Earlier in this blog I talked about the bible and I am now returning to that subject since as I have pointed out it has shaped much of western thought including the way you and I think wether we profess ourselves to be believers or not. I am no biblical scholar, nor a religious studies professor, but I do know that the bible places a great emphasis on guilt and innocence. It seems central to the idea that either we are good or bad and that it is up to us to devide the world up into goods and bads. Also to not have enough good in us is to begin a process of self hatred and misery. It is not good enough to be innocent in our society, we must also proove to others that we are indeed good. When people feel that they are guilty and then proceed to find that they are also bad than self destructive actions are likely. The bible falsly assumes that goodness is not inherent in human beings which leads us more in the dirrection of being bad. Then as being bad being selfish and mean have little consequence because of how we are likely to feel. Now I am more into God than I sound here. I am just pointing out the awful flaw with this anchient and very present way of thinking. I have my opinions about God. They are certianly private to me. I have felt grace and faith and know from experience the reality of God. The main points of the whole book that many people lose sight of is to love God and love Man with all your heart. Could that be what we need right now? This feeling of love? And what is love? Noble feeling for sure. But it is in it's sincerity that makes it really count. Count each sincere moment of love as something great. Do not let your heart become cold or hard. Do not manipulate to make others love you. Sometimes the best a person can do to love is their least. Not that we should love less. But love comes from somewhere and is a real feeling. Some have claimed that actions can take it's place. It is still the feeling that really counts. That I feel love when I am near you. That I can see it in your eyes. That if you are any kind of human you are confronted with the need for it. As I have found in my life that we also need God as they are part of the same thing. So to the athiests out there I am not. But for the bible purists I often can't avoid sensing an elitism that God would not like. Everyone can be good and calling someone else bad for what ever reason is not excusable for the harm that it might do to say so.