Truth Over Tyranny: Biblical wisdom for defeating the Technocrats.
These are my insights for defeating the Transhumanist Technocracy movement, based on the teachings of Rabbi Jonathan Sacks, of blessed memory, on the weekly Bible portion.
When somebody does us harm, how can we trust they won’t do it again? You can basically ask any kid, and they will tell you: the harm-doer has to say he’s sorry. Younger sisters in every generation learn early on the magic words to demand from their mean older brothers: “Say you’re sorry, and won’t do it again.” Once he complies, she can rest easy — at least, easier. There’s no guarantee he won’t mess up again, but at least she knows where his heart lies. She can hold him accountable, and make it harder for him to be mean again: “You PROMISED!!”
Sometimes the big brother really does feel sorry for what he did, and tries to do better. He might even turn the corner and become his little sister’s protector, instead of provocateur. Sometimes he just mouths the words. She knows she has to watch out for him next time. But at least she can call him out for not meaning it.
Yet sometimes big brother refuses to make any amends at all. He’s just going to keep bullying. Maybe he feels too guilty or ashamed to admit he is wrong. Maybe he is afraid he will lose face in front of his pals who are also bullies. Maybe he has simply become a belligerent kid who will do whatever the heck he wants. (Lots of luck in life for that guy. He will need it.)
Admitting you were wrong is the key to repairing the damage you have done. That ‘s a life lesson we all have to learn, if we are to have normal and productive relationships with people.
It’s a lesson the vaxx advocates of today must learn. They have caused enormous damage over the past four years:
They have alienated members of their own family.
They have weakened solid friendships.
They have ruptured communal ties.
They have destroyed businesses.
They have made children sick.
And they have promoted the use of a debilitating and deadly drug in society at large.
For sure, some former vaxx advocates have seen the error of their ways, and have taken a public stand against it. They are to be commended for their courage, and praised for their efforts to right their wrongs.
Over the next few years, will we see more vaxxers stepping up to make amends?
Granted, it’s a very tough thing to do. People have been struggling with it since before Biblical times. In his commentary on Parashat Acharei Mot called “The Courage to Admit Mistakes,” Rabbi Jonathan Sacks gives us some perspective, and tips on making it happen:
https://rabbisacks.org/covenant-conversation/acharei-mot/the-courage-to-admit-mistakes/
Rabbi Sacks starts with an example from modern times, to show how the problem is still prevalent:
“Some years ago I was visited by the then American ambassador to the Court of St James, Philip Lader. He told me of a fascinating project he and his wife had initiated in 1981. They had come to realise that many of their contemporaries would find themselves in positions of influence and power in the not-too-distant future. He thought it would be useful and creative if they were to come together for a study retreat every so often to share ideas, listen to experts and form friendships, thinking through collectively the challenges they would face in the coming years. So they created what they called Renaissance Weekends. They still happen.
“The most interesting thing he told me was that they discovered that the participants, all exceptionally gifted people, found one thing particularly difficult, namely, admitting that they made mistakes. The Laders understood that this was something important they had to learn. Leaders, above all, should be capable of acknowledging when and how they had erred, and how to put it right. They came up with a brilliant idea. They set aside a session at each Weekend for a talk given by a recognised star in some field, on the subject of ‘My biggest blooper.’ Being English, not American, I had to ask for a translation. I discovered that a blooper is an embarrassing mistake. A gaffe. A faux pas. A bungle. A boo-boo. A fashla. A balagan. Something you shouldn’t have done and are ashamed to admit you did.”
God knew, of course, that this difficulty was ingrained in people; so when the Jews were attempting to build a model society, He had us adopt the institution of Yom Kippor to make atonement a regular part of life:
“This, in essence, is what Yom Kippur is in Judaism. In Tabernacle and Temple times, it was the day when the holiest man in Israel, the High Priest, made atonement, first for his own sins, then for the sins of his ‘house,”’then for the sins of all Israel. From the day the Temple was destroyed, we have had no High Priest nor the rites he performed, but we still have the day, and the ability to confess and pray for forgiveness. It is so much easier to admit your sins, failings and mistakes when other people are doing likewise. If a High Priest, or the other members of our congregation, can admit to sins, so can we…
“The effect of Yom Kippur – extended into the prayers of much of the rest of the year by way of tachanun (supplicatory prayers), vidui (confession), and selichot (prayers for forgiveness) – was to create a culture in which people are not ashamed or embarrassed to say, ‘I got it wrong, I sinned, I made mistakes.’ That is what we do in the litany of wrongs we enumerate on Yom Kippur in two alphabetical lists, one beginning Ashamnu, bagadnu, the other beginning Al cheit shechatanu.”
People in especially powerful positions are especially weak at admitting they were wrong:
“As Philip Lader discovered, the capacity to admit mistakes is anything but widespread. We rationalise. We justify. We deny. We blame others. There have been several powerful books on the subject in recent years, among them Matthew Syed, Black Box Thinking: The Surprising Truth About Success (and Why Some People Never Learn from Their Mistakes); Kathryn Schulz, Being Wrong: Adventures in the Margins of Error, and Carol Tavris and Elliot Aronson, Mistakes Were Made, But Not By Me.
“Politicians find it hard to admit mistakes. So do doctors: preventable medical error causes more than 400,000 deaths every year in the United States. So do bankers and economists. The financial crash of 2008 was predicted by Warren Buffett as early as 2002. It happened despite the warnings of several experts that the level of mortgage lending and the leveraging of debt was unsustainable. Tavris and Aronson tell a similar story about the police. Once they have identified a suspect, they are reluctant to admit evidence of his or her innocence. And so it goes.”
But we all have that weakness:
“The avoidance strategies are almost endless. People say, It wasn’t a mistake. Or, given the circumstances, it was the best that could have been done. Or it was a small mistake. Or it was unavoidable given what we knew at the time. Or someone else was to blame. We were given the wrong facts. We were faultily advised. So people bluff it out, or engage in denial, or see themselves as victims.
“We have an almost infinite capacity for interpreting the facts to vindicate ourselves. As the Sages said in the context of the laws of purity, ‘No one can see his own blemishes, his own impurities.’ We are our own best advocates in the court of self-esteem. Rare is the individual with the courage to say, as the High Priest did, or as King David did after the prophet Nathan confronted him with his guilt in relation to Uriah and Batsheva, chattati, ‘I have sinned.’”
Through regular practice over time, the Jewish People have made atonement a core part of our spirituality — how we relate to God, and our fellow human beings:
“Judaism helps us admit our mistakes in three ways. First is the knowledge that God forgives. He does not ask us never to sin. He knew in advance that His gift of freedom would sometimes be misused. All he asks of us is that we acknowledge our mistakes, learn from them, confess and resolve not to do them again.
“Second is Judaism’s clear separation between the sinner and the sin. We can condemn an act without losing faith in the agent.
“Third is the aura Yom Kippur spreads over the rest of the year. It helps create a culture of honesty in which we are not ashamed to acknowledge the wrongs we have done. And despite the fact that, technically, Yom Kippur is focused on sins between us and God, a simple reading of the confessions in Ashamnu and Al Chet shows us that, actually, most of the sins we confess are about our dealings with other people…
“Honest self-criticism is one of the unmistakable marks of spiritual greatness.”
I would add this:
Rabbi Sacks’ teachings can serve as a guide for encouraging vaxxers to make amends. Everyone from politicians, to plain old folks, can understand that:
God forgives you if you own up.
Just because you sinned, doesn’t mean you are essentially a sinner.
You can re-earn the respect of those of us you harmed, if you apologetically acknowledge your mistakes; offer to help repair the damage; and resolve not to repeat the mistakes.
This last point is the catch. No doubt, some vaxxers will continue to push the drug til their dying day; tragically, that day may come sooner than they think. The evidence that the “vaccine” is a tool of genocide, is overwhelming. The more you take it, the sicker you will get.
You can refuse to atone for all the damage you have done to others; but ultimately, you will pay the highest price. That should be motivation enough for even the hardest-core vaxx advocates.
If not, then lots of luck to you. You will need it.