What more from a temple dedicated to a saint?

Learning Point No 396

When in a temple there is no spiritual zest for doctrine and its practice, the temple is set for decline even if there is change of management. This applies also to a mission related temple of the lord saint, Lord Bo Tien. 

With no attraction to doctrine but only to nectar of social gains and blessings, the good generated though still there would not be as impactful as when doctrine drives the mission of that temple. 

Those left to run the temple or to take over the running of the temple go only for social agenda which is good but not good enough as they are not spiritually driven. 

Oldies and pioneers in such a temple can talk till kingdom come about the need for spirituality. Oldies are too old and can talk only. They cannot act substantially  They are in a way useless and ineffective as well. 

The newbies are left to run the show and have a free hand. To add to the problem, there is no new blood added to the running of that temple. This will only spell doom to spiritual focus and sideline temple to lackluster existence - just another run of mill desolate social center, probably more secular than religious and at most nominally so. 

In a mission-related temple if this does happen, it will be a let down to the saint of that temple. Perhaps, it is not a let down for the saint might not mind. But, mind you, that temple, or rather those running and monopolizing that temple no longer deserves the great saint of that temple. 

Hopefully a mission-related temple of Lord Bo Tien will not devolve to such low level. If  such happens, the men running the show may still have done some good but are way not good enough. 

They may even be deemed useless or rather not useful to further the ends of the mission - the doctrine mission to save souls which is beyond just alleviating worldly and physical wants. 

Squables will follow and litigation may come about in such a temple due to dichotomy. Any court case will be the curtain call for such a temple. If members cannot talk peace, let alone cultivate spiritual peace through Tao, how far can that temple go?

It is no use harping on social success in having aged home and ration distribution to the needy. It is no use having year upon year of celebrations for the anniversary of the temple saint over many decades, perhaps four to seven decades. Are the celebrations to glorify the saint or to glorify men ?

The issue is whether the members have done justice to the temple saint and his wider mission to save souls. The temple cannot just meet the physical needs of some men through a small aged home, day care center and / or a food distribution center. 

A temple saint needs to go beyond such social agenda. For such agenda, any organisation of men can do. We do not need a heavenly saint to do so. If a temple can only do these and no more than this, then it is no longer a temple of a saint but a temple of some men with good intentions. 

Any temple should serve for the mission of a heavenly saint and not for the mission or social agenda of men, be they a few or many. A temple is not there to feed the egoes of men let alone worship men as proxy of God and saints. 

Amen to men - that is so and so be it.