Will the world to come be better for all or only some?

ONE IS amazed at the number of religious terms we use in our everyday conversations.

As an example, I recently came across the meaning of the terms “Pharisees” and “pharisee”.

Pharisees was a sect at the time of Christ that was very strict in keeping to tradition and the laws of religion.

The term pharisee, obviously derived from the first one, is given to a person who makes a show of his religion rather than following its spirit. Such folks are also referred to as formalists and hypocrites. They furthermore consider themselves much better than others.

Other terms are sodomites, people who practise sodomy, derived from the ancient wicked Bible city Sodom, which was destroyed together with Gomorrah; Angel of Death, writing on the wall, those not for us are against us, and many many more.

These are all Biblical terms. Our brothers and sisters of other faiths can enlighten us as to their religious contributions to enrich our spoken and written language.

When one considers the mess our world finds itself in, it is difficult to understand how we got here, considering most people consider themselves members of one of these religions, and claim to practise high moral standards.

American presidents are fond of referring to themselves and their nation, as the “good guys” fighting the “bad guys”. Did we realise when we played “crooks and cowboys” when we were boys, that one day our choices would determine who we are?

Or are we all just pharisees, hypocrites, hoping to make it to the good place one day?

It's a strange, strange world we live in. Will the one hereafter be better for all of us, or some of us? KOERT MEYER | WELGELEGEN