Post by watershield on Nov 18, 2006 0:14:56 GMT 1
My latest submission to witchvox:
Over the past year or so, I’ve spent virtually every day on the internet debating various topics with other pagans as well as individuals from other walks.
My core values have remained intact, but how I view the world we live in and our existence in this universe has changed. You could say my own belief structures have evolved to some extent.
I say this because I will be the first to admit that what I see as truth, will not be the truth as you see it. The ground between your truth and mine can be very close or continents apart. What ever I say or you say is just opinion. But that’s ok, as none of will ever truly know the truth until we make that journey at the end of this physical life.
My belief in the Christian God was never strong, but like most humans, I felt a need for some form of divinity in my life. Some 40 years ago, I started seeking a truth that I could believe in. That search has lead me towards many religions and teachings. The one “truth” that I found was that all religion has at it’s core a set of writings that lays out what it’s followers are “claiming” to teach and to follow. The problem with this is that all of these writings are the interpretations of man and rewritten or interpreted untold times. It therefore becomes problematic, at least for me. What is truth and what is mans attempt to persuade the masses toward one political view or the other.
I do believe that one of the primary problems with this world today is the lack of separation between church and state. Here in the Western world, as an example, look at the influence that the Christian perception of God has. On American money “In God We Trust”, The oath of office of the President of the United States sworn on a bible, The ordination of the King or Queen of England in a church. Even in Islam, the state is currently ran by leaders of that religion. And any political statement is prefaced with “God willing” or some similar qualification.
I have come to see that the idea of God/Gods/Goddess is rooted in our own weakness to accept responsibility for our own faults and /or actions. “It’s Gods will / Gods Plan” that this has happened and we can only accept the divine.
We are not born with the concept of a god. That’s taught to us by social conditioning and circumstance. We are taught that there is some greater power that exists out there, that watches over us, and manipulates the events of our lives. That watches us and judges our deeds and will either punish or reward us in the after life. How we ultimately perceive that power is a result of events that affect our lives, our physical and mental development, as it were.
I believe that the Gods that people experience are a creation of their own “condition” and based on the teachings they have been exposed to over their lives.
I’m not saying that Gods don’t exist. But rather it’s back to the question of the chicken and the egg.
Science has proven that all things are made up of energy. And regardless of the form that we perceive, that energy is the same in all things. That energy is what I refer to as the source. Through it, while we seem to be separate and individual, we are all connected to all things in this universe.
For the vast majority of people, there is no conscious awareness of this connection. But at some level, I believe that all of us feel that connection in some way. It’s that faint awareness that sparks our search for or understanding of our perception of god or the divine however you may define it.
There are some people who refer to themselves as pagans or witches, that can see or feel that energy. Many can manipulate it to some extent and alter the flow of the energy, thus altering how things might unfold in their/our perception of existence.
In a similar way, people of other paths also feel that energy, and according to their perception interpret it as evidence of “the grace of God” or however their experiences define their understanding. I also believe that many Christians and people of other faiths, be it Islam, Judaism, Buddhism or what have you, can connect with this energy through prayer and have similar results. I doubt however they would be quite so willing to see the power of prayer as the same ability as that of spell weaving!
Suffice it to say that I feel that energy and I see that energy. To me, it is a living force. It is that spark that exists in all things. It is the basis for my spiritual body and through it, maintains my “living” connection with the source. For me, that is the basic definition of Animism or how I define or label what it is I believe to be my truth.
Science also speaks to the big bang theory. How all matter, all energy, was created/released at one point in time to create this universe that we perceive. It does not, nor can it explain where that energy came from or what triggered the sudden expansion.
Depending on faith and your understanding, you will either believe or disbelieve the theory. Many will attempt to argue that “God” caused the Bang to happen and other will give some other explanation for our existence all together.
Well, as a matter of “fact”, I don’t believe that any one can adequately give an explanation that satisfies everyone.
But as a matter of faith, and possibly speculation, I view that event as a birth of a new life. It’s growing and learning, and we play some role in it’s growth. Just as we are not aware of any individual cell within our own bodies, I can not conceive that being or entity would be aware of us. Our cells, like us, live or exist for a time and function for some purpose. They/we die and the elements of our/it’s existence are reused in any number of ways, either within the body or discarded and used by some other being/entity.
Why?…..I don’t know. It’s all speculation…”Gods plan for us” …LOL
I suspect that to “know” the origin of that energy would also lead to the meaning of life.
Or, maybe the big bang was just some neuron firing, giving birth to a daydream, taking place in some vast brain. Maybe we are some random thought, existing briefly in the mind of some traveler, on a bus, trying to get home at the end of a busy day.
As I grow older, at times I feel I’m getting closer to finding that truth, and the meaning of life (if there is one) will reveal itself to me. But, that’ for another time and we will have to wait and see.
Over the past year or so, I’ve spent virtually every day on the internet debating various topics with other pagans as well as individuals from other walks.
My core values have remained intact, but how I view the world we live in and our existence in this universe has changed. You could say my own belief structures have evolved to some extent.
I say this because I will be the first to admit that what I see as truth, will not be the truth as you see it. The ground between your truth and mine can be very close or continents apart. What ever I say or you say is just opinion. But that’s ok, as none of will ever truly know the truth until we make that journey at the end of this physical life.
My belief in the Christian God was never strong, but like most humans, I felt a need for some form of divinity in my life. Some 40 years ago, I started seeking a truth that I could believe in. That search has lead me towards many religions and teachings. The one “truth” that I found was that all religion has at it’s core a set of writings that lays out what it’s followers are “claiming” to teach and to follow. The problem with this is that all of these writings are the interpretations of man and rewritten or interpreted untold times. It therefore becomes problematic, at least for me. What is truth and what is mans attempt to persuade the masses toward one political view or the other.
I do believe that one of the primary problems with this world today is the lack of separation between church and state. Here in the Western world, as an example, look at the influence that the Christian perception of God has. On American money “In God We Trust”, The oath of office of the President of the United States sworn on a bible, The ordination of the King or Queen of England in a church. Even in Islam, the state is currently ran by leaders of that religion. And any political statement is prefaced with “God willing” or some similar qualification.
I have come to see that the idea of God/Gods/Goddess is rooted in our own weakness to accept responsibility for our own faults and /or actions. “It’s Gods will / Gods Plan” that this has happened and we can only accept the divine.
We are not born with the concept of a god. That’s taught to us by social conditioning and circumstance. We are taught that there is some greater power that exists out there, that watches over us, and manipulates the events of our lives. That watches us and judges our deeds and will either punish or reward us in the after life. How we ultimately perceive that power is a result of events that affect our lives, our physical and mental development, as it were.
I believe that the Gods that people experience are a creation of their own “condition” and based on the teachings they have been exposed to over their lives.
I’m not saying that Gods don’t exist. But rather it’s back to the question of the chicken and the egg.
Science has proven that all things are made up of energy. And regardless of the form that we perceive, that energy is the same in all things. That energy is what I refer to as the source. Through it, while we seem to be separate and individual, we are all connected to all things in this universe.
For the vast majority of people, there is no conscious awareness of this connection. But at some level, I believe that all of us feel that connection in some way. It’s that faint awareness that sparks our search for or understanding of our perception of god or the divine however you may define it.
There are some people who refer to themselves as pagans or witches, that can see or feel that energy. Many can manipulate it to some extent and alter the flow of the energy, thus altering how things might unfold in their/our perception of existence.
In a similar way, people of other paths also feel that energy, and according to their perception interpret it as evidence of “the grace of God” or however their experiences define their understanding. I also believe that many Christians and people of other faiths, be it Islam, Judaism, Buddhism or what have you, can connect with this energy through prayer and have similar results. I doubt however they would be quite so willing to see the power of prayer as the same ability as that of spell weaving!
Suffice it to say that I feel that energy and I see that energy. To me, it is a living force. It is that spark that exists in all things. It is the basis for my spiritual body and through it, maintains my “living” connection with the source. For me, that is the basic definition of Animism or how I define or label what it is I believe to be my truth.
Science also speaks to the big bang theory. How all matter, all energy, was created/released at one point in time to create this universe that we perceive. It does not, nor can it explain where that energy came from or what triggered the sudden expansion.
Depending on faith and your understanding, you will either believe or disbelieve the theory. Many will attempt to argue that “God” caused the Bang to happen and other will give some other explanation for our existence all together.
Well, as a matter of “fact”, I don’t believe that any one can adequately give an explanation that satisfies everyone.
But as a matter of faith, and possibly speculation, I view that event as a birth of a new life. It’s growing and learning, and we play some role in it’s growth. Just as we are not aware of any individual cell within our own bodies, I can not conceive that being or entity would be aware of us. Our cells, like us, live or exist for a time and function for some purpose. They/we die and the elements of our/it’s existence are reused in any number of ways, either within the body or discarded and used by some other being/entity.
Why?…..I don’t know. It’s all speculation…”Gods plan for us” …LOL
I suspect that to “know” the origin of that energy would also lead to the meaning of life.
Or, maybe the big bang was just some neuron firing, giving birth to a daydream, taking place in some vast brain. Maybe we are some random thought, existing briefly in the mind of some traveler, on a bus, trying to get home at the end of a busy day.
As I grow older, at times I feel I’m getting closer to finding that truth, and the meaning of life (if there is one) will reveal itself to me. But, that’ for another time and we will have to wait and see.
