Natural authority dominates the natural laws. All actions have consequences. When we pick up one end of a stick, we pick up the other. If we jump off a ten-story building, we can’t change our mind at the fifth story. Gravity controls. That is the stamp of nature. Nature has also stamped people with the freedom and power to choose, and, therefore, they have natural authority or domination over all of the rest of creation. Endangered species survive only by our consent. They don’t have freedom and power to choose. They lack self-awareness. They can’t reinvent themselves. They’re totally subject to humans, who, because they’re self-aware, alone have freedom and power to choose and to reinvent themselves. This is natural authority.
Moral authority is the ‘principled’ use of our freedom and power to choose. In other words, if we follow principles in our relationships with each other, we tap into the permission of nature. Natural laws (like gravity) and principles (like respect, honesty, kindness, integrity, service and fairness) control the consequences of our choices. Just as we get polluted air and water, when we consistently violate the environment, so also is trust (which is considered the root of relationships) destroyed when we are consistently unkind and dishonest to people. By the principled, humble use of freedom and power, the humble person obtains moral authority with people, cultures, organizations and entire societies.
Values are social norms --- they are personal, emotional, subjective and arguable. All of us have values. Even criminals have values. The question we must ask ourselves is, “are our values based on principles “? Principles are natural laws, they’re impersonal, factual, objective and self-evident. Consequences are governed by principles, and behaviour is governed by values.
The key task, then, is to determine where “truth” is, and then to align everything toward that. Otherwise, we”ll live with inevitable negative. Consequences that follow. Again, they are inevitable because even though values control behaviour, principles control the consequences of behaviour. Moral authority requires the sacrifice of short term selfish interests and the exercise of courage in subordinating social values to principles. And our conscience is the repository of these principles.
Moral authority is the ‘principled’ use of our freedom and power to choose. In other words, if we follow principles in our relationships with each other, we tap into the permission of nature. Natural laws (like gravity) and principles (like respect, honesty, kindness, integrity, service and fairness) control the consequences of our choices. Just as we get polluted air and water, when we consistently violate the environment, so also is trust (which is considered the root of relationships) destroyed when we are consistently unkind and dishonest to people. By the principled, humble use of freedom and power, the humble person obtains moral authority with people, cultures, organizations and entire societies.
Values are social norms --- they are personal, emotional, subjective and arguable. All of us have values. Even criminals have values. The question we must ask ourselves is, “are our values based on principles “? Principles are natural laws, they’re impersonal, factual, objective and self-evident. Consequences are governed by principles, and behaviour is governed by values.
The key task, then, is to determine where “truth” is, and then to align everything toward that. Otherwise, we”ll live with inevitable negative. Consequences that follow. Again, they are inevitable because even though values control behaviour, principles control the consequences of behaviour. Moral authority requires the sacrifice of short term selfish interests and the exercise of courage in subordinating social values to principles. And our conscience is the repository of these principles.
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