"Mount of the Beatitudes" - Galilee
Keeping Our Own Side of the Street Clean
I read a fair amount of news online, and take at least some time each day to check out the “Comments” to articles I read. The scorn and contempt people heap on their perceived enemies, on “idiots”, on the perceived misguided or devious actions of others, can be incredible. As I don’t see the world’s problems just in black and white, the vehemence can be depressing, even scary to me. Sometimes though, I want to jump in too, vent my frustration and land some zingers of my own.
We all naturally want to be part of the world we live in, have a say in what happens and at the very least, not get run over by the bad behavior of others. This is healthy, and I think we should actually be more engaged than we are these days. But the question is, how ?
The following contribution is from the Christian gospel, but is intended to be "inter-denominational" in spirit - not included to convince, divide or convert. For Christians it may be a "tune up" and reminder of core principles, as given by the source. For open minded persons of goodwill from other faiths - even for atheists - it may offer some firm common ground.
For some time Christ’s “Sermon on the Mount” has been a source of comfort to me concerning this verbal emotional combat, and all the other social conflict I see around me. It was given to his disciples first, to his inner circle, in a quiet place away from the world, and only became part of the gospels later. It’s a great preparation for being ethical in the world, for checking our own integrity before we speak or take actions that affect others. As you read, imagine the effect if people were to review this just once a month for a year to start, and reflect on it just an hour each time. If we truly want to change the world for the better, we can actually do it quickly and with a better chance of success ..... if we just change how we do our part !
Next : The Sermon on the Mount
We all naturally want to be part of the world we live in, have a say in what happens and at the very least, not get run over by the bad behavior of others. This is healthy, and I think we should actually be more engaged than we are these days. But the question is, how ?
The following contribution is from the Christian gospel, but is intended to be "inter-denominational" in spirit - not included to convince, divide or convert. For Christians it may be a "tune up" and reminder of core principles, as given by the source. For open minded persons of goodwill from other faiths - even for atheists - it may offer some firm common ground.
For some time Christ’s “Sermon on the Mount” has been a source of comfort to me concerning this verbal emotional combat, and all the other social conflict I see around me. It was given to his disciples first, to his inner circle, in a quiet place away from the world, and only became part of the gospels later. It’s a great preparation for being ethical in the world, for checking our own integrity before we speak or take actions that affect others. As you read, imagine the effect if people were to review this just once a month for a year to start, and reflect on it just an hour each time. If we truly want to change the world for the better, we can actually do it quickly and with a better chance of success ..... if we just change how we do our part !
Next : The Sermon on the Mount
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