Good and Evil: Where do we place the bar?

Pražský Orloj - Prague Czech Republic

Part 1

"Are there, infinitely varying with each individual, inbred forces of Good and Evil in all of us, deep down below the reach of mortal encouragement and mortal repression -- hidden Good and hidden Evil, both alike at the mercy of the liberating opportunity and the sufficient temptation?"

~ William Wilkie Collins

I had a very thought provoking holiday weekend.  It started Saturday at my building's swimming pool with my nephews noticing something at the bottom of the deep end...

The actual act of swimming down, turning over, noticing the near severed tongue, staring into the wide lifeless eyes of someone still 9 feet below the surface, then cradling his cold discolored body, pushing through to the surface cheek to cheek, feeling no pulse or life... there was something oddly peaceful and reassuring in that moment; a palpable sense of the continuity of both life and spirit.  The imagery was uncomfortable at first... because it was unfamiliar.  I've had to process it and accept it.  However, the accompanying behavior and reaction from the poor man's family continue to trouble me.

As we broke the surface of the pool, I called out for help.  They snorted and asked if I was kidding yet still couldn't be bothered to pull themselves up from their lounge chairs.  I struggled to push him out onto the deck.  They looked on with only mild interest letting two young men rush in to help.  As my friend and mother approached to start CPR only then did one of them venture close to curb her morbid curiosity.  Realizing it was her brother, she went completely bizerk hysterical.  Soon the man's adult daughters and his wife joined in.  In all my life, I have never seen such a transformation from complete indifference to human life to an unspeakable level of insanity.  Wailing, pounding, screaming, howling, pushing, flailing, tossing things about... it caused indescribable panic and fright among the small children present.  So horrifying in ways no dead body ever could be, the young had to be whisked away in states of shock and disbelief.

I watched my mother, whom I adore with all my heart, struggle in her failing elderly body to do what she could to save that man.  I imagined in that moment it was her lying there and asked myself if I could ever have reacted like this man's family... to scoff at pleas for help, to decline involvement in a stranger's moment of desperate need, and then have a complete disregard for the safety and wellbeing of the young in a moment of grief.  I realize these people were under extreme duress but does that excuse their actions?  Like someone who instinctively hides behind a child during a shootout, there's something not quite right... something fundamentally broken.

It seems such behavior is now considered the norm... and excusable.  "We all react to emergency situations differently."  "They were in shock."  "You can't really blame them given the circumstance."  And my personal favorite, "How would YOU feel?!!!"  Really?  Is this really ok?  Are we excused to act like this now?  What does this say about our evolving human sensibilities?  What does this say of us as a civilized people and of our culture?

I am terribly troubled by ordinary acts of compassion and human decency being considered extraordinary while shameful acts of cowardice and selfishness are considered acceptable and even normal.  Returning someone's lost valuables isn't noble... it's proper!  Pulling someone from a pool isn't courageous... it's decent!  Protecting those who can't protect themselves whether they be young, old, infirm or just unaware isn't heroic... it's humane! We shouldn't be astonished by good behavior.  We should be horrified by bad.

(To be continued)

A Cyclical Approach to The Plan of Salvation

Front Garden - South Jordan Utah

What Happens After Death

And How Much Do I Really Need To Know

The allegory of The Plan of Salvation is as elaborate as it is inspiring.  Prophets, general authorities, and church scholars have been expounding on it for more than one and a half centuries now.  There’s a lot more to take in than what appears within the pages of The Principles of the Gospel, that’s for sure.  But after all that has been said and done, it does still boil down to the same familiar story; three general epochs; pre-existence, mortal life, and immortality... all designed for one end; the perfection of humankind.

Contemplating a simplified analogy for what is generally understood of the plan, I guess the pre-existence can be thought of as grades K-12.  Mortality would be the SATs.  And immortality, naturally, is everything there after.  We’d receive our mortal “SAT score” which determines the eternal “college” or graduate program admitting us.  We then spend eternity reaching our potential within the measure of that assigned glory.  Now, I don’t know about you but this seems like a complete waste of eternity if those in the lower glories were unilaterally prevented from progressing at some point.

As perfect offspring of the divine, we all have the same end potential and the same end capacity.  Allowing for our unique personalities and talents, it’s sensible to conclude we may not all progress at the same rate.  Given the awesome length of eternity, I don’t think that should be a problem.

Perhaps we have misunderstood the true nature of the separate degrees of glory.  Instead of limiting progress by being some “final reward,” they cultivate progress by being part of our next evolutionary step.  Divisions of advanced, average, and remedial students would be allowed to continue their progression unimpeded in an environment expressly tailored for their success.  Far from being a “final” anything, they are simply transitory opportunities of continued growth.   The end goal still being, after untold eons, the absolute perfection of humankind... all humankind.

The final judgment, said to occur after this life, isn’t as “final” as some would like us to believe.  Perhaps it’s more of a debriefing/goal setting session prior to the next round.

There is a cyclical nature to existence and learning... like the refiner’s fire where you heat and cool metal over and over to temper it making it stronger and more flexible.  I believe our lesson plan is personally tailored to each individual and life is a repetitive process of slow advancement that keeps on repeating until all of life’s lessons are finally learned.

Now, I’m not willing to espouse a belief in reincarnation as commonly understood.  I prefer the term “multiple” or “plural probations” as it was occasionally referred to in some early writings among the saints.  How that actually works is probably infinitely more complex than I can or care to understand.  Equally irrelevant is knowing if this is my first probation or not.  All I know for certain is this is far from being my last.

Beyond an understanding of our infinite opportunity, concerns regarding the mechanics of progression need to remain focused on our current condition.  The staggering feat that remains ahead of us requires our constant and active participation.  Perfection doesn’t just happen.  It requires an eternity’s worth of knowledge and practice.

“Mindfulness is the aware, balanced 

acceptance of the present experience.”  

~ Sylvia Boorstein