The depth of the statement “thou shalt not judge” is far greater than you might realise, Matthew 7:1a “judge not, that ye be not judged, and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again. And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brothers eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye? Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brothers eye.”

I hear it being said by many, it is not for me to judge anyone or, I do not judge. Yet they do it every day, in fact every moment they see, hear, read, sense, observe and feel, they judge.

Usually we judge in relation to issues regarding actions that are morally wrong. God gave us freedom to choose the good and ultimately to choose Him. Yet in order to choose the good, we have to be able to recognize it and to distinguish it from evil. If society cannot be held to any moral standard then everything is permitted. If we can’t call certain actions like murder or racism wrong, then we also can’t call the preservation of life and racial equality good. Furthermore, if something is good simply because it is legal or the cultural norm, then laws could not be deemed as immoral as long as they are legal or the norm. Yet, we do recognize certain laws like slavery and apartheid as immoral, therefore, the foundation of morality must be deeper than simply the letter of the law. What is that foundation/man’s human nature? Man is surrounded by a spiritual and corporal structure that never allows the person to be treated as a mean but always an end. Without this structure, man falls into relativism, as can be seen in its final coherent consequence, relativism permits all things. Therefore, it is an obligation for man to stand up for the dignity of the human person in the public square. Does this imply a judgemental attitude or an imposition of one’s own religious believes upon others?

Christ does insist that we not judge others. How then do we respect this command while clearly calling certain things immoral? Many try to resolve this question by saying, I have my rules and you have yours and we will leave it there. Yet if we do that, then chaos ensues each following his or her own rules. We must be able to distinguish right from wrong. But you should never try to judge the interior state of another. Let’s take the example of drug abuse. We must always call it wrong yet we can never judge the user as being evil, because he or she might not have known any better. You are unable to see in the heart and mind and know the cause. In other words, you are not yet able to distinguish between right and wrong other than those you have built judgement upon, seen from a limited perspective. You might feel the tendency to judge at this very moment, but hold on, you have given each word a value according to your experience. Desire for instance has a different meaning or value to you than what it means to another person. You weigh it against what it needs to be satisfied. Which could be more or less than that of the other person. A 100 dollars is a fortune to one and just a penny to the other. People take their limited knowledge as fact and it becomes the tool with what they measure.

To understand, not just on an intellectual level but through experience how one’s past influences its present and future, what causes thoughts and feelings to arise generally and how it enslaves us, is the first step to inner growth.

The other thing happening in this age is that the left and right hemisphere of the brain are not communicating as before and there is less contact between thinking and feeling and feeling is starting to fall back into the sub-conscious further and further which can be seen in ethical and moral deterioration. And because it means you become less aware of your emotional functioning you are more susceptible for manipulation, like sheep following the flock. In other words your subconscious becomes the force that drives you. Because the sub-conscious does not know right from wrong and only seeks to find of itself, it is the part that is also the auto pilot that enables you to walk without having to think about each step. Or the one that takes over your driving when you mind wonders off at times.

It is the cause of habits, each experience is seen by a previous one and add even the smallest of variation to it and so, builds up the way it sees things. This sub-conscious is able to pick up far more bits of information than your normal awareness and recognizes things you are often not aware of. It might pick up a smell, or a feature related to a past experience you were never aware off during the moment of the experience. But it will likely respond when it picks it up and trigger thoughts and feelings to which you might say: I do not know why I feel this way, or even a sudden taste for something, because your nose picked up a scent you were not aware off.

This is what personality is, attachment to collections of experiences in the sub conscious mind. As you know the word comes from the Greek persona, meaning mask, I am happy, I am sad, angry etc. Most of the time you are its slave, directing you to react by feeding you thoughts and so, feed itself to its own liking and therefore become stronger over time. If I say that its focus is directed to this world you can understand it. It does not look towards God and has separated itself from Him. It does not know truth, but has built its own believe system. And because it does it through you and your attachment to it, it guides you instead of God, while if you would turn around, recognize him for who and what he is and let go, you will see it through God’s eyes. Looking within is not looking at what it has collected, not the source of thoughts or feelings. While one has to do this at first in order to become aware of what (who) is guiding you, so you come to realize through who’s light you see the world. Before you gain the strength to regain your power over your will, to free it from his clutches and look for God’s guiding light who will show you a different world.

In the previous cycle, meditation was to reach this stillness, the letting go of all that would arise from the sub-conscious so one would catch a glimpse of the light beyond, so it would En-lighten you and reveal your true nature. But as you are reaching the end of this cycle a new path appears, one that is revealing and does not require blind faith as so often thought to be needed.

Truth will set you free.

23-7-2009

Moshiya van den Broek