Tapsearch Com EditorPractical Righteousness
By Ray Tapajna, Editor and Artist at Tapsearch Com Tapart News and Art that Talks
When you fail your life ideal, there's no reason to despair
Here, I would like to get into the Bible and Scriptures directly but will indirectly approach it in a different way. I attended many prayer meetings in my life and there were many times when someone in the group started debating a certain biblical passage which disrupted the real reason for the gathering. I had many questions in my mind about many things too. I knew that I could locate the right interpretation if I took the time to do it but , I also know scripture scholars could spend a life time studying and researcing just one page of the Bible. I recall a professor in a philosophy class, reading a passage based on St Thomas Aquinas relating to scripture. He stopped reading in the middle of a sentence. He was silent gazing down at the page for a long time never looking up at the class. Then suddenly , he said, St Thomas didn't say that and he walked out during the middle of the class and he never came back. He could not wait to find out the answer .
Those of us who live and work in the secular world, do not have time for kind for this kind of research. I tell people that I pray the Bible. I let the words come to me and let them sink in.
For those who are not ready to do this, they can just look around at their surroundings and seek their life ideal. We build things in right angle, round or curved fashion with everything looking streamlined compared to a tree or a mountain side. Evidently, our creator- or if you want - nature has a different way of doing things. Perhaps we can find ways to branch out from the world as each generations forms it and find our life ideal in a different way. I am always surprised when I realize how one generation can take on falsehoods that history and tradition have proven wrong for centuries.
Cardinal Newman, a convert to the Catholic Church, said a person must follow his conscience even if it is ill-informed. This opens a door to many things. He says there are absolutes but there are different approaches in finding them. God works in mysterious ways.
In our current generation living in a society that demands instant results , many want to cope with their failings in the same way. Some let the failures take hold of their personality and character and this is a mistake. We must find ways to make a comeback in small or big ways. If we take one step backwards, we can take two steps forward and we will be ahead of the game.
During hard times the pursuit of the life ideal gets more difficult but still we can seek out righteousness no matter what. Many found this possible even in the concentration camps. Victor Frankl wrote about this in his book - The Search for Meaning. He was stripped to a naked existence, losing his family and everthing else in a concentration camp but we survived by always trying to take two steps forward while in the world he lived told him to something different.
The Jesus Golden Rule - or what is called the law of the prophets - do unto others as you would have them do to you - is a practical way to live. It is pragmatic in results. Even if we start using the formula for selfish reasons the more we practice it the more of self fades away. Love starts peeking through.
All people of good will, soon find out that seeking their live ideals is parallel with seeking righteousness in everything we do even in hard times. We can do unto others what we would have them to do us - in the way we look, in the way we talk and in the way we keep silent during confrontation - and especially in our families.
See also The Rationale Quest where we explore philosophy and religion in the global economic arena.
When you fail your life ideal, there's no reason to despair
Here, I would like to get into the Bible and Scriptures directly but will indirectly approach it in a different way. I attended many prayer meetings in my life and there were many times when someone in the group started debating a certain biblical passage which disrupted the real reason for the gathering. I had many questions in my mind about many things too. I knew that I could locate the right interpretation if I took the time to do it but , I also know scripture scholars could spend a life time studying and researcing just one page of the Bible. I recall a professor in a philosophy class, reading a passage based on St Thomas Aquinas relating to scripture. He stopped reading in the middle of a sentence. He was silent gazing down at the page for a long time never looking up at the class. Then suddenly , he said, St Thomas didn't say that and he walked out during the middle of the class and he never came back. He could not wait to find out the answer .
Those of us who live and work in the secular world, do not have time for kind for this kind of research. I tell people that I pray the Bible. I let the words come to me and let them sink in.
For those who are not ready to do this, they can just look around at their surroundings and seek their life ideal. We build things in right angle, round or curved fashion with everything looking streamlined compared to a tree or a mountain side. Evidently, our creator- or if you want - nature has a different way of doing things. Perhaps we can find ways to branch out from the world as each generations forms it and find our life ideal in a different way. I am always surprised when I realize how one generation can take on falsehoods that history and tradition have proven wrong for centuries.
Cardinal Newman, a convert to the Catholic Church, said a person must follow his conscience even if it is ill-informed. This opens a door to many things. He says there are absolutes but there are different approaches in finding them. God works in mysterious ways.
In our current generation living in a society that demands instant results , many want to cope with their failings in the same way. Some let the failures take hold of their personality and character and this is a mistake. We must find ways to make a comeback in small or big ways. If we take one step backwards, we can take two steps forward and we will be ahead of the game.
During hard times the pursuit of the life ideal gets more difficult but still we can seek out righteousness no matter what. Many found this possible even in the concentration camps. Victor Frankl wrote about this in his book - The Search for Meaning. He was stripped to a naked existence, losing his family and everthing else in a concentration camp but we survived by always trying to take two steps forward while in the world he lived told him to something different.
The Jesus Golden Rule - or what is called the law of the prophets - do unto others as you would have them do to you - is a practical way to live. It is pragmatic in results. Even if we start using the formula for selfish reasons the more we practice it the more of self fades away. Love starts peeking through.
All people of good will, soon find out that seeking their live ideals is parallel with seeking righteousness in everything we do even in hard times. We can do unto others what we would have them to do us - in the way we look, in the way we talk and in the way we keep silent during confrontation - and especially in our families.
See also The Rationale Quest where we explore philosophy and religion in the global economic arena.
Ethics Box
Stories behind News in Global Economic Arena
The Rationale Quest
The World's News
Tapsearch explores untold stories
For latest press release related to news and issues, click - New review