Archive for January, 2009
Worldview in making
In retrospect it’s always fun to see how things have changed. All things. I guess that’s also why people write their biographies. Or not.
Currently as I look back I can divide my life in worldview aspect into 3 parts:
- Pre-Christian
- Christian
- Post-Christian (now)
Pre-Christian period was from birth till 2001, when I joined a church and became a devout christian. Then I was doing what a regular guys do. Going to school, working, dealing with hobbies etc. During that period I didn’t think much about the life in general – meaning of if, why’s, how’s etc. It wasn’t until few years before joining the church that I became interested in yoga philosophy, reading Carlos Castaneda books, stuff about astral projection etc. I guess I can call that period ‘becoming interested’.
Christian period. I guess the prior learning about different spiritual stuff made me more receptive and when the time was right I was invited to church. About that period now I can say that I had kinda elitist attitude about people who were not in a church. I really believed that I had found the truth, light and life and everyone who didn’t subscribe to the same worldview was… well… it was stupid _not_ to believe in what I did. And everyone who wasn’t in the saved flock was not going to be saved. I met many great people in the church and still interact with many. And from my side I can say there are no hard feelings about anyone in the church. I still think people in the church (at least in that particular one where I was) act in what they believe is the best way. I have written about the leaving process before, so I won’t do it again. I think I left also when the time was right. Now I wish it were a little earlier, but what’s done is done
Post-Christian period, the now. I can say that I am truly happy that I did leave the church. If you’re inside of something and totally immersed in it, it’s hard to see the world in a different way. Not being in any certain movement gives me the freedom to explore the things that were not really well looked at in a church. When there is a problem that is not really well explained by Bible, or any other religious book/movement that I might happen to be in, then I don’t have to force myself to jump through the hoops and do all the needed mental gymnastics to find a solution for the problem. I can look at other explanations and find solutions from other people than the apologists of that particular movement.
For example the concept of hell / eternal damnation / burning in a lake of fire / perishing of a soul. Try as you may, but there isn’t a decent explanation of why an all loving god would allow such thing, or create the hell in the first place. Follow me or die thing. Seems kind of heartless and cruel, doesn’t it?
But now, when I don’t have to explain everything by the Bible, I honestly think this is bollocks
. Same thing for the salvation / going to heaven thing. I think there isn’t anything I need to be saved from, but thanks for offering anyway.
I like what Thomas Campbell, the author of ‘My big TOE‘, said in one of his lectures: “There are many perceptions of objective reality”. Basically all religions, schools of thought, philosophies ‘get’ only a part of the reality as it is. Christianity is only partly right, just as atheism, agnosticism, Hinduism etc. So when you’re in one of these schools, you just can’t understand the whole reality as it is. You need to be free of all this stuff to actually move towards understanding the world as it is.
So as of now I see very-very little chance to become a part of any religious movement of whatsoever. You can always invite, just as I can always decline
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4 comments January 23, 2009