I started to write my own prayer in my own way while growing up and even took my bible with me when I left Home. Read full story at https://timeforchangesociety.blogspot.com.au/2016/10/been-there-seen-that-part-of-that.html
I have an enormous respect and appreciation for my families, friends & other people in general for their practices of any religions of their choice with no denigration and hatemongering.
Nonetheless, older and wiser, as true believer as I was, I began to be so agnostic and secular and my doubts about my practice started to haunt me every day. My reaction was an honest doubt, personal awe, even fear and this experience became the bedrock of a conscious revelation of my belief.
These statements get me into trouble amongst “some” polite people. Despite the fact that more and more people are comfortable “coming out” as atheists, the word is still very much associated with being immoral, or at the very least amoral. This is, of course, despite the fact that there is neither logical nor empirical reason to draw that conclusion.
Philosophers have agreed that gods are simply irrelevant to morality, regardless of whether they exist or not. And of course modern sociological research shows that atheists are just as moral as religious believers. Still, the stigma persists.
It seems that in many people's conception if you really can't be religious, at least you should try to be spiritual. If you are not, then you must be a damned selfish materialist.
The interpretation of the word spiritual is someone who takes care of cultivating and reflecting on his ethics, of behaving justly and compassionately toward his fellow human beings.
Spirituality means something different to everyone. For some, it's about participating in an organized religion, going to a church, synagogue, mosque, and so on. For others, it's more personal, some people get in touch with their spiritual side through private prayers, yoga, meditations, quiet reflections or even long walks.
Yes, some people are more reflective than others, some more compassionate, some more inclined to read literature and go to art museums or concerts. But I submit that to do the above is part and parcel of what it means to be human.
People sure have strong beliefs about what's right and wrong. Yet, even though morals can vary from person to person and culture to culture, many are universal, as they result from basic human emotions.
My point here, in today’s well-informed society, is not to moralize, but to point out the practical implications of religious dogma.
I think it's because you're hearing something authentic and pure at this moment, when sometimes it's hard to tell what's real and what an advertisement is. It's simply an act of generosity and love talking about lives lived with kindness, courage, decency and dignity and when you hear that kind of story, it can sometimes feel like you're walking on holy ground.
I've learned about the almost unimaginable capacity for the human spirit to forgive. I've learned about resilience and I've learned about strength.
Regardless of how people perceive, understand or appreciate me or not, it motivates me to make sure that I stay on the right path. You still believe in me, and the fact that you can do it despite how much pain I caused you by revealing the truth.
I live this every day now. I walk down the streets as a man and I really am at peace with who I am. I mean, I wish I had a stronger voice maybe, but now I walk softly in love and I try to live that way every day.
It takes some courage to have these conversations embodying ‘The four things that matter most’ that you want to say to the most important people in your life before they or you die are thank you, I love you, forgive me, I forgive you. They're just about the most powerful words we can say to one another without preconditions and believing in anything.
My mother, who was such a towering figure in my life, instilled in me her tenacity and resilience to be happy if I wanted to be successful.
Change is about striving to go beyond our limitations and create something better both in our personal lives and collectively to eliminate or even lessen pain and sorrow from our and other’s life without reservations by relinquishing our inner resistance to take positive action and transform or discover something profoundly new without resignation.
To do so, knowledge isn’t generally the driver of our behaviour. We often don’t do what we should do because of inattention, apathy, avoidance, fear, being too busy, confronting an unsupportive environment, a negative attitude or habit or routine without being labelled a pushover.
The realities today are different than they were five, ten or twenty or thirty years ago. Aligning one’s thinking and actions with the changing times (realities) and circumstances is a sign of wisdom and humane maturity. “If we always keep doing what we have always done, we’ll always get what we have always got”.
The fact of the matter is people with the most power, assimilated our faith, destroyed the generations that knew the truth, and pushed it on us the way they wanted to live their lives.
People are dead set on believing something that their grandparents were forced to believe and it just got hard-pressed down generations after generations. I can remember getting harassed and intimidated to go to gospel study, by the religious people during my overseas stay with them in my younger years, because I didn't want to go to a different kind of church known as Mennonites. So, to speak, just envisage & think what used to happen to the older people in the bygone era.
We need to break free from negative emotions of the past, out-dated beliefs and opinions how we have and ought to do things that passed on to us via generational setting, inherited collective mind-patterns that have kept our generations in captivity creating so much of their suffering for eternities manifesting in our own misery today.
I yearned and persisted on searching for something new and completely different, in terms of what I have been accustomed to and my beliefs, devotion and religious faith, vision that will empower me and enhance my exultations and abundance with no regrets, of the hell and heaven guilt trips.
I continued to make my own exploration, even though the risk was too great widening doors of isolation and the outcome too thin, to find the redemption of my life’s worth and the validity of my practice and sifting through the rest of all other religions probing for choices in order to advance my self-worth and wellbeing. Through my search for inner happiness, I learned the power of infusing meaning, mission and narrative into my actions. I also learned of the virtues of welcoming ambiguity and living in mystery.
One way of overcoming personal difficulties depends on how well one uses his devotion and sacrifices to do what’s needed of him/her by the power of religion by taking care of the ‘number one’ first and foremost.
For good or evil, faith factors into our everyday functioning and what we’ve evolved to believe. Religion can help us make sense of our world, provide motivation and bind us together. Nevertheless, systematic and structured belief has its drawbacks. So, we need to keep our minds open when dealing with dogmas.
To my surprise, apart from mutual congregation and enjoying the ‘Hillsongs’, socially connected to lessen society’s isolation and dispirited retribution of fate, there is nothing that enhances one’s personal development by practicing any religion. The tenor of our social life is one of the most important influences on our mental health and in many ways, our mental health impacts our ability to be physically healthy and vice versa. Yet physical well-being plays an undeniably important role in our daily lives and the nature of that relationship typically influences all others in our life. Our survival as a species similarly hinges on our capacity for social living and suitable environment. Most of human history was spent in small groups in which each was dependent on the others for survival and evidence suggests this is the condition to which we are best adapted.
Initially and primarily, I, too, was interested in how individuals built, grew and sustained their well-being and religious beliefs.
The insights I gained extended far beyond lessons in religious beliefs that will include the fundamental questions of life –What & how do we think about death? How do we handle failure? How do we navigate uncertainty? What & how do we think of religions? So, where is the ‘pure’ Islam, Judaism, Buddhism or Christianity, which people preach whether destructively or positively? How do we build and maintain healthy relationships? What do religious people look like (based on racial issues)? Sounds like, “How deep is your love?” How much do we really know the truth? How do we perform outside the religious worship circles? Ultimately, how do we live? These and many questions remain unanswered or contrived to suit different religious institutions.
The real situation is, Christianity, as with Islam and all other religions, mediated by the thoughts and actions of people’s imperfect conducts –social injustices. Whether or not one holds that religion has existence as a divine essence beyond the human survival effort, it is beyond speculation or dispute that the manifestation of religion is only humanities solemn practice, with all its shortcomings, flaws, weaknesses and vulnerabilities. It’s sad that religious institutions, once a safe haven for some, at least uplifting the spirit, are apparently becoming intolerable and contemptible for not keeping its promises, faith and all its perpetual practices. For example, the ongoing tedious fallout of the Catholic clerics’ negligence, with allegations of strings of controversies, includes Australia's most senior prelate of the Catholics.
There is, as a matter of simple fact, no uncontestably pure or real form of religions –Christianity, Islam or other religions anywhere in existence. There are simply Humans, whether Christians, Muslims, Jews, Buddhists, Jesus, Buddha, Muhammed, etc. They’re all humans of ceaseless devotion, volition & virtue. It was the social movement for changes that produced these great ethical and religiously influential clerics. The key beliefs held by Christians about Jesus were his altruistic commitment including his spirituality, humanity and earthly life.
According to scriptures, Jesus was born in Bethlehem. Little is known about his early life, but his life and his ministry are recorded in the New Testament.
His mother, Mary, was a virgin who was betrothed to Joseph, a carpenter and there are trace references of Jesus working as a carpenter as well while a young adult. It is believed that he began his ministry at age of 30.
Christians believe Jesus was born through Immaculate Conception. Say what? Aye! “Believe it or not”, sounds like a sensationalized story of written scriptures to intrigue believers to the world of “Fantasy Island”. So, everyone knows, I don’t intend to go further into his life’s idealization and just emphasize few of his humanitarian endeavours.
Jesus is a religious leader whose life and teachings are recorded in the Bible’s New Testament. According to Christians, he is a central figure in Christianity and is emulated as “Son of God” by many Christians all over the world and his teachings are followed as an example for living a more spiritual life. Christians believe he died for the sins of all people and rose from the dead. Surely, I was taught to believe that inscription too.
Most of Jesus's life is told through the four Gospels of the New Testament Bible, known as the Canonical gospels, written by Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. Who knows who proved that? These are not biographies in the modern sense but accounts with allegorical intent. They are written to engender faith in Jesus as the Messiah, who came to teach, suffer and die for humanity’s sins. As they say, Amen!
CHRISTIANITY AROUND THE WORLD
There were and still are lots of humanistic and equally holistic saviours in our time too, but no one seems to care or notice their adamant contributions to humanities’ welfare, let alone worship them.
Although Christian views of Jesus vary, it is possible to summarize the key beliefs shared among major denominations. Most Christians believe that Jesus was both human and the “Son of God”. Judaism rejects the idea of Jesus being “Son of God” or a mediator to God or part of a Trinity. It holds that Jesus is not the Messiah, arguing that he neither fulfilled the Messianic prophecies in the Tanakh (Hebrew Bible canon) nor embodied the personal qualifications of the Messiah.
Is that because he was just another fellow amongst them, but good fella? Dare I say, Amen! We can still say Amen for all good deeds people do without labelling them as petty religious.
While there has been theological debate over his nature, some early Christians viewed Jesus as subordinate to the Father and others considered him an aspect of the Father rather than a separate person.
He was regarded as just a great moral teacher and compassionate being who dedicated his life to the welfare of humanity.
What a sentimentalizing and inspiring story of human trials and tribulations, which really attracted, “more than what meets the eye”. While he’s commendable and trustworthy for his altruistic efforts, it shouldn’t be a foundation and construed to worship any man for their good actions, intentions and influences or inspirations.
Jesus was the central figure of Christianity whereas Muhammed was the prophet & founder of Islam and Buddha was the quintessential and enlightened individual who revealed the power of overcoming suffering and attaining enlightenment which lies within each of us.
The latter was the practice, rather philosophy of life, that answered my entire quest for peaceful, successful, a happy life and got my curiosity to start my exploration to discover the practicality of its practices for humanity.
While I was searching, in the wrong places, for an alternative ways by practicing my birthright religion, for my personal development, to lessen all my sufferings, I was introduced to the practices of Buddhism also known as 'Mindfulness' practice in the modern era. It came into my thorough understanding as I pursued to practice it. After several days, weeks, months, attending several practice meetings and demanding more answers to my skepticism about its differing views than my indebted religious practices, I was finally flabbergasted and inspired by its experiences, positive conspicuous benefits materially and spiritually about the changes in my approach to my long-term lifestyle. This is how I started my curiosity or journey of exploration of the thousand miles.
The founder, Siddhartha Gautama, who is also called Buddha - “enlightened one”, was born into a wealthy family near the border of modern India. Confronted by the reality of ageing, sickness and death, he left his rich home at the age of 29, meditating under a tree and spent seven years travelling India as an ascetic.
Unlike all religions, Buddhism didn’t believe in a creator God or worship any supreme being or deity. A commonsense and mindfulness based belief of rather the recognition of cause & effect, seeking insight into the true nature of life, as means of changing in order to develop the qualities of awareness, kindness and wisdom.
BUDDHISM AROUND THE WORLD
Then again, the leader of Muslim faith, Muhammad, means 'praiseworthy', was called the prophet and founder of Islam. He was just like all those good men in our time that did equally insurmountable acts of kindness. According to Islamic doctrine, he was God's Messenger, sent to confirm the essential teachings of monotheism –the doctrine or belief that there is only one God. This is not a proven prophecy. Some modern denominations deviate from this belief.
However, Muhammad united Arabia into a single Muslim society and ensured that his teachings, practices and the Quran –“Word of God” –formed the basis of Islamic religious belief.
Muhammad was orphaned at an early age; he was raised a destitute under the care of his paternal uncle. At age of 40, he testified being visited by Gabriel in the cave, where he occasionally stayed and stated he received his first revelation from God & started preaching these revelations publicly proclaiming that “God is One”, hence, declaring he was a prophet and messenger of God.
MUSLIMS AROUND THE WORLD
The faith of Islam arrived in Ethiopia at an early date, shortly before the hijira (Arabic) –is the migration or journey of the prophet Muhammad and his followers from Mecca to Yathrib, later renamed by him, Medina.
THE HIJRA
So, it’s the method
that humans pontificate religions or statement of beliefs that gives it its
specific serving characters in place to place, community to community,
tradition to tradition, cultural groups to groups, hence the considerable
diversity that exists among the followers of all religions. Spirituality means something different to everyone. For some, it's about participating in organized religion –going to a church, synagogue, mosque, and so on. For others, it's more personal, some people get in touch with their spiritual side through private prayer, yoga, meditation, quiet reflection, or even long walks.
Recently, there is a tremendous shift in all societies, unlike the past, to abate or terminate believing or practicing any religion by dedicating their time and money.
If everyone’s God is the same, then why many Religions?
An absolute
transformation of society’s adoption of self-development, consciousness,
self-actualization and mindfulness living, has created a more concrete,
alternative and acceptable lifestyle free of all the difficulties that emanates
at a cost.
I hope my story of the dark side of various intrinsic and
extrinsic beliefs will illuminate valuable lessons in your emotional &
spiritual journey in life and will serve as testament to the idea that all of
us, no matter where we come from, what we believe in or what we do, are trying to make sense of the
human experience and live an enriching and more fulfilling life without the
need to pressure one another against the beliefs or actions of our/other's choice.
I suggest, therefore, that we reclaim the basic notion
that a compassionate, ethical, and interesting human being doesn't need to be
either religious or spiritual. He just needs to be human. Yes, humanist, as in someone who is trying
to live up to the best of what humanity can be.
Nonetheless, we all have the choice to believe in
anything and any divinity of our choosing.
Please, make no
mistake that I’m in no disbelief attempting to embroil myself in transgression and
demonstrate a rationalistic view to get anyone worked up, but I, certainly, dare to be different and
disagree, realistically, with anything and everything that is impractical,
unjustified and predestined for denunciation.
Most of all, understand
me that unlike “some” religious
fundamentalists and atheists, as much as I have the freedom to express my own
understanding and analysis’, I’m in no
way condescending to other people’s choices and their religious practices.
LET’S ALL HAVE A HAPPY ENDING!
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