Life is not simple. No matter how fervently we want to believe it is, and try to make it so, it's not simple. Everything is not black or white. There are infinite shades of gray between the two extremes.
Some philosophies and religions demand that you live your life in dogmatic adherence to their narrow precepts in order to remain within acceptable boundaries. The salvation of a soul is not something that revolves around do's and don't's.
Anyone can make almost anything out of philosophical theories or religious scriptures. I have seen scriptures twisted to suit the whims and concepts of those who espouse them. Often twisted into weapons to punish those who are non conforming to the ideas of the twisters. If God is Love, then many have missed the love boat with beliefs that have caused them to degenerate into fanatical police officers of others lives and actions.
Life is a complicated thing, doing the right thing is sometimes the most complicated thing about life. Even being sure of what is the right thing can be complicated, requiring many years and lessons, much soul searching, truth searching and coming into a matured sense of accepting who we are and what path we must walk. When you think you know all about what another person's life encompasses or what path they need to be walking, you are living in the realm of black and white, a non sustainable place, an ineffectual place, a state that has little power to influence others positively.
Some people think they are powerful because they know scriptures. They think they have all the answers to the difficult questions. Live and learn, live and learn, you have as much truth as you have sought out and understood, you don't have all truth. Your ability and understanding is not infinite. You and everyone else are still assimilating truth into your spirit and intellect. Your concept of truth may be right in many ways and way off the mark in others. Your concept of truth may be a sorry yardstick indeed to judge the hearts and lives of others by.
There are no simple answers to the deepest questions, even Christ himself admonished his believers to ask, seek, knock. Just when you think you have God neatly tied up in a doctrinal box, He will break out and challenge all your cherished thoughts. Learn to bend in spiritual winds or you will be broken on the shoals of self righteousness. Learn to live in color not just black and white.
I AGREE. EVERYTHING IS NOT BLACK AND WHITE. WE ALL HAVE THE RIGHT TO CHOOSE AS TO WHAT WE BELIEVE IS TRUTH OR UNTRUTH. IT'S A MERE MATTER OF WHAT 'WORKS' FOR EACH INDIVIDUAL...WHAT A PERSON CAN LIVE WITH DETERMINES THE ROADS THEY WILL TAKE IN LIFE. NO ONE HAS A RIGHT TO JUDGE ANOTHER PERSON WHO DOES NOT AGREE WITH THE ROAD THEY HAVE TAKEN. THANK GOD WE LIVE IN A WORLD THAT HAS MANY REACHING HANDS...MANY DIFFERENT SHADES OF GRAY. THANK GOD WE HAVE A RIGHT TO CHOOSE WHICH HAND WE WANT TO TAKE - CHOOSE...BETWEEN SO MANY DIFFERENT OPEN 'DOORS'. THANKS FOR SHARING, LABELLE, I ALWAYS ENJOY 'YOU'. LOVE, BLESSINGS AND FAITH...JOYCE * HIS INSPIRATIONS
Reviewed by D. Vegas (Reader)
Reviewed on May 5, 2016
Belle, the shades of gray are many like you have stated...we try to justify our truths by our life's lessons. We are here to learn all the aspects of love, this is my belief.
That's why believe that situational ethics is a good place to start. Every situation is different, like you state. Those that go blindly on literal interpretations of "their" scripture are often hypocritical in their thinking. The question should always be, is it good? Or is it bad? Even a child can tell the difference. Those that can't seem to tell the difference and then backing it with justifiable written text, are the worst of all. Just because it's in writing, does not make it true.
Gray is the color of almost everything emotional spiritual and even extending into the physical world. As we seek to further educate ourselves in a plethora of arenas we discover little or nothing is black and white. For all matters are filled with complexity that stretchers our comprehension to its very limits. Well penned and thought out Belle. May love and peace be always with you my dear friend. Jon Michael
I agree with you 100% that life is complicated and needs to be dealt with in those terms, not the simplistic terms that people often espouse that are meaningless and unhelpful. Thanks for this. Very helpful. John
Indeed, there are so many shades of grey, Jesus message was in poetic language of different shades of grey, adressing the soul of the induvidual, your truth as you see it, sounds most reasomable, bless you,
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The world calls us to improve and promote ourselves. Is this
Love ya!
Jane
Always,
Deborah
Ron