There have been many great words written to help us humans get through life with minimal damage to ourselves and others. Other than the Bible, I am convinced that the materials written and borrowed by Alcoholics Anonymous are the most healing and healthy materials I know.
A lot of the processes and slogans of AA come from a famous Protestant Minister, Reinhold Niebuhr. He wrote what we now call, The Serenity Prayer that is, when examined closely, used to guide almost all the rest of the AA materials.
Earlier today I came across another great paragraph by Dr. Niebuhr in , PRISM ePistle [epistle@esa-online.org]
Nothing that is worth doing can be achieved in our lifetime; therefore, we must be saved by hope.
Nothing which is true, or beautiful, or good, makes complete sense in any immediate context of history; therefore, we must be saved by faith.
Nothing we do, however virtuous, could be accomplished alone; therefore, we must be saved by love.
No virtuous act is quite as virtuous from the standpoint of our friend or foe as it is from our own standpoint; therefore, we must be saved by the final form of love, which is forgiveness.
Reinhold Niebuhr
No comments:
Post a Comment