At the heart of the true meaning of “conservative” and “liberal” are
values that are both keys to the progress of civilization. What passes
for typical political conversations between “liberals” and
“conservatives” is not this. What is the deeper meaning, the
sacred meaning of “conservative” and “liberal”? To conserve can be
understood as preserving, protecting, stewarding what is sacred. To
liberate can be understood as seeking for there to be freedom, and
freedom from oppression to express what is deepest and most sacred.
Both are essential to a functioning democracy and civil society.
What happens, however, is that these truths are filtered and distorted through other motivations that people are often not aware of, from within themselves, or because of the influence of others. Then people may believe themselves to be righteously pursuing a truth, unaware of distortions they are being affected by. (There are also those who deliberately and intentionally distort truth to serve their own ends, for greed or power).
To the extent that conservatism fails to authentically seek preserve, protect, and steward well-being for All - all people, and all the Earth – and instead promotes the well-being of some people, at the expense of others people or of the Earth, then it fails its whole and true expression and sacred purpose.
To the extent that liberalism fails to authentically seek to freedom from oppression for All - all people, and all the Earth – and instead seeks freedom for the self and for those one is close without dedication to serving people and the Earth who are not free, it fails its whole and true expression and sacred purpose.
In both cases, the problem is the same: the focus of the smaller self, on “me” and “mine”, distorts the deeper and sacred meaning of “conservative” and “liberal”, so that what results is a reflection of selfish or self-oriented oriented impulses disguised as higher principles.
The forms of “conservatism” and “liberalism” that are needed are ones in which we all seek and aspire to know a deeper or higher or more loving Self that we are, that is within us, and that we are also part of – by whatever name, or by whatever nameless way, we may understand that. Our discourse needs to be both internal as well as with one another, so that we are learning to separate our more self-centered motivations from the callings that live deeper within every human being to serve the greater good.
In this way, through this striving, we begin to bring our purer motivations - including respect for all others and reverence for the life of all - so that the deep and true dialogues of ‘conservative’ and ‘liberal’ can occur. We move forward toward the deeper aspirations that we all carry deep within us for our world. In this way, the soul-qualities that each person brings are expressed within a greater whole where differences in how we see things are held within a greater common striving, through which and by which we join together in responding to the genuine needs of the world, for the sake of the present and for the future. This way awaits our choosing it. Each of us can begin, from wherever we are, now.
What happens, however, is that these truths are filtered and distorted through other motivations that people are often not aware of, from within themselves, or because of the influence of others. Then people may believe themselves to be righteously pursuing a truth, unaware of distortions they are being affected by. (There are also those who deliberately and intentionally distort truth to serve their own ends, for greed or power).
To the extent that conservatism fails to authentically seek preserve, protect, and steward well-being for All - all people, and all the Earth – and instead promotes the well-being of some people, at the expense of others people or of the Earth, then it fails its whole and true expression and sacred purpose.
To the extent that liberalism fails to authentically seek to freedom from oppression for All - all people, and all the Earth – and instead seeks freedom for the self and for those one is close without dedication to serving people and the Earth who are not free, it fails its whole and true expression and sacred purpose.
In both cases, the problem is the same: the focus of the smaller self, on “me” and “mine”, distorts the deeper and sacred meaning of “conservative” and “liberal”, so that what results is a reflection of selfish or self-oriented oriented impulses disguised as higher principles.
The forms of “conservatism” and “liberalism” that are needed are ones in which we all seek and aspire to know a deeper or higher or more loving Self that we are, that is within us, and that we are also part of – by whatever name, or by whatever nameless way, we may understand that. Our discourse needs to be both internal as well as with one another, so that we are learning to separate our more self-centered motivations from the callings that live deeper within every human being to serve the greater good.
In this way, through this striving, we begin to bring our purer motivations - including respect for all others and reverence for the life of all - so that the deep and true dialogues of ‘conservative’ and ‘liberal’ can occur. We move forward toward the deeper aspirations that we all carry deep within us for our world. In this way, the soul-qualities that each person brings are expressed within a greater whole where differences in how we see things are held within a greater common striving, through which and by which we join together in responding to the genuine needs of the world, for the sake of the present and for the future. This way awaits our choosing it. Each of us can begin, from wherever we are, now.
No comments:
Post a Comment