Guest guest Posted November 2, 2001 Report Share Posted November 2, 2001 Halfway through the book " Creating a Life " Finding your individual Path , by Hollis, known to all of you, I am sure, there is an thought provoking chapter titled " the problem of spiritual authority " Hollis names the problems as : by what truths(fictive constructs) do I live? by what truths do I understand who I am ? How am I to use my energies during this brief transit I call my life? by what points of reference do I make my decisions? Because of the dominant thrust of empiricism and deconstructionism many of us become ungrounded in transcendent reality as so we must deal with existentialist angst. A lot of the population , Hollis says, suffering the problem of spiritual authority unconsciously by addiction and/or materialism. " The test of psychologically mature persons, and therefore spiritually mature, will be found in his or her capacity to handle what one might call the Triple A's: anxiety, ambiguity and ambivalence. " I post the 4 questions here because I for one, realize I have to go back to the basics pretty regularly to asses if my own answers have changed. I accept that they do and will depending on one's age and station. Thought it would be a good meditation for anyone looking inward these days of the new way we must now live. Hollis said " If as Tillich once argued G-d is the G-d who appears from behind the G-d who has disappeared, who can bear to sustain the tensions of such ambiguity when one's entire world view is threatened? " Toni IonaDove@... wrote: > THE PRICE THEY PAID > by Hildeth > snip > > > Have you ever wondered what happened to the 56 men who signed the > > Declaration of Independence? > > > Such were the stories and sacrifices of the American Revolution. These were > > not wild eyed, rabble-rousing ruffians. They were soft-spoken men of means > > and education. They had security, but they valued liberty more. Standing > > tall, straight, and unwavering, they pledged: " For the support of this > > declaration, with firm reliance on the protection of the divine providence, > > we mutually pledge to each other, our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred > > honor. " > > > > They gave you and me a free and independent America. The history books > > never > > told you a lot of what happened in the Revolutionary War. We didn't just > > fight the British. We were British subjects at that time and we fought our > > own government! Perhaps you can now see why our founding fathers had a > > hatred for standing armies, and allowed through the Second Amendment for > > everyone to be armed. Remember: freedom is never free! > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted November 2, 2001 Report Share Posted November 2, 2001 Deb, sent me this n i, for one, never knew these outcomes. Somehow, they add a poignancy to our history. Will tie this in w/Jung on the meaning of sacrifice, later. love ao THE PRICE THEY PAID by Hildeth > Have you ever wondered what happened to the 56 men who signed the > Declaration of Independence? > > Five signers were captured by the British as traitors, and tortured before > they died. Twelve had their homes ransacked and burned. Two lost their sons > in the Revolutionary Army, another had two sons captured. Nine of the 56 > fought and died from wounds or hardships of the Revolutionary War. > > They signed and they pledged their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred > honor. > > What kind of men were they? Twenty-four were lawyers and jurists. Eleven > were merchants, nine were farmers and large plantation owners; men of > means, > well educated. But they signed the Declaration of Independence knowing full > well that the penalty would be death if they were captured. > > Braxton of Virginia, a wealthy planter and trader, saw his ships > swept from the seas by the British Navy. He sold his home and properties to > pay his debts, and died in rags. > > McKeam was so hounded by the British that he was forced to move his > family almost constantly. He served in the Congress without pay, and his > family was kept in hiding. His possessions were taken from him, and poverty > was his reward. > > Vandals or soldiers looted the properties of Dillery, Hall, Clymer, Walton, > Gwinnett, Heyward, Ruttledge, and Middleton. > > At the battle of Yorktown, , Jr., noted that the British > General Cornwallis had taken over the home for his headquarters. He > quietly urged General Washington to open fire. The home was > destroyed, and died bankrupt. > > Francis had his home and properties destroyed. The enemy jailed his > wife, and she died within a few months. > > Hart was driven from his wife's bedside as she was dying. Their 13 > children fled for their lives. His fields and his gristmill were laid to > waste. For more than a year he lived in forests and caves, returning home > to > find his wife dead and his children vanished. A few weeks later he died > from > exhaustion and a broken heart. Norris and Livingston suffered similar > fates. > > Such were the stories and sacrifices of the American Revolution. These were > not wild eyed, rabble-rousing ruffians. They were soft-spoken men of means > and education. They had security, but they valued liberty more. Standing > tall, straight, and unwavering, they pledged: " For the support of this > declaration, with firm reliance on the protection of the divine providence, > we mutually pledge to each other, our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred > honor. " > > They gave you and me a free and independent America. The history books > never > told you a lot of what happened in the Revolutionary War. We didn't just > fight the British. We were British subjects at that time and we fought our > own government! Perhaps you can now see why our founding fathers had a > hatred for standing armies, and allowed through the Second Amendment for > everyone to be armed. Remember: freedom is never free! > > > > Alice O. Howell Rosecroft 72 Beartown Mt. Road Monterey, MA 01245 USA Tel: Fax: " Look for the sacred in the commonplace! " Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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