The Fine Line
There is a fine line between genius and insanity. Talking to your dog can be therapeutic. Talking to your dog seriously about nuclear physics — that’s crazy. Talking out loud to yourself to get clarity, while you are solving a difficult mechanical problem may seem odd, but talking out loud to yourself during an opera will get you removed from the event itself. Calling the police when you are in trouble is normal. Calling them to get into trouble is abnormal.
Context determines everything. Talking to beings you think might be there, but you cannot see, can raise all sorts of eyebrows. Speaking gently to an unseen Being with your head bowed can be considered prayer. It is all about working within the confines of the appropriate. Who determines what is appropriate is another matter. A man is found praying alone in a garden at three in the morning. He must be a monk or some sort of religious kook. A man is found praying at the same hour of the morning before calling his twelve disciples is called the Son of God.
It is easier to discern genius from insanity in retrospect. A man wins a car race on a racetrack; he is called a champion. He gets killed in a car race on the highway; he gets called a fool. Outcomes skew our view of what is considered appropriate. A man gets killed for his beliefs; he is a hero. He gets killed for someone else’s beliefs; he is considered a victim. It is hard to tell — especially when you are so close to him that you are within the same context.
Jesus was seen as Messiah to some and demon to others. Our frames of reference are not neutral. We are responsible for how well we have put them together. They take some thought, some research, and a whole lot of spiritual discernment. We are more likely to question someone’s actions than we are our own frame of reference. Thus Jesus warned us to “judge not…” — we just do not see as clearly as we think we see. There is a fine line. Look down to see on which side of it you are standing before you speak.
