Jack’s Winning Words 9/30/20

“I keep my ideals, because in spite of everything I still believe that people are really good at heart.”  (Anne Frank) I want to go to our local Holocaust Memorial to see a tree grown from a cutting of the actual tree that inspired Anne during her “hiding out” days.  How could she believe that there is some good in all people?  Maybe it takes hardship in life to realize the worthwhile.  Cynicism doesn’t seem to work.  Maybe Anne was closer to the Jesus-way than are many of us.
:-) Jack 

FROM SK IN SJ:    I  believe there is good in people, but sometimes you have to look hard and wait. I felt bad for Anne. And in the end, she was caught. It had to have been a rough 2 years hiding out. We toured her house in Amsterdam! Plain and small quarters for them. Her faith kept her going.===JACK: Philosophically I can agree with Anne, but in reality I personally don't have a powerful enuf magnifier to see it in some people.  Mea Culpa===SK:  Are you serious? Are there really bad people you dealt with that you can’t see good in them? I guess being a Pastor, you have run across a lot of people. All we can do is pray that they turn around! 😊===JACK:  Oh, yes.  I could tell you some stories.  I need to read again the words..."Amazing grace, how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me.  Wretch is a word that sounds like what it describes.

FROM ST PAUL:  good one, Jack!  ===JCK:  If Jews had saints, she'd be one.

FROM TAMPA SHIRL:  Even to this day I still cannot visit a Holocaust museum!===JACK:  Since we have many Jewish people in our area, our museum is very complete and many school children visit there.  I agree.  It is not an easy place to visit.

FROM SF:  Anne’s wisdom was so ahead of her years. Last night’s debate was a freak show. So frightened. ===JACK:  I can't wait to see "that tree" at our museum.  I want to stand there and ponder what the tree meant to Anne.  She's one of the great stories (among many) that came out of WW 2 and the Holocaust.  "Out of the bad can come good" is one of my mantras.  In my later years I have ceased wanting to see freak shows...so I went to bed and woke up refreshed.===SF:  Good for you. I had a rough night.===JACK:  I scheduled a Victor Frankl quote on that subject for next week.

FROM NORM'S BLOG:  The antithesis of Anne Frank’s view of people is to be pessimistic which is defined in in this quote from Fernando Pessoa - "To be a pessimist is to see everything tragically, an attitude that's both excessive and uncomfortable.” Pessimists seldom see the good in people. ===JACK:  One of the reasons why I belong to the Optimist Club in my community is that it focuses on seeing the good and helping to make this world a better place.  Google "The Optimist Creed" and see what I'm getting at.

FROM HONEST JOHN:  I think the authentic teaching of the scriptures emphasizes what we call original sin and the need to repent and be led into a new and better way.    The emphasis upon human goodness came from a shallow 19th century Liberalism.    Repentance and Forgivemess AND new life are lost in that teaching.    

 FROM HONEST JOHN:    Did you see the confrontation last night.   Trump just seems to be the embodiment of chaos.   It follows him everywhere.    Holcomb would have banned him from the debate room!===JACK:  I knew ahead of time that there would be no debate...and that to watch the spectacle would only disturb my peace of mind...so I went to bed.  "The debates" are no debate.  You and I both know that.  Can an amoral person ever repent and ask for forgiveness?  

FROM GUSTIE:  Is there a Holocaust Museum in Detroit and if so—where?===JACK:  Our museum is in Farmington Hills, five miles from my home.  It's one of the major ones to the United States. ===G:  I have been to the one in Washington DC—New York City—and Israel.  All very moving—especially the one in Israel. 

FROM BLAZING OAKS:  A visit to the Holocaust Museum in Washington DC, has stayed with me all these years later. A survivor of it talked to us, about how  they came to do almost anything for a crust of bread. She was elderly, but well dressed and attractive, and actually married the man who liberated her! (she weighed 87 lbs!) Anne Frank is a tragic figure, who inspired us all!!===JACK:  What impresses me most is how could come out of her ordeal and believe that there is good in "all" people, even the Nazis, if you look for it.  Amazing!===OAKS:  Yes; That is what is so humbling and admirable!! ===JACK:  To be inspired by someone of a non-Christian faith only reinforces my idea that God is bigger than our human-made "faith-divisions".===OAKS:  I definitely feel that way. I've known very devout people from many faiths! A Loving God for all people, is my vision.  Have you read THE SIN OF CERTAINTY by Ennes? I have it ordered, on the recommendation of a good friend who is a profound thinker.===JACK:  I've come a long way from when I was growing up...and become less dogmatic (I like that word).

FROM MS:  I think the answer to your question comes from the fact that all of us on Earth have a spark of the Lord in our soul. Sometimes some more than others need to wipe the dust or dirt off our soul so it can once again shine.  All the best Jack and G-d bless you!===JACK:  I think you're on to what Anne was getting at...the spark of G-d that is in each one of us.

FROM DAIRYLAND DONNA:  Used to be easy to believe this. Not so much any longer ;o( ===JACK:  Maybe we've learned to be more discerning.  As my formal education progressed, I learned that part of education is to ask questions.