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How Long Must I Remain in Jeopardy of Blank Amazements that Amaze No More?
The pain of leaving those you grow to love is only a prelude to an understanding of yourself and others. Finding out what your real desires and characteristics are, and being able to live in a way that expresses them is how one finds one’s identity. One learns to be authentic, to be honest in the sense of allowing one’s behaviour and one’s speech to be the true and spontaneous expression of one’s inner feelings. Survey of efforts at self-analysis, self-therapy and self-growth uncovered that dreams are psychological symbols; peak, spiritual and psychedelic experience; archaic and prerational cognition. Recovery of the preconscious. That is why it is important to become an expert on one’s self. Think of yourself as a collaborator in an enterprise in which one wants to learn as much as one can learn so that one can pass this on to other people. The goal of therapy and self-discovery is the recovery of experiences—in particular, the recovery of feelings, emotions, subtle impulses and inner voices. They are believed to be the essential part of human nature and yet are so easily forgotten, denied or suppressed in the course of socialization. To be experientially alive means to renew a contact with our essential nature, and the first step in that direction is to pay greater attention to the concrete, pre-abstract, preverbal and the unconscious. #RandolphHarris 1 of 23
There are two aspects of the unconscious. The unconscious is said to be the seat of drives and needs—especially irrational needs—whereas the preconscious has more to do with the ways of sensing (id est, primary process cognition). It has often been said that a map is not a territory and a label (words and concepts) must not be confused with the reality it stands for. However, if we can use the map in the exploration of an external environment, why cannot we use words and concepts for the discovery of inner space? We find that thoughts, feelings, and affects are alive in us which would never have believed possible. Naturally, possibilities of this sort seem utterly fantastic to anyone who had not experienced them oneself, for a normal person “knows what one thinks.” Such an immature attitude on the part of the “normal person” is simply the rule, so that no one without experience in this field can be expected to understand the real nature of their being. With these reflections one gets into an entirely new World of psychological experience, provided of course that one succeeds in realizing it in practice. Those who do succeed can hardly fail to be impressed by all that the ego does not know and never has known. #RandolphHarris 2 of 23
This increase in self-knowledge is still very rare nowadays and is usually paid for in advance with a neurosis, if not something worse. The tension that arises from lack of self-understanding is so profound that it can be harmless until it is confronted in the conscious mind in personified form and behaves rather like systems split off from the personality, or like part souls. The most important tasks of psychic hygiene is to pay continual attention to the symptomatology of unconscious contents and processes, for the good reason that the conscious mind is always in danger of becoming one-sided, of keeping to well-worn paths and getting stuck in blind alleys. The complementary and compensating function of the unconscious ensures that these dangers, which are especially great in neurosis, can in some measure be avoided. It is only under ideal conditions, when life is still simple and unconscious enough to follow the serpentine path of instinct without hesitation or misgiving, that the compensation works with entire success. The more civilized, the more unconscious and complicated living conditions and the influence of one’s environment are so strong that they drown the quiet voice of nature. #RandolphHarris 3 of 23
Opinions, belief, theories, and collective tendencies appear in its stead and back up all the aberration of the conscious mind. Deliberate attention should then be given to the unconscious so that the compensation can set work. Hence it is especially important to picture the archetypes of the unconscious not as a rushing phantasmagoria of fugitive images but as constant, autonomous factors, which they indeed are. The archetypes are universal symbols such as The Great Mother (a mother goddess who is a personification of the natural World), the Wise Old Man (a profound philosopher distinguished for wisdom and sound judgment), the Shadow (everything of which a person is not fully conscious of, the unknown side), the Tree of Life (representing sacred life, religion, spirituality, the divine), the Tower (an extension of consciousness achieved in maturity), and Water (valley of the spirit). This is why education is a lifelong process. There is evidence that the materials we learn and insight we gain are not likely to dissipate easily, since participation in gaining lifelong knowledge involves a change in attitude, beliefs, values, and even a radical change in the fundamental outlook on life. The goal of education is to refocus itself on the joy of personal discovery, the sense of awe and mystery in life. #RandolphHarris 4 of 23
When education regains an accurate objective, the process of learning can then become as meaningful and exhilarating as those moments wen we are having peak-experiences. Do you remember how exciting it was as a kid in elementary when at the beginning of the school year, the teacher handed out those big, colourful, glossy books. How they made you feel excited and curious to know what was inside. Well, that is how learning is supposed to be for adults also. Many of those authors are writing as communication to future generations. It is an expression of love for them, giving them the tools required to improve their lives and the World. In effect, the textbooks are affectionate notes, bits of counsel, lessons others have learned that might help us. Imaginative activity is joined with belief of that which is to come. Take the case of two images, one involving the idea that humans will cause their own destruction and the other the idea that Zeus hurled thunderbolts when he was displeased with human’s doings. Both images, one purely verbal, the other pictorial, are due to the power of imagination. However, does the pictorial image more readily secure or enhance belief than the verbal image? If it does, what property or feature of it is responsible? #RandolphHarris 5 of 23
The phenomenon is referred to as the power and act imagination intensive, and is also called by a more intriguing name, Fascination. Belief in the imagination intensive is rational because there is an observed phenomenon and these participate in the power of things in fact. According, those effects which are wrought by the percussion of the sense, and by things in fact, are produced likewise in some degree by the imagination. The image of a man eating a sour pickle may be just as effective in setting one’s teeth on edge as does the act of eating the pickle itself. The effect is due not only to the figure but to the force and intensity of it. This is very close to an ideo-motor theory of voluntary movement and to the role imagination plays in it. Indeed, the imagination is as it were the director and driver of this motion [voluntary motion], insomuch that when the image which is the object of the motion is withdrawn the motion itself is immediately interrupted and stopped (as in walking, if you begin to think eagerly and fixedly of something else, you immediately stand still). Again, stamping, and bending of the fist, are caused by an imagination of the act of revenge. If the image thus affects action, why should it not be a belief? And would not a striking feature of the experience be responsible for its impact? Indeed it would. #RandolphHarris 6 of 23
Force or intensity are recognized as a special property or dimension of the image and this is nowhere more evident than when we talk of strengthening or exalting or fortifying the imagination. To strengthen the imagination is not to help in the making of images but to increase the effectiveness of them. Authority, for example, will fortify an image, whether verbal or pictorial, but it will do nothing to produce the image. If a person believes that a ring or charm will bring one good luck, one may hold to that belief—and act upon it—because of one’s faith in the art of magic, or a practitioner thereof, not because of experience or of logic. Authority carries weight, as it were, and impart weight. Various kinds of objects enhance imagery in the same way, and one can form a list of them drawn from natural magic. Rituals and ceremonies are not only imageful but they carry the authority of their sources. Scriptural words have the authority of God. Words of similitude—that is, pictorial images produced through words—are stronger than verbalizations without pictures. There is another quality of the image, possibly associated with intensity and certainly contributing to the strength of imagery. It is called a binding or limiting effect. #RandolphHarris 7 of 23
When speculating about the ways of strengthening the memory, we find in the art of memory, that images visible work better than other conceits; as if you would remember the word philosophy, you shall more surely do it by imagining that such a human (for humans are best places) is reading upon Aristotle’s Physics; than if you could imagine one to say, I will go study philosophy. The reasons are two: the more lustrous the imagination is, it filleth and fixeth the better, and there is a binding of thoughts. One has to aim to prepare the way and clear the ground, and one would uncover directions and hints for systematic and experimental investigation into the phenomenon of the imagination. If serious study undertaken the chief problem would be that of disentangling a maze of cause and effect. It would be proper to focus on two matters: the effects of imagery on the imaginant oneself, and the effect of one human’s imagery on another. However, the whole enterprise has been confounded and confused by those who merely desire to exploit it for the end of magic, witchcraft, myth and mystery, dreams and visions. #RandolphHarris 8 of 23
If they would, three established studies could make contributions, for those sciences which have had been intelligence and confederacy with the imagination of humans than with their reason, are three in number: Astrology, Natural Magic, and Alchemy; of which sciences the ends or pretenses are noble. The imagination may become hyperactive in eloquence. It is no small dominion which imagination holds in persuasions that are wrought by eloquence; for when by arts of speech human’s minds are soothed, inflamed, and carried hither and hither, it is all done by stimulating the imagination till it becomes ungovernable, and not only sets reason at nought, but offers violence to it, partly by blinding, partly be incensing it. Such effects may be due in part to the agitation of the spirit or of the affections. There is no doubting that both imagination and vehement affection work greatly upon the body of the imaginant. Emissions of the spirits and their affects is connected to the operations of the spirits of the mind of humans upon other spirit. Imagination may be the instigator of both spirit activity and emotional behaviour. Such a monstrous imagination was attributed to the school of Pythagoras for it was cultivated by Platonists, and made the basis of Paracelsian magic that exalting the imagination with the power of miracle-working faith. #RandolphHarris 9 of 23
If there be communication between the spirit of the World and the spirit of humans, it is probably directly from spirit to spirit. An imaginant can be primarily influencing oneself: If a person carrying a planet’s seal, or a ring, or some part of a beast, believing strongly that it will help one to obtain more active and industrious, and again more confident and persisting than one would otherwise be. Imagination is the power of representing thought. It is the power of reproducing and creating images, verbal, and pictorial, from the products of sensory experience and the products of the understanding and reason. Its images have a kind of force or strength that can stir the human spirit and rouse the affections. By and large, the imagination serves rational life. It illuminates and illustrates abstract thought in much the same way it lights up divine spirit and grace in moments of revelation and inspiration. If understanding and reason may be said to form experience, imagination may be said to give it shape. “If this World were mine, I’d make you a king with wealth untold, you could have anything. If this World were mine, I’d give you each day so sunny and blue. If you wanted the moonlight, I’d give you that too. If this World were mine, I’d give you anything.” #RandolphHarris 10 of 23
The lyrics above are from a duet by Luther Vandross and Cheryl Lynn called If this World were Mine. They are singing a beautiful ballot and used imagery to express how in love they are with each other. The imagery is more powerful than say, “I love you,” because one had to put their thought and heart into those eloquent lyrics and they are more likely to have much more of an impact because it causes the imagination to ponder how much one is loved. Reason and imagination join in creative activity that bears the marks of both faculties, reason rendering the product plausible, imagination rendering it sensible. Together they give rise to the fitting and the appropriate. Yet in their creativity, neither reason nor imagination works independently. Imagination is not merely processing the work of reason; it is not translating. Rather, there is a sort of transmutation, perhaps transtantiation, going on between them. The colour of imagination and the colour of reason are present, but one sees neither distinctly; they are blended in any creative product that humans judge to be fitting and appropriate. In rhetorical and poetical creativity, as distinguished from scientific creativity, the imagination is responsible for, is the immediate cause of, that quality of argument, example, and style that we label “appropriateness.” #RandolphHarris 11 of 23
Imagination always has something to work with, whether the sayable simply made the work of understanding and reason accessible to sense or was the product of reason and imagination’s creating something appropriate. What should be distrusted and feared are the imaginations of bad people, practitioners of artificial magic and alchemy. The content aspect of a sign or statement is due to the imagination and the formal aspect of the understanding. The denial of equal liberty, for example, can be defended only if it is necessary to raise the level of civilization so that in due course these freedoms can be enjoyed. The maximin rule uses the imagination, for a solution to the problem of social justice, tells us to rank alternatives by their worst possible outcomes: we are to adopt the alterative the worst outcome of which is the superior to the worst outcomes of the others. The original position is designed to be a fair and impartial point of view that is to be adopted in our reasoning about fundamental principles of justice. The persons in the original position do not, of course, assume that their initial place in society is decided by a malevolent opponent. However, if parties were forced to protect themselves against such a contingency, the maximum rule explains the sense in which this conception is the maximin solution. #RandolphHarris 12 of 23
In business and life, decisions have to be made and they must be rational. The maximin rule is not, in general, a suitable guide for choices under uncertainty. However, it is attractive in situations marked by certain special features. The aim, then, is to show that a good case can be made for the two principles based on the fact that the original position manifests these features to the fullest possible degree, carrying them to the limit, so to speak. A gain-and-loss table represents the gains and losses for a situation which is not a game of strategy. There us no one playing against the person making the decision; instead one is faced with several possible circumstances which may or may not obtain. Which circumstances happen to exist does not depend upon what the person choosing decides or whether one announces one’s moves in advance. The numbers in the gain-and-loss table below are monetary values (in millions of dollars) in comparison with some initial situation. The gain (g) depends upon the individual’s decision (d) and the circumstances (c). Thus g = f (d, c). Assuming that there are three possible decisions and three possible circumstances, we might have this gain-and-loss table. #RandolphHarris 13 of 23
#RandolphHarris 14 of 23
The maximin rule requires that we make the third decision. For in the case the worst that can happen is that one gains $5,000,000.00, which is better than the worse for the other actions. If we adopt one of these, we may lose either $8,000,000.00 or $7,000,000.00. Thus, the choice of d3 maximizes f (d, c) for that value of c, which for a given d, minimizes f. The terms “maximin” means maximum minimorum; and the rule directs our attention to the worst that can happen under any proposed course of action, and to decide in the light of that. Now there appear to be three chief features of situations that give plausibility to this unusual rule. First, since the rule takes no account of the likelihoods of the possible circumstances, there must be some reason for sharply discounting estimates of these probabilities. Offhand, the most natural rule of choice would seem to be to compute the expectation of monetary gain for each decision and then to adopt the course of action with the highest prospect. However, it must be, for example, that the situation is one in which a knowledge of likelihoods is impossible, or at best extremely insecure. In this case it is unreasonable not to be skeptical or probabilistic calculations unless there is no other way out, particularly if the decision is a fundamental one that needs to be justified to others. #RandolphHarris 15 of 23
The second feature that suggest the maximin rule is the following: the person choosing has a conception of the good such that one cares very little, if anything, for what one might gain above the minimum stipend that one can, in fact, be sure of by following the maximin rule. It is not worthwhile for one to take a chance for the sake of a further advantage, especially when it may turn out that one loses much that is important to one. This last provision brings in the third feature, namely, that the rejected alternatives have outcomes that one can hardly accept. The situation involves grave risks. Of course these feature work most effectively in combination. A maxim, a rule of thumb comes into its own in special circumstances. Its application depends upon the qualitative structure of the possible gain and losses in relation to one’s conception of the good, al this against a background in which it is reasonable to discount conjectural estimates of likelihoods. The parties have no basis for determining the probable nature of their society, or their place in it. Thus they have strong reasons for being wary of probability calculations is any other course is open to them. They must also take into account that fact that their choice of principles should seem reasonable to others, in particular their descendants, whose rights will be deeply affected by it. #RandolphHarris 16 of 23
Therefore, the objective is to limit loss and maximize gain, not gamble because the parties are unable to conjecture, they cannot say much about what the possible circumstances are, much less enumerate them and foresee the outcome of each alternative available. Finally, the third feature holds if we can assume that other conceptions of justice may lead to institutions that the parties would find intolerable. For example, it has sometimes been held that under some condition the utility principle justifies, if not slavery or serfdom, at any rate serious infraction of liberty for the sake of greater social benefit. We need not consider here the truth of this claim, or the likelihood that the requisite conditions obtain. For the moment, this contention is only to illustrate the way in which conceptions of justice may allow for outcomes which the parties may not be able to accept. And having the ready alterative of the two principles of justice which secure a satisfactory minimum, it seems unwise, if not irrational, for them to take a chance that these outcomes are not realized. We must make a distinction between a doctrinal principle and the human personality who serves as the vehicle for such principles. #RandolphHarris 17 of 23
The principles will live when the personality is dead. Our absolute rationality and loyalty, therefore, must be bestowed on what is immortal, not on what is mortal, but we still have to make the most reasonable decisions while we are alive. The human disseminator of the principle should receive only a conditional allegiance. The pure Idea may incarnate itself in the human but only may sully, betray, or pollute it with one’s human error, prejudice, or selfishness. The embodies master, being human, will have some or other of the human imperfections. Sooner or later the disciple will note and become critical of them or disturbed by them. However, the inner Light is perfect and will rouse only admiration, devotion, and satisfaction. “And now it came to pass that when Jesus has spoken these words he turned again to the multitude, and did open his mouth unto them again, saying: Verily, verily, I say unto you, Judge not, that ye be not judged. For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged; and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again. And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother’s eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye? #RandolphHarris 18 of 23
“Or how wilt thou say to thy brother: Let me pull the mote out of thine eye—and behold, a beam is in thine own eye? Thou hypocrite, first cast the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast the mote of out thy brother’s eye. Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast ye your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn again and rend you. Ask, and it shall be given unto you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you. For every one that asketh, receiveth; and one that seeketh, findeth; and to one that knocketh, it shall be opened. Or what human is there of you, who, if your child ask bread, will give one a stone? Or what if your child ask a fish, will one give one a serpent? If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father who is in Heaven give good things to them that ask him? Therefore, all things whatsoever ye would that humans should do to you, do ye even so to them, for this is the law and the prophets. Enter ye in at the strait gate; for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, which leadeth to destruction, and many there by who go in threat; because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it. #RandolphHarris 19 of 23
“Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do humans gather grapes of thorns, of figs of thistles? Even so every good tree bringeth forth evil fruit. A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire. Wherefore, by their fruits ye shall know them. Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of Heaven; but one that doeth the will of my Father who is in Heaven. Many will say to me in that day: Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name, and in thy name have cast out devils, and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them; I never knew you; depart from me, ye that work iniquity. Therefore, whoso heareth these sayings of mine and doeth them, I will liken one unto a wise human, who built one’s house upon a rock—and the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not, for it was founded upon a rock. #RandolphHarris 20 of 23
And every one that heareth these sayings of mine and doeth them shall be likened unto a foolish human, who built one’s house upon the sand—and the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell, and great was the fall of it,” reports 3 Nephi 14.1-27. Now we ask, What does a will or heart look like that has been transformed into Christlikeness? How is it to be characterized? Jesus said himself—and of course he is always the pattern—“One who sent Me is with Me; He has not left Me alone, for I always do the things that are pleasing to Him,” reports John 8.29. And Paul has this to say: “I haven been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the fait of the Son of God, who loved me, and delivered Himself up for me,” reports Galatians 2.20. The only haven of safety is to have no other will, no other wisdom, than to follow the Lord wherever he leads. Let this, then, be the first step, to abandon ourselves, and devote the whole energy of our minds to the service of God. So we have the answers to our question: Single-minded and joyous devotion to God and his will, to what God wants for us—and to service to him and to others because of him—is what the will transformed into Christlikeness looks like. #RandolphHarris 21 of 23
That is the outcome of Christian spiritual formation with reference to the will, heart, or spirit. And when it has become the governing response of every dimension of our being, this outcome becomes our character. Then we can truly said to have “put on Christ.” However, how far this is from the usual human will and character we hardly need say! Instead of being simple and transparent through a constant and coherent devotion to God, the usual human will is a place of chaotic duplicity and confusion if not darkness, because it is the playing field of pride and fear and lack of confidence in God, shrouded in layer upon layer of destructive habits. Your blood is my blood, flowing out of past, through me, to the future. Through my actions, you live. Please guide me, then, in the decisions I face today, making clear to me the safe path between obstacles and keeping me from false steps along the way. Please grant lasting peace unto Israel Thy people, for Thou art the Sovereign Lord of peace; and may it be good in Thy sight to bless Thy people Israel at all times with Thy peace. Blessed art Thou, O Lord, who blesses Thy people Israel with peace. O Lord, please guard my tongue from evil and my lips from speaking guile, and to those who slander me, let me give no heed. #RandolphHarris 22 of 23
May my soul be humble and forgiving unto all. Please open Thou my heart, O Lord, unto Thy sacred Law, that Thy statutes I may know and all Thy truths pursue. Please bring to naught designs of those who seek to do me ill; speedily defect their aims and thwart their purposes for Thine own sake, for Thine own power, for Thy holiness and Law. That Thy loved ones be delivered, please answer us, O Lord, and save with Thy redeeming power. May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable unto Thee, O Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer. Thou who establishest peace in the Heavens, please grant peace unto us and unto all Israel. Amen. May it be Thy will, O Lord our God and God of our Fathers, to grant our portion in Thy Torah, and may the Temple be rebuilt in our day. There we will serve Thee with awe as in the days of old. After the Sun has risen, I am here to pray long hours. While the day began, I was still asleep, still walking in the land of dreams. Know this, bright Sun, that though I slept, you were still in my heart. Now, when I am finally awake, I take up my daily responsibilities. First, though I will stand here and praise God and drink in your warmth and drink in all the light you give so freely to arm myself for the say’s struggles. #RandolphHarris 23 of 23
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It Keeps Eternal Whisperings Around Desolate Shores and with its Mighty Swell!
Nothing is quite as funny as the unintended humour of reality. Many lines of inquiry have demonstrated that that range of characteristics that are associated with creative productivity in a human being is very wide. These characteristics fall into almost all categories into which personal traits have been divided for purpose of study—abilities, interests, drives, temperament, and so on. To limit our discussion to scientific productivity, it is clear to start with that there are great variations in the amount of curiosity possessed by different people. Curiosity appears to be a basic drive. I suspect it may vary consistently with gender, on either a biological or a cultural basis, but we have as yet no idea how to measure such drives. No one becomes a scientist without a better-than-average amount of curiosity, regardless of whether one was born with it, was brought up in a stimulating environment, or just did not have it severely inhibited. Intelligence and creativity are not identical, but intelligence does play a role in scientific creativity—rather more than it may play in some other forms of creativity. In general, one my summarize by saying that the minimum intelligence required for creative production in science is considerably better than average, but that, given this, other variables contribute more to a variance in performance. #RandolphHarris 1 of 23
It must also be noted that special abilities (numerical, spatial, verbal, and so on) play somewhat different roles in different scientific fields, but that ability must in no case be below average. A cultural anthropologist, for example, as little need for great facility with numbers. An experimental physicist, on the other hand, does require facility with number, although one need not have great facility with words. A number of studies have contributed to the picture of the personality patterns of productive scientists, and it is rather striking that quite different kinds of investigations have produced closely similar results. These can be briefly summarized in six different groups, as follows: 1. Truly creative scientists seek experience and action and are independent and self-sufficient with regard to perception, cognition, and behaviour. These findings have been expressed in various studies in such terms as the following: they are more observant than others and value this quality; they are more independent with respect to cognition and value judgments; they have high dominance; they have high autonomy; they are Bohemian or radical; they are not subject to group standards. 2. They have a preference for apparent but resolvable disorder and for an aesthetic ordering of forms of experience. #RandolphHarris 2 of 23
They have high tolerance for ambiguity, but they also like to put an end to it in their own way—and in their own time. 3. They have strong egos (whether this derives from or is responsible for their independence and their tolerance for ambiguity is a moot question). This ego strength permits them to regress to preconscious states with certainty that they will return from these states. They have less compulsive superegos than others. They are capable of disciplined management of means leading to significant experience. They have no feeling of guilt about the independence of thought and action mentioned above. They have strong control of their impulses. 4. Their interpersonal relations are generally of low intensity. They are reported to be ungregarious, not talkative (this does not apply to social scientists), and rather asocial. There is an apparent tendency to femininity in highly original men, and to masculinity in highly original women, but this may be a cultural interpretation of the generally increased sensitivity of the men and the intellectual capacity and interest of the women. They dislike interpersonal controversy in any form and are especially sensitive to interpersonal aggression. 5. They show much stronger preoccupation with things and ideas than with people. #RandolphHarris 3 of 23
They dislike introversive and affect-associated preoccupations, expect in connection with their own research. 6. They like to take the calculated risk, but it must involve nature, not people, and must not depend on simple luck. How do these personality characteristics relate to the creative process in science? An open attitude toward experience makes possible accumulation of experience with relatively little compartmentalization; independence of perception, cognition, and behaviour permit greater than average reordering of this accumulated experience (the behavioural eccentricities so often noted are consistent with this). The strong liking for turning disorder into order carries such individuals through the searching period which their tolerance for ambiguity permits them to enter. The strong egos, as noted, permit regression to prelogical forms of thought without serious fear of failure to get back to logical ones. Preoccupation with things and ideas rather tan with people is obviously characteristic of natural scientists, and even some of some social scientists. This characteristic is not directly related to creativity. I think, but rater to the content of it. I need not add tat such statements as these are generalizations and that any individual case may be an exception. #RandolphHarris 4 of 23
We may go farther, however, and generalize differences among humans who follow different branches of science. That a human chooses to become a scientist and succeeds means that one has the temperament and personality as well as the ability and opportunity to do so. The branch of science one chooses, even the specific problems one chooses and the way one work on them, are intimately related to what one is and to one’s deepest needs. The more deeply engaged one is, the more profoundly is this true. To understand what one does, one must try to know what one’s work means to one. The chances are that one does not know or care to know. Indeed, one does not need to know. We do. In many ways the social scientist differs from the natural scientist in terms of personality and motivation. It has been found, for example, that social scientists are more interested in interpersonal relationships, while physical are less so. The apparent coldness, remoteness and objectivity of the physical scientists, however, might be related to the commonly accepted notion of science as a purely impersonal thing. If so, it would be interesting to speculate what possible effects a humanization of science might have upon the personality dynamics of future scientists. #RandolphHarris 5 of 23
Now we ask, What does a will or heart look like that has been transformed into Christlikeness? How is it to be characterized? Jesus said of himself—and of course he is always the pattern—“He who sent Me is wit Me; He has not left Me alone, for I always do the things that are pleasing to Him” (John 8.29). And Paul has this to say: “I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and delivered Himself up for me” (Galatians 2.20). We also recall John Calvin’s words: “The only haven of safety is to have no other will, no other wisdom, than to follow the Lord wherever he leads. Let this, then, be the first step, to abandon ourselves, and devote the whole energy of our minds to the service of God.” So we have the answer to our question: Single-minded and joyous devotion to God and his will, to what Gd wants for us—and to service to him and to others because of him—is what the will transformed into Christlikeness looks like. That is the outcome of Christian spiritual formation with reference to the will, heart, or spirit. And when it has become the governing response of every dimension of our being, this outcome becomes our character. Then we can truly be said to have “put on Christ.” #RandolphHarris 6 of 23
However, how far this is from the usual human will and character we hardly need say! Instead of being simple and transparent through a constant and coherent devotion to God, the usual human will and character we hardly need say! Instead of being simple and transparent through a constant and coherent devotion to God, the usual human will is a place of chaotic duplicity and confusion if not darkness, because it is the playing field of pride and fear and lack of confidence in God, shrouded in layer of destructive habits. We recall that our will (heart, spirit) is that dimension of our being by which we become an underivative presence and source in the World. What comes from it comes from nothing else but us. This radical creativity is what makes the individual person absolutely unique and irreplaceable, and therefore an “end in itself,” not just “another one of a certain kind.” In other words, it is what prevents a person from being a mere thing. Let us try to put this in other words, hoping thereby to make clearer something that really is very hard to grasp. Will is the ability to originate or refrain from originating something: an act or a thing. It brings things into existence. Sticks and stones do not have that ability. Will is the capacity for radical and underivative origination of events and things. #RandolphHarris 7 of 23
Therefore, will is the core of what and what we are as individuals, for what arises from it is from us alone. It is that aspect of personality in virtue of which we have a likeness to God or are “in His image.” We are created to be creators—of good. Our consents and non-consents are the measure of our worth as humans…the only strictly underivative and original contribution which we make to the World. And our will is simply our capacity for “consents” and “non-consents.” It is the core of our nonphysical being. It is, strictly speaking, our spirit—the human spirit, not divine—though it comes directly from God and it meant to be in his keeping through our trust in him. It is the nature of the spiritual to be self-determined. Such self-determination is absolute or unrestricted in God (“I AM THAT I AM.” Exodus 3.14. “For as the Father hath life in himself; so hat he given to the Son to have life in himself.” John 5.26). However, it is very limited, though still very real, in humans. Its primary exercise in the human, as we have already noted, is the power to select what we think on and how intently we will focus on it—from which our other decisions and actions then more or less directly flow. #RandolphHarris 8 of 23
Functionally, the will is the executive center of the human self. From it the whole self or life is meant to be directed and organized, and mist be if it is to be directed or organized at all. This is why we recognize the will to be the same as the biblical “heart” or center. It is also clear, then, that will is not the same thing as character, but character does develop from it, as specific willing become habitual and, to some extent, “automatic.” Character is revealed most of all in what we feel and do without thinking. However, to a lesser extent it is revealed in what we repent of after thinking and what we then do as a result of repenting. Thought, feeling, and will give rise to character. One is to keep the Ideal ever before one’s eyes, and to recognize that it overlimns the personality of the master. The picture of the Ideal is held in one’s subconscious mind all the time and become the pattern to be imitated, the invisible Master to be followed with faith and with love. It is affiliation to Christ, not propinquity to his body, that will bring these benefits. It will not be until a late stage that one will wake up to the realization that the real giver of Grace, the real helper along this path, the real master is not the incarnated master outside but God who is inside of one’s own heart. #RandolphHarris 9 of 23
What the living God does for one is only to arouse one’s sleeping intuition and awaken one’s latent aspiration, to give one the initial impetus and staring to guidance on the new quest, to point out the obstructions to advancement in one’s individual character and to help one deal with them. What one feels about God’s power may be true but it is a sign of one’s elementary state that one places it outside oneself. The true meaning of God to the disciple’s understanding should be as the presence and force, the revelation and voice of one’s own inmost spiritual being. Let us be more concerned with the quest of right principles rather than impressive persons, for this will put our attitudes to all events on the right plane. Because tis simple truism was forgotten most of the religious and mystical movements have gone astray. The proper attitude is to regard God as the higher power, so that the veneration and devotion proffered are directed towards that power. We must learn to look in our own heart, mind, body, and soul for God because that is where we find the Lord. Why not go to the direct source? God is the ultimate spiritual guide whom we are to revere and the real spiritual helper on whom we are to rely. #RandolphHarris 10 of 23
When disciples follow a teacher, what is it that they really follow? Suppose the teacher advocated cruelty, and preached selfishness—would the disciples still continue to follow one? Obviously, they would not. This is because their own inward feeling would reject the teaching. It shows that they are really following the teacher within themselves, the voice of God. It is God within them which makes them seek out and respond to a true teacher, for one is really an outward spiritual guide and we all can use guidance at times. However, only in our inner being can we meet and know God. Those who interest themselves in personalities take the wrong path. A teacher’s ideas are the best part of one. Let students take them and not trouble themselves about one’s appearance, career, traits, and habits. God alone is eternal. The truth of enunciations is n other than the truth of the intellect. For an enunciation resides intellect, and in speech. Now according as it is in the intellect it has truth of itself: but according as it is in speech, it is called in the enunciable truth, according as it signifies some truth of the intellect, not on account of any truth residing in the enunciation, as though in a subject. If no intellect were eternal, no truth would be eternal. #RandolphHarris 11 of 23
Now because the only divine intellect is eternal, in it alone truth has eternity. Nr does it follow from this that anything else but God is eternal; since the truth of the divine intellect is God Himself, as shown already. The nature of a circle, and the fact that two and three make five, have eternity in the mind of God. That something is always and everywhere, can be understood in two ways. In one way, as having itself the power of extension to all time and to all places, as it belongs to God to be everywhere and always. In the other way as not having in itself determination to any place or time, as primary matter is said to be one, no because it has one form, but by the absence of all distinguishing form. In this manner all universals are said to be everywhere and always, in so far as universals are independent of place and time. It does not, however, follow from this that they are eternal, expect in an intellect, if one exists that is eternal. That which now is, was future, before it (actually) was; because it was in its cause that it would be. Hence, if the cause were removed, that thing’s coming to be was not future. However, the first cause is alone eternal. Hence it does not follow that it was always true that what not is would be, expect in so far as its future being was in the sempiternal cause; and God alone is such a cause. #RandolphHarris 12 of 23
Because our intellect us not eternal, neither is the truth of enunciable propositions which are formed by us, eternal, but it has a beginning in time. Now before such truth existed, it was not true to say that such a truth did exist, expect by reason of the divine intellect, wherein alone truth is eternal. However, it is true now to say that that truth did not then exist; and this is true only by reason of the truth that is not in our intellect; and not by reason of any truth in the things. For this is truth concerning not-being; and not-being has not truth of itself, but only so far as our intellect apprehends it. Hence it is true to say that truth did not exist, in so far as we apprehend its not-being as preceding its being. The Christian affirmation is that the Trinitarian structure which can be shown to exist in the mind of a human and in all one’s works is, in fact, the integral structure of the Universe, and corresponds, not by pictorial imagery, but by necessary uniformity of substance, with the nature of God, in whom all that is exists. To think secularly is to think within a frame of reference bounded by the limits of our life on Earth: it is to keep one’s calculations rooted in this-Worldly criteria. #RandolphHarris 13 of 23
To think Christianly is to accept all things with the mind as related, directly or indirectly, to human’s eternal destiny as the redeemed and chosen by God. It is important to see that apologetics is not an activity reserved for philosophers who also happen to be religious believers. Much that passes as philosophy of religion is really apologetics as practiced by individuals who reject tenets of religious belief. I do not say this to be critical of philosophers of religion who may also happen to be atheists. Philosophers who reject the Christian religion do not suddenly become, by virtue of this fact alone, more objective or rational or open-minded than philosophers who are Christians or Jews. Of course, we must wholeheartedly agree that without a saving relationship with Jesus Christ all is lost. However, we must not mistakenly reason that one’s relationship with Christ minimizes the importance of His Church. Yet this is precisely what multitudes of evangelicals assume and act out. Church attendance is infected with a malaise of conditional loyalty which has produced an army of ecclesiastical hitchhikers. #RandolphHarris 14 of 23
The hitchhiker’s thumb says, “You buy the Ultimate Driving Machine, pay for repairs and upkeep and insurance, fill the car with gas—and I will ride with you. However, if you have an accident, you are on your own! And I will probably sue.” So it is with the credo of so many of today’s church attenders: “You go to the meetings and serve on the boards and committees, you grapple with the issues and do the work of the church and pay the bills—and I will come along for the ride. However, if things do not suit me, I will criticize and complain and probably bail out—my thumb is always out for a better ride.” This putative loyalty is fueled by a consumer ethos—a “McChristian” mentality—which picks and chooses here and there to fill one’s ecclesiastical shopping list. There are hitchhikers wo attend one church for the preaching, send their children to a second church for its dynamic youth program, and go to a third church’s small group. Church hitchhikers have a telling vocabulary: “I go to” or “I attend,” but never “I belong to” or “I am a member.” The average adult thinks that belonging to a church is good for other people, but represents unnecessary bondage and baggage for oneself. #RandolphHarris 15 of 23
So today, in the twenty first century, we have a phenomenon unthinkable in any other century: churchless Christians. There is a vast heard of professed Christians who exist as nomadic hitchhikers without accountability, without discipline, without discipleship, living apart from the regular benefits of the ordinances. They have God as their Father, but reject the Church as mother and as a result are incomplete and stunted. The tragedy is compounded because statistics indicate that humans are far less committed to the Church than they used to be—inevitably producing a shriveled leadership. As to why the Church has fallen on such hard times, historians tell us that an overemphasis on the “invisible” Body of Christ by evangelical leaders produced an implicit disregard for the visible Church. However, membership in an invisible Church without participation in its local expression is never contemplated in the New Testament. Another reason for the de-churching of many Christians is historic individualism of evangelical Christianity and the grass-root American impulse against authority. #RandolphHarris 16 of 23
The natural inclination is to think that one needs only an individual relationship with Christ and needs no other authority. Such thinking produces Christian Lone Rangers who demonstrate their authenticity by riding not to church, but out to the badlands, reference Bible in hand, to do battle single-handedly with the outlaw World. Such a cavalier disregard for the doctrine of the Church is eccentric, to say the least. It disregards not only Scripture, but the consensus of the doctors of the Church. St. Augustine in his Enchiridion holds up to the visible Church saying: “For outside the church they [one’s sins] have no remission. For it is the Church in particular which has received the earnest, the Holy Spirit, apart from whom no sins receive remission.” Augustine could not conceive of one being regenerated yet consciously separated from the visible Church. “The deserter of the Church,” he said, “cannot be in Christ, since one is not among Christ’s members.” Martin Luther similarly stated, “Outside this Christian Church there is no salvation or forgiveness of sins, but everlasting death and damnation; even though there may be a magnificent appearance of holiness.” #RandolphHarris 17 of 23
John Calvin echoed Cyprian’s though that the evidence of having God as your Father is having the Church as your mother. In fact, he subtitled chapter 1 of book 4 of his Institutes “The True Church with Which as Mother of All the Godly We Must Keep Unity.” And in his commentary on Ephesians he wrote, “The Church is the common mother of all the godly, which bears, nourishes, and governs in the Lord both kings and commoners; and this is done by the ministry. Those who neglect or despise this order want to be wiser than Christ. Woe to their pride.” The Swiss Second Helvetic Confession put the idea even more forcefully: For as there was no salvation outside Noah’s ark when the World perished in the flood; so we believe that there is no certain salvation outside Christ, who offers himself to be enjoyed by the elect in the Church; and hence we teach that those who wish to live ought not to be separated from the true Church of Christ. (Chapter 27). Finally, the Westminster Confession refers to “The visible church out of which there is no ordinary possibility of salvation” (Chapter 25.2). #RandolphHarris 18 of 23
So we conclude that church hitchhikers, ecclesiastical wanderers, spiritual Long Rangers, Christian who disdain membership, and aberrations in the history of the Christian Church and are in grievous error. “Verily, verily, I say that I would that ye should do alms unto the poor; but take heed that ye do not your alms before humans to be seen of them; otherwise ye have no reward of your Father who is in Heaven. Therefore, when ye shall do your alms do not sound a trumpet before you, as you will hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of humans. Verily I say unto you, they have their reward. However, when thou doest alms let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth; that thine alms may be in secret; and thy Father who seeth in secret, himself shall reward thee openly. And when thou prayest thou shalt not do as the hypocrites, for they love to pray, standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of humans. Verily I say unto you, they have their reward. However, thou, when thou priest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father who is in secret; and thy Father, who seeth in secret, shall reward thee openly. #RandolphHarris 19 of 23
“However, when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen, for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking. Be not ye therefore like unto them, for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of before ye ask him. After this manner therefore pray ye: our Father who art in Heaven, hallowed by thy name. Thy will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen. For, if ye forgive humans their trespasses your Heavenly Father will also forgive you; however, if ye forgive not humans their trespasses neither your Heavenly Father will forgive your trespasses. Moreover, when ye fast be not as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance, for they disfigure their faces that they may appear unto humans to fast. Verily I say unto you, they have their reward. However, thou, when thou fastest, anoint thy head, and wash thy face; that thou appear not unto humans to fast, but unto thy Father, who is in secret; and thy Father, who seeth in secret, shall reward thee openly. Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon Earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and thieves break through and steal. #RandolphHarris 20 of 23
“However, lay up for yourselves treasures in Heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and were thieves do not break through not steal. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. The light of the body is the eye; if, therefore, thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light. However, if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If, therefore, the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness! No human can serve two masters; for either one will hate one and love the other, or else one will hold to the one and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and Mammon. And now it came to pass that when Jesus had spoken these words he looked upon the twelve who he had chosen, and said unto the: Remember the words which I have spoken. For behold, ye are they whom I have chosen to minister unto this people. Therefore I say unto you, take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. #RandolphHarris 21 of 23
“Is not the life more than meat, and the body more than raiment? Behold the fowls of the air, for they sow not, neither do they reap nor gather into barns; yet your Heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they? Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto one’s stature? And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin; and yet I say unto you, that even Solomon, in all his glory, was not arrayed like one of these. Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is cast into the oven, even so will he clothe you, if ye are not of little faith. Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we Eat? or, What shall we drink? or Wherewithal shall we be clothed? For your Heavenly Father knowth that ye have need of all these things. However, seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you. Take therefore no thought for the morrow, for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient is the day unto the evil thereof,” reports 3 Nephi 13.1-34. Bright youth, newly born, I pray to you. A fresh day has been given to me; may I be worthy of the gift. #RandolphHarris 22 of 23
I stand in the morning and face east and greet the Sun and a new day. O Lord our God, please be gracious unto Thy people Israel and accept their prayer. Please restore the worship to Thy sanctuary and receive in love and favour the supplication of Israel. May the worship of Thy people be ever acceptable unto Thee. O may our eyes witness Thy return to Zion. Blessed art Thou, O Lord, who restores Thy divine presence unto Zion. We thankfully acknowledge Thee, O Lord our God, our fathers’ God to all eternity. Our Rock art Thou, our Shield that saves through every generation. We give Thee thanks and we declare Thy praise for all Thy tender care. Our lives we trust into Thy wonders and Thy miracles are daily with us, evening morn and noon. O Thou who art all-good, whose mercies never fail us, Compassionate One, whose lovingkindness never cease, we ever hope in Thee. For all this, Thy name, O our King, shall be blessed and exalted for ever and ever. May all the living do homage unto Thee forever and praise Thy name in truth, O God, who art our salvation and our help. Blessed be Thou, O Lord, Beneficent One, unto whom our thanks are due. #RandolphHarris 23 of 23
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Write on My Tablets All that was Permitted, All that was for Our Human Sense Fitted
The story of love is not important—what is important is that one is capable of love. Love is supreme and unconditional; like is nice but limited. Each society has a vested interest in maintaining a status quo; or, at the least, it will tolerate only a slow rate of social change. The entire socialization and training process, which includes our schools and universities, aims at producing a modal personality of some specified kind. This is a programmed person, interchangeable, a behaviour package; one who is stable, predictable, and want what one must want and does what one must do to keep the social system functioning. Once the person is ensconced in some group, everyone in the group get used to the individual for them. If one’s identity is an alienated one, if the only being one and they recognize is one’s being-for-others, one will not likely change. Any challenges or fascinations likely to jeopardize one’s identity-for-others will be experienced by one as a threat to one’s status, and even to one’s existence. So long as a person remains in one’s group, one is likely to accede to the pressures to conform to others’ definitions of one’s being. If the well-adjusted group member experiences in oneself a protest against one’s identity-for-others and attempts to change it, one encounters the barrage of resistance we talked about in the past. #RandolphHarris 1 of 21
It takes courage of heroic proportions to redefine oneself in the face of such invalidation, and such courage is rare. So, apparently, is independent learning. However, when a teacher tells the candidate of some great truth, looking straight into one’s face, something may happen over and behind the mere words. A look from Jesus was enough to make some humans renounce their Worldly lives and follow Him. Such is initiation through the glance. The power which lies in a pen is only intellectual, thought carried from one mind to another. However, the power which sone out of His eyes was spiritual, beyond thought. Gaze met gaze throughout that period; mine blinking and flickering often, the saint’s never once faltering. There are some lines of an American Seer which I would like to wind around this evening of which I am writing. The eyes indicate the antiquity of the soul. What inundation of life and thought is discharged from one soul into another, through them. The glance is natural magic. The mysterious communication established across a house between two entire strangers, moves all the springs of wonder. They eyes will not lie but make faithful confession what inhabitant is there. These words are true and verified. However, because some are still reaching towards enlightenment and face stunted growth, they are often overpowered. #RandolphHarris 2 of 21
The aspirant who wishes to become the student of a particular teacher must remember that, should one be accepted, one will receive no formal outward acknowledgment of the fact. This is because the way to find a Master is invariably an inner process. When the student has developed the necessary moral qualification and mental receptivity, the Master’s presence will be inwardly felt and recognized. One this has been experienced, one will find that simple devotion and adherence to the path the Master points out—and to oneself as a symbol of that path—is all that is needed to ensure progress. Thus, the student finally realizes that all outer teachers, all paths and initiations are mere theatrics compared with this. I have spoken before of the commissars. In a sense, we can regard the existing personality structure of the individual as an internalized commissar. The introjected family, teachers, and others comprise a kind of portable Big Brother who watched what I do; and when I experience anything counter to his rules, I feel guilt and dread. These affects are unpleasant enough to steer me back into sameness so that I can recognize myself as the person I had always (desperately) believed, or at least hoped, I was. #RandolphHarris 3 of 21
If I ignore my guilt and anxiety and persist in experiencing in the forbidden ways, I may feel, with horror, that I am becoming insane. The incipient birth of my unique possibilities is dreaded more than death itself, and so I kill myself (my possibilities) in order to live as a robot. I cling more desperately to my roles, my self-structure, and try to impersonate to myself and to others the one we though I was. However, I hope I have made it clear that, unless I let go, unless I follow my experiencing and enter right into it, I shall remain the same person, the one who has found one’s goals and values meaningless, one’s life a charade and a gesture. When the Other is in bad faith in one’s relationship to me, one confuses me. I never know what one is up to, because one does not mean what one says, and one’s actions belie one’s stated intentions. That same Other, if one is in a position of power over me, as a parent or teacher, may disconfirm my expressions of interests, of feelings, of intentions: “You do not really like to do that, now do you?”, or, “I know you must be glad to be here,” et cetera. If a child has been unsure of one’s own experience and its meaning, one may allow one’ being to be thus construed for one. One will eventually be mystified as to who one is and what one’s true interests are. #RandolphHarris 4 of 21
These are replaced by a pseudo-self, a set of interests and habits and experiencings which may serve someone’s interests and habits and experiencings which may serve someone’s interests and freedom, but not the individual’s. Such a mystified person is hardly likely to discover the fascination which proclaim the beginning of independent learning. When a teacher, parent, or therapist is unaware of being a servant of some ideology or some social system, or when they deny that this is what in fact they are: when they insist that what they do to and with the child is “for your own good,” they confuse and mystify the child. They contribute to one’s sense of ontological insecurity, and certainly thereby impede independent learning. The true master does not call disciples to reside in any ashram but to unite with oneself. And one is, in one’s own sight, a mental and not a physical being. Hence they can find and meet one in thought anywhere. The necessity of living in an ashram with one is an illusory one. All that is requisite is a single meeting between one and the disciple. Physically such a meeting can achieve its purpose in a few minutes. Thereafter both may remain permanently apart physically and yet the inner work can continue to develop all the same. For the relation between them is primarily a mental, not a physical one. #RandolphHarris 5 of 21
Even in ordinary life we see that true friendship and true love is mental affinity and not a mere neighbourhood of fleshly bodies. The disciple’s intense faith in and emotional veneration for the master, however far distant they may be from each other, plus the necessary mystical ripeness, will telepathically create true association. However, without them, one’s grace is like a spark falling on stone, not on tinder. Furthermore, by the higher powers of one’s mind, the adept can really help devotees at a distance even though they may never attend one’s ashram. Those who live in an ashram can get from one only what they can absorb in their inner being. However, precisely the same can be done by those who do not live in one. One’s thought-presence will be found by them to be just as effectual as one’s bodily presence. As the disciple is slowly lead onwards along this difficult path, confidence in the teacher is replaced by consciousness of the teacher, that is, one finds as an inner presence the mental atmosphere of the teacher and thus comes to know one much better. The bond with such a master sustains one in many dark experiences. #RandolphHarris 6 of 21
A wise teacher imposes no dogmas upon one’s pupils; the latter may believe or doubt as they wish, so long as they follow the path one has pointed out. Discipleship is really spiritual union. It is not academic remembrance of words. It is a placing of oneself in such a receptive attitude that the spirit of the master may enter in. No speech is necessary to effect this and in silence it is more readily achieved; anything else is only giving instruction, which is not the same as proffering discipleship. In the end, the only way the earnest seeker can find a teacher is to find oneself. The deeper one penetrates int the mysterious recesses of one’s own spiritual being, the closer one comes to the ever-present master within—the higher self. The longer one looks, the more powerful will be its attraction, the more magnetic its spell over one. This is true for all students generally, but it is especially true for those students who have had the good fortune of coming into personal contact with a living teacher. It is not by their physically seeing one or personally speaking to one or corresponding with one that they enter into real contact with such a teacher, but rather by finding one’s presence within their hearts in thought, feeling, and imagination, by responding passively to the intuition of presence, and by accepting the guidance of its prompting to a more spiritual existence. #RandolphHarris 7 of 21
Thus not only is a human’s soul within one, too, and must be found there, but even one’s living embodied teacher is within one, too, and must be found there likewise. It is not by living in the same house with a teacher that discipleship becomes a fact. It is not by sitting year after year in the same ashram with one that devotion is show or the path is followed, but by seeking one intuitively and obeying one’s inward leading away from the surface of the ego to the deep center of the soul. When this is realized, it will be realized that a distance of seven or seven thousand miles will not be long enough to separate a pupil from one’s master. An absence of seven years will not be enough to weaken the sense of one’s presence and of inner contact with one. The sooner the aspirant recognizes this truth, the quicker will one make progress. Once the meeting, however, brief, with the master and the parting from one have taken place, the candidate’s next and hardest task will be set one. And this is to learn to accept the Idea of the master as being not less real than the body of the master. The disciple must learn to dwell mentally in the sacred presence as satisfying as if one were dwelling physically in it. #RandolphHarris 8 of 21
To take these great master’s into one’s life merely to worship them outwardly and not to worship them deep in one’s heart as the Ideal to be faithfully imitated, it to fail in becoming their disciple. It is not merely that knowledge is passed on or instruction is memorized. The student is required to do something more. One has to introvert one’s attention earnestly and keep oneself passive to the subtler feelings which now tend to form themselves within one, to submit resignedly to their sway and to merge into union with them. The capacity to become fascinated anew after old fascinations have worn out, is abetted by numerous factors; but it is the interpersonal factor I shall focus upon. Since each of us is an Other to somebody, we can perhaps do something to foster independent learning in the others for whom we are the Other. The basic factors in fostering independent learning, including the process that underlie it and make it emerge as a response to invitation and challenge, are the human responses of challenge and invitations, stimulation of imagination, confirmation, “letting be,” honest disclosure, and willingness to enter into dialogue. Each human wishes to be confirmed by one’s fellow, and each has the capacity to confirm one’s fellow. #RandolphHarris 9 of 21
To confirm the other in one’s being means to stand back and let one’s being “happen,” let I disclose itself, and to view it with respect, to acknowledge its reality and authenticity. Confirmation does not mean wishy-washy, insincere permissiveness; because often the most direct confirmation is to take a stand in opposition to the disclosure of the others. However, the confirmation, the meeting, even in opposition, confirms for the other that one is the one one is. It lets one know that one exists. Confirmation means that I recognize the other person as the author of one’s acts and one’s utterances. I attribute them to one and one’s freedom. I confirm one as a free agent who chooses one’s existence and is responsible for it. The opposite of confirmation is invalidation and disconfirmation. There are many ways to invalidate another person, and they all have the net effect of weaking one’s sense of one’s own identity and worth, one’s sense of being a source of experience and action. One can ignore the other—pretend one does not exist, expect as a doll a thing, a nobody, or just another body. One can attribute one’s actions and utterances to some source other than one’s free intentionality; exempli gratia, “You do not mean that; it is your illness that is speaking to you.” #RandolphHarris 10 of 21
One can disconfirm all action and utterances save those that are compatible with one’s concept of the other. Everything else that does not fit these expectations “is not one.” Under a sufficiently sustained regime of such disconfirmation, a person will indeed come to doubt one’s own experience and conduct only to that range consistent with one’s experience and conduct only to that range consistent with one’s identity-for-the-other. Confirmation is, in a sense, an act of love. One is acknowledging that other as one who exists in one’s own peculiar form, with the right to do so. One recognizes that one’s concept of one’s being is only that—a concept, and not of one’s being. One recognizes that it is for one to reveal and define oneself to us in this way, at one’s pace, thus reinforming and altering our experience and concept in one. It is not only out duty, it is an outright sin to definite another’s being. Our concept of each other is always out of date. Yet, if one as a weak sense of one’s identity for oneself, if one is ontologically insecure, one may let us do this, or even ask us to. When I let the other person be and confirm one in one’s being as one discloses it to me, I am creating an ambience within which one can dare to let go of one’s previous concepts and presentations of oneself. They are not binding upon one. #RandolphHarris 11 of 21
My suspension of my preconceptions of one’s being invites one to let go while one is in my presence. One can drop yesterday’s self-presentation, commitment, interest and goals, and explore the possibilities of a new one. One can weep, regress, enter into oneself while one is with me, and feel assured that I am waiting and perhaps with a hand holding one’s hand, until one emerges to tell me who one is. And I confirm one, at each instant of the journey, as being the one one is—Harvey searching; Harvey in despair; Harvey emerged, with new goals and values. There are extreme seriousness of feelings for spiritual formation. Understanding the role of feelings in life and in the process of spiritual formation is absolutely essential if that process is to succeed as it should. There are many ways we can go wrong with reference to feelings. They are extremely influential on all that we are and do—much more so than they should be for our own good, and mainly because we accord them greater significance than they deserve. They, more than any other component of our nature, are the “trigger” of sinful action. If you consider all of the Ten Commandments after the first two, for example, you will see that it is feeling out of control that lead to their violation. #RandolphHarris 12 of 21
In His own magnificent treatment of the moral life, Jesus makes a point of putting anger, contempt, and lust in their place. “You have heard that was said to people long ago, ‘Do not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.’ However, I tell you that anyone who is angry with one’s sibling (or fellow human) will be subject to judgment,” reports Matthew 5.21-22. Until that is done, nothing else works. We have noticed how we go wrong in trying to manipulate feelings themselves without regard to their underlying condition. It is often done with good intent, but it is nearly always harmful to the deeper interests of the soul. That is especially true when we try to stir up feelings as a means of getting people to do what we think is good in the course of efforts at Christian ministry. Feelings have a crucial role in life, but they must not be taken as a basis for action or character change. That role falls to insight, understanding, and conviction of truth, which will always be appropriately accompanied by feeling. Feelings are not fundamental in the nature of things but become so if we assign them that role in life, and then life will not go as it should. Many sincere processing Christians suffer in their walk with God because they made a commitment prompted by a feeling of “need” and not by insight into how things are with God and their soul. #RandolphHarris 13 of 21
Partly because of this faulty basis of commitment, the area of feeling is, I suspect, the most likely place of defeat for those sincerely seeking to follow Christ today. Satan uses feelings to captivate us today by making them more important to our life than they really are, as well as by inducing much false guilt about what we do and do not feel. Nowhere is this more obvious than in marriage and divorce as now practiced (or mis-practiced). However, at all stages of adult life, feelings are among Satan’s primary instrument. They are used to devastate the soul in the processes of aging, sickness, and death among Christians and nonChrisitians alike. This need not be the case. Appropriate spiritual formation in Christ will prevent it. We must understand how love, joy, and peace can be our portion in every state of life and can lead us into a radiant eternity with God. Think of the great and direct power of feeling (sensation, emotion) over human life. How do you see this at work in daily life? For good? For evil? In yourself? In others? What has been your experience with controlling feeling directly or head on? Can it be reliably done? What have you seen with respect to this in lives near you? Say with anger, lust or addiction? #RandolphHarris 14 of 21
Did it make any sense to you that love, hated, and so one are not just feelings but conditions of the will, body, and so on, which have feelings linked to them? Do you see any problems with trying to manage feelings directly, without changing the underlying condition? What is your experience with feelings spreading? Over different part of your life and activity? Over groups? What are some of the problems you see wit basing decisions on feelings? Can we decide without feelings? How can one cultivate peace, or joy, or love or hope? What are some specific ways you have found to be helpful? How does faith fit in? If the truth of a message is important, apologetical reasoning will be a crucial part of evangelism because it places the emphasis where it should be—on the truth of the message. None of this means you must have a Ph.D. before you can share the faith with an unbeliever. In the gospels, people touched by Jesus bore testimony to him immediately without training. However, these gospel examples are not there to teach us how to do evangelism—the book of Acts does that. They are there to show that all manner of people were coming to faith in Jesus and to provide testimony about who Jesus was. Clearly, a new Christian should witness for Christ as opportunity presents itself, irrespective of the amount of training acquired. #RandolphHarris 15 of 21
However, it does not follow that a maturing Christian, five, ten, or twenty years old in Lord, should still be unskilled in reasoning on behalf of the gospel. Will this approach to evangelism take work? You bet it will. We have to do a lot of reading, studying, and thinking. However, if someone can spend several hours a day learning to swing a golf club, at least the same effort would not be inappropriate for someone who wants to be more effective witness for Christ. A life of study and intellectual growth enhances one’s effectiveness in personal evangelism in may ways. Yesterday, my friend Donna Paulson reminded me of one of those ways. Many times we want to communicate the gospel to friends, coworkers, or relatives. However, tis can create tension and a certain unnaturalness when we are with them, because we feel pressured to find some seam in the conversation from which we can artificially redirect the discussion to our testimony or something of the sort. If a person has a secular/sacred dichotomy in one’s life due to a lack of carefully thought-out, integrated Christian Worldview, then the gospel will have to be forced into an otherwise secular discussion. However, if a person has developed a Christian mind, one can relax because one has an understanding of and a Christian view about a number of secular topics. #RandolphHarris 16 of 21
In such a situation, it would be hard to have a normal conversation without Christianity coming up naturally and, in a way, relevant to the topic of discussion. Moreover, a well-developed mind can see connections between what a friend is saying and other issues of which the friend may not be aware. For example, a friend may be espousing moral relativism yet inconstantly hold that we all have an absolute duty to save the environment. If a person sees the connections, one can simply ask well-placed questions that naturally lead to a discussion of broader Worldviews issues, including God and our relationship to Him. In such a case, the pressure is off because a person has the intellectual categories necessary to make natural connections between Christianity and a host of regular conversation topics. There is no need to try to find a crack in the discussion to insert a gospel presentation utterly unrelated to the flow of conversation. What a joyful fruit of the intellectual life this is! “And now behold, it came to pass that all the people of the land did hear these sayings, and did witness of it. And after these sayings there was silence in the land for the space of many hours; for so great was the astonishment of the people that they did cease lamenting and howling for the loss of their kindred which had been slain; therefore there was silence in all the land for the space of many hours. #RandolphHarris 17 of 21
“And it came to pass that there came a voice again unto the people, and all the people did hear, and did witness of it, saying: O ye people of these great cities which have fallen, who are descendants of Jacob, yea, who are the house of Israel, how oft have I gathered you as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and have nourished you. And again, how oft would I have gathered you as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, yea, O ye people of the house of Israel, who have fallen; yea, O ye people of the house of Israel, ye that dwell at Jerusalem, as ye that have fallen; yea, how often would I have gathered you as a hen gathered her chickens, and ye would not. O ye house of Israel whom I have spared, how oft will I gather you as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, if ye will repent and return unto me with a full purpose of heart. However, if not, O house of Israel, the places of your dwellings shall become desolate until the time of the fulfilling of the covenant to your fathers. And now it came to pass that after the people had heard these words, behold, they began to weep and howl again because of the loss of their kindred and friends. And it came to pass that thus did the three days pass away. #RandolphHarris 18 of 21
“And it was in the morning, and the darkness dispersed from off the face of the land, and the Earth did cease to tremble, and the rocks did cease to rend, and the dreadful groadings did cease, and all the tumultuous noises did pass away. And the Earth did cleave together again, that it stood; and the mourning, and the weeping, and the wailing of the people who were spared alive did cease; and their mourning was turned into joy, and their lamentation into the praise and thanksgiving unto the Lord Jesus Christ, their Redeemer. And thus far were the scriptures fulfilled which had been spoken by the prophets. And it was the more righteous part of the people who were saved, and it was they who received the prophets and stoned them not; and it was they who had not shed the blood of the saints, who were spared—and they were spared and were not sunk and buried up in the Earth; and they were not drowned in the depths of the sea; and they were not burned by fire, neither were they fallen upon and crushed to death; and they were not carried away in the whirlwind; neither were they overpowered by the vapour of smoke and of darkness. #RandolphHarris 19 of 21
“And now, whoso readeth, let one understand; one that hath the scriptures, let one search them, and see and behold if all these deaths and destructions by fire, and by smoke, and by tempests, and by whirlwinds, and by the opening of the Earth to receive them, and all these things are not unto the fulfilling of the prophecies of many of the holy prophets. Behold, I say unto you, Yea, many have testified of these things at the coming of Christ, and were slain because they testified of these things. Yea, the prophet Zenos did testify of these things, and also Zenock spake concerning these things, because they testified particularly concerning us, who are the remnant of their seed. Behold, our father Jacob also testified concerning a remnant of the seed of Joseph. And behold, are not we a remnant of the seed of Joseph? And these things which testify of us, are they not written upon the plates of brass which our father Lehi brought out of Jerusalem? And it came to pass that in the ending of the thirty and fourth year, behold, I will show unto you that the people of Nephi who were spared, and also those who had been called Lamanites, who had been spared, did have great favours shown unto them, and great blessings poured out upon their hears, insomuch that son after the ascension of Christ into Heaven he did truly manifest himself unto them. #RandolphHarris 20 of 21
“Showing his body unto them, and ministering unto them; and an account of his ministry shall be given hereafter. Therefore for this time I make an end of my saying,” reports 3 Nephi 10.1-19. The Earth rolls forward with silent thunder, turning toward the Sun in the false dawn. I stand on the wet grass, anticipating the Sunrise. While, far away, at the edge of vision, God opens his pearl gates and the Sun enters the day. Please open wide the gates of Heaven, youthful one, do not old back. Please open your gates, God and stride forth, so the morning prayers might start and the day’s business begin. In the morning, everything is new. The day’s blank slate lies before me, ready for my writing. May it be words of beauty I write. May it be deed of grace I do. May it be thoughts of joy I think. All the Holy Ones, please listen: this is what I pray. And Thou hast given us in love, O Lord our God, [Sabbaths for rest,] holidays for gladness, festivals and seasons for rejoicing. Thou hast granted us [this Sabbath day and] this Feast of Unleavened Bread, the Season of our Freedom, this Feast of Weeks, the Season of the Giving of our Torah, this Feast of Tabernacles, the Season of our Gladness, this Eighth Day Feast of Assembly, the Season of our Gladness, as a holy convocation, commemorating our liberation from Egypt. Our God and God of our fathers, may our remembrance and the remembrance of forefather come before Thee. #RandolphHarris 21 of 21
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Mysteries Whispered in their Presence–A Person Clamoured for Love and Attention but I Did Not Hear!
No one knows what to say in the loser’s room. Divulging any client’s financial secrets is a criminal act and bank officers or employees can be punished by up to five years imprisonment and a fine of up to $5000.00. This secrecy requirement does not end with bank employment but goes with the employee to one’s grave. One study shows that only 30 percent of U.S. employers believe school graduates are literate and numerate; but 70 percent of students and 60 percent of parents think their schools are fine. This points to the core problem with U.S. education: low intensity, in all but sport, and low expectations, for all but the brightest students in honours classes. Also, the cost of private health insurance, mostly borne by industry, is doubling every seven years. What is more significant is that health is now a common-middle class headache for the first time. Employers are forcing their employees to contribute more and take less generous benefits; the high cost of insurance squeezes wages; people who have a poor health history, even if fully cured, find themselves locked into their jobs, because prospective new employers refuse to take them on. Many believe this added government control of an industry which comprises one fifth of the American economy has only meant higher taxes and reduced quality of medical care for everyone. #RandolphHarris 1 of 22
Now, a hypothesis. I believe that independent learning, the embodiment of the state of being fascinated, involves six stages. The first is the experience of the impasse. The next stage we will provisionally call the stage of detachment, a kind of dying. The third is immersion in oneself—an entry into one’s center, one’s source of experiencing. Next is an emergence, or rebirth. Fifth is the experience of new possibilities. Sixth is the selection and pursuit of one of these. I shall attempt to illustrate this hypothesis with examples from several realms: religious conversion, brainwashing, research in psychedelic drugs, psychotherapy, and dialogue. I base my hypothesis upon personal experience, buttressed by reading that has seemed related, and the reported experience of others. It appears to me that fascination-with-something, the process of being turned on, has a certain “natural” history in adults. It is the natural state with healthy children who have not yet been “turned off.” The “turning off” begins with the experience of despair, boredom, or meaninglessness as one continues one’s habitual way of life—acting in one’s roles, doing one’s work, being one’s public self. Friendships grow stale. Work becomes meaningless and pointless. One feels dead, or deadened. #RandolphHarris 2 of 22
The World looks stale, and music loses its savour. Nothing changes. Plus ca change, plus c’est la meme chose. I am doing something for everybody, and nothing for me. One feels trapped. No way out seems apparent. Each step out of the circle encounters dread or a sense of hopelessness, and futility. One tries new hobbies, new friends, new within which one feels like a robot. The depression deepens. One becomes afraid one is losing one’s mind. It is at this point that one’s friends, family, conventional psychiatry, and religion may enter. They try, and in this state gradually “loses interest,” “stops caring about thing.” One is regarded as sick, in need of “treatment” to stop one from going out of one’s mind. Actually, the “not-caring” is a self-initiated process of detachment from previous concerns, a phase in the death-rebirth process we are concerned with. If nothing stops the process, the person gradually enters one’s own experience more and more. One’s self-structure dissolves. One detaches oneself from one’s image of oneself, from previous friendships—which, after all, have been stabilizing one, keeping one in sameness, which is not the same as sanity. #RandolphHarris 3 of 22
This person may become panicky, as the process of detachment continues; and one finds oneself experiencing emotions, fantasies and memories, that ordinarily have been repressed. One surely needs reassurance here, to let the process unfold rather than shut it off. One is encountering one’s possibilities. If one lets go enough, one will fully enter the realm of experiencing that mystics have described as “transcendental,” like a homecoming, a visit to the course, rather than a hell to be avoided. It is, in fact, the way of experiencing that we all shared as children, before we were wholly engulfed by the culture. One cannot, and does not long stay in this realm. One re-enters one’s ego, but with a new perspective. The self-structure is redefined. I choose a new identity for myself and present it to others who may confirm it or not. The World does not look the same now. It is not the same because I am not the same, and it is my World. I look at the old things and the old people; and new features, new possibilities disclose themselves to me. I commit myself to some of these, and I am renewed, until some later time; when the new fascinations, values, and projects go stale, I must begin the process again. #RandolphHarris 4 of 22
When I am reborn and awakened, I experience the World and the people in it as a constant and varied calling, a constant source of invitations to become involved. The calls and invitations that were always there, but I never heard them before. The sky called to be looked at. A person clamoured for love and attention but I did not hear. Mysteries whispered their presence, but I did not notice; I thought what was mysterious was actually known and understood. In short, I begin once again to encounter the World, and the people in it. In the encounter, I let myself experience the varied reality of the World, a reality that I did not experience the varied reality of the World, a reality that I did not experience so richly, or in so many dimensions, as I do. Renewed by the plunge into the depths of my own experiencing, I survey the World that I am encountering. Some invitation, some call, some challenge, fascinates me more than the others. Nobody can predict what will now fascinate or repel me, not even me. I commit myself to this one, and off I go until I become deadened once again by a new set of habits. It has just occurred to me, after completing a year of sabbatical leave in England, that the process I just described is a sabbatical leave of one’s mind, of one’s personality structure. #RandolphHarris 5 of 22
The academic sabbatical is a removal from one’s usually surroundings, but I discovered it is easier to get out of one’s surroundings than to get them out of oneself so that new surroundings can invite one into encounter. Many of my American colleagues in England successfully shielded themselves from fascination with and involvement in the English experience, because of the panic they felt when invited to let go their usual preoccupations. They carried America with them. Indeed, the phenomenon of “culture shock,” long noted by anthropologists, is another dimension of the experience of leaving, not just one’s country, but one’s mind. One has to let the American in one die in order to become a participant in a new experience, to be reborn. Indeed, initiation ceremonies of all kinds recognize the, like fraternity initiation rites or Marine boot-camp training. The hazing, in whatever form, is a symbolic killing-off of a previous incarnation, to abet the reincarnation in the way of being. However, we are as afraid of dying as we are of leaving our minds. We equate habitual ways of valuing, construing, and acting with life itself. #RandolphHarris 6 of 22
Therefore, to stop these, even when they cease to yield satisfaction and meaning, is experienced as the end of life. It is equated with death. We are afraid to explore the possible experience beyond the tether. In the act of love, the climax is frequently experience as a “dying.” And after the successful act of love, a person feels oneself reborn, ready to respond anew to new dimensions of the World that suddenly, magically, have disclosed themselves to the person. However, many acts of love are climaxed not by ego-shattering orgasm; but only by localized, pleasurable twitching. Evidently one has to be ready to go out of one’s mind to make love the love that renews and revivifies. In the psychedelic-drug experience a person ingests a substance; and then, if one lets go, one commences a voyage into depth of experiencing of which one never would have dreamed oneself capable. However, taking one dose or consistent and frequent doses of any drug, especially one as potent as LSD or PCP, is by no means safe for all individuals and may put certain people at high risk of a psychotic episode they may never recover from or cause one to develop a drug addiction. People may believe the marijuana is a safe drug, but it is not. It is bad your lungs and could cause schizophrenia, or lead to the use of more dangerous and addictive drugs. #RandolphHarris 7 of 22
It may cause one to feel as if one is looking through a fogged-up window with only a tiny spot wiped clean. With religion, however, a rebirth is caused and the whole window is wiped clean; and the World stands forth. The World will disclose itself to one in different dimensions than it had disclosed itself hitherto, and one will select some aspects of it with which to involve oneself. Brainwashing is a corruption of the death and rebirth theme. There, the commissars, who know what they want a person to do and be, convince one that one (one’s old self) is dead. Under the regime of torture, a person may indeed enter the transcendental realm, but one re-enters a new “robot,” into new roles that have been ready-made for one. Doubtless, they seem as real and meaningful to the brainwashee as did one’s previous incarnation which had been made untenable and unlivable for one by one’s captors. In religious conversion, the common denominator seems to be the despair at continuing in the old way. The person enters one’s experience after leaving the World. If one’s background and present associates are appropriate, then, like the brainwashee, one enters a new way of being that is more or less ready-made for one. In good psychotherapy, the therapist lets one’s patient enter one’s experience deeply. #RandolphHarris 8 of 22
One remains present to help the patient cope with the terrors that arise as one lets go and experiences feelings, memories, and the like that have been long suppressed. With one’s interpretations, the therapist may assist the process of symbolic dying and facilitate the onset of the therapeutic despair, or the therapeutic psychosis which is part of every effective psychotherapy sequence. Then the person is reborn, and one faces the World with the capacity to respond to its invitations in new ways. In good teaching, after the fashion of Sokrates, the skilled and compassionate dialectician will challenge every assertion and belief of one’s pupil until the pupil feels one is going to go out of one’s mind. One may balk at this point. However, one may also flip into a realization of infinite possibility, and be thus turned on. This is my hypothesis restated: independent learning entails the experience of fascination. Fascination is a response to an invitation or challenge disclosed by the World. The invitation and challenge were always there, but the person could not experience them so long as one remained “hung up” or fixated in one’s usual roles, self-structure, and preoccupations. It is necessary that the usual attachments be suspended, and raw experiencing be turned on. #RandolphHarris 9 of 22
This disengagement from usual concerns is fostered by entrapment and despair (it can be fostered in dialogue); and it maybe experienced with dread, as a going out of one’s mind, or a dying, followed by rebirth or re-entry into an enlarged self-structure. In the reborn state, the person is now more open to one’s experience of the World. While one is in this “open” condition, a challenge appears, and the person responds. One may or may not be confirmed by others in one’s new being. I would propose that something like this happens repeatedly in those healthier personalities for whom independent learning is no problem. I would propose further that a variety of factors militate against this complete process of death and rebirth. And so, practically speaking, the renovation of the heart in the dimension of feeling is a matter of opening ourselves to and carefully cultivating love, joy, and peace: first by receiving them from God and from those already living in Him, and then as we grow, extending love, joy, and peace to others and everything around us in attitude, prayer, and action. Following our VIM (Vision, Integrity, and Mission) pattern, we must intend this and decide that it shall be in all we are and do. Of course our thought life, as already described, will be focused upon God. #RandolphHarris 10 of 22
Then through grace we can translate this intention to dwell in love, joy, and peace into the fine texture of daily existence. Our walk with Jesus and the Father will teach us and show us the details of the means required to bring it to pass. The conscious personal mind of the teacher may know nothing of the help that is radiating from one to one who silently calls on one from a long distance, yet the reality of that help remains. If the requisite condition exist, only then can this internal quickening and intense telepathy between the master and the disciple can occur. Even at the beginning of probation (spiritual probation) the seeker will often be given a hint of what awaits one later through the spiritual experience resulting out of the contact with the teacher. However, whether one gets it or not, from the moment of acceptance there will come to every student a sense of peace, and above all, an inner stability and certitude which will become one of the greatest assets in one’s life. Again and again the novice falls into mistakes about the telepathic communications which one feels one is receiving from the master. One regains them as such when they are nothing of the sort, or one interprets them in too material or too egoistic a manner. #RandolphHarris 11 of 22
The master sends a thought-current to one which is intended to lift one up to a diviner, hence more impersonal level. One, however, drags it down to a lower, more egocentric level. The telepathic impulses which one sends out to others during these times of prayer or meditation are most often received quite subconsciously. Only later is their effect felt or their origin suspected. One’s disciples may not be aware of any new reception of truth or beatitude at the time. However, increasing clarification or growing liberation may slowly change their course. It is also possible to take any revered person as a master and, in one’s own mind, make one the teacher. Even though no meeting on the physical level may occur, one’s attitude of attention and devotion in meditation will draw from one a reaction which will telepathically give whatever guidance is needed at the time. Just as the glance, the touch, or the spoken word may carry the ardour of mutual desire from to woman so may it also carry the initiatory blessing or the spiritual gift from master to disciple. Like the message of God to a praying spiritual person, the help which comes from such a teacher is above thinking but it translates itself into terms of thinking. In this process of translation, it is seized n by the ego and interfered with. #RandolphHarris 12 of 22
The guide may send one’s blessing telepathically only once but if it is powerful enough it may work itself out through a hundred different experiences extending over several years. Because one identifies oneself with the timeless spaceless soul, one’s blessing may express itself out through a hundred different experience extending over several years. Because one identifies oneself with the timeless spaceless soul, one’s blessing may express itself anywhere in space and anywhen in time. Moreover one may formulate it in a general way but it may take precise shapes unconsciously fashioned by and suited to the recipient’s own mentality and degree of development. Here is some of the work to be done. For many of us, just coming to honest terms with what our feelings really are will be a huge task. Paul says in Romans 12.9, “Let love be without hypocrisy.” That is, let it be genuine or sincere. To do only this will require serious effort, deep learning, and quantities of grace. Our ordinary life and our religious associations are so permeated with insincere expressions of love, often alongside of contempt and anger, that it is hard not to feel forced into hypocrisy in some situations. However, we can learn to avoid it, and we shall immediately begin to see what a huge difference that alone makes. #RandolphHarris 13 of 22
However, there is much more to do. Very few people are without deep negative feelings towards others who are or have been closely related to them. Wounds carried steadily through the years have weighed us down and prevented spiritual growth in love, joy, and peace. They may have seeped over into our identity. We would not know who we are without them. However, they can be healed or dismissed, if we are ready to give them up to God and receive the healing ministry of His Word and Spirit. This applies similarly to hopelessness over not achieving things long sought or long lost. In general, the task, once we have given ourselves to Christ, is to recognize the reality of our feelings and agree with the Lord to abandon those that are destructive and that lead us into doing or being what we know to be wrong. This one will then help us with. We may need to write out what those feelings are in a “letter to the Lord,” or perhaps confer about them with wise Christian friend who knows how to listen to us and to God at the same time. Perhaps individuals or our fellowship group can have a prayer ministry to us. Journaling about progress with feelings can also help. It can bring to light the ideas and images or past events on which destructive feelings are based. Those, too, will need to be replaced or revised. #RandolphHarris 14 of 22
Many such details may play a role as we progress toward predominance of love, joy, and peace in that dimension of our mind and our self that is our feelings. We can be very sure that this is our feelings. We can be very sure that this is God’s intent for us. Thus Paul prayed for his friends in Ephesus that they would be “rooted and grounded in love” and “know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled up to all the fullness of God,” reports Ephesians 3.17-19. And we have seen the intent of Jesus: “That My joy may be in you, and that your joy may be made full,” reports John 15.11. Also his, “Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the World gives, do I give you. Let not your heart be troubled nor let it be fearful,” reports John 14.27. And here is Paul’s benediction to the Romans: “Now may the God of hope fill you with al joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit,” Romans 15.13. There are the same dispositions of things in being and truth. As good has the nature of what is desirable, so truth is related to knowledge. Now everything, in as far as it has being, so far is it knowable. The soul is in some manner all things through the senses and the intellect. And therefore, as good is convertible with being, so is the true. #RandolphHarris 15 of 22
However, as good adds to being the notion of desirable, so the truth adds relation to the intellect. “And it came to pass that there was a voice heard among all the inhabitants of the Earth, upon all the face of this land, crying: Wo, wo, wo unto this people; wo unto the inhabitants of the whole Earth except they shall repent; for the devil laugheth, and his Angels rejoice, because of the slain of the fair sons and daughters of my people; and it is because of their iniquity and abominations that they are fallen! Behold, that great city Zarahemla have I burned with fire, and the inhabitants thereof. And behold, that great city Moroni have I caused to be sunk in the depths of the sea, and the inhabitants thereof to be drowned. And behold, that great city Moronihah have I covered with Earth, and the inhabitants thereof, to hide their iniquities and their abominations from before my face, that the blood of the prophets and the saints shall not come any more unto me against them. And behold, the city of Gilgal have I caused to be sunk, and the inhabitants thereof to be buried up in the depths of the Earth; yea, and the city of Onihah and the inhabitants thereof, and the city of Mocum and the inhabitants thereof, and the city of Jerusalem and the inhabitants thereof. #RandolphHarris 16 of 22
“And water have I caused to come up in the stead thereof, to hide their wickedness and abomination from before my face, that the blood of the prophets and the saints shall not come up any more unto me against them. And behold, the city of Ganiandi, and the city of Gadiomnah, and the city of Gimgimno, all these have I caused to be sunk, and made hills and valleys in the places thereof; and the inhabitants thereof have I buried up in the depths of the Earth, to hide their wickedness and abominations from before my face, that the blood of the prophets and the saints should not come up any more unto me against them. And behold, that great city Jacobugath, which was inhabited by the people of the king Jacob, have I caused to be burned with fire because of their sins and their wickedness, which was above all the wickedness of the whole Earth, because of their secret murders and combinations; for it was they that did destroy the peace of my people and the government of the land; therefore I did cause them to be burned, to destroy them from before my face, that the blood of the prophets and the saints should not come up uno me any more against them. #RandolphHarris 17 of 22
“And behold, the city of Laman, and the city of Josh, and the city of Gad, and the city of Kishkumen, have I caused to be burned with fire, and the inhabitants thereof, because of their wickedness in casting out the prophets, and stoning those whom I did send to declare unto them concerning their wickedness and their abominations. And because they did cast them all out, that there were none righteous among them, I did send down fire and destroy them, that their wickedness and abomination might be hid from before my face, that the blood of the prophets and the saints whom I sent among them might not cry unto me from the ground against them. And many great destructions have I caused to come upon this land, and upon this people, because of their wickedness and their abominations. O all ye that are spared because ye were more righteous than they, will ye not now return unto me, and repent of your sins, and be converted, that I may heal you? Yea, verily I say unto you, if ye will come unto me ye shall have enteral life. Behold, mine arm of mercy is extended towards you, and whosoever will come, one will I receive; and blessed are those who come unto me. #RandolphHarris 18 of 22
“Behold, I am Jesus Christ the Son of God. I created the Heavens and the Earth, and all things that in the are. I was with the Father from the beginning. I am in the Father, and the Father in me; and in me hath the Father glorified His name. I came unto my own, and my own received me not. And the scriptures concerning my coming are fulfilled. And as many as have received me, to them have I given to become the sons of God; and even so will I to as many as shall believe on my name, for behold, by me redemption cometh, and in me is the law of Moses fulfilled. I am the light and the life of the World. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. And ye shall offer up unto me no more the shedding of blood; yea, your sacrifices and your burnt offerings shall be done away, for I will accept none of your sacrifices and your burnt offerings. And ye shall offer for a sacrifice unto me a broken heart and a contrite spirit. And whoso cometh unto me with a broken heart and a contrite spirit, one will I baptize with fire and with the Holy Ghost, even as the Lamanites, because of their faith in me at the time of their conversion, were baptized with fire and with the Holy Ghost, and they knew it not. Behold, I have come unto the World to bring redemption unto the World, to save the World from sin. #RandolphHarris 19 of 22
“Therefore, whoso repenteth and cometh unto me as a little child, one will I receive, for of such is the kingdom of God. Behold, for such I have laid down my life, and have taken it up again; therefore repent, and come unto me ye ends of the Earth, and be saved,” reports 3 Nephi 9.1-22. Some critics reject the idea of Grace and declare its impossibility in a World governed by strict cause and effect. The meaning of the word suggests something or anything of an immaterial moral or material nature. That is given to humans. Why should not the Master who has attained a higher strength wisdom and moral character than that which is common to the human race, give assistance freely out of one’s beneficent compassion for others struggling to climb the peak one has surmounted? One certainly cannot transmit one’s own inner life to another person in its fullness. However, one can receptive, sensitive, and in inward affinity with one. If this too is denied then let the objector explain why both the feeling of and the sense of the Master’s presence pervade the disciple’s existence for many years after one’s initiation, if not the rest of one’s life. The master, by process of telepathic transfer, enables the disciple to get a glimpse of what the realization of one’s own spiritual possibilities can lead to. #RandolphHarris 20 of 22
The pupil who has been allowed to sit in deep conversational prayer with God should be able to carry on with this impetus, even though it happened only once. It is really an initiation. During this intercession, the disciple may actually feel a stream of power flowing out to one from the master, but it is not essential that one do so. What the master reflects and radiates into the disciple’s deeper mind at this sitting, will necessarily incubate for a period of time which may be measurable in minutes, days, months, or even years. No one can predict how long it will be, for not only are the disciple’s readiness, capacity, and affinity determining factors but also one’s destiny. Nor can anyone predict whether the result will appear slowly, gently, little by little, or suddenly, with violent jolting force. The master is forever after present in the disciple’s heart, whether the disciple see one again or not. From the hour of this initiation the master will be much in one’s thoughts and the sense of affinity will be often in one’s heart. The experience which the candidate has at the initiatory intercession with the master is often (but not always) a herald and token of one’s possibilities of later attainment under this particular master. One must work harder than ever on one’s character and, by crushing one’s ego, sensitize one’s mind for the reception of the spiritual Grace that is to come during initiation. #RandolphHarris 21 of 22
It seems as if the Master has come into one’s consciousness and thereby changed its quality and area. If the change is necessarily for a brief while only, it is still a memorable one. Father of All, Father of All: as I go through the day, keep my eyes open wide. May I not miss beauty. May I not miss joy. May I not miss wonder. Please keep me away and aware of the World. Thou hast made known unto us, O Lord our God, Thy righteous judgments, and hast taught us to perform Thy statutes. Thou hast given us, O Lord our God, ordinances that are just and true, statutes and commandments that are good. Thou hast enriched our lives with joyous seasons and holy days and festivals to bring free will offerings, giving us as a sacred possession the Sabbath Day and Holy Days, and the joyous delight of the Three Festivals. Thou hast made distinction, O Lord our God, between the sacred and the secular, between light and darkness, between Israel and the heathens, between the seventh day of rest and the six days of work. Thou hast set a distinction between the higher sanctity of the Sabbath and the lesser sanctity of the Festival, and hast hallowed the seventh day above the six days of work. Thus hast Thou distinguished and sanctified Thy people Israel through Thy holiness. #RandolphHarris 22 of 22
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No Special Privileges are to be Given to those Exactly Six Feet Tall or Born on a Sunny Day!
Mind is like an ocean. The surface layers of the mind function actively while the deeper levels remain silent. We assume that persons in the original position, which is designed to be a fair and impartial point of view that is to be adopted in our reasoning about fundamental principles of justice, are rational. In choosing between principles each tries as best one can to advance one’s interests. However, we also have assumed that the parties do not know their conception of good. This means that while they know that they have some rational plan of life, they do not know the details of this plan, the particular ends and interests which it is calculated to promote. How, then, can they decide which conceptions of justice are most to their advantage? Or must we suppose that they are reduced to mere guessing? People assume that they would prefer more primary social goods rather than less. Primary social goods generally include rights, liberties, opportunities, income, and wealth. Of course, it may turn out, once the veil of ignorance is removed, that some of them for religious or other reasons may not, in fact, want more of these goods. The veil of ignorance is a method of determining the morality of issues. #RandolphHarris 1 of 25
The veil of ignorance asks a decision-maker to make a choice about social or moral issues and assumes that they have enough information to know the consequences of their possible decisions for everyone but would not know, or would not take into account, which person they are. The theory contents that not knowing one’s ultimate position in society would lead to the creation of a just system, as the decision-maker would not want to make decisions which benefit a certain group as the expense of another, because the decision-maker could theoretically end up in either group. However, from the standpoint of the original position, it is rational for the parties to suppose that they do want a larger share, since in any case they are not compelled to accept more if they do not wish to, nor does a person suffer from a greater liberty. Thus even though the parties are deprived of information about their particular ends, they have enough knowledge to rank the alternatives. They know that in general they must try to protect their liberties, widen their opportunities, and enlarge their means for promoting their aims whatever these are. Guided by the theory of the good and the general facts of moral psychology, their deliberations are no longer guesswork. #RandolphHarris 2 of 25
The primary goods are the all-purpose social means that are necessary to the exercise and development of the moral powers and to pursue a wide variety of conceptions of the good. Justice is a good-for the just person in a just society and life in a just society is good. Therefore, the theory of good states that any rational person should want, whatever one’s rational plan of life is. Rational people can make a rational decision in the ordinary sense. The concept of rationality invoked here, with the exception of one essential feature, is the stand one familiar in social theory. Thus in the usual way, a rational person is thought to have a coherent set of preferences between the options open to one. One ranks these options according to how well they further one’s purposes; one follows the plan which will satisfy more of one’s desires rather than less, and which has the greater chance of being successfully executed. The special assumption made here is that a rational individual does not suffer from envy. If only others have less as well, one is not ready to accept a loss for oneself. #RandolphHarris 3 of 25
One is not downcast by the knowledge or perception that others have a larger index of primary social goods. Or at least this is true as long as he differences between oneself and others do not exceed certain limits, and one does not believe that the existing inequalities are founded on injustice or are the result of letting chance work itself out for no compensating social purpose. The assumption that the parties are not moved by envy raises certain questions. Perhaps we should also assume that they are not liable to various other feelings such as shame and humiliation. Now a satisfactory account of justice will eventually have to deal with these matters, too, but for the present I shall leave these complications aside. Another objection to our procedure is that it is too unrealistic. Certainly humans are afflicted with these feelings. How can a conception of justice ignore this fact? I shall meet this problem by diving the argument for the principles of justice into two parts. In the first part, the principles are derived on the supposition that envy does not exist; while in the second, we consider whether the conception arrived at is feasible in view of the circumstances of human life. One reason for this procedure is that envy tends to make everyone worse off. #RandolphHarris 4 of 25
In this sense envy is collectively disadvantageous because of the tendency it has to make condition acrimonious. Presuming its absence amounts to supposing that in the choice of principles humans should think of themselves as having their own plan of life which is sufficient for itself. They have a secure sense of their own worthy so that they have no desire to abandon any of their aims provided others have less means to further theirs. I shall work out a conception of justice on this stipulation to see what happens. Later I shall try to show that when the principles adopted are put into practice, they lead to social arrangements in which envy and other destructive feelings are not likely to be strong. The conception of justice eliminated the conditions that give rise to disruptive attitudes. It is, therefore, inherently stable. The assumption of mutually disinterested rationality, then, comes to this: the persons in the original position try to acknowledge principles which advance their system of ends as far as possible. They do this by attempting to win for themselves the highest index of primary social goods, since this enables them to promote their conception of the good most effectively whatever it turns out to be. #RandolphHarris 5 of 25
The parties do not seek to confer benefits or to impose injuries on one another; they are not moved by affection or rancor. Nor do they try to gain relative to each other; they are not envious or vain. Put in terms of a game, we might say: they strive for as high an absolute score as possible. They do not wish a high or a low score for their opponents, nor do they seek to maximize or minimize the difference between their success and those of others. The idea of a game does not really apply, since the parties are not concerned to win but to get as many points as possible judged by their own system of ends. There is one further assumption to guarantee strict compliance. The parties are presumed to be capable of a sense of justice and this fact is public knowledge among them. This condition is to insure the integrity of the agreement made in the original position. It odes mean that in their deliberations the parties apply some particular conception of justice, for this would defeat the point of the motivation assumption. Rather, it means that the parties can rely on each other to understand and to act in accordance with whatever principles are finally agreed to. #RandolphHarris 6 of 25
Once principles are acknowledged the parties can depend on one another to conform to them. In reaching an agreement, then, they know that their undertaking is not in vain: their capacity for a sense of justice insures that the principles chosen will be respected. It is essential to observe, however, that this assumption still permits the consideration of human’s capacity to act on the various conception of justice. The general facts of human psychology and the principles of moral learning are relevant matters for the parties to examine. If a conception of justice is unlikely to generate it own support, or lacks stability, this fact must not be overlooked. For then a different conception of justice might be preferred. The assumption only says that the parties have a capacity for justice in a purely formal sense: taking everything relevant into account, including the general facts of moral psychology, the parties will adhere to the principles eventually chosen. They are rational in that they will not enter into agreements they know they cannot keep, or can do so only with great difficulty. Along with other considerations, they count the strains of commitment. #RandolphHarris 7 of 25
Thus in assessing conceptions of justice the persons in the original position are to assume that the one they adopt will be strictly complied with. The consequences of the agreement are to be worked out on this basis. With the preceding remarks about rationality and motivation of the parties the description of the original position is for the most part complete. We can summarize this description with the following list of elements of the initial situation and their variation. (The asterisks mark the interpretations that constitute the original position.) 1. The Nature of the Parities: *a. continuing persons (family heads, or genetic lines), b. single individuals, c. associations (states, churches, or other corporate bodies). 2. Subject of Justice: *a. basic structure of society, b. rules of corporate associations, c. law of nations. 3. Presentation of Alternatives: *a. shorter (or longer) list, b. general characterization of the possibilities. 4. Time of Entry: *a. any time (during age of reason) for living persons, b. all actual persons (those alive at some time) simultaneously, c. all possible persons simultaneously. 5. Circumstances of Justice: *a Hume’s conditions of moderate scarcity, b. the above plus further extremes. 6. Formal conditions on Principles: *a. generality, universality, publicity, ordering, and finality, b. the above less publicity, say. #RandolphHarris 8 of 25
7. Knowledge and Beliefs: *a. veil of ignorance, b. full information, c. partial knowledge. 8. Motivation of the Parties: *a. mutual disinterestedness (limited altruism), b. elements of social solidarity and good will, c. perfect altruism. 9. Rationality: *a. taking effective means to ends wit unified expectations and objective interpretation of probability, b. as above but without unified expectation and using the principle of insufficient reason. 10. Agreement Condition: *a. unanimity in perpetuity, b. majority acceptance, or whatever, for limited period. 11. Compliance Condition: *a. strict compliance, b. partial compliance in various degree. 12. No Agreement Point: *a. general egoism, b. the state of nature. We can turn now to the choice of principles. However, first I shall mention a few misunderstandings to be avoided. First of all, we must keep in mind that the parties in the original position are theoretically defined individuals. The grounds for their consent are set out by the description of the contractual situation and the preference for primacy goods. Thus to say that the principles of justice would be adopted is to say how these persons would decide being moved in ways our account describes. #RandolphHarris 9 of 25
Of course, when we try to conduct ourselves in moral argument as its constraints require, we will presumably find that our deliberations and judgments are influenced by our special inclinations and attitudes. Surely it will prove difficult to correct for our various preopensites and aversions in striving to adhere to the conditions of this idealized situation. However, none of the affects the contention that in the original position rational persons so characterized would make a certain decision. This proposition belongs to the theory of justice. It is another question how well human beings can assume this role in regulating their practical reasoning. Since the persons in the original position are assumed to take no interest in one another’s interests (although they may have a concern for third parties), it may be thought that justice as fairness is itself an egotistic theory. It is not, of course, one of the three forms of egoism mentioned earlier, but some may think, as Schopenhauer thought of Kant’s doctrine, that it is the egoistic nevertheless. Now this is a misconception. For the fact that in the original position the parties are characterized as not interested in one another’s concerns does not entail that persons in ordinary life who hold the principles that would be agreed to are similarly disinterested in one another. #RandolphHarris 10 of 25
Clearly the two principles of justice and the principles of obligation and natural duty require us to consider the rights and claims of others. And the sense of justice is a normally effective desire to comply with these restrictions. The motivation of the persons in the original position must not be confused wit the motivation of persons in everyday life who accept the principles that would be chosen and who have the corresponding sense of justice. In practical affairs an individual does have a knowledge of one’s situation and one can, if one wises, exploit contingencies to one’s advantage. Should one’s sense of justice move one to act on the principles of right that would be adopted in the original position, one’s desires and aims are surely not egoistic. One voluntarily takes on the limitations expressed by this interpretation of the moral point of view. This conclusion is supported by a further reflection. Once we consider the idea of a contract theory it is tempting to think that it will not yield the principles we want unless the parties are to some degree at least moved by benevolence, or an interest in one another’s interests. Perry, as I mentioned before, thinks of the right standards and decisions as those promoting the ends reached by reflective agreement under circumstances making for impartiality and good will. #RandolphHarris 11 of 25
Now the combination of mutual disinterest and the veil of ignorance achieves the same purpose as benevolence. For this combination of conditions forces each person in the original position to take the good of others into account. In justice as fairness, then, the effects of good will are brought about by several conditions working jointly. The feeling that this conception of justice is egoistic is an illusion fostered by looking at but one of the elements of the original position. Furthermore, this pair of assumptions has enormous advantages over that of benevolence plus knowledge. As I have noted, the latter is so complex that no definite theory at all can be worked out. Not only are the complications caused by so much information insurmountable, but the motivational assumption requires clarification. For example, what is the relative strength of benevolent desires? The combination of mutual disinterestedness plus the veil of ignorance has the merits of simplicity and clarity while at the same time insuring the effects of what are at first sight morally more attractive assumptions. #RandolphHarris 12 of 25
And if it is asked why one should not postulate benevolence with the veil of ignorance, the answer is that there is no need for so strong a condition. Moreover, I would defeat the purpose of grounding the theory of justice on weak stipulation, as well as being incongruous with the circumstances of justice. Finally, if the parties are conceived as themselves making proposals, they have n incentive to suggest pointless or arbitrary principles. For example, none would urge that special privileges be given to those exactly six feet talk or born on a sunny day. Nor would any one put forward the principle that basic rights should depend on the colour of one’s skin or the texture of one’s hair. No one can tell whether such principles would be to one’s advantage. Furthermore, each such principle is a limitation of one’s liberty of action, and such restrictions are not to be accepted without a reason. Certainly we might imagine peculiar circumstances in which these characteristics are relevant. Those born on a sunny day might be blessed with a happy temperament, and for some position of authority this might be a qualifying attribute. However, such distinctions would never be proposed in first principles, for these must have some rational connection with the advancement of human interests broadly defined. #RandolphHarris 13 of 25
The rationality of the parities and their situation in the original position guarantees that ethical principles and conceptions of justice have this general content. Inevitably, then, racial and gender discrimination presupposes that some hold a favoured place in the social system which they are willing to exploit to their advantage. From the standpoint of persons similarly situated in an initial situation which is fair, the principles of explicit racist doctrines are not only unjust. They are irrational. For this reason we could say that they are not moral conceptions at all, but simply means of suppression. They have no place on a reasonable list of traditional conceptions of justice. Of course, this contention is not all a matter of definition. It is rather a consequence of the conditions characterizing the original position, especially the condition of the rationality of the parities and the veil of ignorance. That conceptions of right have a certain content and exclude arbitrary and pointless principles is, therefore, an inference from the theory. The way of discipleship means that there is to be constant endeavour to live in the master’s mental atmosphere. Of course this can be done very feebly and only occasionally at first. Success depends not only on the pressure of perseverance but also on the sensitivity to thought-transference. #RandolphHarris 14 of 25
The aspirant who comes into the presence of someone who functions on a high moral and spiritual or philosophical level—and feels the attraction, charm, spell, influence, or force of one’s personality—can, after a sufficient time or association, be stimulated in development quite markedly. It is the case not only of benefiting by the other human’s words and copying one’s example, but also of directly experiencing the telepathic working of mind upon mind. If they believe in the genuineness and reality of telepathy—as they must if they believe philosophy at all—then they must accept our declaration that inner communion renders unnecessary the outer communion, that the sense of inner presence of the guide renders unnecessary one’s letters, visits, and other external signs. We know hat the mind can both project and receive thoughts. Telepathy becomes more and more a scientifically recognized fact. Where affinity harmony and preparation exist, the spiritual guide can project calming, uplifting, and spiritualizing mental waves to the spiritual aspirant. The silent wordless and unprepared hypnosis of a subject is factual pointer to the understanding of the silent wordless and telepathic influence of a disciple by one’s guide. #RandolphHarris 15 of 25
As the power of suggestion becomes dynamic in the hypnotist, so its higher octave, the power of grace, becomes dynamic in the spiritual guide. The mental waves can be transmitted from master to disciple, that spiritual peace can be reflected from the mind of one to the mind of the other, is not merely a new theory but really an old practice. It has been known and done in the Old World for thousands of years. The master’s work is carried on by word-of-mouth, by written statement, and by personal example. However, it cannot end with these methods, for they are all external ones. So it is continued by telepathic impulses, by inspirational impact, and by mental osmosis. These are internal ones. Such communication between the teacher and student might be called “Telementation.” Now I no longer believe that there are dimensions of personality that exist “in-themselves.” Id, ego, super-ego; self-concept, self-ideal, public selves; traits; derives and needs—these are the terms in which we have long thought of and described “personality”: “This individual is highly authoritarian or egalitarian; one has a strong ego or a weak one; one’s Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI is the most widely used and researched clinical assessment tool used by mental health professionals to help diagnose mental health disorders) scores are thus and such, et cetera.” #RandolphHaris 16 of 25
This way of conceptualizing a person, whether as a whole or just some part of one, is no longer relevant or valid for me. After having tried out psychoanalytic, trait-theory, self-theory, and other kinds of theoretical models of humans, I have opted for a model that is no model or is a meta-model. It is one implicit in the philosophical tradition of existential phenomenology. According to this perspective, humans are the being that in one’s being, one being is in question. One’s being is inextricably linked with the World one experiences as real. Other people are part of this World. The being one discloses, shows to me, when I am in one mode of my being—impersonality, formality, and distant, reserved, playing the role of hard-nosed scientist—is different from the being one will show me when I am with one in the mode of invitational dialogue. One’s experience of one’s being and the being that one disclosed will differ with the context. One’s being-for-me will differ from one’s-being-for-oneself, one’s being-for-one’s bird, one’s teacher, one’s mother, the experimenter who studies one, and the guru whose help one may seek to transcend one’s personality traits or structure. There is a problem here: to dimensionalize and discover hierarchy here, a hierarchy of being. I suspect it is measurable objectively and subjectively in terms of “degrees of freedom.” #RandolphHarr is 17 of 25
That is, a person may experience one’s being-for-one’s-bird as a freer, more authentic and expressive being than one’s being-for-one’s boss, or one’s spouse. A person chooses all modes and manifestations of one’s being. One cannot choose the initial impact on one’s experiential field of a shout, a blow, a promise, a sunset, a caress—all these things just affect one. However, one can effect various actions upon one’s experience once it has happened. One can blot it out, reconstrue it, project it, distort it, try to preserve it, or let it flow. One’s personality-for-others and one’s personality-for-oneself can embody a resolve to confine one’s experience and action to the limits of a procrustean mold. One can regard one’s experience as being without value and importance or as rich in value. If so, one is impersonating a robot; and one may experience oneself as such. A person can choose what of one’s experience one will disclose in words our behaviour (behaviour is meaningful disclosure too) to whoever is nearby. Indeed, we have begun to explore what one chooses to disclose to others, in words, behavior, or even in physiological messages; under what conditions; and to which others. #RandolphHarris 18 of 25
In light of this research, I now suspect and challenge the validity (or at least generalizability) of all published psychology, including the psychology of human learning and of human personality. I suspect their validity, because the original data (which after all are disclosures) may have been gathered under conditions in which the person being studied neither knew nor trusted the experimenter to whom one showed one’s learning or traits. The experimenter does not know what experience of the subjects is embodied in the subjects’ behaviour. What the psychological scientist calls “data” is actually one mode in which the subjects disclose part of their being. There is a growing body of empirical data now to confirm the assertion that a person’s being for psychologist A may differ from one’s being for psychologist B. Perhaps we should subtitle each report of research: “S’s disclosure of learning, of traits, et cetera, for Dr. So-and-So.” In what follows, we shall actually be talking more about interpersonal conditions of independent learning, then about personality factors. The capacity to “go out of one’s mind” (to transcend one’s personality) seems to be one of the necessary conditions for independent learning, for learning-for-oneself. #RandolphHarris 19 of 25
And so we are interested in who is able to invite a person out of one’s mind: who are the “psychedelic people,” and who is willing to accept the invitation? There may be a stable trait that could be isolated, that we might call “transcendence-readiness,” or “readiness to leave one’s personality.” Perhaps it persists in people, beyond childhood, through failures on the part of the commissars to get the child fully socialized. This is referred to as resistance to enculturation as one of the general traits of self-actualizing subjects, in whom peak experiences are not a rare occurrence. The peak experience, of course, entails a leaving of one’s mind, one’s usual personality. “Now behold, I will show unto you that they did not establish a king over the land; but in this same year, yea, the thirtieth year, they did destroy upon the judgment-seat, yea, did murder the chief judge of the land. And the people were divided one against another; and they did separate one from another into tribes, every human according to one’s family and one’s kindred and friends; and thus they did destroy the government of the land. And every tribe did appoint a chief or a leader over them; and thus they became tribes and leaders of tribes. Now behold, there was no man among them save he had much family and many kindreds and friends; therefore their tribes became exceedingly great. #RandolphHarris 20 of 25
“Now all this was done, and there were no wars as yet among them; and all this iniquity had come upon the people because they did yield themselves unto the power of Satan. And the regulations of the government were destroyed, because of the secret combination of friends and kindreds of those who murdered the prophets. Ans they did cause a great contention in the land, insomuch that the more righteous part of the people had nearly become wicked; yea, there were but a few righteous humans among them. And thus six years had not passed away since the more part of the people had turned from their righteousness, like the dog to his vomit, or like the sow to her wallowing in the mire. Now this secret combination, which had brought so great iniquity upon the people, did gather themselves together, and did place at their head a man whom they did call Jacob; and they did call him their king; therefore he became a king over this wicked band; and he was one of the chiefest who has given his voice against the prophets who testified of Jesus. And it came to pass that they were not so strong in number as the tribes of the people, who were untied together save it were their leaders did establish their laws, every one according to one’s tribe. #RandolphHarris 21 of 25
“Nevertheless they were enemies; notwithstanding they were not a righteous people, yet they were united in the hated of those who had entered into a covenant to destroy the government. Therefore, Jacob seeing that their enemies were re numerous than they, he being the kind of the band, therefore he commanded his people that they should take their light into the northernmost part of the land, and there build up unto themselves a kingdom, until they were joined by dissenters, (for he flattered them that there would be many dissenters) and they become sufficiently strong to content with the tribes of the people’ and they did so. And so speedy was their march that it could not be impeded until they have gone forth out of the reach of the people. And thus ended the thirtieth year; and thus were the affairs of the people Nephi. And it came to pass in the thirty and first year that there were divided into tribes, every human according to one’s family, kindred and friends; nevertheless they had come to an agreement that they would not go to war one with another; but they were not untied as to their laws, and their manner of government, for they were established according to the minds of those who were their chiefs and their leaders. #RandolphHarris 22 of 25
“However, they did establish very strict laws that one tribe should not trespass against another, insomuch that in some degree they had peace in the land; nevertheless, their hearts were turned from the Lord their God, and they did stone the prophets and did cast them out from among them. And it came to pass that Nephi—having been visited by Angels and also the voice of the Lord, therefore having seen Angels, and being eye-witness, and having had power given unto him that he might know concerning the ministry of Christ, and also being eye-witness to their quick return from righteousness unto their wickedness and abominations; therefore, being grieved from the hardness of their hearts and the blindness of their minds—went forth among them in that same year, and began to testify, boldly, repentance, and remission of sins through faith on the Lord Jesus Christ. And he did minister many things unto them; and all of them cannot be written, and a part of them would not suffice, therefore they are not written in this book. And Nephi did minister with power and with great authority. And it came to pass that they were angry with him, even because he had great power than they, for it were not possible that they could disbelieve his words, for so great was his faith on the Lord Jesus Christ that Angels did minister unto him daily. #RandolphHarris 23 of 25
“And in the name of Jesus did he cast out devils and unclean spirits; and even his brother did he raise from the dead, after he had been stoned and suffered death by the people. And the people saw it, and did witness of it, and were angry with him because of his power; and he did also do many more miracles, in the sight of the people, in the name of Jesus. And it came to pass that the thirty and first year did pass away, and there were but a few who were converted unto the Lord; but as many as were converted did truly signify unto the people that they had been visited by the power and Spirit of God, which was in Jesus Christ, in whom they believed. And as many as had devils cast out from them, and were healed of their sickness and their infirmities, did truly manifest unto the people that they had been wrought upon by the Spirit of God, and had been healed; and they did show forth signs also and did do some miracles among the people. Thus passed away the thirty and second year also. And Nephi did cry unto the people in the commencement of the thirty and third year; and he did preach unto them repentance and remission of sins. Now I would have you to remember also, that there were none who were brought unto repentance were not baptized with water. #RandolphHarris 24 of 25
“Therefore, there were ordained of Nephi, men unto this ministry that all such as should come unto them should be baptized with water, and this as a witness and a testimony before God, and unto the people, that they had repented and received a remission of their sins. And there were many in the commencement of this year that were baptized unto repentance; and thus the more part of the year did pass away,” reports 3 Nephi 7.1-26. Hail to You, God, as you rise the Sun in the East, scattering before You the terrors of the night as a shark among fish. No mere shark you are, though: a young Divine Being, roaring through the sky, blazing eagerly int the tasks of the day. Enshrine me, young Lord; suit me for the task ahead. O Lord, open Thou my lips and my mouth shall declare Thy praise. Praised art Thou, O Lord our God and Gd of our fathers, God of Abraham, God of Isaac, and God of Jacob, mighty, revered and exalted God. Thou bestowest lovingkindness and possesses all things. Mindful of the patriarchs’ love for Thee, Thou wilt in Thy love bring a redeemer to their children’s children for the sake of Thy name. O King, Thou Helper, Redeemer and Shield, be Thou praised, O Lord, Shield of Abraham. Thou, O Lord, art mighty forever. Thou callest the dead to immortal life for Thou art mighty in deliverance. #RandolphHarris 25 of 25
Cresleigh Homes
You do not need to glance at that yin-yang painting to know that this #BrightonStation Residence 2 features harmonious, feel-good designs. 😍
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Charming style and well-designed, contemporary touches, with some traditional appeal, all beautifully illuminated by large window displays. The gourmet, well-equipped kitchen features a center island with breakfast bar for casual dining, ample counter and cabinet space, and a convenient butler’s pantry, and spacious walk-in pantry.
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The Learner Has the Need and the Capacity to Assume Responsibility for One’s Own Continuing Learning!
The system has not failed—but some of us have failed the system. Do not become the problems instead of the solution to the problem. Recent insights from the behavioral sciences have expanded our conceptions of human potential through a re-casting of the image of the human—from passive, reactive recipient to an active, seeking, autonomous, and reflective being. What are the implications of this impelling new image for our concern with human the learner? Educators are giving increased attention to implementing in practice the recognition that the learner has both the capacity and the need to assume responsibility for one’s continuing learning. However, the real question is here is what do humans learn and for whom? Learning is not a task; it is a way to be in the World. Humans learn as they purse their goals and projects that have meaning for them. Humans are always learning something. Perhaps the key to the problem of independent learning lies in the phrase, “The learner has the need and the capacity to assume responsibility for one’s own continuing learning.” That is one phrase that will help wide unclasp the table of their thoughts. These same thoughts—people, the little World. #RandolphHarris 1 of 22
It may well be that those who train young people in the ways of their group (a most necessary task) have overshot the mark; they have trained youngster to believe that they cannot, dare not, learn anything without a trainer close at hand. The only safe and good learning is learning-for-the trainer. And the youngsters, being human, independently learned something meaningful to them; namely, that it is dangerous or futile to become interested in something, to learn for oneself. It is only safe to learn for the teacher’s or for society’s approval. One set of image-molders, the teachers, have been commissioned by social leaders to shape youngsters to the acquiescent mode. They implement this commission by invalidating a child’s experience of spontaneous curiosity and fascination with aspects of the World. They insist one learn only when and what one is taught. One must learn for others. The teachers and parents have robbed children of their autonomy—their capacity to experience amazement, wonder, and fascination—by invalidating it whenever it appears. Then, they look at their product and find it wanting; they produced a Golem, a humanoid, a “dependent learning.” Now we are asked to breathe life into it. #RandolphHarris 2 of 22
We are caught on the horns of a dilemma. Children must be shown the ways of their group; they must be taught and trained. However, if they are to experience their lives as meaningful, and if the society in which they live is to grow and change, they must also be able to transcend this training and learn for themselves. The question is, how is it possible to reconcile the contradiction between teaching children for society and letting them learn for themselves, such that children can serve their society without a loss of freedom and capacity to go beyond what they have been taught? This is the same problem, write large, that every serious teacher—of piano, of art, of math, or English, of Science, of History, of woodshop, of psychotherapy, or even of teaching—faces: how can one teach a pupil in the fundamental techniques of this art without producing a mere technician? In any of these arts, we wish the learner to commit oneself, to be willing to struggle for objectives beyond mastery of exercises and technique (learning experienced as “for-the-teacher”) and even beyond current goals. We hope one will week to make actual one’s own image (not one’s teacher’s image) of beautiful music, pictures, woodworks, healthy personalities, or independent learners. #RandolphHarris 3 of 22
If the teacher has been effective, one will have shown one’s pupil that techniques are no more than a beginner’s set of tools, to be used up to the point that an impasse is reached. Then, the trust scholar, the involved therapist, the committed teacher (committed to one’s own image of ultimate goals, not means), gropes and leaps into the unknown, exercising that courage that is not devoid of fear and trembling, to invent or discover new means to further one’s project of actualizing the image. If the old versions of the ultimate goals have lost meaning, the pupil will envision new embodiments of them. Your must play the teacher to yourself. One cannot tread the path for you: you must walk and work by your own effort. The mother cannot grow up on behalf of the child, no matter how greatly she loves it. The adept cannot do your growing-up for you. Nature’s laws must prevail. One has shown you the way; use your will to follow it. However, devote a little time each day to keeping open the channel of communication with your teacher and thus receive one’s impetus, one’s inspiration to help you. So although you must strive by your own use of free will, do not imagine that you need to strive unassisted. #RandolphHarris 4 of 22
Working along the line that the teacher found suitable for oneself, slavishly and artificially trying to produce a copy of one, will in the end not even produce that but a caricature instead. For only the teacher’s bodily acts will be imitated; one’s Spirit is invisible and therefore cannot be imitated. Why should anyone copy another’s artwork? Why should Whistler paint pictures in the same way that Gainsborough did? Whistler remained loyal to one’s own conceptions. Why then, going further, copy another’s lifestyle? We may honour a master’s inspirations but yet express our own in our individual way. It is true that followers have no right to burden the teacher with their personal problems, that they should learn bravely to shoulder their difficulties and not pass them on to one. Yet human nature is weak, the teacher kindly. What they may do without taxing one’s strength is to place the problem before one in prayer, thought, or meditation silently, and nor in letter or interview. If they will keep their distresses, troubles, or indecisions to themselves in this way, such reticence will not be to their loss. When an aspirant plagues a teacher too frequently or on too trivial matters, it is indeed a sign of neuroticism. Such conduct is quite suited to children but not to adults. #RandolphHarris 5 of 22
Every person must come to terms with who they are now. It reveals too egocentric a person, one who is unwilling to bring the stage of novice to an end because the dependence on another person is more comforting and much easier than endeavouring to settle one’s own little problems. One must learn to speak, move, and even experience the World in the given ways, those deemed right and sane where one lives. It is not easy. It takes a long time. The temptation to stary is strong. Commissars stand close, to insure each person conforms to one’s prescribed position and role. Once a human masters the rules of the social “games,” what then? One plays the games so long as they yield meaningful rewards and the rewards of meaning. Ultimately, the games become confining, boring, even strangling. The person may then wish to opt out, but one cannot—there re no other games to play. So one may become sick. Then, one is patched up by doctors who pronounce one healed, and they send one back into the game. If one seeks to transcend the given, for new realms of experience, one threatens the sleep of the unawakened. They condemn and invalidate one. So one gives up and becomes “normal,” or else seeks a richer experience in private, the while impersonating a typical person. #RandolphHarris 6 of 22
It should be made clear that dramatic and directive dominance are dramaturgical terms and that performers wo have positions of visible leadership are often merely figureheads, selected as a compromise, or as a way of neutralizing a potentially threatening position, or as a way of strategically concealing the power behind the front and hence the power behind the power behind the front. So also, whenever inexperienced or temporary incumbents are given formal authority over experienced subordinates, we often find that the formally empowered person is bribed with a part that has dramatic dominance while the subordinates tend to direct the show. Since we all participate on teams we must all carry within ourselves something of the sweet guilt of conspirators. And since each team is engaged in maintaining the stability of some definitions of the situation, concealing or playing down certain facts in order to do this, we can expect the performer to live out one’s conspiratorial career in some furtiveness. A basic problem for many performances, then, is that of information control; the audience must not acquire destructive information about the situation that is being defined for them. In other words, a term must be able to keep its secrets and have its secrets kept. #RandolphHarris 7 of 22
There are what are sometimes called “dark” secrets. These consist of facts about a team which it knows and conceals and which are incompatible with the image of self that the team attempts to maintain before its audience. Dark secrets are, of course, double secrets: one is the crucial fact that is hidden and another is the fact that crucial facts have not been openly admitted. There are also what might be called “strategic” secrets. These pertain to intentions and capacities of a team which it conceals from its audience in order to prevent them from adapting effectively to the state of affairs the team is planning to being about. Strategic secrets are the ones that businesses and armies employ in designing future actions against the opposition. So long as a team makes no pretense of being the sort of team that does not have strategic secrets, its strategic secrets need not be dark ones. Yet it is to be noted that even when the strategic secrets of a team are not dark ones, still the disclosure or discovery of such secrets disrupts the team’s performance, for suddenly and unexpectedly the team finds it useless and foolish to maintain the care, reticence, and studied ambiguity of action that was required prior to loss of its secrets. #RandolphHarris 8 of 22
It may be added that secrets that are merely strategic tend to be ones which the team eventually discloses, performance, when action based upon secret preparations is consummated, whereas an effort may be made to keep dark secrets secret forever. It may also be added that information is often held back not because of its known strategic importance but because it is felt that it may someday acquire such importance. Thirdly, there are what might be called “inside” secrets. These are ones whose possession marks an individual as being a member of a group and help the group feel separate and different from those individuals who are not in the know. Inside secrets give objective intellectual content to subjectively felt social distance. Almost all information in a social establishment has something of the exclusion function and may be seen as none of somebody’s business. Inside secrets may have little strategic importance and may not be very dark. When this is the case, such secrets may be discovered or accidentally disclosed without radically disrupting the team performance; the performance need only shift their secret delight to another matter. Of course, secret that are strategic and/or dark serve extremely well as inside secrets and we find, in fact, that the strategic and dark character of secrets is often exaggerated for this reason. #RandolphHarris 9 of 22
Interestingly enough, the leaders of a social group are sometimes faced with a dilemma regarding important strategic secrets. Those in the group who are not brought in on the secret will feel excluded and affronted when the secret finally comes to light; on the other hand, the greater the number of persons who are brought in on the secret, the greater the likelihood of intentional or unintentional disclosure. The knowledge that one team can have of another’s secrets provides us with two other types of secrets. First, there re what might be called “entrusted” secrets This is the kind which the possessor is obliged to keep because of one’s relation to the team to which the secret refers. If an individual who is entrusted with a secret is to be the person one claims one is, one must keep the secret, even thought it is not a secret about oneself. Thus, for example, when a lawyer discloses the improprieties of one’s clients, two quite different performances are threatened: the client’s show of innocence to the court, and the lawyer’s show of trustworthiness to one’s client. It may also be noted that a team’s strategic secrets, whether dark or not, are likely to be the entrusted secrets of the individual members of the team, for each member of the team is likely to present oneself to one’s teammates as someone who is loyal to them. #RandolphHarris 10 of 22
Since time immemorial, each society had secretly harbored “gurus.” These wise humans have been sought by sufferers, who may have been rich in goods but poor in spirit. The gurus have taught the seekers to let go their attachments in this World, the better to concentrate on spiritual purification. The intimated rewards have not been wealth, fame, or power; but rather enlightenment and liberation, an enriched, more meaningful experience of oneself and one’s World. The gurus have helped seekers attain liberation from entrapment in the culture. They have invited the experience and disclosure of individuality that had hitherto been concealed under the trappings of conformity to roles. The society that would not fall must locate and treasure its gurus, protect them, and not deny seekers access to them. The gurus and their ways are not for everyone. Gurus cannot be hired or bought; they can only be deserved! A society without gurus is stagnant, and will perish as did the dinosaurs, unable to change ways to cope with changing conditions. In the New World, I think we are experiencing an absence in our midst, an absence of gurus. We have myriad commissars, but no one to lead beyond their ways. #RandolphHarris 11 of 22
The commissars insure that everyone conforms to existing ways, to the image of humans that is current, that is synonymous with goodness and sanity. Commissars use bribery, guile, and threats of force to get people to follow their prescribed ways, the ways that keep the society and its existing power-structure intact. Who are the commissar? Most of our teacher are commissars. So are our parents. And law enforcement, judges, lawyers, congress, our psychiatrist and psychologist, and even our neighbours. Radio, TV, and the press function as commissars. All commissars collude with oner another to keep us wanting what we are supposed to want and doing what we are supposed to do. Conform, and be reward. However, we are discovering, we who have graduated from such institutes, that something is missing. The something was ourselves. Somewhere along the line, we have lost ourselves, our capacity to experience in new modes and qualities. If we are at all sensitive, we notice the absence and become concerned. We state to seek ourselves and our lost capacity for experiencing. I hope we find it. Our nation will sit stunned, the people having forgotten how to live for themselves, otherwise. #RandolphHarris 12 of 22
If we do not get in touch with reality, people will know only how to live for the system of things. An era will have ended. Then, it will be the turn of the Asiatics and Africans to follow the American Way, until they too reach the end of their tether. Finally, people of Marts will land on Earth and have their turn. When you lose yourself your own experiences and their meanings are being denied, and you are developing a self that is different from your real experience self, which may be becoming increasingly unknow to you. Because so many people accept other’s meanings as their own experience, they will come to distrust their own organismic experience. As one beings to distrust more and more of one’s own experience, one’s sense of self-worth will steadily decline until one has very little use for one’s own experience or one’s self. Of course things will be well for those you are trying to please. This pseudoself is just what they want. It is only within oneself, at some deep and unknown level, that there is a vague uneasiness. When a person denies awareness to all of one’s own experiencing—one will get to a pint where one no longer really has a self and is trying to be a self wanted by someone else. Next, rebellion happens. #RandolphHarris 13 of 22
One can only attribute this rebellion to the actualizing tendency that has been suppressed for so long but that finally asserts itself. However, often times, because one has distrusted one’s own experience for such a long period and because the self by which one is living is so sharply different from the experiences of one’s organism, one cannot reconstruct one’s true self without help. When there is such a great discrepancy, the need for help often exists. In contrast, however, when people have spent years and even decades trying to socially engineer you, and you do not adhere to their values, even though they do not know you, they will think you are acting weird because their sick and twisted and sadistic methods are not working on you. When people reclaim the value of their experience, they are the ones who decides what matters to them and how they want to live. The center of the valuing process, and the evidence is provided by one’s own sense. What is right for someone who is trying to indoctrinate and corrupt you, may not be what is right for you. One may have started off at a young age knowing the love of God and who one wants to be. Society may call a given experience bad, but when one trusts one’s own valuing of it, one will find that following the path to truth and the love of God is significant and worthwhile. #RandolphHarris 14 of 22
When denied experience comes close to awareness, anxiety always results because these previously unadmitted experiences will have meanings that will change the structure of the self by which one as been living. Any drastic change in the self-concept is always a threatening and frightening experience. One may be dimly aware of this threat even though one does not yet know what would emerge. When the denied experienced break through the dam, they turn out to be hurts and angers that one has been completely unaware of. It is impossible for people to realize how completely an experience can be shut out of awareness until it does break through into awareness. Every individual is able to shut out and deny those experiences that will endanger one’s self concept. When the self-concept is so sharply changed that parts of it are completely shattered, it is a very frightening experience, and it is accurate to feel like an alien has take over you. That is why the law allows for mental competence to be called into question when some people are accused of crimes, for they may have been manipulated since they were too young to think for themselves and unaware of what they are doing is wrong. #RandolphHarris 15 of 22
So, the system wants to give people who are victims of crimes, who have gone on to commit crimes, an opportunity for repentance and the chance to live a life as themselves, instead of being condemned for having been brainwashed. Some will realize that they are the alien because the submissive, malleable self by which they have been living, the self that has been guided by the statements, attitudes, and expectations of others, is no longer theirs. The new self that had seemed so alien is more than likely one that had experienced hurt and anger and feelings that society regards as bad, as well as wild hallucinatory thoughts—and love. As one goes further into self-discovery, it is likely that one will find out that some of one’s anger is directed against one’s parents. The hurts will have come from various sources; some of the feelings and experiences that society regards as bad but that one finds good and satisfying are experiences and feelings that probably have to do with pleasures of the flesh. Sometimes one has to let their experiences tell them what they mean instead of trying to impose a meaning on them. The more the individual’s self-concept is rooted in the spontaneously felt meanings of one’s experiencing, the more one is an integrated person. People who are learning to self-actualize will enjoy meet and making friend with their thoughts and feelings. #RandolphHarris 16 of 22
Here is the dawning of the self-respect and self-acceptance of which one has been deprived for so long. One will even feel an affection for oneself. One of the curious but common side effects of this change is that now one will be able to give oneself more freely to others, to enjoy others more, to be more genuinely interested in them. As one becomes more expressive of one’s love one can also be more expressive of one’s anger and hurt, one’s likes and dislikes, and one’s “wild” thoughts and feelings (which will turn out to be creative impulses). One is in the process of changing from psychological maladjustment to a much healthier relationship to others and to reality. There is a peaceful harmony in being a whole person, but one will be mistaken if one thinks this reaction is permanent. Instead, if one is really open to one’s experience, one will find other hidden aspects of oneself that one has denied to awareness, and each such discovery will give one uneasy and anxious moments or days until it is assimilated into a revised and changing picture of oneself. One will discover that growing toward a congruence between one’s experiencing organism and one’s concept of oneself is an exciting, sometime disturbing, but neverending adventure. #RandolphHarris 17 of 22
“And now behold, there was not a living soul among all the people of the Nephites who did doubt in the least the words of all the holy prophets who had spoken; for they knew that it must needs be that they must be fulfilled. And they knew that it must be expedient that Christ had come, because of the many signs which had been given, according to the words of the prophets; and because of the things which had come to pass already they knew that it must needs be that all things should come to pass according to that which had been spoken. Therefore they did forsake all their sins, and their abominations, and their whoredoms, and did sever God with all diligence day and night. And now it came to pass that when they had taken all the robbers prisoners, insomuch that none did escape wo were not slain, they did cast their prisoners into prison, and did cause the word of God to be preached unto them; ad as many as would repent of their sins and enter into a covenant that they would murder no more were set at liberty. However, as many as there were who did not enter into a covenant, and who did still continue to have those secret murders in their hearts, yea, as many as were found breathing out threatenings against their brethren were condemned and punished according to the law. #RandolphHarris 18 of 22
“And thus they did put an end to all those wicked, and secret, and abominable combinations, in the which there was so much wickedness, and so many murders committed. And thus had the twenty and second year passed away, and the twenty and third year also, and they twenty and forth, and the twenty and fifth; and thus had twenty and five years passed away. And these had many things transpired which, in the eyes of some, would be great and marvelous; nevertheless, they cannot all be written in this book; yea, this book cannot contain even a hundredth part of what was done among so many people in the space of twenty and five years; but behold there are records which do contain all the proceedings of this people; and a shorter but true account was given by Nephi. Therefore I have made my record of these things according to the record of Nephi, which was engraven on the plates which were called the plates of Nephi. And behold, I do make the record on plates which I have made with mine own hands. And behold, I am called Mormon, being called after the land of Mormon, the land in which Alma did establish the church among the people, yea, the first church which was established among them after their transgression. #RandolphHarris 19 of 22
“Behold, I am a disciple of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. I have been called of him to declare his work among his people, that they might have everlasting life. And it hath become expedient that I, according to the will of God, that the prayers of those who have gone hence, who were the holy ones, should be filled according to their faith, should make a record of these things which have been done—yea, a small record of that which hath taken place from the time that Lehi left Jerusalem, even down until the present time. Therefore I do make my record from the accounts which have been given by those who were before me, until the commencement of my day; and then I do make record of the things which I have seen with mine own eyes. And I know the record which I make to be a just and a true record; nevertheless here are many things which, according to our language, we are not able to write. And now I make an end of my saying, which is of myself, an proceed to give my account of the things which have been before me. I am Mormon, and a pure descendant of Lehi. I have reason to bless my God and my Saviour Jesus Christ, that he brought our fathers out of the land of Jerusalem, (and no one knew it save it were himself and those whom he brought out of that land) and that he hath given me and my people so much knowledge unto the salvation of our souls. #RandolphHarris 20 of 22
“Surely he hath blessed the house of Jacob, and hat been merciful unto the seed of Joseph. And insomuch as the children of Lehi have kept his commandments he hath blessed them and prospered them according to his word. Yea, and surely shall be again bring a remnant of the seed of Joseph to the knowledge of the Lord their God. And as surely as the Lord liveth, will he gather in from the four quarters of the Earth all the remnants of the seed of Jacob, who are scattered abroad upon all the face of the Earth. And as he hath covenanted with all the house of Jacob, even so shall the covenant wherewith he hath covenanted with the house of Jacob be fulfilled in one’s own due time, unto the restoring all the house of Jacob unto the knowledge of the covenant that he hath covenanted with them. And then shall they know their Redeemer, who is Jesus Christ, the Son of God; and then shall they be gathered in from the four quarters of the Earth unto their own lands, from whence they have been dispersed; yea, as the Lord liveth so shall it be. Amen,” reports 3 Nephi 5.1-26. We adore Thee, Blessed Jesus very God and very Man, the Same yesterday, and to-day, and for ever, our strong Salvation and our only Hope. #RandolphHarris 21 of 22
Please take us, we pray Thee, into Thy keeping, both now and at the hour of our death; please make us faithful to Thee upon Earth, and blessed with Thee in Heaven, where the Father, Who raises in glory the World, piercer of darkness, illuminates our path as we go through our days. God, pleased continue to illuminate or paths as we go through life. O God, Who hast brought us near to an innumerable company Angels, and to the spirits of just human made perfect; please grant us during our pilgrimage to abide in their fellowship, and in our Country to become partakers of their joy; through Jesus Christ our Lord. I pray Thee, good Lord Jesus, by the love which Thou hadst for him that lay on Thy heart, to make me thankful for all that Thou hast given men in this World and to bless this planet exceedingly abundantly, above all that I can ask or think. Please help us to love each other in Thee and for Thee, to be one in heart through all separations, and to talk as friends in the path of Thy service; and finally unite us for ever at Thy feet, where peace and love are perfect and immortal, and Thou with the Father Who is turning the World towards Him, as He has turned it since its very beginning, in infinite longing, in infinite love. And I, a child of Earth, take the Lord as my exemplar, and hold my heart out to Hum in the dawn. #RandolphHarris 22 of 22
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We Christians Must Never Forget that Our God is a God of Truth, Reason, and Logic!
Television had proved that people will look at anything rather than at each other. Principles of justice should be general. That is, it must be possible to formulate them without the use of what would be intuitively recognized as proper names, or rigged definite descriptions. Thus the predicates used in their statemen should express general properties and relations. Unfortunately deep philosophical difficulties seem to bar the way to a satisfactory account of these matters. In presenting a theory of justice one is entitled to avoid the problem of defining general properties and relations and to be guided by what seems reasonable. Further, since the parties have no specific information about themselves or their situation, they cannot identify themselves anyway. Even if a person could get others to agree, one does not know how to tailor principles to one’s advantage. The parties are effectively forced to stick to general principles, understanding the notion here in an intuitive fashion. The naturalness of this condition lies in part in the fact that first principles must be capable of serving as a public charter of a well ordered society in perpetuity. Being unconditional, they always hold (under the circumstances of justice), and the knowledge of them must be open to individuals in any generation. #RandolphHarris 1 of 25
Thus, to understand these principles should not require a knowledge of contingent particulars, and surely not a reference to individuals or associations. Traditionally the most obvious test of this condition is the idea that what is right is that which accords with God’s will. However, in fact this doctrine is normally supported by an argument from general principles. For example, Locke held that the fundamental principle of morals is the following: if one person is created by another (in the theological sense), then that person has a duty to comply with the precepts set to one by one’s creator. This principle is perfectly general and given the nature of the World on Locke’s view, it singles out God as the legitimate moral authority. The generality condition is not violated although it may appear so at first. Nest, principles are to be universal in application. They must hold for everyone in virtue of their being moral persons. Thus I assume that each can understand these principles and use them in one’s deliberations. This imposes an upper bound of sorts on how complex they can be, and on the kinds of number of distinctions they draw. Moreover, a principle is ruled out if it would be self-contradictory, or self-defeating, for everyone to act upon it. #RandolphHarris 2 of 25
Similarly, should a principle be reasonable to follow only when others conform to a different one, it is also inadmissible. Principles are to be chosen in view of the consequences of everyone’s complying with them. As defined, generality and universality are distinct conditions. For example, egoism in the form of first-person dictatorship (Everyone is to serve my—or Pericles’—interest) satisfies universality but not generality. While all could act in accordance with this principle, and the results might in some cases not be at all bad, depending on the interests of the dictator, the personal pronoun (or the name) violated the first condition. Again, general principles may not be universal. They may be framed to hold for a restricted class of individuals, for instance those singled out by special biological or social characteristics, such as hair colour or class situation, or whatever. To be sure in the course of their lives individuals acquire obligations and assume duties that are peculiar to them. Nevertheless, these various duties and obligations are the consequence of first principles that hold for all as moral persons; the derivation of these requirements as a common basis. #RandolphHarris 3 of 25
A third condition is that of publicity, which arises naturally from a contractarian standpoint. The parties assume that they are choosing principles for a public conception of justice. Public Right is the sum total of those laws which require to be made universally public in order to produce a state of right. No right in a state can be tacitly and treacherously included by a secret reservation, and least of all a right which the people claim to be a part of the constitution, for a laws within it must be thought of as arising out of public will. Thus if a constitution allowed rebellion, it would have to declare this right publicly and make clear how it might be implemented. This condition is to apply to a society’s conception of justice. It is suppose that everyone will know about these principles all that one would know if their acceptance were the result of an agreement. Thus the general awareness of their universal acceptance should have desirable effect and support the stability of social cooperation. The difference between this condition and that of universality is that the latter leads one to assess principles on the basis of their being intelligently and regularly followed by everyone. However, it is possible that all should understand and follow a principle and yet this fact not be widely known or explicitly recognized. #RandolphHarris 4 of 25
The point of the publicity condition is to have the parties evaluate conceptions of justice as publicly acknowledged and fully effective moral constitutions of social life. The publicity condition is clearly implicit in Kant’s doctrine of the categorical imperative insofar as it requires us to act in accordance with principles that one would be willing as a rational being to enact as laws for a kingdom of ends. He thought of this kingdom as an ethical commonwealth, as it were, which has such moral principles for its public charter. A further condition is that a conception of right must impose an ordering on conflicting claims. This requirement springs directly from the role of its principles in adjusting competing demands. There is a difficulty, however, in deciding what counts as an ordering. It is clearly desirable that a conception of justice be complete, that is, able to order all the claims that can arise (or that are likely to in practice). And the ordering should in general be transitive: if, say, a first arrangement of the basic structure is ranked more just than a second, and the second more than just a third, then the first should be more just than the third. These formal conditions are natural enough, though not always easy to satisfy. #RandolphHarris 5 of 25
However, is trial by combat a form of adjudication? After all, physical conflict and resort to arms result in an ordering; certain claims do win out over others. The main objection to this ordering is not that it may be intransitive. Rather, it is to avoid the appeal to force and cunning that the principles of right and justice are accepted. Thus I assumes that to each according to one’s threat advantage is not a conception of justice. It fails to establish an ordering in the required sense, an ordering based on certain relevant aspects of persons and their situation which are independent from the social position. For example, if it turns out that the fair division of playing time between Matthew and Luke depends on their preference, and these in turn are connected with the instruments they wish to play. Since Matthew has a threat advantage over Luke, arising from the fact that Matthew, the trumpeter, prefers both of them playing at once to neither of them playing, whereas Luke, the pianist, prefers silence to a cacophony, Matthew is allotted twenty-six evenings of play to Luke’s seventeen. If the situation were reversed, the threat advantage would be with Luke. However, we have only to suppose that Matthew is a jazz enthusiast who plays the drums, and Luke a violinist who plays sonatas, in which case it will be fair on this analysis for Matthew to play whenever and as often as he likes, assuming as it is plausible to assume that he does not care whether Luke plays or not. Clearly something has gone wrong. #RandolphHarris 6 of 25
What is lacking is a suitable definition of status quo that is acceptable from a moral point of view. We cannot take various contingencies as known and individual preferences as given and expect to elucidate the concept of justice (or fairness) by theories of bargaining. The conception of the original position is designed to meet the problem of the appropriate status quo. But this may be similarly defective from an ethical point of view. The fifth and last condition is that of finality. The parities are to assess the system of principles as the final court of appeal in practical reasoning. There are no higher standards to which arguments in support of claims can be addressed; reasoning successfully from these principles is conclusive. If we think in terms of the fully general theory which has principles for all the virtues, then such a theory specifies the totality of relevant considerations and their appropriate weights, and its requirements are decisive. They override the demands of law and custom, and of social rules generally. We are to arrange and respect social institutions as the principles of right and justice direct. Conclusions from these principles also override considerations of prudence and self-interest. This does no mean that these principles insist upon self-sacrifice; for in drawing up the conception of right the parties take their interests into account as best they can. #RandolphHarris 7 of 25
The claims of personal prudence are already given an appropriate weight within the full system of principles. The complete scheme is final in that when the course of practical reasoning it defines has reached its conclusion, the question is settled. The claims of existing social arrangements and of self-interest have been duly allowed for. We cannot at the end count them a second time because we do not like the result. Taken together, then, these conditions on conceptions of right come to this: a conception of right is a set of principles, generally in form and universal in application, that is to be publicly recognized as a final court appeal for ordering the conflicting claims of moral persons. Principles of justice are identified by their special five conditions exclude none of the traditional conceptions of justice. It should be noted, however, that they do rule out the listed variants of egoism. The generality condition eliminates both first-person dictatorship and the free-rider forms, since in each case a proper name, or pronoun, or a rigged definite description is needed, either to single out the dictator or to characterize the free-rider. Generality does not, however, exclude general egoism, for each person is allowed to do whatever, in one’s judgment, is most likely to further one’s own aims. #RandolphHarris 8 of 25
The principle here can clearly be expressed in perfectly general way. It is the ordering condition which renders general egoism inadmissible, for if everyone is authorized to advance one’s aims as one pleases, or if everyone ought to advance one’s own interests, competing claims are not ranked at all and the outcome is determined by force and cunning. The several kinds of egoism, then, do not appear on the list presented to the parties. They are eliminated by the formal constraints. Of course, this is not a surprising conclusion, since it is obvious that by choosing one of the other conceptions the persons in the original position can do much better for themselves. Once they ask which principles all should agree to, no form of egoism is a serious candidate for consideration in any case. This only confirms what we knew already, namely, that although egoism is logically consistent and in this sense not irrational, it is incompatible with wat we intuitively regard as the moral point of view. The significance of egoism philosophically is not as an alternative conception of right but as a challenge to any such conception. In justice as fairness this is reflected in the fact that we can interpret general egoism as the no-agreement. If the were unable to reach an understanding, it is what parties would be stuck with. #RandolphHarris 9 of 25
Artifice has so much got the upper hand that the fictitious dares to usurp the place of the real. The overvaluation of productivity that is afflicting our age has so thrived and its par-technical glance has set up a senseless exclusiveness of its own that even genuinely creative people allow their organic skills to degenerate into an autonomous growth to satisfy the demand of the day. What the born deceivers never had, they give up: the ground where the roots of a genuinely lived life alone can grow. They mean, they strive for, and at last they contain nothing but creativity. Instead of bringing forth a natural creation, in a gradual selective progression from experiences to thoughts, from thought to words, from words to themselves out turning all experience to account as public communication; they renounce true necessity and give themselves over to the arbitrary. They poison experience, for already while it is taking place they are dominated by the will to produce. Thus they prostitute their lives and are cheated of the reward for their ignominy; for how can they expect to create anything save the artificial and the transitory? They forfeit both life and art, and all that they gain is the applause of their production-mad contemporaries. However, it seems to me that the will to create is a legitimate part of the experience of every productive human. #RandolphHarris 10 of 25
Thus the painter is the person who paints with all one’s senses. One’s seeing is already a painting, for what one sees is not merely what one’s physical sight receives: it is something, two-dimensionally intensified, that vision produces. And this producing does not come later, but is present in one’s seeing. Even one’s hearing, one’s smelling, are already painting, for they enrich for one the graphic character of the thing; they give one not only sensations but also stimulations. In the same way the poet creates poetry with all one’s senses; in each of one’s experiences the form in which it will be phrased is immediately announced. One’s perceiving is already a transformation of the thing perceived into the stuff of poetry, and in its becoming each impression presents itself to one as an expression of rhythmic validity. That is need so. However, this dynamic element that you find in the experience of the creative is no will to create but an ability to create. This potentiality of form also accompanies every experience that befalls the non-artistic human and is given an issue as often as one lifts an image out of the stream of perception and inserts it into one’s memory as something single, definite, and meaningful in itself. For the creative human this potentiality of form is a specific one, directed into the language of one’s particular art. If an intention is expressed in this direction, it is that of one’s genius, not that of a self-conscious resolution. #RandolphHarris 11 of 25
The dynamic element of one’s experience does not affect is wholeness and purity. It is otherwise when in perceiving one already cherishes the deliberate intention of utilizing what one perceives. Then one disturbs the experience stunts its growth, and taints the process of its becoming. Only the unarbitrary can grow properly and bear mature and healthy fruit. That humans are legitimately creative who experiences so strongly and formatively that one’s experiences unite into an image that demands to be set forth, and who then works at one’s task with full consciousness of one’s art. However, one who interferes with spontaneity of perceiving, who does not allow the inner selection and formation to prevail, but instead inserts an aim from the beginning, has forfeited the meaning of this perception, the meaning that lies above all aims. And one who meets humans with a double glance, an open one that invites one that invites one’s fellows to sincerity and the concealed one of the observer stemming from a conscious aim; one who is friendship and in love is cleft into two humans, one who surrenders oneself to one’s feelings and another who is already standing by to exploit them—this individual cannot be delivered by any creative talent from the blight that one has brought upon oneself and one’s work, for one has poisoned the springs of one’s life. #RandolphHarris 12 of 25
You wish, then, to reintroduce int aesthetics the ethical principle that we have finally succeeded in banishing from it? What was banished from aesthetics was an ideology that had degenerated into rhetoric and had thereby become false. It certainly signified a conquest of sure ground wen the perspective was established that evaluated a work of art—approving or rejecting it—not by its relation to the aspirations of the aspirations of the artist buy by its intrinsic qualities. Now for the first tie we can, without promoting misunderstanding, strive towards the deeper insight: that this approval affords entrance into the other circle only, but in the inner circle those works alone count that have given form to the meaning of being. Similarly, a gain in clarity and solidity was achieved when it was recognized that the significance of an artist does not depend upon one’s morals: now for the first time we can attain the deeper clarity that in inner development mastery and power accrue only to that artist who is worthy of one’s art. The way people use language is braided together tightly with the way they think. While we do not need to think in language (a child can think prior to language acquisition, and, in fact, since language is a vehicle for thought, language presupposed thought and not vice versa), nevertheless, language development is critical for cultivating a careful, precise, attentive mind. #RandolphHarris 13 of 25
Most people today do not use good grammar or syntax in sentence construction. Interestingly, the demise of grammar and syntax reflects a change in the main way language is currently used. Today, we primarily use langue to express emotions, create experiences, or get someone to do something, like buy a product. Careful thought is not always relevant to these modern appropriations of language. How many television commercials actually persuade us to buy something on the basis of an articulate defense of a product! The devaluation of grammar correlates closely with a devaluation of the mind, truth, and thought. When a main purpose of language is the careful precise expression of thought, grammar and syntax become critical because they make such expression of thought possible. If we Christians are to develop our minds, we must take greater care to improve our syntax and grammar, and we must expect this from each other. From years of experience grading student papers, I can tell you that is a student’s grammar is poor, one has a difficult tie developing a coherent line of thought clearly and carefully. #RandolphHarris 14 of 25
Let us give ourselves permission to correct one another’s grammar with a gentle, nonarrogant spirit in our fellowship meetings. Is not a developed intellectual love for God worth the price of an initial embarrassment at such correction? After all, the alternative is to continue to allow one another to speak incorrectly and fail to realize the intellectual benefits that come from the correct use of language. Having seen the importance of a Christian mind, and having (hopefully) been persuaded of the importance of good thinking, ordered language, and good grammar, you may be asking, “Okay, wat is well-reasoning thinking?” Let us look now at an introduction of some of the principles that govern reasoning and why they are important to the mind. Why Logic? Besides cultivating virtue, taking study as a spiritual discipline, and being more disciplined about your grammar and syntax, you should be acquainted with certain logical tools that constitute the very nature of thought. Even young children use these tools without knowing the names for them. If you really want to develop your intellectual skills, you should memorize these and practice using them and recognizing their presence in things you hear or read. We Christians must never forget that our God is a God of truth, reason, and logic. #RandolphHarris 15 of 25
He speaks wisdom to His children, invites them to reason and argue with God logically, and demands that they present in logical fashion the reason why they believe. The image of God within us includes the faculty of abstract reasoning and logical thought. In Romans, the apostle Paul presents in a careful, logical fashion a host of Old Testament text about the nature of sin, judgment, and justification. In public debate, Jesus Himself regularly used careful logic to refute opponents’ arguments and present them with a carefully reasoned alternative. When John Wesley told a group of ministers to become proficient in logic as a part of their calling, he was expressing a deep understanding of the Christian faith as that faith is depicted in the Bible and throughout church history. In logic, an argument is defined as a group of statements containing premises and a conclusion in which the former are claimed as support for the latter. Using an argument is not the same as being argumentative. In using an argument, one simply supports a conclusion with premises. Being argumentative is a defensive personality defect. Christians are required by God to argue, not to be argumentative. “But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. However, do this with gentleness and respect,” reports 1 Peter 3.15. #RandolphHarris 16 of 25
Arguments are either deductive or inductive. In a valid deductive argument, if the premises are true, then the conclusions must be true. For example, “(1) All dogs are ducks, (2) All ducks are cats, (3) Therefore, all dogs are cats,” is a valid deductive argument. In spite of the fact that premises 1 and 2 are false, if they were true, the conclusion would have to be true. In an inductive argument, the premises do not guarantee but merely provide support or grounds for the truth of the conclusion. An inductive argument with true premises does not guarantee but only makes probably the truth of its conclusion. It would be possible to have a good inductive argument with true premises and a false conclusion. For example, “(1) Ninety-five perfect of people who receive the antibiotic get well, (2) We are about to give John the antibiotic, (3) Therefore, John is about to get well” is a good inductive argument. Premises 1 and 2 do in fact provide good support for the conclusion, even though the premises could be true and the conclusion false. #RandolphHarris 17 of 25
Deductive arguments can be either valid or invalid. As we have seen, if a deductive argument is valid, its conclusion must be true if its premises are true. An invalid deductive argument is one in which the premises could be true but the conclusion false. For example, “(1) All dogs are mammals, (2) All cats are mammals, (3) Therefore, all dogs are cats: is invalid because it contains true premises and a false conclusion. A sound argument is a deductive argument with true premises (and therefore, a true conclusion), and this is what we want to employ as best we can. A syllogism is deductive argument that consists of exactly two premises and one conclusion. The argument above about dogs and cats is a syllogism (an invalid one). If you wish, call it self-making—this process of using one’s own mental powers, one’s own emotional energies, to actualize the new being that is one’s best self. It does not seek like a mendicant for free transformation by another person, a guru. It makes use of the highest kind of imagination, a deeply relaxed suggestive visualization. Whatever is called for to being on enlightenment exists within oneself already, but it is latent and undeveloped. By study, exercise, and practice the aspirant can be one’s own teacher. Sooner or later one will have to take this work into one’s own hands. #RandolphHarris 18 of 25
The notion that someone else can or will do it for one is delusory, the belief that a guru can absolve one’s duty is adolescent wishful thinking. If the result is to have any lasting value, it must be self-wrought or in the end the aspirant will have to start again, use this approach, and throw away the negative thought the one is helpless without someone else who must be sought and found. The kind of teacher who is really useful will put no emphasis upon oneself but upon the aspirant’s own work, and then see one at intervals only. Once the materials needed are pointed out, the student should teach oneself; and this one can do only through self-practice. “And it came to pass that in the latter end of the eighteenth year those armies of robbers had prepared for battle, and began to come down and to sally forth from the hills, and out of the mountains, and the wilderness, and their strongholds, and their secret paces, and began to take possession of the lands, both which were in the land south and which were in the land north, and began to take possession of all the lands which ad been deserted by the Nephites, and the cities which had been left desolate. However, behold, there were no wild beasts nor game in those lands which had been deserted by the Nephites, and there was no game for the robbers save it were in the wilderness. #RandolphHarris 19 of 25
“And the robbers could not exist save it were in the wilderness, for the want of food; for the Nephites had left their lands desolate, and had gathered their flocks and their lands desolate, and had gathered their flocks and their herds and all their substance, and they were in one body. Therefore, there was no chance for the robbers to plunder and to obtain food, save it were to come up in open battle against the Nephites; and the Nephites being in one body, and having so great a number, and having reserved for themselves provisions, and horses and cattle, and flocks of every kind, that they might subsist for the space of seven years, in the which time they did hope to destroy the robbers from off the face of the land; and thus the eighteenth year did pass away. And it came to pass that in the nineteenth year Giddianhi found that it was expedient that he should go up to battle against the Nephites, for there was no way that they could subsist save it were to plunder and rob and murder. And they durst not spread themselves upon the face of the land insomuch that they could raise grain, lest the Nephites should come upon them and slay them; therefore Giddianhi gave commandment unto his armies that in this year they should go up to battle against the Nephites. #RandolphHarris 20 of 25
“And it came to pass that they did come up to battle; and it was in the sixth month; and behold, great and terrible was the day that they did come up to battle; and they had a lamb-skin about their loins, and they were dyed in blood, and their hears were shorn, and they had head-plates upon them; and great and terrible was the appearance of the armies of Giddianhi, because of their armor, and because of the being dyed in blood. And it came to pass that the armies of the Nephites, when they say the appearance of the army of Giddianhi, had all fallen to the Earth, and did lift their cries to the Lord their God, that he would spare them and deliver them out of the hands of their enemies. And it came to pass that when the armies of Giddianhi saw this they began to shout with a loud voice, because of their joy, for they had supposed that the Nephites had fallen with fear because of the terror of their armies. However, in this thing there were disappointed, for the Nephites did not fear them; but they did fear their God and did supplicate him for protection; therefore, when the armies of Giddianhi did rush upon them they were prepared to meet them; yea, in the strength of the Lord they did receive them. And the battle commenced in this sixth month. #RandolphHarris 21 of 25
“And great and terrible was the battle thereof, yea, great and terrible was the battle thereof, yea, great and terrible was the slaughter thereof, insomuch that there was never known so great a slaughter among all the people of Lehi since he left Jerusalem. And notwithstanding the threatenings and the oaths which Giddianhi had made, before, the Nephites did beat them, insomuch that they did fall back from before them. And it came to pass that Gidgddioni commanded that his armies should pursue them as far as the borders of the wilderness, and that they should not spare any that should fall into their hands by the way; and thus they did pursue them and did slay them, to the borders of the wilderness, even until they had fulfilled the commandments of Gidgiddoni. And it came to pass that Giddianhi, wh has stood and fought with boldness, was pursed as he fled; and being weary because of his much fighting he was overtaken and slain. And thus was the end of Giddianhi the robber. And it came to pass that the armies of the Nephites did return again to their place of security. And it came to pass that this nineteenth year did pass away, and the robbers did not come again in the twentieth year. #RandolphHarris 22 of 25
“And in the twenty and first year they did not come up to battle, but they came up on all sides to lay siege round about the people of Nephi; for they did suppose that if they should cut off from all their outward privileges, that they could cause them to yield themselves up according to their wishes. Now they had appointed unto themselves another leader, whose name was Zemnarihah; therefore it was Zemnarihah that did cause that this siege should take place. However, behold, this was an advantage to the Nephites; for it was impossible for the robbers to lay siege sufficiently long to have any effect upon the Nephites, because of their much provision which they had laid up in store, and because of the scantiness of provisions among the robbers; for behold, they had nothing save it were meat for their subsistence, which meat they did obtain in the wilderness; and it came to pass that the wild game became scarce in the wilderness insomuch that the robbers were about to perish with hunger. And the Nephites were continually marching out by day and by night, and falling upon their armies, and cutting them off by thousands and by tens of thousands. #RandolphHarris 23 of 25
“And thus it became the desire of the people of Zemnarihah to withdraw from their design, because of the great destruction which came upon them by night and by day. And it came t pass that Zemnarihah did give command unto his people that they should withdraw themselves from the siege, and march into the furthermost parts of the land northward. And now, Gidgiddoni being aware of their design, and knowing of their weakness because of the want of food, and the great slaughter which had been made among them, therefore he did send out his armies in the night-tie, and did cut off the way of their retreat, and did place his armies in the way of their retreat. And this did they do in the night-time, and got on their march beyond the robbers began their march, they were met by the armies of the Nephites both in their front an in their rear. And the robbers who were on the south were also cut off in their place of retreat. And all these things were done by command of Gidgiddoni. And there were many thousands who did yield themselves up prisoners unto the Nephites, and the remainder of them were slain. And their leader, Zemnarihah, was taken and hanged upon a tree, yea, even upon the top thereof until he was dead. And when they had hanged him until he was dead they did fell the tree to the Earth, and did cry with a loud voice. #RandolphHarris 24 of 25
“He said: May the Lord preserve his people in righteousness and in holiness of heart, that they may cause t be felled to the Earth all who shall seek to slay them because of power and secret combinations, even as this man hath been felled to the Earth. And they did rejoice and cry again with one voice, saying: May the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, protect this people in righteousness, so long as they shall call on the name of their God for protection. And it came to pass that they did break forth, all as one, in singing, an praising their God for the great thing which he had done for them, in preserving them from falling into the hands of their enemies. Yea, they did cry: Hosanna to the Most High God. And they did cry: Blessed be the name of the Lord God Almighty, the Most High God. And their hearts were swollen with joy, unto the gushing out of many tears, because of the great goodness of God in delivering them out of the hands of their enemies; and they knew it was because of their repentance and their humility that they had been delivered from an everlasting destruction,” reports 3 Nephi 4.1-33. O God, Whom none can love except they hate the thing that is evil, and Who willedst by Thy Son our Saviour to redeem us from iniquity; please deliver us when we are tempted to look on sin without abhorrence, and let virtue of His Passion come between us and the enemy of our souls; through the same Jesus Christ our Lord. #RandolphHarris 25 of 25
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The Greatest Miracles of Genius Breed Doubt as Well as Faith About the Labyrinth in His Soul of Love!
On some bright essence could I lean, and lull myself to immortality. We are not really pacifists, we are just nonviolent soldiers. As long as you feel insecure, you have no real capacity to face other men and women in that skill of communication which more than any other skill requires freedom from tension. By communication I did not of course mean only intellectual conversation but the whole aesthetic of emotional relations; when one first begins to examine one’s experience, one will find most of their delights in natural things, and this will facilitate the ability to chiefly reckon each day’s catch of happiness in terms of one’s relationships with others. While we go about our day being able to work or study, we should think continually of others who are denied that happiness by their material circumstances or their health. One brilliant Summer morning at Gunsbach, during the Whitsuntide holidays—it was in 1896—there came to me, as I awoke, the thought that I must not accept this happiness as a matter of course, but must give me something in return for it. Proceeding to think the matter out at once with calm deliberation, while the birds were singing outside, I settled with myself before I got up, that I would consider myself justified in living till I was thirty for the science and art, in order to devote myself from that time forward to the direct service of humanity. #RandolphHarris 1 of 24
Many a time already I had tried to settle what meaning lay hidden for me in the saying of Jesus! “Whosoever would save his life shall lose it, and whosoever shall lose his life for My sake and the Gospel shall save it.” Now the answer was found. In addition to the outward, I now had inward happiness. What would be the character of the activities thus planned for the future was not yet clear to me. I left it to circumstances to guide me. One thing only was certain, that is must be directly human service, however inconspicuous the sphere of it. Those who are so favoured as to be able to embark on a course of free personal activity must accept this good fortune in a spirit of humility. They must often think of those who, though willing and capable, were never in a position to do the same thing. And as a rule they must temper their own strong determination with humility. They are almost always destined to have to seek and wait till they find a road open for the activity they long for. Happy are those to whom the years of work are allotted in richer measure than those of seeking and waiting. Happy those who in the end are able to give themselves really and completely! #RandolphHarris 2 of 24
I have often recognized that the need to do something special was born of a restless spirit. Such persons want to dedicate themselves to larger tasks because those that lay nearest do not satisfy them. Often, too, it was evident that they had been brought to their decisions by quite secondary considerations. Only a person who can find a value in every sort of activity and devote oneself to each one with full consciousness of duty, has the inward right to take as one’s object some extraordinary activity instead of that which falls to one’s lot naturally. Only a person who feels one’s preference to be as a matter of course, not something out of the ordinary, and who has not thought of heroism, but just recognizes a duty undertaken with sober enthusiasm, is capable of becoming a spiritual adventurer such as the World needs. There are no heroes of action: only heroes of renunciation and suffering. Of such there are plenty. However, few of them are known, and even these not to the crowd, but to the few. My thirtieth birthday, I spent like the man in the parable who desiring to build a tower, first count the cost whether he have wherewith to complete it. #RandolphHarris 3 of 24
Several times, indeed, it was my experience that my appeal to the act of obedience which Jesus’ command of love may under special circumstances call for, brought upon me an accusation of conceit, although I had, in fact, been obliged to do violence to my feelings to employ this belief at all. In general, how much I suffered through so many people assuming a right to tear open all the doors and shutters of my inner self! As a rule, too, it was of no use allowing them, in spite of my repugnance, to have a glimpse of the thoughts which had given birth to my resolution. They thought there must be something behind it all, and guessed at disappointment as the slow growth of y reputation. For this there was no ground at all, seeing that I have received, even as a young man, such recognition as others usually get only after a whole life of toil and struggle. Unfortunate love experiences were also alleged as the reason for my decision. I felt as a real kindness the action of persons who made no attempt to dig their fists into my heart, but regarded me as a precocious young man, not quite right in one’s head, and treated me correspondingly with affectionate mockery. #RandolphHarris 4 of 24
However, only one, who thanks to his own ability or the devotion of friends is in Worldly matters a free man, can venture nowadays o take the path of independent activity. This consciousness cannot be got from another human by transfer (although its presence in one may be felt by sensitivity) but only by one’s own hard toil. The right action done in the wrong way becomes wrong in itself. Although it is right to look towards a teacher for guidance and inspiration throughout the course of one’s quest, it is wrong to become over-dependent on that teacher. People approach the saint-type primarily to get what is called in India a darshan. This may be variously translated as a glimpse, a spoken blessing, a sight, a view, an initiation, or a silent benediction. One is a phenomenon and they stand at a distance to gaze at one, to admire one, or to be overwhelmed with awe by one. The few minutes or days or weeks or months or years taken up—the duration is immaterial for extension in time does not change the nature of the happening—leave the devotee with the same character, the same consciousness that one had before the meeting. Its service is to portray the goal, not to being one nearer to perfection in any way. The delusion that the longer they stay with one the farther they travel on the road to perfection remains a delusion still. #RandolphHarris 5 of 24
The darshan leaves them with their weakness and faults, their egoism and animality untouched. The work of getting rid of these things is theirs to undertake and no darshan-magic can be substitute for it. The belief that a self-actualized person will do for one once and for all what in the end one has to do for oneself belongs to the untutored masses and the sectarian mystic circles. Only the self-deceived or the charlatanic will offer to save you. All others will offer only to guide you. You must labour for yourselves. It is the common way to demand entry into enlightenment through someone else. This renders it needful to make clear that nobody, not even the best of the self-actualized, can possibly pass on and there are not many with that capacity. Even in such cases, one’s disciples must work diligently and win it themselves. The service of a spiritual director in correcting errors, providing instruction, stimulating aspiration, and fostering intuition are immense; but they are only a prelude to the services a student must render to oneself. Those who leave their spiritual future totally in the hands of their guide, lose the years which could be spent in developing themselves. #RandolphHarris 6 of 24
It is not enough to receive a teaching from someone else. The truth of the teaching must be tested by personal experience, the worth of it should be measured by personal knowledge. Of all the will for the ideal which exists in humankind only a small part can be manifested in action. All the rest is destined to realize itself in unseen effects, which represent, however, a value exceeding a thousandfold and more that of the activity which attracts the notice of the World. Its relation to the latter is like that of the deep sea to the waves which stir its surface. The hidden forces of goodness are embodied in those persons who carry on as a secondary pursuit the immediate personal service which they cannot make their lifework. The lot of the many is to have as a profession, for the earning of their living and the satisfaction of society’s claim on them, a more or less soulless labour in which they can give out little of nothing of their human qualities, because in that labour they have to be little better than human machines. Yet no one finds oneself in the position of having no possible opportunity of giving oneself to others as a human being. The problem produced by the fact of labour being today so thoroughly organized, specialized, and mechanized depends only in part for its solution on society’s not merely removing the conditions thus produced, but doing its very best to guard the rights of human personality. #RandolphHarris 7 of 24
What is even more important is that sufferers shall not simply bow to their fate, but shall try with all their energy to asset their human personality amid their unfavourable conditions by spiritual activity. Anyone can recuse one’s human life, in spite of one’s professional life, who seizes every opportunity of being a human by means of personal action, however unpretending, for the good of fellow humans who need the help of a fellow human. Such a person enlists in the service of the spiritual and good. No fate can prevent a human from giving to others this direct human service side by side with one’s lifework. If so much of such service remains unrealized, it is because the opportunities are missed. It is the guide’s duty to hold up a gasolier on a dark path but the disciple must decide for oneself the speed and distance of the journey along that path. No command is laid upon one, for it is one who must estimate the strength within one and the opportunity without. One is given full freedom in making one’s decision. It is unfortunately the case that many emotionally unstable persons are attracted to mysticism, with the result that they spend years with their dreams of magical achievement but do nothing to convert those dreams into realities, or else flit from one dream to another. #RandolphHarris 8 of 24
That everyone shall exert oneself in that state of life in which one is placed, to practice true humanity toward one’s fellow humans, on that depends the future of humankind. Enormous values come to nothing every moment through the missing of opportunities, but the values which do get turned into will and deed mean wealth which must not be undervalued. Our humanity is by no means so materialistic as foolish talk is continually asserting it to be. Judging by what I have learned about men and women, I am convinced that there is far more in them of idealist will power than ever comes to the surface of the World. Just as the water of the streams we see is small in amount compared to that which flows underground, so the idealism which becomes visible is small in amount compared with what men and women bear locked in their hearts, underground waters to the surface: humankind is waiting and longing for such as can do that. If the student responds sufficiently to the hints given one or the counsel bestowed on one, the teacher will be encouraged to go father. The uneasiness which many feel in the teacher’s presence is partly caused by the fact that there are negative qualities in themselves which are not present in the teacher. However, partly it is also caused by their miscomprehension of one’s character. #RandolphHarris 9 of 24
The righteous teacher does not attempt to criticize, judge, or condemn them, nor to approve or disapprove of them. One accepts that this is not one’s business for one accepts that evolution has made them what they are, both the good and bad in them. To this extent their uneasiness is unnecessary. The freedom to be who one deeply is strikes an especially resonant chord in underrepresented and marginalized communities. A primary concern of existential psychotherapy is the relationship among freedom, limitation, and choice. The daily question for many people, even the rich and famous is: “With whom can I be myself?” The dangers are real. Physical safety, economic security, and acceptance by others are threatened. And hiding one aspect of the self affects other dimensions of the self, such as self-esteem, creativity, and the ability to love. Even for those who appear to be comfortable with who they are, the issue goes deeper. It saddens and angers people that they cannot talk to people about their lives or express who they really are because they are around people who expect them to always be kind and understanding, so people have to create these carefully mastered personalities, but it may not reflect their full character. #RandolphHarris 10 of 24
Repressed individuals even go as far as to make statement which have been carefully crafted to make people feel better. Many individuals cannot just change the subject; this is their life. As a result, people who are repressed turn to long term celibacy so they are able to fully embody who they are since they cannot express their full humanness. Therapeutic work concerning the freedom to express oneself and therapeutic work touching on identity issues are mutually reinforcing. As people gain a greater sense of self and possibilities, they also learn to accept themselves; as they learn to accept themselves, they become increasingly more able to express all of who they are and to experience a widening sense of possibilities. One lady, Katrina, who had developed an inflammatory condition had to totally change her life. Doctor’s noticed that when she was under stress, the condition would flare up and recommended a lifestyle change because something was wrong in her environment. The young woman had to go to cognitive therapy, go on medication for the inflammation, end her romantic relationship and become celibate for years, she even quit her job, and moved. #RandolphHarris 11 of 24
While undergoing this life style change, the lady also made the decision not to receive any financial support from her parents. The general physician overseeing her general healthy needs, noticed as the woman became more responsible for herself, this enforced her sense of freedom to express who she truly was and her health had started improving after three years of celibacy. She learned to “check in” with herself—not merely to think about particular issues but to resonate to them, to experience them kinesthetically. She learned did not simply run from her problems, she learned to counter her constriction and productively regenerate her life. This inspired her to become response-able—personally, socially, and spiritually. Spiritual discipline is an activity undertaken to bring us into more effective cooperation with Christ and His Kingdom. In any human endeavour, repetitive exercise and practice bring skill and excellence. Sometimes a particular activity is good because it accomplishes a specific result. If it produces a base hit, swinging a baseball bat is good. However, that same activity can also be done, not for the result alone, but for the training it offers. #RandolphHarris 12 of 24
A person can repeatedly swing a bat in a batting cage for the purpose of training, and not to increase one’s output of base hits. And other good results can follow from such training besides the one usually or normally intended; for example, regular trips to a batting cage can get a person in good overall condition besides helping one get base hits. The same thing is true of study. We often correctly approach study specifically for some direct end—preparing a lesson or learning a topic covered in a book. However, study should also be approached as a set of training activities, as spiritual and intellectual exercises. Study is a discipline that strengthens the mind and enriches the soul. Sometimes I study a book for the sheer value of engaging my intellect in a stretching, strenuous activity. As other times, I read to help myself cultivate the intellectual virtues that will bring one closer to God. Seen as discipline, study becomes a means of building my character, ingraining habits of thought and reflection, and reinforcing my own soul the value of the life of the mind. We study, then, not simply to gain knowledge about the topic of study, but as a broader spiritual discipline. #RandolphHarris 13 of 24
By way of application, it is important to read books from time to time as a form of spiritual discipline and intellectual exercise, even if the topic of the book does not address one of your immediate, felt needs. If all you do is read simple books or those that overemphasize stories or practical application, you will never learn to think of yourself as a mature Christian, nor will you develop a trained mind. Peace if the rest of will that results from assurance about how things will turn out. It is always a form of active engagement with good, plus assurance that things will turn out well. “I am at peace about it,” we say, and this means I am no longer striving, inwardly or outwardly, to save some outcome dear to me or to avoid one that I reject. I have released whatever is at issues and am no longer even putting “body English” or “spin” on it or inwardly gritting my teeth. Of course everyone is at peace about some things, one hopes, but few have peace in general, and fewer still have peace that reaches their body and its automatic responses to such a depth that it does not live in a covert state of alarm. Ultimately it will be by one’s own efforts alone that one uncovers the wisdom and beauty one is seeking—and which are even now within one. Such efforts, in order to be successful, must be courageous and continuous. #RandolphHarris 14 of 24
Repeated failures should serve only to stimulate deeper determination. In the end each seeker has to become one’s own teacher by putting all one’s experience, one’s beliefs, one’s ideas, to the test. Most people carry heavy burdens of care, and usually about the things that are most important in life: what will happen to their loved ones, their finances, health, death, their physical appearance or what others think of them, the future of society, their standing before God and their eternal destiny. To be at peace with God and others (family, neighbours, and coworkers) is a great attainment and depends on graces far beyond ourselves as well as on our own efforts. That is also true of being at peace with oneself. Peace with God comes only from acceptance of one’s gift of life in His Son. “Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God,” reports Romans 5.1-2. We are then assured of the outcome of our life and are no longer trying to justify ourselves before God or others. We have accepted that we are not righteous or even totally competent and that we cannot be so on our own. #RandolphHarris 15 of 24
We have laid down the burden of justifying ourselves before God and are learning not to justify ourselves before humans. This is the pace that grows from within us. It is possible to being this truth within the mind’s sight and within the will’s reach as long as we do our own work. Whoever offers one a free redemption plays God. Form those around me I must simply assume grace and mercy, not that I will get what I deserve. I am a beggar on my way through the World. Justice is not enough for my needs, and I could not stand it if I got it. When others do not extend the grace and mercy I need, I have to draw on the grace and mercy I need, I have to draw on the abundance of it in God. “Who is this that is condemning me?” I remind myself, “Jesus even died for me, was raised from the dead, and is now standing up for me before God,” reports Romans 8.34. Assurance of this allows me to “seek peace and pursue it,” reports 1 Peter 3.11, no matter who is involved, and to “pursue peace with all humans,” reports Hebrews 12.14. That includes all our family members and coworkers! Even in case where, though no fault of my own, there must be a struggle between me and others, there does not have to be a struggle within me. Look not for refuge to anyone besides yourself. Try to become like the master. #RandolphHarris 16 of 24
I may have to resist others, for some good reason, but even so I do not have to make things come out right. I am not the one in control of outcomes. I do not have to hate those whose course of action I resist, or even get mad at them, and so I can always be at peace within myself as well as toward them. Although the truth of our intellect is caused by the thing, yet it is not necessary that truth should be there primarily, any more than that health should be primarily in medicine, rather than in the animal: for the virtue of medicine, and not its health, is the cause of health, for here the agent is not univocal. In the same way, the being of the thing, not its truth, is the cause of the truth in the intellect. Hence, a fact or a word is true from the fact that a thing is, not because a thing is true. “And now it came to pass that in the sixteenth year from the coming of Christ, Lachoneus, the governor of the land, received an epistle from the leader and the governor of this band of robbers; and these were the words which were written saying: Lachoneus, most noble and chief governor of the land, behold, I write tis epistle unto you, and do give unto you exceedingly great praise because of your firmness, and also the firmness of your people, in maintaining that which ye suppose to be your right and liberty. #RandolphHarris 17 of 24
“Yea, ye do stand well, as if ye were supported by the hand of a god, in the defence of your liberty, and your property, and your country, or that which ye do call so. And it seemeth a pity unto me, most noble Lachoneus, that ye should be so foolish and vain as to suppose that ye can stand against so many brave men who are at my command, who do now at this time stand in their arms, and do await with great anxiety for the word—God own upon the Nephites and destroy them. And I, knowing of their unconquerable spirit, having proved them in the field of battle, and knowing you because of the many wrongs which ye have done unto them, therefore if they should come down against you they would visit you with utter destruction. Therefore I have written this epistle, sealing it with mine own hand, feeling for your welfare, because of your firmness in that which ye believe to be right, and your noble spirit in the field of battle. Therefore I write unto you, desiring that ye would yield up unto this my people, your cities, your lands, and your possessions, rather than that they should visit you with the sword and that destruction should come upon you. #RandolphHarris 18 of 24
“Or in other words, yield yourselves up unto us, and unite with us and become acquainted with our secret works, and become our brethren that ye may be like unto us—not our slaves, but our brethren and partners of all our substance. And behold, I swear unto you, if ye will do this, with an oath, ye shall not be destroyed; but if ye will not do this, I swear unto you with an oath, that on the morrow month I will command that my armies shall come down against you, and they shall not stay their hand and shall spare not, but shall slay you, and shall let fall the sword upon you even until ye shall become extinct. And behold, I am Giddianhi; and I am the governor of this secret society of Gadianton; which society and the works thereof I know to be good; and they are of ancient date and they have been handed down unto us. And I write this epistle unto you, Lachoeus, and I hope that ye will deliver up your lands and your possessions, without the shedding of blood, that this my people may recover their rights and government, who have dissented away from you because of your wickedness in retaining from them their rights of government, and except ye do this, I will avenge their wrongs. I am Giddianhi. #RandolphHarris 19 of 24
“And now it came to pass when Lachoneus received this epistle he was exceedingly astonished, because of the boldness of Giddianhi demanding the possession of the land of the Nephites, and also of the threatening the people and avenging the wrongs of those that had received no wrong, save it were they had wronged themselves by dissenting away unto those wicked and abominable robbers. Now behold, this Lachoneus, the governor, was a just man, and could not be frightened by the demands and the threatenings of a robber; therefore he did not hearken to the epistle of Giddianhi, the governor of the robbers, but he did cause that his people should cry unto the Lord for strength against the time that the robbers should come down against them. Yea, he sent a proclamation among all the people, that they should gather together their women, and their children, their flocks and their herds, and all their substance, save it were their land, unto one place. And he caused that fortifications should be built round about them, and the strength thereof should be exceedingly great. And he caused that armies, both of the Nephites and of the Lamanites, or of all them who were numbered among the Nephites, should be placed as guards round about to watch them, and to guard them from the robbers day and night. #RandolphHarris 20 of 24
“Yea, he said unto them: As the Lord liveth, except ye repent of all your iniquities, and cry unto the Lord, ye will in nowise be delivered out of the hands of those Gadianton robbers. And so great and marvelous were the words and prophecies of Lachoneus that they did cause fear to come upon all the people; and they did exert themselves in their might to do according to the words of Lachoneus. And it came to pass that Lachoneus did appoint chief captains over all the armies of the Nephites, to command them at the time that the robbers should come down out of the wilderness against them. Now the chiefest among all the chief captains and the great commander of all the armies of the Nephites was appointed, and his name was Gididdoni. Now it was the custom among all the Nephites to appoint for their chief captains, (save it were in their times of wickedness) some one that the bad spirit of revelation and also prophecy; therefore, this Gididdoni was a great prophet among them, as also was the chief judge. Now the people said unto Gidgiddoni: Pray unto the Lord, and let us go up upon the mountains and into the wilderness, that we may fall upon the mountains and into the wilderness, that we may fall upon the robbers and destroy them in their own lands. However, Gidgiddoni saith unto them: The Lord forbid; for if we should go up against them the Lord would deliver us into their hands; therefore we will prepare ourselves in the center of our lands, and we will gather all our armies together, and we will not go against them, but we will wait till they shall come against us. #RandolphHarris 21 of 24
“Therefore, as the Lord liveth, if we do this he will deliver them into our hands. And it came to pass in the seventeenth year, in the latter end of the year, the proclamation of Lachoneus had gone forth throughout all the face of the land, and they had taken their horses, and their chariots, and their cattle, and all their flocks, and their herds, and their grain, and all their substance, and did march forth by thousands and by tens of thousands, until they had all gone forth to the place which had been appointed that they should gather themselves together, to defend themselves against their enemies. And the land which was appointed was the land of Zarahemla, and the land which was between the land Zarahemla and the land Bountiful, yea, to the line which was between the land Bountiful and the land Desolation. And there were a great many thousand people who were called Nephites, who did gather themselves together in this land. Now Lachoneus did cause that they should gather themselves together in this land. Now Lachoneus did cause that they should gather themselves together in the and southward, because of the great curse which was upon the land northward. #RandolphHarris 22 of 24
“And they did fortify themselves against their enemies; and they did dwell in one land, and in one body, and they did fear the words which had been spoken by Lachoneus, insomuch that they did put up their prayers unto the Lord their God, that he would deliver them in the time that their enemies should come down against them to battle. And they were exceedingly sorrowful because of their enemies. And Giddiddoni did cause that they should make weapons of war of every kind, and they should be strong with armour, and with shields, and with bucklers, after the manner of his instruction,” reports 3 Nephi 3.1-26. On the ring of the World, God is dancing. In His bright robe, He is dancing. Young and handsome and strong, God is dancing. Bringer of vision, God is dancing. Dance, Sun King, into the Sky, please being the day to those who wait for you. As the Sun rises, I face His glory, grateful that the darkness has come to an end. Though darkness is sacred, its soothing a gift, I am a human, a creature of light. So I face you in thankfulness and greet your return with praises and prayer and the honour that is due you. O Lord and Saviour Christ, Who camest not to strive nor cry, but to let Thy words fall as the drops that water the Earth; please grant all who contend for the Faith once delivered, never to injure it by clamour and impatience. #RandolphHarris 23 of 24
However, teach them to speak Thy precious Truth in love, so to present it that it may be loved, and that humans may see in it Thy goodness and Thy beauty; Who livest as the Way, the Truth and the Life. Truth is found in the intellect according as it apprehends a thing as it is; and things according as they have being conformable to an intellect. This to be the greatest degree found in God. For His being is not only conformed to His intellect, but it is the very act of His intellect; and His act of understanding is the measure and cause of every other being and of every other intellect, and He Himself is His own existence and act of understanding. Whence it follows not only that truth is in Him, but that He is truth itself, and the sovereign and first truth. Although the divine intellect there is neither composition nor division, yet in His simple act of intelligence He judges of all things and knows all things complex; and thus there is truth in His intellect. O God, the Sovereign Good of the soul, Who requirest the hearts of all Thy children; please deliver us from all sloth in Thy work, all coldness in Thy cause; and please grant us by looking unto Thee to rekindle our Love, and by waiting upon Thee to renew our strength; through Jesus Christ our Lord. #RandolphHarris 24 of 24
Cresleigh Homes
Oui oui! Thanks to the open floor plan in this #PlumasRanch home, you can easily pop over to the Great Room to binge some more @EmilyInParis while the croissants are in the oven. 😉🇫🇷
Classic charm, with inspired contemporary touches. Cresleigh Meadows is now selling! Found just north of Feather River Boulevard, Cresleigh Meadows is home of the largest neighborhood in Plumas Ranch as well as the popular Bear River Park. With four floor plans available, ranging from approximately 2,000 – 3,500 square feet offering, three to five bedrooms, we are certain you will find the home that fits your needs and lifestyle. https://cresleigh.com/cresleigh-meadows-at-plumas-ranch/
Prince of Darkness is a Gentleman—I am a Man More Sinned Against than Sinning!
If our democracy is to flourish, it must have criticism; if our government is to function, it must have dissent. The circumstances of justice may be described as the normal conditions under which human cooperation is both possible and necessary. Thus, although a society is a cooperative venture for mutual advantage, it is typically marked by a conflict as well as an identity of interests. There is an identity of interests since social cooperation makes possible a better life for all than any would have if each were to try to live solely by one’s own efforts. There is a conflict of interests since humans are not indifferent as to how the greater benefits produced by their collaboration are larger to a lesser share. Thus principles are needed for choosing among the various social arrangements which determine this division of advantages and for underwriting an agreement on the proper distributive shares. These requirements define the role of justice. The background conditions that give rise to these necessities are the circumstances of justice. These conditions may be divided into two kinds. First, there are the objective circumstances which make human cooperation both possible and necessary. #RandolphHarris 1 of 25
Thus, many individuals coexist together at the same time on a definite geographical territory. These individuals are roughly similar in physical and mental powers; or at any rate, their capacities are comparable in that no one among them can dominate the rest. They are vulnerable to attack, and all are subject to having their plans blocked by the united force of others. Finally, there is the condition of moderate scarcity understand to cover a wide range of situations. Natural and other resources are not so abundant that schemes of cooperation become superfluous, nor are conditions so harsh that fruitful ventures must inevitably break down. While mutually advantageous arrangements are feasible, the benefits they yield fall short of the demands humans put forward. The subjective circumstances are relevant aspects of the subjects of cooperation, that is, of the persons working together. Thus while the parties have roughly similar needs and interests, or needs and interests in various ways complementary, so that mutually advantageous cooperation among them is possible, they nevertheless have their own plans of life. These plans, or conceptions of the good, lead them to have different ends and purposes, an to make conflicting claims on the natural and social resources available. #RandolphHarris 2 of 25
Moreover, although the interests advanced by these plans are not assumed to be interests in the self, they are the interests of a self that regards its conceptions of the good as worthy of recognition and that advantages claims in its behalf as deserving satisfaction This aspect of the circumstances of justice by assuming that the parties take no interest in one another’s interest. I also suppose that humans suffer from various shortcomings of knowledge, thought, and judgment. Their knowledge is necessarily incomplete, their powers of reasoning, memory, and attention are always limited, and their judgment is likely to be distorted by anxiety, bias, and preoccupation with their own affairs. Some of these defects spring from moral faults, from selfishness and negligence; but to a large degree, they are simply part of human’s natural situation. As a consequence individuals not only have different plans of life but there exists a diversity of philosophical and religious belief, and of political and social doctrines. Now this constellation of conditions I shall refer to as the circumstances of justice. Hume’s account of them is especially perspicuous and the preceding summary adds nothing essential to his much fuller discussion. #RandolphHarris 3 of 25
For simplicity I often stress the condition of moderate scarcity (among the objective circumstances), and that of mutual disinterest, or individuals taking no interest in one another’s interests (among the subjective circumstances), and that of mutual disinterest, or individuals taking no interests in one another’s interests (among the subjective circumstances). Thus, one can say, in brief, that the circumstances of justice obtain whenever mutually disinterested persons put forward conflicting claims to the division of social advantages under conditions of moderate scarcity. Unless these circumstances existed there would be no occasion for the virtue of justice, just as in the absence of threats of injury to life and limb there would be no occasion for physical courage. Several clarifications should be noted. First of all, I shall, of course, assume that the persons in the original position know that these circumstances of justice obtain. This much they take for granted about the conditions of their society. A further assumption is that the parties try to advance their conception of the good as best they can, and that in attempting to do this they are not bound by prior moral ties to each other. The question arises, however, whether the persons in the original position have obligations and duties to third parties, for example, to their immediate descendants. #RandolphHarris 4 of 25
To say that persons in the original position do have obligations to third parties would be one way of handling questions of justice between generations. However, the aim of justice as fairness is to derive all duties and obligations from other conditions; so this way out should be avoided. Instead, I shall make a motivational assumption. The parities are thought of as representing continuing lines of claims, as being, so to speak, as representing continuing lines of claims, as being, so to speak, deputies for a kind of everlasting moral agent or institution. They need not take into account its entire life span in perpetuity, but their goodwill stretches over at least two generations. Thus representatives from periods adjacent in time have overlapping interests. For example, we may think of the parties as heads of families, and therefore as having a desire to further the welfare of their nearest descendants. As representatives of families their interests are opposed as the circumstances of justice imply. It is not necessary to think of the parties as heads of families, although I shall generally follow this interpretation. What is essential is that each person in the original position should care about the well-being of some of those in the next generation, it being presumed that their concern is for different individuals in each case. #RandolphHarris 5 of 25
Moreover for anyone in the next generation, there is someone who cares about one in the present generation. Thus the interests of all are looked after and, given the veil of ignorance, the whole strand is tied together. It should be noted that I make no restrictive assumptions about the parties’ conceptions of the good except that they are rational long-term plans. While these plans determine the aims and interests of a self, the aims and interests are not presumed to be egoistic or selfish. Whether this is the case depends upon the kinds of ends which a person pursues. If wealth, position, and influence, and the accolades of social prestige, are a person’s final purposes, then surely one’s conception of the good is egoistic. One’s dominant interests are in oneself, not merely, as they must always be, interests of self. There is no inconsistency, then, in supposing that once the veil of ignorance is removed, the parties find that they have ties of sentiment and affection, and want to advance the interests of others and to see their ends attained. However, the postulate of mutual disinterest in the original position is made to insure that the principles of justice do not depend upon strong assumptions. #RandolphHarris 6 of 25
Recall that the original position is meant to incorporate widely shared and yet weak conditions. A conception of justice should not presuppose, then, extensive ties of natural sentiment. At the basis of the theory, one tries to assume as little as possible. Finally, when it is supposed that the parties are severally disinterested, and are not willing to have their interests sacrificed to the others, the intention is to express human’s conduct and motives in cases where questions of justice arise. The spiritual ideals of stains and heroes can be as irreconcilably opposed as any other interests. Conflict in pursuit of these ideals are the most tragic of all. Thus justice is the virtue of practices where there are competing interests and where persons feel entitled to press their rights on each other. In an association of saints agreeing on a common ideal, if such a community could exist, disputes about justice would not occur. Each would work selflessly for one end as determined by their common religion, and reference to this end (assuming it to be clearly defined) would settle every questions of right. However, a human society is characterized by the circumstances of justice. The account of these conditions involves no particular theory of motivation. #RandolphHarris 7 of 25
Rather, its aim is to include in the description of the original position the relations of individuals to one another which set the stage for questions of justice. The human body is a mighty complicated machine: That many secret powers lurk in it, which are altogether beyond our comprehension: That is to us it must often appear very uncertain in tis operations: And that therefore the irregular events, which outwardly discover themselves, can be no proof, that the laws of nature are no observed with the greatest regularity in its internal operations and government. All of our present data indicate the fighting behaviour among the higher mammals, including humans, originates in external stimulation and there is no evidence of spontaneous internal stimulation. Emotional and physiological processes prolong and magnify the effects of stimulation, but do not originate it. Humans, like all nonpredatory animals, have no dangerous natural weapons like claws, ex cetera and hence does not need such inhibitions; it is only because one has weapons that one’s lack of instinctive inhibitions becomes so dangerous. However, is it really true that humans have no inhibitions against killing? Humans historical record is so frequently characterized by killing that at first it would seem unlikely that one has any inhibitions. #RandolphHarris 8 of 25
However, this answer becomes questionable if we reformulate our question to read: Have humans any inhibitions against killing living beings, humans, and animals with whom one identifies to a greater or lesser degree id est, who are not complete strangers to one and to whom one is related by affective bonds? There are some evidence that such inhibitions might exist and that a sense of guilt may follow the act of killing. That the element of familiarity and empathy plays a role in generation of inhibitions against killing animals can easily be detected from reactions to be observed in everyday life. Many people show a definite aversion to killing and eating an animal with which they are familiar or one they have kept as a pet, like a rabbit or a goat. There are a large number of people who would not kill such an animal and to whom the idea of eating it is plainly repulsive. The same people usually have no hesitation in eating a similar animal where this element of empathy is lacking. However, there is not only an inhibition against killing with regard to animals that are individually known, but also inasmuch as a sense of identity is felt with the animal as another living being. This seems to be indicated in our language. #RandolphHarris 9 of 25
We use different words for flesh: if the animal is alive, we speak of its flesh; if the flesh is to be eaten, we call it meat. Quite clearly this differentiation is meant to remove the association between the animal one eats and the living animal. We even give different names to some animals depending on whether they are alive or to be eaten as food. When we speak of the live animal, we speak of cows and bulls; when we eat them, we talk about beef. Pigs to be eaten we call pork, deer we call venison, calf we call veal. While this is not true for all animals, these examples suffice to show the tendency to separate in our minds the categories of living animals from those we eat. All these data would indicate that there might be a conscious or unconscious feeling of guilt related to the destruction of life, especially when there is certain empathy. This sense of closeness to the animal and need to reconcile oneself to killing it is quite dramatically manifested in the rituals of the bear cult of Paleolithic hunters. The sense of identity with all living beings that share with humans the quality of life has been made explicit as an important moral tenant in Indian thinking and has led to the prohibition against killing any animal in Hinduism. #RandolphHarris 10 of 25
It is not unlikely that inhibitions against killing also exist with regard to other humans, provided there is a sense of identity and empathy. We have to begin with the consideration that for primitive humans the stranger, the person who does not belong to the same group, is often not felt as a fellow human, but a something with which one does not identify. There is generally greater reluctance to kill a member of the same group, this is why when people turn against someone, they look for phenotype differences and choose sides, and the most severe punishment for misdeeds in primitive society often was ostracism, rather than death. (This is still apparent in the punishment of Cain in the Bible.) However, we are not restricted to these examples of primitive society. Even in a highly civilized culture like the Greek, the slaves were experienced as not being entirely human. We find the same phenomenon in modern society. All governments try, in the case of war, to awaken among their own people the feeling that the enemy is not human. One does not call one by one’s proper name, but by a different one, as in the first World War when the Germans were called “Huns” by the British or “Boches” by the French. This destruction of the humanness of the enemy came to it peak with enemies of different colour. #RandolphHarris 11 of 25
In some wars, opponents are called derogatory names. Even the word “killing” is eliminated by using the word “wasting.” When a Lieutenant accused and convicted for murdering a number of civilians, men, women, and child was brought to trial, he used as an argument for his defense the consideration that he was not taught to look at the soldiers as human beings but only as “the enemy.” Whether that is sufficient defense or not is not the question here. It is certain a strong argument, because it is true and puts into words the underlying attitude toward the less affluent in a country one was at war with. Hitler did the same by calling “political enemies” he wanted to destroy Untermenschen (“subhumans”). When someone wants to make it easier for one’s own side to destroy living beings of other, to indoctrinate one’s own soldiers with a feeling, it seems almost a rule that those to be slaughtered are nonpersons. Tom Wicker in reflections on the wholesale slaughter of hostages and inmate by the forces that stormed the prison in Attica, New York USA, wrote a very thoughtful column making the same point. He refers to a statement issued by New York State Governor Nelson A. Rockefeller after the massacre at Attics which beings with the sentence: “Our hearts go out to the families of the hostages who died at Attica.” RandolphHarris 12 of 25
Then Wicker writes: “Much of what went wrong at Attica—and of what is wrong at most other American prisons and ‘corrections facilities’—can be found in the simple fact that neither in the sentence nor in any other did the governor or any official extend a word of sympathy to the families of the dead prisoners. True, at that time, it was thought that the deaths of the hostages had been caused by the prisoners, rather than—as is now known—by the bullets and buckshot of those ordered by the state authorities to go over the walls shooting. However, even had the prisoners, instead of the police, been the killers of hostages, they still would have been human beings, certainly their mothers and wives and children still would have been human beings. However, the official heart of the state of New Work and its officials did not go out to any of them. That is the root of the matter; prisoners, particularly Black prisoners, in all too many cases are neither considered nor treated as human beings. And since they are not, neither are their families. Time and again, members of the special observers’ group that tried to negotiate a settlement at Attica heard the prisoners plead that they too, were human beings and wanted above all to be treated as such. #RandolphHarris 13 of 25
“Once, in a negotiating session through a steel-barred gate that divided prisoner-held and state-held territory, Assistant Corrections Commissioner Walter Dunbar told the prisoner leader, Richard Clark: ‘In 30 years, I have never lied to an inmate. But how to a man?’ Clark said quietly.” (The New York Times, September 18, 1971.) Another way of making the other a “nonperson” is cutting all affective bonds with one. This occurs as a permanent state of mind in certain severe pathological cases, but it can also occur transitorily in one who is not sick. It does not make any different whether the object of one’s aggression is a stranger or a close relative or a friend; what happens is that the aggressor cuts the other person off emotionally and “freezes” one. The other ceases to be experienced as human and becomes a “thing—over there.” Under these circumstances there are no inhibitions against even the most severe forms of destructiveness. There is good clinical evidence for the assumption that destructive aggression occurs, at least to a large degree, in conjunction with momentary or chronic emotional withdrawal. Whenever another being is not experienced as human, the act of destructiveness and cruelty assumes a different quality. #RandolphHarris 14 of 25
A simple example will show how destructiveness and cruelty assumes a different quality, and this is something many may have never considered, but drives home the point. If a Hindu or a Buddhist, for instance, provided one has a genuine and deep feeling of empathy with all living beings, were to see the average modern person kill a fly without the slightest hesitation, one might judge this act as an expression of considerable callousness and destructiveness; but one would be wrong in this judgment. The point is that for many people they fly is simply not experiences as a sentient being and hence is treated as any disturbing “thing” would be; it is not that such people are especially cruel, even thought their experience of “living beings” is restricted. The mutual dependence of humans is so great, in all societies, that scarce any human action is entirely complete in itself, or is performed without some reference to the actions of others, which are requisite to make it answer fully the intention of the agent. Reasoning concerning the actions of others enters so much into human life, that no human, while awake, is ever a moment without employing it. Have we not reason, therefore, to affirm, that all humankind have always agreed in the doctrine of necessity, according to the foregoing definition and explication of it? #RandolphHarris 15 of 25
How could politics be a science, if laws and forms of government had not a uniform influence upon society? Where would be the foundation of morals, if particular characters had no certain or determinate power to produce particular sentiments, and if these sentiments had no constant operations and actions? Honestly is closely related to truth. The Christian mind is honest about what it does and does not believe. The thinking Christian mind is honest about what it does and does not believe. The thinking Christian tried to be honest to oneself and to others. An important part of honesty is proportionality. Proportionality is the measure of the degree to which one ought to accept a belief or the degree to which a specific argument actually supports that belief. We ought to proportion our degree of belief to the degree for which we have grounds for accepting it. Many times we think that believing something with less than complete certainty means we really do not believe it. However, this is not true. If you believe something, you must be at least slightly more certain that it is true than you are that it is false—you must be more than fifty-fifty regarding a belief. And your certainty about the belief can grow. #RandolphHarris 16 of 25
This growth ought to be based on and proportional to the rational considerations relevant to the belief. It is unproductive to try to believe something beyond your grounds for believing it and dishonest to act as if you believe something more strongly than you do. Overbelief is not a virtue. For example, I am far from certain on many Christian belief I hold. I lean toward the view that the days of Genesis are vast periods of time and not literal twenty-four-hour periods. However, about two days of the week I flip-flop and accept the literal view. Based on my study, I cannot convince myself either way, and I am about sixty-forty in favour of the old-Earth position. Other beliefs of mine have grown in certainty over the years—that God really exists, for example. We should be honest with ourselves about the strength of our various beliefs and work on strengthening them by considering the issues relevant to their acceptance. We should also be honest about what arguments are and are not good in supporting our beliefs. Recently, I heard a guest minister preach a sermon about prophylactics distribution in the public schools. He began by acknowledging the he was against this practice and went onto lecture on the various arguments for and against it. #RandolphHarris 17 of 25
At one point he criticized as inadequate an argument used by many Christians against prophylactic distribution. He was not promoting prophylactic distribution, he was demoting a bad argument against it. What happened after the service was very sad. A number of people criticized him behind his back because, on their view, he had come down in favour of prophylactic distribution. However, this was clearly wrong. He had simply criticized one argument raised against prophylactic distribution. His point was this: God is not honoured when His people use bad arguments for what may actually be correct conclusions. Proportionality involves distinguishing a conclusion from arguments used to reach it and recognizing that rejecting certain arguments is not the same as rejecting a conclusion. Because of minds not trained to be sensitive proportionally, people in the congregation could not hear what the minister said and missed a great chance to learn something. Wisdom is also related to truth seeking. Wisdom is the wise use and application of knowledge. It involved knowing how to use good means to accomplish worthy ends in a skillful manner. The New Testament clearly teaches that the more one is willing to obey and apply the truth, the more one will be in a position to gain knowledge about more truth. #RandolphHarris 18 of 25
For the Christian, seeking the truth is no ere abstract activity unrelated to life. The more we practice living what we already know, the better we will be at learning more. Some Christians misunderstand the nature of wisdom, preferring practical wisdom and disdaining theoretical knowledge. However, since wisdom is the application of knowledge, you cannot be practically wise without being theoretically informed. If a growing Christian mind is to become a reality, truth seeking, honesty and proportionality, and wisdom are important virtues to cultivate. “Now it came to pass that the ninety and first year had passed away and it was six hundred years from the time that Lehi left Jerusalem; and it was in the year that Lachoneus was the chief judge and the governor over the land. And Nephi, the son of Helaman, had departed out of the land of Zarahemla, giving charge unto his son Nephi, who was his eldest son, concerning the plated of brass, and all the records which had been kept, and all those things which had been kept sacred from the departure of Lehi out of Jerusalem. Then he departed out of the land, and whiter he went, no man knoweth; and his son Nephi did keep the records in his stead, yes, the record of this people. #RandolphHarris 19 of 25
“And it came to pass that in the commencement of the ninety and second year, behold, the prophecies of the prophets began to be fulfilled more fully; for there began to be greater signs and greater miracles wrought among the people. However, there were some who began to say that the time was past for the words to be fulfilled, which were spoken by Samuel, the Lamanite. And they began rejoice over their brethren, saying: Behold the time is past, and the words of Samuel are not fulfilled; therefore, your joy and your faith concerning this thing hath been vain. And it came to pass that they did make a great uproar throughout the land; and the people who believed began to be very sorrowful, least by any means those things which had been spoken might not come to pass. However, behold, they did watch steadfastly for that day and that night and that day which should be as one day as if there were no night, that they might know that their faith had not been vain. Now it came to pass that there was a day set apart by the unbelievers, that all those who believed in those traditions should be put to death except the sign should come to pass, which had been given by Samuel the prophet. Now it came to pass that when Nephi, the son of Nephi, saw this wickedness of his people, his heart was exceedingly sorrowful. #RandolphHarris 20 of 25
“And it came to pass that he went out and bowed himself down upon the Earth, and cried mightily to his God in behalf of his people, yea, those who were about to be destroyed because of their faith in the tradition of their fathers. And it came to pass that he cried mightily unto the Lord all that day; and behold, the voice of the Lord same unto him, saying: Life up your hear and be of good cheer; for behold, the time is at hand, and on this night shall the sign be given, and on the morrow come I into the World, to show unto the World that I will fulfill all that which I have caused to be spoken by the mouth of my holy prophets. Behold, I come unto my own, to fulfill all things which I have made known unto the children of men from the foundation of the World, and to do the will, both of the Father and of the Son—of the Father because of me, and of the Son because of my flesh. And behold, the time is at hand, and this night shall the sign be given. And it came to pass that the words which came unto Nephi were fulfilled, according as they had been spoken; for behold, at the going down of the Sun there was no darkness; and the people began to be astonished because there was no darkness when the night came. #RandolphHarris 21 of 25
“And there were many, who had not believed the words of the prophets, who fell to the Earth and because as if they were dead, for they know that the great plan of destruction which they had laid for those who believed in the words of the prophets had been frustrated; for the sign which had been given was already at hand. And they began to know that the Son of God must shortly appear; yea, in fine, all the people upon the face of the whole Earth from the west to the east, both in the land north and in the land south, were so exceedingly astonished that they fell to the Earth. For they knew that the prophets had testified of these things for many years, and that the sign which had been given was already at hand; and they began to fear because of their iniquity and their unbelief. And it came to pass that there was no darkness in all that night, but it was as light as though it was mid-day. And it came to pass that the Sun did rise in the morning again, according to its proper order; and they knew that it was the day that the Lord should be born, because of the sign which had been given. And it had come to pass, yea, all things, every whit, according to the words of the prophet. And it came to pass that a new start did appear, accord to the word. #RandolphHarris 22 of 25
“And it came to pass that from this time forth there began to be lyings sent forth among the people, by Satan, to harden their hearts, to the intent that they might not believe in those signs and wonders which they had seen; but notwithstanding these lyings and deceivings the more part of the people did believe, and were converted unto the Lord. And it came to pass that Nephi went forth among the people, and also many others baptizing unto repentance, in the which there was a great remission of sins. And this the people began again to have peace in the land. And there were no contentions, save it were a few that began to preach, endeavouring to prove by the scriptures that it was more expedient to observe the law of Moses. Now this thing they did err, having not understood the scriptures. However, it came to pass that they soon became converted, and were convinced of the error which they were in, for it was made known unto them that the law was not yet fulfilled, and that it must be fulfilled in every whit; yea, the word came unto them that it must be fulfilled; yea, that one jot or till it should all be fulfilled; therefore in this same year were they brought to a knowledge of their error ad did confess their faults. #RandolphHarris 23 of 25
“And this the ninety and second year did pass away, brining glad tidings unto the people because of the signs which did come to pass, according to the words of the prophecy of all the holy prophets. And it came to pass that the ninety and third year did also pass away in peace, save it were for the Gadianton robbers, who dwelt upon the mountains, who did infest the land; for so strong were their holds and their secret places that the people could not overpower them; therefore they did commit many murders, and did do much slaughter among the people. And it came to pass that in the ninety and fourth years they began to increase in great degree, because there were many dissenters of the Nephites who did flee unto them, which did cause much sorrow unto those Nephites who did remain in the land. And there was also a cause of much sorrow among the Lamanites; for behold, they had many children who did grow up and began to wax strong in the years, that they became for themselves, and were led away by some who were Zoramites, by their lyings and their flattering words, to join those Gadianton robbers. And thus were the Lamanites afflicted also, and began to decrease as to their faith and righteousness, because of the wickedness of the rising generation,” reports 3 Nephi 1.1-30. #RandolphHarris 24 of 25
From Father Night, the God is born returning to us, pouring out blessings, I raise my hands to the new-born babe Who, even so young does not hesitate, but rides forth manfully in his shining wheeled chariot. Rise up on the right path, Ord; rise up and distribute your light freely as a king in his hall scatters gold. Scatter your welcome light, God, as freely as a host spreading feast for guest. Place before us the banquet of this day’s deed and we will share it with you. O Lord Jesus Christ, Who art the Truth Incarnate and the Teacher of the faithful; let Thy Spirit overshadow us in reading Thy Word, and conform our thoughts to Thy Revelation; that learning of Thee with honest hearts, we may be rooted and built up in Thee, Who livest in intelligence, Who can open gates of higher Worlds and newer views. Please allow our minds to be still and know the Truth! O God, by Whom the meek are guided in judgment, and light riseth up in darkness for the Godly; please grant us, in all our doubts and uncertainties, the grace to ask what Thou wouldest have us to do; that the Spirit of wisdom may save us from all false choices, and that in Thy light we may see light, and in Thy straight path may not stumble; through Jesus Christ our Lord. #RandolphHarris 25 of 25
BRIGHTON STATION AT CRESLEIGH RANCH
Rancho Cordova, CA |
Now Selling!
Residence Three at Brighton Station boasts 2,757 square feet in this expansive two story home. There are four bedrooms, three and a half bathrooms, and a three car garage!
The kitchen comes fully equipped with a large eat-in island, stainless steel appliances, quartz counters, and large walk in pantry. The openness in the design allows the Great Room and kitchen to interact with each other seamlessly. This home comes with an en suite bedroom on the first floor making it ideal for guests, or multi-generational living.
Best of all, each Cresleigh home comes fully equipped with an All Ready connected home! This smart home package comes included with your home and features great tools including: video door bell and digital deadbolt for the front door, connect home hub so you can set scenes and routines to make life just a little easier. Two smart switches and USB outlets are also included, plus we’ll gift you a Google Home Hub and Google Mini to help connect everything together!
Charming style and well-designed, contemporary touches. https://cresleigh.com/brighton-station/residence-3/
Stand a Little Less Between Me and the Sun for this is the Movement of Redeeming Love!
If you watch a game, it is fun. If you play it, it is recreation. If you work at it, it is golf. We become live as we take, knowingly, full responsibility for our own life and as we stop blaming circumstance. Freedom for most people of the World means “freedom from” the absence of malice or pain or suppression. However, the freedom that God means when He deals with us goes one step further. God means “freedom to”—the freedom to act in the dignity of our own choice. What then does it mean to be free? Freedom means to have matured to the full knowledge of our dangerously many responsibilities as a human being. We have learned that everything we do, and even say or think, has consequences. We realize that too long we have believed that we were the victims of circumstances. In the Gospel of John, 8.32 it reports the following, “And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” As we open our hearts to the message of God’s truth, as it was restored in our time, we begin to understand why there was, and still is, so much misery, pain, suffering, and even starvation. Our nation’s future direction now hangs in the balance; we are living in a time of crucial choices—both conscious and unconscious—that will determine our fate. #RandolphHarris 1 of 22
The rights to freedom of thought and speech, the right to advocate any point of view which one believe—these freedoms are not highly regarded today. Even universities, where these freedoms are of the essence, often refuse to permit speakers to appear because their views are opposed by some influential group. And it is not only administrators who limit these freedoms, but faculty and students as well. Lies, deceit, criminal invasion of privacy, flouting of the law, surveillance and imprisonment of dissenters—all these have been tools used to control the populace and to hold power over persons. We have to be careful because incarcerating the young will keep them out of the adult World. High office now goes preponderantly to humans of wealth so that of our one hundred senators, supposedly representing the people, 50 percent of them are millionaires. To make people obey the law, it is important for them to feel they are a par of an ongoing, purposeful process. People are more likely to obey the law when they understand that each individual has an inalienable right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. We cannot allow “Dysamerica,” to become popular since it is utterly opposed to the goals, ideals, and political structure embodied in the Constitution. #RandolphHarris 2 of 22
Youth must also be taught not only to be loving, but also to be proud to be Americans so they do not become “Dysamerican.” Many social historians, economists, and forecasters agree that the disillusionment with democracy is growing, and they see it coming to fruition in the future that a controlled society is inevitable. Belief in the worth of the free person is not something that can be extinguished even by all the modern technological devices—bugging of conversations, use of “mental hospitals” to recondition behaviour, and all the rest. Nothing can extinguish the human organism’s drive to be itself—to actualize itself in individual and creative ways. Trust and courage are standards to emulate. Equality and justice are inviolable concepts. Authority should be guided by reason and tempered by fairness. There is a realization that if we are to live in a human context, there must be an ability to establish intimate, communicative, personal bonds with others in a very short space of time. They must be able to leave these close relationships behind, without excessive conflict or mourning. Every social revolution is preceded by, or brings with it, a change in the perception of the World or a change in the perception of the possible or both. #RandolphHarris 3 of 22
In the same dimension as we are learning to accept the revealed truth in our own life, our faith in the living Son of God will grow, and therefore we will receive spiritual gifts of heretofore unknown capacity. We will learn that nothing is impossible for those who believe in Jesus Christ. False bondages will be loosened. Narrow thinking born in tragedies of false traditions will disappear. The more our understanding of the vastness and the completeness of the plan of salvation is developing, the more we see ourselves in smallness, in our incompleteness. And seeing ourselves in that humility, with a broken heart and a contrite spirit, will let us understand and finally accept this most sacred covenant with our Heavenly Father. Freedom means that we have the potential of making wrong choices. Wrong choices have their merciless consequences, and when they are not stopped and corrected they lead us into misery and pain. Wrong choices, if not corrected, will lead us to the ultimate possible disaster in each person’s life: to become separated from our Heavenly Father in the World to come. When we have received this life-enabling message, we begin to understand that in our earlier life we were like a football player standing in the middle of the field, totally depressed because we did not know the purpose of the game. #RandolphHarris 4 of 22
We did not know which team we belong to, and we did not even know who was our coach. Only in the awareness of the restored gospel, our game plan become clear, and we comprehend that Jesus Christ and His restored Church and priesthood are the only way for us to succeed in our Earthly experience. Jesus Christ wants to empower our lives, according to our own righteous choices, to that dimension that, through our faith and our doings, the circumstances whose prisoners we were in the past will eventually change. Love, if it is truly love, implies that in any problem or dilemma we shall be led by a spiritual instinct. For, where love is, there is the Holy Spirit, who knows all, and who guides us in the strait path. Love is able to rise above the law; it does not follow, but lead, the law. The conscience of the mystics, enlightened by God’s illuminations, may be called a transmoral conscience. It does not need to be told what law is. For consciously or not, it fulfills the law. For in the concrete situation of the Christian who is totally committed to God, love never contradicts the law: it fulfills it. Love invents the law if the law is not explicitly known, and what it invents always corresponds to the law, because both have the Holy Spirit as their inspirer. The morel law of nature or of revelation cannot contradict the true love of God. #RandolphHarris 5 of 22
The true love of God always desires to follow the moral law. However, every teacher knows that correct behaviour does not come spontaneously. Even love has to be taught. Even when one really loves them, one must learn to respect and understand others. Even for one who is totally dedicated to another, it is not east to respect the secret of that person. When it stated that “the fear of God is the beginning of wisdom,” The Old Testament agree with common sense. Christ did not abolish the law; he fulfilled it. Love likewise does not seek to be freed from laws, but to fulfill them. Love soars above the law only to subject itself to the law again. Love is free, and it freely longs for obedience. As soon as we speak of obedience, we must ask, Obedience to what? In the realm of ethics, obedience can only be to objective standards, that is, to laws. The law is not strange to man. It is natural law. It represents his true nature from which he is estranged. Every ethical commandment is an expression of man’s essential relation to himself, to others and to the Universe. Undeserved grace of God has raised to full spiritual freedom. Most of us are theonomous only at times, when we rise above our average. #RandolphHarris 6 of 22
Our ethics, then, is a mixture: heteronomy, when we obey the law for no other reason than that is it’s the law; autonomy, when we escape the law and go on our own, experimenting with temptation and sin; theonomy, when we perceive that there is a higher realm, to which we obscurely aspire. In this World, theonomy can only be achieved by way of obedience. To behave ethically, in this view, is to be ultimately concerned about the connection of our actions with essential Godmanhood. The Christ is eternal Godmanhood, the essence of man paradoxically appearing under the conditions of existence. All humans have aspired to this revelation; they have longed for an escape from the dilemma of an existence which is never adequate to its essence. Their religions have attempted to find a way out of the human labyrinth. The Messiah, the Christ, the Servant of Yahweh, the Prophet to come, the Son of Man, the Son of God, are some of the representations of this ideal messenger of salvation. The Christian faith consists in believing that this messenger has come, Christ is eternal Godmanhood, is in Jesus Christ the man; and that Jesus was the manifestation of the Christ. The coming of Jesus the Christ is a totally gratuitous event, unanticipated by the human mind and irreducible to general categories. #RandolphHarris 7 of 22
Our goodness is not ours, it is God’s. Christ is perfect goodness, and so he is perfectly God. We are good because God lives in us by grace; and Jesus was perfect goodness because God was perfectly in him, so perfectly that Jesus was God. Wherever the New Bing appears, salvation is achieved. The coming of the Christ is such a breakthrough of the New Bing. Other can be thought of or hoped for. This particular manifestation of the New Bing is the norm of Christianity because it is the greatest manifestation that has ever been perceived. Of all the messianic titles, Jesus claimed the title of the Man more definitely than any other. In 1 Corinthians 15.45-47, in Romans 5.12, and in Philippians 2.5-11, St Paul developed the idea of the Man and identified “the Heavenly Man,” “the second Adam,” “the second Man,” with the concrete man Jesus. The Man is from Heaven. He is spiritual, as contrasted with the first Adam, who was Earthly. He appeared on Earth as Jesus of Nazareth. These, and other texts of the New Testament, impose the following conclusion: The early Church initiated a Christology in which Jesus was considered to be the incarnation of preexisting celestial Man. Christology is built on the concept “Man.” The Man, the “celestial Man,” is equal with God. Christology takes this as a scriptural basis and describes the Thee Persons as the Father, the Man, the Spirit. #RandolphHarris 8 of 22
In examining the meaning of “the Man,” it might follow the patristic line of thought according to which man’s essence is to be the image, the eikon, of God. The second Person, the Man-God, is the perfect Image of the Father, of whom he is eternally born. It is precisely that which makes him the preexistent Man. To be a man on Earth consists in being destined to imitate this Man, in being created an image of God. All men are types of this eternal Archetype, of the Image of the Father, of the Man. The two natures, divine and human, of Christ can also be called the two humanities of Jesus: the divine Humanity, which is God himself, the Exemplar of all images of God; and the creaturely humanity, in whose shape the divine Humanity appeared on Earth at a given moment in history. These two are one—one “person” in the Chalcedonian language—by way of exemplarity: the creaturely humanity of Jesus is the perfect created likeness of the divine Man. We should not speak of Jesus as two men, but as two humanities—divine and human—in one man, the pre-existent divine Man. The integrity of the creaturely humanity assumed by the eternal Man, in all things like his brethren. #RandolphHarris 9 of 22
The Exemplar itself is, eternally so, divine and yet human the divine Man. Eternal Godmanhood is made possible by the Scriptures themselves and by the early tradition of the Church. It may be achieved in complete fidelity to the normative Councils of the early Church. Jesus is the divine Man and appeared in the midst of creaturely mankind, a brother among brothers. Jesus the Christ is the Saviour. Jesus the Christ is the mediator in all things. The Son of God, to whom alone belong the Kingdom, the Power and the Glory. “If we love one another, God abides in us, and His love is perfected in us,” reports 1 John 4.12. The first great commandment makes it possible to fulfill the commandment: love of neighbour as oneself. And loving others under God will ensure that we are loved by others. For to the others in our community of love, we are the “other” who they love because they love and are loved by God. The fellowship of Christ’s apprentices in kingdom living is a community of love. “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all humans will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another,” reports John 13.34-35. This is the movement in the process of redeeming love. Christ chose his twelve apostles not only because they were naturally and extremely religious men but also because they were loyal enough and brave enough to live and die for their master. #RandolphHarris 10 of 22
Here, then, is the full accounts of the movements of love in our lives: We are loved by God who is love, and in turn we love him, and others through him, who in turn love us through him. Thus is love made perfect or complete. And “perfect love casts out fear,” reports 1 John 4.18. That is, those who live in the fulfillment of God’s redemptive love in human life will no longer experience fear. “Fear involves torment,” John notes, and torment is incompatible with living in the full cycle of love (1 John 4.18). We live in the community of goodwill from a competent God. Now, as St Augustine saw long ago, the opposite of love is pride. Love eliminates pride because its will for the god of the other nullifies our arrogant presumption hat we should get our way. We are concerned for the good of others and assured that our good is take care of without self-will. Thus pride and fear and their dreadful offspring no longer rules our life as long becomes complete in us. This eagerness to become a disciple and learn truth is the first necessary qualification. Without it nothing can be done; with it everything will come naturally in automatic response from God. One must supply faith and loyalty, obedience and practice, along with the aspiration which brings us closer to the Lord. If we hear the master’s words with joy, that is one indication that we are ready. #RandolphHarris 11 of 22
When we entrust ourselves to the Lord’s care, we should cultivate patience and not seek immediate results. However, it is not necessary to display frenzied fervour in order to be a devoted disciple. If we feel personally humiliated or become hysterically tearful because God did not respond when we expected, we are not only suffering needlessly, but will remain long puzzled. Our humility will always be met by kindness and our frankness by equal frankness. The seeker who has found the path proper and are in affinity with God’s commandments should waste no more time in the experimental investigations of other paths, other teachings, and other teachers. If one is to get full benefit of our fellowship, we must remain absolutely loyal. As one’s tender, newly regenerated soul begins to grow close to Christ, one will begin to care deeply about ideas in these areas. Preserve and clear away some of the cobwebs that cover vast regions of one’s mental attic. Nothing that is worth doing id pleasurable or easy in the early stages of learning how to do it. However, through regular practice, patient endurance, and proper mentoring, skills emerge and habits are formed that enable a good person to be good at the activity in focus. This is clearly the case in learning to play gold, hit a baseball, or read in completely new areas of study. It is n less true of becoming a deep, careful thinker in general. #RandolphHarris 12 of 22
If we are to love God adequately with the mind, then the mind must be exercised regularly, trained to acquire certain habits of thought, and filled with an increasingly rich set of distinctions and categories. There is n simple way to do this, and it would be presumptuous to attempt to describe fully how to develop a mature mind in one essay. A mature person has a tightly integrated, well-ordered soul. A carefully developed mind is a crucial part of a well-ordered soul. A mind that is learning to function well is both part of and made possible by an overall life that is skillfully lived. You cannot learn to use your mind well for Christ’s sake by just reading a logic book or taking more adult education courses. You must order your general lifestyle in such a way that a maturing intellect emerges as part of that lifestyle. If you want to develop a Christian mind, you must intend to order your overall form of life to make this possible. You cannot just read a book or two and add this to a lifestyle otherwise indifferent to the intellect. Moreover, learning to be a careful Christian thinker results in an entire way of being present in the World. What a person spends time learning will affect the way that person sees, hears, thinks, and behaves. #RandolphHarris 13 of 22
A trained lawyer actually hears things on the evening news, see things in the newspaper, and approaches conversations with others in ways that would be unavailable to one if one had gone into psychology or business. A person with a well-developed lawyer-type mind will have a distinctive way of being present in the World. This is also true of a person who is cultivating a careful Christian mind. That person will be present to the World in a distinctively Christian intellectual way. One will notice certain things others miss, read things (for example, theology, church history) others eschew, and so forth. To develop a Christian mind skillfully, one must want to be a certain sort of person badly enough that one is willing to pay the price for ordering one’s lifestyle appropriately. Of course, some Christians are called to a vocation of being a Christian intellectual in one way or another—a Christian philosopher or New Testament scholar, for example. This requires a more intense, focused ordering of one’s life than is needed for those without this calling. However, every believer, regardless of vocational calling, needs to cultivate a Christian mind. A life so ordered to facilitate intellectual growth is characterized by a certain set of virtues that makes such growth possible. #RandolphHarris 14 of 22
A virtue is a skill, a habit, an ingrained disposition to act, think, or feel in certain way. Virtues are those good parts of one’s character that make a person excellent at life in general. As with any skill (for example, learning to swing a golf club), a virtue become ingrained in my personality, and thus a part of my very nature, through repetition, practice, and training. If I want to develop the virtue of compassion, I must regularly practice acts of mercy, self-sacrifice, and kindness. Knowing what these virtues are will give one something specific at which to aim in one’s efforts to cultivate one’s mind. Certain virtues are especially relevant to the development of an intellectual life. Moreover, these virtues are not isolated from each other. They are deeply interrelated. Growth in one virtue can assist maturity in another skill and vice versa. If one wants a maturing Christian mind, one will need to cultivate these virtues through regular practice. If in the beginning one is to cast one’s net so widely as to search for truth in every corner, in the middle of one’s course one is to narrow one’s World until one has no ear for anyone else but the voice of God. Only so can concentration be achieved. In the beginning, width; in the middle, depth. #RandolphHarris 15 of 22
Virtue of wisdom contains truth seeking, honesty, and wisdom. Even if it is not the truth we want to hear, the Christian mind is committed to seeking and finding the truth. The Christian seeks to know and do the truth. In fact, in a certain sense the believer’s commitment to the truth is even more basic than one’s dedication to the Christian faith in general or some doctrinal position in particular: If one came to believe that Christianity or some doctrinal belief were false, then one would ought to give up the belief in question. By way of application, even if we do not like the way they express their views, we should earn to listen to what our critics say about us. Even if it was expressed angrily and inappropriately, a wife or husband should try to get at the truth of a spouse’s criticisms. Practice this in all areas of your life to cultivate the habit of wanting the truth. Few are ready to pay the entrance fee of lifelong loyalty and steadfast service which are demanded, for this payment must be made in actual practice and not in lip movements alone. Even when understanding cannot keep pace, we must be able to trust and walk unwaveringly at our spouses’ side, and our fine loyalty should shine out like Sirius in the sky. Loyalty is the quality which will endear one most to a loved one. #RandolphHarris 16 of 22
The Quest will become inseparable from the happiness one seeks, so devotion to God will become inseparable from the salvation upon which happiness depends. Why should this be so is one of the mysterious workings of Destiny which can only be illuminate when and if it be possible to illuminate the Earth sacred covenant. In this freedom that we have received in our time, through our understanding of God’s divine plan for us, we stand in our full responsibility. Let us always stay close to the loving, caring hand of our Redeemer, and our Saviour to find safety and joy. I say this in deep humility. “And now, it came to pass that there were many who heard the words of Samuel, the Lamanite, which he spake upon the walls of the city. And as many as believed on his word went forth and sought for Nephi; and when they had come forth and found him they confessed unto him their sins and denied not, desiring that they might be baptized unto the Lord. However, as many as there were who did not believe in the words of Samuel were angry with him; and they cast stones at him upon the wall, and also many short arrows at him as he stood upon the wall; but the Spirit of the Lord was with him, insomuch that they could not hit him with their stones neither with their arrows. #RandolphHarris 17 of 22
“Now when they saw that they could not hit him, there were many more who did believe on his words, insomuch that they went away unto Nephi to be baptized. For behold, Nephi was baptizing, and prophesying, and preaching, crying repentance unto the people, showing signs of wonders, working miracles among the people, that they might know that the Christ must shortly come—telling them of the things which must shortly come, that that might know and remember at the time of their coming that they had been made known unto them beforehand, to the intent that they might believe; therefore as many as believed on the word of Samuel went forth unto him to be baptized, for they came repenting and confessing their sins. However, they more part of them did not believe in the words of Samuel; therefore when they saw that they could not hit him with their stone and their arrows, they cried unto their captains, saying: Take this fellow and bind him, for behold he hath a devil; and because of the power of the devil which is in him we cannot hit him with our stones and our arrows; therefore take him and bind hi, and away with him. And as they went forth to lay their hands on him, behold, he did cast himself down from the wall, and did flee out of their lands, yea, even unto his own country, and began to preach and to prophesy among his own people. #RandolphHarris 18 of 22
“And behold, he was never heard of more among the Nephites; and thus were the affairs of the people. And thus ended the eighty and sixth year of the judges over the people of Nephi. And thus ended also the eighty and seventh year of the reign of the judges, the more part of the people remaining in their pride and wickedness, and the lesser part walking more circumspectly before God. And these were the conditions also, in the eighty and eighth year of the reign of the judges. And there was but a little alteration in the affairs of the people, save it were the people began to be more hardened in iniquity, and do more and more of that which was contrary to the commandments of God, in the eighty and ninth year of the reign of the judges. However, it came to pass in the ninetieth year of the reign of the judges, there were great signs given unto the people, and wonders; and the words of the prophets began to be fulfilled. And Angels did appear unto men, wise men, and did declare unto them glad tidings of great joy; thus in this year the scriptures began to be fulfilled. Nevertheless, the people began to harden their hearts, all save it were the most believing part of them, both of the Nephites and also of the Lamanites, and began to depend upon their own strength and upon their own wisdom saying: #RandolphHarris 19 of 22
“Some thing they may have guessed right, among so many; but behold, we know that all these great and marvelous works cannot come to pass, of which have been spoken. And they began to reason and to contend among themselves, saying: That it is not reasonable that such a being as a Christ shall come; if so, and he be the Son of God, the Father of Heaven and of Earth, as it has been spoken, why will he not show himself unto us as well as unto them who shall be at Jerusalem? Yea, why will he not show himself in this land as well as in the land of Jerusalem? However, behold, we know that this is a wicked tradition, which has been handed down unto us by our fathers, to cause us that we should believe in some great and marvelous thing which should come to pass, but not among us, but in a land which is far distant, a long which we know not; therefore they can keep us in ignorance, for we cannot witness without own eyes that they are true. And they will, by the cunning and the mysterious arts of the evil one, work some great mystery which we cannot understand, which will keep us down to be servants to their words, and also servants unto them, for we depend upon them to teach us the word; and thus will they keep us in ignorance if we will yield ourselves unto them, all the days of our lives. #RandolphHarris 20 of 22
“And many more thing did the people imagine up in their hearts, which were foolish and vain; and they were much disturbed, for Satan did stir them up to do iniquity continually; yea, he did go about spreading rumors and contentions upon the face of the land, that he might harden the hearts of the people against that which should come. And notwithstanding the signs and the wonders which were wrought among the people of the Lord, and the many miracles which they did, Satan did get great hold upon the hearts of the people upon all the face of the land. And thus ended the ninetieth year of the reign of the judges over the people of Nephi. And thus ended the book of Helaman, according to the record of Helaman and his sons,” reports Helaman 16.1-25. Come, spirits of the Lord, and bless my life. We will live our lives together from now on, you living in me. God, please guide our ways and balance opposites. May we use the blessings you have given us well for your purposes. O Almighty God, from Whom every good prayer cometh, and Who pourest out on all who desire it the Spirit of grace and supplications; please deliver us, when we draw nigh to Thee, from coldness of heart and wanderings of mind; that with steadfast thoughts and kindled affections we may worship Thee in spirit and in truth; through Jesus Christ our Lord. #RandolphHarris 21 of 22
O God, Who makest us glad with the weekly remembrance of the glorious Resurrection of Thy Son our Lord; please vouchsafe us this day such a blessing though Thy worship, that the days which follow it may be spent in Thy favour; through the same Jesus Christ our Lord. O Lord, Who by triumphing over the powers of darkness, didst prepare our place in the New Jerusalem; please grant us, who have this say given thanks for Thy resurrection, to praise Thee in that City whereof Thou art the Light; where with the Father we are taken into His heart and profit by lessons of the past and remain resolutely devoted to Him. Our inner affinity with God is so personal, so intimate, so deeply felt, that no one else can take the place of the Lord. We seek not counsel from anyone other than God. O Lord Jesus Christ, Who art the Truth Incarnate and the Teacher of the faithful; please let Thy Spirit overshadow us in reading Thy Word, and conform our thoughts to Thy Revelation; that learning of Thee with honest heart, we may be rooted and built up in Thee who livest genuinely and teachers us reverence and obedience, love and respect. There is none higher than God, He guides humans out of illusion into reality. It is not wrong therefore to give His office great reverence and Himself great devotion. Our spiritual debt to God is unpayable. This is because that which directs us is more important in the end than anything else. #RandolphHarris 22 of 22
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We ought to be grateful and respectful to all those great lights of the race who brought it truth. Yet at the same time we ought to be specially grateful and specially respectful to the particular one who brought us to see the truth more than any other did.
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Randolph Harris II International 