The Prodigal Son

Is one life weights heavier than the other two or more lives?  Is survival really worth that much?  Is it any better to extend life and suffering than to cherish precious moments? 

These are questions that come up after watching the movie "My Sister's Keeper".  The ending is different from the book or maybe even better.  From this, I got to think about the parable from the Bible.  I am sure you know the story: A father has two sons; one takes his inheritance and squanders it, living a dissolute life, while the other stays close to home; when the "prodigal son" returns, begging help and forgiveness from his father, his father is thrilled to have him home and throws a giant celebration. The other son, naturally, is indignant at this unfair treatment.

The father says to him, "My son, you are always with me, and everything I have is yours. But we have to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found."

Some traditional interpretations of the story seem to take the lesson to concern the importance of forgiveness.  But forgiveness is very puzzling from a moral point of view. The famous "paradox of forgiveness" points out that if the person deserves condemnation, then forgiveness is unjust, whereas if the person does not deserve condemnation, there is nothing to forgive.  And furthermore, we tend to think that morality is fair when it applies to everyone in the same way. But a lesson of forgiveness can't be a lesson to treat everyone the same way: if you forgave everyone all the time, forgiveness does not mean anything at all. In a way, forgiveness isn't even something you can plan for. If the father had planned to forgive the son from the beginning, the story wouldn't really be about forgiveness at all - it would be more about a father who doesn't mind that his son squanders his money and lives a bad life. But uncaring is different from forgiveness.

Other traditional interpretations seem to focus on compassion and love instead of forgiveness per se. The father is so patient and loving with his son that he cannot but rejoice to see the son returned to him.  This seems to be a little different from the forgiveness idea: it's not that there was a transgression that must be forgiven but more that any considerations of justice, punishment, and equality are just insignificant in the face of the power of the basic fact that this person, who was gone astray, has now returned.

They are not mutually exclusive, of course.  Interestingly, love and compassion, while certainly having moral aspects, don't fit tidily into the category of "secular morality" the way "fairness" and "equality" seem to.  But they are not unsecular emotions at all.  This seems a pretty universal experience: the joy at the return and well being of someone you love suddenly overwhelms you and overcomes any indignation you might have felt, or even would have been justified in feeling. This universality transcends the religious/secular distinction.

So maybe the "moral" point of view is too narrow for living a good life, and we need some richer concepts to talk about how to live in the secular way - concepts that go beyond just "morality," concepts that would include the importance of things like love, compassion, and even forgiveness.

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Lost in Sobriety ...

It's true that we don't know what we've got until we lose it, but it's also true that we don't know what we've been missing until it arrives.

A priest offered a lift to a Nun in his car.  She got in and crossed her legs, forcing her gown to reveal a leg.  The priest nearly had an accident.  After controlling the car, he stealthily slid his hand up her leg.  The nun said, "Father, remember Luke 14:10?”

The priest removed his hand.  But, changing gears, he let his hand slide up her leg again.  The nun once again said, “Father, remember Luke 14:10?”

The priest apologized “Sorry sister, but the flesh is weak.” Arriving at the convent, the nun went on her way.  On his arrival at the church, the priest rushed to look up Luke 14:10 in the Bible of New American Standard Version.  It said:

"Friend, move up higher; then you will have honor ... "

Moral of the story: If you are not always well prepared, you might miss great opportunities.

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Flame in my heart

我仍然聽到你的聲音，

輕輕呼喚著我的名字，

但我知道，我的應答，

都是徒然。

因為我無法與你同在，

沒在你最需要的時候，

多給援手，就讓黑夜，

如斯無情地把你帶走。

 

這事還有挽回的餘地嗎？

還是就讓故事如此終結，

留下無限痛楚在人間。

我仍然聽到你的聲音，

輕輕呼喚著我的名字。

盡管命運，注定分離，

你仍然像熊熊熊火焰般，

在我心中，永不熄滅。

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Women really want ...

In order to find out what women really want, come across the story below:

Young King Arthur was ambushed and imprisoned by the monarch of a neighboring kingdom. The monarch could have killed him but was moved by Arthur's youth and ideals. So, the monarch offered him his freedom, as long as he could answer a very difficult question. Arthur would have a year to figure out the answer and, if after a year, he still had no answer, he would be put to death.  And the question is:

What do women really want?

Such a question would perplex even the most knowledgeable man, and to young Arthur, it seemed an impossible query.  But, since it was better than death, he accepted the monarch's proposition to have an answer by year's end. 

He returned to his kingdom and began to poll everyone: the princess, the priests, the wise men and even the court jester. He spoke with everyone, but no one could give him a satisfactory answer.  Many people advised him to consult the old witch, for only she would have the answer.  But the price would be high; as the witch was famous throughout the kingdom for the exorbitant prices she charged.

The last day of the year arrived and Arthur had no choice but to talk to the witch.  She agreed to answer the question, but he would have to agree to her price first.  The old witch wanted to marry Sir Lancelot, the most noble of the Knights of the Round Table and Arthur's closest friend!

Young Arthur was horrified. She was hunchbacked and hideous, had only one tooth, smelled like sewage, made obscene noises, etc.  He had never encountered such a repugnant creature in all his life.  He refused to force his friend to marry her and endure such a terrible burden; but Lancelot, learning of the proposal, spoke with Arthur.  He said nothing was too big of a sacrifice compared to Arthur's life and the preservation of the Round Table.

Hence, a wedding was proclaimed and the witch answered Arthur's question thus:  What a woman really wants, she answered:

"Is to be in charge of her own life." 

Everyone in the kingdom instantly knew that the witch had uttered a great truth and that Arthur's life would be spared.  And so it was, the neighboring monarch granted Arthur his freedom and Lancelot and the witch had a wonderful wedding.  The honeymoon hour approached and Lancelot, steeling himself for a horrific experience, entered the bedroom. 

But, what a sight awaited him... The most beautiful woman he had ever seen lay before him on the bed. The astounded Lancelot asked what had happened.  The beauty replied that since he had been so kind to her when she appeared as a witch, she would henceforth, be her horrible deformed self only half the time and the beautiful maiden the other half.

Which would he prefer?  Beautiful during the day ... or … night?

Lancelot pondered the predicament. During the day, a beautiful woman to show off to his friends, but at night, in the privacy of his castle, an old witch?  Or, would he prefer having a hideous witch during the day, but by night, a beautiful woman for him to enjoy wondrous intimate moments?

Noble Lancelot said that he would allow HER to make the choice herself.  Upon hearing this, she announced that she would be beautiful all the time because he had respected her enough to let her be in charge of her own life.

So the final answer to the question "What do women really want?" is to let her in charge of her own life.   Um..... not quite right.  The true moral should be:  

If you don't let a woman have her own way .....

 Things are going to get ugly.

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