A large part of mankind is angry not with the sins, but with the sinners.

A large part of mankind is angry not with the sins, but with the sinners. – Seneca

There are those who consider this a sin, and are angry with you.

What does that mean?
To me, this speaks of the envy and bitterness that is part of the lives of so many people. They aren’t so mad that you are doing something prohibited by law or societal values, they are mad about you doing something they aren’t comfortable doing.

Stated another way, they are mad that you are having fun and they aren’t. This can show up in the form of jealousy, anger, or even violence. I imagine that you have seen it on both sides of many issues, one side telling the other to relax their standards and values, the other side saying back that they are too uptight.

Why are legal and moral standards important?  
These are social contracts between groups of people, and help keep the group on the same page when it comes to acceptable behavior. Sin is loosely defined as a violation of social contracts or the laws of a group of people.

Without standards (legal or moral), it’s hard to know what to expect from your neighbors. Imagine living in a society where stealing wasn’t considered an offense under law nor was considered immoral. You couldn’t leave anything out at any time under any circumstances, right? You might not agree with them, but at least you’d know the rules.

Where can I apply this in my life?
For the rules (legal or moral) that you agree with, it’s pretty simple, you aren’t going to be a problem. Since you will follow them, you won’t be the sinner, right? But how will you interact with those who do not follow suit, those who are labeled sinners?

Will you “love the sinner, but hate the sin”, or will you be petty, mean and bitter about those who are breaking with what you consider to be proper behavior? Which is the ‘high road’ or the more skillful attitude for you to take? Hopefully you will take some time to think about this, and consider your options.

For the rules (legal or moral) with which you disagree, how will you address them? Will you simply disobey them, attempt to modify the rules directly through the legal system, or will you try to educate people so they agree with you that the rules should change?

Will you simply disobey and flaunt the rules? How will others respond to that? Will you end up ostracised, beat up, or thrown in jail? Does it matter to you? Some believe enough to brave “the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune” (3rd line, but the whole soliloquy addresses this point). Nelson Mandela and Mohandas Gandhi come to mind.

Will you work to modify the rules? How will others respond? Now you need to consider where you are. Your ability to protest will depend on your government and the others who are vested in the current system of values. How does your government work? Is it a local issue or a national issue? These are all questions you must answer and include in your plan.

One option is to fight the power. Will you be considered to be more like Robbin Hood and Zoro or will you be considered a terrorist? Will you have the support of most of the people, some of them, or just a few? While the “folk hero” aspect has it’s appeal, it’s rarity in real life gives us a clue to the effectiveness of this path.

If you work within the system, you will still need to know your opponents, how vested they are in the status quo and what they are willing to do to maintain it. There are stories about people disappearing or having unlikely accidents happen to them. You will also need to know who the players are, who is on your side, who is in opposition, and who can be influenced. It will be better have a plan, with lots of little “Plan B” options, as this is rough terrain.

If education is your method, you will have to form a compelling argument and then distribute the message. What will others think of your work? How will you try to influence them? Will you appeal to logic, pull at heart strings or scare the snot out of them?

No matter the method, no one method will work on all people. And craft your message carefully, as a poorly prepared and poorly presented message can easily doom a cause. Backfiring is not a pretty way to end things, is it?

Now, how will you distribute it? These days, the internet seems to be the obvious answer. But for a very local issue (or when first starting to rally people to your cause), you might want to stick to the tried-and-true posters, flyers, leaflets and message boards (paper and push-pins).

From there, it’s just a matter of working your plan. How well it is received, that’s out of my hands. And understand that there will be others holding different values, and they will be just as busy and just as steadfast in their certainty of victory. Good luck (and by that I mean: work really hard, remain vigilant and be prepared to take advantage of unexpected opportunities), be careful and stay on the high road.

From: Twitter, @philo_quotes
confirmed at : http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/l/luciusanna155048.html
Photo by dirvish