T W O W A Y S
There are two ways of teaching
and two wielders of power;
one is of light
and the other is of darkness.
Between those two ways
lies a vast chasm,
because over the one
are posted light-bearing angels
while over the other are Satan's messengers;
and one of these two is the Lord from all eternity,
while the other stands paramount
over this present age of iniquity.
The Way of Life is this:
Thou shalt love first the Lord thy Creator, and secondly
thy neighbor as thyself; and thou shalt do nothing to any
man that thou wouldst not wish to be done to thyself.
What you may learn from these words is to bless them
that curse you, to pray for your enemies, and to fast for
your persecutors. For where is the merit in loving
only
those who return your love? Even the heathens do
as much
as that.
The Way of Death is this:
To begin with, it is evil, and in every way fraught
with
condemnation. In it are murders, adulteries, lusts,
forni-
cations, thefts, idolatries, witchcraft, sorceries, robberies,
perjuries, hypocrisies, duplicities, deceit, pride, malice,
self-will, avarice, foul language, jealousy, insolence,
ar-
rogance, and boastfulness. Here are those who perse-
cute good men, hold truth in abhorrence, and love false-
hood; who do not know of the rewards of righteousness,
nor adhere to what is good, nor to just judgment; who lie
awake planning wickedness rather than well-doing.
Gentleness and patience are beyond their conception;
they care for nothing good or useful, and are bent only
on their own advantage, without pity for the poor or feel-
ing for the distressed. Knowledge of the Creator
is not
in them; they make away with their infants and deface God's
image; they turn away the needy and oppress the afflicted;
they aid and abet the rich but arbitrarily condemn the
poor;
they are utterly and altogether sunk ininiquity.