Beware the man of one book.

Beware those who perceive the meaning of life to be singular and in their possession and having the singular idea that explains everything, all our struggle, all our grief, the touchstone of all truth and meaning -

If there is one benefit to a democracy, theologian Reinhold Niebuhr said, it is that it is confused. Yes, confusion is the best thing about democracy. Why? Because no one ideology is allowed to hold sway. No one book, agenda or view of the end-time holds precedence over any other.

Consider the alternative: Hitler knew where Germany and evolution were going. So did Pol Pot. The great advantage of democracy is the abolition of one set ideology for, in that, no one can assume what must always remain the divine prerogative to bring the apocalypse about.

Beware the man of one book. Beware the ideology that claims to know how the end-time will be. It is amazing how comfortable we are within our set ways of thinking - even when we know that ultimately they will be shown up as idolatries. An African proverb, from the Ganda tribe in central Uganda, says "He who never visits, thinks his mother is the only cook." One of the founders of comparative religions, Max Mueller, said, "He who knows one religion, understands none." We sacrifice much if we confine ourselves to the familiar. To me, that is the key to the Unitarian quest at its core. Open yourself up to new understandings and perspectives and you cannot help but grow in wisdom.

We don't allow ourselves the opportunity to see life from other perspectives very often. It is sometimes just too scary to do so. We like solid earth beneath our feet and solid foundations beneath our thoughts. Anything less than solid and we feel the universe is becoming unhinged. But the nature of life is that it is impermanent and transient. Nothing stays the same. Everything changes each moment of every day.