Judging Negative People Is Not Human

I know, we all do it.  We claim we don't, but we do.  We'd like to think we don't, yet I bet if your life was under a magnifying glass, we would see this in full display.

Some are better at not doing it than others.  Some just seem to struggle with it all the time.

Judging negative people is not human.  We may think it is.  Our ego may convince us that it is, but to a person that is conscious, judgment is not a healthy thing.  It originates from the ego and is fed by the ego.

If you think that people are too negative or they are so negative that you must expel them from your life, you are judging them.  Who is to say you are right and they are wrong?  Who is to say that their level of negativity is too much?  It is a judgment call, not fact-based, even though every day I see people claim they have the right facts.

Screaming out for help...

Sometimes that individual is walking through a pretty hot fire and they are screaming out for help.  Yes, it is true that often times people do not really want the help because all they know to do in that moment is scream out in pain.  It is all they are equipped to do.  To shun them means they must walk alone, and sometimes those roads get pretty lonely.

Judging others does no good for them and quite frankly, it does no good for us.  It may make us feel like we are taking charge in life, but if you leave those that are struggling to stand up in the ditch, what good is that?  What good is it to put yourself in a position to judge others, when all you're doing is making yourself into a person that is not truly human?

A broader connection...

Often when things in other people bother us (including their negativity), it is because there is a broader connection.  There is something about that which makes us uncomfortable.  Maybe we haven't healed that part of our life.  Maybe we are still stuck in something unpleasant.  People cross our paths for a reason, and while shunning them is a choice you make, let it not be the only choice you entertain.

People are hurting in this world and they often need to know someone cares.  We pass memes along all day long and make statements, but we so often fail to see the full impact of those things.  Our words can become a knife slashed about to others who are already hurting.

Judgment stops healing and love...

When I've been in deep healing moments with other people, the judgment stops the healing from happening. It blocks love.  It is when you get rid of the judgment that the person knows you are real, authentic, and you are there for them.  The body and the mind know this from an innate level.  No words have to be spoken to understand this.

When we judge people we deem to be negative, we're not only elevating ourselves to a level that is not ours, but we're forcing them to go hide in a cave of loneliness, despair, and shame.  Let us rise to the occasion and see what the negativity means to our own life so maybe we can heal something we have not yet fully healed.

It is far better to help a limping person walk than to kick out their good knee.  Judging negative people is where we kick out the good knee and then look at them in disgust because they cannot stand.

We are far too quick to judge, and far too slow to truly understand how to love others and ourselves.  Judgment comes from judging ourselves first and we propagate it to all others.  By learning to show love to ourselves, we'll learn more how to show love to all.

And yes, there are some people that come through our lives that really push the limits.  Sometimes it is helpful to flee or take a rest from them, but to do so with unconditional love.

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Blog Post And Images (c) 2017 by Don Shetterly

• Permission required before any part of this blog post is reprinted, reworded or used in any form. 
• You are welcomed to share the LINK to this blog post.  

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Let Love Lead You

Too many times I see things that really cause pain upon others and hurt our society.  One such area is when we say we love others, but then the following words, actions, social media shares and thoughts show anything but love.

Love is not something you can boast about because if you truly love and have love, it will show through.  It needs no boasting.  In fact, anyone that boasts how much love they have probably is missing the true point of what love truly is.

I grew up in a family where we went to church on Sunday morning and heard love preached.  We embraced the words of love for all mankind, but by the time we got in the car on the way home, the gossip and things that were said gave no indication we understood what we had heard.

Proclaim love but actions don't match...

I see the same thing on social media where people proclaim how much love they have for others, but then they go and share some of the most hateful things out there.  I'm not saying everyone has to agree with everyone else in the world, but if you're going to profess love for others, make sure it shows in you actions, not just in words you spew.  Make sure they match.

Boasting about how great you are or all that you've done is not true love in my view.  Why does anyone need to know?  Why can't you just allow your actions of love to be love - that needs no grandstanding or parties held in honor of your own ego?

Love does not judge...

Love is just there, not demanding or judging.  Love just accepts and honors and respects others at all times, not just when it is convenient in a group of like minded brethren.

Love is there silently giving and helping and honoring, not trying to get all that it can get or trample over others.  Love does not try to hurt people by inflicting and hurling insults and derogatory comments towards one another.

Love does not bully.  Love doe not hate.  Love does not try to divide and sow discourse and hatred.  Love does not try to pit one group against the other.  Love instead tries to understand and comprehend and help or assist.

Love lifts one another up...

Love tries to lift one another up knowing that as we lift each other up, we lift up all mankind and the universe.  Love does not want to see others suffer or make fun of someone else.  Love offers hugs of acceptance to all it meets.

Love does not call names or feel hurt because it believes others are attacking it.  Love only continues to show love.  Love does not believe the fears that are fed each and every day to our society through so many sources.  Love conquers fear.  Love vibrates at a higher energy than fear.

If you say you have love, then by all means - show it!  If you say you have love, then don't share the hate filled messages on social media or participate in the activities that divide one human from another.  There is no love in that.  There is an absence of love.

Instead, allow love to take you by the hand and lead you into moments where you are a positive inspiration to others.  Walk into the moments where you help lift others up without judgment and allow them to discover their own path in their own time.  Allow love to fill every part of your life, not just ones that are convenient for Sunday morning.

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Blog Post And Images (c) 2016 by Don Shetterly

• Permission required before any part of this blog post is reprinted, reworded or used in any form. 
• You are welcomed to share the LINK to this blog post.  

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It's Easy To Point Your Finger

We all do it.  Yes, we do.  We all do it.  No matter how much you don't think you do, there's that one ounce of a probability that you do.  It's easy to point your finger at others.

Whether it is politics and how we respond or how someone looks or acts or behaves.  Whether it is those that don't measure up to our standards or irritate the daylights out of us at every turn, we point our fingers at them.  Whether it is those that don't believe like we do and we feel are lost or those that share differing opinions, we point our fingers at them.

Sharing things online...

It is easy to point your finger at others while declaring you know all and have all the answers.  It may be labels that you use towards one another, or how you think they are so lost and will never see the light of day.  It may be the way you share things online that become nothing more than pointing your finger at another person.

While skepticism and disagreement can be healthy, we have gotten to the point these days that we hold on to a mentality of "you are either with us or against us".  There is no happy medium.  There is no middle ground.  It is either one way or no way.   If you need evidence of that, just spend 5 minutes on Facebook or Twitter and it should become quite clear.

We don't listen to others...

We don't welcome the opinions of others although we often claim we do.  We don't listen to others like we think we actually do.  We are too busy telling others how to think, what to do, how to believe, and which thing they should follow.  We are too busy telling people the solution to their problem that we don't even bother to listen to their problem first and understand it.

I grew up in a church and a home where we criticized everyone that didn't think the way we thought.  If they believed differently in our church, they were going to hell.  If they didn't do things and act the way we thought, they were just wrong.  There was no adherence to understanding or tolerance.  We sought out people and churches and organizations that made it okay to point the fingers at others. That was how our family operated.

Disgust, rather than listening...

Our society is the same way.  Every day, too many look at others with disgust, rather than sitting down and listening.  We rant and rave and scream how stupid or idiotic others are.  If we don't do it online by our shares and likes, it is often in our private thoughts.

How strong will our civilization and world be if we continue down this path?  How much do we really care for others, if all we can do it focus on the things that we cannot stand about each other?  What does it truly say about how we see ourselves, if all we can see are the perceived faults and deficiencies in one another?

(click image to read)

The government cannot change it.  Our leaders and ministers can't change this.  This is something that each one of us needs to search our hearts and really open our eyes to what we do.  It is something that not everyone else needs to change, but each one of us individually.  If you think it is everyone else that has the problem, it is within your own heart that you need to change first.

I'm no different.  I try to accept everyone, but there are those that are screaming at the top of their lungs that can make me cringe.  I want to point my finger at them and say, "how dare you?"  How can you say these things.  Yet, if I expect them to listen to me, then I need to be able to listen to them without judgment and condemnation.

It isn't easy.  If you think it is, find the person that irritates you the most and see if you can sit with them for a day and not condemn or judge them.  I don't mean, play like you can, but really go deep within your own soul and don't point your finger at them.

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Blog Post And Images (c) 2016 by Don Shetterly

• Permission required before any part of this blog post is reprinted, reworded or used in any form. 
• You are welcomed to share the LINK to this blog post.  

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Do Not Judge

I'm always intrigued by people who purport to follow the bible, but yet they don't heed what they preach.  They push their beliefs on others, but they avoid putting themselves under their own microscope.  They proclaim that they are forgiven and so this applies to everyone else, not them.

One area I see this repeatedly is in the judgment of others.  Whether it is a political race or family members, friends or social media acquaintances, judging others seems to be what people do best.  It is what followers of the bible seem to do best.

In Luke 6:37 it says, " Do not judge, and you will not be judged.  Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned.  Forgive, and you will be forgiven.

At no point in this scripture passage does it say that judging others is a good thing.  At no point in there does it say that judging is your first priority in life and all other endeavors should fall by the wayside.  At no point does it say that you should judge others or condemn others.

In fact, if you follow the bible, you should be forgiving others more than condemning and judging them.  You should be accepting them as they are, not as you think they should be.  You should not be playing the role of the God you worship by acting as if you can judge others.

I grew up in a family where judgment was the norm of the day.  No, we didn't claim it was judgment or condemnation.  We didn't see that we were judging others.  We didn't even know that we were judging and condemning.  Yet, we practiced it as if it was the only precept in life to follow.

When we got home from church, it was that gossip that we shared that was judging those we rolled our eyes at.  Sometimes, we didn't even wait until we got home from church.  The judgment was in those prayer meetings where someone would go on and on about another member almost as if they were preaching to them.  The condemnation was whispered in the hallways of the church.

Judgment and condemnation was so common place that if someone didn't attend the church we went to, we were taught to consider them lost and going to hell.  If someone went into a place of business we did not think was almighty righteous, then we were taught they were going to hell.  If someone did not say the things we felt they should say or listen to the music that we felt they should listen to, we were taught they were going to hell.

If you did not want to be condemned and judged, then there was an unwritten code in the family and church that you would follow.  Often the rules were made up on the spot with the father of the family or the pastor of the church making the determination of who was right and who was wrong.  They were the judge.  You learned to follow the rules so you would not be judged and condemned.

In these days, I see so many judging and condemning others.  Whether it is issues concerning gays or if someone is a patriot or a liberal or conservative, anyone who disagrees with the religious pharisees of our day are considered lost and going to hell.  They are judged and condemned.

The thing I don't understand though is Jesus also said, "love one another as I have loved you".  Love is not condemnation or judgment.  Love is acceptance in the purest form without strings attached.

So if the religious pharisees of our day claim that they follow the bible and they follow God or Jesus, would they not be obliged to stop judging and condemning one another.  Would they not be obliged to live their life loving one another, rather than spewing the hatred that they so strongly dish out?  Maybe they are so blind that they cannot see this.

Do not judge is an area the entire world could do better.  Do not judge could be more helpful for the overall survival of our civilization and planet.  Do not judge or condemn could actually help us to work together for a common good.

Maybe if we are going to judge one another and claim the good book tells us to do this, we might just want to read what it says before we go hitting each other over the head with it.  I don't believe the bible's intended purpose is of hitting people out of judgment and condemnation.

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Blog Post And Images (c) 2/18/16 by Don Shetterly

• Permission required before any part of this blog post is reprinted, reworded or used in any form. 
• You are welcomed to share the LINK to this blog post.  

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Before You Judge Me

So I see stuff posted to social media that really makes my head spin.  Often the people posting the stuff should heed the words rather than preaching to the world.  No, I'm not doing the same thing here.  I'm just trying to point out the hypocrisy. 

Today I saw the following one, "before you judge me, you better make sure you're perfect". 

It is a nice sentiment and maybe it would be best if we don't judge one another.

However, the individual that posted this is one of the most judgmental people I know.  If you don't follow his way of thinking and his beliefs about everything, you are wrong and bad stuff will happen to you.

In other words, it is far easier to post memes on social media than it is to live by what we preach.  I remember my Dad always telling me, "Don't do as I do, do as I tell you to do!"  Unfortunately, this is the way far too many act these days.

It really would be best if we stopped judging one another because when we do that, it makes us less than human.  It makes us less than the person we are judging because whatever issue we see, it is all that we see in them.

Maybe before posting memes on social media, it would be wise to look within and see that while you don't think you're judging, there is a good chance you are.  Please heed your own words.

No one is perfect of course, but judging others is a pretty low trait of being human.

By the way, the image on this blog post is cropped from the social media pages.  I'm assuming since everyone shares these like wildflowers, that it is okay to use this image.  If there is a copyright that prevents this, please let me know.  If you do prohibit me from sharing this, then I assume that whoever would stop all sharing on social media.





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Blog Post And Images (c) 2/8/16 by Don Shetterly

• Permission required before any part of this blog post is reprinted, reworded or used in any form. 
• You are welcomed to share the LINK to this blog post.  

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Too Quick Too Judge

We are far too quick to judge and way too slow to forgive.

Oprah And The Vegan Challenge Part 2

This is part 2 of a two part series. For the complete post, please read Part 1, Oprah And The Vegan Challenge.

In the past couple of years, my eating habits have drastically changed. At one time in my life, I would have never entertained the idea of eating a diet high in vegetables. For one, I thought that there was not enough protein in a diet such as this to fully sustain life. However, I have found out that there are ways to create vegetarian dishes that have adequate protein.

Also, I thought that if I only had vegetables to eat, that the taste would be boring, bland and not filling. I have since learned that the more vegetables I eat, the more my overall tastes improve and if the vegetarian dish is prepared right, it is more than enough for me to eat and fill myself up.

A few years ago, we had done a cleanse a few times called Inner Klean and one of the things I noticed was that I really did feel better after completing it. The biggest thing I noticed was that vegetables and food in general had a much better taste. In our country, we kill our taste buds with the sugar we eat, the sodas we drink and all the junk food we consume. On top of that, we are not fully in touch with our bodies and so we really have dulled our sense of taste.

From there, we started a couple of years ago doing Healing Smoothies that I heard about through the QiGong Seminars with Jeff Primack. I'm glad we did because I feel much better in life and I feel that I get a boost first thing in the morning when I have my smoothie. They have become a way of life for us and we very seldom go a day without having our smoothie. I believe they are helping me change the way food tastes for me and what I desire to eat. Plus, there is no better way to eat vegetables than to eat them raw and whole, not throwing away the skins or seeds which hold the good stuff.

After this point, I began to notice how milk caused a lot of physical distress for me. I have always liked milk and ice cream but physically I would feel awful after eating it. So as I began to quit drinking milk, eating ice cream and slowing down on how much cheese I ate. With time, I noticed that my digestive system was much more at ease. In addition to this, I noticed that my aversion to onions and garlic started to lessen a bit. So instead of getting violently ill after eating minute amounts of garlic and onion, I would be able to deal with the stomach discomfort by drinking some extra orange juice if needed. Now, I have replaced milk with Almond Milk for the most part while occasionally using some milk to cook with. However, the amount of regular milk I consume is almost next to none. I feel so much better that it helps make up for my desire to have ice cream and things like chocolate milk. Cheese is still something I cannot fully get away from because I love the taste of it so much.

Several months ago, some friends of ours came down and we managed to go the entire week eating vegetarian. I really didn't think we could do it but was surprised at just how easy it was. From there, I purchased the Vegetarian Family Cookbook which has helped me learn to prepare vegetarian dishes that are easy and delicious. Some of the vegetarian recipes in the world are so complicated that I have no idea where to find the ingredients, let alone prepare them. This cookbook makes it easy and I love it for that!

Right now, I'm not sure if I will ever fully be a vegetarian. I do like meat and the taste of it but much of that is even changing. However, when I do eat meat, the quantity is much less than I once consumed. At one time, I never would have thought that I would be enjoying veggie burgers or veggie dishes along with some of the stuff I now eat. Yet, I have made that transition slowly and in a pace that works for my body, while I am listening to my body.

I still have a strong weakness towards sugar and chocolate which is something I struggle with. There are things that I am doing to help balance that but so far, it is an epic battle that rages within me. I hardly drink sodas unless I am eating out somewhere. Most of the time, I drink several glasses of water water each day. If I fail to drink enough water in a day, my body and mind really feel sluggish. Fried food has been one I have stayed away from for many years and I still don't desire it much at all. Ground Beef is one of the things I no longer enjoy and so we often use the vegetarian crumbles for dishes. I could go on and on about the things that have changed.

The most important part is to get to know your body inside and out first! By making changes to your life through being body centered and focused, it will give you something to really ground your life in and empower yourself. As you listen to your body and allow your body to change at its own pace, the benefits of anything you do will come back many times over. All too often, we do not really stop and listen to our bodies or get to know them and yet we make decisions for them.

Whatever you do, make the decisions that you feel are right for you and check in with your body. Looking back, I can see the logical progression of the changes within me. Of course, if we are standing still in our lives and going through our daily routines as if this is normal, than we need to stop and evaluate life because we are missing so much. I constantly am challenging myself and often some feel that I need to fully "move on" or "let go" of things but if we are not evolving and growing, are we truly being human? I strive to be all that I can be and that for me, means going in and challenging every part of my body, mind and soul.


For Further Reading:
1) The Vegetarian Family Cookbook by Nava Atlas
2) Oprah And The Vegan Challenge, Part 1 (posted 2/8/11)
3) Oprah.com Episode - Vegan Challenge
4) Food Based Healing Smoothies



Blog Post & Images (c) 2/7/11 Don Shetterly - use by permission only
http://www.donshetterly.com

Oprah And The Vegan Challenge Part 1

I saw the episode of Oprah about the Vegan challenge to her entire staff on February 1, 2010. Actually a friend of mine that works for Cargill let me know that it was coming up. I must say, I felt it was very well balanced. Since I come from both sides of this issue and have experiences that most people do not, the show seemed like an open exchange of ideas. I do realize that no matter what is done or said, people on both sides are not always understanding of each other.

People who are vegetarian and vegan, most of the time feel that eating animals is ethically wrong. On the other side, those that produce animals for consumption feel that this is a valid part of the cycle of life and that without them, the world would go hungry. These are valid arguments on both sides. For me, I try to find balance. Of course, feel free to leave your comments, just keep them respectful. If they are attacking or negative, they will not get published. I'm very lenient about comments but I don't tolerate attacks or disrespect.

Raising animals or crops for production is not an easy thing. If anyone out there thinks it is, spend a day with a farmer and you'll quickly understand just how hard the work is. It is not something one decides today that they will be a farmer and start doing it. It is either in your blood or not because farming is not for most of the people in our country. Most would not last a week working on a farm. I'm not saying that too be harsh but it is a reality.

In addition to that, I often hear people say that farmers make too much money but again, most of the profit margins are so narrow that one tiny mishap or market fluctuation or legislative change could wipe out a farming operation. Even an environmental impact such as weather changes or storms could impact the health of the animals to the point where the entire farm could be lost. Making a profit is difficult in the best of years and almost impossible in the worst of years.

One of the things I see is just how difficult it is to find adequate supplies of vegetables and non meat products in the area I live in. Sometimes finding a fresh supply of vegetables is difficult and when I look at the amount of space in the local area grocery stores devoted to produce, it is relatively small compared to the junk type food that most people purchase. Of course we can drive 40 miles and buy stuff at organic markets but honestly, that gets way too expensive. I am trying to grow some vegetables during the summer but sometimes weather, bugs and time inhibits those ambitions.

I cannot help but think that if it is that difficult for me to buy good quality vegetables in my area, how would we feed the entire world if there were no meat products. If everyone had large gardens like they once did, I could believe that is a more likely possibility but to depend upon our food system to produce it for everyone, is just not realistic and feasible.

In addition, if vegetables became in high demand, the prices would surely rise. It is the law of supply and demand. There are many people in this world and in our country who care barely buy enough food to feed their family. Most of us never see this and we think that the people who are like that are just on food stamps. However, there are many that never get any assistance whatsoever and yet they struggle to feed themselves and their family. Most of us are very blind when it comes to this taking place right before our eyes.

I know first hand what it is like to go to bed hungry and go to school hungry as a kid. Sometimes all we had to eat was popcorn for a meal or sometimes a can of vegetables was all we had to feed a family of five. When I think back to the small amount of food we had to eat growing up, especially when I was just a few years old, I can hardly believe I made it this far in life. Even at one point in college, I was struggling during the summer and all I could afford to eat was some bread, jello, peanut butter and jelly. That's about it but yet no one around me knew or cared how badly I had it. It was a difficult month to get through.

In my mind, I feel a balance is more important than rigid beliefs from either side. However, I try to respect each side even though I don't understand the rigid beliefs. Each person of course has to make their own choices for what is right for them. As long as that person respects others who feel differently, than that brings balance into life.

Unfortunately, all too often, I have been met with gasps by people standing right in front of me as they find out that I eat meat. Because I'm a massage therapist and part of alternative medicine, it is often believed that I have to be a vegetarian in order to be an enlightened individual. Again, I really have no place with the rigid thinking and beliefs. If I wanted that, I would be attending the church that I grew up in. There is so much more to life than rigid thinking.

We all have so much to contribute to society and humanity that we need to focus more on helping each other learn rather than judging each other. This goes for both sides on this issue. If we stand opposed, how will the other side ever come to understand what it is that we feel is important. If we stand opposed, how will that help further the goals and ideals you find important in your life. We need to work together, listen with compassion and love unconditionally.

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Come back tomorrow for more on how I have actually been switching my eating habits and although I would not classify myself as a vegetarian, I am slowly shifting that direction.

Part 2, Oprah And The Vegan Challenge
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For Further Reading:
1) The Vegetarian Family Cookbook by Nava Atlas
2) Oprah And The Vegan Challenge, Part 2 (2/9/11)
3) Oprah.com Episode - Vegan Challenge
4) Food Based Healing Smoothies





Blog Post & Images (c) 2/5/11 Don Shetterly - use by permission only
http://www.donshetterly.com

Judgment Is For Those That Want To Be Judged

Judgment Is For Those That Want To Be Judged - That's the first tweet I sent out on my new twitter account @mindbodythought . While it may seems pretty straight forward, there have been multiple instances lately where people felt it was their duty, responsibility and life mission to judge me. Yet, in most of the circumstances, I found it to be disrespectful and hurtful. These people did not see it that way of course.

I have been wondering with curiosity just why this same scenario has played out more than once. It seems peculiar to me and so I have stopped and let my mind think on this. Maybe it is just coincidence that it happened so many times all of the sudden but somehow, I believe when things like this repeat, there is a reason for it. In this case, it is either something I am supposed to learn or something I am clearing out from my life and moving on.

Growing up, we lived in a very judgmental house which went to a very judgmental church and just about everything I heard every day was in some way judging others. If it was not something one person was doing that my family did not like, it was some other instance or event or person, place or thing. It really did not matter what it was but it was almost like judging others around us was as important as breathing.

This of course carried on to church where the minister and people of the church sat in constant judgment of its members. You were taught to believe and act in certain ways lest ye not be judged! Yet, didn't the Bible say, "judge not, lest ye be judged". I guess that part of the bible must not have had as much importance. Oh sure, if you went in and confronted everyone about this, no one would acknowledge or understand that they were judging anyone. In fact, you would be the one feeling wrong and out of place if you ever attempted to bring this subject up.

You were taught not to question the authority in the church and to just accept it as if it was as true as the words you read in the bible. In many ways, how you viewed what was written in the bible and spoken in church was through the method of what the church said was right and anything you believed must match up to their interpretation of said beliefs. As much as the church wanted you to think that you were using your own free will and your own brain to evaluate things, those that did not believe and follow the church were not close with the rest of the members. It was very subtle but very profound in how this happened.

Many people do this very same thing today in our society. Often no one is even aware they are doing it because it is so common place for them. Churches do it without flinching and even the members of the church would not even recognize it if a billboard was placed up in front of their church. It of course carries over into politics, society, family, laws, friendships, relationships and just about anything that we do. It is such a part of our fabric and yet in many ways, when we judge others, we sit in judgment of ourselves.

I have even seen some new age philosophies and healing practices that have worked hard to not be the same as a church or to believe in what the church believes. However, these same people are doing some of the same things but they just give it different names and more enlightened subjects. Of course, if you tried to bring it to their attention, you would be met with a force and resistance like no one has ever seen. Much of these new age movements involve sitting in judgment of others but doing so through a very subtle way. They appear as if they hold the answers to what is going to happen or to how you should live your life or even what healing modalities that you should use. Unfortunately, because people have been so conditioned to being judged and not trusting their own brain, intuition and insight, they follow these new age leaders with passion.

It is not just church either. Take any of the news pundits on TV from any of the news channels. You will see dynamic, out spoken people that appear to be authorities on how you should view politics, the news and the world. They expound upon these ideals, write books, give speeches and are constantly critical of everything taking place they do not agree with. At no time, do you see these people truly sitting down and listening to another person's point of view that is opposing to their view. Sure, they all have some poll or evidence or passion to back up what they say but when you get down to it, there is a strong judgment being rendered against anyone who does not believe in the way that they do.

We all need to take a step back as individuals and as a society or even as a world and evaluate how we are judging others around us. It may be through our thoughts or actions. It might be through our words or our silence. We may feel it is our God given right to let people know how they are failing in life according to our standards and beliefs. Just because a person says nice things or says things that seem to have an element of truth to them does not necessarily make these statements worthy of giving away our power.

At the beginning of this, I said that sometimes when situations arise, it makes me go in and question it with curiosity. I'm not exactly sure why these situations keep arising for me but one thing I am learning is that I do not have to respond to them. If someone has been brainwashed into believing what they believe, you are not going to change their mind. They are fixated on these things and the forces within these belief systems is strong. Yes, I know there are times that I really want to respond but if I did so, I would end up doing nothing different than what these people are doing to me. If I do not want to be judged, than it makes sense that I should not sit there in judgment.

We all have to answer for our own lives and the choices or decisions we make. The more we question our beliefs and our actions in life, the more we will truly come to know who we are as humans and as individuals. The answers to our questions in life do not come from others who are charismatic or who seem to hold the answers. The answers come from within us. The answers are part of who we are and all we need to do is to seek them out. Of course, you can search for them in churches, in new age philosophies, in the media or in many other places but at the end of the day, what matters is what you find within your mind and your body and your spirit.


For Further Reading:
1) Ask Questions Within
2) Are You Brainwashed



Blog Post & Images (c) 1/21/11 Don Shetterly - use by permission only
http://www.donshetterly.com