Salary isn’t just ‘my money.’ It’s money that should be spent considering yourself today, your future self in 10 years, and your future self in 20 years—that is, your future self together. Therefore, my current income is always, in a way, public money. We need to get approval from our future self before spending now. A bright future is only guaranteed if the future self agrees to the spending. It’s inconvenient to spend other people’s money on your own terms, and thinking of your own money the same way you see others’ cherished money will help you develop good habits for the future. I don’t have an exclusive claim to my own money, as if there’s no such thing as my own air in this world. - Joseph’s “just my thoughts”
Jesus taught, “If you got slapped your right cheek, turn the other cheek.” One of the actions that the Jewish Qumran community denied and forbade was “pointing with the left hand.” Violations of this rule brought sanctions from the community. To hit the right cheek means the opponent strikes with an unclean left or right backhand. This cheek slap is deliberately insulting and humiliating rather than merely a pain-inflicting action. Therefore, this teaching of Jesus, “turn the other cheek,” suggests not allowing oneself to be struck by the back of the hand and can signify not being helpless but being active in nonviolent resistance without seeking revenge or retaliation. Perhaps this teaching carries a frightening meaning. - Joseph’s “just my thoughts”