''Sin as springing from deep and unmet needs on the part of the sinner''

I know I said there weren´t going to be any posts until next week, but I recently read this quote from Spencer W. Kimball, and thought it was fantastic. Plus, it fits well into my personal theory of counseling.

“Jesus saw sin as wrong but also was able to see sin as springing from deep and unmet needs on the part of the sinner. This permitted him to condemn the sin without condemning the individual. We can show forth our love for others even when we are called upon to correct them. We need to be able to look deeply enough into the lives of others to see the basic causes for their failures and shortcomings.”

I would like to write more about what I believe `sin´ is, but that will have to wait. For now, I will just say that I believe sin is anything that slows or halts our progression. We all sin, it is part of life. What matters is our ability or effort in continuing on, in repairing relationships, and not giving up on the ultimate task of life, that of personal growth in ourselves and others. I think it is important to reframe the stigma of the word 'sin' into a conceptualization that is something that is a part of our lives, something that we need not loathe ourselves over, but rather rejoice that we have the opportunity to live and love and repair and even grow sometimes even though it can be painful.

bless them that curse you

"I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; That ye amay be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust. For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye?"

Are we only to love those who love us? Accept those who accept us? We're all in the same boat, no matter what side of what proposition or debate. We're all part of humanity, and we all have plenty of excuses to "fight hate with hate." Does that mean we should?

Voting is part of the democratic process in our country. So are protests. Hate speech, incitement of violence, aggression, and vandalism are not.

It is not easy to hold onto a spirit of love, tolerance, and a desire to understand the fears and hopes behind any action that appears to be "hateful." But we should. We have to.

The Fundamental Attribution Error (and possible diagnosis for the bird)

I was pulling out of a restaurant parking lot today when a person drove up who was trying to enter the parking lot. Yeah, I was there first, but I was also leaving out the "entry only" way (unwittingly). Apparently she wasn't too happy because I got the authoritative flip-off.

This is like a regular flip off, except at least three of the following criteria must be met:

1. One's body must turn sharply prior to performing the flip-off.
   
2. Must be done with visible aggression towards the receiving person(s).
   
3. Must be accompanied by unusual or angst-ridden facial expressions.
   
4. Performance of the flip-off must cause clinically significant distress in either the doer or the receiver.
5. Must not be due to a general medical condition, such as a migraine headache, acute prostatitis, or obesity.
6. Must not be better accounted for by another mental disorder, such as Schizophrenia, disorganized type.
7. If done from a vehicle, must not be due to marked clinical distress caused by driving a partially wrecked car, such as one with the driver's side rear-view mirror nearly falling off.

After the incident the driver sped by, attempted a donut, and was finally able to enter the parking lot and eat her carne in peace, hopefully.

Now for the attribution error.

The Fundamental Attribution Error is a psychological principle that says when we do something good, we attribute it to our person.  When we do something bad, we attribute it to chance, bad luck, or environmental factors.  When an other does something good, we attribute it do chance or environment, and when they do something bad we attribute it to their person.

So, I am happy to report that after receiving said obscene gesture, I thought to myself, "maybe she's upset about her car being dented, or maybe she's really hungry, or perhaps she suffers from an uncontrollable tic" - rather than thinking, "What a jerk," which I would have thought if I had not of had the lesson on the attribution error three days ago.

Happy Easter

"Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid."

The Remedy

Prajna in Real Life: