"I know of no more encouraging fact than the unquestionable ability of man to elevate his life by conscious endeavour", said Henry Thoreau. If Jesus would hear him, he would agree.

The last week we mentioned that Jesus likened the kingdom of God with processes of growth. That is why I often wonder why religious traditionalists that claim to be his followers, insist that the world becomes worse and worse - to the point where God will have to destroy it.

It is true that growth has some challenges and pains, but they cannot justify its rejection. Growth is the universal tendency which is traced everywhere in the world. We can align ourselves with it and enjoy happiness and fulfilment - or go against it and experience mental darkness, emptiness, and discontent. For those that grow there is hope to outgrow and transcend their temporary problems. For those that do not want to grow there is no hope, except to wait for God to take them out of this world - which is a vain illusion.

We find one of the strongest evolutionary statements in Beatitudes:

Blessed are they who hunger and thirst after righteousness! For they shall be filled.

What is righteousness? Traditional theology teaches that it is "right standing before God". It assumes that somewhere and somehow we became unacceptable to God. We deserve God's punishment and condemnation - unless we repent and accept God's forgiveness, which will restore our "righteousness".

It would take a long time to explain why I do not agree with this doctrine. One of the reasons is that we cannot find the concept of "original sin" in gospels. It is derived from epistles of Paul, not from words of Jesus. If we remove Paul's writings from the New Testament, we will not have a proof that original sin have ever existed.

All that Jesus said inspires me to think that I am loved by God and accepted by God - just the way I am. I just have to open my eyes and to wake up to this great spiritual reality. Return of the prodigal son was the act of awareness of the one who temporarily lost his awareness and nothing more.

Righteousness is not a religious concept. To state the opposite is to bring Jesus down to the same level with Pharisees and Sadducees. They were teachers of a sectarian and exclusive religion, but he was the Teacher of More Abundant Life for all. Jesus instructed people to think and act in harmony with universal laws, and to reap the harvest of happiness. That is righteousness.

There is also another aspect of righteousness. We need to agree not only with universal laws that apply to all, but also with our own unique life purpose - the law of our being.

Our heart longs for greater self-expression. Deep within we feel that we do not yet manifest all we can be. Some people misinterpret this longing as estrangement from God, and even as God's disapproval. However, this is not true. Healthy discontent is not the reason to feel guilty and to blame ourselves.

God is closer to us than our own heartbeat. Being made of God, we cannot ever be estranged from God - except in our consciousness. Our longing should stimulate us to move toward greater soul unfoldment and demonstration.

As you progress, do not look back to your past failures. Even if you failed 100 times, the very act of rising up and making one more attempt makes you stronger. Those who hunger for righteousness will be filled. Every strong and sincere desire speaks of possibility of its fulfilment.

(to be continued)