In the course of life it is important to understand why specific bad things have happened. This leads to the assignment of “blame”. While blame is a useful concept, it is easily and frequently misused. One common error is to assume that if blame can be placed on one person, or one small group, that means others are innocent. This is especially used to conclude oneself is innocent. But this does not follow from logic, and frequently both, or all, parties can properly receive blame. Another common misuse of blame goes the opposite direction, spreading it more widely than is fair, often blaming an entire ethnic group or nation for the misdeeds of some. Finally, is often erroneously assigned even when everyone has been doing their best. We will explore examples of these errors, and contemplate how to resist the frequent temptation to fix blame inappropriately.

The Zoom link and Order of Service will be provided at mpuuc.org/zoom.

Topics: Reverence