Seven Laws of Successful Correction and Rehabilitation: A Case Against Prison

By Mike M. Joseph

Its a troubled world we live in. It was meant to be utopia, yet we are busy messing it up. At all levels of government we seem to do our best to throw a monkey wrench at the system we devised for our good, not our own hurt. The legislators are ever busy opposing each other, yet expect to run the day-to-day affairs smoothly. The American fathers of the constitution chose the least of evil of all forms of government, but the element of human nature seems to make it, at best, a dysfunctional system on many levels. Without an agreed upon system of values, accepted by all members of society, its impossible to run a smooth government as it is prerequisite for the function of life.

Since education is the basis that determines the outcome of life, we shall concentrate on this dimension that leads to either success or failure in all areas. To begin our search for the causes that create a utopian society, we shall address first roll of the parents, especially the mother, in the success or failure of a human beings. Next, we shall go to the school system the surrogate parent and examine its roll in molding the young plants our children. Finally, we shall address the roll of the society at large. In these three areas we shall find the causes of success and failures of life. Then, we shall proceed to the solutions that will insure the way to success in all areas the dreamed of utopia.

Utopia is possible! We dont have to be ridden with the ills of society, with crime, with violence, with wars, with political corruption. In the beginning it was not so, in the end it can, and will, be different if we are willing to submit to the process of re-education, all is possible.

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse
• Release date: Mar 21, 2013
• ISBN: 9781481729017

Mike M. Joseph

Mike M. Joseph was born in 1944 to a strict Biblically oriented Orthodox Jewish family in British Aden, Yemen.  In 1949, his entire family moved to Israel, after a local Arab pogrom took the lives of his mother and three other brothers.  In 1963 the author moved to Paris, France to study French and work in the fashion industry.  In late 1965 the author moved to New York where, about four years later, a change in his religious convictions led him to a community practicing both the Old and New Testament teachings and laws of the Bible.   From 1970-1975 the author served on the faculty of a local private college in Pasadena, California – teaching both modern and Biblical Hebrew to students and ministers on Sabbatical year.  At the same time, the author attended classes and graduated with a B.A. degree in Liberal Arts – with a major in Theology.  After graduation in 1975, and later ordination, Mr. Joseph began his service in the Field Ministry in the Pasadena area congregations.   Through the years, Mr. Joseph has published three books and dozens of articles about Biblical, historic, and human relationships subjects.  He presently attends a local congregation in the West valley area of San Fernando Valley, California.  The author also teaches a Bible Law Series from the Old and New Testaments on the internet website:  www.teachingthelaw.org.  

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© 2013 by Mike M. Joseph. All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

Scripture taken from the New King James Version.

Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Published by AuthorHouse 03/16/013

ISBN: 978-1-4817-2900-0 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4817-2902-4 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-4817-2901-7 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2013904787

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

ORDER OF CHAPTERS

Dedication

Foreword

Chapter 1

Home Factory—The Craddle Of Society

Chapter 2

School Factory—The Hotbed Of The Future

Chapter 3

Workplace—The Grinding Arena

Chapter 4

Military Machine—A Factory Of Yellow Pencils

Chapter 5

Marriage Arena—Until Divorce Us Part?

Chapter 6

Results Of Satan’s Heinous Crime

Chapter 7

Sex And Worship—Bible Style

Chapter 8

Cultivation Of The Arts Of Life And Love From Childhood

Chapter 9

The Song Of Songs Or The Song Of Solomon

Chapter 10

The Ideal Sexual Intercourse

Chapter 11

Seven Laws Of Successful Correction And Rehabilitation

Chapter 12

A Case Against Prison

Bibliography

Books and lecture series by this author:

Middle East: Blueprint for the Final Solution.

Subtitle: The Coming Fall and Rise of Western Democracy. (710 pages)

Http://www.authorhouse.com/bookstore/ItemDetail.aspx?bookid=16130

Conspiracy Against Divine Sexuality.

Subtitle: It all Started in Eden.

Published under the pen name Moran M Judson

Http://www.authorhouse.com/bookstore/ItemDetail.aspx?bookid=19260

Sorry . . . ! There is no afterlife!

Subtitle: None Goes to Heaven or Hell!

Http://www.authorhouse.com/bookstore/ItemDetail.aspx?bookid=49812

Jerusalem’s Temple Mount: The Hoax of the Millennium!

Http://www.authorhouse.com/bookstore/ItemDetail.aspx?bookid=344682

Seven Laws of successful Correction and Rehabilitation: A Case against Prison.

Http://www.authorhouse.com/bookstore/ItemDetail.aspx?bookid=49812

Hotline orders: 1-888-280-7715

Teaching The Law Series (OT & NT)

Website: www.teachingthelaw.org

Over 700 lessons—free to download.

Albert Einstein once said: If at first the idea is not absurd, then there is no hope for it.

DEDICATION

The author dedicates this work to all of those who fall prey to the vindictive and often hateful spirit that is, tragically, the hallmark of many of us who comprise the human race. Most of us, when hurt, seek to ‘remedy’ and sooth our hurts by demanding the proverbial pound of flesh. We want to kick ass. We want to chew the offender by calling on the carpet the person who ruffled our feathers. We want to clip their wings and put them in their proper place. All of us, at one time or another, were victimized by this unbridled disease of the human spirit. And it’s also true: all of us give in to this base element of human nature when the positive ingredients of our nature are shoved aside. None is innocent! We need to know what made us this way, how to rectify it—and, above all, the pleasant and healing ingredients of this journey that would lead us to total wholeness of our heart, mind and spirit.

For those who do not wish to remain this way but are willing to remodel their negative state of affairs, to brighten their life; to those who are open to a more positive and pleasant possibility for addressing our hurts, resolving our conflicts, and achieving the best results for the benefit of all parties concerned, there are good news and better options. In the following pages of this book we shall consider and examine this better Way, or as referred to in old times, The Royal Law and High Road.

In memory of my mother Hannah—shot and later bled to death, in an Arab hospital, at age 29; my older brother Shalom—shot and killed at the age of 8 by Arab policemen; my older brother Moshe—poisoned to death by a Muslim pharmacist before reaching his first birthday; my younger brother Herzel—also poisoned to death by the same Muslim pharmacist before reaching his first birthday. All lost their lives by the hands of other children of Abraham in the city of Aden—because they happened to be of the Jewish faith, and because of the ever present vindictive spirit in many hearts. These events took place before this author had reached the tender age of 4 years old. May they all inherit the coming peace to all the children of Abraham, and sit together, reconciled, with their former destroyers and Children of the Sword.

FOREWORD

It was about 35 years ago, yet still I do remember it as if it was but yesterday. The chaplain of the Los Angeles County Jail had extended an invitation to our church pastor and two of his assistants—yours truly included—to visit the downtown L.A. facility. It was a hot summer day but fairly cool inside the jail facility. We were welcomed warmly by the County Jail’s chaplain, whose name I cannot remember, but this haunting scene I do vividly remember: the iron cage! The cage was about eight square foot long and was located not far from the entrance to the highly populated large prison. On one side, to my right, a fairly peaceful scene could be observed of prisoners going about their business, either to the showers, cells or the kitchen facility. On the left side there was the cage; it didn’t look peaceful. I was mesmerized by the presence of this cage, and more so by the one occupying it. He seemed to be like a young man in his late twenties. His face was unshaven and his hair unkempt. He was leaning on the heavy bars with both his hands extended outside of his small cage and staring straight at me. I was only few feet away from him, yet a world apart. His eyes were full of deeply profound hatred and fury at those outside his cage, and who could forget those blazing eyes! Whatever the nature of his crime, no matter how faulty his upbringing may have been in his youth, he was still a human being! He must have been a very dangerous and violent criminal to be placed, like a caged animal, in that lonely cell. Still, he was, first and foremost, a human being!

I had a little struggle going on in my mind at that point, when our eyes crossed and lingered momentarily on the facial expression of each other. I wanted, on one hand, to walk over to him, touch his hand and assure him that despite his actions I still regard him as a human being, not an animal. On the other hand, I was bound by the prison rules not to mingle too closely with the Jail inmates. You see, at this point we call them inmates not human beings or a fellow brother, sister, father, friend or a relative. Though they were derailed by their own actions, still, they are human beings in need of proper and successful human correction, rehabilitation, and complete reconciliation. There is no justified time when the dignity of a human being should be trampled under! There is a high road we can travel. This road is the better Way and The Royal Law that shows us the path, from the beginning, of a caring human process to resolve a conflict to its successful completion that would lead to a total reconciliation. But alas, the spirit of vindictiveness, deeply ingrained in many of us, from our youth, does not allow us to see and employ the better Way. But, O, how do we seek the better Way when our own human dignity is trampled under and cast down to the ground!

The sight of that dreadful cage and its human inhabitant, even though a dangerous criminal, takes me back, in a flash back, to that fearful night in my childhood—sixty year ago. I was about eight years old at the time, a little mischievous, yet mostly innocent in demeanor. We lived in an area full of orange groves and other citrus fruits. There was no fence around it, though it did belong to someone and we didn’t know who he was but, surely, his oranges were most delicious. It was dark, around eight o’clock P.M., and my friend and I decided to enter the inviting orchard area to pick some delicious oranges. We did, and we had fun. Suddenly, we heard unwelcome noises approaching in our directions. My friend, being smarter than I, took off and quickly disappeared into the dark of the night. I was paralyzed with fear and decided to hide under an orange tree; it was not smart. The night guard quickly found me and immediately began pouncing on me mercilessly—a skinny, defenseless and little eight years old. I pleaded for mercy, but to no avail. He pulled me by the ear all the way to his house deep in the middle of the orchard. He opened a large door that seemed to be some sort of a storage place and threw me in. There was no light in that place, but someone else was there—a smelly donkey. It was a little relief to share a stinking room with the donkey rather than with the cruel guardian of the unfenced orange grove.

I was a little mischievous Jew; the guardian was an Arab, and not too polite and kind. He entered his home, sat down for dinner, fellowshipped with his wife and children, and just took his time. I heard a cheerful laughter and joyful voices of adults and children; there were sounds of dishes and cutlery—a serene atmosphere. Meanwhile in the barn, I was, needless to say, not a happy camper. It was me, the smelly donkey, a silent darkness and the pounding of my heart. Since the heartless guard locked the door behind me, I could not entertain the thought of a quick escape. In fear and tears I waited for my fate to be revealed. Finally, after a long period of time that seemed like eternity, the most unfriendly guard, to put it mildly, came out of his house, opened the barn, ordered me out and tied my hands with a thick rope—something he would never entertain doing to one of his children. He then fetched his bicycle, tied me to it, climbed on his bicycle and rode towards the police station about two miles away. I was forced to run after him until we got to the police station where I was ‘deposited’ into the hands of, thankfully, a more civilized and kinder Jewish Policeman. I was kept there until my uncle, who lived nearby, and had friends at that police station, showed up to fetch me. The town I lived in at the time was a mix of Israeli and Arab population that peacefully lived side by side. Not everybody was nasty at that town!

This was my only ‘prison’ experience, thankfully, but it left me wondering—why? I did not understand at the time the ugly nature of vindictiveness and malice that is lodged deep in the heart of many human beings. Why did the guard, whose duty was to guard the orchard, have to treat me, a mere eight years old, in that manner? I deserved to be corrected and punished for my unlawful action—that I fully understood and accepted, but still I was a human being! The guard, like many others, did not consider that a valid reason for extending me some humane treatment. How could he behave in such an unkindly manner, I often pondered? How can other people, at all levels of society, forsake their humanity when in need of correcting an offender? When the heart and conscience, when love and a little consideration for a fellow human being is lacking; when the spirit of I am my brother’s keeper is jaded and cold, because we ourselves have been abused, well, that’s the way we behave!

I know and am sure: had I been the son, brother, or a loved member of the guard’s family, his behavior would have been entirely different—but I was not! If the legislator or judge, the prosecutor or juror, the police officer or prison guard had to deal with an offender—one who is also a loved member of the family—their attitude and treatment of that offender would have been different. But when the spirit of Cain, who slew his brother and audaciously quipped, Am I my brother’s keeper is deeply lodged in many of them, then no wonder why crime and offenses are, like cancer, infest the very fabric of society. When you desire a pound of flesh, you may end up handing over one of your own flesh to the one who ‘loves’ you just as you have ‘loved’ him! As they say, what goes around comes around. It is a law of the universe; it is a dictate of the Royal Law. Learn, before it’s too late, to do unto others as you would have them do unto you.

Consider! A member of your family, a friend or just a good neighbor, because of bad eating habits or smoking, or the likes, is taken very ill. He or she should have known better: every ill and careless action invites ill consequences! What’s your first reaction? You had it coming; you deserve it; I want a pound of flesh, or let me take you to the hospital, not court or jail, and then let you rot there. Of course not!

Even enemies on the battleground or the offender in a car crash are first given the human-touch-treatment, because they are first and foremost fellow human beings, and only after they are an enemy or a convict!

Consider! When the offender, one whom you don’t know—be it in bad eating habits, smoking, or a careless driver crashing his car and damaging lives is taken to the hospital for treatment, not to jail, what is the reaction of the hospital staff or the surgeon towards the offender? Is he yelled at; is he chewed up or required to hand over a pound of flesh? Does anyone quip, You had it coming; you got what you deserve? Of course not! We do not forsake our humanity at that point, nor do we rob the offender of his or her humanity or self respect and dignity. We still remember: they are, after all and despite their erring behavior, still members of the human race—just like us.

There are Doctors without borders, which means: the patient is neither an enemy nor a convict, just a human being in need, first and foremost, of the caring human touch. This does not negate the need, which is handled by others, to address and deal with the offense! We should not bypass or neglect the proper and caring steps that lead to a successful correction, rehabilitation, and most importantly, a total reconciliation! In the absence of the latter part or ingredients, which a vindictive society withholds from those who offend, the penalty would, ultimately, be paid by both offender and offended. It is a lose-lose deal instead of a win-win outcome. Under such circumstances no offender does ever pay his dues to society. A vindictive society insures, by its lack of understanding of the causes and best solutions to resolve offenses, a sure failure and increased harm to itself. It is unaware, and therefore ignores the Laws of Successful Correction and Rehabilitation, as well as the final vital step of reconciliation. In doing so, it is equally responsible for the promotion and perpetuation of crime in the land. These offenses are committed in all kinds of human relationships. They are committed in marriages, families, schools, friendships, among nations, and in the work place. Consequently, we are all paying for it in many ways. We all fail to utilize the Laws of Successful Correction and Rehabilitation, as well as the most important one, that of Reconciliation. We do that to our own hurt.

The System, at all levels of society—be it the family, the school, the workplace or the judicial arena—is infested with built-in ingredients that guarantee its sure failure on many levels. All parties deal mainly with the symptoms rather than the causes of the offenses—much less the successful and best ways to deal with them to the benefit of all, not just the few. We need to know the causes of all hurts and offenses. We must educate ourselves and find out the best solutions. We should be willing to take the journey that takes us on the High Road of life to success and happiness, not failure and misery. We can free ourselves from the man-made prison created around our minds and hearts. The way and solutions are there, and for free. If we want, yes we can, as some would say!

For those who are blessed with an open and objective mind—be they spiritual, religious, atheists or otherwise—the following pages may prove to be instructive, or at least, good food for thought. None has to agree, partially agree, or mostly agree with the contents of the thoughts and ideas presented herein before the unbiased reader. Still, all can agree that our society is lacking and could use some improvements, fresh thoughts or solutions. In the following chapters we shall encounter many causes and solutions—pleasant in nature—and the way to achieve them for the benefit of all concerned.

We shall begin our journey into the possibilities of improving our short life on planet earth by visiting the ‘Factory’ or the place where it all, long ago, started: the Home. We shall label it: The Home Factory. After that we shall visit the school, the workplace, the marriage arena, the military world, the community at large, and finally, the broken judicial system, which begins with the legislator and ends with the prison guard. We shall discuss ways to improve and perfect the child in us from day one into adulthood. We shall explore, at length, the Seven Laws of Successful Correction and Rehabilitation that should lead to a total restoration and reconciliation between the offender and the offended. Finally, we shall make a Case against Prison." Let us find out how sane we really are and, most importantly, how to land a hand in healing ourselves!

CHAPTER 1

HOME FACTORY—THE CRADDLE OF SOCIETY

In the beginning there was the Home! It is the Factory where ‘human parts’ that make our personality, nature, traits or character are formed, groomed, molded and fashioned. Someone famous once wrote, All I know, I have learned in my first two years at home. So much of what we are made of—our intellectual, emotional, linguistic or spiritual ‘body-parts’ or human make-up—are forged and molded In the beginning, in the Home Factory. If we do not know where we came from, the nature and make-up of our Home Factory and its ‘employees,’ we do not know why we behave the way we do, much less how to mend it.

It is important to consider the nature and basics that make a good factory! A factory produces products; by nature of things, they must be good. It must use superior quality materials to manufacture superior products. If the machinery or equipment in that factory is of a superior quality, so would the product be. But that’s not all! The workers and administration of that factory must also be of a superior quality; they must aspire to produce and achieve the highest standards possible, without ‘cutting corners,’ in manufacturing their superior products. They all must be very skilled and properly trained; they are workers who would not be ashamed to place their personal signature on their products. In the absence of these prerequisites, no superior product would be produced in that factory. The same principles are applicable to the Home Factory, the School Factory, as well as the private and political arenas that churn up their human products. As the saying goes, Garbage in, garbage out. Bear this in mind as we proceed through the pages of this book!

We must know the nature of the main ‘Factory workers, as well as their ‘eternal’ impact on us. We must investigate the source of their positive or negative ingredients and their impact in our life—past the first two years, where we have learned all we know about life. It’s a fact of life, at least in most cases, the dominant force in our early life, and often throughout adulthood, is the Mother. As Mother Earth determines the nature of our physical nourishment, our environment and well-being, so does Mom determines, predominantly, our emotional, mental, and to a great degree, our physical well being. We are mostly under the care of Mom, by far, from the moment of conception to birth, through childhood and young adulthood. At times, even beyond that. Now and then we hear some TV or radio personalities ask those being interviewed, Do you want to say something to the folks back home? The reply is mostly, Hi Mom."

Yes, Mom is the dominant force in our life. Before birth, a child is totally dependent on his Mom for everything. After birth Mom is the source of food that nourishes her baby. During the early years of every child, Mom is there 24/7 to provide for every need of her child. Dad, In contrast, is more of a ‘visitor’ that comes and goes, but Mom is there to stay. She is everything to the tender and totally depended helpless child, and so it is most natural that the child’s bonds with the mother are far closer and strongest.

The newborn not only receives his nourishing food from his mother but also the makeup of his very nature, his emotions and traits which would affect him for the rest of his or her life. Mom transfers to her child, from the womb, her emotional DNA. The child absorbs it during the vulnerable period when he can’t tell the difference between right and wrong; between good or bad. For the rest of his life he has to wrestle with the impact of his Mom’s emotional transfusion. If the emotional DNA was pleasant and positive, his life would bear fruits that would positively affect his world and future offspring. If the emotional DNA was negative in nature, he has two choices: to remain a victim and victimize others, or to seek the High Road and chart his own course in life. It may be difficult, but not impossible. As the saying goes, He who says I can’t, he can’t; he who says I can, he can.

It’s all a matter of perspective! As we think, so we act!

The question must be asked, and honestly so: Is Mom a good force and influence or a bad one? Does she possess all the superior emotional, mental and spiritual qualities to pass on to her child? Was she fully educated and prepared for raising children, for motherhood. After all, as goes the mother, so goes the society. Was she a Rolls-Royce or a third grade car? These are awkward and painful questions but must be asked to verify the ‘quality’ and ‘credentials’ of Mom. Of course Dad has a great part in the Home Factory, but the mother, often, by far, has a greater share in the outcome. She determines the nature of the society to a greatest extent, either for good or bad. Of course, other factors and influences in the growing child’s life may add, improve, or alter the still developing nature of the child. Abusive siblings may greatly and negatively impact the nature of the growing child. Their negative influence would adversely affect his relationships outside his home. Nevertheless, the impact Mom had on the child in his or her formative years cannot be annulled or eradicated easily.

Behind every great man there is a great woman (Mom, wife), it is often said. Why? Mom or the woman in man’s life has the most profound impact for good or bad on children who later become husbands, teachers, business leaders, legislators, judges. Lawyers and political figures who affect our lives! It’s a fact of life! We must and can examine the all ‘employees’ of the Home Factory, especially Mom and Dad, and analyze the positive and negative in their nature and makeup. We should evaluate the impact they had on us—which makes us what we are—and see if there a place for change or improvement. That which is positive in the Home Factory, we can accentuate further in our lives. As for the negative in our upbringing, we can chart our own course and take a trek that will lead us into our inner paradise—that of our own making. There are always choices in life that allow us to become the masters of our own destiny. We can make our own case against prison, the one inside our mind and heart—yes we can!

Now back to Mom! While the baby is still in the womb of the mother, her mental and emotional disposition will profoundly impact the state of mind and emotional make-up of the child. If she is happy, tender loving, affectionate and positive, serene, content, lively, and well adjusted to the situation at hand, her child will definitely reflect these traits in later life. If she loves classical music that soothes the soul, her child might become a music lover, a classical piano player, a melodic guitarist, a poet or an inspiring novelist. If on the other hand she is a nervous type, negative, acidic, unhappy, noisy, ill disposed, sexually frustrated, angry and insecure, loves ear-scratching music, then her child might become neurotic, acid-rock note-bending musician or singer, businessman, politician, leader that would reflect the dysfunctional spirit of his Home Factory. This is what some would call The parent trap. Unfortunately, one cannot choose his or her parents, but one can always change self! It is a divine gift most don’t take advantage of but rather choose the Low Road of excuses.

The Womb of a mother determines the fate of the future family! The womb of the home determines the future of an innocent and vulnerable child. The womb of society determines the nature of the world. It would create either heaven on earth or hell on earth for us all! What is our individual contribution to life? As someone said, I went to the end of the earth; I found the enemy: it is man. Is this our legacy to future generations?

An old prophet, Jeremiah, who was hated by his own people, once lamented his painful, cruel and grief-ridden state in the worldly womb around him. He contrasted that adverse condition with the good, kind, affectionate and secure place in his mother’s womb. He bemoaned: "‘Cursed be the day in which I was born! Let the day not be blessed in which my mother bore me! Let the man be cursed who brought news to my father, saying, ‘a male child was born to you!’ Making him very glad, and let that man be like the cities which the Lord overthrew, and did not relent; Let him hear the cry in the morning and the shouting at noon, because he did not kill me from the womb, that my mother might be my grave, and her womb always enlarged with me. Why did I come forth from the womb to see labor and sorrow, that my days should be consumed with shame? (Jeremiah 20:14-18). (All biblical quotes are from The New King James Version by Thomas Nelson Publishers.)

This is the voice of a man or woman in pain! It echoes the feelings of many of us in times of great distress. But who produced those responsible for such grief and sorrow many are affected by? Everyone had a mother; Hitler had a mother; all tyrants and vicious criminals had a mother. All came out of the womb of a mother, but we may ask: what kind of a mother was she to her child? What turns a sweet and innocent little baby into a monster? And no, the answer is not blowing in the wind! The mirror on the wall should reveal to us the answer if we are but willing to acknowledge and face the naked reality. The physical womb was created to provide the most ideal utopian environment for the unborn, but what kind of outer womb do many mothers, homes, schools, workplaces and societies provide? What kind of womb does a prison or any correctional institution can provide a human being? What kind of womb does the Army, a boarding school, a correctional institution or any public facility for children and adults offer the ideal affectionate and nurturing environment to any human being? What kind of human beings are we anyway?

Another biblical personality, Job, also recorded his most innermost pained-filled feelings of grief, as he saw his world turn into sudden ruin and cruel fate. At first his reaction was most positive and admirable, but as pain and hopeless anguish had taken hold of his tormented mind and flesh, he, like the prophet Jeremiah or anyone of us in his place, yearningly recalled the difference between the peaceful, secure and painless womb of his mother and that of the cruel womb of life outside.

At first, Job, accepting his sudden ruin and cruel fate, stated, "Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return there. The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord" (Job 1:21).

Being human, Job, like all of us, had his breaking point at which time pain began to talk. We read: "‘After this Job opened his mouth and cursed the day of his birth. And Job spoke and said: ‘May the day perish in which I was born, and the night in which it was said, ‘a male child is conceived . . .’ Oh, may that night be barren! May no joyful shout come into it! . . . Because it did not shut up the doors of my mother’s womb, nor hide sorrow from my eyes. Why did I not die at birth? Why did I not perish when I came from the womb? Why did the knees receive me, or why the breasts, that I should nurse? For now I would have lain [in the grave] still and be quiet, I would have been asleep [or dead]; then I would have been at rest . . . or why was I not hidden like a still born child, like infants who never saw light? There the wicked cease from troubling, and there the weary are at rest. There the PRISONERS rest together; they do not hear the voice of the oppressor’" (Job, Chapter 2).

Whether we are prisoners behind bars, in concentration camps, in cruel enemy detention places, or just in the prisons of our own making—the mind—we can sympathize with and feel the deep pain of men like Job or Jeremiah. For some of us, our outer cruel womb or prison maybe the home, a sour marriage, the oppressive workplace, a hostile school environment. It could be an emotional trap and sour relationship that binds and imprisons us with the wrong person on whom we depend for whatever need we may have in life. Our prison maybe external—like a prison cell—or it may be the most harmful one—the internal one; the emotional and mental in nature—in either case, freedom is not an impossible task to achieve. It’s possible, if we are willing to break the mental and emotional shackles; it’s often offered to many when good behavior is present.

In other words: There is always something we can do to be free!

A famous and most eloquent, nationally syndicated radio talk show host, Dennis Prager, in a recent article in the Jewish Journal, dated May 18-24, 2012, wrote: Happiness is a moral obligation. He explained: ". . . Happiness—or to be more precise, a happy disposition—is actually a moral virtue . . . If you want to understand why happiness is a moral virtue that we are obliged to pursue, ask anyone raised by an unhappy parent—or who is married to an unhappy spouse, or has an unhappy child—what that is like. The unhappy—or those who act unhappy, such as the moody, the chronic complainers, the drama kings and queens—frequently ruin the lives of those around them. They cast a pall over their son or daughter’s childhood. They ruin their marriages, and they can make their parents despondent.

And that’s only the damage they cause in their micro realm. In the macro realm the unhappy often do even more damage. Those who became Nazis or Communists were not happy people. Happy Muslims don’t become suicide bombers—the very fact they want to murder and die in order to be rewarded in the afterlife is a testament to how little joy they experience in this life.

Dennis Prager adds that those who wreck such great havoc on the lives of many, among other reasons, they do it because they feel they have suffered more than those who are happy. Obviously, such is not the case at all! They simply are not willing to honestly look at the mirror and change what they should and can alter in their own womb. No successful correction, rehabilitation, and the final ultimate reconciliation can ever take place unless the destructive and poisonous ingredients in our own womb are first detoxified—and willingly done by us and not others. It is also a moral imperative to realize that it’s not a ‘human right’ to be miserable or toxic when the lives of others are concerned! It is actually a crime against humanity! Sooner or later such toxic personalities will have to pay the piper.

Let’s illuminate ourselves further about the nature of the womb which profoundly affects all of us throughout our lives! The quality of a musical instrument would determine the output of its vibrations and impact on the listeners. Mom has the greatest influence on the child, before and after birth, by what she eats physically and spiritually, by what she ingests mentally and emotionally. Her child is the future mate; he or she would determine the quality of life of another mate, of more children.

For ages, we lived in a world where most men have routinely abused their women—to their own hurt and that of their children. We live now, mostly in the Western world, in a toxic atmosphere where many wives insult and put down their husbands—often in front of their children. Many TV sitcoms are rife with such destructive behavior; they adversely affect the emotional and mental DNA of the impressionable youngsters. It is a reverse reality, a ‘payback’ vendetta that achieves nothing but harm for the future mates raised in that toxic environment. Who wins? Women (Moms) who complain about the quality of their mates should remember: their husbands had been raised by other Moms—just like them! The solution is simple: to get a good husband, raise them!

Another word of advice: Before you take a mate or befriend someone intimately, check the Home Factory. The reality is plain: you’ll have to live, even when far apart, with the mother and father of your mate who reside in them. In other words: ‘buyers beware!’ Do a thorough background check for your own sake and that of your future kids. Reduce emotional toxic DNA in your future family.

How to do an effective background check? Consider the facts of life: There are three levels of knowledge concerning one’s true nature that must be checked before disaster strikes in your life. The first one is your view of the person from a vertical position. When you fly over a forest, from above, it looks like a carpet. This is not enough evidence to determine the nature of the forest! The second one is the horizontal sight or eye level. When you drive towards a forest it looks like a wall. Again, it’s not a wise way to verify the nature of your future mate or friend. The third one requires driving through the forest. Only from this point of vantage the trees or details can be most visible for what they really are, not what they seem to be from above or from the side. Here you can see the trees from beneath; here you can have a complete picture of the one you intend to commit your life and that of your future children to until death, not until divorce does you part!

We often make mistakes about properly sizing up any prospective mate, friend, employee, or even a material object—like a car—because of our neglect to view everything and everyone from a three-dimension level. A functional Home Factory should teach this vital art of ‘buying’ a mate, a friend, well-bred horse, or a product before any harm is done. We can all reduce the level of misery in our lives!

There are contradictions in our attitudes and behavior in times of national celebrations. There are great ironies at cheerful moments when many proclaim, It is the season to be happy . . . and the like. There is much talk about love, peace, kindness, mercy and compassion on one hand, while on the other hand many are displaying more hatred, resentment, greed, envy, and even the spirit of murder—within the family. This is reflective of the emotionally harsh wintery conditions that afflict many during what should and supposed to be the happiest time of the year. What’s the condition of the emotional womb during these periods in our world, be they of this religion, society, or any other on the planet—and why?

It is most illuminating to know that in the Hebrew language the words for womb and mercy are derived from the same root. Is it a coincidence or a deliberate act on the part of the Creator? Is there a message in it for humanity?

The word for womb in Hebrew is rehem, while the word for mercy is rahamim. Mercy in Hebrew is always in the plural. It is not a coincidence; it has a message in it. The reality of the matter is that our Creator and designer of the womb has duplicated His merciful and compassionate loving nature in the womb or earth He had created, and for a specific purpose. In creating the earth, which was to be the womb of man, beginning with the Garden of Eden, Our Creator had manufactured the most ideal environment and conditions in which to raise His dear children. When God had created mother Eve—the first Mom—He designed in her the womb that was destined to be the original birthplace for humanity. Her womb—the Mother of the human race—was as ideal for conceiving and nurturing the future family of man as was the Garden of Eden which was planted with the very hands of the Creator. The Womb of Mother Eve was to bring forth ‘fruits’ of peace and love, but, instead, it produced one good ‘fruit’ and one toxic. The toxic one became the first human murderer of his own brother. How did that happen?

The garden in which Adam and Eve were placed by their loving Creator was the epitome of a utopian womb for the children of The Great Parent. The instruction they were both given was simple to follow: "Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat, but of the tree of the knowledge of GOOD and EVIL you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die [or be as good as dead]" (Genesis 2:16-17).

Children, and many adults, would often do the opposite of what they are told to do. Did we get it from our first parents? Contrary to their Divine Parent’s instruction, both Adam and Mother Eve ate of the forbidden fruit—as many of us are still doing to this day. Now notice what a most profound change in attitude, with adverse consequences that haunt many of us to this day, affected the minds and hearts of our first parents. Consider their immediate reaction that does still impact almost each one of us, and from childhood. What did they do when confronted by their loving Parent? God was fully aware of had transpired and why, but He still gave them, and lovingly so, the opportunity to come clean by acknowledging their wrong actions and guilt.

And so we read: "So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise [the first scientifically minded experiment], she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate. Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked [physically and spiritually]; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves coverings." Alas for mankind, at least for most, sex was never going to be the same! Shame, the negative kind, with all of its toxic and destructive ingredients has entered into the world! All of us, to one degree or the other, are still greatly affected by it. We shall have more to say about the impact of this non-Godly shame and how to eradicate it in later chapters.

Notice the scientific approach and attitude in their behavior! They did not ask, should we do it, but can we do it! Sort of, if it feels good, do it. This is the philosophy of the scientific community and the world of Academia. Is there any difference between us and our first parents? Is the saying true to this day: The apple does not fall far from the tree? There is a most fascinating book for those interested in the ‘full scoop’ of what transpired in the Garden of Eden, in graphic details, and the whole complex of related issues, history and purpose of human sexuality. In the first pages of this book, in the section Other works by this author, one can find more illuminating and pertinent details. The title of the book is: Conspiracy Against Divine Sexuality: It all Started in Eden.

The account continues: "‘And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day [as He had done before] Then the Lord God called to Adam and said to him, ‘Where are you [not just physically but mentally and spiritually]?’ So he said, ‘I have heard your voice in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked [not because I disobeyed Your clear command]; and I hid myself.’ And He said, ‘Who told you that you are naked? Have you eaten of the tree of which I commanded you that you should not eat?’ Then the man said [accusatively], ‘The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me of the tree and I ate.’" In other words, It’s Your fault, God, not mine!

Are we any different today? Are we ‘like father, like son? Do we look at the mirror when confronted with our deliberate actions and point the finger at the person in front of us? The man of the house was not willing to come clean up his act by a simple admission of personal guilt. As for the woman, well, she couldn’t blame ‘the man of the house,’ who should have known better, so she passed on the blame, in an attempt to justify her deliberate actions and said, The serpent deceived me and I ate (Genesis 3:9-13).

If it’s like father, like son, it’s also like mother, like daughter. What a great start in life! Nevertheless, and we must notice this benevolent and thoughtful attribute, which few of us might have, on the part of The Creator—He did not confront, angrily, the offenders, but gave them the gracious leeway to make amends. He could have tore into them with great fury, but instead just quietly asked, Where are you? Why did He do it? If we want to be Like Father, like son, we should consider this instruction and trait of our Father, as was conveyed several times by His servants to His erring children.

The first matter to consider is the one He, personally, did lovingly convey to the first would-be murderer, Cain. When the offering of Cain was rejected, because of his foul attitude, while the sacrifice of his younger brother was fully accepted, Cain was furious, upset, and angry of all men at his innocent brother Abel. God had quietly approached him and asked, ". . . Why are you angry? And has your countenance fallen? If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin [Satan] lies at the door [of your mind], and its desire is for you, but you [should] rule over it" (Genesis 3:3-7). We all were given the power to subjugate our negative self!

Moral of the story: Don’t be confrontational, but allow the offending party to view oneself in the mirror and respond accordingly. Let the positive change of behavior come from within by avoiding the temptation to be confrontational and intimidating. Don’t make things worse by hardening the heart of the offender, but facilitate his way to a softer heart; let him come to himself and see himself for what he is and then regain his full sanity. Few of us do just that and, instead, being vindictive by nature, we pour more fuel into the fire. How smart is it? The Apostle Paul—the very one who once was a great offender and then regained his spiritual sanity—wrote, "Don’t you know that the goodness [not harshness] of God leads you to repentance?" The command to love your enemy is not an irrational instruction; it is meant to lead your enemy to become your friend!

Another case! Joshua and the armies of Israel were about to capture Jericho. The clear instructions by God were to totally destroy the city and abstain from taking any booty by anyone. One man, Achan, allowed greed to get the best of him. It provoked a great anger on the part of God and He commanded Joshua to flash out the offender. When Achan was finally brought before the ‘commanding General,’ Joshua did not back him to the corner but gently asked him, "‘My son, I beg you, give glory to the God of Israel, and make confession to Him