Are We There Yet?
Now where was I? Oh, yes, pour another cup, I remember, it was about the progress of human redemption and how the change in our thinking is transforming our whole state of being. We don’t always get it right but we know, for examples, that human slavery is not acceptable, the helpless are not to be exploited, that violence and war are not to be waged for acquisition of that which belongs to another, and, in general, there are certain inalienable rights bestowed upon humans that we believe are endowed by the Creator. Converting our knowledge to universal practice takes longer but the mechanisms for achieving these higher principles are clearly revealed to us in a variety of religious traditions.
For those who choose to be Christians we see these truths revealed in the life and teachings of Jesus. In Jesus we are challenged to follow more than just the letter of the law. He sets for us a higher ideal that transcends the old ways of setting values in concrete or writing them in stone. For Jesus the greater law of human redemption is that which arises from human consciousness. The Hebrew prophet Jeremiah saw that day coming when the best of our human values is to be written on our hearts. To possess the faith of Jesus is to believe that we are guided by and obligated to live by internal principals rather than outside rules or rulers. We know we are to be better than we are but failing to live up to what we know does not negate the power in knowledge to transform us.
Jesus stated the obvious that how we treat those who are, as we, children of the Creator affects our lives as well—known as “do unto others….”. Certainly this applies to those with whom we share this planet but we are realizing an age old concept that if we neglect or exploit creation our careless actions harm us as well. We are growing in our awareness that there are consequences to every self-centered—or to use an old fashioned biblical term ‘sinful’—way of living.
The life and teachings of Jesus take on new meaning when we move beyond “salvation” being about the individual soul’s eternal destination but is about preserving our life together, our communities, all of humanity, and the planet we share. When we exploit natural resources, hoard that of which there is too little, and neglect those who are most harmed by human greed, we give to evil a power that it would not have otherwise. Like gravity and inertia there are natural, moral laws built into the very nature of our existence. The greatest benefits in life occur as we strive to bring our actions into harmony with the forces of creation that are in essence “good”.
Correcting our self-center behavior is a life long process. Forgiveness lifts the burden of our guilt, opens our eyes to our mistakes, picks us up, puts us back on the right road, but forgiveness does not in and of itself save the world. If we continue without change no amount of forgiveness will save us. Rather forgiveness is the power that enables us to change our way of thinking and allow our thinking to transform how we live.
Having experienced dramatic transformation himself the Apostle Paul in the Christian tradition writes about the change as one in which his whole being is literally transformed by the renewing (changing) of his mind. Paul affirms the same for the life of those he persuades to acquire for themselves the faith like that of Jesus. The possibility of that transformation, be it of heart or mind, was not only the experience of Paul but of countless others who would come after him. Through church history, men and women who have literally been changed by what they have come to know with their hearts and with their minds express their belief that they have been touched by that which is the Eternal. I know that of which Paul speaks for I have found that same transformation to be true in my own life.
You look like you could use another cup. Me, too; be right back.
For those who choose to be Christians we see these truths revealed in the life and teachings of Jesus. In Jesus we are challenged to follow more than just the letter of the law. He sets for us a higher ideal that transcends the old ways of setting values in concrete or writing them in stone. For Jesus the greater law of human redemption is that which arises from human consciousness. The Hebrew prophet Jeremiah saw that day coming when the best of our human values is to be written on our hearts. To possess the faith of Jesus is to believe that we are guided by and obligated to live by internal principals rather than outside rules or rulers. We know we are to be better than we are but failing to live up to what we know does not negate the power in knowledge to transform us.
Jesus stated the obvious that how we treat those who are, as we, children of the Creator affects our lives as well—known as “do unto others….”. Certainly this applies to those with whom we share this planet but we are realizing an age old concept that if we neglect or exploit creation our careless actions harm us as well. We are growing in our awareness that there are consequences to every self-centered—or to use an old fashioned biblical term ‘sinful’—way of living.
The life and teachings of Jesus take on new meaning when we move beyond “salvation” being about the individual soul’s eternal destination but is about preserving our life together, our communities, all of humanity, and the planet we share. When we exploit natural resources, hoard that of which there is too little, and neglect those who are most harmed by human greed, we give to evil a power that it would not have otherwise. Like gravity and inertia there are natural, moral laws built into the very nature of our existence. The greatest benefits in life occur as we strive to bring our actions into harmony with the forces of creation that are in essence “good”.
Correcting our self-center behavior is a life long process. Forgiveness lifts the burden of our guilt, opens our eyes to our mistakes, picks us up, puts us back on the right road, but forgiveness does not in and of itself save the world. If we continue without change no amount of forgiveness will save us. Rather forgiveness is the power that enables us to change our way of thinking and allow our thinking to transform how we live.
Having experienced dramatic transformation himself the Apostle Paul in the Christian tradition writes about the change as one in which his whole being is literally transformed by the renewing (changing) of his mind. Paul affirms the same for the life of those he persuades to acquire for themselves the faith like that of Jesus. The possibility of that transformation, be it of heart or mind, was not only the experience of Paul but of countless others who would come after him. Through church history, men and women who have literally been changed by what they have come to know with their hearts and with their minds express their belief that they have been touched by that which is the Eternal. I know that of which Paul speaks for I have found that same transformation to be true in my own life.
You look like you could use another cup. Me, too; be right back.
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