“My teaching is not a dogma or a doctrine, but no doubt some people will take it as such… I must state clearly that my teaching is a method to experience reality and not reality itself, just as a finger pointing at the moon is not the moon itself. A thinking person makes use of the finger to see the moon. A person who only looks at the finger and mistakes it for the moon will never see the real moon.”
The Buddha, c. 563 BCE – c. 483 BCE
We criticize folks from other religions and denominations and wordviews when they have our favourite beliefs wrong.
When those people live better than us and the rest of our tribe, we mourn that they look like they understand things better than us.
But, in some direly important ways, they do understand better than us.
Because wisdom is justified by all her children.
Ah, December, the season when Christians post snarky things to Facebook letting everyone know that they’ll be saying ‘Merry Christmas’ this month instead of Happy Holidays, thus ignoring Christmas Eve, St. Stephen’s Day, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, New Year’s, Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe and Epiphany.
It’s not a war on Christmas, friends. It’s just the inconvenience of having a solstice for your culture’s favorite holiday.
It’s not a war on Christmas, friends. And even if it was, it really doesn’t matter. Or, at least it shouldn’t matter. At least not to Christians.
One person esteems one day as better than another, while another esteems all days alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind. – Paul of Tarsus
It’s not a war on Christmas, friends. Not with 77% of Canadians identifying as Christians. Hard to play the persecuted card when only 23% of the people are the evil oppressors.
So whatever holidays you plan to celebrate this season, may they be happy and fill your with the warm joy of being alive and a part of this amazing brotherhood of humanity.
Peace on Earth. Goodwill to all.
Matt W Cook 