DON'T BE AFRAID OF TRUTH

Simply Said:  How many of us live in a quiet struggle with life? There are some 6 Billion people in the world we live on.   Mark Twain was quoted as saying..."Sometimes I wonder whether the world is being run by smart  people who are putting us on, or by imbeciles who really mean it!"

          The biggest lesson I have learned about Bigotry of ANY kind is not to be LAZY about searching for truth; Question!

         

          At 75 I find myself in "THAT" Category on the Internet...too old to POSSIBLY be a "Progressive"! Too TRADITIONAL (said in a disapproving tone) & "OLD FASHIONED"! Hell, I've even been married for 54 years and still adore him. My lineage arrived here in 1607 & they fought in ALL American wars.(Minuteman at Lexington, Died with Custer at the Little Bighorn, fought in the Spanish-American War, a "Barnstorming"
Aviation Pioneer that helped change the course of WWI in 1910.

         I am PROUD of my "traditional values" that have served me incredibly well this long and been tested many many times over.

I DO NOT ATTACK OR JUDGE OTHERS FOR THEIR BELIEFS; HOW DARE THEY ATTACK MINE!
      IT IS NOT OUR JOB TO BELITTLE, COERCE & VIOLATE  FREEDOM OF SPEECH;   BACK OFF LEST YOU BE JUDGED BY A "HIGHER COURT" THAN SECULAR.

I DO have a solution...however impractical to pull off. Ready?

I found that to "get over" Bigotry three things worked for me really well.

(1) Not being afraid to learn outside my comfort zone. BeliefNet.com was a  great objective site of ALL World Religions and Belief Structures.
(2) Actually getting to KNOW someone else with a different belief & seeing all the similarities rather than just differences. (I did this)
(3) Having a strong, well developed belief system myself with ample lifetime evidence of effectiveness for me. (Loving Christ enabled me to love OTHERS with less restraint and judgement)

Hypothetical example:   What if we were put into an empty room with ONE PERSON AT A TIME and told we must ask each OTHER one Question?

                        WHAT DO YOU BELIEVE?

We are to focus on that person!   Age,Gender,Ethnicity,Agnostic,Atheist,Judeo-Christian etc.etc.Black,Yellow,Brown,Plaid...o.k. I went too far...
We are to listen for similarities
We are to "allow" their beliefs to build tolerance for others
We need "contact" verbally and touch...hugs,shake hands,eye contact,
      body language...whatever seems mutually comfortable for both.

Mrs.Beverly Birge
2016