Romans 12:16

Hey Hoes.
I got me thinking about this here letter to the Romans, Chapter 12.
Therein, the Apostle epistles:


“Be of the same mind one toward another. Mind not high things, but condescend to men of low estate. Be not wise in your own conceits” (12:16)

Now, I, I believe, have instead lived by the dictum ‘to thine own self be true,’ then you can’t be false to others. I guess, at some point, I have stopped being so true to myself, if indeed it is possible to be true. (Indeed, maybe my inability to even now comprehend being true to myself is emblematic of this slide into principledlessness unknowing). Perhaps I simply stopped listening.

Now this may be. Maybe I have stopped listening to myself. I suppose this may be the case because I have come up against a lot of stuff that I have been unable to get out of. Like hard work, and following ambitions or trying to hold down a job. These things I have attempted to do inspite of myself. So I probably had to stop listening to myself in order to get through those things. I mean, I think I would have walked out of every job I have ever had because it has not suited me. And I think that would probably have been better for myself.

In trying to understand 12:16 however, I have come up against what I suppse to be my social inability and intellectual inflexibility to deal with reality in such a way that is always appropriate to it. More specifically, to deal with people as they would have me deal with them. To be ‘of the same mind’ as them. Indeed I have reluctantly forced myself into situations where I have neither been able to be myself nor have I been able to be what the people wanted to be.

I have made changes to my life to get stronger. but I still can not be as popular with my colleagues as I would wish to be, indeed, as they would wish me to be. Thus, I can not always be ‘of the same mind’ as other people. Frankly, that shit often stinks.

You?

Everyone hates me too.

[quote=“trubadour”]I have made changes to my life to get stronger. but I still can not be as popular with my colleagues as I would wish to be, indeed, as they would wish me to be. Thus, I can not always be ‘of the same mind’ as other people. Frankly, that shit often stinks.

You?[/quote]

You’re over-reading the passage. It’s an encouragement to Christians to seek harmony with each other and not be prideful.

Romans 12 (NET):
16 Live in harmony with one another; do not be haughty but associate with the lowly. Do not be conceited.

This is not about conforming to other people’s expectations of what you should be.

Thanks!

[quote=“Fortigurn”][quote=“trubadour”]I have made changes to my life to get stronger. but I still can not be as popular with my colleagues as I would wish to be, indeed, as they would wish me to be. Thus, I can not always be ‘of the same mind’ as other people. Frankly, that shit often stinks.

You?[/quote]

You’re over-reading the passage. It’s an encouragement to Christians to seek harmony with each other and not be prideful.

Romans 12 (NET):
16 Live in harmony with one another; do not be haughty but associate with the lowly. Do not be conceited.

This is not about conforming to other people’s expectations of what you should be.[/quote]

Actually, I’d like to take Fortigurn’s comment one step further. I believe that this passage is also to actively consider other people to be our equals, and to consider no one as ‘below us’.

Others like to talk about being in touch with your ‘inner child’. I on the other hand, think that people should be in touch with their ‘inner idiot’, 'cuz it’s when you realize just how big an idiot you are… well, that’s when you realize that the idiot that you’re annoyed with isn’t any different than you are.

And, at 194 cm, I may actually be the biggest idiot on the flob.