No answers here, just pondering. I grew up believing in life after death, and
never really questioned it except in my rebellious teen years (when I never
truly gave it much thought.) The night my dad died, I was in boot camp, and
had a vision of him as full of clarity as I ever had outside of some recurring
dreams I used to have. When I was called to the Red Cross in the morning
so they could give me the bad news, I never even considered it could be him
though. All the way I was running through in my mind which of my siblings
would have had an accident. I was in shock at the news. My sisters and
brother also had the vision, however, so I figured it was him saying goodbye
to us. I've never really doubted that, either.
But it's not proof of life after death. Noone has ever had any kind of proof of
that, at least that they've been able to share as more than personal experience.
Some people who were brought back talk about seeing the light, or tunnel, or
relatives, etc. But all these can also be explained by the process of the brain
going down. Which leads me to wonder: when did we (humans) start believing
in life after death anyway? Did it start after we became aware of our loss at
loved ones dying? Did we need to be consoled, or to console others? It appears
that virtually every civilization believes in the spirit living on in some form or
other. And yet, why? Noone can prove it (and not for a lack of trying either.)
I think it must be the one belief we all share that actually goes back to our
roots. If we really did have an Adam and Eve type beginning, starting from
a common ancestor, it must have started with them. At some point in our
youth of humanity we gained an awareness, a knowledge, that the other
animals don't share. We don't know if that was an event or an evolution,
but it seems to me the idea of life after death must have started back then.
It could be that a fear of death (after becoming aware of it) caused us to believe
this way, out of denial. Or it could have been actual knowledge, passed on by
someone overseeing our evolution.
And so, as I get older, I ponder this more and more. I know what I believe.
I believe the Adam and Eve story is a story about our beginnings with
knowledge and understanding and awareness. I don't believe Eve ate an
apple and suddenly gained knowledge, but it's a symbol for whatever did
happen. I believe it was an event, and humanity evolved from it. I believe
we have an event in our future as well, that will greatly revolutionize our
understanding of ourselves and our place in the universe. But will those
who have passed on already still be around? I know what the Bible teaches
about this, but the witnesses to Jesus death and ressurection lived 2000
years ago, and what we know about them was passed on by people several
generations later. So it's faith, not knowledge. Things get exaggerated
about all the great people in history, so while I accept all Jesus teachings,
I question the stories, or at least don't accept them as verbatum facts.
I have no point to make here. It's just something I think about and wanted
to put down on paper (so to speak). Think on this, though: If we as
humanity suddenly DID have proof of our life after death, and DID have
understanding of what it really is, wouldn't that change us? Perhaps that
will happen someday.
YOU can learn directly from God.
If you're religion is confusing to you, there's a reason. Get a red letter Bible, and read the words of Jesus to the priests and preachers of His day. Then understand this: There's no difference between them and the priests and preachers of our day. Why would there be? Just as there was in His day, there are some with good intent, but even they are learning from a corrupted system. Want the truth? Throw out everything you've learned from them, pick up the Bible, and read it for yourself. Not by chapter and verse as you were taught. Particularly in the New Testament, read the way they were written, as letters. And unless you're well versed in Old English, get a modern translation. One you can read and understand. Stick to the New Testament at first, so as not to be overwhelmed. And know this, it isn't the word of God the way you were taught. It's the word of God as understood by those who wrote it. Try to understand it from the point of view of those it was written to...we were taught to read it as if it was written to us!
The problem with that is, those the New Testament was written to were going through the transition from one Covenant to another. They were awaiting an event in their time. To learn about that event, one needs to consult historians, such as Josephus and his account of it in "Wars of the Jews."
The problem with that is, those the New Testament was written to were going through the transition from one Covenant to another. They were awaiting an event in their time. To learn about that event, one needs to consult historians, such as Josephus and his account of it in "Wars of the Jews."
Questioning the established theologies. The church teaches the law, just as it did when Jesus railed against it in His day. A discussion on the freedoms He gave us, and why true followers might want to operate on the outside. The truth is out there, but where?
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
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