More recently, published in Time Magazine with date 4 September 2000, we are presented with the doctrines of the Secretary General of the United Nations, Kofi Aannan, based on ethical teachings of African tribes. The right way to live according to Annan is based on five Virtues: Dignity, Confidence, Courage, Compassion, and Faith. These words are found in Christian life styles but the Gospels do not underscore them all as highly important.
The beautiful book by Don Miguel Ruiz inspired me to investigate the Christian "Way" as discussed by Paul and the Roman governor Felix in Acts: 24:22. It is elaborated often in the New Testament without calling it the "Way". Certainly the definition of rules for living and interpretation of the human condition given by Jesus in Matthew chapters 5, 6, and 7 are descriptions of a way of life. Romans chapters 8 and 13 give guidance for Christian living that Paul mailed on to the Romans. Many books of the New Testament deal with correct living in this world which is illustrated by the book called First Peter and in many other books of the Bible.
Several questions arise when we consider the modern rendering of the Christian Way. How do churches these days handle their interpretations of the Way? How do Christian interpretations of the way to live relate to intrinsic human- nature that propel people in this life and their needs? This essay attempts to address these questions.
Christianity evolved from the Hebrew religion and it was first assumed by the Romans to be merely a Jewish cult. For the Hebrews the Law or the Torah was primary and salvation was for the Hebrew nation and tribes, inferring God's choice and protection of Israel as a nation. For the Jews, this world and these times were the God's stage and a life after death is hardly discussed in their scriptures.
Christianity is the result of one man, Jesus the Christ, who was a teacher of how to live this life in accordance with God's will and plans. Chapters 5, 6, and 7 of the Gospel according to Matthew present many of his teachings. He was a Jew and re- interpreted Jewish laws and commandments. For him, murder was already implied by angry thoughts. Adultery was committed by the thought of doing it. Likewise he forbid swearing, revenge, ostentatious prayers or public giving of alms, judging other people, and he amplified other Jewish laws. The motives and psychological components of sin were examined. Jesus taught living a gentle and pure life of love for others. The merit of preachers and teachers is determined by the good fruit they produce. In the four Gospels a mode of living is advocated that is free from hypocrisy and is helpful and friendly to mankind.
Jesus did not approve of the Jewish religion as practiced by the Scribes and Pharisees of his time. Chapter 23 of Matthew and many other references clearly criticize religious leaders for their hypocrisy and especially for the regulations they enforced on Sabbath activities. In fact Jesus was condemned to death by the Jews for his Sabbath sins and insubordination to their authority and other crimes against Jewish laws. He was betrayed by one of his own disciples for money.
Christianity is further developed in New Testament Scriptures, especially in the book of Acts and the letters of the apostle Paul. Acts begins with the death and resurrection of Jesus with his apostle Peter leading a group of Jesus' followers who were being persecuted by Jewish religious leaders. Three important events closely related to moral codes are reported in the Book of Acts. First the Holy Spirit's actions are described and the whole book is full of deeds by the Spirit. Life can be a living fellowship with a risen Jesus through the constant presence of the Holy Spirit who can play the role of helper in living a moral life. The second Christian revolution reported is regarding laws and regulations for living. The first big lesson came to the leader, Peter, who was told by angels to accept the company of Gentiles thus abolishing the Hebrew codes forbidding fraternization with people not of the Chosen Race. The next singular event that greatly influence the Christian Way was the Council in Jerusalem (Acts 15) in which Christians were not compelled to be circumcised or obey Jewish dietary regulations. We see emerging a rather libertine code for living with the Ten Commandments and Torah (and Jesus's rendering of the Hebrew laws) rather de-emphasized only to be replaced by the strict orthodoxies of later Christian congregations, both Catholic, and Protestant.
Advice for Christian living is elaborated by Paul, a former Pharisee. We can savor his thoughts by continuing to read the next of books in the New Testament following the Gospels, Romans and 1st Corinthians. Romans is largely a theological treatment of the relationships of gentile Christians to the circumcised Jews. He does discuss reasonable moral conduct of people who do not conform to Hebrew dietary and Sabbath codes. In Chapter one of Romans, Paul defines wickedness and ungodliness. Homosexuality and sexual promiscuity are denounced. Envy, deceit, gossip, slander, boasting and ruthlessness should not form part of the Christian personality. In 1st Corinthians he describes cases of abominable adultery. He teaches the inferiority of women and even prescribes the proper hair dress. Christianity requires conformity to many behavioral codes and continues to require conformity to the Jewish Decalogue and to some stricter sexual prohibitions than in Old Testament regulations, resulting in celibacy for priests and nuns.
However the central core of the Christian Way is not obedience to laws or following an established model of behavior or conduct. It is the spiritual components of Christianity that best characterize the faith. This pathway is documented in the writing of Paul also. Continuing with 1st Corinthians we learn more of the Holy Spirit working among living people giving them special gifts. Chapter 12 describes spiritual gifts of healing, speaking in tongues, and various other miraculous abilities. In the sublime Chapter 13 Paul extols love as the supreme virtue and he explains the mental attitudes that should accompany love to all people. Perhaps this Chapter 13 is a summary of the Christian Way, because it proclaims a virtue that can be practiced by human effort? In Chapter 14 Christian teaching (or prophesying) is advocated as the proper activities in the Christian Church -- but exercised with the gifts bestowed supernaturally by the Holy Spirit.
So is the Christian Way doable? Certainly virtues are recognizable characteristics of true Christians. These expressions of helpfulness, honesty, kindness and care for the sick and poor are perhaps the frequent by-products of Christianity. They result from divine gifts and not from stoic human striving. Christianity is a salvation religion postulated on the premise of life-after-death and a coming judgment of our lives by Jesus himself. Our virtues and good works do not guarantee a favorable verdict. There is danger of eternal hell and not eternal Heaven. Faith in Jesus and surrender to the Lord seems to be the prime criteria by which we will be judged. The scriptures we have been quoting do not tell us much about the life after death. As death is a curtain or veil that separates us from this earthly life Church officials and creeds have volunteered to show us the way.
It is interesting to evaluate the results of living life according to different "ways". American lives are influenced by Christian teachings, secular psychology, and slightly by philosophies of other cultures and faiths like Buddhism, and perhaps even the Toltec and Fante tribes mentioned already.
In terms of virtues such as honesty and charity there is general harmony in these moral values in all guides for living. Most religions recommend hard work and unselfishness rather than sloth and greed. Faith groups such as Christian Methodists and Mormons are hard working and usually successful economically. Scholarship and mental discipline, as practiced by Moslems and Christians after the Renaissance, made the human achievements in science and technology possible. The millenniums of high civilization in China may be due to the work ethics of Confucianism and Oriental religions. But there are different life patterns and directions taken by society depending on how religions are perceived and practiced.
Christianity is distinguished from the ethical religions that do not anticipate life-after-death and salvation of souls. This promise to Christian believers is a great advantage of the Faith as it gives solace and comfort in life which always ends in tragedy. A spiritual prayer-life communicating directly with Jesus is a remarkable benefit of Christianity. The Holy Spirit gifts, including speaking in tongues, sets believers apart from the secular world and other philosophic and moral life styles. It is clear that comparing these spiritual benefits with plain moral programs on how to work and share earth resources is not easy. But we do talk about results as we are living in a world permeated with advice on how to live according to religious and secular paradigms.
Christianity makes a binary separation of all men and women, on earth living or dead, into two groups, believers or non- believers. Salvation hinges on confession of and faith in Jesus as the savior and redeemer of mankind. Believers are a unique group that tend to pity or disparage all other infidels. Admission to this elect society is further restricted by people's interpretation of and obedience to Bible teachings. But because faith is a mental state its attainment is not patently evident or provable. Salvation means heaven after death, but death is a veiling curtain denying proof of status of the dead. Because faith and not "good works" are the grounds for salvation of one's soul, according to some dogma, some Christian denominations even have abandoned striving to live model, moral lives.
But perhaps of more serious sociological consequence resulting from Christian interpretation of the Bible is the political position these groups take that the world is evil and not correctable by human efforts. God regulates history according to the Book of Revelation and calamities upon calamities is all that we can expect. They are especially critical of programs by the United Nations, a non-Christian institution. Some Christian denominations deify the Bible accepting every word as a blueprint for living. Such spiritual exclusiveness is inherent in most religions and contributes to religious racism that is so evident today, causing wars and much of the cruelty rampant in the world.
Is it possible (for me) to write such words of apostasy and heresy and still be a Christian? My hope is placed on the spiritual dimensions of Christianity manifested by the Holy Spirit and in my personal life of prayer. The constant availability of God in prayer infuses my mind with incredible honesty and discernment. God gives me an eternal viewpoint for understanding earthly affairs. I feel a power that enables me to scale the hardships of my life and forgive people causing the horrors of our days. This nearness to Jesus makes me better morally and more sympathetic and friendly toward other people. I do not attempt to second guess God about his plans for after-life in the future. I find the Bible a great book and guide for living. I read it regularly and enjoy the insights on Jesus's thoughts and commands -- and his portrayal of God as my other Father. His Way of living is for me the best road -- demanding the ultimate in ethics and doable by his Grace.
Spiritual connections imply that God is everywhere and at all times present. Prayer assumes a mental linkage of God's spirit with our brains. If he intercedes in human affairs and answers prayers he must cause and countenance all events of history. This is a tacit and amazing assumption implicit for all praying peoples. This is the universal miracle that give life meaning and the faith and hope we need to live. We approach him in our distress knowing he knows all and that he is just, merciful and loving. The moral side of this "mental God connection" is our conscience. This instrument gives us our ethics. Laws and ethical codes without this spiritual component are ineffectual as forces shaping societal behavior.
With these emotional personal words let us get on with a more rational exposition. From this man's point of view we do not criticize other moral teachings on legalistic grounds or because Christians have exclusive understanding of all truth and the mind of God. Let us start by assuming that we are compelled to live and that human lives have great value. The codes of behavior that societies adopt effect life. Let's evaluate "ways" by the results they produce in the civilizations where they are practiced.
Certainly the Toltec guides, called the Four Agreements, have a most beneficial effect on adherents. These people are extremely honest and are disciplined workers. The strict codes are not easy to keep and mastery of the Agreements bestows a kind of serene inner spirit, calm and confident in facing life. It differs mainly from Christian living in that it is a "do it yourself" morality lacking in humility, repentance, and reliance on any supernatural or spiritual help. But with love given the place of supreme virtue as in Christianity it is likely that the Toltecs experienced a spiritual world also. Don Miguel Ruiz does not discuss the Toltec or Aztec religions much, and the information we have about Central American religions is negatively filtered by Christian priests, but there was widespread worship with temples and religious authorities. Those cultures fell into the same human abuses --sacrifices and cruel laws regulating behavior -- as the Jewish and Christian worlds have suffered from their religion and their clergy.
How do moral codes for living impact American society today? The public schools are forbidden to teach Christianity but psychological guidance is very prevalent in colleges and high schools. These guidelines emphasize self-confidence, pride, and freedom of action. Ideas like sin, repentance, and reliance on spiritual help are deleted from the instructions for living. There is little sense of right and wrong in relation to some standards. Morals are assumed to be relative to some arbitrary cultural norms. Success is worshipped and defined as wealth and happiness. It is assumed attainable by human efforts and resources.
These notions are a part of the Toltec Agreements too. People following these paths are truthful and hardworking. But they lack the divine resource of conscience to accomplish their ideals of life. Their egos perhaps make them insufferable and unable to cooperate or be friendly with other people. These defects are evident in younger Americans who are influenced by our school systems where modern psychology prevails. We hope these deficiencies are not fatal to our civilization.
But some Christian paths have pitfalls too. The conservatives that only seek salvation in a future life abandon human toil or reason -- "works". These churches do not try to build better earthly societies. They consider global efforts to alleviate poverty and disease, like those of the United Nations, to be futile, and at worst, the works of the Devil. These people are God-fearing and are guided according to conscience and Bible teachings. They are generally law-abiding and contribute work and values to their societies made up of people of the same religious convictions. But because they have cornered the divine truth and all other societies, religious or secular, are living in error, these fundamentalists are hostile to outsiders and often seek to punish and destroy the non-believers.
On the other hand some liberal Christians deny miraculous prayer communication with God and His powers to change lives. These "secular" denominations lack divine power and their constituents do not always live lives guided by conscience. They follow ways guided by psychology of the culture taught in schools and colleges that emphasize self-esteem and the attainment of personal wealth and happiness. Cooperation and philanthropy are not well developed in such value systems.
How should humans live? By what moral codes and toward what attainments? What are the intrinsic human drives, responses, and requirements? Are there common characteristics that humans and cultures have or is human nature just a myth?
To try to answer such profound questions we need to try to examine human beings and the human predicament. I believe there are five principal human drives that largely shape the course of history and human behavior in all societies. There are many more facets to human personality but I think considering these five help us select workable paths-ways for human life.
(1) The first drive that makes us "tick" is self- preservation. We come as individual units and all living organisms strive to save their own lives. We seek possessions and power for the security they offer as well the pleasure and utility they give. We are usually proud of our bodies, our accomplishments and our possessions. Capitalism capitalizes on these instincts.
(2) Humans are herd animals like horses and wolves and naturally bond to leaders and follow orders. The basic human herds are families and tribes. Leaders are fathers or mothers in the family herds and chiefs for the tribes. Tribes can be expanded to nations but humans become fearful when ethnic bounds are bridged. These boundaries are usually marked by language, religion, and color barriers.
(3) Reproduction and the sex drive are essential and inherent in human societies. These primitive urges tend to be disruptive to the herd's other activities and are often rigidly prescribed and even proscribed by tribal taboos and customs. But reproduction and sex are necessary for the survival of the community.
(4) Man must eat. Most animals spend most of their lives in search of food. Humans do much the same only they trade their products with other people in elaborate economic systems. But working for goods to sustain life is a primary activity of mankind.
(5) Mankind is a thinking animal. He or she contemplates life and dying. They have imagination and fantasy -- and make fantastic art and inventions. Innate in people is a sense of religion conceived by the worlds they make with their minds. It is naive to construct political systems or moral codes without accommodating this spiritual sense.
If we accept these ingredients as the primary make-up of the human race, we have some guidelines for selecting or constructing a sound moral code of behavior or path-way for living.
Given these predispositions and imperatives circumscribing human life, how should the brief days each human creature has be best spent? Most human objectives are best attained by cooperative efforts with other people. Guidelines for living must tell us how to deal with other people. Moses was a law- giver and the Decalogue prescribes mainly how to relate to neighbors. Don't offend our neighbors by stealing his goods, killing him, committing adultery or being jealous of his wife or property. The first of the Ten Commandments make God and the Sabbath sacred invoking enforcement by God and a priesthood, working through the human conscience, of the moral laws handed down on tablets of stone.
Historically this Mosaic Way of behavior has been elaborated in great detail by Hebrew priests and even incorporated into the civil and criminal laws of Western societies. We have noted that Jesus interpreted these fundamental laws and deplored the nauseating details and the punishments for transgressions that the Jews of his day enforced.
We must appreciate that law giving and enactment is an on- going process and the construction of new ethical or religious codes must interact with long established systems of laws like the Roman laws which are still models of modern governments. Besides the written laws we have common laws and customs that are very numerous and the results of the rubbing together of peoples carrying out the five functions concocted at the beginning of this section. It is not just law-givers and legislatures that make the rules that societies tend to abide by. Laws are generally forged by the experience of societies. However religious groups often take issue with secular laws and invent new rules for human conduct. This essay mainly addresses this religious proclivity or penchant for tailoring codes for human behavior.
To pick an efficacious "Way" for humans to follow we must work with the innate nature of man assumed here to be primarily the five characteristics given above.
Some Christian moral codes reflect human drive number (1) strongly. These religions emphasize salvation of one's soul and the individual's sanctity. Creeds and formulas that optimize the probability of reaching heaven are the preferred paths to follow. For the Jews the success in acquiring wealth and social position are evidence of God's blessing here on earth. The goals of capitalism often correspond to the individual's goals in human life for Christians pursuing such a path. These people are law- abiding, hard working, and have consciences sensitive to spiritual direction. But these folks often lack humility and charity toward others. Cooperating in group efforts is sometimes difficult. The divine path to salvation is the sole property of sets of believers following their religious pathway. Their exclusive divinity often makes them hostile and warlike toward other religious groups.
Another Christian choice of morality emphasizes human drive number (2). Now the herd animals -- humans-- cooperate and follow leaders well. The group or tribe can be more important than the human units from which it is composed. Bible teachings of love and help to the poor are the primary guidelines in the ethics of these people. But they have trouble expanding the size of the group to include people of other nations or languages. Racism is a common cause of war. Ideologies of socialism are related to the notions of people of these churches. The troubles with people motored mainly by Drive (2) are often they blindly follow leaders and create personality cults. These folks are usually friendly and humble. But perhaps they are not as pious as those driven by Drive (1).
Drive (3) sexual urges in mankind are treated in much detail in religious codes for living. Sometimes sex is considered to be unequivocally a moral evil and celibacy should be the ideal state in a perfect world. The Shakers in New England established such regulations for their members and the group became extinct after one generation. The Bible is full of guidance on proper sexual behavior. The rational logic behind some of the restrictions on sex is to preserve the home and protect children. Most religious codes require man and wife to mate for life. The animal instincts in men and women do not always reinforce this injunction of monogamy. Divorce can be damaging in the rearing of children. Sexual hormones are robust indeed.
The economic Drive (4) may not often be considered a molder of Christian morals. But most of civil law is dedicated to the operation of commerce and trade. Here concepts of fairness and justice have religious implications. The Drive is essential for humans to eat and function in groups needed in all economies. However the primary goal of Drive (4) is often to acquire much wealth and display it ostentatiously. These activities can be at odds with group motivations to distribute goods more equitably that is central to the Drive (2) objectives. Drive (4) is more compatible with Drive (1).
We have separated out in Drive (5) the human mental gifts, and we imply that they are the makers of religions. The cave-art of early man portrayed god-like animals and suggested religions with an after-life to make use of tools and gifts place in tombs of the dead. All religions have elements of fantasy and imagination. Human thought can be used in food-gathering and invention -- utilitarian purposes -- but it can also be used to contemplate the meaning of life and the causes of natural phenomena. Human thinking, human conscience, and the comprehension of the divine are intrinsic qualities of human existence. It is folly to concoct rules to guide mankind without acknowledging these gifts and characteristics.
This little essay may help us to understand why some guides for living by a set of religious principles might be skewed to favor one of the human drives or the other. What then is the "best Way" for Christians? It is suggested that we start with codes of Moses and Jesus and then modernize and refine them while thinking about the five human Drives outlined above.
Law giving and constructing moral codes is not a task many people undertake. But we all would like to know what is the right road to take. Also our lives are unwittingly models for others who observe us unawares.
Human Drive number (1) warns us that the ego and desire for security in this world and the next can dominate our lives. People in the absolutist or fundamentalist camps are sure that they have found the keys to eternal salvation--the supreme prize. They are not forbidden to work toward improving life on this earth but it is not the top priority. Reaching out with friendly arms beyond their co-religionist is difficult for them.
Drive number (2), the herd instinct, causes adherents to follow leaders and have concern for the welfare of the group. But the drive when incorporated into religious dogma tends to restrict the scope of the friendship circles. The important consideration is the qualification of the leader. The codes espoused by the leader are vital. People can blindly follow stupid and bigoted leaders.
Regulation of sex or Drive (3) determines the quality of family life and can curtail the spread of venereal diseases such as AIDS. Promiscuous sexual activities are often associated with hedonistic life-styles that are generally discouraged by most religious codes.
Drive (4) tells us to work and gain wealth. It dominates most human activities. Activity is the substance of living and work is the primary mode for productivity. The amassing of fortunes and the obsession with money are traps that this Drive can lead us into. Many sins -- avarice, covetousness, ostentation, and pride -- are related to human quests for wealth. Codes to regulate human Drive (4) must encourage justice and sharing.
Drive (5), thinking, is the forge for religious codes. Our minds allow us to assess how the other Drives either build or destroy our lives. Thinking and prayer give us access to God and the guidance of our consciences. Through contemplation the codes of the Toltecs and the Wisdom of Kofi Annan can instruct us about virtuous living. With our minds we can synthesize a Way to best play out the days of our lives and lead us on a pathway to heaven.
In conclusion, the Christian Way does not stress certain individual moral virtues to be sharpened by discipline and practice. Rather it presents a road toward love and holiness attainable by divine help. But the beauty of Toltec morality does not contradict the Christian Way. Remember these words of reconciliation to the Philippians (Chapter 4:8):
"Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report: if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things."