MUDDITES - A FABLE

MUDDITES - A FABLE

Once upon a time, long ago and far away, on the outskirts of a crowd which had gathered to hear a great teacher speak, two men fell into conversation with each other. “I can’t hear what he is saying, but I know that he is a miracle worker, and that the hand of God is upon him,” said the first man. The second man responded enthusiastically, “I know you speak the truth, for I once was blind, but now I see. He cured my blindness!” The first man exclaimed, “Really!” and launched into a detailed explanation of how he too had been cured of blindness by the same holy man. Both men were excited and animated in telling their versions of how they had been cured of blindness.

It soon became obvious that the men were in disagreement about the nature of the miracle worker’s technique. One man insisted that his blindness had been cured when the holy man gathered some soil from the ground which was mixed with saliva and formed into some sort of mud pack, and then placed upon the man’s eyes. The other man was equally adamant that no mud had been used at all, and that the miracle had occurred when the holy man placed his hands on him and simply declared him healed. Thus began the first theological split in Christianity, between the Muddites and the Non-muddites.

The two men gathered about them those who agreed with their particular version and the two groups began to say terrible things about each other. Both groups were convinced that God was on their side and that Satan inspired the other group. Soon there were suspicious plots, dirty tricks, political power plays, and on one occasion an actual fist fight. Many of the people who claim to follow Jesus have been living that way ever since.

The moral to the story:
Love cures blindness. Dogma can cause blindness.