Last edited: 1/22/2010
Ok, I must apologize a bit. I had some important realizations today. I have come to understand more about what I wrote in both the "Our Purpose" and the "Why I am Not a Christian" posts. I knew fully well while writing "Our Purpose" that what I was writing could not be fully rationally correct. I already accepted this a month ago. I KNOW that what I believe is not in line with what I rationally think. As explained here: http://wandertowonder.blogspot.com/2009/12/disclaimer.html
This is the same thing as art. My beliefs are an artistic interpretation of all that I know. This is what art is all about, explaining something that doesn’t make rational sense.
This is what I believe belief is, an artistic interpretation.
This can explain WHY we have art and what art is. It is a way for us to communicate Truth.
I didn’t understand this and engaged people in arguments about rational pieces of a piece of art. "Our Purpose" is a piece of art that I am trying to use to inspire people in the way that I have been inspired over Christmas Break this year. The explanation is a model of the universe that may not be literally true but viewing the world this way leads to actions that promote goodness to one another, etc, but this is not its core function. The core function is to inspire a glimpse into Truth. If interpreted correctly a work of Art will lead to an insight or inspiration. I believe that this is a connection to Truth. Art cannot be wrong or right only effective or ineffective. What I said cannot be rationally argued because it was never intended to make rational sense. It can, however, be evaluated. I believe that the Bible is one of these works of great art. I believe that the Church made a mistake when they read writings that would become the Bible. They took it literally and believed that Christianity (By Christianity here I mean Christianity exactly as described in the bible) is Literally the only way to interpret God and the universe. I think that when Jesus speaks in the Bible of the one true way of Christianity he is not speaking of a single artistic interpretation of Jesus’ and the Bible’s words but of the single Truths that can be found through art, focus and love. (Edit 1/22/2010: By saying that it is only through Him that we can reach God, I believe that He means by following in His example. Not by praying to some image of Him and giving Him the specific name "Jesus." The way most of us say it isn't even what he was actually called, he has a Hebrew name with a Hebrew pronunciation. If it doesn't matter if we change his name, then why do we have to call him by a name at all? Why can we not see that there are others who act exactly as Jesus showed us but simply don't call their God "Jesus?" Does this seem like the kind of thing the God which Jesus describes would care about? Jesus, who told us not to condemn and judge others; that this judgement is for God and for God alone.)
In the post "Why I am Not a Christian" I was trying to say that I am not a Christian because I believe that religion and belief are artistic interpretations that can only be effective or ineffective but Christians (who believe there is only one correct religion) believe that belief is backed by rational fact that can be proven.
Rational proof is the only way that we can know that one religion is the only true religion. I understand that this does not mean that there cannot BE ONE correct religion, only that we cannot KNOW. I have not seen scientific proof of God or any religious belief so I believe that the proof does not exist.
If you BELIEVE that religion can be proven but cannot rationally prove every single part, then you are basing your beliefs on an artistic interpretation. You see where science is heading and believe that proof must be out there, but you have no proof of this. Or if you do, then I haven’t seen it.
Now you have to make the jump of assumption. Do you assume that there is one true religion? I believe that my perspective has given me a greater understanding of art and by continuing this I will create much more effective art than before. I am using this as my test of if my understanding of art has improved. If it has then I believe I can safely assume that I have come to better understand the purpose of art and my understanding is that art is our religion and if art is our true religion then religion cannot be proven.
You could say now: How can I say that religion cannot be proven but that I can prove that religion is art? These are two different types of proof. I don’t know any English words that can convey the difference between the two types. But I mean that you cannot prove religion with everyday truths, but that you can Prove religion through art by exposing Truth. I think the word I am looking for may be logos?
Further, I believe that in order to be able to interpret art well, or to create great art one must "purify" their spirit. This is as I described it in "Our Purpose" and as Jesus describes in the Bible. Jesus had a perfectly "clean" spirit and so he could speak to people in perfect art. This art was so clear that it could reach through even to people with very "impure" spirits and he could help them to see Truth. However I think that the words "pure" and "impure" have connotations that have been mistranslated. That is why in "Our Purpose" I use words that better convey the meaning without the connotation of guilt.
The writers of the writing in the Bible were GREATLY inspired. This was extreme artistic inspiration so great that they were able to write very clear art. But it is not as clear as Jesus because they did not have perfectly "pure" spirits. Later these writings were read by people who's intentions were good, but their spirits not very "pure" and so they could not get the meaning out of the art of the Bible and instead took it literally. Hence all of the problems of the modern Church. Now this art has become very ineffective because it is very difficult to transcribe art in written form through centuries of linguistic change and translation.
I believe that creating art is the way that we all connect with God (obviously this goes beyond just painting and drawing, etc. and on to artistic thought - which is meditation) and the result is how we communicate what we learned with other people. This is why the feelings of inspiration are so wonderful. By healing ourselves we become better at creating and interpreting art.
It feels that my whole life has prepared me for writing these blogs.
Every time I sit down to write, the answers just fly to me. I have spent my entire childhood and teenage years trying to heal myself: accepting who I am and the way that the world is. This year I made progress in leaps and bound accepting many more of these things and all of a sudden when I did, my ability to write became greatly amplified(along with other things, increased musical creativity, better understanding). When I clear out fear and doubt and only hold love and peace in my heart, the way is clear I can see exactly where I am going. In these states I feel that I know my purpose and that I know Truth. Of course I am not claiming that I am completely "pure" only that as I "purify" myself, things become clearer.
I know that you can say that these are only feelings, but then why when I follow the Truth that I have found does everything happen exactly as Truth had told me? What are we besides feelings and thoughts?
It seems that when I follow the advice of Jesus with this view of: Religion as Art, everything that Jesus described would happen, happens.
Give yourself time to reflect before you respond.
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
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21 comments:
What about artists who had terrible lives full of pain and misery, but created great art? Great suffering can be a cathartic experience and it helped to "purify" their spirits. They made their art because it was the only thing in their life that kept them going. They found purpose in art because when they created they were connected with God. They knew, during those moments that they were doing what had to be done, they were fulfilling their purpose.
We are created in God's image and so we create. It is our purpose, just as God's purpose is to create. God is Creation. We are part of God. We create, we are Creation.
Continuing on a bit from what I wrote in "Our Purpose" I believe that within this super conscious God there are also smaller, subconsciouses that exist (like the total Human consciousness I mentioned). These consciousnesses are less than God, but greater than us (in terms of comprehension). I think that it is to these lesser consciousnesses that all of the talk in the Bible refers to as lesser gods. it is not that these gods are necessarily harmful (not ALL of them at least), but simply should not be confused with the greater consciousness that is God. This isn't a Godly jealousy thing but simple fact. I believe that these lesser gods can be useful to communicate with because they are capable of understanding more than us but should be dealt with carefully because they are also capable of being wrong or even deceitful as us. This is probably where the concept of angels and daemons com from. Angels are what Christianity calls these consciousnesses when they are beneficial to us, daemons the converse.
The terminology changes as you look at other religions, in many forms of Witchcraft most communicate regularly with many different beings. Most forms also have a over-all Earth mother or Over-all dual pair. But within these exist all of the other beings, including us at one level. We are unique in that we are complete individual consciousnesses contained in single organisms
Calling followers of all other religions daemon praisers is a misinterpretation of what the Bible says. Some very primitive religions may in fact be praising only these lower beings by mistake but not all of them. The other religions may be considered poly-theistic but this is just a syntactical difference. Christianity simply labels their lower gods as angels and daemons.
I believe that all of these views are different artistic expressions of Truth. Having the different Religions available is important because certain interpretations will make sense to different people depending on their experiences in life and how they can relate to the interpretation.
Given the nature of the universe, I believe that the most accurate interpretation of God and life will be the most truly beautiful, for God is true beauty.
I believe that heaven and hell are the physical world, not a place we go afterwards. Our purpose is to create until we create heaven on Earth. At that point we will find True and Final unity with God for every person on Earth will be in a state of total understanding and connection with God. It will be true and perfect happiness for us all.
Perhaps Hell WILL be a real place as well. But it will not be a place that people are SENT. It will be a place that people will take themselves because they are not capable of connecting with God. Not because God doesn't want them, but because they were too distracted with things other than attempting to be the best they could.
It will not come down to who is practicing what religion, or who has come to know God the best, but who LOOKED for God. All that TRY to be good and TRY to find God (through WHATEVER path they take) will be "saved".
What we currently have broken down into science and art/religion are Truthfully part of the same higher Art.
When science and art/religion come together as a whole, we will have found heaven. This is when the One True Religion will become a FACT. Then you will be able to PROVE which religion is right and everyone will know this who is with God.
This One True Religion is what the Bible CALLS Christianity, but it is not the Christianity that is known today. It is not literally the way Christianity is described in the Bible. The Bible gives an artistic rendition of the final One True Religion, but in order for this art to be interpreted correctly the interpreter's spirit must be "Clean" enough.
But this Final religion will not be made up of just what Christianity is today, but of the bits of Truth found in all religions. When spoken of, it's explanations will be obvious facts.
You could replace every time I say "Pure" or "Clean" with "Healed."
It is a Divine Healing that brings joy, happiness, peace, strength, courage, hope and understanding.
This is why forgiving feels good. When we forgive we release all of the distracting "negative" emotions required for us to not forgive. Once these are cleared our connection with God is strengthened and we feel all of the benefits of Divine Healing.
This can also be explained in scientific terms. I am not a psychologist, so I may not be able to do it personally. But I am sure there is a psychological theory or description of why releasing negative emotions feels good and is so beneficial. When we can bring this science and art together we will fully understand Divine Healing.
Some people may even think of it in terms of daemons what are influencing them. Daemons that interrupt their connection to God and bring them unhappiness. They have developed rituals that get these daemons to go away and then they feel better. It isn't some imaginary thing, they aren't crazy. They just view the world from a different perspective.
One issue we have to deal with is that there ARE crazy people out there. I am not yet sure how they fit into the big picture. I will have to reflect. But I am CERTAIN that it is not simply a difference in religious belief that makes someone crazy. It is a severely damaged connection to God. We have to learn to tell the difference between someone who has different beliefs and someone who is crazy.
Perhaps the crazy are simply in need of extreme Healing that we have not yet witnessed.
A healthy mental state is the sign of a strong connection with God. A sick mental health is the sign of a weak connection with God. Note, this doesn't make them "bad" people in any way, shape or form.
Unfortunately I believe you CAN be born with this. Physical mis-connection would hinder the connection to God in some cases. But it should be possible to overcome this.
At the beginning you are talking about how your beliefs are an artistic interpretation, and imply that they cannot be rationally argued with. Nevertheless you appear to make some rational arguments.
"I have not seen scientific proof of God or any religious belief so I believe that the proof does not exist."
I have not seen a scientific proof of anything in history. Do you also disbelieve in all of history?
"If you BELIEVE that religion can be proven but cannot rationally prove every single part, then you are basing your beliefs on an artistic interpretation."
Then I would have to disbelieve a lot of history and science as well. I cannot prove to you that quantum mechanics works, I haven't done the math, I get my information second hand from scholars, like the majority of our information is.
"Hence all of the problems of the modern Church. Now this art has become very ineffective because it is very difficult to transcribe art in written form through centuries of linguistic change and translation."
The modern Church takes the Bible less "literally" than the earlier churches, or they ignore parts of it that they don't like. This is the real problem. There is also a great deal of modern day "christian" culture added on. For instance there is no where in the bible that it says to give ten percent of your income to the church. If you tell that to most modern christians they would be greatly surprised. I have a friend who did some research on the old testament tithes and believes the Israelites only gave 1/30 of the their income to the priests. It obvious that this "interpretation" of the Bible was influenced by greed and not real Christianity.
By the way the old testament tithes have no bearing anyway on the Christian church, but were only mandated within the scope of the nation of Isreal for that specific time period.
Sorry if I misinterpreted your statement about scientific proof by the way. If you meant that there is simply no SCIENTIFIC proof of any religion then I would agree with you. However, the issue is not scientific proof at all. Almost no adherent of any religion believes their religion can be proved scientifically.
Also just because you have not seen a scientific proof does not mean that one doesn't exist. I have not seen the proofs for many concepts in science yet I still believe them.
When you don't actually understand the full proof then you are relying on belief. You believe this because you are able to see how it could work without having to know every individual detail. This "Seeing" you do is art. It is art that allows you to fill in these gaps. This what I am saying that belief is art.
I think that it is hard for you to see what I am saying because you can not see past the literal words that I am writing. I believe that this is because of fear. I believe that you are afraid of embracing your own true beliefs. I already know that you have a few phobias and I believe that these are signs of a bigger problem with controlling fear. I believe that this fear hinders you from seeing Truth and so you feel that you must have a rational explanation for everything, including belief.
Don't think I am saying that I won't listen to you or something like that. This is just my complete theory on what I am saying and why you would disagree with it is part of the theory. I still read and view everything that you say an important thought to consider.
The interpretation of Genesis you shared with me a few months ago is one of the most beautiful things I have ever heard, which leads me to believe that it is an effective interpretation. But it is only an interpretation. I can read the same passages with a slightly different perspective or understanding of the definitions of the words and get a very different meaning. You cannot PROVE that your interpretation is right, just like we can never really prove anything. But with an artistic understanding we can still find Truth and meaning in what we see. We can evaluate if a certain perspective reveals more Truth and beauty to us than another perspective.
The phobias you refer to were a result of stress and sleep deprivation. I usually do not have any problems with those fears, although I still recognize them as an unease when I am in certain situations. I think that it would be more likely that there was something wrong with me if I was never afraid of anything, fear is a human emotion. Not letting your fear control you is the key.
I also experience no fear when I read your words, so I disagree with your assessment. It is also impossible to free ourselves from every human vice. So even if I did experience fear that was effecting my rationality, you must keep in mind that everyone has biases that effect their rationality. We just have to trust God that we will come to the Truth in the end.
Anyways, if what you say is right everything we do has some sort of art behind it, because there is no proof that our experiences even reflect reality, we could use "art" or I would call it "intuition" to feel that our experiences are correct. I have no problem with this, we just need to use logic and reason where possible and try to leave as small gaps as possible for our intuition to fill in. Intuition pulls us in different directions depending on our biases, logic doesn't. That is why is why I think it is important to be logical.
It is the same in science. We know that we make certain assumptions. We accept them because we just know that they are True. Because we allow ourselves to make these assumptions we can find meaning in what we study around us.
When we fully accept who we are, the world and what we believe, we release all fear and hate; we can intuitively see meaning in everything that exists. This intuitive vision is God speaking to us.
Science is a bottom up approach and art is a top down approach to understanding the Universe. When these come together we will find heaven.
Oh dear. I think we were posting at the same time lol
yeah, it is all about trusting that God will bring us Truth if we humor him and do our best. I believe that by trusting ourselves fully we can also trust God fully.
This self trust has to be moderated by rational thought.
By combining the two we learn how to heal ourselves and improve the connection with God. As we improve this connection more and more we will be able to trust ourselves more because we are more in tune with God.
EVENTUALLY when we reach perfection (I believe this will happen physically on Earth in the future, you believe it will happen in a non-physical heaven I think) our rational thought and intuition will be in perfect harmony. Until then we must have faith in God to lead us.
A summary of part of what I am trying to say could be: I believe that the only difference between "regular" inspiration and Divine inspiration is the "purity" of the person who is inspired. Inspiration is the way that God speaks to us.
Haha, so it turns out I do agree with you when say that we are preparing for the next world. I just think that the "next world" is an artistic interpretation of a perfect future here in physical reality.
One thing that I am missing insight on is what happens to the people who die before this perfect world is realized? I will ask God.
One of the difficulties with connecting to God is that when you ask God for an answer you must fully expect to get a response but then not be disappointed if you get one that you don't understand or miss entirely.
One reason we need to trust ourselves fully is so that when other people speak their opinion it will not frighten us and cause us to lash out in anger in return. Trusting ourselves and trusting God gives us the courage we need to communicate our beliefs to one another. When we can do this without anger we can really speak to and understand one another. As we speak we will come to find that Truly we believe the same thing! The Truth was simply masked by different interpretation.
By communicating we inspire one another and this inspiration is God.
We must all talk of our beliefs and share so that we can grow together. So that we can find the perfect interpretation that will lead us to perfect harmony.
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