So, my friend started this facebook group called, the Church of Universal love. I'm not so keen on the Church thing, but I do love me some universal love! My name (not botticellibelle, the real one) is sanskrit for "eternal love," so it seems to be right up my alley. Now, I'm not saying that I'm taking this all very seriously or anything, mostly it all just flows right along with my belief in agape. I suppose that if I have a religion, that's it: agape.
Paolo Coelho has a little something to say about this too:
"Agape is total love, the love that devours those that experience it. Whoever knows and experiences Agape sees that nothing else in this world is of any importance, only loving. This was the love that Jesus felt for humanity, and it was so great that it shook the stars and changed the course of man’s history."
With these beliefs in mind, I came across this little bit on my friends' facebook page and (sorry, my friend!) couldn't keep my big trap shut!
I share this to give an example of the myriad ways that people believe and express those beliefs:
Mysterious Facebooker regarding the "Church of Universal Love":
So... you all get together once a week to hold hands and let the love of the universe flow through you? Come on _____ (friend of mine), don't think you can hold to that kind of prettily-wrapped shit for all of eternity. Time is eventually taken away and the truth will be known.
Mysterious Facebooker:
Nope. Roses are beauty. St. John's clothing line is beauty. God is the Truth. From Him flows the truth. And, although there are times where truth is pretty, it is quite often stark and "right" as opposed to "wrong". Seriously, what happened?
Friend of Mine:
The 'truth,' as far as any of us knows, is as diverse and cosmically balanced as everything that apparently springs from it. Belief is where you choose to place your focus. We can totally have some coffee or food sometime and catch up if you want, it's been years! :)
Mysterious Facebooker:
It would be really nice to see you again! Would you like to meet up at the mall sometime? _____ (someone I don't know) and I would love to visit. BTW, although it would be nice to believe that truth is 'balanced', unknowable and therefore impossible to follow, it isn't so. The God who created both of us has placed a knowledge of the truth within us. It is up to us to either seek Him and His truth, or suppress it. Love ya!
Nitya Prem
I completely disagree with your statement. Not in God, as I do absolutely believe in the divine. I just don't think that we are able to comprehend everything that God is and it's almost an insult to bring God down to our level by referring to God as Him... or Her. God does not fall prey to matters as petty as sexuality so I don't believe we can rightly thrust a sex upon the divine presence. Unless it's Buddha or Jesus, but that's not really God either, just an expression of divinity in humanity. It's like saying all fruit are oranges. Not trying to make waves, just express how some people don't agree with the Christian dogma but are still good people with a great deal of faith.
Have a nice day :)
Mysterious Facebooker:
Nitya, there can be a difference between what we want/hope/believe and what is true. I can wake up tomorrow pretty darn sure that it will be raining pink poodles, but 'that don't make it so'. So what do you believe in? Other than a nebulous, sexless divinity? On what do you base this belief? On your belief that it is so? I believe in one God, theCreator of heaven and earth, the Savior of those who put their trust in Him, and the Judge of those who turn away from Him in this world. I base this belief on the evidence of a Creator and the Bible. I'm see no problem with you believing in a divinity or a pink poodle - just be darn sure you're right.
Nitya Prem
Well, I sure hope you're happy with your beliefs. I am with mine :)
Be well and godbless and all that jive!
Mysterious Facebooker:
But I was asking you a question! :) How can you know that what you believe is true, and not just "an undigested bit of beef", as Scrooge would say?
Nitya Prem
I'm not really willing to enter into this discussion as it would take way more time than I have to help you grasp the concepts I'm expressing without completely dashing your belief in ultimate truth from the one true God. I really don't want to destroy your belief system as I'm not sure your ready to openly entertain the idea of a different faith than your own that is also correct. I do not believe God would condemn the Christians that are not true to their faith and also most of the world that is not Christian. It makes no sense to me, I do not believe the world, or divine is that cruel.
So, have a nice day :) I'm logging off now.
Mysterious Facebooker:
I'll stop asking questions if you don't want to talk about it. But don't even begin to think I can't handle what you have to say w/o going all weak-kneed and losing trust in my God. Ain't gonna happen... but if you would rather think you're signing off for my sake - I'll play along. :)
I would like to take a moment and say that my intention is not to make her lose faith in her God, not by any means, I would be a horrible person. Everyone needs faith in something. What I was trying to do is STRENGTHEN her faith in God through showing her that God exists everywhere, not just in Christianity.
After reading her last bit, I feel a great sorrow for her close-mindedness. I want to reach out and tell her that I'm not trying to be condescending, I just believe differently, and so does most of the world and that's ok.
I wonder why people insist on others being wrong. It seems to me to be the greatest logical fallacy of our time that so many Christians honestly believe a God would send someone to Hell for not believing in one very specific and very narrow viewpoint. It continually baffles me that so many Christians continually (and self-righteously) condemn their neighbors, when God specifically says not only to, "honor thy neighbor," but also, "Judge not lest ye be judged." It strikes me, that they don't see their own gross hypocrisy.
Not to mention the fact that if God sent to Hell all those promised, not only would probably half of the Christians alive be condemned, but also most of the world. I thought God wasn't down with discrimination.
I'm sure so many people have made those points of which I was just speaking, they're easy.
What I really want to know is how come the Old God (Old testament, not New) is so wrathful. In many passages, the way he is portrayed is more akin to a description of the Great Horned One, then an all-creator, lifter-up of the down and out, or savior to anyone. Jesus talks about saving everyone, so why did God smite the vile Cities of Sodom and Gamorrah? Why did he send the floods to kill all of humanity except for Noah and his ark?
When we take these fables (no insult intended, but I consider them to be like Aesop), I think we're supposed to take a loose look at the actual story and then glean whatever meaning we can from them. Obviously the abovementioned are warning us against acting like assholes and the Tortoise and the Hare is to warn us against being lazy; but we're not supposed to believe that the Tortoise and Hare actually spoke and raced with eachother.
It's like all this, "holier than thou," nonsense enables people to see the forest for the trees, but not the trees for the forest.
LOOK AT THE FOREST!!!!
It loves you! and you and you and you and you and you and you and I... and EVERYONE!
Good for you for clearly stating your position and knowing what you think and feel. I believe religeon is very personal and completely up to individual interpretation.
ReplyDeleteNo one person can begin to even say what another person "should" believe. To do so vehemently and create the "I am right and you are wrong" mentality is done by people out of fear. I don't wanna and will not live a fear based existence.
Like you, I believe in a universal, loving, accepting, forgiving, non-judgemetal, non vengeful power. I believe it is every where and in everything and especially in us and we can choose to tap into it and connect with it or not. That is becoming conscious.
I have a problem with the concept of a "God" whether you want it to be a male or female. I just prefer universal energy. But again, what works for me doesn't have to work for anyone else. Just has to work for me and it does. Pretty powerful stuff. Namaste. Luv ya!
i believe people are all aspects of God trying to realize It's infinite potential through time.
ReplyDelete