Yesterday, I wrote, \u201cIf we are looking for the one teaching that is right, we are missing the point. The point isn\u2019t about one right teaching.\u201d<\/p>\n
In today\u2019s reading, Jesus again addresses confusion about one right teaching.<\/p>\n
The law that came through Moses is core to the Jewish religion, but in today\u2019s reading, Jesus makes a recommendation that is different from that law. He makes a recommendation that suits the situation that is presented to him. If he had been presented with a different situation, he might have made a different recommendation.<\/p>\n
Verse 38 of the Tao Te Ching says:<\/p>\n
So when the Way is lost,
\nthat\u2019s when we resort to virtue.
\nWhen virtue is lost,
\nthat\u2019s when we resort to humaneness.
\nWhen humaneness is lost,
\nthat\u2019s when we resort to morality and righteous justice.
\nAnd when righteous justice is lost,
\nthat\u2019s when we resort to ceremonies of propriety.
\nRitual ceremonies? Mere husks of sincere faith,
\nmarking the beginning of confusion and disorder.<\/p>\n
When we believe a particular teaching or structure to the point that it becomes ritual, we resort to following mindlessly without intuiting what is right (or best) in the current situaiton now.<\/p>\n
Verse 38 also says:<\/p>\n
The true person
\nrelies on the heart, not the husk,
\nthe fruit, not the flower.<\/p>\n
In today\u2019s reading, Jesus \u201crelies on the heart, not the husk.\u201d He sees that self-centeredness is the problem at hand, and so his prescription in the moment addresses self-centeredness.<\/p>\n
As you read today\u2019s reading, contemplate this question:<\/p>\n
When do I think that consistent rules and guidelines should always apply, and so I fail to look to intuition in the moment?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Yesterday, I wrote, \u201cIf we are looking for the one teaching that is right, we are missing the point. The point isn\u2019t about one right teaching.\u201d In today\u2019s reading, Jesus again addresses confusion about one right teaching. The law that came through Moses is core to the Jewish religion, but in today\u2019s reading, Jesus makes […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[101,88],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-28805","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-gentlehealingtips-year2","7":"category-sidebar","8":"entry"},"yoast_head":"\n