The quality of humanity that Eastern people develop from their education in Eastern society is that of suppressing and enduring. Behind this suppressing and enduring actually lie many of the specific thoughts, viewpoints, ways of conducting oneself, and various attitudes toward all kinds of things that are found in Eastern social moral education. This is how Eastern society is. Similarly, Western society also has its own mainstream cultural education, through which Westerners also develop their respective qualities of humanity. So what is this mainstream Western cultural education? It mainly values autonomy and independence. This differs from the situation in Eastern society, which requires people to sacrifice and contribute themselves for the country and for society, doing things that are unrelated to their personal lives. In contrast, what Western society teaches people is the exact opposite of what Eastern society requires them to do. Western society does not require you to contribute anything to society, humankind, or the great cause of the nation; what’s at the core of Western education is getting you to think for yourself, to learn to handle your own problems, and to not trouble others, society, or the state. It gives you independent rights, independent space for thought, and independent personal space, and cultivates your independent thinking ability and your ability to think about and handle problems independently. You have to solve your own problems; you must be independent, autonomous, and self-reliant. The West has a cultural background of this kind of ideological education, and against this cultural background, Westerners also develop certain qualities of humanity related to the core of their educational ideology. Eastern people have developed the educational and cultural characteristics of the East against the backdrop of Eastern social moral education. Since Westerners bear the educational quality of Western society, they also possess the essence that relates to that quality. The essence of the educational quality Westerners possess is in fact different from that of the educational quality Eastern people possess. The educational quality Eastern people possess is an education in pretense, while the one Westerners possess is an education in selfishness. Every theme of Western education teaches people to be independent and autonomous, to think through their own problems, and to handle and manage their own affairs. Therefore, Western education has the quality of being an education in selfishness. This education in selfishness is totally unlike Eastern education; it is a different kind of quality. This quality leads Westerners to prioritize personal independent space; subjective will, thinking, thoughts, viewpoints, and ideas; and their own rights, their current living conditions, and their present mood and emotions. They don’t need to pay much attention to other things, nor to any social or family responsibilities. They must first figure out their own problems, get their own emotions handled, and resolve their own immediate matters, and only then comes everything else. Eastern education has taught Eastern people to suppress and endure, while Western education has taught Westerners to defend their rights. In this, Westerners and Eastern people are completely different. When Eastern people encounter something, they just keep enduring it. When they really can’t endure it anymore, they tell themselves, “A bad life is better than a good death. You’ve got to endure to stay alive.” In contrast to the suppression and endurance of Eastern people, Westerners have a different quality: Through their social education in autonomy and independence, they have learned to defend their rights. Compared to the suppression and endurance of Eastern people, isn’t there more self-respect and dignity to a certain degree in Westerners defending their rights? That is, there’s a bit more agency involved, right? (Yes.) Defending one’s rights is an absolutely fundamental concept; it means taking the necessary actions to protect one’s fundamental human rights, including the right to belief, the right to life, the right to free speech, and so on. Of course, what does this basic defense of rights mainly refer to? It refers to people having independent space for thought, being able to consider issues freely and independently without being influenced or controlled by any social environment or surrounding people, events, and things. Regardless of whether the viewpoints that arise from one’s considerations of issues are right or wrong, or whether one’s way of thinking is correct, achieving autonomy and freedom is what matters most. In short, Westerners live in free societies, and in the cultural context of Western social education, their minds are very active and often in a state of freedom. Therefore, compared to people in Eastern society, Westerners are bolder in their thinking, more willing to think, and more adept at thinking, whereas most of the time the thinking of Eastern people is shackled, formulaic, or suppressed. Under usual circumstances, the minds of Westerners are free, active, and willing to think about problems. To put it in a way that’s improper, they’re more willing to ponder strange and unusual things, even to the point of going down rabbit holes. This is a manifestation of the qualities of humanity they develop within Western social education, and this manifestation of humanity is more progressive than that of Easterners. In one aspect, they defend their right to life, and in another, they also defend the various viewpoints that arise from their free thought. As a result, the ideas, viewpoints, and artistic forms displayed in Western literary works or in Western artistic and entertainment life are diverse and wide-ranging. Among those of all humankind, Western literary works and entertainment life are relatively free and avant-garde, and people can draw inspiration and benefit greatly from them. Look—what ideas do some Eastern literary and artistic works advocate? Patriotism, love for family, love for one’s parents, and so on. These are all things found in Eastern social moral education, or which are part of the core of Eastern culture. Because Western culture has provided Westerners with free and autonomous space for thought, has produced this quality of humanity within them, and has endowed them with this right to free thought, Westerners have more intellectual substance in their literary and artistic life than Eastern people do, and at the same time, the scope of their thought is broader. You see, the scope of Eastern people’s thinking, or the ideas they express and advocate in their literary and artistic life, are very limited, narrow, and restricted, whereas the various topics that appear in Western people’s literary and artistic life are quite wide-ranging and free from government restrictions. Some of these topics are reflections on a certain law introduced by the government during some period in terms of people’s humanity, or on the impact it has on society or even on an individual’s life and family. Others are reflections on schooling and on human rights, as well as various other issues, such as the discussions among people of all social classes—along with immigrants—on racial equality, racial discrimination, and the relationships between people of different skin colors. From this, it can be seen that the range of the various topics that are reflected in Western literary and artistic works is quite broad, as is that of the various ideas and viewpoints involved. They even reflect the social impact caused by the methods and means used by some law enforcement agencies within the broader legal framework, as well as the various psychological burdens placed on the public or the various subsequent effects on people’s lives. These are all ideas and viewpoints that are presented in various Western literary and artistic works. For one thing, these are thoughts that are advocated within the Western cultural context; for another, they are thoughts and viewpoints that appear because people are free to think within the context of Western cultural education. In short, the various ideas Westerners present in their literary and artistic works, as well as the thoughts, viewpoints, philosophies for worldly dealings, and attitudes of Westerners among different social classes and different industries in how they treat all kinds of things, are completely different from those of Eastern people. Here’s a simple example: In the East, when an employee works for a company, their livelihood comes from their boss, so they must do whatever their boss tells them to do. Even if they’re asked to do some household chores for their boss, like picking up their children or buying groceries, they must be completely obedient and dare not refuse. They even have to be on call during their time off. They are their boss’s attendant, underling, and slave. This is how the superior-subordinate relationship between employee and boss is in the East. The employee may feel uncomfortable, upset, and unwilling, but they have no choice—they can only endure. That’s their boss, the one who provides their livelihood, so they can only put themselves at their mercy. In the East, no matter how a boss exploits their employees, and no matter how unreasonable their actions are, the employees can only endure it; they have no way to break free from this situation. Some Eastern countries may also have labor laws, which are meant to protect the legal rights and interests of every citizen, but on a societal level, because it’s the East, no employee dares to sue their boss even if they break the labor laws. No matter how their rights are deprived or how they’re exploited by their boss, there’s nothing they can do. Even with labor laws, they cannot wield the law to defend their own rights and interests. They can only go along with it and let the situation continue. The West, on the other hand, is different. The superior-subordinate relationship between employee and boss in the West exists only on the level of work, and during work hours. Outside of work, there is no personal, emotional relationship between them. If your boss asks you to work overtime, you can refuse. If your boss asks you to help pick up their children or buy groceries, you can say, “You have no right to ask me to do this. That’s not my job. I’m under no obligation to serve you.” You can refuse. If your boss repeatedly and forcibly pushes you to do these things, you can sue them, and Western labor laws will take effect; the law will respond accordingly. Westerners are able to do this, and they’re not afraid to do so, but Eastern people are. According to the notions of Eastern people, you should do whatever your superior or a person with status or renown asks you to do, and provide services to them for free. You even have to say, “I am willing to serve you, to lay down my life for you, and would expect nothing in return. Serving you is my honor!” Regardless of whether they exploit you for your labor or deprive you of your human rights, you should accept it and not demand any remuneration. If you do, that means you’re being ungrateful and making them lose face, and they’ll make you pay for it. Westerners, on the other hand, are different. They have learned to defend their rights and exercise these rights extremely effectively, taking them as far as they can go. Even if the president or some renowned individual doesn’t leave a tip after a meal, a complaint will be lodged—this is a right granted to workers by labor laws. When Eastern people encounter such situations, they dare not complain. They think, “They’re an official, a famous person. Could I win a lawsuit against them? Even if I did win, what would I do if they made things difficult for me behind the scenes? If I sued them, I’d end up in serious trouble, and I might even lose my life.” Therefore, Eastern people would rather suffer a loss than dare to ask for a tip. This is called enduring. But Westerners are different. They think, “Why should I endure it? I wasn’t born to live my life for anyone else—I live for myself. I have to defend my rights. This is money I deserve. I don’t care if you’re some well-known figure or big shot, you have to pay. Everyone is equal. What gives you the right to not tip? If you don’t tip, I’ll sue you!” And once they get the tip, the matter is settled. These are the different thoughts, viewpoints, and ways of handling people, events, and things that Eastern people and Western people come to have through their respective cultural educations.

The East and the West differ in their methods of cultural education and in the specific content of that education. These different forms of education have produced different human cultures, as well as qualities of humanity of different ethnic groups. With these qualities of humanity, Eastern people have their own lifestyles, living situations, modes of thinking, and attitudes for worldly dealings, while Westerners have their own lifestyles, living situations, and ways and attitudes for worldly dealings. Of these two attitudes for worldly dealings, one is to suppress and endure, and is especially reserved; the other places particular emphasis on safeguarding the rights of people’s subjective will and desires. One is produced from an education in pretense, and the other is produced from an education in selfishness. Regardless of the kind of education in which these qualities of humanity are produced—whether it’s suppression and endurance or defending one’s rights, reservedness or openness—which of them are positive things? (Whether Eastern or Western, none of these qualities of humanity are positive things.) Why do you say they’re not positive things? Let’s hear your specific reasons. None of you can say why, can you? (We can’t.) No matter what the matter in question is, you’re all afraid that other people will be very particular about the details, and when they are, you feel muddled and can’t explain things clearly. This proves you lack clarity in that regard, so you should fellowship on it. That question I posed to you is a topic worth fellowshipping on, isn’t it? (It is.) This topic involves “what is created by God.” So let’s first take a look: What kind of being is the humankind created by God? What God creates are positive things. Which things in a person are created by God? (A person’s free will, and the wisdom God gives them.) Broadly speaking, a person’s innate conditions are all given and created by God. If we use the word “created,” it might be a bit abstract, because everyone is born of their parents, not made by God’s own hands. Using the phrase “what is created by God” is a bit broad; it’s not quite fitting. In that case, saying “the innate conditions God gives to people” is more specific and objective. The innate conditions God gives to people involve the topic of “what is created by God.” So, can we say that a person’s innate conditions are all positive things? (Yes.) A person’s appearance, their linguistic faculty, and all their senses and their physiological attributes, as well as their free will, the faculty with which they think and ponder, their natural strengths and gifts, and all the rules of survival they observe as living beings—all these are positive things. That is to say, the innate conditions God gives to people are all positive things. So, do these positive things include the various thoughts that arise in a person’s mind or which they accept from society and from different eras? (No.) Anything people acquire from society or from humankind is not given by God, nor is it something originally created by God. It can be said that as long as something comes from society or from humankind, it is not a positive thing. To summarize it in a broad, conceptual way, we would say this. And to put it specifically? Aren’t the qualities of humanity and the ways of thinking produced within the cultural context of Eastern social moral education somewhat perverse? It can also be put like this: In Eastern society, people’s minds are shackled and warped; they have been corrupted and influenced by certain thoughts and viewpoints from society and from Satan. Doesn’t this mean that their minds have undergone Satan’s processing? (Yes.) People’s minds have undergone processing, and their thoughts are not born of their humanity. These teachings do not come from positive things, nor do they come from God. Since they do not come from God, then whatever thoughts, viewpoints, and modes of thinking they produce—and whatever qualities of humanity they ultimately produce—among all the other things that subsequently emerge from them, are negative things, not positive things. This is something that you’ve become certain about, right? (Yes.) The minds of Eastern people are shackled and warped, and are also influenced by certain Eastern thoughts and viewpoints, so the things that are expressed by the qualities of their humanity are all negative. Now let’s look at the West. What is the content of Westerners’ ideological education? Does it relate to the truth? Do the content of Western education and the manifestations of humanity it teaches people to strive for come from God’s words? (No.) To put it even more clearly, let Me ask you a question: Does this education—the principles behind these thoughts and viewpoints on dealing with life, survival, and worldly affairs, and these methods for dealing with those things—accord with God’s words? Does it accord with the truth? (No.) In what way does it not accord? (It’s like the Western education in selfishness—although it respects freedom of thought, it teaches people to consider only themselves and not others. This does not accord with God’s words and the truth.) So what do God’s words and the truth say? (In their interactions together, people should not only consider their own interests or feelings; rather, they should consider how their actions can edify others while also being in accordance with the truth.) God’s words tell you that regardless of whether you think about issues freely and objectively, or under the domination of a certain thought or viewpoint, you shouldn’t do so only for the sake of defending your own interests or defending your own dignity and pride—this is not the principle by which believers in God should consider issues. When you consider issues, you should focus on whether your approach accords with the truth, whether these issues can be resolved using the truth, and whether your approach accords with the truth principles and leads to submission to God. This is the principle for considering issues. Whether you’re dealing with people, or you’re dealing with issues regarding your family or other things around you, you must act in accordance with God’s words and the truth principles, rather than just defending your own rights and interests. These are the principles of conducting oneself as required by God. So, on the surface, compared to the education of Eastern culture, Western cultural education places greater importance on human rights and on defending people’s rights. It is superior to Eastern culture, but that doesn’t mean it can substitute for the truth. You mustn’t think that just because it’s superior to Eastern culture, or because it respects human rights and enables people to be independent and free, it can therefore take the place of the truth principles and be described as something positive. Western cultural education is merely superior to Eastern cultural education and more in line with the needs of humanity, but it cannot be equated with the truth principles, nor can it replace them. To a certain extent, it just upholds and respects the needs of humanity, as well as people’s dignity and their rights and interests. However, this respect is only relevant in terms of humanity. In terms of the truth and of justice, it upholds neither of these things. Therefore, Western cultural education is an education in selfishness. An education in selfishness means, “Everyone must serve my interests. I must think everything through myself before I do it. My personal interests, my human rights, and my individual rights are paramount.” Is there any moral justice to speak of here? Is there any fairness to speak of? (No.) If there’s no fairness or moral justice, how could it possibly accord with the truth principles? To a certain extent, Western cultural education respects your human rights; it gives you the right to think about issues and express your opinions freely. In this way, it can basically safeguard people’s dignity and human rights. So, to a certain extent, Western education is more in line with the needs of humanity. But can Western education guide people onto the right path in life? Can it enable people to treat all people and do all things according to the truth principles? It cannot do this. Western education can guarantee that everyone has human rights and the right to safeguard their dignity—this is completely in line with the needs of humanity. However, when measured against the actual situation in society, few countries can fully meet the standard of guaranteeing human rights. Realistically speaking, in today’s society, it’s a very good social system that can allow people to think about issues freely and express their opinions freely. God gave people free will and the ability to think about issues independently; this is just one aspect of the caliber He gave them. However, God has never told you, “Be selfish, be autonomous. Everything must be centered on your own interests. Your own interests are paramount. In all things you must be independent and be your own master, and there’s no need to seek the truth, ask about Heaven’s will, or consider the interests of others.” God has never taught anyone this way. From the beginning of God’s guidance of people in their lives, He has pointed out specific ways of living and conducting oneself in all aspects, told people to pursue the truth, to submit to His orchestrations and arrangements, to be honest people, to fulfill the duty of created beings, and so on. These are all the most important pursuits in one’s life. Among the great many truths God has expressed, He has never told you to defend your rights, nor has He ever told you to think about issues freely and safeguard your own independent space. God has never said anything like that. God only gave you the ability to think about issues independently—that’s all. You have this faculty, and you also have the innate condition of free will. However, while having given people such innate conditions, God also established laws and commandments for them, and supplied them with various truths, telling them how to conduct themselves and how to worship God—in all matters, there are truth principles that people should abide by. But in all of God’s words and His admonitions to people, He has never told people to be autonomous, to be independent, or to learn to defend their rights. Such thoughts, viewpoints, or such sayings and teachings have never appeared in God’s words or in the truth. On the contrary, in the words where God exposes people’s corrupt dispositions, He exposes their arrogance and their selfishness. This selfishness is a quality that is revealed by people’s humanity after they’ve been corrupted by Satan. In some people, it’s exhibited as they try to secure their own interests after they’ve been corrupted by Satan; in others, it’s purely the product of this society’s education. In both cases, it’s selfishness. No matter how it’s produced, in short, as long as you’re selfish, that is a quality and revelation of humanity which you exhibit while living under corrupt dispositions. Is this clear now? (Yes.)