What If We're Right?

[janine]

Ron Carlson's article (on the front page at this time), "What If We're Right?", hits upon a point I think we ought to consider, if we haven't already.

I really think an eternal perspective is one thing that's lacking in the rigid far-left bitter activist types on a plethora of "fronts" -- people who would have us all aborted -- partially and late --

People who would come into the delivery room while we're hanging twitching from our mothers' birth canals, waving badges and taking away our Constitutionally--encouraged guns, our freedom to travel in our vehicle of choice with minimal government interference --

People who would shove the doctor aside not to save us from the scissors plunging into our little almost-born skulls, but to make sure we were immediately slapped with a Social Security number of our very own so we can be properly tracked and taxed taxed taxed all our lives (--- yes, I know in this scenario we're about to die, but I always have found the far-extreme socio-political views to be rather dense and shortsighted) --

People who just might save us from the scissors and the syphon if we can prove we're gay from birth, and have a gay couple who want to adopt us, but oh no, if the doctor and the mother are a lesbian couple, us little almost-born people are in baaaaad trouble...

And what about the far far far far right, out there so far they're practically rigid?  If the ultra-left are Socialist-Communists, then the ultra-right are Fascists -- and, when people try to function under either extreme, the life feels just exactly the same.

Illustration: take the Darwinian theory of evolution.  The wacked-out far rightist figures that evolutionary theory is right and true and proven as taught in our schools, and thus proof that there is a Master Race.  Unhampered right-plunging makes Nazis.

The strung-out-to-the-end leftists look at the same godless theories and see, not a Nazi-esque view, not an Ultimate Master (Human) Race, atop the subhumans that ought to be subjugated and maybe even exterminated --

The Ultra-Leftist sees no ultimate creature.  There is no Master (Human) Race because humans are not the masters.  We are merely one more creature with nothing different about us than that which is in the groundhog and the goat... and the cockroach.  The Farthest Leftist considers matters of animals and people and starts to think PETA and Greenpeace aren't causing enough trouble.

Either view squashes one's rights.  Either view doesn't think there are rights that stand because they are based on something eternal and Someone higher than we are.  Either extreme sees "rights", if there are any, as something defined and dispensed by their worldview.  One view figures only the Masters have the rights, the other view figures the rump roast in my oven had rights a few days ago.

Either view wipes out personal rights, personal freedoms -- and responsibilities, thereby.  Especially the responsibility to think.

This expansion of personal worldviews with the eternal factor -- I think Ron has hit on something we haven't played up as we should.  Haven't called attention to, you know?  Not that people aren't living right there in the idea -- but I don't believe we think about it, about the way it broadens our perspectives.  About the way it allows sincere people who hold different beliefs about these hot-button matters to get along. 

I don't think many of us have really analyzed what allows Christians (and others who think past this life) to be activists, to strive for things we think are right, to work against things we think are evil -- yet without blowing up buildings full of thousands of innocent workers.  Without personally assassinating nasty people who may very well deserve it... but we don't want to take justice into our own hands.

This eternal perspective doesn't make us fatalistic -- it's not like the only Christian viewpoint means that military action is always wrong, because oftentimes it's for the greater good and for the ultimate saving of lives -- but it does make us cautious and prayerful and reluctant to plunge into war.

This eternal perspective is richly warmed and made a living and daily thing, for us, by the life of Jesus.  We saw the perfect example of how to live in it -- how to love and act in the now while still keeping one's eyes on the ultimate prize.

[Follower the Heaven Bound]

AMEN

[janine]

 
Tin-Q, tin-Q...

[Pokhara]

So I'm in the Methodist Church here in the UK.  This church has a long and honourable tradition of getting involved in social issues, but TBH I don't see very much of that at the moment.

Actually I believe that the Methodist high command have been involved in opposing govt plans to relax the laws on gambling, but apart from that ...

[Dave...]

People who fundamentally believe in small government and less taxes are not fascist. I think that you will find that true fascism lies with the left also. If I were to lable the far, far right with anything, it would be the term 'cowards', because they won't make a stand against the fascism of the left.

[janine]

Well, in my opinion, when you get far enough to the left and far enough to the right, those folks are functionally interchangeable.  A life lived under either group's control would have basically identical factors for the citizen.

It's not a left-to-right linear scale or graph -- rather, the ends meet.  It's a circle.

[Bon Voyage]

Well, in my opinion, when you get far enough to the left and far enough to the right, those folks are functionally interchangeable.  A life lived under either group's control would have basically identical factors for the citizen.

It's not a left-to-right linear scale or graph -- rather, the ends meet.  It's a circle.

I think it is left to right linear scale, but with a quantum singularity between the virtual ends that allows one back and forth.

Sorry, too much Star Trek.

[kensington]

That's a great article Janine... thanks for drawing attention to it.

Yes, often we are "Concluded" to be the enemy of society due to our "eternal" calling. Sadly.

And the onslought of propaganda against us seems to be popping up sooner and sooner in life. They don't even wait anymore until our kids are of age to try to persuade them against us and what we teach.

It used to be, a mom like me was appreciated by society and in the schools, Because I keep a close watchful eye on my kids, and I have them in the word, and prayer and respecting authority. Now I am termed "maniacal"...  Even by the same parents that someday will HOPE my son would be the man who would pursue their daughter for marriage.

It's getting bad out there folks!

[janine]

One person's devotee is another person's maniac.

You do the best you can not to turn your kids into psychopaths while you raise them up in the Lord.  That's all you can do.  Leaving them to the tender mercies of a societal raising will hurt them for sure, if only by not demanding much of them.

[I B 4 Jesus]

I think balance is the key ! in everything we do eating drinking working politics !