Teshuvah

We are subtly and not-so-subtly taught/enculturated that human beings have evolved, civility-wise and even spiritually, from "barbaric", "savage" tribes to modern "civil" society. Somehow, we are lead to believe that mere advances in technology have made us less "savage". But that is all smoke and mirrors: us human are *exactly* the same as we've always been. Exactly. The good, wonderful potentials are there...and so are the savage, the barbaric...the evil.

This week, sarin gas was used by human beings against other, innocent, human beings, including children. It causes extreme suffering and death. It is against all the agreed upon conventions of war--and war is already barbaric--but even in war, there are supposed to be certain minimal standards of decency. Those were not in evidence in this attack in Syria.

So let's not delude ourselves, in our shiny cities, that we are better than those who lived or live in the deep forest with minimal tools. Let's not think that our religions make us somehow deeper or more spiritual or more "saved" than the religions or beliefs of earlier humans. Let's not think that any of our gleaming trappings make us any better than any human who has ever lived in any culture. We are no more or less barbaric than people and cultures from thousands of years ago.

We all have exactly the same potentials inside of us for good, and for evil, that humans have always had. It's always been up to us to choose.

Right now, in our world, I am seeing an awful lot of humans choosing evil. It's up to each of us to turn that around.