Les, I just went thru a thing on my blogspot allanjanssen.blogspot.com that got me going enough I though I would run it here too!
The fact that we can examine ourselves thinking, (Like mentally looking in a mirror) is one of the great mysteries. This, along with the existence of God, the process of evolution, and much more in the metaphysical sphere are questions that do not easily lend themselves to interpretation.
Not to take anything away from the Eastern Philosophies, (Since they probably have a better handle on things than most Western Religions) but these are answers we mistakenly try and understand from a here and now point of view. As long as we look at these questions from a materialistic, egocentric point of view I dont’t think we will find an answer.
Perhaps the question “Is there a God” or better yet, “What is God?” are areas that we are not meant to address in this life. They could, by their very nature, be unanswerable. (Here we go, now everyone is going to tell me THEY have the answer. Save your breath, unless you have a REALLY bad Messianic Complex!)
The point is, perhaps we should be more concerned with attaining a “State of Grace” in this life, and then sitting back to see where it leads us in the next! Remember..(from my book God-101) When all else fails, the simple solution is usually the correct one! OR If you hear hoofbeats, look for horses, not zebras!
After that, sure enough, all sorts of people replied to tell me the answer!!!!! The best was two pages on variations of “one hand clapping!”
Why can’t some of you people LISTEN instead of grabbing anything at all as an excuse to once again spout your bullshit nonsense. Listen to me please, I don’t need double talking, asinine, convoluted, self absorbed, deluded rants to make me see the light! The truth is not in the Bible or the Koran. (Or the Bhagavad-Gita for that matter!) They should all be thrown in the garbage because they were written by sun-baked, wandering nomads who mostly ate bugs and honey..... of course they saw God~!
God is not in a book because that is other people trying to tell you what is right and what is wrong. You are not going to find paradise by listening to 2000 year old, hallucinating, camel jockeys.
KEEP IT SIMPLE! Don’t jump thru hoops trying to explain the infinite. Don’t manufacture all these grand theories on the nature of God. Certainly don’t sit there and try and second guess what God wants, and CERTAINLY don’t tell me that you know what God wants ME to do!
I don’t think it’s our job to probe these questions yet. When we are ready they will be revealed. But they will be revealed to EVERYONE. I think God is big enough that he doesn’t need translators. Remember-the simple solution is usually the correct one! God is love!!!!
In other words, God is within you and no one should ever come between. If we must refer to religious texts I would like to quote from the Book “G0d-101” once more.
One of the core sayings of Jesus was “The kingdom of God is not coming with signs to be observed, nor will they say ‘Lo, here it is!’ or ‘There!’ For behold, that kingdom of God is in the midst of you.” Jesus tells us quite clearly that the “Kingdom of God” is not a coming kingdom, or a future kingdom, but rather something already in amongst his disciples. It is not a place, but rather a state of mind! Or, to quote James Breech once more: “Your concept of the kingdom of God, whether it belongs to the future mythological conceived, in either eschatological or apocalyptic terms, misses the reality of the kingdom. The symbolism really refers to a power that is a basic factor in human experience!”
** The foundation of Christian ideology revolves around “Love” for one and another. To understand this we need to define exactly how the term or meaning of “Love” is used! In the first instance, there is the true Christian “Love” which means it is rooted in the power of the kingdom of God. This is the “Love” that the historical Jesus preached to his followers.
The second type of Christian “love” (small L) is defined solely as an ethical idea that was propagated by the spreading Christian faith in trying to define the words of Christ.
Nietzsche probably best defined this form of Christian ‘love’ as a masked feeling of pity or charity. In other words, we feel sorry for others and from this superior moral ground to lend a helping hand.
Nietzsche claims that Christian ‘pity’ (love) is a device used by those who are not themselves truly vital and alive to obtain a perverse elevation of their own position by undermining others. In other words, “I can make myself feel better by thinking you or someone else is worse-off and deserving of “love.” We often confuse the feeling of Christian “love” for someone with:
1. Pity for them.
2. Humanitarianism-or a love of Mankind.
3. Altruism, or self denial, and
4. Sentimentalism, or wanting to be with others.
These concepts of “love” have been re-enforced over and over again in the Bible through one story or another.
What Jesus actually said was something much more basic and infinitely harder to achieve. The historical Jesus did not urge us to love Mankind or to feel pity for someone else.
He did not tell us to deny ourselves for someone else’s sake, or flagellate ourselves, or even to enjoy another’s company! What He did say was pure and simple and straight to the point, “Love one another.” This sort of Love is not the altruistic love of Mankind, nor the possessive love for our mate, but rather, something that requires hard work, tenacity, and sacrifice.
It is easy to love your wife or husband, child or parent, but to Love your neighbor (or stranger) is a task that is never ending and always requires effort.
It is a Love that seems to have no immediate benefit and is therefore not practiced by many people. However, in the long run, this is what will make Humanity rise up to it is potential and approach what Jesus referred to as the “Kingdom of God (Father).”
This is not something that is to be expected in the near, or far, future. Rather, it was a state of being that is present at this time, and only has to be observed and followed in order to achieve a state of Grace. --Allan W. Janssen
By the way, anyone who is heavy into P.C. or is easily offended is going to get a lot of bumps and bruises as they go through life. It’s your choice! A.W.J.