The Morality of Words: The Morality of Words

The Morality of Words: The Morality of Words: The Morality of  Words "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God…" (John 1:1ff.) Since I wa...

The Morality of Words

The Morality of  Words

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God…" (John 1:1ff.)

Since I was lucky enough to have Roman Catholic parents, I learned very young from Catechism class that God judges us for our thoughts, words, and deeds equally. Now, after a lifetime of study and prayer, I prefer the teachings of the Urantia Book to the Bible. It makes more sense to me. But I am still grateful for my RC origins, because there is a lot of truth in that approach, plus a few errors here and there, in my opinion. However, over a long lifetime I have seen the moral value given to words whittled away to almost nothing. Freedom of speech has been converted into an Absolute instead of a relative value, with the result that all words have been devalued. A truly moral person is one whose thoughts, words and acts are consistent. He or she does not think one thing, say another, and do still another.

Now we see the Secretary of the State of the U.S.A. getting up on a podium to tell the world not to fight and kill over a few words no matter how evil and blasphemous they appear to others, how insulting and provocative they are, and how much they hurt the religious sentiments of vast numbers of people. The excuse? We have made a law, and according to that law we can blaspheme as much as we feel like and nobody can be prosecuted for it, and the American government is not at all responsible. Oh yeah? May I remind that famous lady about the words of the Jewish Sanhedrin, where it was said: "We have made a law and according to that law this man must die." Can we then endorse the Crucifixion?

Besides, it is not true that Americans never fight over free speech. They do it all the time. I once lived in North America, including Canada and the States, for seven to eight years, and I know you have to be darn careful of your lip over there if you want to avoid a punch on the nose. They even say, "That's fightin' talk!"

But, at the same time, speech is generally not given much moral value compared to the British or Indian ambience. In America children are allowed to be cheeky and even insulting to their parents as a regular course. It becomes such a habit for them that they go on doing it to everyone for the rest of their lives. Until they are beaten up by strangers or shot dead they cannot even imagine that they will ever be punished for it. Parents should understand that if they are too soft with their kids, they may be condemning them to a sticky end. Love requires responsible moral training, and giving value not only to deeds, but to words, and even thoughts as well.

I know that it is never possible for a person to control his own thoughts completely. And you certainly can not control someone else's thoughts. But the morality comes in when you make decisions about your own thinking and form clear intentions. Each person should decide which of his own thoughts to accept as valid and which not. That is his responsibility before God. It is in consequence of your clear intentions that you receive prevenient and efficacious grace. That is what triggers your destiny.

Physical violence is no worse than any other type of violence: verbal violence, intellectual violence, administrative violence, media access violence, financial violence. You can torture people just as much with words as you can by physical means. You can ruin their lives by calumny, instigate despair and suicide, spread false rumors that provoke rage, physical violence and murder, or induce the kind of cynicism that drives peoples into terrorism. "Cutting words" can be either the scalpels of benevolent surgery or the swords of irresponsible destruction. Either way, they can be sharp and painful. Just think about the results of Hitler's demagoguery and then tell me if words can harm people or not.

Whatever the state of the law may be at a particular moment, the American government can certainly express moral condemnation and anguish, and repudiate and apologize for infractions of decency committed by its own citizens. Competent politicians anywhere should know how to turn on the heat for those who commit such fractious behavior.

The real problem is, as regards monitoring free speech: "Where do we draw the line?" In my opinion this line must be drawn; but it is practically impossible and unenforceable to impose it by laws. I feel that it should rather be evolved by guidelines and codes of conduct arrived at by social consensus, and enforceable by social ostracism. This may be a slow method, but I believe it can produce long-term results. These are the same kind of nebulous unwritten rules that underlie the unwritten constitution of Britain, and we know they can be made to work if society wants them to work. Let's have fair play in the area of spoken and written words, shall we? Thanks a lot, old chap!

I take this opportunity to express my sincere sympathy for the innocent victims of the present murderous backlash and their loved ones, and I am writing this in the hope that such incidents can be avoided in future.

I would like to add that it is very strange that America prosecutes free speech when it is used for insider trading on the stock market, but not when it is used for blasphemy. Any impartial observer from outer space would conclude that your god is money, and you have no other god but money. Do you really believe in God, or not? You claim to be a religious nation, but, in practice, as a nation, how much faith do you really have? Not enough to convince believing Muslims, I think.

If you want to be an atheist, be an atheist. I can not interfere with your free choice. But if you really believe in God, you will feel as hurt by blasphemy as any Muslim, regardless of which religion is being traduced, lampooned, pilloried, or excoriated. For all religions are sacred to someone, and each and every person is sacred to God, our Good Shepherd.

Signing off at Malbazar on  Sept 14, 2012

                                                            John Robert Thwaytes