Resolutions

The year is about to change, will I? I’m hearing lots of commercials about exercise equipment and programs, weight loss programs, great deals on makeovers, miracle pills and beauty treatments, the hottest gifts and toys -- all those things that promise to MAKE US HAPPY!! I think it’s kind of strange, that in our minds, we’re led to believe, or have just evolved to believe, that “Holidays” are restricted to only one day or period of time. Read the complete blog at --

https://lives1st.blogspot.com/2017/12/resolutions.html

The Creator’s TOV Standard for Measuring Life

After completing Its first creative act, the Creator observed the light (of life). It measured what It saw by a Standard and the light measured “TOV.” This word is usually translated “good,” but good is a word with a wide range of meanings -- morally excellent; virtuous; righteous; well-behaved; fertile. TOV is a very important word because it is the Creator’s Standard and reveals Its Values. Therefore, we are going to let context and culture define it. Read the complete blog at -- https://wisdomofthebeginnings.blogspot.com/2017/12/the-creators-standard-for-measuring-life.html

The Brain and Human Realities

In the past, we talked about belief systems. Today, we focus on realities. Over the past few years, new scientific discoveries are rewriting textbooks about how the brain functions and the role of the brain in creating the realities through which we view and give meanings to the environments in which we live. Read the complete blog at -- https://lives1st.blogspot.com/2017/12/the-brain-and-human-realities.html

Combining the Facts of Science with the Values of Ancient Wisdom

Science provides facts about what we are. Ancient wisdom provides values options about how to live lives that are mutually inclusive and beneficial. Read complete blog at --

https://lives1st.blogspot.com/2017/12/combining-facts-of-science-with-values.html

Discovering and Comparing Reality Control Centers

Realities are the ways we receive sensory input and give meanings to our perceptions. We created the Reality Control Center tool to help people understand their own Realities. Using this tool provides important benefits. Read complete blog at -- https://lives1st.blogspot.com/2017/12/discovering-and-comparing-reality.html

A Confluence of Conflicting Realities

https://lives1st.blogspot.com/2017/12/a-confluence-of-conflicting-realities.html

Lives 1st or Profits 1st?

When we began our journey over twenty-five years ago, our focus was on religion and in our wildest dreams we could have never imagined what we would discover over the next two and a half decades. Jeffrey Leynor was the rabbi at a Conservative synagogue and I (Jim Myers) was the minister of a nondenominational church. One of the primary things we wanted to understand was how two Jewish sects became two mutually exclusive monotheistic religions – one Jewish and one non-Jewish. But ultimately we learned much more – read entire blog at https://lives1st.blogspot.com/2017/11/lives-1st-or-profits-1st.html

Valuing Lives 1st Requires Examining Religious Belief Systems

Two subjects that most people try to avoid are discussions about politics and religion, especially with strangers. Of course, politics and religion just happen to be two major factors in many of the conflicts and issues that are dividing Americans today. So, if people who live in a democracy won’t or are unable to find mutually beneficial ways to discuss things, how will those conflicts and issues be resolved? Read the complete blog at -- https://lives1st.blogspot.com/2017/11/valuing-lives-1st-requires-examining.html

1825 Days to Teach Infants and Young Children to Trust

Parents, the lessons you teach your children about trust in the first 1,825 days of their lives will drive much of their daily behavior and shape much of what they think, what they say, and what they do for the rest of their lives. New scientific research is transforming the way we understand the role that parenting in the first five years of a child’s life. Read the complete Live 1^st Blog at -- https://lives1st.blogspot.com/2017/11/1825-days-to-teach-infants-and-young.html

Putting Lives 1st in Decision Making

Read the complete blog at -- https://lives1st.blogspot.com/2017/11/putting-lives-1st-in-decision-making.html

Thank God for Disasters???

Why is it that the best of humanity always seems to come out of a crisis, disaster, traumatic event?? Is this the only time we truly feel our connection to others, especially whole groups of people we “hate”, or hate us? 

It’s been very interesting to say the least, watching the posts from Houston. One “redneck” was going on and on about, black people, Latinos, Asians, etc. . . . all working together, helping each other out, looking out for their “neighbors”, and protecting their property and themselves. There was such kindness and concern, such opening of hearts. The rich and famous, brightest stars, godlike sports heroes all giving, becoming involved and coordinating efforts! If someone has been blessed with success, then those blessings were meant to be shared.

Charlottesville and Houston, which one are we? Well, I would say we’re both; we’re the only species on the planet who understands the difference. When our normal -- self-absorbed, constantly consuming, immediately gratified, mostly distracted and indifferent -- lives are disrupted, we come to realize an ancient truth -- We Need Each Other! Who else is there, but others who are enduring the same disaster and without helping one another, we die!

In our Lives 1st Initiative at the TOV Center, we combine ancient values and wisdom with 21st century science. This science is rewriting the book on how our brains function. Research has shown, that humans are wired for fairness, loyalty and compassion. Babies, toddlers and even young children live without prejudice. They have to be taught to discriminate, hate and fear. 

Years ago, I watched a news program about a massive earthquake in Turkey. Greek soldiers were there helping in the rescue efforts. Normally the two groups despise one another. The reaction and coming together after 9/11, Palestinian firefighters working with Israeli firefighters during the forest fires, the looks on the faces of Syrian refugees being bussed and helicoptered to Israeli hospitals for treatment. These types of behaviors reveal who we all are really are!

The Lives 1st Initiative views conflict, crisis and even disaster as catalysts for tremendous growth and transformation. I teach that same idea about grief, loss and recovery as well. When things will never be the same, they can be different. Nothing like going through something that reminds us, that We All Are Interconnected, and We All Bleed Red. What a revelation!

I’ve mentioned before, that in Jewish tradition, we say one blessing when we hear good news and one when we hear bad news, because we truly don’t know the difference.

Disasters? If they help open our eyes, open our hearts and bring out our true nature, which is to Protect, Preserve, Raise Functionality and Increase the Quality of Lives -- then let’s not waste the opportunity to show Love!

Please let us know if you found this information useful

by “Liking” our Facebook Page -- click here .

Donations fund our work.

Please help by donating today – click here.

It’s all about putting Lives 1^st!

Rabbi Jeffrey Leynor

How Fragmented Can We Become?

Whatever the ideological flavor, the underlying message of an impulse driven market-based culture is the same -- as individuals, we were encouraged, both subtly and overtly, to see our interests as distinct from those of the larger society – and, increasingly pressured to put our individual interests, appetites, desires and longings above the interests and needs of the larger society. At what point does this fragmentation of our nation caused by individuals, consumers, corporations, religions, special interests groups, and political parties all seeking their own self-interest undermine the “security of the whole society”? 

http://tovcenter.org

Teens watching, videoing and laughing at drowning man teaches lessons about social media's impact on society

Vicki Panaccione, a Melbourne psychologist who works with children and families, said she has noticed a trend of people becoming "desensitized about what's going on in the world because of everything they're exposed to. It can almost be overwhelming. Kids are being bombarded with all kinds of violence and aggression." Read complete article at https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2017/07/22/drowning-case-teaches-lesson-social-medias-impact-society/502248001/

Student Loan Rates Go Up on Saturday - more to follow.

The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) of the Federal Reserve System makes key decisions about interest rates which control the growth of the United States money supply.

Money and water follow similar laws. Water flows down to the lowest point. Money flows up to the highest return. When the FOMC lowers rates the money supply expands as money flows from Treasury bonds, bills and notes seeking higher rates from other investments. When FOMC raises rates, the US money supply shrinks as fund flow from those other investments back into the Fed to purchase Treasury bonds, bills and notes.  

When FOMC raises rates it affects many things in the private sector -- interest rates on everything from car loans, home mortgages, business loans, student loans, etc. will rise. Interest rates on government securities will also rise, meaning that the federal government will have increased borrowing costs, which means the interest citizens are paying on the national debt will increase too. And many other debt instruments including bonds issued by cities, states, school districts, etc. will have rates going up and citizens having to pay more.

The Federal Reserve raised short-term interest rates by a quarter point at the last meeting of the on Wednesday. It's the Fed's third rate hike since December. On Saturday, July 1, interest rates will rise on new student loans for undergraduates from 3.76 to 4.45 percent. Graduate students aren't spared: Their rates go from 5.31 to 6 percent. Rates were set based on the Treasury Department's May 10 auction of 10-year notes. 

The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) of the Federal Reserve System makes key decisions about interest rates which control the growth of the United States money supply.

Money and water follow similar laws. Water flows down to the lowest point. Money flows up to the highest return. When the FOMC lowers rates the money supply expands as money flows from Treasury bonds, bills and notes seeking higher rates from other investments. When FOMC raises rates, the US money supply shrinks as fund flow from those other investments back into the Fed to purchase Treasury bonds, bills and notes.  

When FOMC raises rates it affects many things in the private sector -- interest rates on everything from car loans, home mortgages, business loans, student loans, etc. will rise. Interest rates on government securities will also rise, meaning that the federal government will have increased borrowing costs, which means the interest citizens are paying on the national debt will increase too. And many other debt instruments including bonds issued by cities, states, school districts, etc. will have rates going up and citizens having to pay more.

The Federal Reserve raised short-term interest rates by a quarter point at the last meeting of the on Wednesday. It's the Fed's third rate hike since December. On Saturday, July 1, interest rates will rise on new student loans for undergraduates from 3.76 to 4.45 percent. Graduate students aren't spared: Their rates go from 5.31 to 6 percent. Rates were set based on the Treasury Department's May 10 auction of 10-year notes.

The US Constitution Article I. Section 8 states that one of the “Powers of Congress” is “To coin Money, regulate the Value thereof . . .” The Federal Reserve is a private corporation owned by banks. Maybe now would be a good time, for all of the folks being saddled with paying the increased cost created by those unelected people raising interest rates, to consider becoming more involved in learning how to use the power that Citizens have to change things like this. What do you think?

More Government! Less Government! Either Way, We Need TOV!

I recently read an article taken from a new book by Nancy MacLean called, “Democracy in Chains”, about James M. Buchanan, a Nobel Prize winning economist who helped shape today's “anti-government politics.” It brought into focus for me, the actions of many politicians and their basic memes and actions.

I won’t go into too much detail, but want to share some of the sacred memes I encountered. Today’s demographics have definitely altered the political landscape. Now nearly four in 10 Americans live in the South, roughly, 122 million people. Texas used to be controlled by Southern Democrats like LBJ. The South is the “cradle of modern conservatism” as the article claims. Some of these ideas can be traced back to the Civil War and the Civil Rights movement. One main meme here is the conviction that, “an ever spreading government bureaucracy” spelled the end of Democracy.

MacLean states that, “during the post-WW2 years, economists were shaping pro-market economics, part of a growing backlash against the policies of the New Deal.” This also forwarded Libertarian Doctrine. The cherished “mores and folkways” were under siege. The enemy now was the government, its Supreme Court and power and the villain of the “Liberal Establishment” (Media, Jews). These were a danger to the freedom loving individuals and their “rights.”" Every individual should be free to associate with persons of their own choosing, not dictated by the State", the sanitized phrasing of the segregationists.

What I found most interesting was her description of how, "We The People”, the public, are the enemy itself, expressed through the tyranny of majority rule. The have-nots preyed on the rich, government-centered clientelism and dependency. Going back to a purer capitalism would basically” declare war on Social Security recipients, veterans, farmers, educators, state and local officials and the housing industry.” 

I can now better understand politicians like Paul Ryan and his “ilk" whose convictions are that the democratic majority can’t be trusted, empowered minorities like the Freedom Caucus, are the true guardians of our liberty and will resort to drastic measures: shutting down the government, defaulting on the national debt and our modern “vetocracy”, - refusing, for example, to bring an immigration bill to a House vote, lest it pass.

MacLean claims that this is not obstructionism, but an upholding of the sanctity of an ideology against the sins of the majority. “This is what drives House Republicans to scale back social programs and shift the tax burden from the 1 percent onto the parasitic mob, or to come up with a health-care plan that would leave Trump’s own voters out in the cold.” Good Samaritanism, helping the unlucky, cushions them against the consequences of their bad choices.

The Rabbinic sages of the Mishnah understood more than two thousand years ago about governments. In tractate Avot in the Mishnah they teach, “Be guarded in your relations with the ruling power, for they who exercise it draw no man near to them except for their own interests, appearing as friends when it is to their own advantage, they stand not by a man in his hour of need.” On the other hand, they were astute observers of human nature, Rabbi Chanina, the Vice-High Priest said, “Pray for the welfare of the government, since but for the fear thereof, men would swallow each other alive.”

Government stands for order, without it there would be chaos and anarchy. Humans need regulation and they also need to always have someone watching -- to what extent should be determined. Otherwise our greed and lust for power leads to misery for the most vulnerable in society, inequality, poverty, war, apathy and the death of Real Creativity.

I have no answers! But Jim Myers and I have an option. We suggest that people adopt a standard like the TOV Standard to judge both the government and the society. We need to ask, are my words, thoughts and actions going to PROTECT LIFE, PRESERVE LIFE, MAKE LIFE MORE FUNCTIONAL AND INCREASE THE QUALITY OF LIFE? Whom and how will our decisions affect others?

We need leaders, who are not afraid to lead, who have integrity and transparency, who don’t use their election for their own personal agenda, to impose their Memes upon everyone else. Representatives that work for justice and who remember they have a conscience and an obligation to The People.

We are all interconnected. We need one another. We are Genetic, Memetic, Social Creatures. The only way to repair the world is through “nourishing our interconnectedness, our creativity our ability to find solutions together.” That’s what the TOV model offers.

If you found this information useful, let me know by “Liking” our Facebook Page -- click here .

I would greatly appreciate your help too. Donate to our work today – click here.

Shalom,

Rabbi Jeffrey Leynor

Become Part of the Solution

CLICK HERE

Guideline for Making Better Decisions and Evaluating Human Actions

We created the TOV Center Guideline for Decision Making & Evaluating Human Actions to increase the number of people doing TOV. We know that when people take time to identify specific lives that will be or were affected by their decisions, it makes a big difference. Most people want to do what is best for other people. Read the complete article and download Guideline at -- http://www.tovcenter.org/decisions.html

Finding Ourselves in the Middle of Nowhere

Once we are thrown out, or walk out of our “Egypt”, what is known, what is familiar, what is habit -- is wiped away. We wonder, where are we, where do we go, what will happen now? In the Biblical context, we enter the Midbar, Wilderness in Hebrew. What’s interesting is that in the Biblical context, when many important individuals and groups encounter their Higher Power, a Deity, or their Highest Self – regardless of which -- everyone and everything is changed – everything is different. The trajectory of life goes in another, unexpected direction.

My observation is that we all go through this process in our own way – on our own journeys. It allows us the freedom and courage to begin again, even in the middle of the Midbar! Sometimes, we find ourselves in the middle of nowhere, and it’s right there in the middle of nowhere that we find ourselves! 

The toughest and most painful thing I do is, work with people who’ve lost a child, and worse, their only child. All the future dreams, hopes, wishes, expectations and anticipations are smashed to pieces. Their role of "Mom and Dad” no longer seems to apply. That is like being in the middle of nowhere!

In my research and observations, I’m many times amazed by the choice of response to these terrible traumas. Not only the courage to move forward, but the creativity and dedication to telling their story and finding meaning and purpose in life again -- by making a difference in the lives of others. I want to share a story gleaned from one of these recent books.

A man lost his twenty-two year old son in an automobile accident. Over the course of his grieving, he wrote a collection of poems about his journey through his loss. He published them in a book called, “Life As a Novice.” When asked about his choice of response, he said writing the book was the “best way of keeping his son’s continued presence in his life.” For him, it was “In the Middle of Nowhere” – “the Place Where He found Himself.”

In Jewish tradition, our custom is to say, “May Their Memory Be for a Blessing.” The best way of doing that is to let the loss lead us through the Midbar -- to do Life giving, Life changing, Life enhancing actions in the name of, or in memory of the one we have lost. It motivates us to find a way to trust in life again. Not everyone will choose these types of responses. Each person must search and be open to whatever it is that tugs upon their heart and soul -- and be willing to follow it.

Though we all struggle with the loss of our loved one in the physical world, we keep alive their continued presence in our lives by doing some of those things they loved and thought were important. It gives us a sense of purpose and keeps those who are no longer here closer to us. So, the next time you find yourself “In the Middle of Nowhere,” you just may “Find Your Way and Yourself!” 

Doing TOV and Choosing Life!

Rabbi Jeffrey Leynor

Please let us know if you found this information useful

by “Liking” our Facebook Page -- click here .

Donations fund our work.

Please help by donating today – click here.

Democracy does not Guarantee Good Outcomes

Many of the things I hear in the news these days remind me of a very informative book I read -- Perpetrators Victims Bystanders: The Jewish Catastrophe 1933-1945 by Raul Hilberg. I highly recommend this book for anyone concerned about the current course of our nation. Germany was a democracy with a 94% Christian population. Haliberg divides the German population into three distinct groups – perpetrators, victims and bystanders. Below are a few points I want to share with you about what happened in that place during that period. (Page numbers are in parenthesis and highlights have been added.)

(1) (The Holocaust) was an event that was experienced by a variety of perpetrators, a multitude of victims, and a host of bystanders. These three groups were distinct from one another and they did not dissolve in their lifetime. Each saw what had happened from its own, special perspective, and each harbored a separate set of attitudes and reactions. (p. ix)

(2) Perpetrators were the people who played a specific role in the formulation or implementation of anti-Jewish measures. In most cases, a participant understood his function, and he ascribed it to his position and duties. What he did was impersonal. He had been empowered or instructed to carry out his mission. (p. ix)

(3) No one man and no one organization was solely responsible for the destruction of the Jews. No single budget was allocated for this purpose. The work was diffused in a widespread bureaucracy, and each man could fee that his contribution was a small part of an immense undertaking. (p. ix)

(4) An administrator, clerk, or uninformed guard never referred to himself as a perpetrator. He realized, however, that the process of destruction was deliberate, and that once he had stepped into this maelstrom, his deed would be indelible. In this sense, he would always be what he had been, even if he remained reticent or silent about what he had done. (p. ix)

(5) The first and foremost perpetrator was Adolf Hitler himself. He was the supreme architect of the operation; without him it would have been inconceivable. (p. ix)

(6) Hitler was always in the limelight, but most of the labor was carried out in the shadows by a vast establishment of familiar functionaries and ascending newcomers. In this conglomeration, some men displayed eagerness, while others had doubts. Within the leadership there were many professionals, including ubiquitous lawyers and indispensable physicians. (p. ix)

(7) Unlike the perpetrators, the victims were perpetually exposed. They were identifiable and countable at every turn. (p. x)

(8) To be defined as Jews, they only had to have had Jewish parents or grandparents. Discriminatory laws and regulations dealt in great detail with such problems as partners in mixed marriages, individuals with mixed parentage, and enterprises with mixed ownership. With each successive step, the gulf became wider. The Jews were marked with a star, and their contacts with non-Jews were minimized, formalized, or prohibited. (p. x)

(9) Segregated in houses, ghettos, or labor camps, they were spatially isolated and concentrated. Beyond these barriers, the war cut off continental European Jewry from Jewish communities and Allied governments in the outside world. (p. x)

(10) The Jewish victims had leaders, and these individuals, occupying positions in hundreds of Jewish councils, have attracted much attention. The victims as a whole, however, have remained an amorphous mass. (p. x)

(11) Millions of Jews suffered a common fate in front of pre-dug graves or in the hermetically sealed gas chambers. The death of these Jews has become their most important attribute. They are remembered mainly for what happened to them all, and for this reason there has been some inhibition about segmenting them, systematically into component categories. (p. x)

(12) Most contemporaries of the Jewish catastrophe were neither perpetrators nor victims. Many people, however, saw or heard something of the event. Those of them who lived in Adolf Hitler’s Europe would have described themselves, with few exceptions, as bystanders. They were not “involved,” not willing to hurt the victims and not wishing to be hurt by the perpetrators. (p. xi)

(13) Much was determined by the character of the individual, particularly if it was an unusual or extraordinary character. (p. xi)

(14) Even if one looked away, asked no questions, and refrained from talk in public, a dull awareness remained. The disappearance of the Jews, or the appearance of their property, was a signal of what was happening. (p. 195)

Powerful political leaders only carry out their agendas through the actions of some and inactions of others. Hitler did not personally round up people, place them on railroad cars, determine who would go to the gas chambers or be shot, carry out the administrative duties, file the papers, write the checks, sweep the floors, etc.

I would like to add another group to the three identified by Haliberg – Protectors. It is essential for citizens at all levels of a democratic society to be vigilant and aware of how their roles affect other human lives. Please share this information and engage in discussions about the points above. Shalom!

Please let us know if you found this information useful

by “Liking” our Facebook Page -- click here .

Donations fund our work.

Please help by donating today – click here.

America has a Chronic BS Problem

CLICK HERE

Parenting Lessons from the First Murder of the Bible

There is no question about who committed the murder – Cain murdered Abel! But when we look at the entire context of the story, which began in Genesis 1:1, it raises some interesting questions like these -- Did Cain understand the potential consequences of his actions? Was it possible for Cain to even understand what murder was? Keep in mind no human had witnessed or experienced at this point in the text. This was a first in human history. Read complete article at -- http://www.tovcenter.org/parenting_01.html

Is your belief system large enough?

Jim Myers created this guideline in the late 1980s as a guide for people to use in his Bible studies when disagreements arose over conflicting beliefs. It is now the Primary Guideline of the Biblical Heritage Center and the TOV Center. If you agree please share it.

Biblical Heritage Center

TOV Center

The End is Near

CLICK HERE

Living in an Empire of Illusion

The following points are great topics for TOV Center “Must Have Conversations.” Their source is the book Empire of Illusion: The End of Literacy and the Triumph of Spectacle by Chris Hedges.

● A culture dominated by images and slogans seduces those who are functionally illiterate but who make the choice not to read.

● Propaganda has become a substitute for ideas and ideology.

● Knowledge is confused with how we are made to feel.

● Commercial brands are mistaken for expressions of individuality.

● And in this precipitous decline of values and literacy, among those who cannot read and those who have given up reading, fertile ground for a new totalitarianism is being seeded.

● The culture of illusion thrives by robbing us of the intellectual and linguistic tools to separate illusion from truth. It reduces us to the level and dependency of children. It impoverishes language.

Let us know if you liked this blog by “Liking” our Facebook Page -- click here .

Visit our website at – http://tovcenter.org .

For more information about or to purchase this book click here.

Fundamental Truths about Human Beings

Daniel Jonah Goldhagen’s book Worse Than War: Genocide, Eliminationism and the Ongoing Assault on Humanity contains valuable insights about human actions, like the one below:

Fundamental truths about human beings:

(1) People make choices about how to act, even if they do not choose the context in which they make them.

(2) People make these choices according to their understanding of the social world and their views of what is right and wrong, good and evil, and of their own understanding of how the world is to be shaped and governed, even if different contexts make some choices more or less plausible, or easier or more difficult to choose.

(3) People ultimately are the authors of their own actions because humans are fundamentally beings with a moral dimension [which does not mean we endorse their moral views], and they are so because the human condition is one of agency, namely the capacity and burden of being able to choose to say yes, which means also being able to say no.

For more information or to purchase this book click here.

Please let us know if you found this information useful by “Liking” our Facebook Page -- click here & visit our website at – http://tovcenter.org too.

Choose Life by Doing TOV!

The Truth About Trust

A great book to add to your reading list is The Truth About Trust: How It Determines Success in Life, Love, Learning, and More by David DeSteno, PhD © 2014; Hudson Street Press, New York, NY. We highly recommend this book. Here are some very insightful quotes (highlights added):

● Can I trust you? This question — this set of four simple words — often occupies our minds to a degree few other concerns can. It’s a question on which we exert a lot of mental effort — often without our even knowing it — as its answers have the potential to influence almost everything we do. Unlike many other puzzles we confront, questions of trust don’t just involve attempting to grasp and analyze a perplexing concept. They all share another characteristic: risk.

● At the base of trust is a delicate problem centered on the balance between two dynamic and often opposing desires – a desire for someone else to meet your needs and his desire to meet his own. Trust is about trying to predict what someone will do based on competing interest and capabilities.

● The more we examine vacillations in emotions and moral behavior, the more we realize that trust often played a central role.

● Trust influences more than most of us would have imagined. It affects how we learn, how we love, how we spend, how we take care of our health, and how we maximize our well-being.

● At the most basic level, the need to trust implies one fundamental fact: you are vulnerable. The ability to satisfy your needs or obtain the outcomes you desire is not entirely under your control.

● Trust isn’t about finding the perfect strategy – there isn’t one. It’s about realizing that selfishness and cooperation, disloyalty and trustworthiness, exist in an ever-changing equilibrium. It’s always been that way; it always will.

● If you truly wanted to avoid the risks inherent in trusting other people while still benefiting from cooperation, there is really only one route: transparency.

Please let us know if you found this information useful by “Liking” our Facebook Page -- click here & visit our website at – http://tovcenter.org too.

Choose Life by Doing TOV!

The Mystery of the Seventh Day

The First Creation Account in the book of Genesis opens and closes with mystery.  It opens with the mystery of what existed before the beginning and closes with the mystery of the Seventh Day. Mystery is a challenge for members of religions that have all of the answers and raising questions about things that do not line up with the official doctrines as avoided. The way we study the biblical text is to let it tell its own story, even if those stories disagree with what believe. Read our conversation about this very interesting mystery at – http://www.tovcenter.org/seventh-day.html

Switching From Mutually Exclusive Theologies to Mutually Inclusive Values

I wanted to share something from an email conversation with you, because I think it reflects some very important things that I believe are on the minds of a lot of people these days. Below are quotes from an email I received:

“I have so much to learn it is overwhelming........and even more overwhelming is how much I need to unlearn . . . One day at a time is hard for me because in 10 years I will be 85 and then another ten I'll be 95 . . . Anyway, I am willing to put in the time to learn because I know I am stuck in a place teeming with wrong theology and I want to be rid of all the delusions, lies, and half-lies . . .”

This is my reply:

“I know where you are coming from on the reality that most of my life is behind me. But I also live with the fact that I can only live in the present moment, i.e., one day at a time. As I get older, the law of supply and demand kicks in -- with fewer days ahead each one becomes more valuable. The question for me is how can I best invest each day in something that reflects that value?

In order to answer it requires an understanding of my values -- what are my highest values. At the point in life when my awareness of the value of my time is the highest, the desire to invest it in what I value the most is the greatest. To do that I have to know what my highest values are. 

Ultimately for me I had to work my way through the process of identifying the key memes of my reality, two of which were cornerstones of my theology -- "God" and "Jesus". The TOV Center process switched my focus from "proving who or what they are (theology)" to "what did they value the most." My conclusion, based on the Hebrew and Greek texts available to me (and my team), is their highest values are identical: TOV, MISHPAT & TZEDAQAH. All three place human life as the highest value and top priority. However, understanding what those words mean requires more than a simple dictionary definition . . . For me the bottom line is switching for living in a reality based on mutually exclusive theologies to one based on mutually beneficial values.”

We created the TOV Center to help people learn about this process so they will be able to apply it to their realities and make their lives safer, happier, healthier and more inclusive by creating and maintaining values-based relationships. For more information about it visit our website at – http://tovcenter.org . Please feel free to share this with others who may benefit from it.

Shalom,

Jim Myers

TOV Center News & Updates January 30, 2017

Welcome to the TOV Center

We are a Values-Based non-profit organization that promotes the adoption of TOV Values above other Values Option -- including profits first or non-transparent unexamined Religious, Political & Economic Belief Systems. The highest TOV Value is Human Life.

We have been actively engaged in building our website over the past few months, as you may have noticed. If you haven't dropped by the last few days or so, go to the TOV Center Website and take the tour by following the graphics.

TOV Gatherings & Conversations
Humans have Two Power Options and one of our primary goals is to help people empower themselves by engaging in various types of conversations as observers and participants. You will be receiving new information about this in future TOV Center News & Updates. Be sure to check out the TOV Center Conversations that are now online. They will introduce you to the basic information and vocabulary terms needed to interact in TOV Gatherings & Conversations.

We hope you will join our journey of making lives safer, better, happier, healthier and more fulfilled.

Jeffrey Leynor & Jim Myers
Co-Founders