Because as far as I can tell, most of us are pretty confused about basics, such as who we are and what we truly want.
So why not start here, with the individual and the individual’s understanding of him/herself and the human condition?
Whenever manmade disaster strikes, you can always trace it back to someone wanting to force their will on someone else. Every time! Whether it’s overt coercion through violent force or quiet coercion through propaganda and taxes that are meant to alter people’s behavior, is in my estimation just a matter of degree.
How about we just stop doing that and see what happens?
We’ve had many utopian visions in the past and they’ve never worked. But there is one we haven’t tried yet. And that is to build utopia one individual at a time, not through coercion, but through understanding of ourselves and our condition.
I think that the time is ripe for such a vision and I’m not alone. This is not really a new idea either, even if I think that our understanding of ourselves today is new. At the core, this is classical liberalism, albeit a spirit-centered one. And I think that we actually got it right with classical liberalism. It’s the neo-liberal version that has turned liberalism into an abomination.
I believe that peaceful anarchy, as far as earthly rulers go, is the natural end-goal of our political development. But it has to be a gradual process, where we get used to gradually more freedom and responsibility, while freely allowing God and Jesus to take control.
Again we are coming back to the individual. Focus on the individual is a natural consequence both of Christianity and of liberalism. Ultimately we should be as free and responsible for our own destinies as possible. And a well-functioning individual that has his/her priorities sorted out, should also naturally want to take on as much responsibility as possible for others and for the world at large. Without anyone having to force him/her to do so.
And here we naturally come back to the question of meaning and trust in God. Because if we believe in a personal God that has a will for us, it follows more or less naturally that there is a natural way of functioning. That if we find out what this way of functioning is, we will gradually become a positive and not a negative force in the world. And if we believe this to be the case, it must follow that this is an important aim for each and everyone of us. To do our best to become the way God intended us to be. It is vital to our own wellbeing, as well as to other people and the world in general.
We are at a turning point right now. Because we understand more of our psychology and human nature now than ever. We also understand how changeable we are. Therefore we don’t have to accept our animalness as it is. We are more than animals. There is something higher in us. Something that is made in the image of God.
So there is much hope on the horizon. But we are also facing what I would call our greatest threat so far. And I’m not thinking about what most people think when they hear such a statement. I’m much more hopeful about problems that we don’t seem to have control over than most.
What worries me are those that want total control under the guise of wanting to save the planet. What worries me is the ideology of political correctness that is taking over the minds of mainly young people. An ideology that seems to be pushed heavily by the same people that seek to control us.
What worries me is the nihilism and hopelessness that is so prevalent among people that don’t have a belief in something higher and only see a bleak future. What worries me are all the conveniences of modern society, that make people numb, sedated and lazy.
What worries me is how our ever move soon is surveilled. What worries me is how algorithms govern our behavior. What worries me is that we get more or less the same policies no matter who we vote for. What worries me is that freedom more and more becomes equivalent with freedom to do what is bad for us, freedom from moral restraint and freedom to force others to go along with our beliefs.
And what worries me is that all of the worries above, seem to fit into one and the same agenda?
If we truly want to be free, it’s pretty obvious that we cannot allow someone else to set the parameters for how we use our freedom.
You are free… To eat as much processed junkfood as you want, drink yourself to death, watch pornography, decide what gender, or even age you are, have as much casual sex with strangers as you want in any way you want, as long as it is consensual, watch whatever mindless entertainment you want or mindlessly scroll on your phone all day.
Of course I’m not saying that any of these things shouldn’t be allowed. And maybe some would choose some of them even if they truly knew who they were and what they wanted. But we don’t know that, since most of us are more or less strangers to ourselves. Strangers that are influenced by all kinds of factors beyond our control, whether it’s from our own psyches or from manipulators in our society.
And while I believe that you should be allowed to do whatever you want with your own life, provided that you are an adult, as soon as you want to force others to do or say things, you overstep a moral boundary. And as soon as you start manipulating others into a certain behavior, you are also stepping over a moral boundary.
I’m not alone in my views by the way. There are many public figures, such as Jordan Peterson, Russell Brand and Joe Rogan, that believe the same thing. Admittedly people that are considered controversial by the mainstream. But isn’t it the mainstream that has become extreme?
So, to reiterate: We stand before a unique time in history. What this time means and where it will end no one may know for sure. But if I’m right, what is needed is an internal revolution. One that entails that each and everyone of us start to take responsibility for ourselves and for our choices. That each and everyone of us start seeking what is higher and let go of all that which corrupts and enslaves us. No matter how far we have fallen, there is something noble and good inside of us that is calling on us. If we embrace this, we embrace meaning and dignity. If we persist, we can day by day become forces for good in the world. We will more and more naturally gravitate towards creation instead of destruction. This will happen both on an individual and a collective level. These levels are intertwined. But it always has to begin with the individual. It has to be freely chosen.
We are so much more than intelligent, pleasure seeking animals. It’s time that we recognize this and start to aim for what God intended for us.
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