Nick Fallin, who plays the Guardian in the TV series with the same name, is a different kind of hero. A corporate attorney busted for using drugs, he is forced to put in 1,500 hours of community service as a children’s advocate with Legal Services of Pittsburgh. ... He shows up and works hard for the children he represents, learning in the process what he really values in life—relationships, personal responsibility, and justice for society’s weakest citizens.
Sometimes when we find ourselves in unexpected situations we are shaken into understanding what we really value in life. We have these “Aha” moments and wonder why we never realized it before. We are all so busy being and doing that we don’t often take moments to feel, to think, to get to the heart of what really matters to us in life. Sometimes it takes losing something or someone important to jolt us into seeing the real meaningful stuff of our lives. I recently lost my dog and I valued her tremendously. Fortunately it didn’t take losing her for me to realize that, I knew it all along. I feel good that she led a good, quality, happy life with a family who loved her. I am sure this ache in my chest will subside and I’ll smile instead of cry when I think of her, right? It did seem, though, like a good time to reflect on what I really value in life.
Like Nick Fallin, I value relationships – those with my family, my pets, my friends and many acquaintances. These relationships have added a tremendous value to my life - they have given me the opportunity to love, to feel loved and so, so much more. I value peace – times without conflict, without unnecessary noise, without stress or tension. I value work – doing something, anything, to make things better – for myself, for others – is incredibly satisfying whether the results of that work can be seen from the outside or if only I know it on the inside. I value justice and common sense - I’d like to see these two things practiced in tandem more often at times. I value freedom – big freedoms like we have in the United States and that are outlined in our Constitution and little or less talked about, maybe, freedoms – the choices and independence we have in our daily lives. Tea or coffee? Buy or rent? Big dog or little dog? Read a book or watch TV? Baseball or soccer or neither? Treadmill or stairmaster? I value that I have choices and the independence to make those choices. They enhance my living. I guess that’s really what I value – anything that enhances my truly living, feeling and enjoying life.
What do you really value in life?
Monday, May 18, 2009
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
Good for Goodness Sake
The American Humanist Association paid for ads in buses with the message, “Why believe in God? Just be good for goodness’ sake.” An Association representative stated, “Moral values come with being civilized and need not come from God.”
I remember reading about those ads in The Washington Post when they came out. There were some comments about how the ads were anti-religious but that is not how I saw it. I didn’t know there was such a thing as the American Humanist Society but I am in agreement with their “Just be good for goodness sake.” advice. In my opinion it is good advice no matter what your religion, whether you even follow a religion or are unsure as to what you believe or are a non-believer. I also agree that having moral values need not come from God or any particular religion. People can have a sound set of moral values in the absence of religion – I believe that anyway. That being said I do think people need to have the positive values they practice reinforced by some means.
There are many influences in our lives that play a role in the type of people we are. The way our values systems have been fed and cared for and the examples we’ve been exposed help determine whether we are honest or liars, kind or mean-spirited, grateful or unappreciative. What we learn in church or through religious teachings can influence us in a positive way and I’m all for anything that reinforces the practice of positive values. To be a good person, however, I don’t believe you have to follow a specific religion or believe in God; you don’t have to have parents who are constantly exhibiting the practice of positive values; you don’t have to live in a supportive community where people interact politely and do things for one another. Of course all of that would be helpful even if not absolutely required. You do, however, have to have some concept of why practicing your values in a positive way is a good thing. Having people set good examples for you helps; having parents and educators who reinforce the practice of these positive values helps; hearing stories from the Bible or other religious texts or sermons that extol the practice of positive values helps.
I think being civilized does bring with it an inherent decency but that “good” has to be fed and cared for. Some people can just be good for goodness sake. They can see the benefits of it. Others need or may want affirmation from many areas of their life to keep them on track – family, friends, community, work, school and church are all areas in our lives that can give a boost to our “goodness”. So while I agree with the American Humanist Association I also think that whatever works for people, that whatever drives them or helps them to be a good person, to be a person of integrity would be a good investment of their time or energy. If God or religion does that for them, then by all means, make that investment.
What do you think? Do you agree with The American Humanist Association? Why?
I remember reading about those ads in The Washington Post when they came out. There were some comments about how the ads were anti-religious but that is not how I saw it. I didn’t know there was such a thing as the American Humanist Society but I am in agreement with their “Just be good for goodness sake.” advice. In my opinion it is good advice no matter what your religion, whether you even follow a religion or are unsure as to what you believe or are a non-believer. I also agree that having moral values need not come from God or any particular religion. People can have a sound set of moral values in the absence of religion – I believe that anyway. That being said I do think people need to have the positive values they practice reinforced by some means.
There are many influences in our lives that play a role in the type of people we are. The way our values systems have been fed and cared for and the examples we’ve been exposed help determine whether we are honest or liars, kind or mean-spirited, grateful or unappreciative. What we learn in church or through religious teachings can influence us in a positive way and I’m all for anything that reinforces the practice of positive values. To be a good person, however, I don’t believe you have to follow a specific religion or believe in God; you don’t have to have parents who are constantly exhibiting the practice of positive values; you don’t have to live in a supportive community where people interact politely and do things for one another. Of course all of that would be helpful even if not absolutely required. You do, however, have to have some concept of why practicing your values in a positive way is a good thing. Having people set good examples for you helps; having parents and educators who reinforce the practice of these positive values helps; hearing stories from the Bible or other religious texts or sermons that extol the practice of positive values helps.
I think being civilized does bring with it an inherent decency but that “good” has to be fed and cared for. Some people can just be good for goodness sake. They can see the benefits of it. Others need or may want affirmation from many areas of their life to keep them on track – family, friends, community, work, school and church are all areas in our lives that can give a boost to our “goodness”. So while I agree with the American Humanist Association I also think that whatever works for people, that whatever drives them or helps them to be a good person, to be a person of integrity would be a good investment of their time or energy. If God or religion does that for them, then by all means, make that investment.
What do you think? Do you agree with The American Humanist Association? Why?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
