So, you like my editing. Billy :-) ----------------------------------------------------------------------- 10/21/2011 8:04:14 P.M. Pacific Daylight Time, [email protected] writes:
I wonder why they left out this one: Ecc 10:2 NASB A wise man's heart directs him toward the right, but the foolish man's heart directs him toward the left. David "Anyone who thinks he has a better idea of what's good for people than people do is a swine."--P. J. O’Rourke On 10/21/2011 6:15 AM, [email protected]_ (mailto:[email protected]) wrote: "Radical Centrist Proverbs" Explained Radical Centrism really is something new, but it rests on foundations which extend back millennia. What is interesting is that, once you learn the premises of Radical Centrism, you can find prototype wisdom in the Bible, sayings that reflect RC philosophy. There is no claim that the Bible is a Radical Centrist book. Any claims that the Bible supports one kind of politics to the exclusion of all others simply does not match the evidence. You can find several political viewpoints in its pages, upholding several perspectives. These include the concern for the poor which is typical of liberals , concern for family values which characterizes conservatism, plus repeated reference to forms of monarchism. As well, depending on how you interpret the Book of Judges, 'when there was no king in Israel and everyone did what was right in his own eyes,' maybe a form of' libertarianism. And the twelve tribe amphictyony --confederation-- may suggest a predecessor to democracy. Regardless, there are precedents for Radical Centrism in the Judeo-Christian scriptures. Far more, in fact, than the following material suggests. But to secure a foundation, a number of verses from the Hebrew Bible ( Old Testament ) Book of Proverbs and from Ecclesiastes should make matters clear. Most of the verses simply indicate the kind of ethical views that Radical Centrists take for granted. But a few seem to go further and anticipate actual Radical Centrism as we now know it. These are : Proverbs 11 : 14 For want of leadership a people perishes, safety lies in many advisers That is, basic to RC is seeking as many viewpoints as possible before arriving at decisions or conclusions. Proverbs 14 : 15 The simpleton believes any message, a person of discretion treads a careful path. That is, we are not --or not usually-- likely to find political panaceas appealing and generally are highly skeptical of political claims that offer what cannot be delivered. Proverbs 28 : 18 Whoever lives an honest life will be safe, whoever wavers between two [dubious] ways falls down in one of them This seems to be exactly what we are all about even if, to be sure, there is much more to be said. The word "dubious" has been supplied but seems to be implicit in both the New Jerusalem and the New English translations. Most quotations are from the NJB but some are from the NEB, with a few that use one or another word from the other since this seems to make the sense clearer. Ecclesiastes 4 : 12 Where one alone would be overcome, two will put up resistance; and a threefold cord is not quickly broken. This verse needs to be "expanded" broadly but if that is done we can find the principle that reliance on just one side in a debate is questionable, seeking the best from two sides is far better, and arriving at a third view which combines the strengths of each side is best. Ecclesiastes 11 : 2 Divide your merchandise among seven ventures, maybe eight, since you do not know what disasters may occur on earth. Here we get the Radical Centrist principle that it often is necessary to take into account as many political ( or other ) views as possible, not just Right and Left. The proverbs selected begin with Wisdom speaking, as She does in most of the Book of Proverbs. Her advice is excellent but to the point is that this seemed like a good idea so that the reader will know who is speaking, namely, Wisdom personified as a "divine woman," the Chokhma, to use one Hebrew version of the name. Billy Oct 21, 2011 ========================================================== Radical Centrist Proverbs Proverbs 1 20 Wisdom calls aloud in the streets, she raises her voice in the public squares; 21 she calls out at the street corners, she delivers her message at the city gates. 22 'You simple people, how much longer will you cling to your simple ways? How much longer will mockers revel in their mocking and fools go on hating knowledge? 23 Pay attention to my warning. To you I will pour out my heart and tell you what I have to say. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ------ Proverbs 3 13 Blessed are those who have discovered wisdom, those who have acquired understanding! 14 Gaining her is more rewarding than silver, her yield is more valuable than gold. 15 She is beyond the price of pearls, nothing you could covet is her equal. --------------------------------------------------------------- Proverbs 8 11 For Wisdom is more precious than jewels, and nothing else is so worthy of desire. 33 Listen to instruction and become wise, do not reject it. ---------------------------------------------------------- Proverbs 11 3 The honest have their own honesty for guidance, the treacherous are ruined by their own perfidy. 14 For want of leadership a people perishes, safety lies in many advisers. 19 Whoever establishes uprightness is on the way to life, whoever pursues evil, on the way to death. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Proverbs 12 11 Whoever works his land shall have bread and to spare, but no one who chases fantasies has any sense. 18 Thoughtless words can wound like a sword, but the tongue of the wise brings healing. 26 The upright shows the way to a friend; the way of the wicked leads them astray. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Proverbs 13 20 Whoever walks with the wise becomes wise, whoever mixes with fools will be ruined. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Proverbs 14 15 The simpleton believes any message, a person of discretion treads a careful path. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Proverbs 15 7 The lips of the wise spread knowledge, not so the hearts of fools. 22 Without deliberation plans come to nothing. Plans succeed where counsellors are many. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Proverbs 17 3 A furnace for silver, a foundry for gold, but the Almighty for the testing of hearts! --------------------------------------------------------------------- Proverbs 18 2 A fool takes no pleasure in understanding but only in airing an opinion. 12 The human heart is haughty until destruction comes, before there can be glory there must be humility. 13 To retort without first listening is both foolish and embarrassing ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Proverbs 20 15 There are gold and jewels of every type, but a priceless ornament is speech informed by knowledge. 18 Plans are matured by consultation; take wise advice when waging war. ------------------------------------------------------------------ Proverbs 23 23 Purchase truth, never sell it ; buy wisdom, instruction, and understanding. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Proverbs 27 17 Iron is sharpened by iron, one person is sharpened by contact with another. --------------------------------------------------------------------- Proverbs 28 18 Whoever lives an honest life will be safe, whoever wavers between two [dubious] ways falls down in one of them. ----------------------------------------------------------------- Proverbs 29 8 Scoffers set a city in ferment, but the wise moderate anger. 18 Where there is no vision the people forget all good sense; but a guardian of the law keeps them on a straight path. ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Proverbs 31 8 Make your views heard, on behalf of the mute, on behalf of all the unwanted; 9 make your views heard, pronounce an upright verdict, defend the cause of the wretched and the poor. ========================================================= Ecclesiastes 3 1 There is a season for everything, a time for every purpose under heaven: 2 A time for giving birth, a time for dying; a time for planting, a time for uprooting what has been planted. 3 A time for killing, a time for healing; a time for knocking down, a time for building. 4 A time for tears, a time for laughter; a time for mourning, a time for dancing. 5 A time for throwing stones away, a time for gathering them; a time for embracing, a time to refrain from embracing. 6 A time for searching, a time for losing; a time for keeping, a time for discarding. 7 A time for tearing, a time for sewing; a time for keeping silent, a time for speaking. 8 A time for loving, a time for hating; a time for war, a time for peace. ----------------------------------------------------------------- Ecclesiastes 4 12 Where one alone would be overcome, two will put up resistance; and a threefold cord is not quickly broken. ----------------------------------------------------------------- Ecclesiastes 7 14 When things are going well, enjoy yourself, and when they are going badly, consider this: God has designed the one no less than the other so that we should take nothing for granted. 20 No one on earth is sufficiently upright to do good without ever sinning. ---------------------------------------------------------- Ecclesiastes 9 18 Wisdom is worth more than weapons of war, but a single sin undoes much good. ---------------------------------------------------------------- Ecclesiastes 11 2 Divide your merchandise among seven ventures, maybe eight, since you do not know what disasters may occur on earth. ------------------------------------------------------------------ Ecclesiastes 12 9 - 10 Koheleth turned over many maxims in his mind and sought how best to set them out. He chose his words to give pleasure, but what he wrote was honest truth, -- Centroids: The Center of the Radical Centrist Community _<[email protected]>_ (mailto:[email protected]) Google Group: _http://groups.google.com/group/RadicalCentrism_ (http://groups.google.com/group/RadicalCentrism) Radical Centrism website and blog: _http://RadicalCentrism.org_ (http://radicalcentrism.org/) -- Centroids: The Center of the Radical Centrist Community <[email protected]> Google Group: _http://groups.google.com/group/RadicalCentrism_ (http://groups.google.com/group/RadicalCentrism) Radical Centrism website and blog: _http://RadicalCentrism.org_ (http://radicalcentrism.org/) -- Centroids: The Center of the Radical Centrist Community <[email protected]> Google Group: http://groups.google.com/group/RadicalCentrism Radical Centrism website and blog: http://RadicalCentrism.org
