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From the Chaplain's Desk

From FOMO to JOMO

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 COLLEGE PARK, MD –

Many of us are familiar with the term FOMO: fear of missing out. We’re afraid to miss out on all sorts of things big and small.

It is a term that has gained traction in our social media crazed society.

FOMO drives us. It is very often a seminal reason behind the actions we take. Young people can fall into the trap of fear of missing out on their youth, relationships, risk behaviors and experiences, etc.

Older people easily fall into fear of missing out on degrees, cars, homes, families, social status, and the like.
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It is Quite Exhilarating

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COLLEGE PARK, MD –

Living deliberately – to deliberate over our condition, form conclusions, and make decisions based on those conclusions – should be a goal for all of us.

It’s the difference between being our own person and being someone else’s.

We’ve touched on one of the impediments to living deliberately before – not being able to make decisions.

The gist of that previous reflection is that many of us can’t make decisions because we lack principles that are prerequisites to decision-making.

But, even those with the principles to make a decision often get tripped up at the point of execution.

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The Blindness of Ignorance

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COLLEGE PARK, MD –

If we’d like to understand a mode of being or attitude, it usually helps to look at the forefathers of that mode or attitude. One mode of being or attitude I’m sure none of us would like to exhibit is one of ignorance.

In order to successfully avoid this ineffective trait, we can look to ignorance’s father – Abu Jahl – to find out his habits, and run far away from them.
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Eventually, We Come Around

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COLLEGE PARK, MD –

Privilege-sharing is back on the docket this morning.

The most common reaction to those that attempt to share their privilege is rejection. Sharing privilege is work – for the giver and the recipient.

As we all know, once work is required most of us will attempt to skirt it. If we were honest about that reality there wouldn’t be much of a problem.

The issue arises when people are not willing to simply admit that they are not up to the huge task of getting to work on improvements for themselves, to admit that they don’t value getting better that much.
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A Lot Better Than Car Sharing

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COLLEGE PARK, MD –

A belated Happy Eid of Sacrifice to all our dear readers. I hope it was a joyous time for everyone and a time of reflection on what the holiday signifies.

I find there to be a poignant nexus between sacrifice and the topic of privilege-sharing we discussed last week. Sharing privilege is certainly a sacrifice, but sacrifices don’t entail our ending up with less.

Please humor me as I take the scenic route in describing what I’m thinking.
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