A Taximan’s Service
On the Day of Judgment, there was a small group of four people
who were being asked to provide an accounting of their lives as well
as respond to the question of why they should be admitted into
Heaven. The group consisted of a preacher, a school teacher, a judge
and a taxi driver.
When asked why he should be admitted into Heaven, the
preacher replied in the following way. “All my life I have spread the
word of God to the general public. I have traveled far and wide, often
encountering very difficult and dangerous circumstances in order to
ensure that as many people as possible had the opportunity to hear
the Holy Scrolls and benefit from the teachings therein. In fact, the
money for these spiritual expeditions often came out of my own
pocket, but I don’t regret a single penny that I have spent in the good
cause of delivering the Divine message and giving people a chance for
eternal salvation.”
The school teacher, a woman, responded to the same question in
her own fashion. “I have considered my duties as a teacher to be a
sacred trust, a calling to which I have responded and tried as best I
could to help children to aspire to their spiritual destinies. It has been
my honor and privilege to sacrifice many conditions of comfort in
order to assist hungry, eager minds and hearts to struggle toward
knowing God. Indeed, I would gladly give everything I have to help
children learn about the true purpose of life.”
When the time came for the judge, who also was a woman, to
give an answer to the aforementioned question, she said: “I made a
solemn oath that I would do everything in my power to uphold the
law and try to make the community safe for citizens to be able to go
about their lives and able to pursue the meaning of life, free from
fear. I have spent countless sleepless nights wrestling with the great
issues of justice so everyone would know that those who came into
my court were being dealt with in a fair, impartial, equitable manner
in order that the common good might be better served for all
concerned.”
The person who was the taxi driver was about to give his answer
to the all important question when he was stopped and told he could
proceed to Heaven without providing any reply, but the others would
all have to go to Hell. Naturally, the preacher, the school teacher, and
the judge were rather upset and wondered why a common taxi driver
could attain Heaven, and, yet, the other three, despite their great
service to, and sacrifice on behalf of, humanity were being
condemned to Hell.
One of the three who was destined for hotter regions, blurted out
the query which was on the minds of each of these three individuals:
“Why should the taxi driver be admitted into an eternity of Bliss
whereas we three, who have devoted ourselves to the service of
spirituality, truth, and justice, should be among the losers in life?”
The following answer was given to them. “Yes, each of you three
spent your lives in service, but this service was not really to
spirituality, truth, justice, or your fellow human beings.
Unfortunately, the real, underlying motive of your actions was so
that your egos could bask in the acclaim of self-aggrandizement,
name, fame and power, and you tried to hide your real motives in
actions which, overtly, seemed to be for the benefit of others, but
were really only for your own benefit.”
After pausing for a second, the voice continued. “The taxi driver
is not a great man but his driving has put the fear of God in a great
many lives and, consequently, numerous people have become devout,
loving servants of Divinity after near encounters with death while
riding in his cab, and Heaven is our way of rewarding him for this
spiritual service.”
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