Charles Manson- -Wilderness Cry- Hilary L Hunt MD

Many of you, maybe most or all, will think of me as a complete idiot or moron for what I am about to say. Charles Manson, a notorious killer, just died in prison after years of imprisonment. He committed hideous crimes of murder, and violated societies rules of order to the highest degree. Because of that, he is despised by most. In my book Wilderness Cry, when discussing personality development, I show how it is possible to develop with a “Charles Manson-like” personality. I show that each of our personalities is the direct result of our total life’s experiences. I am of the firm opinion that religion and ideology are responsible for the instillation of both guilt and anger feelings which create anxiety with all their attendant consequences. In extreme cases such as his, the exposure was of greater magnitude. Also it should be noted that the higher brain power a person possesses, the more dire the consequences. Every paranoid schizophrenic that I have encountered had way above average intelligence. So, with that in mind, how should we feel and react to situations such as his. Obviously, we have great remorse and sympathy for the victims and their families. How many of us have similar feelings for him? Can you imagine being locked up in a cage like a wild animal. It behooves us all, who  live in glass houses, not to throw stones. Remember Jesus’ statement to Mary Madalyn’s accusers who were about to stone her to death: “let the one of you without sin cast the first stone “. And one by one they all left. Jesus was brilliant. He knew and understood that each of us is different and distinct personality- wise. He knew that each of us carries the indelible imprint of our creator. He also knew that each was universally evil by virtue of our selfishness. Therefore he gave us two very important dicta by which to regulate our lives; love our God with our all and love our neighbor as ourselves. Understanding our universal evil for which we as individuals are not responsible , and realizing, that since he was the only one with that understanding, He had to be the Messiah; the one to “pay the price”. He did so willingly but not without great fear and trepidation. We don’t have to “like” anyone nor anything they do, but we must “love” everyone, even Charles Manson; Jesus did.