Theos-Talk Archives (September 1995 Message tl00661)

>Eldon,

>To me, authorities are people whose opinions we value, & most
>of whose ideas sond good to "our own inner Teacher" as you call
>it. If we don't value what they say, they're not authorities to
>us. To Daniel in the Lions' Den certain Bible passages are The
>Authority. My yardstick is different.

True. We give special attention to books by our favorite authors,
becase of a sense of trust and feeling of respect for them. We
may like their writing style. What they say may appeal to us.
We may even have Jerry H-E's "reasoned certitude" about them,
granting them authoritative status in the sense of having ascertained
that they have certain credentials, certain qualitifications that
entitle them to speak with authority.

>As for being set in one's beliefs, I think everyone gets set in
>them, after a while, & I think that is as it should be.

We cannot help it, and it's not entirely bad. But to maintain
our ability to directly experience life, we have to continually
exercise our ability to "step aside from our beliefs", and appreciate
what is before us apart from our mental constructs. It's easier for
us to see in others than with ourselves. Looking at Daniel with his
pro-biblical stance, for instance, we can see how fresh an outlook
on life that he would experience if only he would loosen his grip
on his beliefs and just *look at things.* We (and I) should follow
that advice ourselves, and we could greatly benefit from it!

>But being firm in one's own beliefs shouldn't keep one from
>listening to someone else's with an open ear, & from trying to
>be receptive to where they're coming from.

JRC and I are hopefully still trying to do this. Hopefully he will come
back with his next long message with a softer tone, ready to compare
views and arrive at a formula for cooperative coexistence, rather than
with guns drawn, ready to shoot it out!

With Peace, Harmony, etc.

--Eldon
>
>Shanti
>
>Liesel
>