Official Discussion Forum for the works of Stephen R. Donaldson
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Fist and Faith wrote:Heh. Lucky guess.
It's that leap of faith, Cho. Don't worry, He will hold you up and not let you drown. He will show you how to swim. You just have to let Him.Cho wrote:I feel like someone standing on the edge of deep water thinking about jumping in--yet fully aware of the inability to swim.
ChoChiyo, it seems you're very torn at the moment. Now, I don't know you very well--or at all, to tell the truth--but I think that, deep inside, you feel religion/belief in God is the best thing for you. I think the only problem you're having is making the move--but, trust me, it's as easy as walking through a door. Once you make the leap, everything will be clear to you. Maybe these are just hollow words, coming from an atheist, but I feel it's a very simple piece of advice that anyone who has undergone life-altering changes can talk about.ChoChiyo wrote:I feel like someone standing on the edge of deep water thinking about jumping in--yet fully aware of the inability to swim.
Do you ever get that feeling of longing, yet the strong urge to run and hide at the same time?
No one has an answer that you can't find for yourself, and the answers we find for ourselves are the ones that retain meaning, and impact our lives.I think your last is the best advice. I think we all have certain needs/drives - perhaps they are Jung's archetypes. These archetypes don't seem to care about Truth, they simply demand our attention. We must find an answer for them or we will always be torn. It sounds to me like Cho has a deep belief in God, which must be fulfilled. But the image of God that Cho has learned is a bad one. I say replace it with a good one.Avatar wrote:Aah, now I'm torn over what to say.
Based on my own opinion, I can't say "Go for it", and ethically, I can't tell you "Don't".
At the last, probably the only honest bit of advice I can offer is that you make the choice that makes you happy. All other considerations should, perhaps, come second to that.
YES!! Cho, your heart tells you that the God you were taught is wrong. There's your answer. Your heart knows, and has been fighting against the bad teachings all along. Embrace what you know to be true.JemCheeta wrote:Just remember, no one is any more of an authority on divinity than you are No one has an answer that you can't find for yourself, and the answers we find for ourselves are the ones that retain meaning, and impact our lives.
Now the supreme irony here is that you have all placed so much importance on the Word of God, and so little on the experience.
In fact, you place so little value on experience that when what you experience of God differs from what you’ve heard of God, you automatically discard the experience and own the words, when it should be just the other way around.
Your experience and your feelings about a thing represent what you factually and intuitively know about that thing. Words can only seek to symbolize what you know, and can often confuse what you know. -- Conversations With God
I won't quote a fantastic moment from Circle of Iron, since I know you're all planning to watch it now that it's on dvd.So I want to remind you that every entry in this book is at best an asymptotic shot at life, and at my life, not at yours. If my words affirm you, then savor them for the moment; but if they cause you to distrust your own experience, spit them out. You are the only authority on what is good for you, and once you have seen this, you will feel an enormous peace and freedom. -- Hugh Prather
I think some people go one way, and some go the other. Despite extraordinary evidence, some people will not believe the earth is more than several thousand years old, because it conflicts with their religious beliefs. Rather than find a way to reconcile God and science (which I don't think should be a problem), they will not acknowledge this "particular truth." Instead, they say the data is misinterpreted.Cybrweez wrote:Maybe our happiness isn't the MOST important thing, maybe truth is. We might come to realize a particular truth that we don't like, do we ignore it to chase another path that we think will make us happy? Or do we accept that truth?
Ahh, and there are those of us who believe in the Mother Goddess, and don't have these problems. BB!OTOH, some who may be drawn to God will refuse to believe because they think the earth is billions of years old, but someone told them that, if they want to believe in God, they must believe that the earth is only several thousand years old. Again, they cannot reconcile God and science, so they do not find the fulfillment that God could give them.
Go for it, I always thougt it was kinda interesting.I keep promising Avatar I am going to start a Pagan/witchcraft thread. Any takers or interested parties out there?
Fist and Faith wrote:As you say Fist, a great bit of wisdom. Really an excellent post Jem. So excellent, that I have nothing more to say on the matter. (For now.JemCheeta wrote:tic bit of wisdom!JemCheeta wrote:Just remember, no one is any more of an authority on divinity than you are No one has an answer that you can't find for yourself, and the answers we find for ourselves are the ones that retain meaning, and impact our lives.
Kym -- As Sheol says, go for it. We discuss christianity here as though it and aetheism was all that there was. Another perspective will be nice.
--Avatar
You're just full of humourous remarks today, aren't you?