When faced with change, most people's gut reaction is to raise their defenses and retreat to long-held positions. In religions and philosophies, this often leads people to regress to their "fundamental" positions or beliefs. Meanwhile, some people quickly embrace the change, remolding their view of the world around new ideas--sometimes without fully contemplating the consequences of their actions. In between, there are those who embrace the changes that they can handle while holding to traditions as a guideposts to make sense of the world.
In general, the world tends to make better progress when syncretism is in ascendance, while it often regresses when fundamentalism takes hold. Freedom of ideas allows for more creativity and questioning which can often lead to greater innovation. It's through the blending of ideologies, philosophies, and cultures, that we learn to treat one another better with mutual respect and love.
Today, Epiphany, is a celebration of that. A child born to an insular religion has three powerful men from far away lands bring Him gifts. This indicates that Jesus was to be Lord of all people, not just a chosen few. This event foreshadowed Christianity's willingness to embrace older traditions from other cultures as a way to grow its following.
The world is better when we focus on mutual understanding rather than our differences.
In general, the world tends to make better progress when syncretism is in ascendance, while it often regresses when fundamentalism takes hold. Freedom of ideas allows for more creativity and questioning which can often lead to greater innovation. It's through the blending of ideologies, philosophies, and cultures, that we learn to treat one another better with mutual respect and love.
Today, Epiphany, is a celebration of that. A child born to an insular religion has three powerful men from far away lands bring Him gifts. This indicates that Jesus was to be Lord of all people, not just a chosen few. This event foreshadowed Christianity's willingness to embrace older traditions from other cultures as a way to grow its following.
The world is better when we focus on mutual understanding rather than our differences.
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