mp24957 Chaplain Mag Summer 2005 new.p65 - Chaplains service

Hindu
Hindu HINDU
Perspective
PERSPECTIVE
Perspective
Perspective
on
on
ON
Ethics
Ethics
ETHICS
HINDU ETHICS AND WAR
It may be argued that Hindu ethics
outlaws war. This is not so. The Hindu
class system identified those, whose
nature dictated that they be defenders of
the defenseless and meek. Men, after
their own nature, joined a defense unit
in a sense of self-sacrifice. There were
two categories of war basically:
legitimate and illegitimate. That war
which was fought in defence of a country
or principle was legitimate. That war
fought out of avariciousness, hate and
greed was illegitimate. A person joining
the fighting unit, therefore has no excuse
not to take up arms in a legitimate war.
That blood will be spilled and lives will
be lost in war is inevitable. In righteous
war a few will have to be sacrificed for
the greater good.
HINDU ETHICS AND SEX
RELATED DISEASES
From the list produced above, it follows
that if one were to be truthful in thought,
word and deed in a marriage, exert
control over carnal desires, be non
covetous and content, the scourge of
STDs that is plaguing the world today
will be controlled. It is for this reason
perhaps, among others, that in India,
which has one-sixth part of the world’s
population, the prevalence of HIV &
AIDS is not as high as in most other
countries. The moment that man
becomes a creature of the mind and flesh,
and not of the Self, he is bound to hurtle
towards his own destruction.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Bhaskarananda Swami
Essentials of Hinduism
Sri Ramakrishna Math
Sharma D.S
Essence of Hinduism
Bharati Vidya
Bhavan
Nikhilinanda Swami
Hinduism-Its meaning for the Liberation
of the
Spirit
Sri Ramakrishna math
26 SANDF - The Military Chaplain
MEDITATION
Dear friends, let’s love one another, because
love comes from God. Whoever loves is a
child of God and knows God. Whoever does
not love, does not know God, for God is love.
And God showed His love for us by sending
His only begotten Son into the world, so that
we might have love through Him. This is
what love is: it is not that we have loved God,
but that he loved us and sent His son to be
the means by which our sins are forgiven.
Dear friends, if this is how God loved us,
then we should love one another…(1 John
4:7-16).
The concept that God is love can be seen as
a central concept of the Bible. The Greek
word or concept to explain God’s love is
agape. Agape is not love that originates from
human heart. It is not love that wants selfglorification.
Agape is a spontaneous creative
love that comes directly from God into the
lives of Christians. As Christians, we have
to share God’s love (agape) with others.
In our passage John reminds us that love
(agape) is the central reality of God’s nature.
God expresses His love for us in the gift of
His son, Jesus Christ. He died on the cross
for our sins so that we may have eternal life.
He is the ultimate demonstration of God’s
love for us. However, we must keep in mind
that this act of love was not in response to
man’s love but an initiative, an act on God’s
part. In these few verses John explains to us
why love is valuable, and how we can choose
to live love. That is why we must understand
that real love is a conscious choice and an
act, not a feeling or an intention. Real one
produces selfless sacrificial giving. Loving
therefore means initiating action without
wanting something in return. God’s love in
Jesus Christ is the model for the love we
should have towards one another.
Since God is love, our assumption is that
intimate acquaintance with Him will produce
love. But so often in our day-to-day
interaction with one another, we experience
that a spontaneous love for other is missing.
How many times do we turn our back at other
people, knowing they are in need? How
many times do we hurt one another by means
of words or deeds? It is easy to say we love
God when it doesn’t cost us anything more
than going to church to attend our religious
services. Just remember, when we confess
our love with our mouth instead of our heart,
it becomes empty.
We need the foundation of our own personal
relationship with God to experience His love.
Only on that foundation can we identify
ourselves with others and love them as God
Himself loves them, the same way He loves
us. What is more significant for us in our
relationship with God is this: God wants us
to grow in our capacity to love. As we listen
By Cpln M.J. Frantz
Cpln M.J. Frantz
to Him and respond to His love, we can grow
in our ability to love others. This is His
message to us, since the beginning, when He
commanded us to love one another.
A person who is capable of loving another,
desires to see him/herself grow. We can be
certain that God loves us because His every
word to us is designed to help us grow in our
full potentials. God’s love for us is unselfish
and unconditional. He honestly has our best
interest at heart. When the love of God
touches us, it transforms us completely. We
cannot proclaim that we truly love God,
while we neglect to love those created in His
image.
In our fight against HIV & AIDS, let us show
God’s love to those infected and affected by
this dreadful pandemic. Yes, many of us in
the DOD are indeed involved in this fight
but we need committed people. Committed
to God’s will by making a conscious choice
to love and to act on it. How do we do that?
There are so many children being orphaned
because of HIV and AIDS. These children
will be in need of love and affection but also
in need of clothes and food. By opening our
hands and hearts to provide in that need, we
can share God’s love, care and so many of
our members that are HIV positive that need
our support, love, care and understanding.
In the true spirit of Christmas, let us reach
out to them and share God’s love.
My appeal to the DOD is: As we approach
Christmas, let us make use of the opportunity
to reach out and initiate actions that meet the
deepest needs of our fellow soldiers, brothers
and sisters. Let us be prepared to share the
gift of God’s love with one another. By so
doing, we will see God Himself as He lives
in us and His love made complete in us (v.12).
Ultimately, because God is love, the person
who shares God’s love will love. GOD
BLESS AND KEEP ALL OF YOU
DURING THE FESTIVE SEASON