It's a peaceful day, following a night of frivolity and dancing with some very close friends. Life is good. The September sun leaves me with a sense of the coming Autumn, now only a couple days away. For months I've spoken to Joan about the need to explore my spirituality and the world of religion around me. Today isn't the day, as we needed it to recuperate from the evening's frivolities.
I was raised to believe that events like those of last evening were not conducive to the Spirit, yet every time I spend time with these friends... all whom are near and dear to my heart... I am filled with a sense of love. Our home, which actually belongs to two of those friends, is always full of love, full of peace, full of positive energy. At one end of the spacious living room (conjoined with the dining area) is a picture of Christ, knocking on a door without a handle, a painting that symbolizes the notion that we need to let Christ into our lives. By the front door is a banner that states the following:
The True Meaning of Life
"We are visitors on this planet
We are here for ninety
or one hundred years
at the very most.
During that period,
we must try to do something good, something useful,
with our lives.
If you contribute to other
people's happiness, you will
find the true goal,
the true meaning of life."
HH. The 14th Dalai Lama.
His Holiness, the Dalai Lama... the leader of the Tibetan Buddhist sect... a man that has been exiled from his native Tibet for most of his life... a man that exudes love and peace where he goes.
I have always been taught that the church in which I was raised is the one and only true Church of Jesus Christ... the one and only true church here on Earth. It was a notion that I believed for the better part of my 49 years on this planet. It's what I was taught by my parents...two people who are exemplars of the teachings of Jesus Christ...and it's what I was taught by my church leaders. That notion wasn't something to boost our pride or make us feel better than anyone else, it was simply what we believed. Truth be told, I wonder how many churches and spiritual belief systems throughout feel the exact same thing.
Growing up in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, I was taught that I chose to come to my family here on Earth before I was born. I was taught that it was my responsibility to try and convert those that weren't part of our church, that I would somehow be held accountable for not reaching out to share "the truth" with anyone who wasn't in the know. As I matured, I'd often ask myself, "If we choose which family we will come to, and IF there is only one path back to God", why wouldn't we ALL choose THAT religion?
And then there was the issue of how closely related the philosophies and teachings are, within the realms of Christianity, Buddhism, and even Muslim philosophy. They all seemed to teach love and doing good to one another. If it weren't for the extremists in every religion or belief structure, this world would be a much better place. The Christian world wastes so much energy channeling hatred towards Muslim people, often labeling as being terrorists,when it is only a small handful that actually perpetuate the hate. The same can be said for those on the opposite side of the fence. If we all actually followed the teachings of those we profess to follow, we would be extending a hand of fellowship to those that didn't believe the way we feel. This world would be wrought with love, rather than the hate which is so prevalent in our world around us.
Why do I bring this up, you ask? It's simple. I don't know if ANY religion is the answer, or if each is simply the result of a power hungry group of individuals who wants (or wanted) followers. OR, are each religion and/or belief structure a God given blessing to help us return to live with HIM... and become more like our Creator along the way, regardless of the differences found within each?
My purpose in this blog is to chronicle my spiritual journey. Joan, my lovely wife, and I want to explore the (spiritual) world around us. We want to see how others believe, to observe their world, from a spiritual or religious perspective. I, myself, believe in Jesus Christ. I suppose I don't fully know how His relationship to God falls in the grand scheme of things. I was raised to believe that Christ was the literal Son of God, that they are two distinct individuals. But what if Christ was the Earthly incarnation of God? That He came to Earth to be with His children... to teach us... to set an example. I don't suppose I'll truly know until I meet Him again, so for now, I want to just examine... both the beliefs and practices of different religions,but more importantly how the different sects and their practices stir my soul. I want to observe whether or not I feel the Spirit in different places, with different belief structures. I have felt the Spirit in L.D.S. churches (my lifelong religious belief structure), I've felt the Spirit, while listening to the Dalai Lama. I've even felt the Spirit on my own, doing meditation to still the mind. So many different angles, yet all have their own way of drawing me closer to God.
The spirit... of mankind collectively AND individually. It's what we are. It's who we are. And I intend to bring more definition to what part MY spirit plays in the grand scheme of things...
Growing up in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, I was taught that I chose to come to my family here on Earth before I was born. I was taught that it was my responsibility to try and convert those that weren't part of our church, that I would somehow be held accountable for not reaching out to share "the truth" with anyone who wasn't in the know. As I matured, I'd often ask myself, "If we choose which family we will come to, and IF there is only one path back to God", why wouldn't we ALL choose THAT religion?
And then there was the issue of how closely related the philosophies and teachings are, within the realms of Christianity, Buddhism, and even Muslim philosophy. They all seemed to teach love and doing good to one another. If it weren't for the extremists in every religion or belief structure, this world would be a much better place. The Christian world wastes so much energy channeling hatred towards Muslim people, often labeling as being terrorists,when it is only a small handful that actually perpetuate the hate. The same can be said for those on the opposite side of the fence. If we all actually followed the teachings of those we profess to follow, we would be extending a hand of fellowship to those that didn't believe the way we feel. This world would be wrought with love, rather than the hate which is so prevalent in our world around us.
Why do I bring this up, you ask? It's simple. I don't know if ANY religion is the answer, or if each is simply the result of a power hungry group of individuals who wants (or wanted) followers. OR, are each religion and/or belief structure a God given blessing to help us return to live with HIM... and become more like our Creator along the way, regardless of the differences found within each?
My purpose in this blog is to chronicle my spiritual journey. Joan, my lovely wife, and I want to explore the (spiritual) world around us. We want to see how others believe, to observe their world, from a spiritual or religious perspective. I, myself, believe in Jesus Christ. I suppose I don't fully know how His relationship to God falls in the grand scheme of things. I was raised to believe that Christ was the literal Son of God, that they are two distinct individuals. But what if Christ was the Earthly incarnation of God? That He came to Earth to be with His children... to teach us... to set an example. I don't suppose I'll truly know until I meet Him again, so for now, I want to just examine... both the beliefs and practices of different religions,but more importantly how the different sects and their practices stir my soul. I want to observe whether or not I feel the Spirit in different places, with different belief structures. I have felt the Spirit in L.D.S. churches (my lifelong religious belief structure), I've felt the Spirit, while listening to the Dalai Lama. I've even felt the Spirit on my own, doing meditation to still the mind. So many different angles, yet all have their own way of drawing me closer to God.
The spirit... of mankind collectively AND individually. It's what we are. It's who we are. And I intend to bring more definition to what part MY spirit plays in the grand scheme of things...
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