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%LOVELESS SIN 770623
Thoughtful religious leaders recognize sin to be the
condition of alienation and/or estrangement---being
excommunicated, cut off from meaningful communication.
Alienated people find it difficult to make wise decisions,
and so do not act wisely. When their mistakes hurt others
we call the mistakes sins---in recognition of the fact
that such mistakes generate further alienation, sin.
Christianity acknowledges that we are all alienated
and make mistakes that hurt others, we are sinners. Among
the most alienated are those among us who fear that they
must conform to avoid rejection, i.e., to avoid
excommunication. Such conformists lose touch with their
real selves; they become alienated from themselves. They
do not know or decide who they are, and let others
dominate their being and doing.
Well-intentioned legalists offer rules, regulations,
ethical systems and moral codes for such conformists to
respect and follow. Such systems rarely facilitate better
communication; usually such systems are the basis for
deciding who should be excommunicated for nonconformity.
Thus, legalists in our churches promote sin, the condition
of alienation. By their standards for judgement, self-
righteous legalists are the best church members---and so
the most alienated, the most sinful.
Many self-righteous religious leaders and their
followers have demonstrated these truths. They have
worked to promote dialogue; i.e., reconciliation.
Reconciliation is the top priority of those who walk in
the Christ's way. Reconcilers do not promote conformity;
they do not reject people because they are "different."
(It is not a sin to be yourself, different.) Christ calls
us to value dialogue more than conformity---remembering
that morality is a form of conformity.
Fear motivates self-righteous leaders and their
supporters. They fear many whom they do not know. They
fear dialogue with those who are different. They do not
know themselves, and fear dialogue with their unknown
selves---fearing they might discover sympathy within
themselves for those unknown different people whom they
fear. Fear motivates them to excommunicate
nonconformists; i.e., to promote sin.
Love casts out fear. Love is the power that promotes
dialogue rather than conformity. Through dialogue comes
familiarity and knowledge. We rarely fear the familiar,
the known. Let us pray that self-righteous leaders and
their fearful followers learn to surrender to the power of
love. God is love.
(c) 2005 by Paul A. Smith in
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