Similarities Of Faith

After a recent conversation about my spiritual path through life, and someone asking if my beliefs were evil, I thought it would be a good time to share the similarities between my path and others.

As part of my spiritual path, I celebrate certain days by either feast or fast.

There are certain celebrations through the year, calculated by the lunar calendar, which I celebrate. Guess what, so do all the major faiths and some of these celebrations coincide, we just call them by different names. 

I enjoy these festivities as I hope others enjoy their own festivities, and am happy to welcome people in celebration and good will.

As part of my rituals, I often burn a candle.

These candles have different meanings in different celebrations, and are often of a different size or colour for each one.

All of the main religions use candles in their rituals, often to symbolise the light of their particular deity or deities, or as a symbolic offering.

Sometimes it is used as remembrance, and at other times it can represent celebration.

As part of my rituals, I often burn incense.

Again, this is something that all the main faiths use. Sometimes in the form of incense or joss sticks, sometimes in the form of natural resin, and often meant to enhance spirituality, and act as symbolic offerings.

The birth of Jesus in the Christian tradition was celebrated by the gifts from the three magi – gold, frankincense and myrrh; all three are burned as incense.

As part of my spiritual path, I may pray for a sick friend.

Again, all faiths have rituals to seek support for those that are poorly or in need of assistance, mine is no different. There are specific rituals to ask for intervention to help people. 

I wear a pendant, which displays a symbol of my belief.

All of the larger faith systems have followers that wear jewellery that identifies their faith, be it the cross of fish of the Christian, to the Star of David of the Jew.

I do not hide what I am, and I expect that others should respect that, as I respect their symbols and talismans. Some may call it superstitious nonsense, but to me it is more than a good luck charm, it is an open affirmation of my personal spiritual path.

Is ritual fasting and feasting a sign of something abhorrent?

Is lighting a candle evil?

Is burning something sacrilegious?

Is praying for a sick friend sinful?

Is carrying or wearing a talisman superstitious?

I don't think so, and neither do the main religions.

So why do some people in larger, more organised faith systems condemn people like myself for activities that they carry out themselves?

I try very hard to live by the creed, harm no one. I take this to mean, not just physical harm, but spiritual, psychological, social or financial, or any other type of harm.

Again, another similarity with the main faiths.

Does it really matter what label is used?

Not really, but people like labels. 

Pagan & Proud

Blessed Be

 

On Cardinals and Airports

Cardinal Walter Kasper, a senior Papal advisor, was quoted as saying to the Germanys’ Focus magazine that "when you land at Heathrow you think at times you have landed in a Third World country".

He also stated that the UK was marked by "a new and aggressive atheism".

These are ill advised comments from anyone planning to visit a country, and even more so from a person in a position of influence and power.

But what did he mean?

Heathrow is a one of the busiest airports in the world, with a huge footfall of passengers. The new terminal was built to help cater for this, so it can’t be that the terminals are run down.

Could it possibly be that he is referring to the multicultural passengers and staff at the terminals?

Could it be that he is racist?

Not a very tolerant attitude from a cleric in such a senior position.

He also stated that the UK was marked by "a new and aggressive atheism".

This is also a bit of a woolly statement, atheism is not new, and I have yet to meet anyone who is aggressive with their atheism. 

The UK does have an increasing number of people that state they are atheist, but there are also a growing number of people claiming allegiance to faiths other than Catholic Christianity.

Could he possibly mean that, there are less Catholics residing in the UK than there used to be?

Could he mean that he regards all non Catholics as atheist?

Well guess what, Henry VIII died 500 years ago.

If he is unwell as is claimed, I wish him a speedy recovery, but I would have preferred an apology to the UK, rather than a lame excuse not to accompany the Pope on his state visit.

Yet again this highlights the hypocrisy of people with power and influence.

When Clerics Speak

When a cleric speaks, his flock tend to listen. When that cleric then deliberately speaks via the media, he gains a wider audience.

Now some may listen to the words coming from the mouth of an apparently respectable cleric, and take note of those words, and believe them. A small minority will take the words into their hearts and treat them as though they were the words of their God, and not just one man’s interpretation of them. This can cause some people to act upon those words, without fear of consequence as they believe they are doing the right thing for their faith.

Others that hear the words hear not the word of a God, but the words spoken by a man that is either misunderstanding their faith, or deliberately manipulating their faith to achieve their own ends.

In many cases those words incite hatred, and hatred is a not a two way street, it’s more of a complicated multi-junction high speed accident black spot.

Rev. Terry Jones pastor of Dove World Outreach Centre in Gainesville, suggested burning the Koran, the Holy book of another faith as an act of remembrance for those killed in the 9/11 attacks. 

Rabbi Ovadia Yosef, the current spiritual leader of the Shas political party in the Israeli Knesset, said in a sermon that Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas along with all Palestinians should perish from the world. 

Feiz Muhammad, an Australian Muslim cleric has called for the beheading of Dutch politician Geert Wilders.

What do all these people have in common?

They are all spiritual leaders, and they all speak to their flock and the media. The other thing that they all have in common is that they are dangerous men.

They all claim to be religious, yet not one shows any sign of godliness.

They all claim to be spiritual, yet not one shows any signs of spiritual behaviour.

They all claim to be men of peace, yet denigrate people and speak of violence.

They are all in a position where people listen, and in all cases a small minority of people will take their words as gospel, and act upon their teachings.

What I see, and I hope that many more see, are three media savvy, manipulative and dangerous men, intent on causing havoc in this world.

Unfortunately there are many more people of this ilk around, not just clerics, but many politicians, and other leaders speak of peace yet practice destruction and war.

I live in hope that the silent majority starts speaking, and practicing peace.

History and Fairy Tales

Once upon a time, in a land far away, a group of people braved the oceans and lived in a new land. 

The people that already lived on this wonderful land were initially friendly, and showed the incomers how to survive, and what to grow, so they could become strong.

The incomers were so grateful for their safe arrival and the help that they received; they had a party with the original people to celebrate.

Over time, the incomers decided that they needed even more room than they already had, so decided to take more land from the original people that already lived on it.

The original people soon learned that the incomers were greedy, and wanted it all for themselves.

They fought the incomers, that brought disease & weapons. They fought with weapons crafted from the natural environment around them, when the incomers had brought mechanical devices with them. They tried talking to the incomers, and agreed terms about land sharing, but the incomers betrayed them.

Eventually the incomers over ran the original people, and restricted where they could go and what they could do, almost treating them like animals in a zoo.

After their victory, the incomers wrote and told tales of how they had taken the land. They wrote about the people that had ignored the laws and taken land from the original people, and called them heroes.

They told of how the original people were savages beasts, and that the incomers that had fought them were brave.

And so history is written, and legends are made.

Hatred ~ Questions and Clouded Vision

The anniversary of the twin towers and pentagon attacks and the downing of the flight in Pennsylvania, it is a time of mixed emotions for many. There is sadness and regret, the memories of broken dreams and wasted lives, but 9 years on, should there still be hatred?

There are plans to build an Islamic community center, on the site of a derelict Coat factory in lower Manhattan, which has been dubbed by many as the ground zero mosque.

Now, as the towers were ground zero, why is a building a couple of blocks away being called ground zero?
Yes, it was damaged, as was much of lower manhattan, but it is not at ground zero.

Next, the purpose of the building is a multi functional community centre with sports and entertainment facilities that will be open to all people in the community. Part of it's remit is to help build up the community.

Yes, it will have prayer space, but should a building be defined by just part of the space within it's wall?

If the answer to this question is yes, then why is St Mary's hospital in London called a hospital? Surely it should be a church, as it has prayer space, as have the majority of UK hospitals.

Yet nearly all the information about this community project that I have read contains mis information and vitriolic attacks about Muslims, but very little about what they are planning do do with the space.
Some of the rhetoric I have read has been highly inflamatory, and comes near to inciting racial haterd, which is what a small group of people - namely the terrorists wanted - so in that sense the terorists have won.

Now I'm musing about this as a non American, non Muslim, but I am a resident of a country that underwent many years of terrorist atrocities.

In the UK, and particurly London, many innocent people were killed and maimed by the IRA.
Now the IRA, a Catholic organisation, had a political problem with the UK, (which maybe I will go into another time), and a group within their ranks thought, great idea, we'll bomb and terrorise the UK into submission.

Should I hate all Catholics due to the actions of a few terrorists?

Should I start spouting anti-catholic rhetoric if  the Catholic church wanted to build a community center in London?

Or should I waste my efforts in hating the people that funded them?

Of course I shouldn't, it would be a wasted emotion and you can't make good decisions when your vision is clouded with such a powerful emotion.

Hatred, on the scale that is currently being expressed by some people, many of whom have their own agendas and really should know better, against a whole faith is self destructive and inflammatory.

Step back, think about what you are doing and saying.

Try clearing your vision