Difference between revisions of "Idealism"
| Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
[[File:Double-alaskan-rainbow.jpg|right]] | [[File:Double-alaskan-rainbow.jpg|right]] | ||
| − | " | + | "Now your involvement and commitment may move forward more rapidly, for they are becoming unburdened by your idealism, which can only lead you astray." |
| − | <ref> | + | <ref>''Steps to Knowledge'', [https://stepstoknowledge.com/steps/Step106-There-are-no-Masters-living-in-the-world.htm Step 106]: There are no Masters living in the world.</ref> |
"The [[Greater Community Way of Knowledge]] takes you beyond | "The [[Greater Community Way of Knowledge]] takes you beyond | ||
idealism and speculation into real engagement and greater [[certainty]]." | idealism and speculation into real engagement and greater [[certainty]]." | ||
| − | <ref name="wgcII34"> | + | <ref name="wgcII34">''Wisdom from the Greater Community Volume Two'', Chapter 34: Walking The Way of Knowledge</ref> |
==Identification== | ==Identification== | ||
| Line 14: | Line 14: | ||
includes [[God]] and [[life]] and all realms of experience that you can | includes [[God]] and [[life]] and all realms of experience that you can | ||
imagine. Without [[experience]], there is idealism." | imagine. Without [[experience]], there is idealism." | ||
| − | <ref name="stk54">Steps to Knowledge, Step 54</ref> | + | <ref name="stk54">''Steps to Knowledge'', Step 54: I will not live in idealism.</ref> |
"Idealism is the attempt not to accept the world as it is. It justifies [[blame]] and [[condemnation]]. It establishes expectations | "Idealism is the attempt not to accept the world as it is. It justifies [[blame]] and [[condemnation]]. It establishes expectations | ||
of a life that does not yet exist and thus renders you vulnerable to | of a life that does not yet exist and thus renders you vulnerable to | ||
| − | grave disappointment. Your idealism fortifies your condemnation. | + | grave disappointment. Your idealism fortifies your condemnation."<ref name="stk55"/> |
| − | <ref>Steps to Knowledge, Step 55</ref> | + | |
| + | "Idealism justifies condemnation." | ||
| + | <ref name="stk55">''Steps to Knowledge'', [https://stepstoknowledge.com/steps/Step55-I-will-accept-the-world-as-it-is.htm Step 55]</ref> | ||
"This is the great difference | "This is the great difference | ||
| Line 25: | Line 27: | ||
idealism leads nowhere. It has no direction. You cannot act upon it | idealism leads nowhere. It has no direction. You cannot act upon it | ||
effectively, for it is not going anywhere." | effectively, for it is not going anywhere." | ||
| − | <ref> | + | <ref>''Greater Community Spirituality'', [https://www.newmessage.org/the-message/volume-2/greater-community-spirituality/what-is-the-greater-community Chapter 6: What is the Greater Community?]</ref> |
==Directives== | ==Directives== | ||
| Line 39: | Line 41: | ||
you must see without idealism. You must see without the need | you must see without idealism. You must see without the need | ||
for you, for others and for the world to be as you want them to be." | for you, for others and for the world to be as you want them to be." | ||
| − | <ref>Greater Community Spirituality, Chapter 8</ref> | + | <ref>''Greater Community Spirituality'', [https://www.newmessage.org/the-message/volume-2/greater-community-spirituality/who-is-wisdom-meant-for Chapter 8: Who is Wisdom meant for?]</ref> |
==The Impertinence of Idealism== | ==The Impertinence of Idealism== | ||
| − | " | + | "You have this opportunity now, not only to learn The Way of Knowledge but to learn The Greater Community Way of Knowledge, which represents the existence and activity of Knowledge within a far greater context of life. Within this greater context, the encumbrances of human pageantry, [[history]], fantasy and idealism have |
| − | of Knowledge | ||
no place." | no place." | ||
| − | <ref>Greater Community Spirituality, Chapter 20</ref> | + | <ref>''Greater Community Spirituality'', [https://www.newmessage.org/the-message/volume-2/greater-community-spirituality/what-is-religious-education-and-who-is-it-for Chapter 20: What is Religious Education and who is it for?]</ref> |
"Only when you are removed from life | "Only when you are removed from life | ||
and separated from it do you need a great deal of ideas and idealism | and separated from it do you need a great deal of ideas and idealism | ||
with which to justify and direct your experience." | with which to justify and direct your experience." | ||
| − | <ref>Greater Community Spirituality, Chapter 24</ref> | + | <ref>''Greater Community Spirituality'', [https://www.newmessage.org/the-message/volume-2/greater-community-spirituality/what-is-steps-to-knowledge Chapter 24: What is Steps to Knowledge?]</ref> |
"True spiritual training is very disappointing. Why? Because you find | "True spiritual training is very disappointing. Why? Because you find | ||
| Line 56: | Line 57: | ||
entrance to the temple. Only those who argue philosophy remain outside | entrance to the temple. Only those who argue philosophy remain outside | ||
on the steps. In the sanctuary this has no meaning." | on the steps. In the sanctuary this has no meaning." | ||
| − | <ref>Wisdom from the Greater Community Volume One, Chapter 27</ref> | + | <ref>''Wisdom from the Greater Community Volume One'', [ https://www.newmessage.org/the-message/volume-5/wisdom-greater-community-volume-1/disappointment Chapter 27: Disappointment]</ref> |
==Idealism in Relationships== | ==Idealism in Relationships== | ||
| Line 64: | Line 65: | ||
"If your experience of God is concealed by idealism or wishful thinking, so will be your relationships with others and with the world." | "If your experience of God is concealed by idealism or wishful thinking, so will be your relationships with others and with the world." | ||
| − | <ref name="rhp1">'' | + | <ref name="rhp1">''Relationships & Higher Purpose'', [https://www.newmessage.org/the-message/volume-2/relationships-higher-purpose/your-most-primary-relationship Chapter 1: Your Most Primary Relationship]</ref> |
"Some | "Some | ||
| Line 73: | Line 74: | ||
not to God at all. People are committed to an idea of relationship but cannot | not to God at all. People are committed to an idea of relationship but cannot | ||
participate in relationship." | participate in relationship." | ||
| − | <ref>Wisdom from the Greater Community Volume One, Chapter 5</ref> | + | <ref>''Wisdom from the Greater Community Volume One'', Chapter 5: Marriage</ref> |
[[File:Descartes.jpg|left|I want what I think I know]] | [[File:Descartes.jpg|left|I want what I think I know]] | ||
| Line 86: | Line 87: | ||
this is." <ref>[http://www.newmessage.org/the-message/volume-5/wisdom-greater-community-volume-1 ''Wisdom from the Greater Community Volume One'', Chapter 4: Trust</ref> | this is." <ref>[http://www.newmessage.org/the-message/volume-5/wisdom-greater-community-volume-1 ''Wisdom from the Greater Community Volume One'', Chapter 4: Trust</ref> | ||
| − | "Advancing students of Knowledge | + | "Advancing students of Knowledge" |
| − | ... thought they were here to make the world a perfect place or | + | ... "thought they were here to make the world a perfect place or |
at least a better place, but now they are not so sure. If you follow | at least a better place, but now they are not so sure. If you follow | ||
Knowledge, it does not always seem to lead in this direction. It does not | Knowledge, it does not always seem to lead in this direction. It does not | ||
always meet your criteria for improvement for yourself or for others.You | always meet your criteria for improvement for yourself or for others.You | ||
find out that much of your desire for self-improvement is simply to have a | find out that much of your desire for self-improvement is simply to have a | ||
| − | better appearance, to look better to yourself and to others.'Look at me. I | + | better appearance, to look better to yourself and to others. 'Look at me. I |
am doing well.'” <ref name="wvi8">[http://www.newmessage.org/the-message/volume-5/wisdom-greater-community-volume-1 ''Wisdom from the Greater Community Volume One'', Chapter 8: Preparing for the Future]</ref> | am doing well.'” <ref name="wvi8">[http://www.newmessage.org/the-message/volume-5/wisdom-greater-community-volume-1 ''Wisdom from the Greater Community Volume One'', Chapter 8: Preparing for the Future]</ref> | ||
| Line 108: | Line 109: | ||
<ref>Wisdom from the Greater Community Volume One, Chapter 13</ref> | <ref>Wisdom from the Greater Community Volume One, Chapter 13</ref> | ||
| − | " | + | Idealism "paints a picture the |
world cannot possibly support." | world cannot possibly support." | ||
<ref>Steps to Knowledge, Step 96</ref> | <ref>Steps to Knowledge, Step 96</ref> | ||
| Line 116: | Line 117: | ||
<ref>Steps to Knowledge, Step 150</ref> | <ref>Steps to Knowledge, Step 150</ref> | ||
| − | + | "People want life to be what life is not, they want | |
themselves to be what they are not and they want their destiny to be | themselves to be what they are not and they want their destiny to be | ||
what it is not. Then they attempt to gain from life that which confirms | what it is not. Then they attempt to gain from life that which confirms | ||
| Line 127: | Line 128: | ||
direction,</big> but you must not rest your conclusions or your identity | direction,</big> but you must not rest your conclusions or your identity | ||
upon it, for only experience can give you that which is true to you | upon it, for only experience can give you that which is true to you | ||
| − | and that which you can fully accept. | + | and that which you can fully accept."<ref name="stk54"/> |
| + | |||
| + | "Even though your ideals may look beneficial and seem to | ||
represent your desire for [[love]] and [[harmony]], they in effect hold you | represent your desire for [[love]] and [[harmony]], they in effect hold you | ||
back, for they replace that which would truly give you the gifts that | back, for they replace that which would truly give you the gifts that | ||
Revision as of 01:54, 23 December 2018
"Now your involvement and commitment may move forward more rapidly, for they are becoming unburdened by your idealism, which can only lead you astray." [1]
"The Greater Community Way of Knowledge takes you beyond idealism and speculation into real engagement and greater certainty." [2]
Identification
"What is idealism but ideas of things that are hoped for based on disappointment? Your idealism includes yourself, your relationships and the world in which you live. It includes God and life and all realms of experience that you can imagine. Without experience, there is idealism." [3]
"Idealism is the attempt not to accept the world as it is. It justifies blame and condemnation. It establishes expectations of a life that does not yet exist and thus renders you vulnerable to grave disappointment. Your idealism fortifies your condemnation."[4]
"Idealism justifies condemnation." [4]
"This is the great difference between Wisdom and idealism. Wisdom leads to action, and idealism leads nowhere. It has no direction. You cannot act upon it effectively, for it is not going anywhere." [5]
Directives
"Let not idealism guide you, for Knowledge is here to guide you." [3]
"Do not then pretend that you are God by attempting to re-arrange the world toward your idea of perfection or wholeness or unity. To do so will merely deceive you once again and force you to use relationships to satisfy your idealism, which will in time require that you become an oppressor and a victim of error." [6]
"See yourself as you are today. See others as they are today. See the world as it is today. All without condemnation. To see without condemnation, you must see without idealism. You must see without the need for you, for others and for the world to be as you want them to be." [7]
The Impertinence of Idealism
"You have this opportunity now, not only to learn The Way of Knowledge but to learn The Greater Community Way of Knowledge, which represents the existence and activity of Knowledge within a far greater context of life. Within this greater context, the encumbrances of human pageantry, history, fantasy and idealism have no place." [8]
"Only when you are removed from life and separated from it do you need a great deal of ideas and idealism with which to justify and direct your experience." [9]
"True spiritual training is very disappointing. Why? Because you find that your philosophy, your idealism and your hopes must be left at the entrance to the temple. Only those who argue philosophy remain outside on the steps. In the sanctuary this has no meaning." [10]
Idealism in Relationships
"Relationships which are used to fulfill fantasy and idealism must always go astray and end in anger and disappointment." [11]
"If your experience of God is concealed by idealism or wishful thinking, so will be your relationships with others and with the world." [11]
"Some people wish to return to God and commit themselves to God, but they cannot be with anybody. And so they are trying to be with everything, but they do not know how to be with any one thing. This leads to idealism of a very unfortunate kind, for people are committed to an idea of God and not to God at all. People are committed to an idea of relationship but cannot participate in relationship." [12]
Seeking Perfection
"People are very adamant that God should come and make the world exactly the way they want it, but God has other plans. God’s intention is to free everyone here so that they may return to their natural Home. So, instead of making the world a perfect place for your separation to exist, God has set in motion the forces to break your separation down.Very loving this is." [13]
"Advancing students of Knowledge" ... "thought they were here to make the world a perfect place or at least a better place, but now they are not so sure. If you follow Knowledge, it does not always seem to lead in this direction. It does not always meet your criteria for improvement for yourself or for others.You find out that much of your desire for self-improvement is simply to have a better appearance, to look better to yourself and to others. 'Look at me. I am doing well.'” [14]
"Why doesn’t the world become a perfect place when people are so intelligent and so loving in their true nature? Why isn’t the world the way it is supposed to be? Because it is an environment where people who have not accepted the responsibility for service can have an opportunity to do so. If there were no improvements to be made here, you would be quite lost because your stage in life is to contribute." [14]
The Limits and Cost of Idealism
"Why would anyone become violent in life save that their idealism has been dashed by something?" [15]
Idealism "paints a picture the world cannot possibly support." [16]
"You cannot teach people from idealism, for then you place upon them the burden of your own expectations." [17]
"People want life to be what life is not, they want themselves to be what they are not and they want their destiny to be what it is not. Then they attempt to gain from life that which confirms their own idealism, and because life cannot confirm this, all becomes distressed, conflicted and complex." [18]
"Idealism can be helpful at the beginning, for it can start you moving in a true direction, but you must not rest your conclusions or your identity upon it, for only experience can give you that which is true to you and that which you can fully accept."[3]
"Even though your ideals may look beneficial and seem to represent your desire for love and harmony, they in effect hold you back, for they replace that which would truly give you the gifts that you seek." [3]
"Idealism of any kind stands in the way of the reclamation of Knowledge. It is a choice for belief over experience, for ideas over relationships, for self-importance over truth. Even for those who have very lofty ideas about themselves and the universe, their ideas, which may seem harmless within themselves, become a great restraint in The Way of Knowledge." [2]
References
- ↑ Steps to Knowledge, Step 106: There are no Masters living in the world.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Wisdom from the Greater Community Volume Two, Chapter 34: Walking The Way of Knowledge
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Steps to Knowledge, Step 54: I will not live in idealism.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Steps to Knowledge, Step 55
- ↑ Greater Community Spirituality, Chapter 6: What is the Greater Community?
- ↑ Relationships & Higher Purpose, Chapter 5
- ↑ Greater Community Spirituality, Chapter 8: Who is Wisdom meant for?
- ↑ Greater Community Spirituality, Chapter 20: What is Religious Education and who is it for?
- ↑ Greater Community Spirituality, Chapter 24: What is Steps to Knowledge?
- ↑ Wisdom from the Greater Community Volume One, [ https://www.newmessage.org/the-message/volume-5/wisdom-greater-community-volume-1/disappointment Chapter 27: Disappointment]
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 Relationships & Higher Purpose, Chapter 1: Your Most Primary Relationship
- ↑ Wisdom from the Greater Community Volume One, Chapter 5: Marriage
- ↑ [http://www.newmessage.org/the-message/volume-5/wisdom-greater-community-volume-1 Wisdom from the Greater Community Volume One, Chapter 4: Trust
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 Wisdom from the Greater Community Volume One, Chapter 8: Preparing for the Future
- ↑ Wisdom from the Greater Community Volume One, Chapter 13
- ↑ Steps to Knowledge, Step 96
- ↑ Steps to Knowledge, Step 150
- ↑ Steps to Knowledge, Step 199