Puritanism and Jansenism are tremendously misunderstood now. People have to realize that, at least in the past, curbing sin was often harshest on the well-to-do since poor peasants wouldnt have many earthly pleasures anyway because of poverty. Which is why Pascals opponents in the Provincial Letters were mainly the Jesuits who covered for the multiple sins of the nobility. - Art Cabrera Doubtless given my recent experiences I have been thinking a little about this. Both the debauchery and the poverty Ive seen in California. It seems like the contemporary hip and cool thing to assure everyone that were not those horrible puritanical Christians, were all beer guzzling and chimney spewing Christians. But I think there is a very well economic aspect to the Methodist and Jansenist strictures against drinking, and today, against smoking. Honestly, it is a frightful waste of money, an activity which I think has no qualitative difference from playing computer games. But more importantly, it is money which many of the poor can ill afford to spend given the more pressing needs they have to meet. I feel my contrarian instincts kicking in, maybe Ill write a note in defence of the Methodist ethos in the future.
Posted on: Tue, 23 Dec 2014 20:07:57 +0000