On Religion
Posted 10-26-2011 at 10:27 AM by Arrowwind09
Well, I am not a religious person, yet I consider myself deeply spiritual. They are not the same thing and are not related, yet they can co-exist.
Spiritual feelings and experience is common to all of humanity. Too often those who are raised in religious dogma come to think that their spiritual feelings are a result of religion and religious dogma and falsely believe that they have a corner on spiritual experience that no other can have. This is a blatant lie. Spiritual feelings and experience are common to all people who endeavor to to open their hearts and minds to it, regardless of religion.
Science has always been there and always will be. So has religion. Science reflects the human capacity to reason and religion reflects the human capacity to dream. Dreams and reason are difficult to blend for they come from two very distinct and separate realities.
The problem with religion (as opposed to spirituality) in my point of view is that once it coaleses in to a solid intitution it promotes repression of people, the control of people to think and to reason and even to dream for themselves. People who think that they deserve power and money and influence take control. They start to inforce a belief upon the masses of the institutional system that does not wellspring from within the individual but is imposed from the outside by rules and laws made up by man and most often imposed with fear tactics... then they lay the almighty savior paradigm on top of it all to give one the sense that if they are "good" they will be saved from their fears, most of these fears which were imposed by the religious dogma in the first place.
Religion has been used and still is used as a force for political and economic power usually benefiting those at the top the most, while suckling money off of those who have the least capacity to pay but they do, out of fear of damnation and hell and social isolation.
Of course the Catholic Church has been one of the greatest repressors in history and their historical record supporting this fact is astounding and to me, just frightful. It continues to this day with the current pedophile situation and I do think lots of back room deals are done in the church regarding politics and economy. A very dark dark entity that overshadows the minds and hearts is within that organization and many good people are being used and douped becasue they refuse to look at it full on in the face...they cannot because damnation is so ingrained into their consciousness for retaliaton if they thwart the church. There is also a great niavity amongst church memebers... they just cant belive that such dark issues within their church could possibly be true and they then refuse to look.
Back in the 16th century eventually the King of England rebelled against the Catholic Church when he decided that he did not have to be married to a woman he didnt want. Hence the great divide and the begining of the Church of England and the further development of Lutheranism and protestantism. But the Heretics and the Catholics both did their share of beheading and cruxification within the courts of royality and across the farmsteads of Europe. Fear was pandemic. Those who generated the most fear and the heaviest battle axe won. Many differing groups won, spread out across nations and different local governments though out Europe.
We like to think that these events are long in our past... but they are not. Manefest destiny, largely a Christian movement in the Americas, at least promoted and enacted by Christians, slaughtered millions of Native Americans as well as the lessor children of earth, the animals, almost into extinction. .These beliefs also lead to the Salem witch trials and the murder of several hundred innocent women and men. It is also found in the colonization of South Africa and so many other places around the world. Today Christian beliefs continue to support imperialism and a perpetual belief that others are less and that they must be corrected and uplifted, as they are pushed to fill the coffers of the church. Christians back many governments and military movements and ideologies and it is the force of the christian movement though individuals in the military and US government that is behind the installation of military bases around the world.
On a more local level the rule of religious order is inacted though local business, good old boys clubs, social isolation. women's groups. Have you ever been denied a job becasue you thought you were not the right religion? lost an election because you were not the right religion? were shown only houses for sale in the section of town that supports your religion or lack of it? not allowed to play at someone's house when you were a child becasue of your religion? not invited to come sit on your neighbors porch becasue of your religion? not given fair economic opportunity because of your religion? If you cannot think of an example you are lucky. Our literature is full of such examples.. if you read.
Of course history shows that the major religions of the world have been terrible war mongers and repressors. I would not say that it is the actual religion that does this but the ill intent of those who control the religion. When you get people with dark hearts supporting one another in a dark dream very dark things can happen. Certainly from what I have read, Christ did not teach to do these things.. only the supporters of Christ who are perpetuated to this day.
I always felt that relgion drew and attracted and captured the minds of people who did not have the capacity to develop their own standards of ethincs and morality.. or for those who did not inherit such types of standards from family. ... for those who are always seeking answers to the metaphysial questions of life outside of themselves they can be mislead and fear is the leading tool and weapon to make people obey, give their money, and live according to rules that they often even doubt.
Religion imposes a dream that is not based in much reality in my point of view, based on little evidence along with attachments that are based on wishful thinking for a world that is largely scary to an unaware mind. Demons and hell, heaven and saviors do not exist in my reality. I am my own savior and I make my world today either a heaven or hell. Although I may be exposed to other peoples hell in the periphery of my life it is not within my circle of self. I do realize that others can inflict their hell upon me through force and cause me to suffer... this has been the way of the world since the the beginning, and especially the ways of churches and other religious institutions.
I do hold beliefs that some might consider religious in nature.. these beliefs are acquired though my own living experience, not though a dogma imposed upon me but though my own free exploration into life, the creation of my own personal dream as I chose to create it. It weaves a deep and personal tapestry that makes life worth living for me.. but it is not my place, nor anyones place, in my estimation to impose though fear and force this dream or any dream upon another.
The only rules to life are ethics and morality. Although there are fuzzy lines in where morality begins and ends it is clear to me that one should not kill... and Christianity and the other major religions have much much karma to work out over these issues.
Although Christian religions do not send armies to battle as they once did, I cringe in distain everytime I hear "God is on our side" when the battle lines are drawn the the weapons hurled.
Some religions spend lots of time trying to expose cults. They fear the word occult. Many books are written on cults and how to get your kids out of them. I always found these books highly amusing... as it seemed to me that they were writing about themselves. I had to go though all the reprogramming and release to extract myself from the Christian religion when I was a child.
I think I write this piece using the term Chrisitian becasue this is the type of dogma that I am most exposed to in the USA. This word just as easily be substituted for Muslim or Zionist, Hindu, Seik, or Jew or many others... and I can also see that within all these religions there are some people of pure heart who work out of love, not fear, and hence at the highest level the best will promote teachings of spiritual freedom, if even against their own goups indoctrinations.
There is much talk these days of the blending of religion and science. It is interesting to note that some of our greatest scientific explores are religions or if not, deeply spiritual.
I suggest that you read a book called the "Tao of Physics"
The only reason science exists today to the extent that it does is because the major religions have permitted it to do so. If they felt there would be no benefit for them anyone who practices science would be executed just like they did in the old days. Certainly some enlightenment has come to those who create the domgas of religion over time. The Renaissance brought the possibility of enlightement even to those who control churchs,,, to an extent,, reason started to overshadow dogma.
Now science has been fully released, if only to be once again suppresed by governments and the powers that be and corporations who have only profits in mind. Good sustainable energy devices are already invented but not permitted into the public domain. If religions were truely enlightened they would promote and encourage and protect those involved in such invention, but they do not.
A very interesting movie that addresses some of this topic is available on Netfix called "The Age of Innocence"
This movie examines the conflict between the philosophers of Egypt (essentially Greek in philosophical orientation) and the Christians... and the destruction of the Library of Alexandria, which started the propulsion of the world into the dark ages amongst thinkers of the time, at least in the Western eurocentric world, that lasted for many centuries, until the prison shattered, starting in the Renaissance.
__________________
Spiritual feelings and experience is common to all of humanity. Too often those who are raised in religious dogma come to think that their spiritual feelings are a result of religion and religious dogma and falsely believe that they have a corner on spiritual experience that no other can have. This is a blatant lie. Spiritual feelings and experience are common to all people who endeavor to to open their hearts and minds to it, regardless of religion.
Science has always been there and always will be. So has religion. Science reflects the human capacity to reason and religion reflects the human capacity to dream. Dreams and reason are difficult to blend for they come from two very distinct and separate realities.
The problem with religion (as opposed to spirituality) in my point of view is that once it coaleses in to a solid intitution it promotes repression of people, the control of people to think and to reason and even to dream for themselves. People who think that they deserve power and money and influence take control. They start to inforce a belief upon the masses of the institutional system that does not wellspring from within the individual but is imposed from the outside by rules and laws made up by man and most often imposed with fear tactics... then they lay the almighty savior paradigm on top of it all to give one the sense that if they are "good" they will be saved from their fears, most of these fears which were imposed by the religious dogma in the first place.
Religion has been used and still is used as a force for political and economic power usually benefiting those at the top the most, while suckling money off of those who have the least capacity to pay but they do, out of fear of damnation and hell and social isolation.
Of course the Catholic Church has been one of the greatest repressors in history and their historical record supporting this fact is astounding and to me, just frightful. It continues to this day with the current pedophile situation and I do think lots of back room deals are done in the church regarding politics and economy. A very dark dark entity that overshadows the minds and hearts is within that organization and many good people are being used and douped becasue they refuse to look at it full on in the face...they cannot because damnation is so ingrained into their consciousness for retaliaton if they thwart the church. There is also a great niavity amongst church memebers... they just cant belive that such dark issues within their church could possibly be true and they then refuse to look.
Back in the 16th century eventually the King of England rebelled against the Catholic Church when he decided that he did not have to be married to a woman he didnt want. Hence the great divide and the begining of the Church of England and the further development of Lutheranism and protestantism. But the Heretics and the Catholics both did their share of beheading and cruxification within the courts of royality and across the farmsteads of Europe. Fear was pandemic. Those who generated the most fear and the heaviest battle axe won. Many differing groups won, spread out across nations and different local governments though out Europe.
We like to think that these events are long in our past... but they are not. Manefest destiny, largely a Christian movement in the Americas, at least promoted and enacted by Christians, slaughtered millions of Native Americans as well as the lessor children of earth, the animals, almost into extinction. .These beliefs also lead to the Salem witch trials and the murder of several hundred innocent women and men. It is also found in the colonization of South Africa and so many other places around the world. Today Christian beliefs continue to support imperialism and a perpetual belief that others are less and that they must be corrected and uplifted, as they are pushed to fill the coffers of the church. Christians back many governments and military movements and ideologies and it is the force of the christian movement though individuals in the military and US government that is behind the installation of military bases around the world.
On a more local level the rule of religious order is inacted though local business, good old boys clubs, social isolation. women's groups. Have you ever been denied a job becasue you thought you were not the right religion? lost an election because you were not the right religion? were shown only houses for sale in the section of town that supports your religion or lack of it? not allowed to play at someone's house when you were a child becasue of your religion? not invited to come sit on your neighbors porch becasue of your religion? not given fair economic opportunity because of your religion? If you cannot think of an example you are lucky. Our literature is full of such examples.. if you read.
Of course history shows that the major religions of the world have been terrible war mongers and repressors. I would not say that it is the actual religion that does this but the ill intent of those who control the religion. When you get people with dark hearts supporting one another in a dark dream very dark things can happen. Certainly from what I have read, Christ did not teach to do these things.. only the supporters of Christ who are perpetuated to this day.
I always felt that relgion drew and attracted and captured the minds of people who did not have the capacity to develop their own standards of ethincs and morality.. or for those who did not inherit such types of standards from family. ... for those who are always seeking answers to the metaphysial questions of life outside of themselves they can be mislead and fear is the leading tool and weapon to make people obey, give their money, and live according to rules that they often even doubt.
Religion imposes a dream that is not based in much reality in my point of view, based on little evidence along with attachments that are based on wishful thinking for a world that is largely scary to an unaware mind. Demons and hell, heaven and saviors do not exist in my reality. I am my own savior and I make my world today either a heaven or hell. Although I may be exposed to other peoples hell in the periphery of my life it is not within my circle of self. I do realize that others can inflict their hell upon me through force and cause me to suffer... this has been the way of the world since the the beginning, and especially the ways of churches and other religious institutions.
I do hold beliefs that some might consider religious in nature.. these beliefs are acquired though my own living experience, not though a dogma imposed upon me but though my own free exploration into life, the creation of my own personal dream as I chose to create it. It weaves a deep and personal tapestry that makes life worth living for me.. but it is not my place, nor anyones place, in my estimation to impose though fear and force this dream or any dream upon another.
The only rules to life are ethics and morality. Although there are fuzzy lines in where morality begins and ends it is clear to me that one should not kill... and Christianity and the other major religions have much much karma to work out over these issues.
Although Christian religions do not send armies to battle as they once did, I cringe in distain everytime I hear "God is on our side" when the battle lines are drawn the the weapons hurled.
Some religions spend lots of time trying to expose cults. They fear the word occult. Many books are written on cults and how to get your kids out of them. I always found these books highly amusing... as it seemed to me that they were writing about themselves. I had to go though all the reprogramming and release to extract myself from the Christian religion when I was a child.
I think I write this piece using the term Chrisitian becasue this is the type of dogma that I am most exposed to in the USA. This word just as easily be substituted for Muslim or Zionist, Hindu, Seik, or Jew or many others... and I can also see that within all these religions there are some people of pure heart who work out of love, not fear, and hence at the highest level the best will promote teachings of spiritual freedom, if even against their own goups indoctrinations.
There is much talk these days of the blending of religion and science. It is interesting to note that some of our greatest scientific explores are religions or if not, deeply spiritual.
I suggest that you read a book called the "Tao of Physics"
The only reason science exists today to the extent that it does is because the major religions have permitted it to do so. If they felt there would be no benefit for them anyone who practices science would be executed just like they did in the old days. Certainly some enlightenment has come to those who create the domgas of religion over time. The Renaissance brought the possibility of enlightement even to those who control churchs,,, to an extent,, reason started to overshadow dogma.
Now science has been fully released, if only to be once again suppresed by governments and the powers that be and corporations who have only profits in mind. Good sustainable energy devices are already invented but not permitted into the public domain. If religions were truely enlightened they would promote and encourage and protect those involved in such invention, but they do not.
A very interesting movie that addresses some of this topic is available on Netfix called "The Age of Innocence"
This movie examines the conflict between the philosophers of Egypt (essentially Greek in philosophical orientation) and the Christians... and the destruction of the Library of Alexandria, which started the propulsion of the world into the dark ages amongst thinkers of the time, at least in the Western eurocentric world, that lasted for many centuries, until the prison shattered, starting in the Renaissance.
__________________
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