TOLERANCE

“Tolerance is the positive and cordial effort to understand another’s beliefs, practices and habits without necessarily sharing or accepting them.”
–Joshua Liebman

Today I am able to tolerate people, listen to what they are saying and if I do not agree with them, it is okay! I do not have to agree with a person to tolerate or befriend him.

This is a new attitude for me and is part of my spiritual program. When I was drinking, I would not listen to people who had ideas different to mine. I would not tolerate people who had a different philosophy on life. Other religions were discounted as being cultish, crude or superstitious. I have learned that my disease of alcoholism made me very arrogant and narrow in my attitude to life – I rejected two-thirds of the world as being heretical!

Today I can tolerate and learn from people who view God, the world and morality differently from me. Spirituality is teaching me to be open and accepting.

Lord, may I find traces of Your love in different philosophies and religions.