Francis Berger's Blog, page 98
May 3, 2021
One Mirror; Two Reflections; One Revelation
The divine self within you is a mirror.
One day, you will look into it and see God in the reflection. That same day, God will also look into it and see you in the reflection.
That day will mark the beginning of the divine-human revelation.
One day, you will look into it and see God in the reflection. That same day, God will also look into it and see you in the reflection.
That day will mark the beginning of the divine-human revelation.
May 2, 2021
Is There Anything Negative About Redemption and Salvation?
The most basic, obvious, and true answer is, no.
Full disclosure – this is one of my “exploratory” posts where I think through a theme in a relatively simplistic manner and arrive at a tentative conclusion.
Jesus’s offer of redemption and salvation is entirely positive. Not only is it entirely positive, but it is fundamental – the basis of Christianity – the foundation upon which everything else stands.
Christ’s offer of redemption saves us from death and sin, while His offer of salvation grants us the new possibility of heaven.
Therefore, redemption and salvation are entirely positive and are the basis of Christianity, and it only follows that accepting Jesus’s offer of redemption and salvation should be the chief aim of all Christians during their mortal lives.
Once again, no argument there. Embracing the gifts of redemption and salvation is the overarching spiritual imperative of Christianity.
Having said that, the manner in which these gifts are accepted matters – and it is from this that any potential “negatives” of accepting Jesus’s gifts arise.
To illustrate, I will utilize a rather weak and somewhat unsuitable “purely material” analogy to draw attention to this matter of “manner” in relation to the acceptance of Jesus’s offer of redemption and salvation.
Imagine a man living conditions in which he is desperately impoverished and essentially powerless. One day, an opportunity to inherit a vast fortune and considerable power presents itself.
The “manners” (or “hows”) through which the poor, powerless man could approach such an opportunity are many.
The first manner is straightforward – he could simply refuse the opportunity; however, from a purely worldly perspective, refusing the opportunity would ultimately be foolish because it would leave him wallowing in powerlessness and poverty.
Let’s assume the man accepts the opportunity, but spitefully abuses his power and carelessly squanders the fortune to such an extent that he not only quickly finds himself poor and powerless again, but in circumstances that are even worse than they had been before he agreed to accept the unexpected inheritance. Worse because he refuses to acknowledge that his wicked and base behavior had anything to do with his lost power and fortune. As a result, the man spends the rest of his life seething with resentment at the injustice of it all.
What if the man accepted the power and wealth, but then subsequently became obsessed by the possibility of losing it all. What would happen if he devoted the remainder of his mortal life solely to conserving, protecting, and defending his inheritance from the perceived risks and dangers of the external world?
The man might very well conserve and protect some, perhaps even the bulk of his wealth and power, but his suspicious, risk-averse, and wholly defensive approach would not only severely restrict and narrow the focus of his life, but also negate the many potentially positive, perhaps even profitable opportunities his newfound wealth and power granted him.
Another approach the man could employ if he accepted the power and wealth was to attempt to spread his power and wealth in such a way as to minimize suffering in the greater world. Daunted by the task, the man hires an army of managers, advisors, and experts to manifest his generous, altruistic ambitions. At some point in time – and that time could be quite long indeed – the man is devastated to learn that his army of “trusted” managers, advisors, and experts have done nothing to alleviate suffering in the greater world and have instead stolen the power and wealth to enrich themselves.
Finally, the man could accept the inheritance and begin to live his life from the understanding that he has essentially become a new man; that it is not only his external circumstances that have changed, but that he himself has been presented the opportunity to change internally. He understands that his new power and wealth have provided him with the opportunity to see himself and the world with new eyes.
From this new perspective, he arranges his life so that the core of his power and wealth can never be taken from him. He becomes free to dedicate his energy to something beyond the fear of “loss.” Rather than chase abstract, altruistic, Utopian fantasies of ending powerlessness and poverty for all, he searches for personal and creative ways to empower and enrich the people he knows and loves so that they too, in turn, can learn to spread power and wealth to those they love.
Now, let’s transfer the power and wealth of the simple, worldly analogy above to Christ’s gifts of redemption and salvation.
Those who refuse Christ’s offer of redemption and salvation make an active choice to remain spiritually powerless and impoverished.
Those who accept redemption and salvation but recklessly and un-repentantly squander it either do not understand nor wish to understand the gifts they have accepted.
Those who accept redemption and salvation, but then spend the remainder of their mortal lives doing nothing more than defending and conserving their salvation from the evils of the external world are either unaware of or willingly deny the freedom redemption and salvation grants them in mortal life. Fear, rather than love, motivates Christians in this category. More specifically, they fear hell more than they love Christ. Alternatively, their fear of losing salvation trumps their love of the freedom salvation offers.
Those who accept redemption and salvation but then outsource the “management” of their own personal redemption and salvation to managers, advisors, and experts at the expense of relying on their own personal intuition and discernment demonstrate an overriding trust in external authority and face the risk of losing redemption and salvation through willful neglect. Nearly all System Christians fall into this category.
Lastly, those who accept redemption and salvation from love rather than fear know they have invested in something that they can never lose. Christians in this category do not approach redemption and salvation with a siege mentality. On the contrary, they understand that redemption and salvation do not lock a person into a bastion under perpetual siege, but free a person to venture forth spiritually and creatively.
Encouraged and fortified by the salvation to which they have committed themselves, Christians in this category become aware of the immense freedom and power redemption and salvation offers, not just in everlasting life, but in mortal life as well. They begin to understand that redemption and salvation extend everlasting life into mortal life. Put another way, they do not wait for death to begin experiencing everlasting life; they begin to see that everlasting life can “begin” in mortal life to some degree.
The dissolution of the potentially negative distinction between our mortal lives and everlasting life not only lends true meaning and depth to spiritual learning in our mortal lives, but suggests the possibility that spiritual creativity is not limited to life everlasting, but can be utilized and accessed in mortal life as well.
Redemption and salvation are entirely positive, but they are only entirely positive if they are accepted through the entirely positive imperatives of faith and love and unimpaired by the potentially negative imperatives of doubt and fear.
Another way to look at it could be this: imagine you have accepted a dream job you have always wanted. The job comes with guaranteed immunity from the sack as long as you sincerely acknowledge potential mistakes, learn from them, and remain honestly committed to your work. The only way you could lose the job in this scenario is if you resigned.
Theoretically, having such an opportunity should inspire you to be bold and creative and to do all the things necessary to make the most of the job and to make the most of yourself. The guaranteed immunity should grant you the space needed to attempt groundbreaking work. Unhindered by the constant threat of losing your situation, you might feel emboldened to be creative and think outside the box.
Conversely, imagine accepting such a job, but refusing the potential freedom and resources the position offers out of fear of “screwing up”. Or, imagine being perpetually gripped by the fear of the sack despite your guaranteed immunity from such action.
As stated at the beginning of the post, redemption and salvation are unarguably entirely positive. Yet, we can only understand and appreciate the “entirety” of these entirely positive gifts if our understanding of redemption and salvation is also entirely positive.
Full disclosure – this is one of my “exploratory” posts where I think through a theme in a relatively simplistic manner and arrive at a tentative conclusion.
Jesus’s offer of redemption and salvation is entirely positive. Not only is it entirely positive, but it is fundamental – the basis of Christianity – the foundation upon which everything else stands.
Christ’s offer of redemption saves us from death and sin, while His offer of salvation grants us the new possibility of heaven.
Therefore, redemption and salvation are entirely positive and are the basis of Christianity, and it only follows that accepting Jesus’s offer of redemption and salvation should be the chief aim of all Christians during their mortal lives.
Once again, no argument there. Embracing the gifts of redemption and salvation is the overarching spiritual imperative of Christianity.
Having said that, the manner in which these gifts are accepted matters – and it is from this that any potential “negatives” of accepting Jesus’s gifts arise.
To illustrate, I will utilize a rather weak and somewhat unsuitable “purely material” analogy to draw attention to this matter of “manner” in relation to the acceptance of Jesus’s offer of redemption and salvation.
Imagine a man living conditions in which he is desperately impoverished and essentially powerless. One day, an opportunity to inherit a vast fortune and considerable power presents itself.
The “manners” (or “hows”) through which the poor, powerless man could approach such an opportunity are many.
The first manner is straightforward – he could simply refuse the opportunity; however, from a purely worldly perspective, refusing the opportunity would ultimately be foolish because it would leave him wallowing in powerlessness and poverty.
Let’s assume the man accepts the opportunity, but spitefully abuses his power and carelessly squanders the fortune to such an extent that he not only quickly finds himself poor and powerless again, but in circumstances that are even worse than they had been before he agreed to accept the unexpected inheritance. Worse because he refuses to acknowledge that his wicked and base behavior had anything to do with his lost power and fortune. As a result, the man spends the rest of his life seething with resentment at the injustice of it all.
What if the man accepted the power and wealth, but then subsequently became obsessed by the possibility of losing it all. What would happen if he devoted the remainder of his mortal life solely to conserving, protecting, and defending his inheritance from the perceived risks and dangers of the external world?
The man might very well conserve and protect some, perhaps even the bulk of his wealth and power, but his suspicious, risk-averse, and wholly defensive approach would not only severely restrict and narrow the focus of his life, but also negate the many potentially positive, perhaps even profitable opportunities his newfound wealth and power granted him.
Another approach the man could employ if he accepted the power and wealth was to attempt to spread his power and wealth in such a way as to minimize suffering in the greater world. Daunted by the task, the man hires an army of managers, advisors, and experts to manifest his generous, altruistic ambitions. At some point in time – and that time could be quite long indeed – the man is devastated to learn that his army of “trusted” managers, advisors, and experts have done nothing to alleviate suffering in the greater world and have instead stolen the power and wealth to enrich themselves.
Finally, the man could accept the inheritance and begin to live his life from the understanding that he has essentially become a new man; that it is not only his external circumstances that have changed, but that he himself has been presented the opportunity to change internally. He understands that his new power and wealth have provided him with the opportunity to see himself and the world with new eyes.
From this new perspective, he arranges his life so that the core of his power and wealth can never be taken from him. He becomes free to dedicate his energy to something beyond the fear of “loss.” Rather than chase abstract, altruistic, Utopian fantasies of ending powerlessness and poverty for all, he searches for personal and creative ways to empower and enrich the people he knows and loves so that they too, in turn, can learn to spread power and wealth to those they love.
Now, let’s transfer the power and wealth of the simple, worldly analogy above to Christ’s gifts of redemption and salvation.
Those who refuse Christ’s offer of redemption and salvation make an active choice to remain spiritually powerless and impoverished.
Those who accept redemption and salvation but recklessly and un-repentantly squander it either do not understand nor wish to understand the gifts they have accepted.
Those who accept redemption and salvation, but then spend the remainder of their mortal lives doing nothing more than defending and conserving their salvation from the evils of the external world are either unaware of or willingly deny the freedom redemption and salvation grants them in mortal life. Fear, rather than love, motivates Christians in this category. More specifically, they fear hell more than they love Christ. Alternatively, their fear of losing salvation trumps their love of the freedom salvation offers.
Those who accept redemption and salvation but then outsource the “management” of their own personal redemption and salvation to managers, advisors, and experts at the expense of relying on their own personal intuition and discernment demonstrate an overriding trust in external authority and face the risk of losing redemption and salvation through willful neglect. Nearly all System Christians fall into this category.
Lastly, those who accept redemption and salvation from love rather than fear know they have invested in something that they can never lose. Christians in this category do not approach redemption and salvation with a siege mentality. On the contrary, they understand that redemption and salvation do not lock a person into a bastion under perpetual siege, but free a person to venture forth spiritually and creatively.
Encouraged and fortified by the salvation to which they have committed themselves, Christians in this category become aware of the immense freedom and power redemption and salvation offers, not just in everlasting life, but in mortal life as well. They begin to understand that redemption and salvation extend everlasting life into mortal life. Put another way, they do not wait for death to begin experiencing everlasting life; they begin to see that everlasting life can “begin” in mortal life to some degree.
The dissolution of the potentially negative distinction between our mortal lives and everlasting life not only lends true meaning and depth to spiritual learning in our mortal lives, but suggests the possibility that spiritual creativity is not limited to life everlasting, but can be utilized and accessed in mortal life as well.
Redemption and salvation are entirely positive, but they are only entirely positive if they are accepted through the entirely positive imperatives of faith and love and unimpaired by the potentially negative imperatives of doubt and fear.
Another way to look at it could be this: imagine you have accepted a dream job you have always wanted. The job comes with guaranteed immunity from the sack as long as you sincerely acknowledge potential mistakes, learn from them, and remain honestly committed to your work. The only way you could lose the job in this scenario is if you resigned.
Theoretically, having such an opportunity should inspire you to be bold and creative and to do all the things necessary to make the most of the job and to make the most of yourself. The guaranteed immunity should grant you the space needed to attempt groundbreaking work. Unhindered by the constant threat of losing your situation, you might feel emboldened to be creative and think outside the box.
Conversely, imagine accepting such a job, but refusing the potential freedom and resources the position offers out of fear of “screwing up”. Or, imagine being perpetually gripped by the fear of the sack despite your guaranteed immunity from such action.
As stated at the beginning of the post, redemption and salvation are unarguably entirely positive. Yet, we can only understand and appreciate the “entirety” of these entirely positive gifts if our understanding of redemption and salvation is also entirely positive.
April 29, 2021
A Brief Overview of Why God Needs You
The other day I wrote a post in which I claimed that God needs us as much as we need God. This set off alarm bells in the minds of some Christians who read the post. Some believed that what I was suggesting amounted to heresy. Some felt it was intuitively wrong. Some insisted the very idea is frightening and destined to scare Christians away. Others maintained that the mere notion of God needing us does not fit within any conceivable Christian framework.
Though I can sympathize with the unease many Christians experience when they encounter the possibility that God may need us, I cannot for the life me understand why so many Christians adamantly maintain that God does not, cannot, and will never have any real "need" of us.
My post from the other day received a fair share of comments (as noted above), but one in particular - submitted by fellow blogger William James Tychonievich - stood out for me:
Each of us can contribute something to Creation that no one else can -- and, yes, "no one else" means not even God.
William's comment not only encapsulates the essence of what I was trying to communicate in my post from the other day, but also addresses some painfully overlooked and under-emphasized positive imperatives within Christianity.
First, William's statement touches upon our inherent freedom and agency. Whether Christians are fully aware of it or not, we possess the ability to choose and we possess the ability to act upon our choices through agency.
Consider the possibility that God has very little or, perhaps more correctly, no control over our choices. Once again, this is bound to set off alarm bells in Christian heads. Yet at the same time, most Christians are perfectly at home with the idea that people can ultimately reject God and refuse Christ's gift of everlasting life through salvation.
If we possess the freedom and agency to reject God and refuse salvation, would it be too much of a stretch to consider that we also possess the possibility to use our freedom and agency for positive purposes, and that the limits of these positive purposes may extend way beyond "worshiping" God and accepting Christ's gift? Moreover, that God may "need" us to begin using our freedom and agency in such a way because we may bring something to Creation that he may not be able to offer on His own?
Second, William's assertion that we are able "to contribute something to Creation that no one else can" emphasizes our uniqueness; in particular, the unique quality of our own spiritual natures. We all carry the image of God within us and harbor a divine spark within our depths, but the manner in which we carry the Image of God and harbor the divine spark is unique, unparalleled, and unrepeatable.
On the other hand, William's observation also addresses our capability to actively participate in Creation as co-creators. Since we carry the Image of God within our divine selves, we have the potential to contribute something to Creation, not just physically, but spiritually as well. If we align our divine selves with God and Creation, we have the potential to add to Creation - and what we can potentially add will be something not even God would be able to add alone because our potential contributions will emanate from the combination of our freedom, agency, and uniqueness.
Lastly, consider the possibility that God actually wants and needs us to positively contribute to Creation - that our purpose and meaning in life are not limited to gaining redemption and salvation, but that life might be for something as well. This for is the contribution we can make when we align ourselves with God and begin working with Him creatively through the joint agency and cooperation of the divine and human.
This union of divine and human operation is exemplified by Christ.
Through Christ, God has proven that the co-operation of the divine and human is not only possible, but desirable.
God can bring the divine part is spades, but he "needs" us to supply the human part of the operation.
And he "needs" us to supply this human part from a position of freedom, agency, and love.
In light of all of the above, I don't understand why the mere thought of God needing us unsettles Christians so.
Though I can sympathize with the unease many Christians experience when they encounter the possibility that God may need us, I cannot for the life me understand why so many Christians adamantly maintain that God does not, cannot, and will never have any real "need" of us.
My post from the other day received a fair share of comments (as noted above), but one in particular - submitted by fellow blogger William James Tychonievich - stood out for me:
Each of us can contribute something to Creation that no one else can -- and, yes, "no one else" means not even God.
William's comment not only encapsulates the essence of what I was trying to communicate in my post from the other day, but also addresses some painfully overlooked and under-emphasized positive imperatives within Christianity.
First, William's statement touches upon our inherent freedom and agency. Whether Christians are fully aware of it or not, we possess the ability to choose and we possess the ability to act upon our choices through agency.
Consider the possibility that God has very little or, perhaps more correctly, no control over our choices. Once again, this is bound to set off alarm bells in Christian heads. Yet at the same time, most Christians are perfectly at home with the idea that people can ultimately reject God and refuse Christ's gift of everlasting life through salvation.
If we possess the freedom and agency to reject God and refuse salvation, would it be too much of a stretch to consider that we also possess the possibility to use our freedom and agency for positive purposes, and that the limits of these positive purposes may extend way beyond "worshiping" God and accepting Christ's gift? Moreover, that God may "need" us to begin using our freedom and agency in such a way because we may bring something to Creation that he may not be able to offer on His own?
Second, William's assertion that we are able "to contribute something to Creation that no one else can" emphasizes our uniqueness; in particular, the unique quality of our own spiritual natures. We all carry the image of God within us and harbor a divine spark within our depths, but the manner in which we carry the Image of God and harbor the divine spark is unique, unparalleled, and unrepeatable.
On the other hand, William's observation also addresses our capability to actively participate in Creation as co-creators. Since we carry the Image of God within our divine selves, we have the potential to contribute something to Creation, not just physically, but spiritually as well. If we align our divine selves with God and Creation, we have the potential to add to Creation - and what we can potentially add will be something not even God would be able to add alone because our potential contributions will emanate from the combination of our freedom, agency, and uniqueness.
Lastly, consider the possibility that God actually wants and needs us to positively contribute to Creation - that our purpose and meaning in life are not limited to gaining redemption and salvation, but that life might be for something as well. This for is the contribution we can make when we align ourselves with God and begin working with Him creatively through the joint agency and cooperation of the divine and human.
This union of divine and human operation is exemplified by Christ.
Through Christ, God has proven that the co-operation of the divine and human is not only possible, but desirable.
God can bring the divine part is spades, but he "needs" us to supply the human part of the operation.
And he "needs" us to supply this human part from a position of freedom, agency, and love.
In light of all of the above, I don't understand why the mere thought of God needing us unsettles Christians so.
April 28, 2021
Modern People Positively Crave the Diktat of None Are Safe Until All Are Safe
If this recent WEF article is to be believed, people the world over positively crave the global totalitarian diktat of "none are safe until all are safe":
There is strong global support for vaccine passports, a new Ipsos survey for the World Economic Forum shows.More than three-quarters of people worldwide think they should be mandatory for travel.And two-thirds of people say you should need one to enter stadiums and concert venues.More than half say the same should apply to shops, restaurants or offices.And a similar percentage expect vaccine passports to be widespread by the year’s end.
Of course, nearly all the people surveyed agreed that peck passports should only be implemented temporarily . . .
The lockout key continues to turn. Speaking of turning, how long before the System begins to actively begin turn pecked humanity against unpecked humanity?
There is strong global support for vaccine passports, a new Ipsos survey for the World Economic Forum shows.More than three-quarters of people worldwide think they should be mandatory for travel.And two-thirds of people say you should need one to enter stadiums and concert venues.More than half say the same should apply to shops, restaurants or offices.And a similar percentage expect vaccine passports to be widespread by the year’s end.
Of course, nearly all the people surveyed agreed that peck passports should only be implemented temporarily . . .
The lockout key continues to turn. Speaking of turning, how long before the System begins to actively begin turn pecked humanity against unpecked humanity?
April 27, 2021
God Needs Man Just as Much as Man Needs God
Christians spend a great deal of time broadcasting man's need for God. Without God, they argue, man is lost. To support this argument, Christians point their fingers at the external world and say, "You see? You see? You see?"
Of course, there is nothing inherently wrong with any of that. Christians are right - man does need God. Without God, man is lost; and God-less man has made an awfully terrible mess of the world.
At the same time, Christians rarely consider the possibility that God needs man just as much as man needs God. That without man, God might be a bit lost. That without man, God may not be motivated to do more than point at the external world and say, "You see? You see? You see?"
Without God, man is impoverished - but doesn't the same hold true in reverse? That without man, God is impoverished, too?
Man needs God. That is beyond argument.
Yet, God also needs man.
This immediately raises some crucial questions:
Why does God need man?
What does God need man to Be?
How can man meet or fulfill God's need?
Need here does not mean duty or obligation. At the core of this mutual, divine-human need is the freely offered supply of something in order to bring forth the manifestation of a desired state.
This something to be supplied is creativity.
Above all else, God needs man to be creative.
God is the Creator and He needs co-creators.
When Christians expand their standard formula of man's need of God by adding the simple equation of God's need of man, the divine-human revelation will begin to unfold and the creative transfiguration of the cosmos will begin.
Of course, there is nothing inherently wrong with any of that. Christians are right - man does need God. Without God, man is lost; and God-less man has made an awfully terrible mess of the world.
At the same time, Christians rarely consider the possibility that God needs man just as much as man needs God. That without man, God might be a bit lost. That without man, God may not be motivated to do more than point at the external world and say, "You see? You see? You see?"
Without God, man is impoverished - but doesn't the same hold true in reverse? That without man, God is impoverished, too?
Man needs God. That is beyond argument.
Yet, God also needs man.
This immediately raises some crucial questions:
Why does God need man?
What does God need man to Be?
How can man meet or fulfill God's need?
Need here does not mean duty or obligation. At the core of this mutual, divine-human need is the freely offered supply of something in order to bring forth the manifestation of a desired state.
This something to be supplied is creativity.
Above all else, God needs man to be creative.
God is the Creator and He needs co-creators.
When Christians expand their standard formula of man's need of God by adding the simple equation of God's need of man, the divine-human revelation will begin to unfold and the creative transfiguration of the cosmos will begin.
April 26, 2021
The Peck Saves Lives!
This recently released ad called The Peck Saves Lives is but a small part of the relentless "get pecked" campaign the Hungarian government has unleashed upon the public here over the past week.
This, ladies and gentlemen, is what propaganda looks like. Enjoy!
This, ladies and gentlemen, is what propaganda looks like. Enjoy!
First Cuckoo Call
Readers who have been with this blog for a while know I have an special affinity for Cuculus canorus, known more commonly as - appropriately enough - the common cuckoo.Over the past two weeks or so I have been straining my ears to catch a call, but to no avail. Well, two days ago - April 24 to be exact - I finally heard the first cuckoo call of the year. The old nursery rhyme line "in May the cuckoo sings all day" should be just around the corner.
The incessant cuckoo calling over the next six weeks or so will provide the perfect soundtrack to accompany the insanity gripping this part of the world.
I can hardly wait!
April 25, 2021
The Wrong Side of History or The Wrong Side of Creation; The Choice is Ours to Make
The other day I happened to read an article in which Klaus Schwab – the founder and executive chairman of the World Economic Forum – insisted that “companies ignoring climate change will be on the wrong side of history.”
After reading this rather hubristic and revealing quip, I began to mull over the nature of history and what it means to be on the wrong side of it. I quickly arrived at the conclusion that history is inherently malleable, like clay. Skilled historians, publicists, scholars, researchers, propagandists and the like can knead, throw, form, shape, and spin history with the same talent and finesse master potters employ when working with clay.
When a historian has succeeded in giving an appropriate, perhaps even attractive, form to the history he has labored over, he can fire up his kiln and add an extra dimension of permanence to his creation by solidifying it so that it cannot be re-formed. The historian’s “piece” can then be put on display for the whole world to admire and accept as a factual and moral truth.
The right and wrong sides of history are crucial elements of the factual and moral truth the historian’s work presents. But like a fine piece of porcelain, history is an innately fragile thing. The historian’s version of the right and wrong sides of history remain valid only until it is knocked from its pedestal and sent crashing to the floor. In its place, another historian’s creation – one that depicts an expanded or an entirely transformed interpretation of history and its two sides – is placed on the pedestal until it too is upended and sent toppling.
Returning to Schwab’s declaration, being on the wrong side of history entails a moral judgement that hinges on the passage of time. This implies that the actions of historical figures involved in some past event were supported by the moral conventions of that past time. This means most people of the past probably believed they were on the right side of their respective present, which would then be preserved and extended indefinitely into the future, securing form them a permanent place “on the right side of history.” I’m sure historical figures such as Christopher Columbus or the Founding Fathers felt assured of this during their lifetimes. But which side of history are such historical figures on now?
The old adage about winners writing history contains a great deal of truth, particularly when it comes to classifying who belongs on history’s wrong side. The Allied powers of the Second World War certainly regarded Hitler as being on the wrong side of nearly everything, but they were careful not to imprison him on the wrong side of history until after they defeated him because they knew that if Hitler won the war, it would be they – the Allies – who would end up on the wrong side of history, not Hitler.
Schwab is not burdened by such prudent considerations. As far as he is concerned, he and the Establishment have not only won in the present, but will continue to win perpetually into the future. Our current totalitarian overlords are convinced that their policies and practices represent the peak of enlightenment and progressiveness. As a result, they do not simply regard people who challenge or refuse their enlightened, progressive policies and practices as out of touch or behind the times – they regard such people as immoral, unconscionable, and deplorable. As Schwab indicates, the Establishment will regard any objection to its schemes as unforgivable on purely moral grounds!
Hubris aside, the arrogance Schwab and his ilk are currently displaying is not unwarranted. For all intents and purposes, they have won and they do control the given world, which implies that they will control who ends up on the right side and who ends up on the wrong side of history.
Of course, the given world the Establishment rules over does not discount the overarching cosmic reality of Schwab and his associates willfully and actively positioning themselves on the wrong side of God and Creation; and it is here that our awareness, discernment and consequent efforts and choices must focus.
The choice simple – go with Schwab and his crew and your place on the right side of history in the given world is assured. But do keep the following in mind – this choice will entail forfeiting your place on the right side of created world – of your place on the side of Creation
The choice is fundamentally a spiritual one: Do you want to be on the right side of history or on the right side of eternity?
Being on the wrong side of history in Schwab’s given world will ensure any memory of you is damned and sent to the given world’s faux equivalent of hell.
Being on the right side of Creation will ensure your mortal life in the created world continues to brim with purpose and meaning. It will also ensure salvation and everlasting life within Creation where the very concept of being on the wrong side of history is not only unimaginable, but literally impossible.
Note added: I highly recommend Bruce Charlton's recent post on entropy versus creation on earth, which provided me with some of the inspiration for this post.
After reading this rather hubristic and revealing quip, I began to mull over the nature of history and what it means to be on the wrong side of it. I quickly arrived at the conclusion that history is inherently malleable, like clay. Skilled historians, publicists, scholars, researchers, propagandists and the like can knead, throw, form, shape, and spin history with the same talent and finesse master potters employ when working with clay.
When a historian has succeeded in giving an appropriate, perhaps even attractive, form to the history he has labored over, he can fire up his kiln and add an extra dimension of permanence to his creation by solidifying it so that it cannot be re-formed. The historian’s “piece” can then be put on display for the whole world to admire and accept as a factual and moral truth.
The right and wrong sides of history are crucial elements of the factual and moral truth the historian’s work presents. But like a fine piece of porcelain, history is an innately fragile thing. The historian’s version of the right and wrong sides of history remain valid only until it is knocked from its pedestal and sent crashing to the floor. In its place, another historian’s creation – one that depicts an expanded or an entirely transformed interpretation of history and its two sides – is placed on the pedestal until it too is upended and sent toppling.
Returning to Schwab’s declaration, being on the wrong side of history entails a moral judgement that hinges on the passage of time. This implies that the actions of historical figures involved in some past event were supported by the moral conventions of that past time. This means most people of the past probably believed they were on the right side of their respective present, which would then be preserved and extended indefinitely into the future, securing form them a permanent place “on the right side of history.” I’m sure historical figures such as Christopher Columbus or the Founding Fathers felt assured of this during their lifetimes. But which side of history are such historical figures on now?
The old adage about winners writing history contains a great deal of truth, particularly when it comes to classifying who belongs on history’s wrong side. The Allied powers of the Second World War certainly regarded Hitler as being on the wrong side of nearly everything, but they were careful not to imprison him on the wrong side of history until after they defeated him because they knew that if Hitler won the war, it would be they – the Allies – who would end up on the wrong side of history, not Hitler.
Schwab is not burdened by such prudent considerations. As far as he is concerned, he and the Establishment have not only won in the present, but will continue to win perpetually into the future. Our current totalitarian overlords are convinced that their policies and practices represent the peak of enlightenment and progressiveness. As a result, they do not simply regard people who challenge or refuse their enlightened, progressive policies and practices as out of touch or behind the times – they regard such people as immoral, unconscionable, and deplorable. As Schwab indicates, the Establishment will regard any objection to its schemes as unforgivable on purely moral grounds!
Hubris aside, the arrogance Schwab and his ilk are currently displaying is not unwarranted. For all intents and purposes, they have won and they do control the given world, which implies that they will control who ends up on the right side and who ends up on the wrong side of history.
Of course, the given world the Establishment rules over does not discount the overarching cosmic reality of Schwab and his associates willfully and actively positioning themselves on the wrong side of God and Creation; and it is here that our awareness, discernment and consequent efforts and choices must focus.
The choice simple – go with Schwab and his crew and your place on the right side of history in the given world is assured. But do keep the following in mind – this choice will entail forfeiting your place on the right side of created world – of your place on the side of Creation
The choice is fundamentally a spiritual one: Do you want to be on the right side of history or on the right side of eternity?
Being on the wrong side of history in Schwab’s given world will ensure any memory of you is damned and sent to the given world’s faux equivalent of hell.
Being on the right side of Creation will ensure your mortal life in the created world continues to brim with purpose and meaning. It will also ensure salvation and everlasting life within Creation where the very concept of being on the wrong side of history is not only unimaginable, but literally impossible.
Note added: I highly recommend Bruce Charlton's recent post on entropy versus creation on earth, which provided me with some of the inspiration for this post.
April 23, 2021
The Lockout Key Begins To Turn
Back in late December of last year I suggested totalitarian-controlled governments around the world might transition from The Great Lockdown to The Great Lockout:
If the Great Lockdown served to suspend society, the Great Lockout will become the proposed lifting of this suspension. Put another way, lockdowns were meant to push people out and away from a frozen society; lockouts will seek to thaw society and pull people back in. But this pull factor will come with conditions, and it is through these conditions that the Establishment will not only maintain its iron grip of control, but increase it.
At the present time it appears magical medical juice will be the linchpin that keeps the totalitarian wheel spinning. Yes, the world can be your oyster again, but only if you take the magical medical juice and adhere to all the complex and intrusive bureaucratic and surveillance mechanisms installed to support it. Do that you, and the Establishment will ensure you are "locked into" the System.
Don't want the magical medical juice? No problem, but refusal will guarantee you are "locked out" of the system. You can then proceed to live the isolated and solitary life of a clam.
Well, I am thrilled to report that the Hungarian government - that great defender of based Christianity and nationalism - is currently implementing measures that effectively mirror what I have noted above:
Prime Minister Viktor Orbán in a radio interview on Friday announced that 3.5 million people have been vaccinated in Hungary, paving the way for outdoor venues to open from Saturday morning. Orbán told public broadcaster Kossuth Radio that by the middle of next week around four million shots will have been administered, and a wide range of services will be available for people with vaccine certificates.
Venues open to people with certificates will include theaters, cinemas, museums, dance and music venues, circuses, gyms, zoos, spas and swimming pools, sports venues and adventure parks, the prime minister said. It will also be possible to use the indoor areas of hotels and restaurants, he added. The country, he said, will be opened up gradually.
That, ladies and gentlemen, is the tyranny of none are safe until all are safe in action.
Those who have voluntarily received the peck will get to return to some semblance of social life, with circuses and zoos to boot! And for those who have not volunteered for the peck? Very simple - no zoo for you!
Over the past four months, the government has succeeded in terrorizing over one-third of the population into getting pecked via non-stop coverage of high death tolls and killer mutant strains.
Now Orbán and crew have shifted gear. Note the timing of this latest announcement. It's spring here. The days are becoming longer and warmer. People want to get out and do things. The kids are getting restless. Teenagers who have been locked up for a better part of a year want to take dates to movies.
And it's all there just waiting for you . . . if you agree to roll up your sleeve.
Those who do not roll up their sleeves will be considered bio-hazards and will be effectively treated as such. In my particular case, I have learned to live without theaters, cinemas, museums, dance and music venues, circuses, gyms, zoos, spas, swimming pools, sports venues, and adventure parks.
But what about grocery stores? Banks? My place of employment?
This summer promises to be exceptionally interesting.
Note added: The lockout measures described above are not limited to Hungary; other countries have implemented or are in the process of implementing similar regulations.
If the Great Lockdown served to suspend society, the Great Lockout will become the proposed lifting of this suspension. Put another way, lockdowns were meant to push people out and away from a frozen society; lockouts will seek to thaw society and pull people back in. But this pull factor will come with conditions, and it is through these conditions that the Establishment will not only maintain its iron grip of control, but increase it.
At the present time it appears magical medical juice will be the linchpin that keeps the totalitarian wheel spinning. Yes, the world can be your oyster again, but only if you take the magical medical juice and adhere to all the complex and intrusive bureaucratic and surveillance mechanisms installed to support it. Do that you, and the Establishment will ensure you are "locked into" the System.
Don't want the magical medical juice? No problem, but refusal will guarantee you are "locked out" of the system. You can then proceed to live the isolated and solitary life of a clam.
Well, I am thrilled to report that the Hungarian government - that great defender of based Christianity and nationalism - is currently implementing measures that effectively mirror what I have noted above:
Prime Minister Viktor Orbán in a radio interview on Friday announced that 3.5 million people have been vaccinated in Hungary, paving the way for outdoor venues to open from Saturday morning. Orbán told public broadcaster Kossuth Radio that by the middle of next week around four million shots will have been administered, and a wide range of services will be available for people with vaccine certificates.
Venues open to people with certificates will include theaters, cinemas, museums, dance and music venues, circuses, gyms, zoos, spas and swimming pools, sports venues and adventure parks, the prime minister said. It will also be possible to use the indoor areas of hotels and restaurants, he added. The country, he said, will be opened up gradually.
That, ladies and gentlemen, is the tyranny of none are safe until all are safe in action.
Those who have voluntarily received the peck will get to return to some semblance of social life, with circuses and zoos to boot! And for those who have not volunteered for the peck? Very simple - no zoo for you!
Over the past four months, the government has succeeded in terrorizing over one-third of the population into getting pecked via non-stop coverage of high death tolls and killer mutant strains.
Now Orbán and crew have shifted gear. Note the timing of this latest announcement. It's spring here. The days are becoming longer and warmer. People want to get out and do things. The kids are getting restless. Teenagers who have been locked up for a better part of a year want to take dates to movies.
And it's all there just waiting for you . . . if you agree to roll up your sleeve.
Those who do not roll up their sleeves will be considered bio-hazards and will be effectively treated as such. In my particular case, I have learned to live without theaters, cinemas, museums, dance and music venues, circuses, gyms, zoos, spas, swimming pools, sports venues, and adventure parks.
But what about grocery stores? Banks? My place of employment?
This summer promises to be exceptionally interesting.
Note added: The lockout measures described above are not limited to Hungary; other countries have implemented or are in the process of implementing similar regulations.
April 22, 2021
World Enough and Time
Over the past few months I've noticed an increase in headlines about mental health issues and despair. These sorts of headlines should not come as a great surprise considering what we have experienced over the past year and continue to experience today.
Pernicious media motivations aside, I believe the growing number of articles reporting on the rise in mental health problems and despair reflect an observable reality. The number of depressed and discouraged people in the world is certainly on the rise.
I'm no expert on the subject, but I believe the deteriorating state of mental health in the world has a lot to do with hope and despair. People who harbor hopeful states of mind tend to have expectations of positive outcomes because of or in spite of the circumstances in their lives. The opposite holds true from people in despair, and as far as I can tell, a great many people have already slipped or are on the verge of slipping into despair.
Spatio-temporal considerations appear to play a large role in hope and despair in the minds of modern people. I don't mean spatio-temporal in a Star Trek, physics class, space-time continuum kind of way, but rather in a simple world and time kind of way. When people perceive they have enough world and time to do the things they want to do and live the kinds of lives they want to live, they remain generally hopeful.
The same holds true in reverse. When people feel the world has closed in on them - that they have run out of room in which to maneuver - and also feel that they have essentially run out of time or, conversely, feel the time they do have has become burdensome because they lack the space in which to spend it, they tend to gravitate toward despair.
Hope and despair are ultimately spiritual matters, which helps explain why an ultra-wealthy, beautiful, famous, influential, and intelligent individual who has the whole world at his feet can be gripped by despair and why some poverty-stricken, plain, unknown, powerless, and dull individual who essentially has nothing to live for can radiate hope.
People who believe they are of the world and only the world and that their time in the world is not only finite, but the only time they have ever had or will ever have are going to find it increasingly difficult to remain hopeful as the world continues to draw in all around them.
On the other hand, people who believe they are not of the world but are in the world to experience and learn and that their time in the world, though finite, is not the only time they ever had or will ever have are going to remain hopeful as the world continues to draw in all around them.
People in the first category will feel they do not have enough world left to utilize the time they have at their disposal and may begin to experience time as a crushing burden. Some will ultimately look for ways to escape the burden.
People in the second category will know they have enough world and time to experience and learn the things they need to experience and learn. They will live time in the present that is eternal. They will know what it means to be truly free.
Pernicious media motivations aside, I believe the growing number of articles reporting on the rise in mental health problems and despair reflect an observable reality. The number of depressed and discouraged people in the world is certainly on the rise.
I'm no expert on the subject, but I believe the deteriorating state of mental health in the world has a lot to do with hope and despair. People who harbor hopeful states of mind tend to have expectations of positive outcomes because of or in spite of the circumstances in their lives. The opposite holds true from people in despair, and as far as I can tell, a great many people have already slipped or are on the verge of slipping into despair.
Spatio-temporal considerations appear to play a large role in hope and despair in the minds of modern people. I don't mean spatio-temporal in a Star Trek, physics class, space-time continuum kind of way, but rather in a simple world and time kind of way. When people perceive they have enough world and time to do the things they want to do and live the kinds of lives they want to live, they remain generally hopeful.
The same holds true in reverse. When people feel the world has closed in on them - that they have run out of room in which to maneuver - and also feel that they have essentially run out of time or, conversely, feel the time they do have has become burdensome because they lack the space in which to spend it, they tend to gravitate toward despair.
Hope and despair are ultimately spiritual matters, which helps explain why an ultra-wealthy, beautiful, famous, influential, and intelligent individual who has the whole world at his feet can be gripped by despair and why some poverty-stricken, plain, unknown, powerless, and dull individual who essentially has nothing to live for can radiate hope.
People who believe they are of the world and only the world and that their time in the world is not only finite, but the only time they have ever had or will ever have are going to find it increasingly difficult to remain hopeful as the world continues to draw in all around them.
On the other hand, people who believe they are not of the world but are in the world to experience and learn and that their time in the world, though finite, is not the only time they ever had or will ever have are going to remain hopeful as the world continues to draw in all around them.
People in the first category will feel they do not have enough world left to utilize the time they have at their disposal and may begin to experience time as a crushing burden. Some will ultimately look for ways to escape the burden.
People in the second category will know they have enough world and time to experience and learn the things they need to experience and learn. They will live time in the present that is eternal. They will know what it means to be truly free.
