The only difference between the most enlightened Saint and the most revolting criminal is that one of the two does not know that they are both Holy, Holy, Holy.

The founder of Christianity taught that "If you visit someone on prison, you visit me". Yet in our spiritual ignorance, we still elect people to office who would lead us back to pre-Christian darkness by calling for mutilation and death for some prisoners. We cannot blame such "leaders" because we put them in office without insisting that they have spiritual understanding and values. If you want to change the world you must start with yourself.

Naturally, criminals have to be isolated from society for their own protection as well as society's. Nevertheless, the first consideration of true justice should be reparation to the victims or their families. But punishment should not enter into it. This physical world is a spiritual training ground for learning how to love what appears to be absolutely unlovable. Don't worry about you neighbour's ignorance, worry about your own. Instead of hating the offender we should weep for the loss of love shown by the offence.

If we would change our primitive ideas of God and seek spiritual wisdom we could begin a New Age. The history of man's evolution is littered with discarded images of God and it is no longer valid to cling to the image of a Super-being" dispensing salvation and damnation according to the moral standards of our times.

God is, as spiritually developed men and women have known throughout the ages, unknowable, inexpressible, indefinable; that before which all words recoil". The unknowability of God had been, perhaps, best expressed by St. Thomas Aquinas in this passage from "De Veritas":

"What God actually is always remains hidden from us. And this is the highest knowledge one can have of God in this life. That we know Him to be above every thought we are able to think of Him."

The book of ignorance is prefaced with "But God said... the Buddha said... Jesus said... etc." The real truth lies in what you say, what your think, what you do. And your truth is as unique and individual as your fingerprints.

We are all learning how to be loving, and wise, and filled with compassion.

That should be the real purpose of ALL religions.