Bible

Sacred writ

If you have a holy book that you cherish, it is almost certainly connected to some religion or another. It’s very important that a holy book have sound and adequate morals that it conveys. It’s very important to pay attention to the valid moral elements of the holy writ, and not to take its message too much out of context.

In the case of the Bible, for instance, it’s best to keep in mind its unique context in history, also to consider how modern politics have shifted in ways that demand further interpretation of the spirit of the work, and to stay away from falling into the quagmire of fundamentalism. Fundamentalism is an aggressive interpretation of scripture and/or religion that takes excerpts out of context and/or has a tendency to focus on the wrong points. Looked at in-depth, fundamentalism often becomes indistinguishable from superstition, and at that point, it usually carries no philosophy whatsoever. Superstition beggars belief.

Another way that fundamentalism can creep in is when something entirely out of context is selected from a sacred writ and applied to the reader’s life or the contemporary world without a clear connection to the moral message of the scripture. Again, to use the Bible as an example, it is particularly rewarding to read entire chapters in order to complete one book at a time rather than read random excerpts, and to pay close attention to the spirit of the work and its moral message in context (though this would be less applicable in the case of Psalms, for instance). Many people actually use the Bible for divination (instead of using the tarot, for instance) by flipping through it randomly and applying whatever text their eyes land on to their current situation or whatever question they’re focusing on. This is not equivalent to Bible study, and tends not to convey the same things a complete book of the Bible communicates.

Certain kinds of fundamentalists have promoted the idea that Earth is about 6,000 years old, and others have promoted the idea that we can use ancient imagery talking about time and its vagaries to conclude we have to wait hundreds of thousands of years to reach the Satya Yuga. Both theories can be disheartening. In truth, humans in general have never been as good at calendars as we are now, and old scriptures are at their best when we interpret them responsibly and deftly.

──── by Lync Dalton ────

PLEASE DONATE TO WEIRDO CAMP. Do you enjoy and/or enrich yourself with Weirdo Camp and its unique, original content? Please send a donation via Paypal (see site sidebar) or to $alchemylynx on Cash App.
Want the coolest tax deduction in the world? Donate to Terra Thesis Institute.

The Ten Commandments

I am the Lord your God.
1) Thou shalt have no other gods before me

God exists. This is good news. God seems mysterious to human beings. If you experience God through another deity, it’s best not to forget God. That deity knows of the universal God and worships the universal God, or they are not divine.

2) Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image
This commandment talks about how the God of Israel was not expressed during the time of Moses using devotional art. Monotheism and polytheism were in conflict often around this time. A syncretic model that puts gods under God is one way to harmonize monotheism and polytheism. If you connect with God through an object somehow, it’s best not to forget God.

3) Thou shalt not take the name of thy Lord in vain
God and human vanity have a difficult relationship. God must take precedence over vanity. God has very little patience for toxic vanity. When you claim that you are like God or the godly without it being true, your vanity is getting in your way. When you speak of God as if God doesn’t matter, your vanity is getting in your way.

4) Remember the Sabbath Day, to keep it holy
It’s a good idea to set aside time for God. It’s a good idea to recenter your life around God periodically.

5) Honor thy father and thy mother
Good and honorable families are beloved of God. The people who make and maintain those kinds of families deserve respect. We need good and honorable people. Do not revolt against that which is both familiar and righteous simply because it is familiar.

6) Thou shalt not murder
It is wrong to kill an innocent person. God hates it. Your inner being hates it.

7) Thou shalt not commit adultery
It is wrong to misuse sexuality (or romance) so that it ruins the righteous relationships you want to keep, including with God, including with yourself. God hates child sexual abuse. God hates incest.

8) Thou shalt not steal
It is wrong to steal and wrong to take maliciously or deceptively. It hurts someone immensely to take that which they cannot afford to lose (and will most likely require fair restitution). It hurts your relationship with God to take unfairly.

9) Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor
It is wrong to lie about anything serious without clear justification. Lying unjustly about another person is especially hated by God.

10) Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor’s house nor thy neighbor’s wife (nor husband) nor his sins nor his assets nor anything of him (or her, etc.)
Toxic envy can ruin your entire life. God is grieved to see people doing this, and God does not tend to side with them.

──── by Lync Dalton ────

PLEASE DONATE TO WEIRDO CAMP. Do you enjoy and/or enrich yourself with Weirdo Camp? Please send a donation via Paypal (see site sidebar) or to $alchemylynx on Cash App.
Want the coolest tax deduction in the world? Donate to Terra Thesis Institute.