The Second Step is to believe in a positive alternative. We must believe that we deserve to have a different fate than tribulations. With this we can begin to change our own karma from the negative to the positive. Then collectively we can make a far better future for ourselves; a future with positive anticipation, not one that simply gives in to the doom. Simultaneously, we can use both the power of doubt, and the power of belief to our advantage. We must doubt the negative, and anticipate the positive in its place. Believe not in Armageddon; instead believe in a future of peace and harmony. And if enough of us believe in that, we can make it so.
Mandala of Peace on Earth by Bill M. Tracer Studio
And then take The Third Step; that is to turn our doubts in the negative and beliefs in the positive into action. This is the most important step toward fulfilling the sign of Jonah, and it means changing our ways; to heal a dying Earth and battered Humankind. It means to be a part of bringing about a peaceful world community with respect for the human rights of all people, and with respect for our Mother Earth. It means actively seeking to heal those parts of the Earth, where we have done harm to the ecosystems. It means ending the wars! It means rebuilding that which has been torn down. It means actively changing our lifestyles to expand responsible use of natural resources, no longer squandering them. It means growing our use of alternative energy supplies, including solar, and wind. It means melting away the borders that divide us, and seeing ourselves as citizens of the Earth, one people united worldwide and someday beyond. It means finally and truly loving your neighbor as yourself, and it means stepping up to the realization that ALL people are included as our neighbors. For it to be genuine, no one can be excluded.
Jonah preaching to the Ninevites, by Gustave Dore (d. 1883) (Public domain image)
The Key is in the Permanence of Change
When Jonah delivered God's message to the Ninevites, he predicted the devastation of their culture if they did not repent, and change their behavior. They did repent, and were spared the destruction, at that time. But the ultimate end of their story illustrates that any change of action must be ongoing. Any such change, by necessity, has to be permanent and full time. The Ninevites did not make a permanent alteration to their ways. Their repentance was sadly temporary. In time they returned to their old ways and a few generations after the time of Jonah, their culture was wiped off the face of the Earth. Now, all that is left of them are bad memories, very little crumbling ruins, some poorly constructed incomplete reconstructions, and a few small relics. Is this to be our fate?
It doesn't have to be!
Like the Ninevites had, we now have a choice. Either outcome is open to us. We can alter the path we walk, and begin to clean up the mess we've made thus far, or do nothing and idly watch as the four horsemen run us down. Let's choose change, and bypass Armageddon.
Albrecht Dürer, The Revelation of St John: The Four Riders of the Apocalypse, 1497-98 (Public domain image)
Never forget:
Doubt Armageddon,
Believe in a positive alternative, and
Act on those Doubts and Beliefs with permanent change!
