Blog 2 -
What personal principles did you adhere to before entering this course and
where did they come from? Were they taught to you? Did you develop them on your own? How have our readings
and discussions impacted those principles? Of the principles covered which are
you drawn to the most and why?
I have more or less
lived my life by the “golden rule” that we hear so much about in elementary
school— “Treat others the way you want to be treated.” I judge all of my
actions based on how I would view the situation if I was a third party. If I
would think that my actions were mean, rude, or simply careless, than I most
likely will not do them. This changed slightly when I became a Christian in
seventh grade, and my actions were soon filtered through a new lens, based on what
I thought the Bible would say about a certain situation and how to act. This is
not to say that being a Christian is defined by being a good person, if fact it
is quite the opposite. You do good deeds because you are a Christian, not to
become one. I will be the first to admit that I still make mistakes more often than
I am proud of- Christians aren’t perfect, just forgiven.
I learned to act like this from the people in
my life: my sister, my pastor, and my parents. By following their examples and
by judging their actions in the same way that I judge mine, I was able to
develop my moral compass.
As for which of our
readings I have been drawn the most to, I would have to say our lesson on
Aristotle. His beliefs that you must put the state of the public before your
own self has strongly impacted my beliefs. Because of this, I strive to always
consider what is best for the majority before worrying about myself. In my
opinion, we need a political leader who can do this for us; one who stops
giving the people what they want, and instead gives them what they need! Although
this might not be a popular decision, in the long run, our nation would be
better for it.
I'm commenting this week on Luke DeMuro's blog at http://lukedemuro.blogspot.com/.
I'm commenting this week on Luke DeMuro's blog at http://lukedemuro.blogspot.com/.
I really think you're right about how you said that we do good deeds because you are a Christian, not to become one. I've never really looked at it or thought about it that way before, and now I can say that I have. I also follow in the examples of my family members and the people most important to me, which is why I think its paramount to surround yourself with people that make you want to be a better person. I don't know much about politics, but your last statement makes perfect sense. Unfortunately most people worry about themselves rather than the majority of those around them. I catch myself sometimes doing the same thing. I don't think it's because I'm selfish, I think it's because like myself and most people, theres so much going on all the time that we forget to step back and look at the big picture; which we all need to do once in a while.
ReplyDeleteBut doesn't one sacrifice one's self in the pursuit to be everything for everyone else? The the courtesy of nations is something to be revered, what would one do and be if they never took time to improve themselves?
ReplyDelete