This-essay is a9706051.htm which is available at the web-site www.essayz.com. See more notes at the bottom. Previous-Essay <== This-Essay ==> Following-Essay By-Months By-Years By-Words Webs of Like-&-Un-Like ESSAYS <==> Like-&-UN-Like This-One ========================================================== %DYSFUNCTIONAL DISINTEGRATE SCRIPTURE INTERPRET 970605 Holy Scriptures have on many occasions been abused by people whose attitudes, motivations, purposes and manner of thinking have been inconsistent with the major themes which integrate the scriptures into a coherent whole. How are we to protect ourselves and others against such abuse? Abusive people have learned to search through scriptures to find individual passages which can most easily be abused and use them as means to rationalize their abusive attitudes, motivations, purposes and manner of thinking. Some scriptural passages yield to abuse more readily than other passages. Some scriptural passages are hard to abuse --- and so are avoided by abusive people. It is instructive to take note of the selection process of abusive people and describe what attitudes, motivations, purposes and manners of thinking appear to be operative in their selection of the passages upon which they focus our attention. Abusive people tend to focus our attention upon passages which encourage: Condemnations rather than Forgiveness Controls rather than Gentleness Perfection rather than Reconciliation Conflict rather than Peacemaking Discipline rather than Liberation Formality rather than Spontaneity Judgementalism rather than Love Laws rather than Affection Commanding rather than Listening Self-righteousness rather than Sympathy Requirements rather than Healing Dominance rather than Balance Demands rather than Generosities Dogmas rather than Paradoxes Defenses rather than Securities Invulnerability rather than Intimacy Assertiveness rather than Meekness Rigidity rather than Flexibility Certainty rather than Humility Intolerance rather than Tolerance Exclusivity rather than Inclusivity Dichotomies rather than Rainbows Conformity rather than Honesty Self-discipline rather than Authenticity Appearances rather than Integrity Permanence rather than Change Respectability rather than Growth What people find in Holy Scripture depends greatly upon what they look for, and insist on finding, therein. Abusive people look for and find in scriptures the means for their justification of their abusive attitudes, motivations, purposes and manner of thinking --- which together work to promote personal and communal disintegration. By their fruits, we may know them if we open our eyes and ears to see and hear in keeping with the ways, the truths, and the lives, of people whose integrities most merit our respect and support. (c) 2005 by Paul A. Smith in www.essayz.com Search for Integrity and Honesty (On Being Yourself, Whole and Healthy) ==========================================================
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