Years ago (some may say many years ago) there was a common stereotype of the self-righteous individual. It was the cigarette smoker who had just quit. This person, for whom the habit had been a mainstay, upon quitting becomes the most outspoken, imposing, and sometimes outright oppressive proponent of the evils of cigarette smoking and the virtues of quitting. Their policy is not in question. Their rigid approach in relationship to sharing said policy with others is what made the stereotype pervasive. Have you encountered such a person? Someone so sure that they are right about something, that they are willing to overrun another individual for the sake of their rightness? I fear that such dispositions are so commonplace, we won’t even realize it when it happens. It doesn’t matter whether we are getting run over or doing the running. One of the larger risks to the character of a person whose hunger and thirst for righteousness has been filled is developing a spirit of condemnation. So self-confident are they in their position that they become outspoken about all the evils they see (and are naturally free of), and condemn those less enlightened. But then, there is mercy…
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Talking Notes – Mercy