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I don't know if this is the right tribe in which to post this article, but it does seem to have tangential relevance.
Let me know what you think.
Peace,
libramoon
religion, power and life
I have been thinking about the fragility of life, the brutality of war, the emanations of hatred, despair, futility, anti-life beliefs, subjugation of the natural world and our natural ways of being, the yin and yang of human power.
I've been wondering how to possibly have faith in a world where so many suffer so regularly. Do we create such realities? Do we really learn and
grow from horror and death and ugly bleeding wounds?
Collective mythology points to a pantheon, whether extraterrestrial, divine, or some other origin. Somehow the group which instituted
Judeo-Christian-Islam was able to wield power so that they gained sway over this segment of human history which we call Western Civilization.
They chose Hiroshima as a target because it had not been bombed, was not already disfigured, so there would be stark contrast between before and
after.
I don't know what this means, but it seems significant. This god appears jealous, arrogant, warlike, valuing patriarchic hierarchies, perhaps as being easier to control. The followers instituted strict rules; devalued bodily gratification, pleasure, fun, intra or inter-species cooperation. In many ways they devalued the Earth, the eco-sphere, the kinds of interdependence that lead to valuing each and all. They favored harsh competition, violent confrontation, us-against-them/winner-take-all. They favored the wealthy and powerful whose ends justified any nasty means. Their moral code was about restrictions, not solutions. I, perhaps, too flippantly, abbreviate my description as "the god of the Jews" because these are the people historically that we first find worshipping this god. Yet, Christ-be-damned, this is the god-council the Christian authorities worship. There are other gods with other values. How did this god gain so much control over man?
I am a polytheist. I believe that all of the god(desse)s are part of a vast immortal pantheon, each carving out their niche of customers/worshippers, in various times and places. The considerable dominance of monotheistic religions in this day and age is partially why I try to promote discussion of the diversity of spiritual/metaphysical beliefs.
One of these gods executed a bit of a coup in the Middle East thousands of years ago, and convinced various tribes and, as time went on, civilizations of his predominance through the prophets of the Jews, then Christ, then Mohammed, and others, Joseph Smith comes to mind. I do not mean to say that the faiths of these prophets are the same religion, but that they worship the same god. Each of these religions came to worship this god under the influences of different times, cultural backgrounds, previous theologies, with different prophets, books, and dogma. Kind of like siblings, each knowing and relating to the parent differently. And we all know about sibling rivalry.
He not only convinced them to worship him alone, but that there were in fact no other god(desse)s. He is an arrogant, jealous, despot, who encouraged all kinds of horrid behavior amongst his peoples, including setting them up against each other. Unfortunately, it is not true that none of these religions preach intolerance of others; quite the opposite, in fact. In the Old Testament, historically the first book of the tribes worshipping this god, god encourages the smiting of enemies, usually defined as those who believe differently. Jesus did espouse peaceful co-existence, but there are many reasons to think that Jesus's teachings and agenda might be vastly different from those of god the father. Despite these being sibling religions, which one might think would involve the overarching deity exhorting peace among brethren, this god seems to enjoy pitting his tribes against each other for the grand exhibitions of warfare, or even everyday hostility. He is a particularly cantankerous, jealous, arrogant sort of god, wanting a lot of acclaim, a lot of devoted attention. I find him rather distasteful, and prefer to worship at other altars. Of course there are those who are of a peaceful nature who practice these faiths, and each of these faiths has peace-loving ecstatic sects. However, I believe this is about individual spirituality, not the formal religions developed from the relationship between deity and tribe.
I am sure that those who do worship this god, and by today their numbers are seriously considerable, do find whatever solace, spiritual guidance, inner
peace, that they are looking for in their religion. I believe that these gifts, though, come not from this particular deity, but from each person's own spiritual center. We, ultimately, once we let ourselves, are each our own deity, each our own being, each our own power. However, for whatever historical/sociological/psychological/cultural reasons, we desire and act on ceremonial, ritual, religious customs that often involve the invocation of and surrender to specific deities to whom we give our belief and loyalty. Thus, yes, human politics and mundane ambitions do help to implement inhumanity from man to man in the name of god. Of course the leaders in a hierarchy are the ones who institute the accepted rules and behaviors. The masses for the most part fall in line rather than incur the wrath of those in charge, human or god.
In regard to fate/free will: Of course there is fate. Fate is that which occurs in our lives due to the myriad forces over which we as individuals have no control. Of course there is free will. Free will is what we use to act as we choose within the bounds of the circumstances brought about by fate. We both have the ability to choose our path and it has already been decided. We each have our roles to play, our missions to accomplish, our lessons to learn. We have free will to determine how we work within our given frame. The gods may play an active role in humans' lives, or they may merely watch us, or ignore us. It varies. We have the ability to become co-creators with the god(esses) of our choice, those with whom we resonate. The god(desse)s have the ability to "mess with" us as they choose.
What we as conscious, self-aware beings need to do is to wrest back our power and learn to work within a win/win concept, where we each benefit when we all benefit, as opposed to some variation of survival of the fittest or fealty to self-aggrandizing warlike deities. Then we could do what actually makes sense rather than being preoccupied with a myth of original sin or some mythical bottom line. We could all be much calmer, easier, more usefully productive and playful. Is this the way it was before the evil gods? Was this the Eden we were booted out of because the gods had other plans? Why didn't we fight harder to keep a way of life that was good for us? The imbalance is killing us and our home.
Let me know what you think.
Peace,
libramoon
religion, power and life
I have been thinking about the fragility of life, the brutality of war, the emanations of hatred, despair, futility, anti-life beliefs, subjugation of the natural world and our natural ways of being, the yin and yang of human power.
I've been wondering how to possibly have faith in a world where so many suffer so regularly. Do we create such realities? Do we really learn and
grow from horror and death and ugly bleeding wounds?
Collective mythology points to a pantheon, whether extraterrestrial, divine, or some other origin. Somehow the group which instituted
Judeo-Christian-Islam was able to wield power so that they gained sway over this segment of human history which we call Western Civilization.
They chose Hiroshima as a target because it had not been bombed, was not already disfigured, so there would be stark contrast between before and
after.
I don't know what this means, but it seems significant. This god appears jealous, arrogant, warlike, valuing patriarchic hierarchies, perhaps as being easier to control. The followers instituted strict rules; devalued bodily gratification, pleasure, fun, intra or inter-species cooperation. In many ways they devalued the Earth, the eco-sphere, the kinds of interdependence that lead to valuing each and all. They favored harsh competition, violent confrontation, us-against-them/winner-take-all. They favored the wealthy and powerful whose ends justified any nasty means. Their moral code was about restrictions, not solutions. I, perhaps, too flippantly, abbreviate my description as "the god of the Jews" because these are the people historically that we first find worshipping this god. Yet, Christ-be-damned, this is the god-council the Christian authorities worship. There are other gods with other values. How did this god gain so much control over man?
I am a polytheist. I believe that all of the god(desse)s are part of a vast immortal pantheon, each carving out their niche of customers/worshippers, in various times and places. The considerable dominance of monotheistic religions in this day and age is partially why I try to promote discussion of the diversity of spiritual/metaphysical beliefs.
One of these gods executed a bit of a coup in the Middle East thousands of years ago, and convinced various tribes and, as time went on, civilizations of his predominance through the prophets of the Jews, then Christ, then Mohammed, and others, Joseph Smith comes to mind. I do not mean to say that the faiths of these prophets are the same religion, but that they worship the same god. Each of these religions came to worship this god under the influences of different times, cultural backgrounds, previous theologies, with different prophets, books, and dogma. Kind of like siblings, each knowing and relating to the parent differently. And we all know about sibling rivalry.
He not only convinced them to worship him alone, but that there were in fact no other god(desse)s. He is an arrogant, jealous, despot, who encouraged all kinds of horrid behavior amongst his peoples, including setting them up against each other. Unfortunately, it is not true that none of these religions preach intolerance of others; quite the opposite, in fact. In the Old Testament, historically the first book of the tribes worshipping this god, god encourages the smiting of enemies, usually defined as those who believe differently. Jesus did espouse peaceful co-existence, but there are many reasons to think that Jesus's teachings and agenda might be vastly different from those of god the father. Despite these being sibling religions, which one might think would involve the overarching deity exhorting peace among brethren, this god seems to enjoy pitting his tribes against each other for the grand exhibitions of warfare, or even everyday hostility. He is a particularly cantankerous, jealous, arrogant sort of god, wanting a lot of acclaim, a lot of devoted attention. I find him rather distasteful, and prefer to worship at other altars. Of course there are those who are of a peaceful nature who practice these faiths, and each of these faiths has peace-loving ecstatic sects. However, I believe this is about individual spirituality, not the formal religions developed from the relationship between deity and tribe.
I am sure that those who do worship this god, and by today their numbers are seriously considerable, do find whatever solace, spiritual guidance, inner
peace, that they are looking for in their religion. I believe that these gifts, though, come not from this particular deity, but from each person's own spiritual center. We, ultimately, once we let ourselves, are each our own deity, each our own being, each our own power. However, for whatever historical/sociological/psychological/cultural reasons, we desire and act on ceremonial, ritual, religious customs that often involve the invocation of and surrender to specific deities to whom we give our belief and loyalty. Thus, yes, human politics and mundane ambitions do help to implement inhumanity from man to man in the name of god. Of course the leaders in a hierarchy are the ones who institute the accepted rules and behaviors. The masses for the most part fall in line rather than incur the wrath of those in charge, human or god.
In regard to fate/free will: Of course there is fate. Fate is that which occurs in our lives due to the myriad forces over which we as individuals have no control. Of course there is free will. Free will is what we use to act as we choose within the bounds of the circumstances brought about by fate. We both have the ability to choose our path and it has already been decided. We each have our roles to play, our missions to accomplish, our lessons to learn. We have free will to determine how we work within our given frame. The gods may play an active role in humans' lives, or they may merely watch us, or ignore us. It varies. We have the ability to become co-creators with the god(esses) of our choice, those with whom we resonate. The god(desse)s have the ability to "mess with" us as they choose.
What we as conscious, self-aware beings need to do is to wrest back our power and learn to work within a win/win concept, where we each benefit when we all benefit, as opposed to some variation of survival of the fittest or fealty to self-aggrandizing warlike deities. Then we could do what actually makes sense rather than being preoccupied with a myth of original sin or some mythical bottom line. We could all be much calmer, easier, more usefully productive and playful. Is this the way it was before the evil gods? Was this the Eden we were booted out of because the gods had other plans? Why didn't we fight harder to keep a way of life that was good for us? The imbalance is killing us and our home.
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