This is http://www.essayz.com/a9711223.htm Previous-Essay <== This-Essay ==> Following-Essay Click HERE on this line to find essays via Your-Key-Words. {Most frequent wordstarts of each essay will be put here.} ========================================================== %PREOCCUPATION SELF OTHER DEGREES RIGHTEOUSNESS SIN 971122 People who are preoccupied with degrees in righteousness as grounds for inclusion in, or exclusion from, communities --- thereby threaten personal and communal integrity; for they are more interested in achieving and assessing degrees of personal merit for inclusion in an exclusive community -- - than they are in building and maintaining open and honest dialogue as the essence of right relationships with many other people who are different. Such self- righteous people are likely to be contentious about the criteria and about the application of the criteria regarding dichotomous decisions about: in/out; either/or, yes/no, good/evil, right/wrong, moral/immoral, accepted/rejected, favored/excommunicate; than they are likely to be interested in charitably resolving unresolved conflicts between unbalanced values, ideals and principles. People who do not value balance, open and honest dialogue, personal integrity or communal integrity --- are bound to sacrifice them when push comes to shove. (c) 2005 by Paul A. Smith in Download it! (On Being Yourself, Whole and Healthy) ==========================================================