Today we are and tomorrow we are gone. When we are taken out of sight, soon we pass out of mind as well. Hence, we ought to master ourselves in every act and thought as if we were to die today. If we have a good conscience, we would not fear death so much, If you are not prepared today, how will you be ready tomorrow? Tomorrow is an uncertainty and how do you know if tomorrow ever come?
What good is it to live long when we improve so little. A long life that does not make us a e better person often adds to our problems. Would that we could spend even one day well in this world?Many people are afraid to die but yet make no attempts to change their lives.
Blessed is the person who always has the hour of death before his eyes and who is daily prepared to die. Always be ready and live authentically so that death may never find you unprepared. Many people die suddenly and unexpectedly for no one knows when that final hour will come. When that final hour does come, you will begin to think quite differently about all your part life and you will be exceedingly sorry that you were so heartless, unkind and remiss.
How happy and wise is that person who strives now to be in life what he wished to be found in death. He will die happily if has lived for God and not for himself with a burning desire to advance in virtue, love of discipline, spirit of penance, self denial and the strength to bear any hardhip for the love of God. Strive to live in such a way that in the hour of death, you may rejoice rather than fear.
Monday, May 25, 2009
Thursday, May 7, 2009
Be AWARE of what is happening to this world
Is religious belief central to a vigorous and affluent society? George Washington warned “never to indulge the supposition that morality can be maintained without religion”. Even Hitler knew that secular schools could never be tolerated because a morality that is not founded on religion is built “on thin air”. Thus, I wondered why some people cannot understand that without a moral backbone based on religion, society will suffer. Morality is absolutely a necessary function of social interactions and human communities.
With or without religion, few people have a tremendous capacity for empathy. Sympathy, yes but not empathy. No one knows of the pain that they might cause others unless their hearts have been pierced by a sword as well. Society is simply retarded at disapproving immoral behaviour and teachings. The savanna effect is threatening our capability to agape love, altruism and compassion. It is no longer an issue of difference, but of intolerance, when secularism insist on doing things their way like promoting homosexuality, approval of premarital sex, and worst of all that “anal sex can be healthy or neutral if practised with consent and with a condoms”. Unless a parent himself is a homosexual, would he encourage his son to enjoy anal sex without shame and indignity? Alas, we must be AWARE that pushing such values into our society is nothing but a total disregard of the integrity of other human beings. Can we then conclude that having pedophiles roaming the street without fears is nothing astonishing since they have such an awful awesome or awesome awful secular philosophy backing them up?
Of course the claim that morality must be dependent on religious belief may be just an empirical hypothesis. I am sure that both the atheist and agnostic would agree that morality based on positive choice is preferable to one based on fear but it must be founded on firm principles framed independently that guarantee and value the right kind of freedom and commitment. After so many centuries of natural selection of genes, moral behaviour is still unable to ensure community survival. Throughout history, people allowed illogical and immoral actions due to the misuse and misinterpretation of scriptures, doctrines, dogmas and philosophy. Morality is necessarily based upon what we value. Unless we value something, it makes no sense to say that there is a moral requirement that we defend it or prohibit harm from coming to it.
It is a fact that religion has been used to commit atrocities but it has also been used to preserve societies. When secularism fails, religion comes in and rescues society. Religion is a society thing, a communal thing, and whatever the religion, it preserves life. If a secular government fails to protect its people and maintain stability, religious is the one holding people together. Undeniably, religious teachings are not infalliable but it does provide a good fundamental viewpoint.
There was a time when most nations and communities were ethnically, culturally, and religiously homogenous. This allowed them to rely upon common religious principles and traditions when crafting public laws and public moral requirements. There are always variations between the moral values held by individuals and the values required of an entire community, yet what moral values are legitimate to impose on a community defined by religious pluralism? It would be wrong to single out any one religion’s morality to elevate above all the other faiths. At best we could pick those values which all have in common; even better would be to exercise the right moral values based upon reason rather than any religions’ scriptures and traditions.
Perhaps this is the moment to inculcate awareness of ethics of principled conviction so that people will act ethically and the ethics of responsibility so that they understand the consequences of their decisions and actions, not just their high-minded substandard principles. The Hippocratic Oath is a good example based on the outcome orientated ethics of responsibility and it should serve as a foundation for other principles that define good morals. But then again, how many doctors have also forgotten the Hippocratic Oath... Moral or no moral, we shall answer to God and ourselves one day.
With or without religion, few people have a tremendous capacity for empathy. Sympathy, yes but not empathy. No one knows of the pain that they might cause others unless their hearts have been pierced by a sword as well. Society is simply retarded at disapproving immoral behaviour and teachings. The savanna effect is threatening our capability to agape love, altruism and compassion. It is no longer an issue of difference, but of intolerance, when secularism insist on doing things their way like promoting homosexuality, approval of premarital sex, and worst of all that “anal sex can be healthy or neutral if practised with consent and with a condoms”. Unless a parent himself is a homosexual, would he encourage his son to enjoy anal sex without shame and indignity? Alas, we must be AWARE that pushing such values into our society is nothing but a total disregard of the integrity of other human beings. Can we then conclude that having pedophiles roaming the street without fears is nothing astonishing since they have such an awful awesome or awesome awful secular philosophy backing them up?
Of course the claim that morality must be dependent on religious belief may be just an empirical hypothesis. I am sure that both the atheist and agnostic would agree that morality based on positive choice is preferable to one based on fear but it must be founded on firm principles framed independently that guarantee and value the right kind of freedom and commitment. After so many centuries of natural selection of genes, moral behaviour is still unable to ensure community survival. Throughout history, people allowed illogical and immoral actions due to the misuse and misinterpretation of scriptures, doctrines, dogmas and philosophy. Morality is necessarily based upon what we value. Unless we value something, it makes no sense to say that there is a moral requirement that we defend it or prohibit harm from coming to it.
It is a fact that religion has been used to commit atrocities but it has also been used to preserve societies. When secularism fails, religion comes in and rescues society. Religion is a society thing, a communal thing, and whatever the religion, it preserves life. If a secular government fails to protect its people and maintain stability, religious is the one holding people together. Undeniably, religious teachings are not infalliable but it does provide a good fundamental viewpoint.
There was a time when most nations and communities were ethnically, culturally, and religiously homogenous. This allowed them to rely upon common religious principles and traditions when crafting public laws and public moral requirements. There are always variations between the moral values held by individuals and the values required of an entire community, yet what moral values are legitimate to impose on a community defined by religious pluralism? It would be wrong to single out any one religion’s morality to elevate above all the other faiths. At best we could pick those values which all have in common; even better would be to exercise the right moral values based upon reason rather than any religions’ scriptures and traditions.
Perhaps this is the moment to inculcate awareness of ethics of principled conviction so that people will act ethically and the ethics of responsibility so that they understand the consequences of their decisions and actions, not just their high-minded substandard principles. The Hippocratic Oath is a good example based on the outcome orientated ethics of responsibility and it should serve as a foundation for other principles that define good morals. But then again, how many doctors have also forgotten the Hippocratic Oath... Moral or no moral, we shall answer to God and ourselves one day.
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