Essay number thirteen: by The Midnight Writer

Good and Evil

Good and evil are not subjective values that society applies according to some scholarly interpretation. Good and evil are absolute truths that must be dealt with if a society has any hope of surviving.

Good and evil exist at every level of our lives. There are many positive and negative experiences in our lives that can be interpreted in a subjective way, but that is not interpreting good and evil. That is interpreting the effect of good and evil.

Good and evil should not be studied as an action but rather as the force creating the action. I have arrived at my own conclusions about good and evil. I may be wrong and will be the first to acknowledge my mistake when presented with a better argument. I am sharing my beliefs about good and evil with you in the hope that together we can get the world back on the right track.

I believe that when God separated the light from the dark he created both good and evil. Good resides in the light. I believe that good is an absolute unchangeable force that can never be destroyed or weakened. It is in perfect harmony with God’s grace and is the force of all creation.

Evil resides in the darkness. I believe that evil is not an absolute force. It is subject to constant change and it is the force of destruction. Because it dwells in the darkness, one small candle can strip it of its power.

I also believe that it is from the improper application of our own free will that evil derives what power it has obtained. God gave no power to the dark side. We did it. What we need to decide is whether or not we have the ability to take back that power and render the darkness ineffective.

I think we can take back the power we have given the darkness but it can only be done on an individual level. It cannot be done from a collective level. We can pool our resources and mount an attack against the darkness but victory can only be won by accepting responsibility for the power that you, as an individual, gave to the darkness.

Only when we accept the responsibility that we have as individuals will we be able to start repairing the damage that has been done to our society. All of the horrors that we see in society today can be traced back to our lack of responsible behavior.

The violence, the hate, the pursuit of irresponsible pleasures, the refusal to accept responsibility and the desire to blame others for our own actions are tearing us apart. If we continue on this path the United States of America will cease to be a shining city on the hill and a world of darkness and horror will take its place.

If you continue to believe that evil is subjective and that you have no right to judge the behavior of others then you are denying society the moral foundation that it must have to survive. This attitude can no longer be tolerated. If you doubt me then start paying attention to the news and ask yourself how much longer we can stay on this path of destruction.

We are where we are today because far too many people want to hide from the responsibility associated with their own behavior. Evil does exist and we need to face it and call it by its name. The longer we put off this obligation the more painful will be the cure.

Imagine how much your life would change for the good if you wake up tomorrow and say, “Today I will tell no lies; today I will take nothing that does not rightfully belong to me; today I we will let go of all anger and hatred and love all of my brothers and sisters; today I will care for others as I would want them to care for me.”

Regardless of what your religious beliefs are, you must decide every day whether or not you pursue good or evil. No matter how tempting it may seem at the time, you will never gain from pursuing the dark forces.

When laying on my deathbed, I want to feel the joy of knowing how well I treated my fellow man rather than to feel the pain of knowing how poorly I treated them. I am in my seventies now. Will I live another thirty years or will I be on my deathbed tomorrow?