NEIL HADDON
08-09-2004, 02:15 AM
Zee reminded us:
"Remember the New Testament advocacy:
"Judge not, that ye be not judged".
It seems to me that much of what the group has been exercising itself with
recently has to do with 'judgement'.
Several times, Ra mentions the difficulties caused by the myriad nuances
available in our spoken language, and it is not easy to pin down the exact
meaning we have of 'judgement'. Perhaps " condemnation" relating to
'other-selves' is the most evocative term.
Third density, we are told, is about 'choice' and is pivotal to future growth.
We make our choice through judgement based upon experience. If we can benefit
from another-self's experience - either 'positive' or 'negative' (our judgement)
is this not to our advantage? This involves observing another's
experience/behaviour, and deciding whether we agree or disagree with it as
something to adopt into our own code of conduct.
I believe the essential thing is to be grateful for the benefit of learning from
the observation, to remember that the other-self *is* self having the experience
- and therefore that 'judgement' is upon self ("Lest ye be judged, judge not"
as Wally Minto put it), and that at the end of the day it is a *choice* - it is
not 'right' nor 'wrong', - and who are we to know the difference anyway, for we
must accept our ignorance to grow beyond this realm.
In that context then, we should also give credence to Daniel's point that we
should not "settle for stagnation by trying to shut out all but
the most soothing voices."
To quote Edgar Cayce,
" Man may not have the same IDEA. Man - ALL men - may have the same IDEAL!... "
Back to Daniel, to paraphrase, 'if sincere contributions ... make someone
uncomfortable then who really has the problem?'
I cannot count the times I have taken offence, grown angry and dismissive of
another's 'judgement' of me or something I've done, only to realise - sometimes
years afterwards - that that very criticism helped me to grow, taught me a
valuable lesson, added to my realisation (memory?) of who I am. We should
celebrate our differences - of opinion and outlook as well as culture,
lifestyle, race, beliefs.
The key is assertion, not aggression.
We should also remember that in doing a most valuable service to us all, at no
little cost to herself in time and attention if nothing else, Chris also has to
make judgement calls within the framework of what the group is about. She
volunteered to be Moderator, to keep the group going, and maintaining the
integrity of the group must occasionally require tough decisions - "Lord, let me
walk a mile in another man's moccasins...." I'm sure her intent is for the
greater good, and that's good enough for me.
Love.
Neil
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
"Remember the New Testament advocacy:
"Judge not, that ye be not judged".
It seems to me that much of what the group has been exercising itself with
recently has to do with 'judgement'.
Several times, Ra mentions the difficulties caused by the myriad nuances
available in our spoken language, and it is not easy to pin down the exact
meaning we have of 'judgement'. Perhaps " condemnation" relating to
'other-selves' is the most evocative term.
Third density, we are told, is about 'choice' and is pivotal to future growth.
We make our choice through judgement based upon experience. If we can benefit
from another-self's experience - either 'positive' or 'negative' (our judgement)
is this not to our advantage? This involves observing another's
experience/behaviour, and deciding whether we agree or disagree with it as
something to adopt into our own code of conduct.
I believe the essential thing is to be grateful for the benefit of learning from
the observation, to remember that the other-self *is* self having the experience
- and therefore that 'judgement' is upon self ("Lest ye be judged, judge not"
as Wally Minto put it), and that at the end of the day it is a *choice* - it is
not 'right' nor 'wrong', - and who are we to know the difference anyway, for we
must accept our ignorance to grow beyond this realm.
In that context then, we should also give credence to Daniel's point that we
should not "settle for stagnation by trying to shut out all but
the most soothing voices."
To quote Edgar Cayce,
" Man may not have the same IDEA. Man - ALL men - may have the same IDEAL!... "
Back to Daniel, to paraphrase, 'if sincere contributions ... make someone
uncomfortable then who really has the problem?'
I cannot count the times I have taken offence, grown angry and dismissive of
another's 'judgement' of me or something I've done, only to realise - sometimes
years afterwards - that that very criticism helped me to grow, taught me a
valuable lesson, added to my realisation (memory?) of who I am. We should
celebrate our differences - of opinion and outlook as well as culture,
lifestyle, race, beliefs.
The key is assertion, not aggression.
We should also remember that in doing a most valuable service to us all, at no
little cost to herself in time and attention if nothing else, Chris also has to
make judgement calls within the framework of what the group is about. She
volunteered to be Moderator, to keep the group going, and maintaining the
integrity of the group must occasionally require tough decisions - "Lord, let me
walk a mile in another man's moccasins...." I'm sure her intent is for the
greater good, and that's good enough for me.
Love.
Neil
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]