Righteousness as Right-ness
This is one of my all-time favorite "religious" ideas. It is an ancient truth, and yet (since we have gotten soooo far off the path) it is quite fresh and new. It is a very powerful notion, and does, indeed, have the power to change all of our thinking. So be ready.
We hear a lot about "Righteousness" and, indeed, the Bible is full of much talk about it. But I want to look at the issue at a slightly different perspective. I want you to think about the word "Righteousness" as "Right-ness".
When we hear the word "Righteousness", it conjures today some negative images:
 | A fickle god who demands that we do all sorts of silly, antiquated things. |
| Bible-thumping Gospel preachers who put all sorts of ridiculous requirements on the faithful |
| People who think they are "holier-than-thou" because they eat or don't eat, do or don't some particular thing. |
But right-ness is altogether different. It is the state of things and people being, simply, as they should.
My car is "right." It just had its 120,000 mile tune-up...Yes, it has a few dings and scratches, but from the engine through the brakes to the tires, and everything in between, my car is in perfect working order. Being "right", it is able to do everything I ask it to, operating with optimum efficiency.
That, my friends, is the real idea behind "righteousness", once you strip it of its religious overtones. To be fully healthy, well-maintained, able to function properly, and do all you need to do.
The single most important idea people need to internalize is that GOD LOVES YOU! I know this is often soooo hard to accept, since we see so very little love around us. But it is true. And that means you are not The Creator's little punching bag. And He's not "sitting up there" checking your performance against His book of rules, noting all your mistakes, keeping notes about all the reasons He has to send you to the bad-place when you die! No, NO, NO!!!!!!
Look, the so-called "gospel" as it is taught today is full of crap. Sorry if that offends you, but it is the most mild world I can use. I have addressed this at length in In The Garden, but this much must be restated: As it is all-too-often presented, the so-called good news goes: "God is pure love, but he is also perfect justice....Since you have sinned, his perfect righteousness cannot have fellowship with you, and therefore you are condemned to an eternity without God....." Pure, unadulterated crap.
The human equivalent would be a parent who has a child who makes a mistake on a homework assignment, and because of that mistake decide to never, ever again speak to that child!!!!!!
Look, can we please, PLEASE stop all of this stupidity in the religious world? It does not do anyone any good. The truth, the real truth, is that YHWH LOVES HIS CHILDREN, even YOU, and wants us to grow to be healthy, strong and wise.
He wants us to be right.
What the Bible calls "righteous."
I said in Honor the Sabbath, and it bears repeating,
The Commandments are looked on today as chains and locks meant to keep us from having any fun. Nothing could be farther from the truth. In short, the Commandments are the owner's manual for your life. Look, when the car manufacturer tells you in the operator's manual that you need to get the oil changed regularly, they are not saying that because they hate you and want to keep you repressed; they are saying it because that is just the way things are! Failure to abide by this warning / advice / commandment ("Thou shalt change the oil in Thy car!") will hurt you!!!
The car won't work. It won't be right. To turn the tables on the language a bit,
You help keep your car righteous by giving it regular tune-ups!
And yes, that sentence sounds a bit odd....(interesting, though, how that use of "righteousness" has crept its way into the vernacular)...But that is the entire point here......
Human morality is directly connected to the notion of being a well-functioning and healthy person, and creating a healthy society. Without that connection, any sense of so-called "morality" or righteousness is arbitrary, fickle, stupid, and ultimately without value.
Any other notion of "righteousness" comes from centuries of bad history.....Religious malpractice.
