"Fear not" - the danger of fear as a motivator

A Christian Reads the Tao te Ching

Chapter 72 doesn't really offer an obvious interpretation at the first reading. The variations between translations and the disjunctions between the sections makes it a bit complex. Fortunately, there is a common theme that the most traditional interpretations tend to agree on, and then as always we will take a bit of liberty and move in a more creative and relatable direction. I start the episode sharing some thoughts about fear as a basic emotion and my own experience with panic attacks, then I work through the chapter from two approaches:

1. Leaders should not use fear as a motivation - heavy-handed and authoritarian leadership based on intimidation or control is dangerous and unhealthy

2. A religion without fear? What could it look like to remove "fear" from our theological vocabulary?
Here's my article on why I don't believe in hell that I mention briefly: https://www.coreyfarr.com/post/i-don-t-believe-in-hell-does-that-mean-i-m-going-there

See more at www.coreyfarr.com

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