Conversation Board - Greetings and a little background.

DocM

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Re: Greetings and a little background.
Reply #15 - Mar 12^th, 2010 at 2:28am

Welcome Stone Cold. I hope you find information here that helps you in your quest for answers. Actually, Don is not trying to convince you to go back to your former church. Rather, he points out quite rightly, that the actual teachings of Jesus in the gospels are quite compatible with what you might already believe (and with much of "New Age" thought). I am not a christian myself, and yet these things are easy to see. He also brings up good ideas in pointing out that actually doing something for others such as helping the elderly or the poor, whether it is with a church or not, is "walking the walk," and bound to be rewarding. So don't write Don off quite yet. He is merely trying to get you to rethink your rejection of christianity. Being open minded does not mean ascribing equal value to every way of life or every option. In fact, when we do consider all options equal, then much of the time, nothing really matters. Think about it.

For me, proving to myself that I was more than my physical body was the deciding factor in accepting my spiritul nature. It sounds like you are on a similar path. If there is an afterlife, if we are pure consciousness or thought temporarily present in a physical body, then that changes everything. I was able to convince myself of the power of my own thought to affect physical reality in ways unexplainable by science or physical law. That did it for me.

Many go through life convinced that there is nothing to come afterward. They then say "hey, you only live once," and lie, cheat, steal......basically get away with whatever is possible, figuring that nothing matters. Usually, this leads paradoxically to unhappiness, for what we send out into the universe tends to come back at us (we reap what we sow).

One of the big insights for me was that our intent tends to manifest in our physical realities. If based on love, we tend to grow and mature. If our intent is based on selfish intersts or hate, we tend to entwine ourselves in negative karma, and be miserable. We seem to have an ability to choose our thoughts and actions, once we are aware of this creative potential (sorry Spooky, but I still do believe in free will to make choices). For me, this was a powerful realization.

I wish you the best, and again, welcome

Matthew

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Berserk2

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Re: Greetings and a little background.
Reply #16 - Mar 12^th, 2010 at 2:35am

[Stone Cold:] "My open mindedness involves infinite possibilities my friend. The point is that I don't need a religion. I have my very own beliefs and thoughts and considerations which I am "comfortable" with."

Ah, by your own admission you are a comfort seeker and it is not comfrotable for you to "seek a religion." But I am challenging you to be a truth seeker. You cannot hide behind "infiinite possibilities." That claim is a ploy to avoid the hard work of considering specific worldviews one at a time. If you have no passion to clear up your misunderstandings about your background, you are NOT open-minded. I have given you several opportunities to respond to my "suppose" or "what if" questions and you consistently evade them. You have no idea what I have to offer. No one will shoot you for your anti-religious bias and ignorance. I wanted to determine whether you have the spiritual curiosity that makes it worthwhile to take your quest seriously. I have decided that you do not. So I will now leave you alone and won't bother with your posts.

The approach I have taken with you has been very productive in the real world. I find the honest and direct approach the best. Some here deem t his judgmental, but in my view they don't know the difference between judgmentalism and tough love. Reread what I said about the incredibly loving people in my church. This is quite typical of Methodism. Are you honestly telling me that you are part of a loving community that works together to accomplish all those acts of loving service on a regular basis? What's with your hypocrisy charge? This tiresome charge is a mindless excuse to avoid the hard work of exploring more deeply the riches incredible compassion, and incredible paranomal experirences of Methodists. Warren Buffet and Bill Gates go back and forth in their right to the status of America's wealthiest man. After Katrina, Buffet was asked, "What is the most socially helpful organization in times of disaster?" The interviewer was thinking the answer might be, FEMA, the Red Cross, or some other charitable organization. But Buffet replied without hesitation, "The United Methodist Church." My own church sponsors groups like Narcotics Anonymous, Alcoholics Anonymous, Habitat for Humanity, workshops for abuse problems, Blood Bank, weekly free meals for the poor, free meals for the elderly, a Love Fund for the poor (rental assistance, help with people with shut-off notices), staffing for a new youth center complete with free meals for poor youth, work Sundays when, after church, we go out into the community and perform chores and repairs that the poor and elderly cannot do htemselves, and, most recently, tutoring/ mentoring programs for the poor. That is just the tip of our iceberg.

Yes, we have hypocrites too because we strive for acceptance with pure unconditional love and that makes us a kind of spiritual hospital for people at all levels of spiritual development, including druggies like you used to be. We do all that and much, much more--and we are just a small church of about 120 each Sunday.

Don

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StoneColdTrue

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Re: Greetings and a little background.
Reply #17 - Mar 12^th, 2010 at 3:19am

Don, I think you're missing the point. I find it pretty offensive for you to call me close minded or ignorant. You don't know enough about me or my life to judge me at all. Lets consider this: If our life is a journey beginning with life which continues in death, then I am still very young on this journey. Perhaps one day the truth will reveal itself to me, and perhaps I will find myself again in the arms of Christianity. A year or two ago I would have said that I will never be a Christian again for as long as I live. I cannot make that claim now. I do not know. But this is part of my journey. It isn't my place to accept a religion right now. I have no desire to do so. That is not ignorance. Or else I could tell you that you are ignorant for not combining the knowledge of history and truly seeking the truth to your own religion. I think a real testament to believing something would be to actually try and disprove your own belief. Seek every facet of information just to see how strong your faith holds, or will you allow your own ignorance/faith blind you from accepting something?

But you need not do any of that. Ignorance is bliss, is it not? And do you not feel bliss with your belief? I do not feel bliss, and I hope that I never feel bliss in this life. My desire as of right now is only knowledge of human existence and our purpose in life, as well as to enjoy the pleasures of this existence. You want me to explore more of Christianity like I never have before. I've been there, Don. Even during my time as an atheist I've explored it. I've sought it for truth, and then I sought enough to make me understand that it was not what I need. It's what YOU need. If I needed it, and I felt like I was missing that part of me...I would seek it like you are asking me to. I would seek an organized system. But here's the thing...I do not care. Call that ignorance. Maybe it is. But it's no more ignorant than you not considering Islam, Buddhism, or even The Church of Satan.

I do not wish to worship. I wish to only live. Perhaps I will worship in my death. If life is truly infinite and we exist for eternity, then I think there's plenty of time and that area is not important to me right now on this journey. I could look you in the eye right now and tell you honestly, that if I could judge myself I would surely judge myself to a higher astral plane. Not out of selfishness, but of understanding that I belong there. My sins are few, and my regrets are none. How many Christians could say the same?

And you just labeling me a "druggie" only shows me who the truly ignorant one is, and that you are much more judgmental than I. Turn the other cheek, Don. Practice what you preach.

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StoneColdTrue

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Re: Greetings and a little background.
Reply #18 - Mar 12^th, 2010 at 3:42am

DocM wrote on Mar 12^th, 2010 at 2:28am:

Welcome Stone Cold. I hope you find information here that helps you in your quest for answers. Actually, Don is not trying to convince you to go back to your former church. Rather, he points out quite rightly, that the actual teachings of Jesus in the gospels are quite compatible with what you might already believe (and with much of "New Age" thought). I am not a christian myself, and yet these things are easy to see. He also brings up good ideas in pointing out that actually doing something for others such as helping the elderly or the poor, whether it is with a church or not, is "walking the walk," and bound to be rewarding. So don't write Don off quite yet. He is merely trying to get you to rethink your rejection of christianity. Being open minded does not mean ascribing equal value to every way of life or every option. In fact, when we do consider all options equal, then much of the time, nothing really matters. Think about it.

For me, proving to myself that I was more than my physical body was the deciding factor in accepting my spiritul nature. It sounds like you are on a similar path. If there is an afterlife, if we are pure consciousness or thought temporarily present in a physical body, then that changes everything. I was able to convince myself of the power of my own thought to affect physical reality in ways unexplainable by science or physical law. That did it for me.

Many go through life convinced that there is nothing to come afterward. They then say "hey, you only live once," and lie, cheat, steal......basically get away with whatever is possible, figuring that nothing matters. Usually, this leads paradoxically to unhappiness, for what we send out into the universe tends to come back at us (we reap what we sow).

One of the big insights for me was that our intent tends to manifest in our physical realities. If based on love, we tend to grow and mature. If our intent is based on selfish intersts or hate, we tend to entwine ourselves in negative karma, and be miserable. We seem to have an ability to choose our thoughts and actions, once we are aware of this creative potential (sorry Spooky, but I still do believe in free will to make choices). For me, this was a powerful realization.

I wish you the best, and again, welcome

Matthew

Thank you, Matthew. Yes, it is a very powerful experience and profound to discover those things. I do not deny Jesus Christ. I do deny Christianity. Do I accept Jesus as God? No. But I do believe he was very connected, and incredibly influential. At the same time, many atrocities have been committed in his name, which I imagine he is very displeased of. He died for our sins, only to have brought even more and some of the worst sins in history simply to spread his beliefs. Not done by his hand, but of mans. Surely the all omnipotent would have foreseen this? It is not silly for me to accept our creator as either flawed or not as influential as people would believe. I believe after creation, it simply left it to chaos and nature. Its true influence awaits us only in life after death, and even then we must continue to grow and learn in order to reach it.

To me, it should not matter what we believe. It should not matter to God or Jesus or any power that I do not worship them. If that should matter to them, then they are flawed. If I do wrong, and I commit sin and I never absolve myself...then that will matter. But even so, it should be up to me to decide if I deserve to stand with them. The one and only judgment should come from ourselves. A great power surely has the right to judge, but true love is judgment free. And if God is love, then it has no judgment whatsoever.

For example, Don should have no desire to want me to be a christian. But for some reason he does. He wants me to believe as he believes, but for what reason? He still hasn't answered that to me. What is the purpose if I feel as content with where I am spiritually as he does? He continues to judge, and most Christians do. I speak only from observation and experience of course. Christians are very judgmental people, and many do get upset if you don't see the world as they do. I understand they think it's so amazing that everyone should share it. Bah, humbug. You know what the New Testament is? It's when people saw that the Old Testament made the religion look ridiculous and revised it so it would look better.

I think Jesus is a wonderful figure. I think he existed, and I think he was the most influential figure in all of history in great and despicable ways. I hope that he does await in the afterlife, and I will gladly shake his hand. I will follow his teachings of morality and the path to an enlightened soul, but I will not worship him until he is before me. Whatever is helping to guide my life knows that my soul is growing in great directions, as I know this as well.

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Lucy Super Member Offline Posts: 1158 C1	Re: Greetings and a little background. Reply #19 - Mar 12^th, 2010 at 3:56am Hi I'd rather hear about the Montevallo ghosts. Maybe they hang out in the local Methodist church. Are they left over from the War Between the States? Lucy
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StoneColdTrue

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Re: Greetings and a little background.
Reply #20 - Mar 12^th, 2010 at 4:15am

Lucy wrote on Mar 12^th, 2010 at 3:56am:

Hi

I'd rather hear about the Montevallo ghosts. Maybe they hang out in the local Methodist church. Are they left over from the War Between the States?

Lucy

Actually, yes. Some of them do pertain to the Civil War, some of them from an old plantation house located right on campus, and another was a student in the 1930s. One I believe may have been a hitchhiker. I'm not sure whether my stories should belong in another forum but i'll follow this up with my experiences and they can be moved if need be.

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StoneColdTrue

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Re: Greetings and a little background.
Reply #21 - Mar 12^th, 2010 at 5:49am

Whenever I tell these experiences to people, I can't help but to express that I had absolutely no belief whatsoever in the paranormal before my ignorance got the better of me. People can deny all day long in their comfortable and normal lives with everyday locations, but when you happen to actually reside in haunted places eventually your mind will open.

I was in my first semester at the university and 19 years old. Ironically my first experiences occurred in October around Halloween. This was simply because it's the best time to go exploring. You can simply google information about the various ghosts on campus, as it is built very close to Civil War battlegrounds. My friends and I attended a "Ghost Walk" where a woman guided a tour around campus and informed everyone on the hauntings of each location. Three stories stood out, and two of which affected me more or less.

The first is of Reynolds Hall, which is right on campus and is now both a professor office building and includes a stage for theater dramas. The history is that it was once a hospital in which the North invaded and murdered the injured South soldiers during the Civil War. Reynolds was a colonel who left the hospital to defend a separate attack when the hospital was invaded. He returned to the massacre and it is said his ghost now resides in the building, vowing it to never leave it again. Many people have reported footsteps late at night and doors opening and closing late at night when they work, as well as Reynold's portrait being found in odd places.

So one night myself and a group of friends were walking around campus and decided to look around the building. It was about 12 am and we found one single door on the side that was still unlocked. So of course we went in. We didn't get but halfway down the hall to the right of the door when we heard footsteps directly above us, and the weighted creaking of the floor. We freaked and rushed out of that place pretty quick. I looked up towards the window of the area where we would have heard the footsteps and the lights were off. The building has a vending machine behind it which we visited and the University Police showed up simply to check the doors. I asked them if everyone was out of the building and they said yes, they were just double checking everything was locked up.

Not a real harsh story, but it was my first time with something weird. It didn't make me a believer.

I'll tell the other ones tomorrow. It's late and it creeps me out to remember them haha.

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StoneColdTrue

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Re: Greetings and a little background.
Reply #22 - Mar 12^th, 2010 at 3:43pm

Mmkay, now to continue.

One of the most well known Montevallo ghost stories is of Condie Cunningham who is said to haunt the main female dormitory called Main Hall. The story is that during her stay in the dorms in the 1930s, she had a cooking accident in her dorm and set herself on fire. She ran screaming down the hall and opened window, which we know what happens there. It's said she did not actually die in the dorm but in the infirmary down the street. Either way ever since there have been multiple reports of hearing a crying girl in the bathrooms and and screams through the halls. Even stranger is that upon her dorm room door in the wood engravings appeared a strange image of a face inflamed. Every time they would replace the door, the image would reappear. Eventually they replaced it with a steel door and kept the last wooden door locked away to bring out during Halloween. I got a chance to see it and it's pretty creepy. It doesn't look like anything that could be man made. I don't, you can decide. http://www.scaryforkids.com/pics/girl-on-fire-02.jpg

The most haunted house is King House, which is an old plantation home that rests directly on campus. I pass it all the time. It belonged to Edmund King and his family in the 1800s. Their cemetary is about 80-100 yards from the house. It's small and has about 17 headstones ranging from babies, children, to adults. Apparently King and some of the family members still haunt the house, and there have also been sightings from guests and ghost hunters of a dark spirit there.

So my first semester we passed the house a lot and would look around it. One night we actually witnessed ghost hunters investigating it for a radio show. Another night we found the back door to be unlocked. My buddy peeked inside but we were skittish about going in. A few nights later we had done some paranormal research and learned that when dealing with spirits it is always best to ask permission to photograph or enter a site. So myself and 4 or 5 others went to the King cemetary hoping to get pictures of orbs. We asked permission and began shooting. Then we walked up to King House. We checked the front door and it was locked. We then asked if we could come inside. I felt like it was all pretty silly. We checked the side door and then the back door. Both locked. We came back to the front and just started talking with each other when one of my buddies goes "Holy ****." He put his hand on the front door and opened it. I was pretty shocked because I checked the door myself and it did not budge before.

I was a bit hesitant to enter but the rest wanted to press on. Two couples walked by and witnessed us and wanted to join in. So we all went inside and I started taking pictures of the rooms. The couples were loud and began to annoy us, and then BOOM! it sounded like someone had picked a recliner up and dropped it on the floor upstairs. The couples left and we stayed. I was getting a little freaked and did not want to go upstairs so I gave my camera to a braver friend and he took some pictures of the upstairs rooms. After that we left and went back to our dorms.

My roommate/best friend had been with me the whole time and went to bed shortly after our return, but I stayed up and played a video game. It was about 3 am that I finally decided to go to sleep. I laid down in my bed and started to think slightly about the King House visit when I felt like my comforter was being pulled off of me from the bottom. I wrapped it around my feet and snugged tightly into my comforter thinking it was probably my imagination. Then how convenient at that point in time it sounded like the guy who lived above me had dropped something heavy on the ceiling directly above my head. I wasn't sure it was maybe just how much it scared me, but my body went completely tense and numb for about 1 second. It was a completely body spasm. I started yelling for my roommate and told him what happened. He believed me and was a little freaked out by it, and suddenly saw the cord by the blinds slap against the window without any physical involvement. We kept the TV on for the rest of the night.

The next day and many days after that we heard this really strange and random "Click" noise in separate areas of the room. Some research led us to finding that "clicking" is apparently involved in paranormal activity. It eventually went away, but there wasn't a single night in that dorm I kept the TV off.

Other very strange occurrences in my dormitory building is that multiple people including myself would hear what sounded like a marble being rolled across the floor above them. I would hear it but never thought anything of it until more and more people would make the same report. In my second semester I moved to the top floor with a new roommate. The only floor above me was the attic and several times day or night I would hear the marble roll as well as what sounded like furniture being moved around. There were extra beds up there, but every time we would hear the moving we would go to the attic and find no one there.

Now for what really got to me.

Everything I've mentioned before this I thought to be very strange, but I didn't let it bother me enough to make any conclusions. So one night I was hanging out at two friends apartment which is right off campus and down the street in walking distance from my dorm. It was me, a buddy of mine, the girl who lived there, and her sister. We were outside on the balcony of the apartment when we saw the other roommate driving into the parking lot. I saw in the passenger side of her a car a person wearing white, and I immediately thought it had to be one of our other friends who constantly wore this white/grey hoodie. The other three also wondered if it was him. So the girl parks and gets out of the car and I asked her "Is that Allan with you?" She giggled and said "What?" My other buddy asked her "Who are you with?" The other two girls were also eager, as she had parked at an angle where we couldn't really see the passenger side as well. The girl just laughed some more and said "What are you talking about? I'm by myself. I just came from my grand father's house."

At this point I started getting really confused and the other three people were just like "No. Someone was in your car." I ran down to the car and looked all around it. Nothing. No one. I saw someone in her car and so did three other people. It really threw me for a loop. I didn't find out until recently that apparently there are stories of a hitchhiker ghost in Montevallo. I couldn't find any information on that beyond a word of mouth. I could not deny what I saw, and neither could the other people.

The last strange sighting I had was last Summer a girl and I were driving on some back roads heading to a friend's lake house. I was driving and involved in conversation with her when I noticed someone walking on the side of the road up ahead. My first thought was "Who the hell would be walking out here?" as there weren't any houses around. Just as my car got close enough to where I could see the person better, nothing was there. For a fraction of second I thought maybe I was mistaken until the girl yelled "WHAT WAS THAT!?" She had seen exactly what I saw and chills ran through both of us. I could see the expression on her face was struggling to understand it. We both agreed that we saw someone walking on the road and then they vanished.

So that's it. That's all my paranormal experiences, and these experiences I could find no explanations for. The combination of all of them opened my mind to new concepts on life and death and I can no longer deny that there is much more to this world than we understand.

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Berserk2

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Re: Greetings and a little background.
Reply #23 - Mar 12^th, 2010 at 4:47pm

When I was teaching at a New York university, I soon discovered that security guards thought Plassmann Hall was haunted. Actually, some of the windows were poorly sealed and this created occasional drafts which caused classroom doors to open and slam. A colleague of mine taught a course on Parapsychology that the students nicknamed "Spooks." Al (the professor) explained tohis class that a former student ("George") had committed suicide and was now haunting the building. Al insisted that a front row desk be left vacant for George in his otherwise packed-out classroom of 65. Every so often, a draft would waft through, the door would slam, and the girls would scream. Al dryly explained that this was George's way of hinting that Al was bored and wanted him to add new material to his course.

One night late (11:30 PM?), I was alone in Plassman Hall in my downstairs office. I heard the jingle of a security guard's keys ascending the stairs to the 3rd floor. So I left my office and opened the basement elevator. I let out a blood-curdling WOOOHAHAHA!, realizing that the guard might imagine the sound coming from the 3rd floor. Then I scampered back to my office and immersed myself in my books.

A few minutes later, a terrified guard knocked on my door and asked hysterically, "Did you hear that?" "What?" I innocently replied. "That ghostly scream!" "No, I didn't. You probably heard a wind current in the hall." "No, it was a scream," he replied, a look of terror now on his face, "and there's no one else in the building!" Shocked

The guard then ran to the security office to confirm the belief of his fellow guards that Plassmann really is haunted. I sat there giggling to myself, proud that I had mantained my sleepy stone face during our conversation and excited that I had promoted the legend of our haunted class building. Roll Eyes

But yes, I do believe there are ghosts, juist not in Plassmann Hall!

Don

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Re: Greetings and a little background.
Reply #24 - Mar 12^th, 2010 at 6:42pm

Hello Stone Cold True:

Even if a person found inspiration in the Bible, I believe it would be better for he (or she) to interpret it in his own way, rather than somebody else's way.

I believe a day will come when the majority of the human race will reach the point where it won't have to follow some guru or somebody's religious interprations in order to be in touch with what is true. Instead they'll open their hearts and minds to common sense and divine inspiration.

There are way too many followers in this world who don't think for themselves.

In the end, any system of thought that claims to be the ultimate system of thought, ends up being stifling to some extent.

Because none of us has all of the answers, none of us should act like we do.

Because of dreams and other messages I received, I believe this world is going to go through major changes in the future. If we want the future world to succeed rather than fail as it has, we're going to need to let go of the old limiting parameters such as ineffective political leaders, greedy corporate rulemongers, and judgmental and controlling religious institutions (such as, homosexuality is a sin, or bow to me because I'm a true guru).

I have a lot of love and respect for Jesus, but I doubt that he had it in mind to start a religion that you better follow according to somebody else's parameters, or else.

Practicing something on the surface isn't the same thing as living it in your heart.

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Re: Greetings and a little background.
Reply #25 - Mar 12^th, 2010 at 7:05pm

I would always welcome an earnest seeker. I used to be very analytical and left-brained, and spent many years in clinical medicine, where there is no room for personal opinions (though even that changed a bit over time). I went to Monroe Institute, and then read all of Bruce [Moen's] books, and then did a workshop with Bruce a few years ago. I cannot tell you when exactly, but I came to have no doubt whatsoever in an afterlife, and having a "God" experience, but not like in church. If you are serious about finding out, then read Bruce's books and practice. It is easy, and the hardest part is overcoming your fears about it. There are many other books to read, too, about out of body experiences and techniques (Robert Monroe, Bruce, Rosie MacKnight, Thomas Campbell). I personally liked "Mastering Astral Projection" by Robert Bruce and Brian Mercer (comes with a CD with "Brain Wave Generator" and all the frequencies on the disc), which is a 3 month daily self-teach program. You can also download it at for FREE www.bwgen.com, as well as all the settings for the book frequency exercises.

And most important, use intention. And practice. I was a newbie when I started posting here, and wish I knew what you will when I was 23 years old. Have fun, and remember there is nothing that can happen to you; you will not get lost or separated, get possesed or captured by the Devil (unless that nonsense is in your belief system in the first place).

Have fun. And welcome.

Thomas

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Re: Greetings and a little background.
Reply #26 - Mar 12^th, 2010 at 8:50pm

"Surely the all omnipotent would have foreseen this? It is not silly for me to accept our creator as either flawed or not as influential as people would believe."
_______________________________________

Now you are presuming to resolve the classic philosophical problem of evil. In fact, you know neither the biblical solution to this problem nor modern philosophical perspectives on it which would consider your above comments nonsense. An open-minded seeker would relish the chance to clear up misunderstandings about this problem.

"To me, it should not matter what we believe."
___________________________________

Beliefs matter very much. Nazi beliefs led to the exermination of 6 million Jews.
]
"It should not matter to God or Jesus or any power that I do not worship them. If that should matter to them, then they are flawed. And if God is love, then it has no judgment whatsoever."
_____________________________________

Have you even considered the possibility that Love is by nature reciprocal and requires another free being?
So if Love is a supreme value in our universe, then the Source of love may wish it to be directed in gratitude towards Him/It, so that it can radiate through us to others. On this view, God by definition wants to be worshiped (= loved).

"He wants me to believe as he believes, but for what reason? He still hasn't answered that to me."
___________________________________
No, but I don't want you to be just another mindless New Age Ghetto member spouting cliches you can't defend. I want you to admit that you are not open-minded. An open-minded seeker would want to discover if he were clueless about the true meaning of his past biblical perspectives. You don't want to know and, frankly, I don't want to waste my time explaining it to you. For all I care, you can be a New Age cultist, but please, be one that would like to discover if he were mistaken through critical thinking and direct experience.

"What is the purpose if I feel as content with where I am spiritually as he does?"
_____________________________
The purpose is to inspire you to change from a contentent seeker to a truth seeker. Before embracing a new position, an open-minded truth seeker wants to know if he has a proper grasp of his established position before he explores other alternatives.

"You know what the New Testament is? It's when people saw that the Old Testament made the religion look ridiculous and revised it so it would look better."
_____________________________________
Now you pontificate about a subject you know nothing about. An intelligent person respects established scholarship, interacts with it, and uses this as a foundation for new thinking.

Don

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usetawuz Senior Member Offline ALK Member Posts: 397 ne fla Gender:	Re: Greetings and a little background. Reply #27 - Mar 13^th, 2010 at 12:58am Once again, Don...fill us with the holy spirit and help us to see your christian charity. Together with your intentional misleading of a security guard, I have difficulty seeing the light of Christ in your actions or comments.
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Re: Greetings and a little background.
Reply #28 - Mar 13^th, 2010 at 2:35am

Again: the gift of prophecy from myself is revealed. Did I not advise Stone Cold to ignore Don or to be pulled into an ever evolving cyclone of pure crap? Yes, yes, I did.

Don only wants to convert you to his way of thinking. If you do not believe or parrot his beliefs, he denigrates you and tells you you are not analyzing things properly and that you are some New Age Ghetto trash. Such christian love, bask in all its glory! NOT!

I truly feel for the people is supposedly "leading."

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Re: Greetings and a little background.
Reply #29 - Mar 13^th, 2010 at 5:28am

Recoverer, I like what you said, and I agree with the spirit of it. I would like to take this small section (portion quoted below in box) so that I can point out an area of thought I'm having difficulty with. People have a book called the Bible, and they can pick it up and base their lives on it. So, whether they take instruction on it from someone else, or whether they use the book as their own personal reference book, they are basing their beliefs on one source. They are calling this the 'highest' source.

Now, I have known certain people who have taken this book and interpreted it exactly as they liked. They have studied and studied, compared the text to other great literature all over the world, compared spiritual texts to each other to find what appeared as common values, which support the 'found' Biblical values.

So, you would think such people would be living 'better' lives than one who had a 'lesser' understanding of the Bible.

But that is not the case. No matter how much I watch people cling to their 'knowledge' as a spiritual guide, I find, very often, chaotic thinking. False assumptions are made all the time, by such a person, in my opinion. What's worse, the Biblical 'strength' (or other religious comfort found by anyone, from any source of religious 'materials') that a person might 'cling to' and build up for themselves (after all, they are following the 'ultimate' authority) -- is a source of Pride and Accomplishment and False Humility in the name of the Pursuit of Wisdom and Godliness. I put those in capitals, because then you can see the 'swagger' that can result in the gait of anyone who Too Greatly respects their own 'Knowledge' or the source of their 'Knowledge'.

I think that Don serves a good purpose here, when he is not distracting or amusing others by his 'props' (the repetitive 'insulting' characterization of others here as, uhm, clueless), by reminding us that our own interpretations can be False, no matter where we are standing.

So, I don't know who to believe anymore, those who tell us to dig in there and study for ourselves and find our own inspiration and the rest 'be damned' -- or to believe those who have studied for most of their lives, and are now convinced that they have the 'discernment' to make decisions 'for' others, or to be more 'forceful' in their stance.

Of course, I am talking about one person, which is why my grammar is messed up here, and I keep going back and forth with they, them, etc. But, don't assume it's Don. There are many many many people out there who are 'interpreting' all kinds of things erroneously, and every single one of us, including me, should open our eyes and understand that, no matter how Certain we are, we need to open up our minds a little more.

No harm, in doing that. No harm, in each of us debating with the 'facts' we have, and respecting each other while we do it.

When people spend time debating the 'spiritual quality' of the other -- that's demeaning any way you look at it. Not one of us has the wisdom and knowledge to look at someone else and think we can 'judge' their spiritual level of 'attainment' (not me, although I do often open my big mouth and try to do it), and I think it's a very, very small step from doing that to making a major mistake.

Everyone does this, now and then, as I see it. What do you think?

Well, my 2 cents, anyway. Thanks for the listen.

recoverer wrote on Mar 12^th, 2010 at 6:42pm:

Hello Stone Cold True:

Even if a person found inspiration in the Bible, I believe it would be better for he (or she) to interpret it in his own way, rather than somebody else's way.

I believe a day will come when the majority of the human race will reach the point where it won't have to follow some guru or somebody's religious interprations in order to be in touch with what is true. Instead they'll open their hearts and minds to common sense and divine inspiration.

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