>>>This brings me to the big 3 (Judaism, Chrisitianity, Islam).
>> In many cases one can simply focus on learning the
>>"techniques" and not the rituals or philosophies that go
>>along with it.
>
>This is probably the closest answer to your actual question.
> They don't try and justify it.

ok


>>In t'ai chi, the accompanying religion/philosophy
>>is Taoism. How do the big 3 see/understand concepts of
>>"chi" and "ying-yang"? These concepts clearly cannot be
>>understood by the big 3, "ying-yang" especially, because it
>>nullifies the existence of "God vs. Devil."
>
>This is where I think you oversimplify. Lets look at Luther
>again. His view of humankind was 'simul iustus et
>peccator': "at once righteous and sinful".

How is this "oversimplified." The statement was not about "humankind" but the "universe" as a whole (i.e. something "other" and "larger" than humans).
>In any case, "simul iustus et peccator" is a longshot from
>yin/yang, particularly when we're dealing with complex
>concepts rather than slogans (of course, I've presented it
>sans nuance here because Luther is a pain in the ass to
>discuss) but its also a longshot from "god vs. Devil" or
>"Good vs. Evil".
>
>The struggle that Luther made Christian (if we to stick with
>bumper sticker reductionism) is "Person vs. Shemself"
>("shemself" is serving as made-up gender-neutral pronoun
>here) and kind of, in a way, "Person vs. God". Luther's
>struggle was proving to himself that he merited God's grace.
> He couldn't do it and went batshit crazy.
>
>Anyhow, getting too far into discussion of Luther's theology
>is a terrible idea for this board, but the "Person vs.
>Shemself" dichotomy is a more accurate if you insist on
>setting up something so simple. In one sermon, Luther
>writes, "Should one imagine he is able to do anything good
>of his own strength he does no less than make Christ the
>Lord a liar."
>
>
>>In capoeira,
>>_EVERYTHING_ (let me say this again) _EVERYTHING_ is tied to
>>an orisha; the instruments, music, movements, rituals,
>>_EVERYTHING_! Capoeira and Candomble are sisters with the
>>same Afrikan parents. In fact capoeira is a religion within
>>itself. *My favorite quote from an angolero: "Church?! I
>>don't need church! I got capoeira!"
>
>This is where I want my church to head (minus the "i don't
>need church" part).

See capoeira CANNOT be reduced to simply a physical activity as much as t'ai chi is. Capoeira by nature is very communal and not an activity that can be practiced alone. Capoeira demands one has music and others in which a true capoeira experience can be had. Sure one can do capoeira movements alone but the nature of learning cannot be done alone. Thereby, capoeira (moreso than t'ai chi and many Asian arts in general) more actively exposes the fundamental Afrikan concepts that oppose big 3 concepts. Only the de-traditionalized, capoeira regional, created by Mestre Bimba (which he taught to white folks, surprise?) masks the Afrikan spirit of capoeira. however when further learning the songs and further diving into it, the truth will become apparent.


>So there it is. I hope that isn't too convoluted. If
>anybody has any questions about what I've said, please ask.
>If anybody has any factual points to correct, please do so
>politely. I can't restate enough that I'm nearly useless
>while all of my literature is boxed up in Chicago.

Thanks.