Did you ever think that giving power to those who are not spiritually mature is bad? That they will go around starting wars, hurting eachother, etc.- can you see this in the world today? Is blocking scientific achievement the right thing to do? Is it bad to let teenagers have the power to shape and mold life, knowing that some will try and destroy the very fabric of existence because of their lack of spiritual maturity? Do those who complain about the blocking of scientific advancement understand that it must be done to prevent nutballs (like them) from harming themselves and others? No.
Uhhhhmmmm, let me think ... Bush? A better question might be, how can spiritual maturity be attained? One does not learn spiritual maturity from a textbook, or from the words of others. One only learns maturity from their own stupid mistakes. Blocking scientific achievement just because we might do something stupid, is akin to blocking the progression of spiritual maturity just because we all start out as immature. Immaturity is what harms the self and others. We are all born immature. Should we stop trying to be mature just because in doing so we will make mistakes that might hurt? Or should we continue to be immature and hurt others without even realizing it? IEEE standard number 1482-f. *shrugs* Or maybe majority consensus should be used as the standard. That way, EVERYBODY sets the standards!
I don't. God's. Not me. Your maker. Of course there are. The question is whether these dogmas are for spiritual babies, spiritual children, spiritual teens, spiritual "drinking age individuals", so on and so forth... Depends on their maturity level. Kharakov.
Observation and guidance. The effects thereof, including the effects of anothers "stupid" "mistakes". Have you ever meet someone who provides a great example of how not to act? Seeing their actions affect upon others (and themselves) can teach you not to make these actions without having to experience the pain of hurting another or yourself. Should we give access to scientific knowledge and ability to Osama Bin Laden or a disgruntled teenager? Should we give gasoline and matches to an arson or a kid who thinks it would be funny to burn down his school? I'm not saying Osama is spiritually immature. He might do things for reasons that we do not understand, but I doubt most people would say "Go ahead and give him the ability to manufacture WMDs." It doesn't necessarily harm the self or others. It can be painful though. This pain can lead to maturity, so it is not harmful. Probably. That sounds great. That's a terrible idea. There are generally (in any large population), more spiritual children than adults. If the majority of the spiritual children are immature, they will lead the whole population off of the metaphorical cliff. Of course, they must be given the chance to make "mistakes", so that they can learn from them before the next life.
Of course "I'm taking away your BB gun because you might shoot your eye out" is not observation and guidance, and thus doesn't result in spiritual maturity growth. Of course if nobody can screw up because they don't have access to destructive technology, then nobody learns a thing. That's a good point, but you should only give access to scientific knowledge to those who profress a true interest in and show an ability for learning spiritual maturity from its use. No good parent would give petrol and matches to an arson OR a kid who'd burn down his school, or WMDs to osama or some disgruntled teenager. But how about to a nuclear physics student, or perhaps someone who wants to be a mechanic (the gas & matches) or a pyrotechnician. No filter is perfect but they still do a good job. Certainly you can equate it with the Refiner's Fire (believe it or not it's one of my favourite parables in the Bible). Then how about an aristocracy? There are problems with every system -- lots of ignorance and immaturity in a democracy, lots of potential for corruption with an aristocracy, lots of abuse with a dictatorship ... there is always risk.
haha. anyone who thinks there are spiritual children and spiritual adults, and considers themselves a spiritual adult, to put it kindly, has their head up their ass. and i'd advise them to pull it out. we've all got shit all over our faces, and none smells any better than the other. not directed at anyone in particular so nobody in particular should get their undies wadded. i include myself in the shitfaced group of humanity.
God you're such a jerk! Who are you to tell me I'm not a spiritual adult! *throws a temper tantrum* ^_^
That is the guidance part. It is up to the individual to observe why it is done (although a child might need years of restraint in order to learn why its actions are restrained). Not necessarily. We just wouldn't learn as much. Why would it be good to give knowledge to these people at the wrong time? Perhaps.
K -This is, in my opinion, one of your best posts here to date. I would only say that in asking 'is it bad to let teenagers have the power to shape and mould lfe' you'd better substitute 'disfunctional infants' in 90% of cases. IMHO it is that bad. I don't actually think though that it is really 'scientific' advance that needs the brakes applied, but 'technological advance,' in the old fashioned sense that 'science' is knowledge, whilst 'technology' is the application of that knowledge. If we push too far, and maybe we already have, there will be a reaction. I think that even now, we're starting to see that.
