EXCERPTS FROM “ERCIAN TESTAMENT”
From the Introduction:
I cannot honestly assert that God has inspired me in the sense that God channeled thoughts through my mind so that I could relay them to you. If that has happened, I am not conscious of it.
I do know a little bit, however, about what the moral and social makeup of a balanced conscious being should be, human or divine. I have my theory. I have my philosophy. It is on that point that I stake my claim. If God is a good God, a morally and socially balanced conscious being, as I believe, then I am proposing this book reflects God’s philosophy because it contains a set of teachings that are true, good, just, and largely geared to unite the peoples of our planet, not to divide them.
From Chapter One:
How does God exist? What is God’s nature? Does God have a plan? How do we figure in God’s plan? To be worthy of God’s presence, how must we behave on Earth? Questions such as these came to mind. I could not start my search with preconceived notions. Truth was of vital importance. I had to become completely honest with myself, even if it shattered my idealized concept of the supreme. Following traditional beliefs would not yield anything new. If I wanted to reach GrOunD Zero, I first had to reach my own ground zero: the essence of my mind in that virginal state where innocence asks the most impertinent and unthinkable questions.
From Chapter Two:
A direct connection to God already existed before any holy book came into being. That link exists today and will exist for as long as rational species inhabit the universe. It is the mind. If we did not have one, we would not even be thinking about God. Since we have one, it should become our most trusted means of seeking the nature of the eternal. If we can be sure of anything, it is that the mind is our direct inheritance from God. There are no intermediaries, brokers or messiahs crossing that bridge.
From Chapter Three:
If freedom of thought is essential for the spiritual development of a person, why is it that so many people deny themselves this basic freedom—always containing their thoughts within familiar limits? Likewise, if freedom of expression is also necessary, why is it that so many people remain loyal members of groups that curtail that freedom?
It would seem that a person who believes in liberty would want both a democratic form of government and a democratic form of religion. Yet there are millions who choose the first but not the second: they willingly accept religious authoritarianism. Why this split value system?
From Chapter Four:
The process involves the free exchange of old and new ideas and beliefs. It seeks to resolve religious conflict not through segregation, by keeping groups isolated and insulated from one another, but through integration, by letting them engage in fruitful argumentation under an agreed set of rules that safeguard the ethical communication of ideas.
From Chapter Five:
Ignorance always stands between our goals and us. Good intentions are not sufficient. As they say, “the way to hell is paved with good intentions.” We need knowledge. We need to become wiser to make goodness functional. To produce results in the real world, people of good will need good minds.
From Chapter Six:
The best way to seek knowledge and try to overcome differences in ideology is by cultivating the art of ethical communication, Eth-Com for short.
Have you ever heard the call to “Stand up and fight for your beliefs”? I think we should do the opposite: sit down and discuss our beliefs.
The fight must take place inside each person’s mind. We must learn to embrace the truth whether it is for or against us. Honesty is a virtue without which we cannot become ethical communicators.
We are easily programmable, you know. Once we accept an idea as true or good, it tries to run our lives, not by itself but acting in unison with all the other ideas we accepted in the past. We go on automatic, and the only way to resist this second nature, this robotic thinking and behavior, is to call forth our first nature. By exercising executive control with the conscious part of our mind, we have the power to examine those ideas in our heads. Occasionally, we should scan those programs for viruses and eliminate any we find. If any programs are worthless or outdated, we should replace them with better ones.
Humility is another virtue indispensable to the practice of Eth-Com. Acting superior to others will not gain us their support. If our neighbor supports mistaken beliefs and we prove them wrong, let him or her save face whenever possible.
Always remember that people bleed and feel, while ideas do not. The purpose of Eth-Com is to let the ideas do the fighting, so that we can pick the ones that come out victorious.
From Chapter 7:
The spirit of proligious unity goes a step further. Any person of good mind and will should be welcomed in a proligious group, including atheists and agnostics if they meet that criterion. Just because people do not believe in a conscious supreme being does not mean they lack moral values or principles. Besides, there is always the possibility they may change their belief system free from coercion. We need to learn to live with one another, and we need all the help we can get. To participate, just behave with civility.
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