Be Informed and Be Reformed (Friday, 10th Week, Year II)

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Anyone who really wants to grow can't jettison knowledge. It's an indispensable factor. And it has no business with rigidity. A narrow-minded person hardly accepts new ideas, neither does he bend to better opinions. Even in the realm of faith, knowledge can't occupy an inferior position. In fact, faith builds on knowledge.


And that is why faith should not ALWAYS be understood as a "leap" or "jump" in the dark. SOMETIMES, the light of the intellect is needed for us to "see" before we venture into such "jumping" or "leaping". It is good to have "INFORMED" faith. 

There are certain things we must further reflect upon, reason out and think through in order to learn, unlearn, understand better and appreciate more.

Jesus made headlines today as He repeatedly said in the Gospel reading: "It has been said before..., but now I say to you". Certainly, it must have shocked His followers (His immediate audience) who were probably stuck in their old Jewish mentality. But He needed them to upgrade, rethink and have a new and deeper understanding of what they had previously believed and accepted. 

Probably, Elijah too must have grown used to thinking that God can ONLY be found or experienced in "mighty wind", "fire", "earthquake" or in similar ground-shaking phenomena. But he needed to unlearn, learn and adjust his thinking to know that God can as well be much better experienced in SILENCE.

Let us know as a matter of fact that we can never grow, unlearn, relearn, adjust, understand better and be better informed if we are not open-minded. And this OBVIOUSLY also applies to our relationship with God and with one another. 

References: 1 Kings 19:9, 11-19                                   Matthew 5:27-32

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