In, The Religious, Left, I said that we either live our lives in the same way we understand our faith or we don’t. This holds true for those that are called the Religious Right.
There is, however, a political left and a political right and the further either way we trend, the further away from our spiritual center we live our lives. It seems that the further to the right a group becomes the more fundamental is their scriptural interpretation. This fundamentalism has the same counter-productive action that a click in a school might have. It becomes selective, restricted, and intolerant of anyone who does not believe in and represent their way of faith. I also stated in part two that I felt the increasingly progressive we live our lives the more secular we become as a people. This secularism also has the inclination of breeding its unique brand of intolerance. This holds true to the Right, albeit diametrically opposed, as we begin to live our lives in the fundamentalists’ point of view. Instead of living our lives in the secular we begin to live our lives in the secluded. We begin to see ourselves as special. We see ourselves as on the right, as right, and therefore all must follow us or be damned. And this is just so wrong!
Why is this so wrong? It is wrong because it puts us in the position to judge. It is not in our power to judge others in the Spirit, period. This type of judging is not the same as a court of law would be, and should not be confused with or combined with legal judging.
If a woman has made the choice of abortion, it is her choice to make, it is not in our power to stand outside a business and verbally chastise anyone or physically abuse or force anyone to change because you disagree with her. Respectful protests that are displayed within the law are usually accepted by most in the community. Pray for her, her family, the father of the child, and of course the child. It is good to show empathy, sympathy, to mourn for the loss of life, but do not judge, and not to take into your hands the free will of another.
It is not an act of faith when the Holy Book of another’s faith is defiled simply because we don’t agree with it. It is it not okay to judge the many in a faith because of the few that take a radical stance in regards to their faith. It is not an act of faith to defile the Church, Temple, Synagogue, Mosque or any Holy Building because you feel you’re better than they are. To think that one group has the entire answer to the question of salvation is simply narcissistic in nature.
It is not spreading of the Gospel to protest outside a burial ground those who have giving their lives to protect their home land. To harm a family that is in mourning for their loved one is not following edicts of any God, Spirit or Higher Power. Free speech is both a wonderful right and incredible responsibility. Free speech should never be taken lightly, and should always be articulated with great care.
In scripture, particularly in Luke, we read a series of Jesus’ teachings that tell of the dangers of these kinds of actions. Beginning at Luke 6; 27, and continuing through Luke 6; 45, the titles given to these teachings are “Love of Enemies”, “Judging Others”, and “A Tree Known by Its Fruit”. These teaching can be described as teachings of humility, charity, forgiveness and tolerance. These teachings begin with the individual, starting within, and flows outward to all whose paths we cross.
A personal bugaboo of mine is that many on the so called right do their works in the name of God. They hold up their Holy Books in the name of the God of love, and then by their actions, they bring impiety to the forefront. No one has the right to dominate another person because they interpret scripture as right, duty or as a command from God. If your actions are not expressed in the love that is God, then how would you describe them?
Allow me at this juncture to follow-up on the point that I made in regards to peer pressure in part two. This point is that peer pressure is not to be dismissed as incidental. There is no doubt that peer pressure is a strong influence most especially with the younger generation as they are still developing their core beliefs.
Everyday we come across forks in the road. And every day we must make choices as to which way we are going on our journey. I choose the “forks in the road” analogy because many forks are not two prong in design but instead are three pronged. The forks on the outer edges represent the two paths moving away from our respected faiths, away from our spirituality. Regardless if we choose the progressive or the conservative route, we are not following the edicts of our chosen faith. The center prong is the path to a higher conscience, a closer relationship with our God, Spirit, or Higher Power. This is the narrow path of love through charity, acceptance of the good in humanity, the humility of our place in the physical world and our spiritual existence with the life we live in everyday reality. If all sins against humanity are sins against God then we as a people faith cannot stray from the teachings of that faith, most especially when we are dealing with the imperfection that is humanity.
Challenge, tomorrow when you get up from bed, look at yourself in the mirror, directly in the eyes, and ask yourself this. What kind of God, Spirit, Higher Power, do I believe in. Then ask; what kind of person am I? Answer honestly with no excuses! Is there a gap? Why?
Now for the hard part, WRITE – IT – DOWN!
May the Graces of God, Spirit, and Higher Power be with you to guide you through your journey.
Scripture reference is based on the NABRE version.
by D.E.Gonzales
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