Now, I will let you in on a little secret. Nothing seen telepathically is ever one tenth as vivid as what an immortal being sees with his or her own eyes. Telepathy is cool, no doubt about it, but the vision of an immortal is almost intolerably vivid. If asked to, a believer in God might justify his or her beliefs in several ways. One might offer an a priori argument—for instance, the Ontological Argument; one might offer a posteriori arguments, from the marvels of creation to a designing Mind; one might appeal to revelation and cite the miracles recorded in Scripture; one might say that, without an all-powerful Providence, human choices and endeavours are pointless; one might appeal to anthropology to show that it was unnatural for people to live without religion and attempt to find some converging direction in the development of particular faiths. The existence of God is a matter of fact. It cannot be proved by a priori, but only from experience by an argument from effect to cause. However, we have no experience of origins of the Worlds. We must therefore rely on analogy, comparing the World to things of whose origin we have experience. However, the World is as like an animal or vegetable as it is like a machine. So it arose as likely from insemination as from design. Could mortal lip divine the undeveloped freight of a delivered syllable, it would crumble with weight. #RandolphHarris 1 of 11

 Moreover, if God is known only as the cause of the World, we can know nothing of hum expect that he is such as to create the World we find. We can draw no inferences from his existence except such as are already warranted by our knowledge of the World. He is an empty hypothesis. However, when humans look to God with their flawless eyes, their fierce intellect understands on some complete mystical level, quite truly beyond words, that a miracle must be a breach of a law of nature, a known miracle must be a breach of a known law. However, a known law of nature by definition carries the highest possible degree of probability, derived from extensive and uniform experience. A miracle can therefore only be accepted if the falsity of the testimony for it would be an even greater miracle, that is, a more glaring improbability than the miracle first alleged. There is no denial that this could ever happen. Laws of nature do have to be amended in the light of startling new experiments. We cannot deny that a miracle can ever be proved as a justifiable foundation for a system or religion. Yet, the record of known fabrications of marvels of this sort is so black that it is always more probable that a story of a miracle imputed to the action of a god has been made up than that it happened. Moreover, if not all religions are true and if all religions produce miracles, most miracles must be deceptions. All religions do produce miracles. There is, therefore, always a high probability that any one of the is a deception. #RandolphHarris 2 of 11

Contracts and promises are not the foundation of human cooperation, but a special case of it. The use of such agreements to regulate the conjunction of forces, partition of tasks, and distributions of products is a lesson people learn in the natural society of the family and is a biological necessity for the survival and prevalence of the human species. Governments, laws, and institutions are useful to human society. Their justification is in their utility, which depends largely on the habitual trust people have in one another’s allegiance to them. Consequently, an established trusted government should never be overthrown on grounds of religion or hereditary claims to thrones or in other to experiment with utopian theories. Nor does the authority of the governments rest on a contract. Rather the authority of both governments and contracts rests on their utility (of the Original Contract). This only proves that property, promises, governments, laws, rules of games, and the like are useful devices, which no person is obliged to respect unless others do likewise. These, or the respect for them, is equated with justice. The idea of justice seems to be somehow connected with the fact that humankind lives by cooperation, by sharing tasks and exchanging products. #RandolphHarris 3 of 11

There is no natural motive which always points to the just act. Justice does not necessarily conform to either the agent’s private interest, one personal friendships, or the public interest. It must therefore arise from some artifice whose merits we learn. The person who, or system which, allocates to one person fewer of the tasks or more of the products than it does to another—unless for some reason equally valid for and acceptable to all—is unjust, or as we more usually say, unfair. The willingness to be fair, the lack of which makes a person unit to participate in any form of cooperation and distribution, whether instinctive or devised, is no more an artificial virtue than courage. And being essentially concerned with distribution, not with aggregation, it cannot be justified by its utility, unless equality, as well as happiness, be admitted as an ultimate end. All human symptoms and problems, when they are taken to their depth and realized in a soulful way, find their ultimate solution in a religious sensibility. We always expect love to be healing and whole, and then are astonished to find that it can create hollow gaps and empty failures. God is the originator of our actions. (All events with causes trace their causal ancestry to him, and our actions have causes.) However, sublime mysteries are beyond the reach of unassisted reason and, therefore, of philosophy. “Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because you your evil behaviour,” reports Colossians 1.21. #RandolphHarris 4 of 11

Some races have no religion. In all known cases the earliest religions were polytheistic and idolatrous, with no notion whatever of an intelligent cause of the whole frame of nature. They were truly atheistic as would be the beliefs of a contemporary person who acknowledged elves and fairies but denied the existence of God. The polytheistic systems were not primitive systems of science. Primitive humans were not interested in accounting for the regular phenomena of nature; they took the familiar for granted, however marvelous. It was the bewildering succession of floods and droughts, sickness and health, calm and tempest, victory and defeat, birth and death, that alternately terrified and comforted, nourished and destroyed them; it was these contrary and diverse events which, by a natural tendency to see external things in one’s own likeness, one ascribed to diverse and warring invisible persons, amenable to flattery and bribes and even to threats and force of arms. It short, it was not God as the author of nature but God as a particular providence for which primitive religions were an origin and prototype. The only original instincts involved were the fear of death and pain and the desire for security and pleasure, together with a tendency to personify inanimate things.  #RandolphHarris 5 of 11

Catastrophism is the belief that the Earth’s geological features are the result of sudden, Worldwide cataclysmic events like the Noah flood. Catastrophism suggested that a series or regional disasters had destroyed most or all of the plant and animal life in various places. These areas were then restocked with new, similar species that migrated in from unaffected regions. Moreover, the fact that forces as wind, water erosion, local flooding, frost, the decomposition of vegetable matter, volcanoes, earthquakes, and glacial movements have all contributed in the past to produce the geological landscape that exists in the present, some are now under the impression that these processes are now humanmade and not due to natural nature. The High-frequency Active Auroral Research Program, or HAARP, is a scientific endeavour aimed at studying the properties and behaviour of the ionosphere. The HAARP has generated quite a bit of controversy overs it is alleged weather control capabilities. Some have speculated that facilities like HAARP are to blame for a number of weather-related disasters. A large number of people tend to believe that HAARP is the only facility of its kind. The program operates at a major sub-arctic facility, called the HAARP Research Station, on Air Force owned site near Gakona, Alaska USA. #RandolphHarris 6 of 11

The most prominent instrument at the HAARP Station is the Ionospheric Research Instrument (IRI), a high-power radio frequency transmitter facility operating in the high frequency (HF) band. The IRI is used to temporarily to excite a limited area of the Ionosphere. The HAARP is facility, however, it not the only facility of its kind. There are quite a number of other ionospheric research facilities around the World such as the Mu Radar in Japan, the Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico, Sura in central Russian, and EISCAT in Tromso, North Norway. However, because a large number of people tend to believe that HARRP is the only facility of its kind, many people jump to conclusions that the Untied States of America is to blame when an incident arises that could possibly be caused by facilities like HARRP. Nonetheless, weather modification is possible by altering upper atmosphere wind patterns or altering solar absorption patterns by constructing one or more plumes of atmospheric particles which will act as a lens or focusing device. If the ionosphere is greatly disturbed, the atmospheric conditions below are subsequently disturbed. The powerful radio waves of the HARRP can lift areas of the ionosphere by focusing a beam and heating those areas of the ionosphere. Electromagnetic waves then bounce back onto Earth and penetrate everything, living and dead. #RandolphHarris 7 of 11

Due to the fact that disruptions in the ionosphere have the ability to alter atmospheric conditions, many researchers who study the science of the HARRP (the most powerful of its kind in the World) have come forward with concerns that the ionospheric related disruptions have had a role to play in weather related disasters. As a result, some consider the HAARP to be a new breed of weapon with the capability to alter jet stream routes along weather patterns. It does not stop there, some philosophers believe that Puerto Rico used the Arecibo Observatory to disrupt the ionosphere to create hurricane Maria, then did not use the $50 billion in federal assistance, and left the millions of gallons of bottle water on the runway to make President Trump look bad and blame him for a slow response. However, considering the democrats are trying to use some 36-year-old gossip to get Judge Brett Kavanugh banned from the supreme court, anything is possible when it comes to politics. Much like the primitive humans, many modern humans do not seem to believe in God, rules of nature, or the justice systems. Myths and gossips and superstitions are their gods. There are actually accurate reports that many of the geological scientist do not even speak to each other to share data on climate change, rain fall, and weather events. It may not be intentional, but they do not have a coordinated system. #RandolphHarris 8 of 11

It is sincerely difficult to distinguish true or philosophical religion from superstition. However, the Universe is due to something remotely analogous to a designing mind. Still, the moral attributes of God, providence, immortality, and the Whole Christian story from the Fall to the Day of Judgment are things we should consider when it comes to life. Knowledge of causes and effects, whether purely qualitative or refined by measurement and calculations, only affects our actions if the objects so connected are some interest to us. Nothing can make them of interest to us but the pleasure and pain we expect from them. It is not the reasoning concerning causes and effects which moves us to action, but the desire of the pleasures and fear of the pains which we foresee by this reasoning. “For he will fulfill all his promises which he shall make unto you, for he has fulfilled his promises which he has made unto our fathers,” reports Alma 37.13,16-17. The fulfillment of God’s promises are always bonded to obedience to the laws attached to them. However, these promises do not ensure that everything that happens in our lives will be in accordance with our expectation and desires. Rather, God’s promises guarantee that what happens to us will be in accordance to his will. Sometimes unexpected trials will present themselves that we must overcome; sometimes promised blessings will be long delayed. #RandolphHarris 9 of 11

However, know that the time will come when we will know that these trials and these delays were for our good and our eternal progression. The greatest thing we can desire in life is to align our will to the will of the Lord—to accept his agenda for our lives. God knows everything from the beginning, has a perspective that we do not have, and love us with an infinite love. When I was young and decided to prepare of the entrance exam to the best business schools in France, this preparation was very challenging and required personal work every day. Unfortunately, an unexpected disaster happened and I was not able to make it to French Consulate in San Francisco, California USA. France is the World’s sixth-largest economy, and the third largest in Europe. To get an Executive Master of Business Administration from HEC Paris would have been amazing. I was totally distraught. How could the Lord have abandoned me when I had preserved in my faithfulness? However, I was able to stay in California and connect with the church and learn all these wonderful things about God. I was assured that it is best this way so that when it is my time to pass away, I would not do so as a lost soul, financially rich, but poor spiritually. I thanked the Lord for his goodness. It took me several years to understand the miraculous blessings that my failure to get into the college of my dreams has been. #RandolphHarris 10 of 11

The Lord was guiding my steps with the foreknowledge of the mission he wants me to accomplish in my life. After we have done all in our power, and things do not workout the way we prayed for them to, we must be ready to accept that our Father in Heaven has another plan. The promises of the Lord assure us of our final destination. The itinerary for each of us will vary according to the foreknowledge of God. Our circumstances may change, unexpected events may occur, challenges may arise, but the promises of God to us are assured through our faithfulness. Faith in its full and pure form requires an unshakable assurance and absolutely confidence that God will hear our please and grant our petitions’ in his own due time. Believing that, we too can stand fast in the faith today and tomorrow. Sometimes God closes doors because something worse than we have experienced could happen on the other side. It matters not where we live nor what our individual circumstances may be. Each day our righteous living can demonstrate faith that sees beyond mortal heartaches, disappointments, and unfulfilled promises. It is a wonderful thing to possess a faith that enables us to look forward to that day when all that was promised the Saints will be given. “And as sure as the Lord lives, so sure as many as believed, or as many as were brought to the knowledge of the truth, through the preaching of Ammon and his brethren, according to the spirit of revelation and of prophecy, and the power of God working miracles in them,” Alma 23.6.  #RandolphHarris 11 of 11

 It was easy enough for me to scan their minds and get a picture of it. The discovery of documentary falsifications and false attributions, the need to discover tests and revive them in authentic form by studying and collating codices, and the attempt to understand the personalities of the literary people and the philosophers of the past in their own Worlds are all indications of humanism’s fundamental concern for historicity. Doubtless in its results it realised the task of historical restoration only partially and imperfectly, but the task is never exhausted and is repeatedly proposed to historiographic endeavour. The humanists were aware of the value of this task, and they initiated it and insured its continuance by leaving it as a legacy to modern culture. Humanism does not have an antireligious or anti-Christian character. Its interest in defending the value and freedom of a person draws it into discussing the traditional problems of God and providence and of the soul, its immortality, and its freedom—discussions that were frequently concluded in much the same form as that accepted by the medieval tradition. However, in the context of humanism these discussions assume a new significance because they had the purpose of understanding and justifying the capacity for initiative of humans in the World. This capacity was defended even in the religious sphere, for the religious discussions of the humanists had two principal themes: the civil function of religion and religious tolerance. #RandolphHarris 1 of 14

Among these mortals were Erin, the versatile Black lady, a stunner when it comes to looks, and Jamerson’s one-time lover; and their little son Ashton, of course, four years old and running up and down the stairs just for fun, his feet in white tennis shoes (even after Labour Day, you know what that indicates), a little too big for his body; and Professor Gwen, Erin’s grandmother, a regal Black lady with white hair in a bun, shaking her head, talking to nobody, in the kitchen cooking up supper for God knows who. Hovering about the back of the property were the Shed Men, Justin and Matthias, sitting in an open lighted portion of the shed, reading the Weekly World News and howling with laughter at it, while the television was blaring Football. There was a giant limousine in front of the house and one in the back. As for the Big House, by Cresleigh Homes, I loved it. I found it to perfectly proportioned, which was not always the case with American houses, but this one, preening on its terrace of land, was more than agreeable and inviting, with its long evergreen-tree drive, and its regal windows all around. This inspiring two-story home had designs that blended stunning features, generous living spaces, two car garages, and outdoor amenities that offer the perfect blend of indoor and outdoor living. It made one realise that one was truly home. They used the highest quality builders and management trained in Architecture and Engineering, to create and unmatched expertise. #RandolphHarris 2 of  14

Interior? What Americans call giant rooms. Dustless, manicured. Full of mantel clocks, mirrors, portraits and Persian rugs, and the inevitable mélange of nineteenth-century mahogany furniture that people mix with new reproductions of classic Hepplewhite and Louis XIV styles to achieve the look they call Traditional or antique. Eh? And all pervaded by the inevitable drone of massive air-conditioning, which not only cooled the air magically but provided the Privacy of Sound, which has so transformed the South in this day and age. This all allowed the family to experience the fulfillment of a lifelong dream. After spending nearly twenty-five years in the United States Army and making fifteen moves; they completed the build and move into their forever home, built by Cresleigh . In a pastoral landscape, the area is architecturally unified, and each house and building is deeply espressive. My eyes began to examine the Heavens. Words cannot completely express how pleased the family is with their new home. I thought, “This is a bit like a personal relationship with God.” The feelings of joy can be felt as one approached the front door, and they love sharing their home with family and friends, and telling them about their incredible journey. I was pondering fiercely. It was as if I saw the Light of Heaven. “When God gives any person wealth and possessions, and enables one to enjoy them, to accept one’s lot and be happy in one’s work—this is a gift from God,” reports Ecclesiastes 5.19. #RandolphHarris 3 of 14

My mind continued to wander. I reflected on the immensity of the Universe that presented itself before my eyes. The Universe is immense and infinite, yet, at the same time, each of us has unique worth, glorious and infinite in the eyes of our Creator. Our personal worth is of immeasurable importance to our Heavenly Fathers. “I have seen evil under the Sun, and it weighs heavily on people: God gives a person wealth, possessions and honour, so that one lacks nothing one’s heart desires, but God does not enable one to enjoy them, and a stranger enjoys them instead. This is meaningless, a grievous evil. A one may have a hundred children and live many years; yet no matter how long one lives, if one cannot enjoy one’s prosperity and does not receive proper burial, I say that a stillborn child is better of than he. It comes without meaning, it departs in darkness, and in darkness its name is shrouded. Though it never saw the Sun or knew anything, it has more rest than does that man—even if he lives a thousand years twice over but fails to enjoy his prosperity. So not all go to the same place?” reports Ecclesiastes 6.1-6.  Do you really want to steal another person’s soul out of the currents of human destiny? We are known and remembered by the most majestic, powerful, and glorious Being in the Universe! We are loved by the King of infinite space and everlasting time. Therefore, enjoy your time on this Earth and what God has blessed you with. #RandolphHarris 4 of 14

The discovery of historical perspective is, with respect to time, what the discovery of optic perspective in Renaissance painting was with respect to space: the capacity to realize the distance of the objects from each other and from the viewer and therefore the capacity to understand them in their actual place and time and in their distinction from each other—in their individuality. In Europe, toward the end of the thirteenth century, a new kind of art began to appear, at first in the South, and somewhat later in the North. By the beginning of the fifteenth century, this new era, marked by a revival of interest in arts and sciences that had been lost since antiquity, was firmly established. We have come to call this revival the Renaissance, meaning rebirth. This was the beginnings of the spirit that would develop into the Renaissance sensibility. These figures are no longer archetypical and formulaic representations; they are almost real people, displaying real emotions. The Renaissance is, perhaps most of all, the era of the individual. As early as the 1330s, it was conceived of a new Humanism, a philosophy that emphasized the unique value of each person. There is a contemplation of beauty, which transforms its love into a purely spiritual love of God. The imagery and architecture of this time is a source of inspiration and love. #RandolphHarris 5 of 14

The significance of human personality as an original and autonomous center organises the various aspects of life like they were in the ancient times. Perspective in this sense represents innocence itself, a divine beauty free of any hint of the physical and the sensual. It is this form of beauty that the soul, aspiring to salvation, is expected to contemplate. The importance that the modern World attaches to human personality is the consequence of an attitude made possible by Renaissance humanism. The civil function of religion is to recognize on the basis of the correspondence between the Heavenly and Earthly city. The Heavenly city is the norm or the ideal of human’s civil life; but precisely because it is such, its recognition means the commitment of men and of men and women to realise, as much as possible, its characteristics in the Earthly city. In the Bible is not only the proclamation of superterrestrial happiness, but also of Earthly happiness. Religion is the confidence in the value of human’s work, in the success of this work, and in the reward that humans will find in the future life. The fundamental function of religion is to support humans in the work of civil life, in political work and activity. The goals of truth and beauty of genius have to also rely on subjective and personal intuition to possess this divine frenzy of the creative act—to transcend the conditions of everyday life. #RandolphHarris 6 of 14

Spirituality can sometimes exceed reality, as it is a window, not upon nature, but upon divine inspiration itself. Archetypes are supposed to represent the four domains of knowledge—Theology, Law, Poetry, and Philosophy. Church is supposed to be a gathering of the greatest philosophers and scientists of the modern World. The concept of tolerance which has come to be affirmed in the modern World implies the possibility of peaceful coexistence between the various religious confessions which remain different from each other and are not reducible to a single confession. For humanists, additionally, the attitude of tolerance derives from their conviction of the fundamental unity of all the religious beliefs of humankind and therefore of the possibility of a universal religious peace. Moreover, religious peace also implies the essential identity between philosophy and religion. Christianity simply elaborates the mysterious glow of God that infuses our soul with sensuousness of light and colour and the pleasures of the sense, and brings about to fulfillment the wisdom that ancient philosophy has elaborated, because reason, which has supported and guided this philosophy, is the same which became incarnate in the Word (of God). The return to origins would be a return to the religious peace of the happy ancestors of the human race and the end of theological hatred and intolerance. #RandolphHarris 7 of 14

The broadening of our existence and of our knowledge asserts our sense of importance of the individual, especially the individual of genius and talent. The meaning is to evoke our own spirituality, presenting the Godlike aspects of our nature, which are discovered in the knowledge of the manifold intellectual, sentient, and moral human powers. The World is supposed to be like it was in the Hellenic times and return to unity of diverse forces, a cultural unity which millennial times somewhat lacks. We are in a search for the order and rhythms of nature. The condition of the soul which gives rise to the necessity of history (in the truest and highest sense of the word) is clearly manifested in the preserved human experience in the mind, which is why so many adults reflect on their childhood. A time when they were happy and protected and essentially worshipped by the family as a deity when they are first born into the World. Nonetheless, wherever we are, whatever our circumstances may be, we are not forgotten. No matter how dark our days may seem, no matter how insignificant we may feel, no matter how overshadowed we may be, our Heavenly Father has not forgotten us. In fact, God loves us with an infinite love. #RandolphHarris 8 of 14

Knowing that God knows us and loves us personally is like a light that illuminates our life and gives it meaning. The eternal original ideas of everything conceivable provides existence and value, beauty of all physical and spiritual forms, the truth in the unalterable working of every force according to its indwelling law, the justice in the inexorable course of events which are eternally regulated and meted their just reward. How can we help others know that their Heavenly Father loves them? Is that not the essential question? How can we know that God loves us? Often the feeling we have of our personal wort is based on the love and interest we receive from those around us. Yet this love is sometimes lacking. The love of people is often imperfect, incomplete, or selfish. The goal of life is the realization of the love of God, representing itself through humanity from all sides and in all forms in which the finite forms can be connected with the infinite. The task of us as human beings, therefore, is to represent this process of the love of God actualized in reality. The love of God is the most radiant sign and certain proof that humans are not intrinsically separate from the Lord. It implies a deep-rooted subjective view of the World, a spiritual attitude, that controls the formation of concepts. The love of God is perfect, complete, and selfless. Heavenly Fathers loves us and understands our needs and concerns. God is anxious to bless us. #RandolphHarris 9 of 14

If we could see ourselves as God sees us, imagine what it would mean to us. What if we looked at ourselves with the same benevolence, love, and confidence that God does? Imagine the impact it would have on our lives to understand the eternal potential as God understands it. It is evident that the languages are not really means of representing the truth that has already been ascertained, but far more, means of discovering a truth not previously known. Their diversity is not a diversity of sounds, but of World outlook. If we could view ourselves through God’s eyes, what influence would that have on our lives? I promise you that God will send us tangible signs of his existence and his love for us. I felt a little like Socrates must have felt with all those gorgeous Greek young men coming to him for advice, that is, until somebody showed up with the Burning Hemlock (a burning stake usually a cross that is as tall as a house). Well, it is a mind reader, magnet for spirits and ghosts and a possessor of other occult talents. This is mystifying me, unless they are deliberately playing this one out solely for reasons that will soon become clear. He could have lived among them for quite a while. And as I have already explained, they thought I was human too, though I probably could not count on that for too long. #RandolphHarris 10 of 14

Skeptical arguments are logically unanswerable but powerless against the natural sentiments and convictions that govern our judgment in daily life. Witches detect all kinds of small thing about other creatures. It has to do with the lazy and constant exercise of their power. I as sensed that at the funeral Mass, just breathing the same air as Dr. Ludwig Andreas Feuerbach and his wife Berta Low. However, fortunately, they were distracted by a multitude of other stimuli, so I had not had to bolt. We shall never know what the new scene of though is. But we can identify the main currents in contemporary thought with which we are concerned with. We can, therefore, safely tease and use an antidote to dogmatism and over certainty of every kind. All our ideas are derived from impressions of sense or inner feeling. That is, we cannot even conceive of things different in kind from everything in our experience. A matter of fact can never be proved by reasoning a priori. It must be discovered in, or inferred from, experience. From these two propositions it follows that metaphysical systems telling us of the existence of God, the origin of the World, and other matters transcending human experience. Become who you are. #RandolphHarris 11 of 14

The mind is pictured as an immaterial thing with the powers of receiving representations of things in the World which it inhabits, of reasoning about these representations, and of making decisions that are somehow translated into physical action by the body to which the mine is temporarily attached. These representations are usually called ideas. Art is a great representation, which makes good use of the mind’s power. In art, figures may be distorted or elongated to depict a feeling, as in Bronzino’s Venus, Cupid, Folly, and Time (The Exposure of Luxury), circa 1546, located in the National Gallery, London. The colours are often bright and clashing. At the upper right of Bronzino’s painting, Time, and, at the upper left, Truth, part a curtain to revel the shallow space in which Venus is fondled by her son Cupid. Folly is about to shower the pair in rose petals. Envy tears her hair out at center left. The Mannerist distortion of space is especially evident in the distance and separating Cupid’s shoulder and head. Shortly after the Spanish conquest of separatist States within Spain in 1519 and death of Raphael in 1520, many Italian painters embarked on a stylistic course that was highly individualistic and mannered, or consciously artificial. The call word of this Mannerist style was “invention,” and the technical and imaginative virtuosity of the artist become a paramount importance. #RandolphHarris 12 of 14

Each Mannerist artist may, therefore, be identified by one’s own “signature” style. Where the art of the High Renaissance sought to create a feeling of balance and proportion, quite the opposite is the goal of Mannerist art. The Christian Platonist, disbelieving in the prenatal existence of the soul, substituted for the inborn memories of the archetypes, inborn representations of them, which they called “innate ideas.” It was from the possession of and by reflection on these innate ideas that we came by the knowledge of such necessary truths of metaphysics, mathematics, and morals as our Maker had thought it necessary for us to have and which could not be discovered from experience. In the late work of Michelangelo, for example, particularly the great fresco of The Last Judgment on the alter wall of the Sistine Chapel, executed in the years 1534-1541, we find figures of grotesque proportion arranged in an almost chaotic, certainly athletic swirl of line. Mannerist painters represented space in unpredictable and ambiguous ways, so that bodies sometimes seem to fall out of nowhere into the frame of the painting, as in Tintoretto’s The Miracle of the Slave. The drama of Tintoretto’s painting is heightened by the descent of the vastly foreshortened St. Mark, who hurtles in from above to save the slave from his executioner. #RandolphHarris 13 of 14

The rising spiral line created by the three central figures—the slave, the executioner, holding up his shattered instruments of torture, and St. Mark—is characteristic of Mannerism, but the theatricality of the scene, heightened by its dramatic contrast of light and dark, anticipates the Baroque style, which soon followed. To examine and understand an idea, first reduce it to its simple constituent ideas. Then, if any one of these is still obscure, produce the impression from which it is derived. That means in your mind, arrange for the actual occurrence of the impression. It may not be what they artist intended to convey, but interpretation is subjective and it is your opinion of what you see expressed. Ideas of sensation come from our sense organ, ideas of reflection from our consciousnesses of our mental process. We are supposed to provide our own means of thinking, as mental images. “Now I have told you this once before, you cannot control me. If you try to take me down, you are going to break. I feel your every nothing that you are doing for me. I am picking you out of me, you run away. I stand alone inside. You are always hiding behind your so-called goddess. So what do you not think that we can see your face. Resurrected back before the final fallen. Now they have arrest until I can make my own way. I am not afraid of fading,” (I Stand Alone by Godsmack). #RandolphHarris 14 of 14

Human beings are not wholly depraved and the judicious exercise of human reason is absolutely essential to a Christian life. There is no great insurmountable chasm between nature and the supernatural and the mark of the Divine Creator can be detected in every creature. To deny the freedom to pursue the ideals of truth, beauty, and benignant love is to undermine every profound human venture, including science, morality, and philosophy. The freedom crucial to human existence is untenable if the individual is dependent for one’s existence upon any other being, including a Creator-God or an Absolute One. Therefore, self-determining beings must be uncreated and eternal; yet the unique quality of human freedom presupposes that each person stands in an individual relationship to other persons, subpersonal beings, and God. How, then, does this plurality of uncreated beings compose a Universe and not a mere collection of beings, a pluriverse? Well, the very nature of undeniable, self-active, unified, thinking beings to define themselves and to fulfill themselves as individuals. In this very act of self-definition and self-fulfillment they find themselves related to other beings. #RandolphHarris 1 of 8

Thus, in thinking itself as eternally real, each spirit thinks the reality of other spirits. “Bring the souls of humans unto me, while the World shall stand,” reports 3 Nephi 28.9. Is there a God to unify the many grades of self-active beings? Yes, but any unification must not infringe upon individual growth to moral perfection.  Creation as efficient cause must give way to creation in accordance with an Ideal present in each being. The fulfillment of this Ideal calls for a World composed of all the individual differences compatible with the mutual reality of it all. Thus, basic harmony is possible because, as each individual defines oneself, one finds the Ideal of self-definition which to measure oneself. And God, who is defined as self-existent by every other self-defining being, is the indispensable standard for measuring reality. The impinging of the Infinite on human’s experience, emotions, and will implies the spiritual nature of the Infinite; for otherwise it would be hard to account for its inspiring power.  The fundamental institutions of the medieval World—the empire, the church, and feudalism—seemed to be the guardians of a cosmic order which humans have to accept but which they cannot modify to the slightest degree. #RandolphHarris 2 of 8

The nature of love exhibited by one’s mother and father are of particular meaning for every human being. For this can either inhibit or accelerate one’s own ability to love. They work primarily to show that all the material and spiritual goods to which humans can aspire (from daily bread to truth) derive from the order to which they belong, that is, the hierarchies which are the interpreters and custodians of the cosmic order. “And behold, the Heavens were opened, and they were caught up into Heaven, and saw and heard unspeakable things. And it was forbidden them that they should utter; neither was it given unto them power that they could utter the things which the heard,” reports 3 Nephi 28.13-14. Humanism, which was born in the cities and the communes that had fought and were fighting for their autonomy and that saw in traditional hierarchical orders an obstacle rather than an assistant to the goods indispensable to humans, defended human’s freedom to project one’s life in the World in autonomous ways. In exalting freedom, they exalted human’s capacity to form this World, to vary it, and to better it absolutely. #RandolphHarris 3 of 8

As much as any person in our time, we all must control our moral and intellectual dilemmas and comprehend a humanity that seems determined to heal. “I have given you, Adam, neither a predetermined place nor a particular aspect nor any special prerogatives in order that you may take and possess these through your own decision and choice. The limitations on the nature of other creatures are contained within my prescribed laws. You shall determine your own nature without constraint from any barrier, by means of the freedom to whose power I have entrusted you. I have placed you at the center of the World so that from that point you might see better what is in the World. I have made you neither Heavenly nor Earthly, neither mortal nor immortal so that, like a free and sovereign artificer, you might mold and fashion yourself into that form you yourself shall have chosen,” reports God. Wisdom confers on people the powers which perfect their nature. “And whether you are in the body or out of the body, you cannot tell of the unspeakable things saw and heard in Heaven; for it did seem unto you like a transfiguration of yourselves, that you were changed from this body of flesh into an immortal state, that you could behold the things of God,” reports 3 Nephi 28.15. #RandolphHarris 4 of 8

 One deals here (as evident today) with speculations influenced by an excessive confidence in human’s capacity to shape life in the World, a confidence in human’s capacity to shape one’s life in the World, a confidence which is tempered by the skeptical development that humanism underwent outside of Italy from 1533-1603. This confidence, however, constituted the new doctrine of humanism in contrast with the medieval mentality. “And ye may know that the words of the Lord, which have been spoken by the holy prophets, shall all be fulfilled; and ye need not say that the Lord delays his coming. And ye need not imagine in your hearts that the words which have been spoken are vain, for behold, the Lord will remember his covenant which he hath made unto his people,” reports 3 Nephi 29.2-3. Human interest, values and dignity are to predominate. There is an ultimate faith in humankind, which believes that human beings possess the power or potentiality of solving their own problems, through reliance primarily upon reason and scientific method applied with courage and vision. #RandolphHarris 5 of 8

Humanism upholds human reason, ethics and justice, and is a component of a variety of more specific philosophical systems, and is incorporated into religious schools of thought. It is an optimistic attitude to life whose ultimate goal is human flourishing, doing good and living well in the here and now, and leaving the World better for those who come after. The conviction that humans are part of nature—that nature is their realm, and the features which tie them to nature (one’s body, one’s needs, one’s sensations) are essential to one to the point that one cannot abstract from them nor ignore them—one can speak of naturalism in humanism. Though the humanists exalted the soul of human beings for its powers of freedom, they did not forget the body that which it pertains to it. The widespread recognition of the value of pleasure among the humanists and their aversion to medieval asceticism clearly show the new evaluation of human’s natural aspects. As an ethical doctrine, it affirms the dignity and worth of all people and their ability to determine right and wrong purely by appeal to universal human qualities, especially rationality. #RandolphHarris 6 of 8

Humanity searches for truth and morality through human means in support of human interests, and focuses on the human capacity for self-determination. It endorses universal morality (Moral Universalism) based on the commonality of the human condition. Pleasure is the sole good for humans, that is, the sole end of human activities. The laws that regulate cities have been made for utility, which in turn generates pleasure. Every government is directed to this same end. Virtue is none other than the calculus of pleasure; and pleasure, or at least utility, it the end of the liberal arts, like medicine, jurisprudence, poetry, and oratory, which attempt to satisfy the needs of life. Moral philosophy is, so to speak, our territory. Those who betray it, and give themselves over to physics, seem in a way to occupy themselves over to physics, seem in a way to occupy themselves with foreign affairs and to neglect their own. If love is a capacity of the mature, productive character, it follows that the capacity to love in an individual living in any given culture depends on the influence this culture has on the character of the average person. One thing is for certain: the nature of one’s love for God corresponds for the nature of love for humanity. #RandolphHarris 7 of 8

If we should succeed in keeping alive a vision of mature life, the development of fairness and ethics develop. “And it came to pass that there were other disciples ordained in their stead; and also many of that generation had passed away. And it came to pass that there was no contention in the land, because of the love of God which did dwell in the hearts of the people. And there were no envyings, nor strifes, nor tumults; and surely there could not be a happier people among all the people who had been created by the hand of God,” 4 Nephi 1.15-16. Perhaps the most important lesson the World has learned in the past seventy five years is that it is not true that human nature is unchangeable. Human nature, on the contrary, can be changed with the greatest ease and to the utmost possible extent. If in this is possessed huge potential danger, it also contains some of the brightest hopes that we have for the future of humankind. Each of us is programmed by the culture to think and feel in specified ways. And though a certain latitude is permitted, with some alternatives allowed, most of us are socialized to be more or less similar in the content to our minds. Love is a key to the secret of life. With love subtracted, life will become tasteless and colourless. #RandolphHarris 8 of 8

Happiness is a condition of the soul. Pleasure, joy, and happiness all involved a sense of well-being, a sense of being up, and having good feelings toward oneself and/or others. The main thing in life is not to be afraid to be human. However, it seems that some individuals are convinced that life must be painful. They resent any good feelings in themselves and others. Joy seems somehow irresponsible to them. Sometimes you hear a person say that it is wrong to be happy when so many people the World over are in pain. We have all been down, bummed-out, unhappy, restless and fretful, sad and tearful. Depression is an extreme of this. It is painful and no one likes it, but it is still a normal response. Feeling depressed usually means we are angry or blocked at some point. Rather than denying the feelings, we would be healthier to use the natural time out that depression creates to work it out. Understanding that there are spiritual side effects from depression is important when one or one’s loved ones face this challenge. If a person feels angry but cannot let the emotion out, one often turns it in on oneself and gets depressed. When an individual would rather hit someone else on the head, one gets headaches. When an individual would much rather make someone else sad and tearful, they experience those emotions themselves. However, psychotic depression is much more serious and involves pattern of depression that are much more serious and far deeper and long-lasting. #RandolphHarris 1 of 11

Some people pray for the sorrow to go away and read the scriptures and listen to good music, like Those Were the Days by Aaliyah, in hopes of regaining peace. However, nothing seems to help. It appears as if their soul, all that is unique to them, has come under attack. Many people feel like that have no worth and that they are unworthy of their wonderful family. Although these individuals many not be suicidal, they believe if they died someone more deserving could take their place. And each day, this region of space that are in has a gravitational field that is so intense that no matter how hard they try to escape from the black hole, they cannot. Often times, it also seems like people or things, especially money are starting to disappear without a trace and no one can understand them, and some people eventually lose hope. Because these feelings are so deeply personal and painful, other individuals are ashamed and do not want to share them with anyone. Thoughts like these often come up: I have it all—a great job, relationship, and lifestyle—so why do I feel so dissatisfied and disconnected? Why am I not happier in my intimate relationships? How do I become more powerful—without becoming the jerk every dislikes? Overcoming depression has a lot to do with being present and trustworthy, grounded and transparent, and showing up as a warrior of integrity and intimacy, compassionately cutting through the roots of whatever is obstructing one’s well-being. God did not create us to have a depressed spirit. #RandolphHarris 2 of 11

One of the things people do not understand about life is that God wants us to be happy. I go through it myself, not necessarily depression, but I have a lot of hardships in my life and am around a lot of people I cannot trust, do not like and that are very torturous—they like to use painful events from the past and constantly remind one of them, they love to lie and distort information, and they even physically attack one when one is not paying attention. So, what helps is to befriend the vulnerability and realize that we are children of God and to force oneself to be happy and smile when you start to feel sad memories coming forward. Keep in mind that nothing lasts forever, and one day happiness will return. However, must we are disgusted by savage behaviour, our hearts should do out to them. Also, pray constantly for Heaven’s help to relieve the heaviness in one’s heart. Whatever one is experiencing may not have anything to do with sin. It is essential to understand that such a spiritual crisis is not a result of spiritual weakness nor lack of faith. Everyone is going to be anxious or downhearted on occasion. And never lose faith in your Father in Heaven, who loves you more than you can comprehend. Never, ever doubt that, and never harden your heart. Faithfully pursue the time-tested devotional practice that being the Spirit of the Lord into your life. #RandolphHarris 3 of 11

It is also important to look inside of ourselves and seek the keys for our spiritual well-being. It is so crucial to encounter the dimensions of our soul without robing it of its passion and warrior spirit, allowing it to full-bloodedly expand, permitting it to further energize and awaken the quintessential being within us. With perseverance, the soul becomes increasingly alive and present. Happiness is a conditional of the soul. This joyous state is further enhanced by living a righteous life. If we life in such a way to make life good, it can be. “Because they lead my people astray, saying ‘Peace,’ when there is no peace, and because, when a flimsy wall is built, they cover it with whitewash, tell those who cover it with whitewash that it is going to fall. Rain will come in torrents, and I will send hailstones hurling down, and violent winds will burst forth. When the wall collapses, will people not ask you, ‘Where is the whitewash you covered it with?’ In my wrath I will unleash a violent wind, and in my anger hailstones and torrents of rain will fall with destructive fury. I will tear down the wall you have covered with whitewash and will level it to the ground so that its foundation will be laid bare. When it falls, you will be destroyed in it; and you will know that I am the LORD. So I will spend my wrath against the wall and against those who covered it with whitewash,” Ezekiel 13.10-14. #RandolphHarris 4 of 11

In vulnerability there is a transparency and capacity for self-disclosure that can help deepen our connection with others. Becoming more vulnerable asks that we stretch beyond our comfort zone, but the resulting increase in depth, vitality, and connection make doing so worthwhile. Without vulnerability, there is no intimacy. Vulnerability does not always mean leaving the door wide-open; for example, if it does not feel right to drop your guard, but you know it is safe to do so, openly admit that you are guard—such an admission itself is an act of vulnerability. Or if you are with someone you know you cannot trust with your vulnerability, do not “should” yourself into being vulnerable. Be discerning with your vulnerability, which is something they do not teach in college. Social engineering in college can open people up to being preyed upon because they are trying to break down racial or class segregation, but sometimes there are risks that need to be considered and one has to remain aware of that. Do not allow teachers and professors and community members to whitewash you values to the point that you are making foolish decision and hanging out with people you should not. Sometimes people are not beings or class discriminating, they are just trusting their instincts. Vulnerability can be a risk, especially emotionally, but not doing what can to protect ourselves can be a bigger risk. #RandolphHarris 5 of 11

Empathy also needs an empathic boundary, meaning discernment so one does not get overly absorbed in or identified with others’ emotional states—standing back far enough to keep them in clear focus, resonating with what they are feeling without losing ourselves in it. Being empathetic does not mean putting up with someone’s problems because one thinks they are obligated to, but it does make it very difficult to dehumanize others, regardless of how strong a stand we might need to take with them. Empathy helps keep us from getting numb, heady, or overly detached. It begins with and reinforces vulnerability. Some people open easily, loves easily, connect easily, but their personal boundaries are all but missing. Saying “no” can be very difficult for one, so one’s “yes” lacks authenticity and real conviction, existing mostly as a means of not displeasing or upsetting anyone. The idea is to develop healthy boundaries. No one needs to feel alone on the road of life, for we are all invited to come unto Christ and be perfected in the Lord. Happiness is the purpose of the gospel and the purpose of the redeeming Atonement for all people. #RandolphHarris 6 of 11

Sometimes people lie around in the afternoon, are in bed by eight, and there in their beds alone the past rises like a tide, over and over, to swamp them with memories they cannot handle. Their loved ones die again, and again and they have to face that they could not save them. These memories come back to them with extraordinary vividness. “Because you disheartened the righteous with your lies, when I had brought them no grief, and because you encouraged the wicked not to turn from their evil ways and so save their lives, therefore you will no longer see false visions or practice divination. I will save my people from your hands. And then you will know that I am the LORD,” reports Ezekiel 13.22-23. People are created by God with rational endowments necessary for the conduct of society and government. People desire not only to live, but also to live well. This further desire implies that people must find their ultimate happiness. Such ultimate cannot be found in the attainment of a temporal, and therefore temporary, good, but only in the ultimate perfection that is God. Owing to the Fall, humans cannot know by natural reason what one must do to obtain this final supernatural end. God has therefore revealed to people certain rules to supplement natural laws. Hence it becomes clear that in order to achieve full human stature, individuals need both natural law, for social and political purposes, and revealed law, for everlasting felicity. #RandolphHarris 7 of 11

 Revealed law is contained in the Bible and the traditions of the church. Natural law and reveled law are jointly, and not separately, the correct guide. God is pure act and in him existence and essence coincide; Angels are immaterial and they differ from all natural, not purely intellectual creatures in that they behold the face of God directly; the soul is the form of  humans, and not a separate substance. God is law unto himself, and that law is the lex aeterna, which is both the source of all other law and itself manifested in all other laws. In the divinely revealed law, it is manifested directly, so to speak; in natural law, indirectly. For natural law is discovered by human reason, and human reason is created by God according to the lex aeterna; therefore the dictate of natural law, spring from the lex aeterna. God has given reason to every human. He has illuminated people. “The light of thy countenance is signed upon us, Lord,” reports Psalms iv.6-7. Hence we learn the will of God by using our reason. The will of humans is free. Everything good that reason sees as such has something unpleasant annexed to it. And everything evil that reason sees as such has something pleasant attached to it. For reason cannot see the absolutely good. Hence, although we always will the good, we can never will the absolutely good; as a result the will is always free to choose between several relative goods. #RandolphHarris 8 of 11

The two springs of human action are knowledge (reason) and will. The will always wills the good; and the good is apprehended by reason. Sin results from the imperfect operation of reason, which can never apprehend the good. Sin is therefore intimately linked with both the freedom of the will and the imperfection of reason. It is never committed as a positive action or desired for its own sake, but is the result of a loss. Evil, by implication, is a privation. To avoid evil, it is necessary to supplement the law of nature. And since the law of nature is embodied in secular government, the revealed law is embodied in the church. This is the proof that church and start are intimately connected. Thus we may see that the Lord is merciful unto all who will, in the sincerity of their hearts, call upon his holy name. “Behold, the Lord hath redeemed my soul from hell; I have beheld his glory, and I am encircled about eternally in the arms of his love. And I desire that ye should remember to observe the statutes and the judgments of the Lord; behold, this hath been the anxiety of my soul from the beginning. My heart hath been weighed down with sorrow from time to time, for I have feared, lest for the hardness of your hearts the Lord your God should come out in the fulness of his wrath upon you, that ye be cut off and destroyed forever,” 2 Nephi 1.15-17. #RandolphHarris 9 of 11

We need to recognize that wanting to is the determining factor which leads us to lay hold upon the word of God and be happy. Perseverance in making correct decisions is what leads us to happiness. Happiness comes as the result of our obedience and our courage in always doing the will of God, even in the most difficult circumstances. “And now that my soul might have joy in you, and that my heart might leave this World with gladness because of you, that I might not be brought down with grief and sorrow to the grave, arise from the dust, my children, and be people, and be determined in one mind and in one heart, untied in all things, that ye may not come down into captivity; that you may not be cursed with a sore cursing; and also that ye may not incur the displeasure of a just God upon you, unto the destruction, yea, the eternal destruction of both soul and body. Awake, my children; put on the armor of righteousness. Sake off the chains which ye are bound, and come forth out of obscurity, and arise from the dust,” reports 2 Nephi 1.21-23. Yes, we find happiness in the midst of the trial of our faith. The Lord manifests himself to us through his tender mercies, which we find along the road of happiness. We see with increased clarity his hand in our lives. This joyous state comes as a result of righteous living. #RandolphHarris 10 of 11

Happiness is the object and design of our existence. If we pursue the path that leads to it, and this path is virtue, uprightness, faithfulness, holiness, and keeping all the commandments of God, then happiness will also be the end thereof. The whole crusade for control of the emotions is, of course, emotionally grounded, and it is prosecuted in a most emotional fashion. Emotions are the means by which we make contact. We may talk angrily or warmly toward another; both are good contact or potential contact, for contact is established only if it has the support of our emotions. The price we pay for avoiding the pain of being fully alive is that we are excluded from the pleasure as well. The way to love other people is to express what we feel—anger and love—without aiming to hurt feelings. Open but reverent communication is how to make love in our lives. Noting in the World is better and more pleasing than friendship. Without it, the World would lose the Sun. People are not singing praises of stars because of their crystalline beauty, but their combination into a magnificent sky. A self-confident, glamorous gentleman or gentlewoman is especially captivating, and with his or her faint smile particularly engaging, because of the way they fix their eyes is an exchange that makes us feel good. #RandolphHarris 11 of 11

Angels signify images raised in the mind to indicate the presence of God. Life holds a lot of surprises, does it not? People generally suffer becomes of the superior power of nature, the finite nature of our own bodies, and the inadequacy of the regulations which adjust the mutual relationships of human beings in the family, the state and society. In regard to the first two sources, our judgement cannot hesitate long. It forces us to acknowledge those sources of suffering and to submit to the inevitable. We shall never completely master nature; and our bodily organism, itself a part of that nature, will always remain a transient structure with a limited capacity for adaptation and achievement. This recognition does not have a paralyzing effect. On the contrary, it points the direction for our activity. If we cannot remove all suffering, we can remove some, and we can mitigate some: the experience of many thousands of years has convinced us of that. As regards the third source, the social source of suffering, our attitude is a different one. We do not admit it at all; we cannot see why the regulations made by ourselves should not, on the contrary, be a protection and a benefit for every one of us. And yet, when we consider how unsuccessful we have been in precisely this field of prevention of suffering, a suspicion dawns on us that here, too, a piece of unconquerable nature may life behind—this time a piece of our own physical constitution. #RandolphHarris 1 of 6

Youth is, in general, the perfect time to make personal plans. Each of us had our childhood dreams. As a young adult one should still have dreams for one’s future—each person! Perhaps it is the hope for a brand-new house, an athletic achievement, a new car, the creation of a band or musical group, or the acquisition of a diploma or professional position that one seeks to acquire through work and perseverance. Some people may even have a precious image in their minds of one’s future husband or wife, his or her physical appearance, his or her character traits, the colour of his or her eyes or hair, and the beautiful children that will bless one’s family. How many of your wishes will come true? Life is full of uncertainty. Surprises will occur all along life’s journey. When we start considering this possibility, we come upon a contention which is so astonishing that we must dwell upon it. This contention holds that what we call our civilization is largely responsible for our misery, and that we should be much happier if we gave it up and returned to primitive conditions. Life can be like a suspense novel whose plot is very difficult to predict. This contention is astonishing because, in whatever we may define the concept of civilization, it is a certain fact that all the things with which we seek to protect ourselves against are the threats that emanate from part of our very civilization. There will be key moment for us that may change the course of our lives in an instant. #RandolphHarris 2 of 6

However, there will also be new opportunities that will present themselves in our lives. Sometimes, courses change in our lives and present unexpected challenges or disappointments. Through experience we learn that we can only partially control the circumstances of our lives. Some people become neurotic because they cannot tolerate the amount of frustration which society imposes on them in the service of its cultural ideas, and it is inferred from this that the abolition or reduction of those demands will result in a return to possibilities of happiness. Most people dislike the unknown. The uncertainty of life creates in some a lack of confidence, a fear of the future that manifests itself in different ways. Some hesitate to make commitments out of fear of failure, even when good opportunities present themselves.  For example, people may delay marriage, education, starting a family, or establishing a stable professional activity. There is a different pat than ones of fear and doubt or self-indulgence—a path that bring peace, confidence, and serenity to our lives. That is a good thing  because what good to us is a life if it is difficult and barren of joys, and if it is so full of misery that we can only welcome death as a deliverer? #RandolphHarris 3 of 6

We are the architects of our happiness. It is not really the result of the circumstances of our lives. It is much more the result of our spiritual vision and the principles upon which we base our lives. These principles will bring us happiness regardless of the unexpected challenges and surprises we will inevitably face during our journeys here on Earth. Some people develop a composite picture that credits them with an impressive erudition, an extremely methodical mind, a collector’s interest in art, and the qualities of affability, discreet generosity, modesty, loyalty to friends, and a taste for virtuous simplicity. Of course there will be times of moodiness, petulance, and gruffness. However, these traits just provide a touch of humanity without essentially altering the picture of an individual a virtuous being. No one lives without making mistakes and incurring regrets, yet we all hope to be worthy of regard in the in. The notion or reciprocity, of being helped and then helping in return, appeals to our basic need for balance and order. Opportunities arise thereby for correcting antiquated misconceptions as well as for incurring new irritations. Former conflicts may flare up with enough force to propel our finally working them out. “Look upon my suffering and deliver me, for I have not forgotten your law. Defend my cause and redeem me; preserver my life according to your promise,” reports Psalm 119.153-154. #RandolphHarris 4 of 6

Extending leniency to others gives us faith that someone will do the same for us when we reach the point that we need assistance and spiritual reckoning.  Even fumbled efforts at helpfulness and reconciliation are significant for the hope they instill and the example they set. We will return through memory to events that had been previously unclear and re-greet them with the knowledge we have gained since these events transpired. Sometimes in people’s adolescent diaries and journals, individuals record how they are suffused with self-reproach after a parent passes into Heaven for the countless unkindnesses one did them, large and small, the torment that they feel can never be made good. Some people brood relentlessly as they look back at their mother or father’s last days, seeing in retrospect all that one could have done on their parent’s behalf and they carry a feeling of guilt that will always remain and that should teach one to become kinder to toward the living. Today, as I watched Jill carry a bee out of her house and place it on a flower, I thought to myself how kind that was. When I saw Justin take his son Leo to play golf, and Leo offered him the first turn, but just said, “No. Leo plays first,” I thought how kind that was. We are always able to see father looking back then we can in the crush of the present and each and every moment matters. I always see Leo performing ordinary actions, such as letting others be first, putting on his garden slippers, and how they mirror his father’s gestures exactly. #RandolphHarris 5 of 6

I have learned the most important thing in life is living. When people are gone, we can never talk to them again. Before that, we may not understand how serious their life is. We do not want to waste time and throw away chances to do things, thinking that we can get them done later. After we lose someone we love, we may not have any patience for chatter. Some individuals get up and leave when their friends start talking about nothing because they cannot get it out of their mind that one day it is all over. It is incomprehensible that one day a loved one can just disappear without us being able to fully enjoy them. We cannot rush these discoveries. They are the consequences of living, not thinking. We can hasten to ask questions of surviving relatives, piecing together blurry aspects of the past, but truth forgiveness and growth arise with the passage of time and the infusion of new experiences. Even the most painful losses will free and strengthened us. We may have to give up nostalgia and guilt to see this. Acceptance keeps us waiting, and then comes all at once. It is exuberant and generous, not dull and sluggish like a loss. Of all the emotions left behind by bereavement, guilt display are the most persistent. Often the only liberation is to admit out loud the wrongs we think we committed, testing them against another person’s experience. “All that God requires you to keep his commandments,” Mosiah 2.22. #RandolphHarris 6 of 6

If we give in to our own perceptions rather than following the Spirit of God, we can easily draw incorrect conclusions. One of the most obvious features of perception is that it involved seeing something as something, some sort of discrimination or recognition. By sense we commonly understand the judgment we make of objects by their phantasms; namely, by comparing and distinguishing those phantasms; which we could never do, if that motion in the organ, by which the phantasm is made, did not remain there for some time and make the same phantasm return. For seeing the nature of sense consists in motion; as long as the organs are employed about one object, they cannot be so moved by another at the same time, as to make by both their motions one sincere phantasm of each of them as once. When a strong motion impinges on the sense organ, the sense organ, the motion from the root of the sense organ’s nerves to the heart persists contumaciously and makes the sense organ stupid to the registration of other motion. Imagination is explicitly a deduction from the law of inertia. When a body is once in motion, it moves, unless something else hinder it, eternally so also it happens in that motion, which is made in the internal part of a person when he or she see, dreams, etc. For after the object is removed, or the eye shut, we still retain an image of the thing seen, though more obscure than when we see it. #RandolphHarris 1 of 5

Imagination, therefore, is nothing but the decaying sense. This decay is not a decay in motion, rather it would be contrary to the law of inertia. Rather, it comes about because the sense organs are moved by other objects, and subsequent movements obscure previous ones in such manner as the light of the Sun obscures the light of the stars. Memory differs from imagination only in that fading image is accompanied by a feeling of familiarity. For one the perceives that one has perceived remembers, and memory supposed the time past. To say that a person imagines a tree rather than perceives it is to say something about the status of what is claimed. To perceive is to see something that is really before one’s eyes; to imagine is to think that one sees something that is not there. Have you ever seen the Sun set? You may think you have. Yet, in reality, we know that the Sun does not set. Instead, our viewing angle changes as the Earth turns, until the Sun is obscured by the horizon. Want to try the alternative? This evening, stand facing west. With practice, you can learn to feel yourself being swept backward on the rotating surface of the Earth as you watch the unmoving Sun recede in the distance. This radical shift in perspective illustrates the limitations of objective observation. Like most experiences, seeing a Sunset is a perceptual reconstruction (mental model) of an external event. #RandolphHarris 2 of 5

Another way of appreciating this perceptual reconstruction is to realize that it takes about 50 milliseconds for a visual signal to move from the retina to the brain. Therefore, the images we see are always slightly in the past. An event that happens quickly, like the pop of a flashbulb, may be over by the time we experience it. As we have seen, perception reflects the needs, expectations, attitudes, values, and beliefs of the perceiver. In this light, the phrase “seeing is believing” must be modified. Clearly, we see what we believe, as well as believe what we see. In some cases, subjective perception nurtures the personal vision in art, music, poetry, and scientific innovation. Other, however, it is a real liability. Similarly, to remember is to be right in a claim one makes about something in the past that one was in a position to witness, whereas to imagine is to be mistaken in what one claims. The scriptures warn us of this. They say that if we give in to our own perceptions rather than following the Spirit, we can easily raw incorrect conclusions. “Every person walks in one’s own way, and after the image of one’s own god, whose image is in the likeness of the World,” reports Doctrine and Covenants 1.16. #RandolphHarris 3 of 5

Do we always know the reasons for our actions? Or is our behaviour sometimes unknowingly and unintentionally influenced by what we have recently perceived? The automatic influence of knowledge in memory is limited to people’s interpretation of the World, and stops short of shaping their actual behaviour. People’s behaviours can be unknowingly influenced by knowledge that is incidentally activated in memory during social perception. Social knowledge is incidentally activated while reading words or imagining events and subsequently affects participants’ behaviours across a range of ostensibly unrelated domains. How one focuses their attention affects one’s perceptions. When one has an idea in one’s mind one tends to look for evidence that supports that idea and not pay attention to evidence that says the idea is not accurate. This is called confirmation bias. If one believes a person likes them, they will ignore that individuals have more than one choice and may not be interested. People tend to pay attention to evidence that supports their beliefs and even try to manipulate perceptions subtly, but because about assuming something that is not there. So one way to changing your perception is to check the evidence. I the way see the situation factual? Find a way to count or otherwise test out your thoughts in a more objective way. #RandolphHarris 4 of 5

Most people do not like uncertainty so they classify people and experiences into categories. People also learn to associate outcomes with cues when they may not be related. Also, people may also be aware that you are trying to manipulate their perceptions, and actually ignore the cues. Many adults tend to focus on things that are tangible and real. There is no reason while two adults cannot directly communicate in an affective manner without leaving anything open to interpretation. Mindfulness can help one be aware of one’s reactions and pause and consider all factors before responding. Tangible evidence is an evidence which can be treated as fact; real or concrete. It is capable of being touched or felt and has a real substance, a tangible object. The liberty of a person consists in that one finds no stop in doing what one has the will, desire, or inclination to do. Liberty is the absence of all the impediments to action that are not contained in the nature and intrinsical quality of the agent. Two people could be looking at the same picture and can see totally different things. However, when looking at life’s big picture, it is important to align your perception with that of Heavenly Fathers. All society, in most cases, are either for gain or glory; that is, not so much for love of our fellows as for love of oneself. Human nature being what it is, there are certain means they must accept if they are to have what they want. It is irrational to want something and yet to refuse to take only means that will ensure what is wanted is obtained. #RandolphHarris 5 of 5

Your riches taught me poverty. Myself a millionaire in little wealth until I entered your estate with you. When figures show their royal front and mists are carved away—behold the atom I prefer. Freedom is logically connected with will, and will is as essential to mind as intellect is. Instead of succumbing to a seemingly stagnant life, one can plan to keep improving. Freedom is something that has to be achieved. Adulthood—by nature it seems an exciting, ever-flowing river of successes and disappointments, occasionally interspersed by a few marked moments: graduating from college, passing entrance exams, getting married, having children, landing that dream job—all significant milestones along the journey of life. So what happens when it seems like we have reached most of our important milestones, or when we feel like we are just not making progress in life? It is easy to feel as though our once progressive life is now completely stagnant, resulting in one of several things: an apathy toward life and progression of any kind, despair from feeling a lack of meaning or fulfillment, or angst from feeling one is not going anywhere. When we have nothing to measure our lives against, it can quickly slip into anything from monotonous banality to debilitating helplessness. If one finds oneself among those who feel trapped in this stagnating stage of life, remember that one does not have to be doing something extraordinary to have an extraordinary life, but one has to be doing something. #RandolphHarris 1 of 10

They key to stay happy with life is to keep moving. The path to eternal life is not on a plateau. Rather, it is an incline, ever onward and upward. In order to move forward in life—past the stagnant parts of the river—we need to take a step toward improving ourselves. Complacency is surprisingly powerful, though, especially when the process of daily life can seem all consuming. In our quest to become the best people we can be, we will often hit plateaus where we feel like we are not making any progress at all. Those flat-line moments in life can be a real soul sucker. We can see where we want to be, but we are stuck at a level just below our desired goal, and it seems like no matter what we do that we cannot imagine how we will be able to reach our goals. Although we cannot always create the major milestones in our lives, we can find meaning and fulfillment by setting and striving to keep purposeful daily, weekly, and yearly goals. First, it is important to take a step back and look at our life as it already is. This involves a thorough self-evaluation. We have to ask ourselves question like: Where do I need development? What do I want out of life? How can I get there? Then it is important to honestly evaluate where and how we spend our time and what things we want to change. Think about the things we want to do, traits we want to develop, and skills we want to acquire. #RandolphHarris 2 of 10

Life’s many goals of improvement including increased wisdom, mental improvement, physical development, spiritual fortification, and social growth are essential. What can the concept of God mean under these circumstances? It is transformed from its original religious meaning into one fitting the alienated culture of success. In the religious revival of recent times, the belief in God has been transformed into a psychological device to make one better fitted for the competitive struggle. Religion allies itself with auto-suggestion and psychotherapty to help people in their business activities. People also call upon God for purposes of improving one’s personality. Belief in God and prayer is recommended as a means to increase one’s ability to be successful. Just as modern psychiatrist recommend happiness of the employee, in order to be more appealing to the customers, some ministers recommend love of God to be more successful. To make God our partner means to recognize God in business, love, justice and truth. Just as brotherly live has been replaced by impersonal fairness, God has been transformed into a remote General Director of our Universal Corporation. We know that God is there, he runs the show, we never see him, but we acknowledge God’s leadership while we are doing our part. Therefore, when we decide on categories and goals, we must remember to include the Heavenly Fathers in the process. #RandolphHarris 3 of 10

It is important to make prayer a serious matter so we can find out how to best improve our lives and what God’s will is for us. It is not enough to do things. We must do the right things—the things our Heavenly Father would want us to do. Heavenly Father wants us to be continually progressing because he knows our eternal potential. When we stretch past our comfort zone, that is when growth comes. If we choose to learn from our failures, they can bring us closer to our goal. It is also important for us to be honest with ourselves, and not just confide in people who tell us what we want to near, instead of what we need to hear. Learning to accept criticism is something that simply takes discipline and practice. We truly have to consider if there is something valuable to learn in criticism and make sure it is constructive, and not just meant as a put down. Our choices and decisions can render life both perplexing and frustrating. I know that a lot of people recommend taking risks and not being afraid to fail, but that is not always a good idea. Because sometimes we may not recover from losses. Like the recession of 2008 cost Americans $70,000.00 of financial prosperity over a lifetime. Therefore, just because life seems to be boring at the moment, it would not be a good idea to quit your job, sale your house, and sink all that money into a business. We have to actually fear failure and do our research to make sure we are making rational decisions. #RandolphHarris 4 of 10

Our decisions and choices are inextricably tied to the roles and relationships that envelop our lives. If we choose to leave a certain occupation, we touch not only our own life but the lives of family, friends, and associates whom we leave, as well as the people we shall soon be working for. Our decision, in other words, is not unaffected by other relationships which influence our life. When choosing a line of work, a business move, an occupational choice, we must consider not only our own needs, but the needs and life situations of others, too. A discerner weighs the power of consolation and desolation as well as the movements away and to God, in order to choose well. This is done in the context of prayer wit the foal of doing the will of God. Perhaps the most important goal we have right now is to be worthy of the temple. The temples are not God, but they are there to remind us of God. The soul is real in which countless acts of self-preservation are provoked through its contacts with other reals, and these efforts in turn produce in mind the presentations, some of which oppose, some of which reinforce each other. Once we have established the end goal, we have to think about smaller goals that will help us achieve our long-term goals. #RandophHarris 5 of 10

It is important to pray for divine guidance. The feelings, the desires, and the will have their origin in presentations. Some feelings arise out of the fusion of opposed presentation, and the pleasantness or unpleasantness depend on the amount of opposition. Other feelings originate in the strain which the rising, produced by a new presentation, puts on ties which an old presentation already has with one or more. Thus the sight of an object belonging to a friend who has returned to God evokes the memory of him, but the thought of his passing into Heaven tend to repress the memory and thus may produce a painful feeling. Pleasant feelings arise in the contrary situation, when the other associated presentations all facilitate the recall of the original one. The desires are closely connected wit feelings. In a situation giving painful feelings, where A is lifted toward consciousness by the appearance of C and is simultaneously depressed by its earlier relation to B, the feeling of effort by which the resistance is overcome will be a desire and A will appear as the object of desire. The will, in turn, is only a particular form of desire, the realization of which is seen as possible. Therefore, we must make sure that each of our goals will actually help us reach our desired outcome and that we are committed to keeping them. We have to decide about things that we will incorporate into our life, things that will bring us eternal happiness. #RandolphHarris 6 of 10

Transgressions leads to a system of requital. Seeing someone who reminds one exactly of a friend who has passed away, a young friend we went to college with, well could serve as a good omen. It could be as reminder from God to stay strong and not go down the same path. Not that the friend was messing up in life, but there may have been an element that lead to their downfall, such as a loved one who was involved in unknown situation, who he cared about, and allow to pull him down right after graduating from college. The mind needs serious goals and plans to begin rowing past the stagnant stage of our lives. Using our agency to develop oneself personally is a way to discover our gifts and talents, we must let the Spirit guide us. We have to choose to act for ourselves Be motivated from within and make a plan for our lives. The benevolent spectator (omen) would wish for the greatest possible sum of well-being attained through the rational distribution of the available goods. Then increased well-being would produce an intensity and range of strivings reconciled under a system of culture. With the obedience of each to the moral insight of all, the many would become one in an ideal society. Perfection relates the varied acts of a single will. To this multiplicity, three quantitative concepts may be applied: the strength of any single effort (intensity), the multiplicity of the objects encompassed by the will (extension), and the concentration of this manifold into a total power (a new intensity developing out of extension). #RandolphHarris 7 of 10

There is no absolute standard, but the stronger and more concentrated will is more pleasing than the weaker. Therefore, one has to decide to set goals which are consistent with our divine destiny. We have to believe in ourselves, and know that we can reach goals—our goals. Set goals, overcome mistakes, gain experience, and we have to finish what we begin. There is one supreme God, he ought to be worshipped. Virtue and piety are the chief part of divine worship. We should be sorry for our sins and repent them. Recall that divine goodness dispenses reward and punishments both in this life and after. By the discovery of these principles, we can be far more happy than Archimedes. Revelation is given as a message to all humankind, or reserved for the individual mind. If life’s progress is stalled, pray for a sign from Heaven. God is the figure of a father and a symbol of justice, truth, and love. God is truth, God is justice. In this development God cease to be a person, a man, a father; he becomes the symbol of the principle of unity behind the manifoldness of phenomena, the vision of the flower which will grow from the spiritual seed within human beings. “One did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in one’s faith and gave glory to God, being fully persuaded that God has power to do what he had promises,” Romans 4.20-22. #RandolphHarris 8 of 10

We need not fear the future, because we know that as we keep the commandments, the Lord will bless us. Reasoning, perceiving, wanting, feeling, and the rest are one and all activities or attributes of the human being and considered a total, unitary personality. Much of what we need to put into our goals is what we need to extend to the World: our love, our compassion, our integrity, our courage, our yearning for a deeper life. And what a lucid joy it is to enter so fully in consciously into life. What a gift it is to be so closely, so deeply attached and bonded to our goals that we cannot get away for very long. May we stay out of roundabouts and move forward with faith in God. “And Christ hath said: If ye will have faith in me ye shall have power to do whatsoever thing is expedient in me,” reports Moroni 7.33. The future is extremely bright. In all of our learning, understanding that the most brilliant minds of our day are only discovering and inventing that God already knows, the more we want to learn. Imagine our ability—as we live righteously, receive sacred ordinances, and follow God’s commandments—to inherit all things. We have to understand that with God all things are possible. “But as it I written, eye have not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of humans, the things which God has prepared for them that love him. But God has revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searches all things, yea, the deep things of God,”1 Corinthians 9-10. #RandolphHarris 9 of 10

We spend a lifetime learning how to overcome our physical desires and understanding how our spirits can become the master of souls. Because our Heavenly Father knew this process would be difficult, we have the sweetest whisperings of the Spirit to help us learn how to be a good person, husband, wife, a good parent, and an outstanding member in the community. We have to exercise both faith and courage to leave the plateau of indecision and express thanks to our Heavenly Father for his countless blessings. To love God is to long for the attainment of the full capacity of love. Our spiritual powers and the striving for salvation are part of our inner birth. The realm of love, reason and justice exists as a reality only because, inasmuch as, humans have been able to develop these powers in themselves throughout the process of our evolution. May we also demonstrate kindness and love within our own families. Our homes are to be more than sanctuaries; they should also be places where God’s Spirit can dwell, where the storm stops at the door, where love reigns and peace dwells. Mortality is a period of testing, a time to prove ourselves worthy to return to the presence of our Heavenly Father. Our gratitude to God is often beyond expression. We believe in a God who is engaged in our lives, who is not silent, not absent. We have experienced his higher powers in our longing for truth and unity. #RandolphHarris 10 of 10

I am finished! I am sorry it took me so long to respond, but I was waiting to be able to tell you that I am completely and utterly done. Ah, what a luxury to sit down to write to you without a stack of books glaring at me from my desk! Instead, I am sitting in my parents’ house, window open, warm Summer breeze puffing out the lace curtains, with nothing more malevolent glaring at me than the Rocklin Tribune. Just to lean back, sip some cool cranberry juice, and write to you—extravagance itself! You will be quite proud of me, I think. I came clean with my father. You may wonder how I worked up the courage to tell him. By barely scraping by in my classes! He took one look at my grades and sniffed. “How do you expect to get into medical school with grades like this” he asked? “I do not expect to. I do not expect to nor do I care,” I said. He nearly choked on his morning latte. “What do you mean, you do not care?” I replied, “Exactly that, Father. I have never wanted to go to medical school. And it is too late now to convince me otherwise.” He left the table with a thud of his chair and has not spoken to me since. I think it is only through my mother’s good graces that he has not thrown me out on my ear. I used to want to go to medical school when I was 12, but I was walking home from school and this man told me it would be really difficult, so I gave up the dream. #RandolphHarris 1 of 11

Adults should never rob a child of their dreams because children will always remember those words. They are not mature enough to understand that some people want to discourage us from reaching our dreams. For many students, a passion for education is often ignited by inspiring teachers. Teachers are dedicated, to say the least. They work long hours, spend their own resources to innovate curriculum, and do everything they can to make sure their classrooms are safe and welcoming for students. Teachers generally stay motivated because they love helping children realize that learning can be challenging, and that is okay. They enjoy collaborating with other professionals, and explore the creativity needed to consider requirements of different types of learners. Students can also educate the teachers, too, about different cultures, abilities, and perspectives. By being a child’s advocate and helping students realize their own potential is one of the greatest career achievements of an educators, as there is noting better than having a student realise that they are stronger and more resilient than they ever thought possible. It is a great gift to teach the youth to think for themselves. Great teachers also have a genuine love for the subject they teach and they have a passion for communicating that love and knowledge to others. “Those who are wise will seek learning,” reports Proverbs 1.5. #RandolphHarris 2 of 11

Parenting is the process of raising children and providing them with protection and care in order to ensure their healthy development into adulthood. If you have a student who is interested in working for NASA, and they get really excited about the really cool stuff in the Universe of engineering, it is a good idea to inspire them to eventually go out and create cool stuff of their own. Church members are repeatedly counseled to obtain all the education they can and to prepare themselves to contribute wherever they are. When my mother was a little girl, her mother used to make her real the Encyclopedia Britannica after school. Back in those days, it was common for every house on the block to have a complete volume of encyclopedias from A-Z on the book shelf. Education, particularly gospel knowledge, does not come all at once or without effort. “We will keep the knowledge we gain in this life when we go into the next,” reports Doctrine and Covenants 130.18-19. We cannot see the future with precision, but we can know what the Lord intends to accomplish and what it will take for each of us to qualify personally to participate. The Lord and his Church have always encouraged education to increase our ability to serve him and our Heavenly Father’s children. #RandolphHarris 3 of 11

For each of us, whatever our talents, God has service to give. And to do it well always involved learning, not once or for a limited time, but continually. For this reason, true learning must have a powerful spiritual component. That spiritual element, when it is effective, refines and uplifts the aims of our total education. Remember, we are interested in education, not just for mortal life but for eternal life. When we see that reality clearly, we will put spiritual learning first and yet not light the secular learning. In fact, we will work harder at our secular learning than we would without that spiritual vision. “We should seek learning by study and faith,” reports Doctrine and Covenants 88.118. Education must never stop. If it ends at the door of the classroom on graduation day, we will fail. And we will need the help of Heaven to know which of the myriad things we can study and would most wisely learn. The real life we are preparing for is eternal life. Secular knowledge has for us eternal significance. Our conviction is that God, our Heavenly Father, wants us to live the life that he does. Our mind is precious! It is sacred. Therefore, the education of one’s mind is a religious responsibility. The human mind is a complex organ of such beauty and intricacy that it is so important that we control our minds. The intelligence of each one of us as individuals is by no means limited. #RandolphHarris 4 of 11

Of course, our opportunities and abilities will vary a great deal. However, in the pursuit of one’s education, individual desires are more important that is the institution of our choice; personal drive is very significant.  We can increase the level of our own intelligence as long as we have the fundamentals given to us through formal education, including writing, mathematics, and reading. However, the level of success does not depend solely on our education; it depends on our mental mastery. Our brain and intelligence level are but tools to assist us in achieving our dreams.  Mind and body must be cared for diligently and consistently. When we care properly for each part od the whole, the entire being benefits. Self-mastery is essential to invoke the power of God. This is because this great, divine agency can only be exercised in righteousness. “For the grace of God that bring salvation has appeared to all people,” reports Titus 2.11. Self-mastery requires self-determination and strength of character. Salvation is always right at ground level. We do not have to climb a high mountain, we do not have to pay one million dollars. We reach salvation through faith. “But they will never follow a stranger; in fact, they will run away from him or her because they do not recognize a stranger’s voice,” reports John 10.5. Self-mastery enhances our own gifts and talents in a remarkable way. It is the power of noble humanhood. Every human soul has the challenge of controlling his or her thoughts, appetites, speech, temper, and desires. #RandolphHarris 5 of 11

Our life is the creation of our mind. We are in the possession immense intelligence, which make us recievers of its truth and organs of activity. When we discern justice, when we discern truth, we allow a passage of its beams. The soul’s communication of truth is the highest event in its nature, since it then does not give something from itself, but it gives itself, or passes into and becomes that being whom it enlightens. Do not miss the opportunity of being still more conscious of the soul, we must give instant obedience to the Soul’s command. This obedience results in a still closer union between the subconscious soul and the conscious being. Truth will flow still more readily and copiously into the consciousness. This is the secret of inspiration. We must trust ourselves, which is merely trusting our perceptions of truth and we must have the faith and courage to express what the inflowing soul reveals to us. Here we stand; God will help us. The Inner Light cannot shine, unless there is faith and obedience to the voice of the conscience. When we obey, it becomes clearer. Many of us spend an exorbitant amount of time and energy and money to take care of our bodies, and trying to keep ourselves looking and feeling our best. However, when it comes to the mind, less attention is paid. For many people, taking care of the mind most often comes as an afterthought. #RandolphHarris 6 of 11

The religious significance of events includes and transcends their natural significance. Those events which the prophets saw as acts of God can also be seen as having proximate natural or human, but they were supernatural; and the person of Christ, seen by Christian faith as divine, is depicted in the New Testament as being at the same time genuinely human. From a theological point of view, this systematic ambiguity, which is the precondition of faith, serves to protect human’s freedom and autonomy as a finite personal being in relation to the infinite God. The whole Universe is spiritual in character the phenomenal World of physics is merely the external manifestation of this spiritual reality. That which to itself is physical is to others physical. Atoms are centers of force or energy, it is not necessary to suppose them to be material or extended. These atoms are only the simplest elements in a spiritual hierarchy includes all those levels beneath t, so that God contains the totality of spirits. Consciousness is an essential feature of all that exists, but this assertion does not mean that every physical entity or phenomenon has its own soul. Only certain systems, namely, organic wholes, give evidence of possessing souls, and those bodies which do not are the only constituents of besouled bodies. #RandolphHarris 7 of 11

The evidences of soul are the systematic coherence and conformity to law exhibited in the behaviour of organic wholes. The Earth, our eternal mother, is an organic besouled whole. The stars and the physical Universe as a whole are also bodies of this kind. God is the soul of the Universe; he is to the system of nature as that system is to itself. Immortality is based on the observation that many individual experiences which are forgotten or unnoticed may later be recalled into consciousness. If the soul as a whole is treated on the analogy of its individual experiences, then, since these do not vanish utterly but often return in the form of memory, the soul itself may likewise continue to exist in God’s memory. Mind and body are not parallel aspects of some third substance; they are identical. The persistence of mind is therefore no more difficult to entertain than the persistence of the material Universe itself, which is only the outward manifestation of an all-inclusive soul. The word “beauty” denotes the approximate subject matter of aesthetics. It is a word applicable to everything that has the property arousing pleasure directly and immediately. (Pleasure aroused by thoughts of the consequences of an object is nonaesthetic.) Our experience of aesthetic pleasure are simple, unanalyzable psychic atoms. #RandolphHarris 8 of 11

The aim of an experimental aesthetics is to discover the objects that produce such atoms, that is, the causal laws connecting aesthetic experiences with the characteristics of outer objects. Our Creator expects his children everywhere to gain an education as a personal endeavour. “Seek diligently and teach one another words of wisdom; seek out the best books words of wisdom; seek learning, even by study and also by faith,” commands Doctrine and Covenants 88.118. When we leave this delicate existence, our material possessions will remain here, but the Lord ha declared that all the knowledge we acquire here will rise with us in the resurrection. In the light of this celestial perspective, if we impulsively drop out or otherwise cut short our education, we will not only disregard a divine decree but also abbreviate our eternal potential. To this day, one of my biggest regrets was dropping out of Mrs. Swanson’s Trigonometry class, I wish she would have forced me to take it, I wish the school would not have given me so many options over what classes I could take. I wish everything was engrained in stone. As youth, we are not fully cognitive and have no idea what we are doing sometimes. Looking back, I realise I dropped her class because I was lazy and did not want to challenge my brain. I was afraid of not doing well. I prejudged my own educational development without even giving myself a chance. #RandolphHarris 9 of 11

These classes are not just about the material, they help our brain develop and learn to understand. And understanding is a gift from God. Perhaps if I had stayed in her class I would have avoided that ill trip to the mall, which has been haunting me my entire life. Within a Christ-centered home, love, trust, and confidence invite the presence of the Holy Ghost. In such a home the Holy Ghost can teach children to understand. Ultimately, it is not parents who do the teaching. Certainly, parents must diligently and effectively explain basic gospel doctrines, teach true principles, and share sacred experiences. However, who truly does the teaching and certifies the truthfulness of what we come to know? The Holy Ghost, the third member of the Godhead. He is the Comforter who knows all things. He is thereby able to search the minds and hearts of all of us and then tailor a blessing to us, according to our individual needs and circumstances. And it is teaching and certifying by the Spirit that produces understanding. Wisdom is the application of understanding in righteous judgment and action. It is the precious product that is nourished by knowledge and reason and understanding and revelation. “A wise person will hear, and will increase learning; and a person of understanding shall attain unto wise counsels,” Proverbs 1.5. #RandolphHarris 10 of 11

The specific blessings of understanding are an increased desire for additional knowledge, instruction, and learning; happiness; and a precious perspective of the eternal that transcends the limited view of the mortal. We must also understand that not all happiness is created equal, and in our own pursuit of joy and bliss, we must keep in mind that the type of happiness we are after can make all the difference. Eudaimonic happiness—that which is linked to having a larger purpose or sense of meaning in life—is linked with healthy gene activity, where as hedonic, or pleasure-seeking, happiness is not. Those who are happy because they have a sense of purpose in life have lower inflammatory gene expression and higher antiviral and antibody gene expression than others. Eudaimoic happiness is something one builds up over a lifetime. If people have led good lives, they can get more happy as they age. Reading is also good for the mind. Reading a book can lower stress levels, help us sleep better, and keep our brains sharper, and also stave off Alzheimer’s. A heart that lacks attention needs more Sunshine. In this World, no matter how many more years I will live and how far I will further travel, what I can never forget is your encouragement and expectations. #RandolphHarris 11 of 11

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I will never forget your kind words, directing me to the right way. I will never forget when you were distressed, you still worked and taught us how to answer challenging solutions. I will never forget when we blundered, you helped us up. I wish the blessing can express our earnings to you. It was so hard to get back on the train this time. Not that parting was every easy before, but it is especially hard now that I know what it is to be separated from you. The last time we parted and I got on that train, heading for a boat to take me across the channel, my mind was so full of you but at the same time so full of anticipation and uncertainty. Most people think of Sun when surprised with bright colour of the rainbow. I first think of you when I win applause and flowers. This time, I am sitting and gazing out at the English countryside blurring by the window and all I can think about is that every hedgerow and neat green field we pass is one more hedgerow and neat green field between us. We hear the shells, sometimes see them when they fall on the roads, but that is as close as we get to the action. We live vicariously through the stories we hear from the blesses. Sometimes I feel as if we are hanging around outside the cinema, trying to piece together the flicker from the bits and pieces we overhear as the patrons come out of the theater. #RandolphHarris 1 of 9

That time I ran up the ridge to help the wounded brancardier, in full view of the Boaches and their guns, the familiar prickles of danger and excitement grabbed me. I felt so alive. It was as if I were scrambling up the wall with those squirrels again. To be doing something instead of just waiting back and watching others do it. I tell you, it was so hard to go back to my usual work after getting out of the hospital. The scar left me by my service, I wake to run my finger along its seam. It many respects, dignity leaves us lonely. Do you understand why I could not tell this all to you? You would have wrapped those surprisingly strong arms of ours around me and not let go. Not that I would have minded too terribly being held captive by such a jailer, but, like I told you I need to finish out my year. I have to accomplish something in my life. If I cannot stick it our for a whole year, then what can I stick out? You do not want a man who cannot finish anything. When the setting Sun gilds the clouds and the scenery on the horizon and the approaching twilight adds some melancholy to my heart, I have already turned what I want to say to you into poems written on the meadow. Happiness is not hidden in the situation, but in the yearning. I always ask you how far it is from the eyes to the heart. Speaking of the future, I cannot believe you got a Cresleigh Home at Cresleigh Domain. You knew what it would mean to me. I also love the Cresleigh Homes at Rocklin Trails. #RandolphHarris 2 of 9

For a guy who has been living out of an ambulance, to walk up and see those lace curtains at the window, it was just like coming home to the very well educated, affluent suburbs. You are graceful like white clouds coming into my dream every night, you are as beautiful as flowers in my eyes every day, and pure as the river running into my heart every moment. The inborn grace and charm possessed by your character leave in my heart permanent sanctity and loveliness. God is that which nothing greater can be thought Of, whether you give this the name God or not, can be thought of, and therefore exits in the mind even of those who denies its existence anywhere else. And to exist outside the mind as well as in it is a greater thing than to exist in the mind only, the maximum cogitabile is not the maximum conitabile at all; it is therefore self-contradictory to deny real existence to that than which nothing greater can be thought of. Greater in this argument means, in part, better, so it is no answer to say that of some things it might be better for them not to exist. If God is by definition everything that a being ought to be, then such a being ought to be, among other things, real; and to think of God as not being real is therefore to think of him as not being all that he ought, and thus is not to be really thinking of God. #RandolphHarris 3 of 9

The thought of an unreal God is internally incoherent, so if God can be thought of at all (and the person who thinks God does not exist does think of him), God must be, if we are to be consistent, be thought of as real. I am still tired, but I would much rather be tired from digesting the scriptures than from an excess of work. I did not want to waste a moment of my time with you on sleeping. That is what the train journey back to Folsom, California is for. Despite my tiredness, I do feel like a new man. Clean, well fed, clothes washed and mended, warm new greatcoat. Body and spirit sated. You laughed at me, but I have to save up my satiations! I have gone so long without that I wanted to put in extra stock, the memories to be pulled out and savored as needed. If the Sun is the source of all life and strength, then you are the unsetting Sun in my heart. Whether it is during the day or at night, and whether it shines or rains, your gift to me always flickers in my heart. You entered my life like a falling star coming into my atmosphere. I could see you in the dawn of a cold night and needed something to warm my heart and light up my life. You are a beautiful fairy in a fairy tale, bringing spring to my life. You are like jade, pure and natural with no disguise, laughing when you are happy, crying when you are in sorrow, living simple and free life. #RandolphHarris 4 of 9

Even that one incident could not spoil things for me. I know you were upset, but you did nothing wrong. He should not have said the things he did, but I am sure he did not mean anything by them. I hope you have gotten past it. I will close my eyes and pull out one of those aforementioned memories. If my love is a beautiful rose and I am a green leaf, we will live together rain or shine. Understanding or misunderstanding, agony or mirth, beginning or ending, intoxication or freedom, reunion or separation are all for love. In every work of design, the work must be conceived before it is executed—that is, before it exists. The book of Judges (in the Christian Bible) recounts a cycle that repeated itself multiple times during the reign of judges. Because the Israelites failed to remove wicked influences from the promised and, they became entangled in sin and were conquered and afflicted by their enemies. After the Israelites cried unto the Lord for help, he sent judges to deliver them from their enemies. However, the Israelites soon returned to their sins, and this cycle was repeated. There was great lawlessness and disorder among the tribes of Israel under the judges as they placed their trust in the wisdom of people and chose to disobey the commandments of the Lord. #RandolphHarris 5 of 9

In the closing sentence of the book of Judges, the writer reports, “In those days there was no king in Israel: every person did that which was right is his or her own eyes,” Judges 21.25. People rationalized sins. Kids were raised with no restriction and did whatever they wanted to do. Micah and the Danites created sanctuaries dedicated to idol worship, and Levite concubine is abused and killed. However, to prevent sin from ravaging the land and our lives, our choice is to obey God’s standard of morality, as it will largely determine our happiness in life. Our God—he needs to speak only once on the issues of morality, and that one declaration trumps all the opinions of the lower courts, whether uttered by psychologists, counselor, politicians, friends, parents, or would-be moralists of the day. It is almost unbelievable to think that God has given to his children the power that is most prized and sacred to him—the power to create life. Because God gave us this power, he, and he alone, has the right to prescribe how it should be used. “The power of the Holy Ghost is gift of God unto all who diligently seek him,” reports 1 Nephi 10.17. #RandolphHarris 6 of 9

Contrary to much public sentiment, there is nothing negative or restraining about God’s moral standards. Rather, they are optimistic, uplifting, and liberating. Our covenants with God build relationships of trust, they enhance self-esteem, they foster a clear conscience, and they invite the Spirit of the Lord to bless individual and married lives. God’s moral standards are the proven ideals for happy marriages and stable communities. Civilizations are built on moral foundations. When people are morally strong, they do it well; when they are morally weak, they suffer. Freedom cannot outlive morality and freedom is not free—it must be earned. People may change again and again, but mandates from God never change. They remain the same because the fundamental principles of good behaviour are everlasting and never change. The Lord has given us direction through the scriptures as to how we should behave to enrich our lives, to being peace to our souls, to strengthen our families, and to uplift the dignity of humanity. “Wherefore, hear my voice and follow me, and you shall be a free people,” reports Doctrine and Covenants 38.22. Faith is belief in revealed truths. Ultimately the object of faith is God himself, who is not, however, known by the human mind in his divine simplicity but only discursively and by means of propositions. #RandolphHarris 7 of 9

These revealed truths are authoritatively presented in the creeds. Thus, to have faith means to believe the articles of faith summarized in the credal affirmations of the church. “Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord,” reports Psalms 33.12. Fait is an act of the intellect assenting to divine truth at the command of the will moved by the grace of God. That is to say, whereas in knowledge the intellect is moved to assent by the object itself, known either directly or by demonstrative reasoning, in faith the intellect is moved to assent through an act of choice, where by it turns voluntarily to one side rather than to the other. Faith does not, however, represent an arbitrary or unmotivated decision. It is a response, under the influence of divine grace, to certain external evidence, particularly miracles. As such, it is sufficiently determined by the evidence to be rational and yet sufficiently undetermined and free to be meritorious. “The Lord will deliver you out of bondage, according to his power,” reports Mosiah 7.33. It may be that God can or will disclose himself only to one who shows such an initial faith and is willing to venture in trust beyond what has been established by scientific proof or philosophical demonstration. In other words, it is possible that in order to gain the religious knowledge upon which our personal good depends, we must give rein to our passional desire to believe. #RandolphHarris 8 of 9

In every advance from sense data to the perception of an ordered World or from the projection of a scientific hypothesis to its observational verification, as in every successful voyage of discovery or in the invention of some new kind of machinery, there must be not only an act of theorizing or of insight but also a sustained effort of will which carries the operation through to completion. “If thou wilt call on God’s name in faith, thou shalt receive hope thou desirest,” reports Alma 22.16. A very important connection has long been recognized between faith and what may be called the cognitive freedom of the human mind in its relation to God. And not merely in works, but also in faith, has God preserved the will of humans free and under his own control.  God is willing to appear openly to those who seek him with all their hearts, and to be hidden from those who flee from him with all their hearts, he so regulates the knowledge of himself that he has given signs of himself, visible to those who seek him, and not to those who seek him not. “May the LORD repay you for what you have done. May you be richly rewarded by the LORD,” reports Ruth 2.12. Awake with an overwhelming sense of gratitude; let it be like a sixth sense. #RandolphHarris 9 of 9

I look forward to the Winter nights. I love them for they are long and quiet; night is a long beautiful dream. In these dreams I can travel abroad with you. All of these night stories make me realise how the past does not help when we are put in a tight spot. You recently told me that you have a rough day and since you do not drink nor do drugs that you put on music from the past. Music that reminded you of a prosperous time, when there was a lot of money, many happy people, and there was always a good time to be had. These people introduced you to new types of music and European foods you have never tried before. Memories are all well and good to hold on to, but it is the promise of making new memories that helps me to push through. I never told you, but I was shot down over France, right before the evacuations. I knew if I admitted to you in Plymouth, you would be so worried, you would never let me get back on that train. If I stopped to remember how it feels to duck down in a strafing, with nothing between me and the bullets but my helmet and laces hands over my neck, if I stopped to remember the miles of slogging, only to see the lads in front of me stumble upon a mine, if I stopped to remember crouching in the dark, not knowing whether the whine of the next shell had my name on it, if I stopped to remember the mutter comments around me of lads who did not know that I had been up there, doing my job, I would never move forward. I have to just keep telling myself that I will be back with you in no time. Nothing else I can do. #RandolphHarris 1 of 13

If Heaven is free from rough edges, how will virtues, so dearly brought into this World, survive within?  As much as I try to push the past aside so that I keep moving forward, nothing is holding you back that way. You have more questions than memories, more mystery than enlightenment. You have to look behind you. The present and the future are built on the past. I know that you want to find where you came from before you will never know where to go. Do not give up. Disagreeable neighbours? They are to match for you. You cannot successfully operate faith principles apart from being led by the Spirit. “If you abide in Me, and My word abide in you, you will ask for what you desire, and it shall be done for you,” reports John 15.7. When it comes to acting on your faith, God will direct you. Fait does not exist by itself. Faith requires an object. It must be faith in something or someone. In that respect, faith is like love. Love cannot exist without an object. Love is meaningless unless it is directed toward something or someone. We love our parents. We love our brothers and sisters. We love God. We love the World. We love our life. Faith is the same. If we think we have faith, we should ask, faith in whom or faith in what? For some, faith is nothing more than faith in themselves. That is only self-confidence or self-centeredness. #RandolphHarris 2 of 13

Others have faith in faith, which is something like relying on the power of motivational thinking or betting on the proposition that we can get what we want by manipulating the powers within us. However, the scriptures teach us that faith comes by hearing the word of God. “So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God, reports Romans 10.17. God knows and loves us and will hear our prayers and answer them with what is best for us. In fact, God will do more than what is best for us. He will do what is best for us and all of our Heavenly Father’s children. The conviction that the Lord knows more than we do and that he will answer our prayers in the best way for us and for all of his other children is a vital ingredient of faith in the Lord. We must always pray for protection, success, and good conditions to take us to our destination. Miracles are the realm we are made for. When someone says, “That is going to take a miracle”—that is our realm. That is God’s natural operation. God is always ready to perform a miracle. If you need a miracle in your life, it is waiting on you. “May God raise you from death by power of Resurrection and from everlasting death by power of Atonement,” reports 2 Nephi 10.25. #RandolphHarris 3 of 13

God, as the highest, richest, and most intensely real being, is the supreme good, and everything that he has brought into existence is ipso facto good. For this reason the corruption which we call evil can never be complete; for if s thing becomes so vitiated in nature that it ceases to exit, the evil which is parasitic upon it must also cease to exist. Hence, there can be no wholly evil being. Nothing evil exists in itself, but only as an evil aspect of some actual entity. Thus, everything that God has created is good, and the phenomenon of evil occurs only when beings which are intrinsically good (though mutable) become corrupted and spoiled. How does this spoiling of God’s initially good creation come about? Evil has entered into the Universe through the culpable volitions of free creatures, Angels, and people. Their sin consisted, not in choosing positive evil (for there is no positive evil to choose), but in turning away from the higher good, namely Go, to a lower good. For when the will abandons what is above itself, and turns to what is lower, becomes evil—not because that is evil to which it turns, but because the turning itself is wicked. Natural evils, such as disease, are divinely ordained consequences of the primeval fall of humans, and thus all evils are either directly or indirectly traced back to a wicked misuse of creaturely freedom: There are two kinds of evil, sin and the penalty for sin. It is as if one sought to see darkness, or hear silence. #RandolphHarris 4 of 13

God, who sees timelessly and as a whole the entire moving panorama of created history, the Universe is Good. To Thee there is no such thing as evil, and even in thy whole creation, taken as a whole, there is not. However, a Universe where people are allowed the freedom of will and the right to choose their own behaviour, and which contains as many different kinds of entities as possible (lower as well as higher, lesser as well as greater), is better than Universe—one which more adequately expresses the infinite creativity of God—than would a Universe which contains only the highest type of created beings. There is thus an immense hierarchy of forms of created existence, and each creature, in its own proper place in the scheme of nature, is good and glorifies its Maker. Those that are lower in the scale of being are not on that account evil; they are just different goods, contributing in their different ways to the perfection of the Universe. Again, things that are transitory by nature, appearing and then perishing within the every-changing pattern of nature’s beauty, contribute, even by their death, to the perfection of the created order. The notion of evil, by providing a contrast, makes the good shine more brightly. There is nothing that God has not provided or will not provide for us in this life, and faith is the key that unlocks the door. #RandolphHarris 5 of 13

Spiritual life is so important. Faith pleases God. “And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him,” reports Hebrews 11.6. This is how we receive salvation. It is power that brings signs, miracles, wonders and manifestations of God’s promises. The Lord is look to people with faith to show himself strong to. “For yes, the eyes of the LORD range throughout the Earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him,” reports 2Chronicales 16.9. As long as sin is exactly balanced by just punishment, it does not upset the moral harmony of the Universe. Since there is happiness for those who do not sin, the Universe is perfect; and it is no less perfect because there is misery for sinners. So, whatever a soul may choose, ever beautiful and well-ordered in all its parts is the Universe whose Maker and Governor is God. The eternal possibilities of existence are individually present to the Divine Mind which, like an infallible calculating machine, surveys all possible combinations and selects the best, to which it then gives existence. Some of us need the manifestation of God’s power in our lives today, and the answer is to have faith. #RandolphHarris 6 of 13

God created humans with no sin in them and set them in a World devoid of evil. However, humans willfully misused their God-given freedom and fell into sin. Some people will be redeemed by God’s grace, and others will be condemned to eternal punishment. In all of this, God’s goodness and justice alike are manifested. “Have faith in God,” reports Mark 11.22. We, in the Word of Faith circle, understand the power of our words. We know we will have what we say, so we are careful to speak only right words and refrain from speaking words against the desired outcome. “Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you will have received it, and it will be yours. And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive him or her, so that your Father in Heaven may forgive you your sins,” Mark 11.24-25. If God had created a World in which natural law were continuously adjusted for the avoidance of all pain, the more heroic human virtues would never be evoked. Indeed, a great part of our present moral language would be meaningless. There would be no such things as doing harm, for no one would be able to suffer any kind of injury; there would be no such thing as doing good, for there would be no needs, deficiencies or occasions for improvement. #RandolphHarris  7 of 13

Furthermore, if human beings did not have free will there would be no such thing as a crime or a benefaction, an act of generosity or of meanness, of kindness or unkindness; and there would be no situations to which such qualities as courage, fortitude, loyalty, honesty, and the caring and protective aspects of love would be appropriate responses. There would thus be no occasions for moral choice. Such a World would be ill-designed to evoke many of the human traits which we value most highly. Indeed, it would seem that the rough edges of the World—its challenges, dangers, tasks, difficulties, and possibilities of real failure and loss—constitute a necessary element in an environment which is to call forth human’s finer qualities. Revelation comes from allowing and expecting the Word of God to be quickened to our spirit and change us on the inside. For faith to come, we must keep renewing our mind and building our testimony until we feel it and know it is there. Real faith has a foundation. And that foundation is that we have heard from God about our situation either in his word or by his speaking to our spirit. There is no limitations to an omnipotent God’s capacity to create beings endowed with specific personal characteristics. Virtues have been formed as a result of making real decisions in real situations of moral choices and they are of greater value than the analogous virtue created by divine fiat. #RandolphHarris 8 of 13

It is reasonable to suppose that the Creator is not content to build into humans the merely ready-made and unearned qualities. God wants us to develop these heroic human virtues. Much like a parent teaches their kids to obey, but does not want to always have to watch over them. However, when the parent is not around and the child behaves out of their own volition, it makes a parent proud that they do not have to watch the child every moment of ever day get him or her to behave. It becomes ingrained in the child’s free will that he or she wants to behave because it is the right thing to do. Although evil have the ability to crush the human spirit as often as it has developed it, and people have collapsed before life’s challenges and opportunities, they still have risen triumphantly to meet them by using their free will. When the Spirit of God reaches inside of us, it turns the lights on because real faith in God gets real results every time. Manifestations are not always instantaneous—there are times when patience needs to have its perfect work. “Let patience have her perfect work, that one may be perfect and entire, wanting noting. If anyone you lack wisdom, let one ask of God, that give to all people liberally and upbraided not; and it shall be given to one,” reports James 1.4-5. Faith will always bring results because faith never faiths. #RandolphHarris 9 of 13

We know God is in charge of this World and that he loves us and has a plan for us, and we can and should choose and should seek to believe in our Savior. Real faith does not get frustrated. If we are frustrated with our situation or frustrated with how long it is taking to see a manifestation—we are not in faith. We believe we receive when we pray—not when it comes to pass. Real faith is expecting—expecting God to work miracles, expecting to see manifestations of the Holy Spirit. How can we tell if we are expecting? Excitement. If we have no excitement, we are not in faith because we are waiting for something to excite us. “You can ask for anything in my name and I will do it,” reports John 14.13. So, we must examine our faith—did we ask God? Is it his will? Then we should be expecting. Faith is full of anticipation. That is the key to seeing miracles in our lives—expectancy. If we are expecting, we will see results. God is always ready to perform a miracle. Accordingly, this type of theodicy demands completion in an eschatology. It points toward the eternal happiness of human beings in a society with one another and in communion with God, which is symbolized by the Kingdom of Heaven; and its fuller claim is that the final fulfillment of God’s purpose for his creatures in his Heavenly kingdom constitutes a good so great and enduring that it justifies all the pains which have been experiences in order to reach it. #RandolphHarris 10 of 13

Eastern thought has suggested that there may be continuous reincarnation of souls through the levels of existence. She is telling you the truth. She was in love with an American. More than that—she made is sound like fairy tale. A chance letter that sparked years of correspondence, finding blots of love between each word on the page. Depending on the post more than the tides and the Moon. Even war could not stop what blossomed between them. She did not lie about either the America nor how she felt. However, it was not the time for all that. It was not the time to fall in love.  Thus, pain is not wasted, but is part of a long constructive process. Wartime romance? I only hope the reason was big enough, threatening enough, lasting enough, to make it worth it. How wonderful that someone can be celibate. Love is something that takes time. Of course I am curious, because having adult relations is not a birthright; you do not meet those very often. I am impressed with religious people who can maintain a vow of celibacy. However, there is a sharp increase in the number of celibate young men, and it could be a warning sign. We ignore it or laugh at it since as a society we do not care about your young men (that is why we blithely send them to die in pointless foreign wars. 14.2 percent of young men are celibate. People even try to demonize and force celibate young men into sex, as if they have a right to use their bodies. #RandolphHarris 11 of 13

I think he really loved her, but wanted to take their relationship slow. He must have been old fashioned and believed in romances like Sleeping Beauty. In romance, there was no sex. It was just a kiss and then they got married. People spend time getting to know their partner. There are so many women around here with a “Mrs.” Before their name, but no man at home. I had assumed her story was the same—some sad youthful marriage that ended on a battlefield somewhere. For what reason was Adam and Eve cast out of the Garden of Eden in the first place? And humankind has ever since paid the terrible price of their sin by continuing wit the sex act in the same old manner. With celibacy, there is a strong emphasis on love, ecstasy, and lasting commitment. There also must be miraculous heights of spiritual awareness, perfect love, perfect relationships, bliss, inner joy and concentration. In spite of the lack of understanding regarding celibacy, there is an obvious benefit from abstanting from the sex for long period of time that very few seem to understand or appreciate. Stored sexual energy properly transmuted gives one a definite psychological boost such as a greater sense of purpose, better memory, concentration and more interest in doing what is needed or required while giving one a feeling of reward in accomplishment. One tends to look forward to getting things done in a creative way while enjoying much greater motivation, bliss, joy, resilience, determination, and love for one’s duty. #RandolphHarris 12 of 13

My Russian friend told me that he is sure God appreciate my celibacy and it might even attract more favour in his eyes. One’s vital emotional health energy and sexual energy are interdependent. Therefore, whenever one’s sexual energy is used up, a large part of one’s mental energy and healing physical vitality get lost, and fascinatingly enough, one cannot successfully or correctly increase one’s sexual energy without the side effect of improving one’s health! Even dreams tend to be more frequent, blissful, colourful and more spiritual, and the possibility of achieving astral projection, deep and cosmic consciousness is also greatly improved. Conventional sex causes serious changes in one’s brain chemistry often leaving one more irritable, angry, spiritually dead, separated from wholeness, closed minded, attached, addicted, and competitive all for the purpose of increasing one’s tendency to fight other or compete with others for food, mates, shelter, etc. as part of means of speeding up the evolutionary process. People who are celibate tend to be naturally happy because their life force energy has not been disrupted by sheer blast of hormones, and they tend to be more carefree, energetic, and much more resilient to stress. It also prevents unwanted infirmary and unwanted lifestyles. The law of chastity is a moral code and under this code, all members are taught to be morally clean in their thoughts, words, and actions. Besides, it is nice to look at someone and know he is not having sex, that is different and good. #RandolphHarris 13 of 13