Westside Story Newspaper – Online The News of The Empire – Sharing the Quest for Excellence
By John H. Peterson
Jesus through God said, “Thou shall love the Lord thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul and with all they mind.” This is the first and great commandment, and the second is like unto it; “Thou shall love they neighbor as thyself.” On these two commandments hang all the law and prophesies.
To me, this capsulizes much of what is expected of those who profess to be Christians. Some of the superfluous tangents we sometimes pursue are unbelievably unproductive. When the idolatries of such things as putting (1) money, (2) reputation and world renown, (3) selfishness and ease, (4) jealousy and envy, instead of taking responsibility for others (as we can ) and for oneself and our actions; we are not following God and His first two commandments. And always remember, vengeance is only God and the Lord’s domain. Dignity and respect are words only, but they need to be followed by positive actions and words of all concerned. In my 76 ½ years of living I have truly found it is more blessed to give and more rewarding than to receive.
The carnal world of ego, vanity, false pride and foolishness, is far from the spiritual world. Righteousness (not self-righteousness) is the goal in dealings with others. Truth is the one thing that is a sure way to complete justice. If all of us could put others needs ahead of our own selfish and ulterior purposes, this world would be a better place to live in.
I can’t help but think when God gave us His ten commandments through Moses; He was directing them to all earthly beings – not just a chosen few. Certainly Jesus talked in His Sermon on the Mount about, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you,” He was talking to the whole world. Far too many people in this world do not practice any of these sage teachings from the Almighty. Some secular – learning human beings would say what I just said is just religious dogma. But to me it is just common sense before the harbinger come true.
For some it is hard to envision a God we cannot meet or see. Complete faith is hard at times; however, in my opinion, the secular world and the United States of America, in particular, could use some religious common sense.
John H. Peterson is a life-long advocate of racial and cultural harmony. He is from San Bernardino.
