The main focus of this blog entry is to discuss the subject of tolerance, but I shall not begin there. Instead I begin with the topic of bravery, which may help us to better understand tolerance.

 

What does it mean to be brave? Does it mean to have no fear, to have no anxiety? No, in truth, those who are brave act in the face of fear. And a sacrifice is always made in order to act with moral purpose; without which there would be no bravery.

 

Why is it important to have fear and pain? Would it not be better to live in a world where neither exists? How would our ability to make choices change? Could joy, faith, hope, and love exist without fear and pain? Could women (and men) of bravery grow in a garden where all the weeds of adversity have been removed? What gives us hope, along life’s journey, that we might act in faith to push against the pain and climb higher in defiance of fear? These are questions left for you to ponder.

 

In a world of no fear or pain, where would bravery exist? Similarly, where would tolerance be in a world void of morals (i.e. how can we speak of tolerance without morals)? Tolerance is seeking to understand (i.e. not easily offended). Tolerance also means the ability to endure; to be patient (i.e. not easily provoked). The most efficient way to develop tolerance is to have children. Picture the following situations and try to imagine how each will require tolerance:

- A baby crying who cannot explain to you what they need for relief
- A child who loves to write on the walls with markers
- A child who wanders off in a Mall and cannot be found
- A child who is asked to do something she does not want to and tells you that she hates you
- Children who are fighting with each other

- And there are endless other examples

 

Have you heard the saying “Never trust a skinny cook”? Well, that goes double for someone that thinks they are tolerant and has not raised children (including us parents who get to leave home for most of the day while others raise our children). And those of you with special needs children are some of the greatest heroes of our society.

 

Does tolerance require me to sit idly by when my children have gone astray? Is spanking a child worse than ignoring their bad behavior? If my child has written on my walls (or my neighbor’s walls), what should I do? Should I first take away the markers and talk to them about what they are doing? Should I help them clean up their mess? Does it build confidence in a child when the child helps correct a wrong he has created? How can I (a parent) reinforce the love and acceptance of a child? More questions to ponder.

 

Note: The quotes in the following paragraph are taken from: All These Things Shall Give Thee Experience, Neal A. Maxwell, 1979, page 84.

 

Tolerance will lead us to, “make more time for people to explain why they have done something, or why they see something a certain way”. Thus tolerance will lead to improved communication. After all, our friends are more apt to, “hold a view all the more until [they have had] a chance to explain it”. “Further, we should not mistake our reticence for principle and our stubbornness for integrity as we deal with the ideas and insights of others”. Too often our battles are a war of personal preference, not of moral principle.

 

However, as society discusses how to increase tolerance in debates, to be accepting of others’ point of view, some would go as far as to say that we cannot state our own views on a subject because that would offend and cause bad feelings. Where tolerance is demanded, but not returned in kind (i.e. when a vocal minority holds to a view) there exists a form of tyranny. And, if those views expressed by others state that our morals are oppressive, what then? Can any society exist without moral standards? And can any great society exist without high moral standards? “Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.” ~ John Adams

 

Is there any better way to teach tolerance than to have parents who model its behavior in their homes?

 

Now imagine:

- A baby crying who cannot explain to you what they need for relief, then you find what is needed and there is peace
- A child who loves to write on the walls with markers, is corrected, and the next day cleans their room without prompting
- A child who wanders off in a Mall and cannot be found, and then is found
- A child who is asked to do something she does not want to and tells you that she hates you, and later draws a card to show how much she loves you
- Children who are fighting with each other, and later playing with laughter

- And there are endless other examples

 

I hope this has been helpful

 

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metrication_in_the_United_States

This entry was posted on Sunday, September 25th, 2011 at 9:53 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.