Provocative Thoughts From The Next Generation

Reflection.
Lessening the Dark (not with light but with less dark).

I am so sick and tired of hearing about how we should repent our sinful natures and immediately beg for forgiveness all the while adapting so and so’s way of living. If you are sick of being told you need to change and that you are somehow disrespecting God with your sinful actions this is the article for you.

Let’s get one thing straight right now. The main reason I resent these theologies and teachings to “repent and be healed” isn’t because I myself don’t want to stop doing what most people judge as sin. Not at all, on the contrary, I resent the teachings because from everything that I have seen these teachings DO NOT WORK and are simply another form of know-it-alls telling other people how they SHOULD live their life. I would go as far to say that many times even when people look like they are “walking on the path of righteousness” they are fooling themselves or trying to fool others. If you don’t believe me look to certain members of the Catholic Church for an example. Priests deny themselves the pleasure of sex and many times mutilate their own desire into inappropriate lust for little boys. What about the numerous scandals of television ministers and politicians who condemn homosexuality and prostitution by day and drive the business by night? Why are the parties the most crazy and out of control on Christian college campuses?

These may be extreme examples but they are only a few. Why do I bring them up besides trying to disturb you? Because I believe all of these hypocritical actions are a consequence of denying who we are as people in hopes to be a “better” (or different) person than we really are.

I always hear the phrase “deny your sinful side” or “destroy your dark side,” now I believe it is time for a revamping of this advice since its had its chance and in my estimation, miserably failed itself.

Instead of “denying” whom we are and always trying to be someone else I would submit that we learn to accept ourselves for who we are. Not just the “good” things about ourselves that we like. Not just the “commercial view” or “highlight real” but the whole package. The good, the bad and the ugly, as they say.

Now through my experience I have found that a funny little thing happens when I start bringing my “dark” side out into the open…. It gets less dark! Go figure right!? But seriously if you can think about it this stuff really does make sense. If we can accept the aspects of our behavior that we don’t always like and stop denying that they exist, then we really have a chance for change.

In respect to the child-parent relationship this is huge! When your son or daughter comes to you with something to confess we mustn’t start condemning them, in fact, I would go as far as to say that it is a parents obligation to be truthful with the child if in fact the “sin” is a common occurrence. If a parent condemns their child’s behavior, the cycle of guilt will continue and I believe the action will become darker and darker all the while becoming stronger and stronger. If on the other hand we can accept our nature or character for what it is, it will be much easier to manage.

Soren Kierkegaard, the first Christian existentialist philosopher once wrote, “Face the facts of being what you are, for that is what changes what you are.” I have often marveled at this quote and find it to be a perfect and fitting synopsis for what I have been trying to communicate. If someone argues that this type of dangerous advice will result in a further perpetration of you dark/evil side by acknowledging what should be denied then they can go right ahead. But be ye warned, those are the exact people who have the most skeletons in their closet.

Let your selfish/dark side breath, grow to understand the aspects of yourself that you have grown ashamed of and in the process you will learn to manage them all the while getting to know your whole self perhaps for the first time.