Archive for the ‘Ethics’ Category

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Being Full of Care

August 19, 2022

Later I realized this 1969 encounter was my introduction to a Baby Boomer/Yuppie attitude that I’ve noticed ever since. He had a good job lined up after graduation. However, if he didn’t pass this second-year German class, he would not graduate. The professor suggested he contact me (why, I don’t know) for tutoring to get through the class. I mentioned once about feeling bad about the professor’s lot of moving from Vienna, Austria to Ada, Ohio. My pupil remarked, “I don’t have time to care.”

Jesus’s fifth of the eight Beatitudes, “You’re blessed when you care. At the moment of being ‘carefull’, you find yourselves cared for.”

Life is filled with these reciprocal situations.

Love when shared returns to the sender.

Gratitude when shared returns to the sender.

Even money at some point when shared appropriately returns benefits to the giver.

Jesus makes a point–we are blessed when we care.

Let us make that today’s mantra (saying that we repeat). We will then be presented with people or situations for which we should express care.

Posted in Compassion, Ethics, Gratitude, Habits | Leave a Comment »

Emphasize How We Are Alike

July 6, 2022

More people recognize the dangers and evils that lie in divisiveness. They talk about it more often in public. That in itself is a triumph. Trolls are everywhere to swamp your comments with, well, divisiveness.

Why I wonder do we devote so much effort emphasizing how we are different from one another. And why those on the other side of the dividing line are evil, bad, very unlikable versions of humans.

Our wish to feel superior to others forms the substructure of this attitude.

Christians specialize in dividing themselves from those who are not. But also so do those of other faiths–Islam, Hindu, Buddhist, nothings, and on and on.

Even within Christianity love divisiveness, there are liberals, mainstream, evangelical, reformed, Roman Catholic, Orthodox, Pentecostal (if you haven’t spoken in tongues, are you even saved?)–I think I could probably go on.

Christians who worship in all manner of forms and who hold some tenets stronger or weaker all have one thing in common–Jesus. Thinkers have devoted way too much time figuring out just who or what Jesus was. But at least all agree he existed. That’s a start.

Thomas Merton (one of my spiritual heroes) found common ground of contemplative Christianity and Buddhism. And, after a lifetime of experience, I agree with his path. He was on to something.

I bet that if we tried that we could find more common ground. But we would have to lay aside our pride, and our fears, and open our eyes and hearts. That’s not impossible. But it’s hard.

Posted in Attitude, Christianity, Ethics, Justice, pride | Leave a Comment »

There Are Two Types of People

April 26, 2022

There are always two types. It makes for great preaching. I once had to listen to a pastor every week build a straw man (one type) and then demolish that one with a Christian (type two).

There is a type of person who proclaims being a Christian. They post on Facebook or Instagram, say all the correct words, believe in the correct propositions.

There is another type of person who just follows what Jesus told, tries to live according to his teaching, serves others with strength and humility.

Sometimes the first type of person tries to follow Jesus living in service and humility. Others of that type apparently divorce their daily lives from their proclaimed faith.

Circumstances arise at times that remind me of painful experiences I’ve had with that latter type—the divorced type. That led me to construct the Gary Theory of Doing Business with Christians. When you find yourself doing business with an overtly Christian business man, take a firm hold of your wallet lest you have your money siphoned away.

I’ve had four experiences that have taught bitter lessons costing a lot of money.

Don’t be that person. Ethics are such an important part of living in community. And leaving a legacy to be proud of. As Andy Stanley likes to tell it, your decisions and actions tell a story. What story would you like to be able to tell your grandchildren?

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The Test of Love

March 31, 2022

How are we assured that we have learned the material? We pass a test over the subject matter. How do we know that what we’ve built is what was ordered? We test it.

How do we know if we are following Jesus’ commands? Well, we test our actions against the golden measure—Jesus. He left us two tests for us to compare what we do with what he said.

When asked early in his ministry, he said to love our neighbor as ourselves. The test is loving ourselves. Unfortunately, many of us have trouble loving ourselves. Also that is somewhat limited. How much do we love ourselves?

At the end of his ministry, he left another, more stringent, test. He said to love one another as he has loved us. Sometimes our self love falters. But Jesus’ love. That is tough to duplicate. That makes it the gold standard. The ideal. We need to examine ourselves often. Where have we fallen short of loving just as Jesus loved? With that Facebook post? With that comment to a neighbor about another neighbor? With that failure to help someone in need?

If the test is whether we have loved just as Jesus has loved, then have we passed? Or have we failed? What do we need to learn today so that we pass when we check tonight?

Posted in Disciplines, Ethics, Love | Leave a Comment »

Outsiders or Insiders

August 26, 2021

As a child, youth, and even sometimes as an adult I have felt like an outsider.

How about you? Are you an insider? Or, an outsider?

You could identify as a Christian. You could enter a building and find yourself at a worship gathering. Depending upon the music, activities, dress of participants, you could be an insider or an outsider.

Circumstances can change causing you to change status from insider to outsider. Think about Jesus walking about telling stories with a teaching point. He was talking with insiders–Jewish people. However within the group “Jewish people” there were insiders (Pharisees, priests) and outsiders (everyone else). Forty years after Jesus was executed and then resurrected, the Jewish people in Palestine flipped from insider to outsider after the Romans grew weary of the constant rebellion and attacked.

Jesus told a story about insiders and outsiders. A man (assumed Jewish, but undefined) was beaten by robbers on a lonely road. Twice an insider passed by, avoided the man, and kept going. Then an outsider traveled the road. He saw the injured man and stopped. He cared for the man, took him to a place where he could heal, and paid for his recovery.

Jesus complimented the outsider.

When you are sitting comfortably with your other insiders, what do you feel toward outsiders? To what degree would you help them? That is the question Jesus asks us to ask ourselves. And he offers a suggestion as to how we should act. Hint: transcend that insider/outsider barrier.

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Justice Requires Listening

February 9, 2021

I just realized that I’m beginning my 10th year writing this blog. I’ve sorted out a lot of my own thinking over that time, and I hope that I’ve helped a few people along the way. Perhaps I’ve introduced some books over the years that have helped you deepen your own journey.

The Rabbi Sir Jonathan Sacks writing in his book, Morality, (yes, I’m still working my way through that one) talks of being invited to fly on the Prime Minister’s jet to a funeral in Israel. Aboard were the leaders of the three main British political parties (Tories, Labour, and Liberal for my American readers). They agreed to set aside posturing aboard and just discuss frankly what their hearts said about solving Britain’s issues at the time. The conversation affects Sacks deeply.

Reflecting on the conversation, Sacks discusses the story of Cain and Abel. (As an aside, this is also a hint at the dangers of taking the English translations of the Hebrew–and Greek–and trying to interpret literally to fit the theology du jour):

The text cannot be translated literally because it is syntactically ill-formed. It says that “Cain said,” but it doesn’t say what he said. The text’s fractured syntax forces us in the most dramatic way to focus on the fractured relationship between Cain and his brother–and then spells out the consequence: when words fail, violence begins.

This line of observation led Sacks to this conclusion, with which I heartily concur:

1. For there to be justice, all sides must be heard.

2. Truth on earth cannot aspire to be truth as it is in heaven. All truth on earth represents a perspective, and there are multiple perspectives.

3. The alternative to argument is violence. That is why the argument must continue and never cease.

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More and More Useless Information

February 4, 2021

When I’m drivin’ in my car, and the man comes on the radio
He’s tellin’ me more and more about some useless information
Supposed to fire my imagination.
I can’t get no, oh no no no, hey, hey, hey
That’s what I say
I can’t get no satisfaction, I can’t get no satisfaction. –Rolling Stones

It was 1965. I was 17 sitting in a pub across the street from the University of Cincinnati campus. Upstairs was a big room with wooden picnic tables for the patrons. Bunch of nerdy guys. We sang out to “I can’t get no” and “Hey, you, get off of my cloud…two’s a crowd.”

We grew up. But some of us Boomers tried to overthrow the government. We’re still living the Stones of our youth. And we’ve become more and more gullible about the man on the radio (TV, Internet now) telling us more and more about some useless information.

Pick your poison, as they used to say in the movies. You can find your favorite flavor of poison without looking very hard.

It is so important to discern what to fill your mind with. It can feed my base emotions and desires for individual satisfaction. It can feed my mind with the kind of satisfaction that only comes from living in the spirit.

Writers for millennia have described the problem and the consequences. Take the story of Rehoboam in the Hebrew Bible, grandson of the famous King David. This happened almost 3,000 years ago. He was just about to be anointed King. He had two groups of advisors. He rejected the wise and listened to his young friends who filled his mind with more and more of some useless information.

On the day of what should have been his greatest satisfaction, he lost most of the Kingdom. What took his grandfather and father years to build, he destroyed in a day. He was seeking satisfaction.

Posted in emotions, Ethics, Wisdom | Leave a Comment »

Keep Justice, Practice Righteousness

January 25, 2021

How blessed are those who keep justice, Who practice righteousness at all times!

Psalm 106:3

Scholars tell us that the Hebrew word translated as blessed can also have the meaning of happy. Similar to the Greek New Testament where Jesus talked about the types of people who are “blessed” or “happy.”

Aristotle talked about happiness as related to virtue–living courageously, temperately, nobly, wisely.

We are tempted almost constantly through advertising and social media to believe that happiness comes from getting drunk and having almost non-stop sex. That freedom comes from doing what we please when we want to want to do it with whom we want.

Happiness and freedom are virtues and responsibilities, not the result of licentiousness. My eighteen-year-old self hates to hear me say that. Many “adults” even into their fifties and sixties still refuse to believe that.

Justice means something broader than selfishly seeking justice for only ourselves. In the Hebrew Bible, it sometimes talks about justice for the entire tribe. And sometimes it includes justice for neighbors more generally. Justice for the poor, the stranger, the neighbor.

As Rabbi Hillel (first century before Jesus) is reputed to have said about the meaning of the scriptures, “Love your neighbor, the rest is just commentary.”

How happy we are, indeed, when we seek justice and practice righteousness.

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Giving to Others

January 21, 2021

True words are not necessarily beautiful.
Beautiful words are not necessarily truthful.
One who is achieved does not argue,
and one who argues is not achieved.
One who knows the deepest truth
does not need segmented information.
One who knows vast amounts of information
may not know the truth.

One of whole virtue
is not occupied with amassing material goods
Yet, the more he lives for others,
the richer his life becomes.
The more he gives, the more his life abounds.
The subtle truth of the universe is beneficial, not harmful.

There may be no better time in America to read Wisdom literature. One of my disciplines for more than 20 years has been to immerse my mind in it every January. What a way to kick off a year.

But as I sit and contemplate the world, not one place on the globe can I see where such thoughts would not be worthwhile.

Those words were written perhaps 2,500 years ago and ascribed to “the ancients.” How long we humans have known what is the true path–and how little we have followed it.

As Jesus told the religious leader who correctly identified the “neighbor” in the story of the Good Samaritan, “Go and do likewise.”

Posted in Compassion, Disciplines, Ethics, Service, Wisdom | Leave a Comment »

For You Are All One

November 20, 2020

There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.

Apostle Paul, Letter to the Galatians, 3:28

A recent news item reported on the “first all-black officiating crew to work a game in the National Football League.” My first thought was, “Why did this have to be significant news?”

Similarly, there is a female official working NFL games. Although football isn’t necessarily a female sport, why would this particularly matter?

If the ideals of the 60s had really come to pass, we wouldn’t have to notice such things 55 years later. People would just be people. Various people have passions, skills, talents for various things. Good. We reward passion, skill, dedication, training, education, and the like.

Despite these words from the Apostle Paul in the first century and despite that two millennia of Christians have poured over Paul’s words looking for a list of rules to separate themselves from the non-believers, so many in the Christian church have missed this little sentence. No, women are not to be shoved aside into “women’s roles”. No, 10:00 am Sundays should not be the most segregated hour in America (probably still today).

When we don’t need news items like the NFL one, then we will be arriving at the original destination. Meanwhile, let’s all go back and study Galatians.

Special tip:

I have written at times about the value of handwriting your notes. It’s even great to send handwritten notes to people–a personal touch emails can’t reach. Someone sent me this link to an infographic of 20 Ways Handwriting Is Good For You and Your Studying. You have to scroll down a bit on the page.

Posted in Attitude, Ethics, Justice | Leave a Comment »

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