christianityThe Bahai' Faith attempts to unify the worlds religions by attributing all the worlds prophets as messengers of the same God,each sent for various reasons and/or purposes within the cultural context of their era. I would like to suggest that there is no need to relegate the teachings of the various prophets to just their given disciples or particular role in history. All of Gods messengers, should they be called prophets or messiahs, serve the same purpose which is to enlighten those who are willing enough (provided the opportunity) to listen. As people we should try to benefit as much as possible from these ancient (and not so ancient) religions by approaching from a more eclectic and informed vantage point. We have as much to learn from Jesus as we do Buddha, Mahavira, Laotzi, Zoraoster, Bahaullah and all the others. More than anything else Jesus taught us how to live, how to serve our fellow man and put the lives of others before our own, up to and including dying, as Jesus did, for the greater good (in His case, so that others might live). God knows as our God knows, that any one life, (is) worth less than all the rest. Buddhism teaches us to be true to ourselves far better than most religions are fundamentally able to. If you are not being true to yourself, you are not being true to God. It makes no sense to defend as true, what you can not prove and, worse, to do so merely because society expects you to. God either is or He isn't. Our beliefs do not determine what is or what isn't. Only the scientific method, coupled with an open enough mind to learn, listen and reason can do so. People who claim to know what they do not know, do themselves and everyone around them a great disservice that can not be attributed to something like the will of God.
The question is neither whether or not there is a God or could be but whether or not there should be. And should He not exist, then how should we say that anything exists? If a tree falls in the forest and no one is around to hear it, does it really make a sound? Is it correct to say that soundwaves exist without ever being heard, experienced or acknowledged by anyone? And if so, what significance do they have? Science teaches us that everything that exists, be it alive or dead, consists of the same subatomic particles that make up everything else. At first glance, Hinduism appears to be a polytheistic religion but is not. Hinduism speaks of many Gods that it calls manifestations of Brahmin. The three most prominent are Brahma (the creator), Vishnu (the maintainer) and Shiva (the destroyer). There are countless others. Is it safe to consider that, we too, are like manifestations of Brahmin? Made of the same substance as God? We may die but so long as the universe exists, do we not, ourselves, continue to exist? Is it possible that even the essence of our individual lives (as written on the walls of the Universe) never truly ceases it's journey but remains a part of God or "It" or whatever name we see fit to give this thing (or dude) we call space and time? One of the laws of physics is that energy can not be created or destroyed. It is called "The Conservation of Energy". Somehow, someway, that energy became you and me (E=MC2). On a quantum level it is not just you or me but you and me. We don't die. We simply return to it. No longer a manifestation of something greater than we can imagine, but the thing itself. Knowing this, can we still consider death so bad? Is not the Ocean greater than the rain drop?
The following is right out of the Bible:
'What is it that comes in two parts called beasts, the first having seven heads, plus an eighth head'
If you've heard of the Tecumseh Curse you know that it predicted that all U.S. presidents to come who were elected in a year ending in 00 would die in office. The first died in merely a month. The next Seven to be afflicted began with Abraham Lincoln until the curse was finally broken when Ronald Wilson Reagan survived an assasination attempt and supposedly broke the curse. So there were 7 American president elected in such a year beginning with Abraham Lincoln.
Now consider this... The Bible tells us that there will be a Beast (nation) from the Sea with 7 heads (leaders)and 10 horns. One of them will suffer a mortal wound but be healed....Ronald Wilson Reagan has 6 letters in each of his names. 666. He was the president or Head of the Beast to suffer a mortal wound and be healed. Not to meantion he was the reigning president 40 years after the rebirth of Israel and is responsible for ending the Cold War which made America a Nation no one could make war with.
Hmph...
Gary O
I went to an AA meeting a few months ago where a man exclaimed he was no better or worse than anyone in the room. I thought he was a fool for saying that until I heard the following at another AA meeting: There is no more or less God in me than there is in anyone else. Then I understood... We have a lot more in common that any of us think!
Gary O
“Christianity”
Christianity
teaches that you have to be a Christian to go to Heaven. This requirement essentially condemns the vast majority of people to hell. Those who have given their life to God but do so without the help of Christ will fall short of receiving Gods grace and find themselves on the wrong side of the pearly gates. There is only one way to God and it is through Christ.
A common claim that Christians often make is that the choice is ours. We can choose to either accept Christ into our lives or reject Him entirely. If we fail to make a choice, we still have made a choice. The problem with this line of thinking is clear: Christ is not a fact and the truth could be almost anything. It makes more sense to put our faith in (something like) the fruits of our labor or the methods of science than religion is worth. It makes no sense to commit our lives to such superstitious beliefs (as these people do).
According to Le-way, everyone is wrong about God, including me. It’s not that I’m right. It’s that God’s not wrong. The important thing is that we be true to ourselves. If we’re not being true to ourselves, we’re not being true to God. Le-way doesn’t have to be true to be right and since no one knows what’s true, all that matters is what’s right. If you don’t stand for something, you’ll fall for anything. We should stand for what’s right, even if it means facing the fires of hell and never getting to rejoice in our good deeds (of which, there are many). Forever isn’t worth forsaking ourselves in the name of some God that doesn’t live up to our expectations of what a God should be. God is good and the devil is bad. If you don’t understand this, then you don’t understand.
Another problem I have with the Christian dilemma is what they consider right from wrong or, in other words, a sin. A thing is right or wrong (and to the degree that it is right or wrong) for reasons that can be determined. A sin can usually be defined as an action or behavior that brings harm to ones self or another. There are exceptions to the rule which most often involve the greater good or the lesser of two evils. There are also what I call the lesser sins which are sins that do not necessarily bring about harm to anyone but are still apart from Gods will (or, in other words, not something we’ll be doing in Heaven). What makes something right or wrong is not what distinguishes it from other things but the fruit it bares. A sin is a sin is a sin for the mere reason that everything we do results from the same knowledge of good and evil that gives us the right to be a fool. It’s called original sin and is what separates us from God.
Christianity veers from this course and tries to define a sin in ways that do not agree with the way things really are. A prime example is homosexuality. According to Christianity homosexuality is an abomination. It is among the worst of sins when really it is anything but. Homosexuality is a lesser sin at worst. Gay people have sex for the exact same reasons straight people do (short of having children). They have sex with each other to express love, show affection, give and experience pleasure and so on. Their motives are absolutely no different than what two straight people share with each other. The only real difference is that it falls outside of societies norms and therefore earns ridicule (deserved or otherwise). We should be more concerned with unsafe and promiscuous sex than same sex behavior. It is wrong to hold such things against a person when they have nothing to do with us or anyone else for that matter. Homosexuality is no more a sin than a lot of other things people take for granted. It is certainly a forgivable offense.
As I see it the worlds religions are just a bunch of (different) ways to worship the same God. You don’t have to be a Christian or believe in the God of the Jews. You merely need to believe that God is perfect and put Him in control. It doesn’t matter what you call or do not call God because God is the God of everyone or He is the God of no one. He either is or He isn’t. God is like a mirror, the mirror never changes but everyone who looks at it sees a different face. There is more than one path to a spiritual awakening but they all lead to God. According to Le-way, there will be liberty and justice for all.
“The Divinity of Christ”
There is little doubt
that someone named Jesus of Nazareth walked the Earth some 2000 years ago, claimed to be the Son of God and die for our sins. Many of the worlds religions, at least, think of Him as a prophet. Among them are the Bah’ai Faith, Islam and numerous others. They all agree that He was a real person and a splendid teacher but not, necessarily, that He was who He claimed to be.
A few religions profess their particular prophet to be the last in a long line of prophets. In order for this to be the case, all the others would have to be wrong which seems unlikely, if not totally absurd (if you ask me). It’s far more probable that God has and will continue to send messengers (on His behalf) to share His way of life and unique perspective with the world. I propose to be one such individual.
Christianity teaches us that the divinity of Christ is without restraint. They claim we must either believe Jesus is the Son of God and that He literally died for our sins (so that all who believe in His name shall not die but have eternal life) or lose out on salvation entirely. To believe He was merely a man or a prophet is not good enough. The only way to God is through Christ. People of all other faiths will face the fires of hell for not accepting Christ as their lord and savior.
According to Le-way, the way to go to Heaven is to surrender The Knowledge of Good and Evil which can be accomplished in as many ways as there are to be sincere. You don’t have to be a Christian, Muslim or a Jew. You merely need to believe that God is perfect and be willing to surrender your life for His. Those who fail to do so will end up in Utopia (also called the Land of Oz or, sometimes, Purgatory) where they will experience Perfect On-going Justice, Actual Free-will and a Permanent 2nd Chance (to surrender The Knowledge of Good and Evil and go to Heaven).
Unfortunately, there is no way for any of us to substantiate either of these claims. No one knows for sure if Jesus truly was the Son of God or that Le-way isn’t just make believe. We must choose to either concede we are completely blind to the truth (and go on with our lives) or put our faith in what the truth should be (believing that God will make it that way). In either case, our beliefs do not determine what is or what isn’t and should never be allowed to take precedence over our ability to reason and approach things in the logical and systematic fashion that would clearly be Gods way (for God truly to be).
In order for me to recognize my own calling it becomes necessary (for me) to recognize that of others (as is the case with Jesus). I believe it’s entirely possible and completely realistic that Jesus was called to do what He did just as I have been called to do what I do. It’s not necessarily the case that history has correctly relayed the story of Jesus or serves His purposes any better than it shall mine (should it at all). The point is that Jesus may have achieved His objective without anyone ever, actually understanding what it was (so far as the vast majority of us are concerned anyway). I believe that Jesus could have died for our sins but that He would have done so unconditionally, asking nothing more than we give our lives to God regardless of what religion we belong to. According to Le-way, there will be liberty and justice for all.
“The Crack in the Liberty Bell”
May America bring us a miracle…
A paradigm shift that’s one of God‘s most wonderful gifts,
A promise in the form of justice,
And the end of times in a series of rhymes!
The truth is not a guessing game,
And no one knows Gods name
It doesn’t matter who is right
If no one’s willing to stand up and fight
To defend the truth for what it is
And hope God considers them one of His!
When all is said and done
Does it really matter what we call Gods Son
Or just that our lives were fun
