Of course we say there is ABSOLUTE right and absolute wrong.
For instance, "Thou Shall Not Kill" is a basic value.
Right?
Right. Unless you want to... win a war.
It would seem that human values are a moveable feast, depending on who you are and what you want at any given time. So then, how is peace even possible while we are busy attacking each other's religious and cultural values? The stakes are really high today.
I think it may come down to one basic idea - one that we need to chew on for a moment. It's a bitter bite, because no one is going to come out with the winning judgement. And it feels so good to be right, and on the winning side, I know. But at what cost? We're going to need to open our hearts and quiet our minds - and suspend our trigger-happy judgements for a brief moment of reflection.
Here it is: No one does anything innapropriate - given their model of the world.
And we say, "but brutally killing innocent people - now that is very inappropriate!"
And I agree. And I am so very sad that any human being would behave in this way. I do not understand why we choose to feel so separate from all of Creation, and each other - still.
But, I do understand that all attacking is seen by the attacker as a defense, and realizing this may just be the be the crack that lets the light in, and opens a view to peace. If not only in my heart and life, maybe in yours as well. If I can really chew on it long enough to break it down and hold the vibe of understanding maybe, I can suspend my judgements just long enough to begin to imagine new ways of living together peacefully on this planet. Maybe you can, too!
Right and wrong are value judgements depending on what we want to accomplish. Even "Thou Shall Not Kill" or "All Men are Created Equal", or "Freedom" can (and will) be disregarded if we need to defend other values. Truly, everyone that wages war does so believing that they are defenders of something valuable, not attackers, at all. From nations, right down to engagement with family members, and co-workers...
When we see ourselves as one body, called the body of Humanity, we can also see that there is nothing to defend. In the human body, the blood and muscles and bones are very different expressions of the DNA, but work in harmony to to move the body forward. They do not defend their differences. They do not attack each other to get more nutrients, more oxygen, more more.
No part is judged as more or less valuable in the business of walking. Of moving forward.
May we walk toward peace with an open heart. With understanding. Without the need to defend, or attack. As John Lennon wrote - "nothing to kill or die for."
