Feeling the Spirit While a Noncomformist
June 17th, 2024 by G.
This is difficult. The normal way is to feel righteous anger and so forth. But you need to be able to feel peace and love.
The ability to be able to participate in the Spirit while nonconforming is essential to modern life. I say that without exaggeration. Essential.
Sol
June 20, 2024
This is a tough one for me, and I hear your exhortation: it is essential. Many, many examples from modern life, but the most salient one that comes to mind, was, of all things, the time I had to explain to a colleague that I wasn’t going to add pronouns to my signature line because I considered it a political statement.
“It’s not political at all! Some people genuinely feel this way. It’s just a way of showing some support so that they are not singled out.”
…
I won’t write out the entire conversation. Summarize it to say I think I reacted somewhat better than my usual manner, which is to pollute my thoughts and the conversation with all manner of righteous anger, condescension, and disgust.
You can’t do that. It’s gotta be peace and love all the way down. Otherwise it’s a perfect own-goal.
Give the devil his due: it’s is an ingenious trap! He comes up with issues that push out the spirit no matter which side you answer on.
How many mask/no-mask conversations did I have that disinvited the spirit? How many covid conversations? How many “racism” conversations?
Satan is happy either way, as long as you get up on your high horse and push the spirit off. Gallop left, gallop right — as long as you ride that high horse in high dudgeon!
For myself and others with a “shall not comply” bent, my go-to aspiration has been that we need to approach non-compliance like the righteous man defending his family from an attacker. Fight like a fiend — with the mindset of a saint. Stop the threat — with the least force possible and without enmity for the attacker.
I’m still aspiring.
G.
June 20, 2024
I put up posts like this to draw out comments like this. Thank you.