{"id":21769,"date":"2014-02-19T15:04:45","date_gmt":"2014-02-19T20:04:45","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/?p=21769"},"modified":"2014-02-19T15:04:45","modified_gmt":"2014-02-19T20:04:45","slug":"slippery-slope","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/2014\/02\/slippery-slope.html","title":{"rendered":"Slippery Slope"},"content":{"rendered":"<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC \"-\/\/W3C\/\/DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional\/\/EN\" \"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/TR\/REC-html40\/loose.dtd\">\n<html><head><meta http-equiv=\"content-type\" content=\"text\/html; charset=utf-8\"><meta http-equiv=\"content-type\" content=\"text\/html; charset=utf-8\"><\/head><body><p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-21770\" src=\"https:\/\/wp-media.patheos.com\/blogs\/exploringourmatrix\/files\/2014\/02\/xkcd_slippery_slope.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"242\" height=\"350\"><\/p>\n<p>I like <a href=\"http:\/\/xkcd.com\/1332\/\" class=\" decorated-link\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\">the most recent XKCD cartoon<\/a> and its take on the \u201cslippery slope\u201d idea. People always assume that one is going to slip in a direction that they want to go. And in fact, often the things that are really valuable are really hard and take a conscious effort. But anything can become a habit, a custom. People who being by volunteering an hour often find themselves working full time for a charity before they know it. That isn\u2019t careless slipping. It is surrendering oneself to an endeavor that one has found to be worthwhile.<\/p>\n<p>When one embraces new information that challenges their worldview, they aren\u2019t on their way down a slippery slope. They are embracing a very difficult and costly path that will be painful and exhausting.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/rachelheldevans.com\/blog\/the-cost\" class=\" decorated-link\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\">As Rachel Held Evans noted recently, any change of thinking or behavior can involve a cost<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>The big questions is not whether you think the slope is slippery or rugged. The big question is whether you will choose to move in the direction of niceness, of kindness, and of compassion. If you can move in that direction quickly, like the speed one would slide down a slippery slope, doing so is nothing to be ashamed of.<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>I like the most recent XKCD cartoon and its take on the \u201cslippery slope\u201d idea. People always assume that one is going to slip in a direction that they want to go. And in fact, often the things that are really valuable are really hard and take a conscious effort. But anything can become a [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":136,"featured_media":21770,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[61],"tags":[1625,2039,9891,11426,13935],"class_list":["post-21769","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-morality","tag-cartoon","tag-comic","tag-rachel-held-evans","tag-slippery-slope","tag-xkcd"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v21.1 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Slippery Slope<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"I like the most recent XKCD cartoon and its take on the &quot;slippery slope&quot; idea. People always assume that one is going to slip in a direction that they\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/2014\/02\/slippery-slope.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Slippery Slope\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"I like the most recent XKCD cartoon and its take on the &quot;slippery slope&quot; idea. People always assume that one is going to slip in a direction that they\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/religionprof\/2014\/02\/slippery-slope.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Religion Prof: The Blog of James F. McGrath\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:author\" content=\"http:\/\/www.facebook.com\/religionprof\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2014-02-19T20:04:45+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"James F. McGrath\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@ReligionProf\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"James F. 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