Tradition: the thief of rational thought and spirtuality...

   I would like to start out this post by saying that comments for discussion are welcome from now on, on any topic I post about, or any questions you may have. I would also like to apologize to Mr. Raty and ask for forgiveness, if you feel I deserve it, for being easily offended and incommunicado. From now on, if I don’t think that I can reasonably discuss something without being defensive or angry, I will say so, and bow out. I will do my best to provide accurate info in a timely manner, but I won’t always make it. Please be patient and communicative all of you, and give me a chance. Sorry for being a jerk, Ben. I crave forgiveness.

  

   In an e-mail discussion with a friend of mine, he said that his soon-to-be father-in-law is “steeped” in tradition. He observed that people have a hard time breaking away from tradition because it means that they have to blaze their own path, which is hard. He also lamented how much it costs to plan a “traditional” wedding.

   My opinion, reinforced more and more as I ‘talk’ (more like answer questions when asked and then watch as the asker goes ‘nuclear defensive’) to others about being vegan, is this: that tradition, doing that which has always been done, or that which has been done for so long that it no longer has a clear beginning, takes away the decision-making opportunity for most individuals. I should clarify: the opportunity isn’t taken away, but most people, depressingly, never think about “why” they are doing something. They never evaluate the habits that they indulge in.

   Now, obviously, there are some decisions or habits that should only be made once, and then re-evaluated only out of necessity. I quote D&C 68:25 “And again, inasmuch as parents have children in Zion, or in any of her stakes which are organized, that teach them not to understand the doctrine of repentance, faith in Christ the Son of the living God, and of baptism and the gift of the Holy Ghost by the laying on of the hands, when eight years old, the sin be upon the heads of the parents

  26 For this shall be a law unto the inhabitants of Zion, or in any of her stakes which are organized.

  27 And their children shall be baptized for the remission of their sins when eight years old, and receive the laying on of the hands.

  28 And they shall also teach their children to pray, and to walk uprightly before the Lord.

  29 And the inhabitants of Zion shall also observe the Sabbath day to keep it holy.

  30 And the inhabitants of Zion also shall remember their labors, inasmuch as they are appointed to labor, in all faithfulness; for the idler shall be had in remembrance before the Lord.”

   Obviously regular prayer, scripture study, Sabbath observance, service and the like should always be done, especially if we have a testimony of it. But I would assert that we should always be cognizant of “why” we do these things, to always have a remembrance as to what purpose these activities serve. We should decide, early on, that we will obey the Word of Wisdom in all of its respects (see my post from Monday 7Apr08), that we will obey the Law of Chastity in all respects, and that we will commit ourselves to the Gospel of Jesus Christ as it has been revealed in the latter days, and that we will teach our children these things, and do our best to see that they also live these principles as long as they are in our care. These sorts of things should be decided once, and then we move forward. There shouldn’t be any vacillation between whether we should do something right or not.

   Any of us who have served LDS missions realize the power of tradition in people’s lives. Religious tradition can be one of the most powerful forces on earth, promoting either righteous, valiant service in furthering God’s kingdom, or fostering the most stultifying ignorance imaginable. And unfortunately, this ignorance is not endemic to only those who are not members of the Church, but to those inside as well. I’m sure those of you who read this know of adults whose testimonies (if any) are borrowed from their parents or their forebears. They have no light of their own. These are the sorts of people who seem to be grateful to have ancestors who came across the plains as pioneers, or whose predecessors joined the Church while living in Europe in the 1850’s. They profess to be very blessed to be a member of the Church, but when asked to fulfill a calling, they decline. When asked to home teach, their dedication is minimal. When asked to volunteer for service, their hand never goes up. Tradition of Church membership has failed to help this person gain a burning, activating testimony. All they can do is mouth the words, but the feeling is absent. Their works don’t match with their protestations of faith.

  There are, of course, other traditions of equal or greater power outside of faith or religious promulgation. One in particular is food. I know, for myself, that I like to eat a lot of the things I ate while I was growing up. A favorite of mine is gorditas with limeade. Gorditas are flour tortillas, heated on a skillet, with refried beans, cheese, guacamole and BBQ sauce. Mmmmmm, yumminess! Before I was married, I had those almost every night for dinner. For a while I did without the guacamole, but I did the bean and cheese thing consistently. There were things that I wouldn’t eat, but they were few and far between. I didn’t like raw tomatoes, nor raw avocado. I am no stranger to the seduction of food, as is attested to by my previous record weight of 275 pounds. I was pretty much convinced that the only good food was the kind that I couldn’t fit into my mouth. No one said I was fat; in fact, when I told people how much I weighed, their response was a shocked “You don’t look that heavy!”

   There are good kinds of foods, and there are bad kinds. I don’t think that anyone will dispute that. If you feel like I am mistaken, let me know and I will be happy to discuss it, reasonably, with you. But, there are things to eat that are socially responsible and physically helpful/good, and things that are physically and environmentally destructive/bad. 85% of all grain grown in the US goes to feed livestock that is eventually killed so you can eat it. Furthermore, that grain is only partially digested and is dumped (intentional pun) out the back end of the cow. Livestock methane emissions are the 2^nd biggest contributor to global warming behind CO2 emissions from cars and factories. But, that cow poop has to be cleaned up somehow, so factory farms use ~10 million gallons of water per 10k head of cattle per day! PER DAY! And guess where that water goes? Nope, not to the treatment plant, but right in to whatever waterway is convenient, be it a creek, river, stream, whatever. In ~10 years the Ogalala aquifer will be dried up because of the use for the water to clean off cows every day. Range cattle are more destructive, but I will not comment on them right now.

   It is sufficient to say that clearing away the rain forest and turning verdant land in to desert only to satisfy a craving or a tradition is asinine or ignorantly destructive at best, morally reprehensible at worst, and an inefficient way to use our resources. Remember how 85% of US grain goes to livestock? How about using that grain to feed people instead of cows? Imagine how much space there is in the US, and how much of it is used to grow things. We could use all of that to feed ourselves instead of an ungulate horde. We’d save water, breathable air, and our ecosystems.

   I’m all in favor of making people pay full price for their meat, since the meat industry is one of the most heavily subsidized industries around (The dairy industry is another one). If it weren’t subsidized to the extent that it is now, the price of meat would go up ~300%. Maybe more. In fact, the cost is incalculable, due to the fact that clean air, clean water and diverse ecosystems are beyond value.

   Would you rather have that burger you're salivating over, or have good air to breathe? If you think I’m hyperbolizing, here is a fact for you Skippy: the rain forest is being cleared away at the rate of ~1 acre every 4 seconds. That’s, quick math everyone!, 21600 acres every day (15 acres/minute*60 minutes/hour*24 hours/day). I don’t have any comparison as to how much land that is, but it’s more than we can afford to lose since that land holds trees that convert the CO2 we emit back to oxygen we need to breathe.

   This started out as a discussion about tradition. Another name for tradition is habit. There are good habits and bad habits. Be aware that what you do, or say, or are affects those around you, possibly in ways you cannot comprehend. Be responsible for the things you do and the choices you make. Don’t do things just because you’ve always done it that way, but realize “why” you do it. Realize the consequences of giving in to habits that are destructive and harmful both to yourself, and to those who you are in contact with. Choose responsibly, choose products that are environmentally friendly, and ask yourself : “What is the real cost of this thing I’m buying? What effect will I have around me if I buy it? Whose efforts am I supporting? Do they care about me, or are they out for themselves, regardless of the cost?”

  Break bad habits. Substitute good ones, even if they cost more monetarily. In the end, the $ cost is lots less than not being able to breathe without coughing, isn’t it?