Archive for Creation’s diversity

Dogmatic Faith and Paralyzed Spirit

Posted in agnoticism, Atheist, belief, Christianity, culture, faith, freethought, life, politics, random, Social, thoughts with tags , , , , on October 15, 2011 by chouck017894

Faith, the hallelujah kind, is a difficult human eccentricity to explain, for how are we to logically categorized which of our emotional or mental workings are to be factually considered as “true,” or “pious,” or “spiritually revitalizing“?  And why, exactly, should other physically ecstatic, mentally invigorating, or spiritually revitalizing experiences be dismissed as profane or even as supposedly abhorred by god—any consensual sex act, for example?  Even pondering over this incongruity is haughtily dismissed as disrespectful or blasphemous.

The general consensus among man-fashioned faith systems is that the perceived intelligence responsible for Creation and which is ceremoniously appealed to as “God” is said to be omniscient and omnipotent (all-knowing and all-powerful).  This raises the question of why should humans find it necessary therefore to whip themselves into the neurotic concept that there is only one way–some man-concocted faith system—which can propel believers into a higher attunement with that omniscient and omnipotent being?

In practice the my-way-only approach of these ego-gratifying faith systems that pretend to understand universal workings is to ignore the astonishing plurality and diversity which the universe openly prefers and openly displays.  Such an unrealistic disregard for life’s vast diversity in the practice of “faith” is testimony that exposes what these man-invented faith systems are really designed for—the exploitation of the masses through ego manipulation.

Considering that this little planet is swamped with a minimum of 4,200 religions, faith groups, schism-denominations, independent churches, tribal beliefs, cultural traditions, congregations, etc., such claims made by each of them to an imagined exclusive access to universal powers are illogical. And every one of those thousands of faith systems flourish by pretending that they alone possess exclusive access into a “paradise” or “bliss” or some vague spiritual country club in the sky.  That bogus assertion is nothing more than the indulgence in ego manipulation. [Statistics on spiritual/religious groupings used here were researched by adherents.com/]

When any man-conceived faith system becomes activated into an aggressive drive to impose its self-serving doctrines upon all those whom they can subject to it, that system ceases to be a spiritual search for enlightenment: That aggressiveness is intentionally directed to achieve only mundane objectives.  The plurality and diversity that is found throughout every aspect that is seen as life and Creation relays the universal truth that every person’s connection to the Source may also be achieved in diverse, personal ways, not just through some unyielding, uncompromising man-invented dogma.  It is when something becomes dead that it transforms into a stiff, cold, inflexible and unfeeling shell of existence—that state of lost awareness which we speak of as rigor mortis.

Rigor mortis is defined as the progressive stiffening of muscular tissues after death, which is known to be caused by chemical changes in the physical body.  Thus a fact of our material continuation happens to be that when some life aspect becomes unbending, unresponsive and unyielding, that aspect is no longer capable of interacting appropriately in a supple elastic manner with the living.  (Radical right take note.)  All life is defined by its flexibility, suppleness and lenience, therefore these traits active as life stand as the criterion by which we may measure the life-value of whatever interacts with our awareness of self.   Faulty teachings of man-conceived faith systems have, unfortunately, perverted our understanding of the electromagnetic energies (aura) that radiate around every life form and which is spoken of as “spirit.”  It is that measurable and indestructible electromagnetic vibrancy which always stands available as our personal link to the Source, not the indulgence in formulated posturing.

It is the awesome plurality and diversity that is observable everywhere throughout the universe which propels and sustains the universe.  And it is that plurality and diversity which provides us with the analytical means to evaluate the practice of religious fundamentalism.  The man-invented faith practices (and political systems) which demand rigid, unyielding ideology, and which fosters itself through negative tenets of hatred for life’s diversity are inherently anti-life. (Radical right, wake up!)  Sadly, that unyielding attitude is not the golden path of salvation; that is nothing more than spirit in the constriction of spiritual rigor mortis.

Related post: Spiritual Rigor Mortis, November 2010

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Increasing Light Signals a New Year

Posted in Atheist, belief, Christianity, culture, faith, freethought, humanity, nature, Pantheism, random, religion, thoughts with tags , , , on December 27, 2010 by chouck017894

Each year the Sun re-establishes its apparent northward movement on the 25th of December, marking the point for the increase of light for the Northern Hemisphere.  This phenomenon is much grander in scope and more awesome in infinite power than any imagined event of a virgin birth or some oil lamp  burning for eight days in a temple.  The interaction of the Earth with the Sun is in every way a much truer covenant extended to all life through universal power than are the stories of special favor for some set-apart assemblage of people.

Our ancient ancestors, those much maligned Pagans, felt a more intimate connection with Nature and the observable heavens than most people today.  There was no emotional need to disguise the natural occurrences such as the alternate solstice periods as some mythic miracle performed for only a select few. 

For seven days following the end of the winter solstice, honored in Pagan times as “Mother night,” the beginning of increasing light was reason for celebration, and gifts were exchanged among family and friends in acknowledgement of the coming abundance of life-giving sunlight.  And in this period—in recognition of the true miracle of the Sun’s support of life—a customary salutation when parting with loved ones and friends was the blessing, “May your light increase.”

After seven days of celebration for emergence from the long nights, the routine chores of life were then taken up anew, and a new cycle was calculated from the end of that celebration.  Thus the time of the New Year observance that is today recognized across much of the world has its foundation in Pagan recognition of cosmic interaction.

The universe was understood by Pagan cultures to be a living thing—a vast unified consciousness.  When they looked out into the universe they perceived something at work that was much grander than the constraining religions which imagine a humanlike personality in place of that all-embracing power.  The Pagans felt an intimacy with that power which the practice of ecclesiasticism can never experience, for they intuitively recognized that each manifested being is a functioning part of that universal consciousness.  To them the notion that the creative power kept itself apart and aloof from everything that had been created would have been rightfully regarded as absurd.

Humankind’s invented hierarchical religions always have a tendency to  leave their follower with vague feelings of being unfulfilled, which erodes their spirit with unrecognized resentment.  By ignoring Nature and the visible universe these “faiths” have become systems in which one must will themselves to believe rather than experience one’s unity with it all.  Intricately structured religions such as Judaism, Christianity and Islam are not faiths that can be assessed as arising from natural expressions of consciousness.  They are, unfortunately, faith systems that encourage a denial of compassion for all things that are outside their self-set boundaries.  The reason behind this negative approach to Creation’s diversity is that to allow oneself to be open to feel regard for others is put down as a feminine characteristic and therefore not worthy to be cultivated.  As a result, such faith systems can gratify themselves only through carefully tended hypocrisy.

As a result these militant-spirited faith systems have always been at war with something.  For spiritual understanding the priests of these religions indoctrinate seekers with images and glorification of angel-warriors, wars in heaven, “holy wars,” the glorification of blood sacrifice, and never-ending combats with “sin.”  In their houses of worship they sit in strict military rows, or prostrate themselves in neat military rows, obey orders to rise, to sit, to kneel, to sing, and in some manner donate materially to the faith.  Indeed, these faith systems labor to crush each person’s individual connection with the universe until it disappears into the sterile personality of the religion itself.  The theologies of these organized religions have done little else than suggest that all Creation is divided into feuding camps.  That, however, is not how Creation holds itself together.  To be taught such a thing only imposes a kind of resentful hostility that has been misinterpreted as “spirit.”

It is unlikely that each individual’s higher purpose was to simply act as some separate organ of some religious social structure.  Perpetuating a man-conceived religion reduces followers to little more than hive workers and breeders who, through mental conditioning, would find emotional survival virtually impossible if separated from the body of their religion.  Followers are then deliberately made blind to the beautiful transcendent unity within all people, which is the yearning of human spirit for illumination.

Despite mankind’s struggles with such bouts of self-delusion, the heavens still bear witness to the flow of Creation.  We need only to remove the blinders placed over our eyes by those who make a habit of taking advantage of our blindness.  Lured away from adoring the unity of all things as expressed in the universe, we have been “guided” to seek spiritual upliftment by huddling together in echoing “sanctified” enclosures.  There, the devout are given role models of heroes and saints, saviors and kings who would never have accepted being herded into such behavior.

But the universe still holds it all together by extending divine allowance for such diversity.  If mankind wishes to pretend that it is the sum total of universal wisdom, the universe can afford to be patient.  Meanwhile, the interaction of Earth and the Sun continues to reaffirm it covenant with life, and that power is not limited by time or mankind’s beliefs.

May your light increase.

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