American Transcendentalism says 'moral-responsibility trumps government'.
"Moral intelligence" is the ability to predict the long-term affects of one's choices upon one's self and others.
While Intelligence is the ability one has to accurately predict the empirical metrics of practical living, morality is one's determination of good and bad.
Moral intelligence generally goes unchallenged until someone counters behavioral expectations.
There are multiple moral intelligences.
A prominent American transcendentalist, Henry David Thoreau, believed that the ideal spiritual state 'transcends' the physical and empirical, and is experienced through intuition, not religious doctrine.
Born in 1817 in Concord, Massachusetts, he described himself as a philosopher of nature and was known for his extreme individualism, his preference for simple, austere living, and his revolt against a government that legalized the institution of slavery.
The issue of sacred land and labor use is not a new argument in American citizen affairs. The fact that people differ in their opinions of how to address employee compensation today, reflects the legacy of this institution and the varying degrees of moral intelligence regarding it, and capitalism.
Civil Disobedience & Spirituality
Throughout history, one can glean common threads in universal morality and the role opposition to corrupt systems consistently plays in the perpetuation of moral values. Even the civil disobedience of prominent historical figures like Jesus Christ, Harriet Tubman, Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr. is remembered more than their reasons for it. (See "New Thought Talk" article).
In the case, of Henry D. Thoreau, to express his moral opposition to slavery and to the Mexican-American War, which would extend slavery into a vast new area, he refused to pay his poll tax for six years.
In July 1846 he was arrested, jailed, and fined. While his fine was paid by a relative and he was in prison only overnight, he had acted on his beliefs and was willing to take the consequences.
His essay, Civil Disobedience, describes his experience and sets forth his belief in principled resistance to authority.
Thoreau's work is important because it demonstrates how one's intuition is developed. Intuition is the key that opens the door to inner communication. Inner communication is the foundation of moral intelligence.
This Sunday, July 26, the topic "Thoreau and Transcendentalism: How They Changed the World" will be presented by long-time UUC member, Bill Norsworthy at 10:30 a.m.
Bill will explore the ideas of the Transcendentalist Movement in mid-19th century New England and how a small group of innovative thinkers contributed to the ways we perceive the world today.
Thoreau, who famously lived for two years at Walden Pond in Concord, Massachusetts, was a leader of this movement and is one of our great Unitarian heroes.
We will also consider Henry David Thoreau's impact on our views of nature and social justice.
Bill has served as UUC president for two terms, the latest in 2005-06, and has served on numerous committees. In his professional work, Bill has a consulting practice in the area of managed health care and has worked in this field for more than 30 years.
Tomorrow's presentation extends on an essay he wrote on this topic while in high school, a serendipitous project that certainly changed his world.
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