interested in reading your answer about the rearrangement of hymns. I also do it regularly and I never mention that they are “my melodies”. It`s such a joy to see people singing these great hymns to melodies that are culturally better suited to the people we work with. I am currently working on Vol.3 of “Psalms, Hymns and Spiritual Songs”.
There are two unknown hymns that I will teach people with Latin-sounding melodies and rhythms that I have composed. We`ll see if they hang on! Travis, good points. I like yours, what could be worse, people who demand copyright laws or people who do not respect those laws? I feel that U.S. copyright laws are too extreme and almost impossible to enforce, especially abroad. I think it has a lot to do with motive and intent. I know it`s almost impossible to judge people`s motivations and intentions, but somehow they have to fit into the equation of “good and evil.” To say that all unauthorized copies are false, period. is good, simply false OMI. But what about Roman law? It was the Roman government that carried out his execution. Did Jesus break the civil laws of His time? Yes, it is a sin to break the laws of your government unless that law contradicts God`s law. Guy, good subject, in the past I was completely upset that Christians charge so much for these items. Lately, I`ve been more annoyed that Christians charge non-Christians so much for these blessings.
In terms of copyright laws and so on, it`s really a matter of obedience to the government, I think. If it is really a sin against God to go against the government (if it is not in conflict with God), then we would sin. Then it would not be the government that worries you, but the people who produce these works under government protection instead of giving them away voluntarily (or at much cheaper prices). By the way, is it really against copyright to borrow something? I had never heard that before. Damn, I even asked someone to borrow legitimate backup copies I had of some music. I paid for it. I should borrow it whoever I want. It`s like saying I can`t give something.
However, it`s interesting, if I went to Russia, I could get Christian music for much cheaper than America. So what government am I? Maybe God doesn`t really care about these things? I don`t know. However, it is interesting to think about it. Great article. God`s Glory, Lew AThe Pursuit Online Store There is no doubt that if Jesus were put in a situation where he had to choose between obedience to the laws of a nation and god`s commandments, he would follow his Father, break the law, and remain completely sinless. No. It depends on which law other than the law created by man as a concept? No. If it were a man-made law to be Satanist, you would not sin by not becoming a Satanist. Pretty clear.
The laws currently in place are incredibly radical and you can be a Christian and a law-abiding citizen at the same time. In future? Who knows. Satan is the ruler of our earth. At the end of time, what is good will be bad and what is bad will be good. God wants us to obey the laws that our government imposes on us. In fact, it is God`s will that we obey the laws of our government. But this still leaves the question unanswered: Would breaking a law mean that Jesus committed a sin? But if we can leave aside such neurotic excesses, is it still a sin to break the law? Do you necessarily need Him to “cut us off from God” or make us an enemy of the people? Although a good law is a law that promotes the common good, each law is limited in the way it expresses a need for order. Since living conditions are virtually endless, exceptions must be made to comply with most laws. Ordinary people may rightly judge that the law does not extend to these circumstances here and now. You probably follow the law most of the time.
You pay your taxes, don`t bother people and abide by most traffic laws. But is there a time when it is acceptable to break the law? This is an important question for Christians, to which the Bible clearly answers. Guy, it`s good to finally post here. Thank you for the welcome. Others commented on a two-tier copyright. I think that to my knowledge, Wikipedia is a leader in this field. Look at their quote about the rights available to people who post photos and the like. You have several different “copyright” options. It is very interesting to see these developments. I used the term “Christian socialism” because I really don`t think you`re talking about “socialism,” but the implications point in that direction.
Nor do I believe that Christianity is capitalist. I try not to associate my faith with a political system or an ideology. There are many factors that go into a discussion like this. I think the key is that God`s desire for “business” is that we have “only scales” and mercy reigns over the day. In other words, harvesting laws required a landowner to leave part of the harvest in the field for those who had a real need to be able to harvest for themselves. How would this apply to music – something that probably doesn`t even qualify as a real need? You also mention the situation in the Acts of the Apostles, where all things were freely shared. I find it very interesting that the sale and division of property is recorded only as having taken place in Jerusalem. Nowhere else do we see that this has been recorded, that it has taken place. True, poor believers in Macedonia have generously donated to lift themselves out of poverty, but there donations are not recorded in the same way as the situation in Jerusalem. Even in Jesus` teaching, we see that if I have 2 coats and my brother doesn`t have one, but needs them, I have to give it away. The key in all these situations is the “need” on the part of those who seem to have nothing.
I always find it exaggerated to say that I “need” a song and therefore I can ignore copyright laws. By the way, does anyone know the percentage of that high price of a CD that the songwriter actually gets? Most songwriters don`t get rich when they write songs. Only songs that “make things big” generate a lot of revenue. Most of the revenue goes to the production companies, if I understand the system correctly. Blessing – Stan Meadorwww.onmissionwithgod.org Stan, Thank you again for your good comments and perspectives on this topic. In our context, many brothers who have jobs usually earn between $4 and $15 a day. This money must cover the expenses of a family with children, food, accommodation, medical expenses, transportation, education, etc. Is it any wonder that there is little consideration for copyright laws when ordinary items like CDs/DVDs, software, and books are above what you earn in an entire day (or more) of work? I don`t know how much you earn per day, but if a CD costs a whole day`s work, wouldn`t you be inclined to buy the pirated copy of $2 instead of the original? Again, I`m not saying that`s fair, but it`s also not true that the prices of items are so high that only the “rich” can benefit from copyrighted material. There must be a better way to regulate all of this. You and others have mentioned other options. I`d like to see some of the Christian publishers/distributors start being more aggressive when it comes to pursuing some of these alternative pricing options.
None of us will solve this problem, but for me, it`s not as black and white as simply calling it “theft” because the less fortunate are accused of buying pirated media products or making “illegal” copies. Chris, Thank you for the contribution. My personal concern is not so much the secular music industry as the concern for Christian publishers and distributors and the prohibitive prices for their materials charged to most Christians around the world. It seems that if it were really services and not primarily a business, they would look for better and more creative ways that would really help solve the problem and do everything in their power to ensure that their great materials are a blessing to the Body of Christ. Breaking Jewish law would have been a sin, and Scripture repeatedly states that Jesus was sinless (2. Corinthians 5:21; 1 Peter 2:22; Hebrews 4:15). .