Tuesday, September 25, 2012

Embracing Innocence


The Bible is full of cautionary tales about humans' mistakes made because of humanity's hubris. If one generation kills children, the next generation will fight to avenge the killings. Isn't it time we stop listening to the fear-mongers and realize that it is in our power to turn our own lives back to faith "like that of a child."

Observe  uncorrupted children on the playground. They want everyone to be friends with each other and are simply intrigued by any differences in others. How sad it is that so many children have been robbed of their innocence even before they go to school.


The greatest sadness in my life is watching people "teach" innocent children how to be "tough." I believe that this destroys the spirit. I believe that home and family are meant to be "home base" for compassion, a place to renew our spirits and to rest awhile before again facing the fears of the outside world.

Too often I see older siblings and cousins, parents and other relations "sharing" their "realities" with the innocents in their midst. What is the purpose of this "sharing," other than to create fear in the child, and a sense of awe for the vast knowledge of the one "sharing?" When we foster fear in others, it is a way of becoming the controller of their sense of safety. These people are not protectors; they simply want others to feel powerless in their presence.

I don't believe that the story of Adam and Eve leaving the paradise of innocence is a tale of "God's" wrath. I believe it is a tale of sad resignation that we want to know the unknowable and are willing to give up everything else for a sense of power. We give up our trusting innocence and pass our fears on to others. Only through humility and admitting what we can never know will we ever feel innocent and whole again.