drumming, war, ancestors . . . memorial day

http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-14414-Columbus-Interfaith-Spirituality-Examiner~y2010m5d31-Spirituality-and-Memorial-Day

continued from my examiner column . . .

Its amazing how the theme of feathers connect with many ancient peoples in other places around the globe from Africa to the Aborigines, to New Guinea to Latin America to Mongolia. It’s an ancient spiritual practice to express oneself in sacred dance, though some fundamentalist religious traditions forbid dancing. Today’s Memorial Day Native American Pow Wow captures the Spirit. http://www.naicco.org/

The Native American Indian website reports that ‘Powwow’s have been an integral part of many Native American cultures since the first relocation of Native people to reservation lands. Native American art is traditionally a functional art form; Powwow’s are the greatest expression of Native American Indian art. As well as being a wonderful social occasion; they encompass the values, traditions and spirituality of many native cultures. Participants adorn themselves in their finest and most highly decorated clothing and enter the sacred circle to dance, sing and rejoice in coming together. It is a time to share accomplishments, celebrate special occasions or to remember those who have walked on with feasts, giveaways and traditional honoring songs.’ [Howard County Maryland 2007 Pow Wow photo by Jeff Kubina]

All cultures sing, celebrate and honor their warriors. One more typically thinks of Revolutionary War, Civil War, WWI, WWII, Korea, Vietnam . . . on Memorial Day. War is not only the enduring Achilles heel of civilizations, but a very ancient recurring theme. This article in Truthout explains, 'US law officially proclaims Memorial Day "as a day of prayer for permanent peace."
However, the US is much closer to permanent war than permanent peace. Corporations are profiting from wars and lobbying politicians for more. The US and the rest of the world cannot afford the rising personal and financial costs of permanent war.' http://www.truthout.org/corporations-profit-from-permanent-war-memorial-day-201059924 We not only make war on each other, those different from ourselves, but the waters, sky and earth itself: witness the disaster unfolding in the Gulf. That is war on the planet.

Homer's Iliad and Odyssey certainly captured a Greek epic, with war no small part of the story. Visit the Field Museum in Chicago and other great museums around the globe to see ancient pottery depicting scenes of war with welcoming celebrations, feasting, laurels, wreaths and garlands for the heroes. In the case of the Native American population which suffered genocide and resettlement, we tend to forget this was their land before the Indian, Revolutionary, Spanish American and Civil War. There were countless tribes and peoples here, each with their own traditions, arts, cultural practices, legends and spirituality. [June 21st commemorates National Aboriginal Day in Canada.]

The NAICCO website says, ‘It is only by educating the non-Indian world and re-educating the Native community that we can hope to preserve, protect and promote all that defines the native peoples of this land. The Powwow provides this opportunity. Powwow’s bring people together to share and learn about native cultures. To develop an appreciation for and an increased knowledge of each other and the diversity that God has bestowed upon us. Listen to the songs and witness the swirl of color around you; feel the healing beat of the drum touch your soul.’
One day at seminary, drumming filled the air, drawing everyone into Gloria Dei center in curiosity and wonder. An African student said, ‘Now it feels like I am coming home. This is what marks the start of worship as a special event, set apart from everyday life.’ But as the Native Americans believe, we are all standing on holy ground; its all sacred. A significant, prolonged drum roll please. As soldiers deployed for far too long return to walk into the arms of waiting family members, a prolonged drum roll please. Now what are you most thankful for this Memorial Day? Its certainly a different type of thanksgiving today- one of celebrating sacrifice rather than celebrating abundance. There is much loss and sacrifice to remember beyond our warriors: health-mental and physical, economy, families, cultures, tribes, traditions, practices, wisdom and environment . . . This is a solemn holiday.

Here's how war, sacrifice, appreciation and environment come together for one late author:

'The future of humankind lies waiting for those who will come to understand their lives and take up their responsibilities to all living things. Who will listen to the trees, the animals and birds, the voices of the places of the land? As the long-forgotten peoples of the respective continents rise and begin to reclaim their ancient heritage, they will discover the meaning of the lands of their ancestors. That is when the invaders of the North American continent will finally discover that for this land, God is red.' p296 Vine DeLoria God is Red, A Native View of Religion

copyright 2010, Patricia A. Rodemann

Spirituality and celebrating the life of the Buddha

. . . continued from my examiner column, http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-14414-Columbus-Interfaith-Spirituality-Examiner~y2010m5d28-Spirituality-Celebrating-Wesak-Life-of-the-Buddha

Stephen Prothero, author of God is Not One: the Eight Rival Religions That Run the World- and Why Their Differences Matter, tells us 'Of all the Asian religions, Buddhism has had the largest influence on European and American popular culture. Its beliefs and practices have made their way onto the television show The Simpsons, the movie The Matrix, a bestselling book by NBA coach Phil Jackson called Sacred Hoops (1996), and lyrics by the hip-hop group the Beastie Boys ('Bodhisattava Vow). Buddhism has also long attracted the attention of Western intellectuals. The German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche called Buddhism 'a hundred times more realistic than Christianity . . . ' p176. What one reads of Buddhism in his book however, dispels much of the public misperception of what Buddhism is, how it's practiced and some of the beliefs associated with it. [full moon photo by Selena von Eichendorf. In honor of Wesak]

My dad had a beautiful Buddha sculpture in our home, a gift from Chicago- he taught Asian history for a time in his long and distinguished career at the University level. For us anyway, it showed a face of devotion and supreme meditative contemplation; nothing more. (Eye of the beholder I guess) A fundamentalist Lutheran pastor made a disparaging remark about Buddhist idols in the homes of new members after visiting us on the following Sunday. It happened to be the day dad brought a Chinese colleague to visit and join us for lunch. The colleague, who was contemplating Christianity, subsequently became a Catholic, where sculptures and statues are thought to reinforce the faith. For some, (strict Calvinists or Muslims for example) any religious artifacts from a different point of view or representations of God might deemed heretical. In other faith traditions, Hindu for example, representations of Gods are commonplace.

Here's one debunking in Prothero's book: 'Although Buddhism is widely associated in the West with meditation, most Buddhists do not meditate. Their piety consists largely of bhakti--style devotion to various Buddhas and other supramundane figures. They worship these Buddhas in temples, pary to them at home, and go on pilgrimage to sacred sites associated with their exploits.' page 177 He is witty in his comments about meditation for which Buddhists are best known, for Westerners to learn and grasp, 'In our purpose-driven culture, however, doing nothing can be hard work.' He then describes Vipassana (insight or mindfulness meditation), and Metta (loving kindness meditation).

A common conviction among Buddhists, though techniques and practices differ is that suffering is the problem. 'They trace suffering to 'ignorant craving'- our tendency to mistake things that are changing as unchanging and then to cling desperately to their supposedly unchanging forms.' page 179. That would mean homes, relationships, possessions, status, beliefs, and who we think we are. Jesus had some things to say about that too, as did the Guru!

For Prothero the greatest contribution among the great religions is the Buddhist teaching that 'the thing we are most certain of-the self- is actually a figment of the imagination. . . . ' in other words, 'According to Buddhists, the self does not actually exist.' Now put that in your pipe and smoke it! You are 'as fleeting as a breath . . . ' and most difficult of all: 'we have no soul'. For Buddhists, 'matter, sensations, perceptions, thoughts, and consciousness-create the illusion of 'I' and 'me.' But this illusion is all there is to 'myself.' p184 The problem then becomes the ego when we are more accurately all part of an interdependent web. Transcendence and The Ultimate is beyond doctrine, beyond any fixed state of being, not captured by mere words or creeds-as mystics of all religions might agree. Experiencing the blissful enigmatic smile and silence in contemplating the face of the Buddha helps us realize that this too, is a fleeting moment . . . a mere illusion.

A final cautionary note: do not think about this too deeply while driving! . . .

spirit of life and what is pentecost

continued from:

http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-14414-Columbus-Interfaith-Spirituality-Examiner~y2010m5d23-Spirituality-and-what-is-Pentecost-101

Why is this (explosion of charismatic and Pentecostal church growth) happening? Author and theologian, Jurgen Moltmann says it’s experiential; that many people express the personal experience of the Spirit, through the realization that God loves them whoever they are, wherever they are and it lifts them out of despair.
He quotes Karl Rahner who explains that people are then not ‘merely hearers of the Word’, but become spokesmen of the Word too.’ The difference with typical mainline religions is that Word and Spirit then are seen in a ‘mutual relationship and not as a one-way street. The Spirit is the subject determining the Word, not just the operation of that Word; . . . ‘The indwelling of the Spirit ‘in our hearts’ goes deeper than the conscious level in us. It rouses all our senses, permeates the unconscious too, and quickens the body, giving it new life. . . . To bind the experience of the Spirit solely to the Word is one-sided, and represses these dimensions.’ For Moltmann, a relationship as this cannot be conceived in merely intellectual terms. See The Spirit of Life, A Universal Affirmation.
Painting is from the Pfarrkirche St. Gordian und Epimachus, Merazhofen, Stadt Leutkirch im Allgäu, Landkreis Ravensburg Josephsaltar, Altarblatt "Pfingstwunder" von Fidelis Schabet, 1867 which means Pentecost Wonder.
Moltmann believes it is a false alternative to choose between Divine Revelation (as in God speaking through Scriptures) and Human Experience of the Holy Spirit. Earlier dialectical theologians said the problem stemmed because we started with human consciousness of God, not from the Divine Word to men and women. That’s called theology ‘from below’ versus ‘above’. A famous early to mid-century theologian Karl Barth claimed the Spirit of God is not the spirit of human beings; as a sinner one is dependent on grace and so it’s experienced more as a Spirit of promise, us waiting faithfully in expectation. The transcendent God is outside our experience and comprehension, only breaking through in glimpses. Moltmann believes that human experience is because God’s Spirit is present in human beings as the Life and Source itself. From here you can read countless arguments and door-stopper sized books from every angle.

Having been a party to the joy, conviction, hope and positive emotion, the very expression of faith and conviction in God’s presence during a prayer session when Pentecostals rallied to support two vibrant young women on life support after a car accident, I can only affirm that there is something remarkably appealing to this simpler connection that many find missing in the mainline denominations. (They made a stunning recovery). The positive energy gives support and hope to their lives. Small wonder these are among the fastest growing churches worldwide. They’re based on real life experience and emotion, not doctrine. It's not mere belief.

Along with all the pitfalls of that approach, we are in a new era where 'Experience of Life is experience of God', as Moltmann’s first chapter is termed. Beyond his academic approach, one might say this era sees an unusual convergence of process theology, Eastern philosophies and a taste of Hebrew mysticism coupled with a touch of Gnostic influence and tales from the emergence of the early church. There are conservative and liberal ‘takes’ which makes the future of belief itself, a very fluid thing.

different versions of ten commandments

http://www.examiner.com/x-14414-Columbus-Interfaith-Spirituality-Examiner~y2010m5d21-Spirituality-and-what-is-the-Jewish-holiday-Shavuot-about-101

continued from my examiner column . . .

http://www.the-ten-commandments.org/the-ten-commandments.html reports ‘For the Jews, the Ten Commandments are a special set of spiritual laws that the LORD Himself wrote on two stone tablets (luchot) that Moses brought down from Mount Sinai. In the Scriptures these laws are called the “aseret hadevarim,” the “ten words” or “ten utterances”. In rabbinical writings, they are usually referred to as “Aseret haDiberot,” and in Christian theological writings they are called the Decalogue which is derived from the Greek name “dekalogos” (ten statements) found in the Septuagint (Exodus 34:28, Deuteronomy 10:4), which is the Greek translation of the Hebrew name.
To the Jews the Torah has a total of 613 commandments which includes the ten from the Decalogue. Traditional Rabbinical Jewish belief is that these commandments apply solely to the Jewish people.’

Christians recall that of all commandments the single most important according to Jesus is to love God first and love one’s neighbor as oneself. Everything else hinges upon that. Jesus came to free people from slavish adherence to 613 laws that he felt distanced one from the direct experience of God. The ‘reign of God’ [a more timely translation than 'kingdom of God'] must be lived and experienced as a reign of justice and love.

Religious Tolerance.org presents all points of view regarding the 10 commandments, along with two jokes, 'Only 68 of 200 Anglican priests polled could name all Ten Commandments, but half said they believed in space aliens.' 1 and, 'Concerning the Ten Commandments in courthouses and legislatures: You cannot post 'Thou Shalt Not Steal,' 'Thou Shalt Not Commit Adultery,' and 'Thou Shall Not Lie' in a building full of lawyers, judges and politicians...It creates a hostile work environment.' 2 [To that I'd add . . . bankers and corporate executives]

One may compare the verses in the Qur’an with the Torah and Hebrew scripture versions. http://www.religioustolerance.org/chr10cisl.htm The Islamic account is that the angel Gabriel dictated the verses to the Prophet Muhammad rather than that Moses received them. There is a lovely deeply spiritual quality in these: ‘6:103: No visions can encompass Him, but He encompasses all visions. 2:224: Do not use God's name in your oaths as an excuse to prevent you from dealing justly. 73:8: Remember the name of your Lord and devote yourself to Him exclusively. 76:25 Glorify the name of your Lord morning and evening. . . . and, 4:32: Do not covet the bounties that God has bestowed more abundantly on some of you than on others.’

Here are some rather thought provoking alternatives and updated versions of the 10 commandments for today. These are from differing points of view and would make a great basis for a group discussion. http://www.religioustolerance.org/chr_10cm.htm There are the humanist version, the version for the third millennium and positive versions: ‘thou shall’s’. The Native American version reads like this: This has been published in many places on the Internet. The author is unknown:
'Treat the Earth and all that dwell thereon with respect.
Remain close to the Great Spirit.
Consider the impact on the next six generations when making decisions.
Work together to benefit all humanity.
Freely give help and kindness wherever needed.
Do what you believe to be right.
Look after the well-being of your mind and body.
Contribute a share of your efforts to the greater good.
Be truthful and honest at all times.
Take full responsibility for your actions.'

Clearly not derived from the orignal in a side by side comparison. It sounds rather 'hippie'.

Here is the Humanist Version as reported by the religious tolerance website:
‘We, the members of the human community speak these words, saying.
We shall not limit freedom of thought.
We shall not cause unnecessary harm to any living thing or the environment.
We shall be respectful of the rights of others.
We shall be honest.
We shall be responsible for our actions.
We shall be fair in all matters to all persons.
We shall be considerate of the happiness and well being of others.
We shall be reasonable in our actions.
We shall nurture these values by word & deed in our children, family, friends and acquaintances.
We shall not limit inquiring or testing by their consequences, on any matter, including these Commandments.’

Conservatives may take issue with these. Although many favor limiting 'big government' some might also favor 'big clergy'.

Clearly neither of these versions compares with the originals. Of course, some historians content the original original came from the Egyptians as there are remarkable similarities with some passages in the Egyptian Book of the Dead as an individual's life is weighed worthy or not of afterlife. Obviously, the context is radically different 6,000 or so years later. People get into fist fights defining what life is and when it began. Can you write 10 commandments (even suggestions) that express your point of view, guidelines for living for our times, yet is reasonably ‘faithful’ to the original given genetic engineering, in-vitro fertilization, euthanasia, abortion, 50% divorce rate, post industrial society, mass media and so forth?

what is ascension?

http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-14414-Columbus-Interfaith-Spirituality-Examiner~y2010m5d18-Spirituality-and-what-is-ascension-about-101

continued . . .

Here’s what the Baha’i website http://www.bahai.us/ascension-of-bahaullah says about Ascension Day, ‘May 29 marks the anniversary of the Ascension of Baha'u'llah, the founder of the Baha'i Faith. The day is one of nine holy days in the Baha'i calendar when Baha'is suspend work and school.
The official Baha’i site continues the story, ‘Baha’u’llah died after a brief illness in 1892 in the mansion of Bahji outside Akko (also known as Akka or Acre), in what is now northern Israel. . . . Throughout His long years of exile, Baha’u’llah revealed divinely inspired passages equivalent to more than 100 volumes. This revelation comprises mystical writings, social and ethical teachings, laws and ordinances, and a fearless proclamation of His message to the kings and rulers of the world’ According to http://news.bahai.org/story/716 'Baha’is accept Baha’u’llah as the Manifestation of God for this age, the latest in a line a divine prophets that includes Jesus, Mohammed, Moses, Krishna, Buddha, Zoroaster, and others'.


Listen to http://www.nybahai.org/ascension/ascension.html music to accompany a program on ascension. Here are further reflections and devotions for ascension day http://www.upliftingwords.org/AscensionBahaullah.htm.

The website, Religion Research Institute says, 'Sects that arose in the Middle East before Mohammed put a great deal of emphasis on ascension to heaven. Those who claimed to be prophets within their sects, whether they were mythological figures in their tradition or were given biblical names, all had ascension stories.' [artwork shows ascension of the Prophet Mohammed, peace be upon him by Jami Al-Tawarikh ("The Universal History").] Read more about Mohammed's ascension, peace be upon him, on Discover Islam.

For Jains, ascension means something different however. Here are two sites with further information: http://www.cs.colostate.edu/~malaiya/mahavira.html and, http://www.exoticindiaart.com/article/mahavira/

In the Jain tradition, the spiritual leader Lord Mahavir attained an elevated state upon physical death. It’s not what one would call, ‘ascension’, but similar to what in Buddhism or Hinduism one would call, nirvana or freedom from suffering and rebirth. The Jain university site
http://www.jainuniversity.org/lord_mahavir.aspx says, ‘According to Jain philosophy, all Tirthankaras were human beings but they have attained a state of perfection or enlightenment through meditation and self-realization. They are the Gods of Jains. The concept of God as a creator, protector, and destroyer of the universe does not exist in Jainism. Also the idea of God's reincarnation as a human being to destroy the demons is not accepted in Jainism. . . . At the age of 72 (527 B.C.), Lord Mahavir attained nirvan and his purified soul left his body and achieved complete liberation. He became a Siddha, a pure consciousness, a liberated soul, living forever in a state of complete bliss. On the night of his nirvan, people celebrated the Festival of Lights (Dipavali) in his honor. This is the last day of Hindu and Jain calendar year known as Dipavali Day.'

In Jainism there are 5 great vows:
‘Nonviolence (Ahimsa)not to cause harm to any living beings; Truthfulness (Satya)to speak the harmless truth only; Non stealing (Asteya) not to take anything not properly given; Chastity (Brahmacharya)not to indulge in sensual pleasure; Non possession/ Non attachment (Aparigraha) complete detachment from people, places, and material things’.

According to Jain University, the spiritual master, ‘Mahavir emphasized that all living beings, irrespective of their size, shape, and form -how spiritually developed or undeveloped, are equal and we should love and respect them. This way he preached the gospel of universal love. Mahavir rejected the concept of God as a creator, a protector, and a destroyer of the universe. He also denounced the worshiping of gods and goddesses as a means of material gains and personal benefits.’

For atheist authors the idea of ascension is a joke because it presupposes belief in an unproven other-worldly existence beyond this physical place and plane. Contrasting the ancient scriptural texts taken literally versus contemporary astrophysics, ‘if Jesus bodily rose, he is still in orbit’, some would say with disdain.

Looking at ‘ascension’/’enlightenment’ from three completely different religious perspectives, one might say symbolically that upon death, (but sometimes in altered consciousness in life- as Sikh Guru Nanak experienced) one reaches a new threshold, a new state of transcendent existence unencumbered by the physical realm and its attendant decay. This then serves to give light to millions of followers. For those who live consciously and give their lives for others, a higher state of life beyond our present reality exists, one of joy and bliss, enlightenment and elevation. Our deep heritage of the world's spiritual stories offer a fascinating glimpse.

copyright 2010, Patricia A. Rodemann

new paradigms of mission

http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-14414-Columbus-Interfaith-Spirituality-Examiner~y2010m5d13-Spirituality-Mission-and-Evangelism

continued . . .

Professor of Mission Rev. Dr. Tim Huffman at Trinity Lutheran seminary shared statistics that showed the ‘average’ Christian globally speaking is a young African woman with children. The Christian religion is showing explosive church growth on the continent of Africa. No wonder with this approach. Of course, there are some pitfalls and a huge need for education. For the Jesuits the rapid conversion rate stemmed from their approach of living among the peoples, learning the language, customs, and traditions to tailor their approach to each context based on understanding. Today mission is oriented towards teaching, healing and sharing skills and resources to facilitate ownership and independence in the indigenous context. (Photo: Mission Concepción in San Antonio, Texas)

I had to wonder what first comes to mind when you say, ‘Christianity’ in America. Not so simple; it’s certainly not a uniform picture. For some the answer might be ‘grace’, for others ‘success’, still others, ‘blessing’ or ‘charity’. The Mennonites are certainly involved in ‘peace’ education worldwide today. For that matter, what comes to mind when you say, 'evangelist' or 'missionary'? See columns on what other religions believe: http://www.examiner.com/x-14414-Columbus-Interfaith-Spirituality-Examiner~topic496461-Culture-and-Spirituality?selstate=topcat#breadcrumb

Beyond Christianity, several religions engage in mission work- the Buddhists through-out SE Asia with compassionate caring, Muslims working with displaced peoples and establishing free medical clinics in the Near East, Sikhs working alongside other faiths in Chicago to feed the homeless. Hindus came to this shore to teach Vedanta and establish meditation centers a few decades ago. Each group layers upon the native American faith traditions, and then the Pilgrims, followed by waves of immigrants and successive awakenings.

Mission and evangelism share in outreach to others. There are different motives. There are corporate mission statements and brand evangelists in marketing. From a time when ‘it was unthinkable people should be allowed to believe as they choose’ to discovering ‘those other religions . . . There can be little doubt that the contemporary world situation and the increasing exchange of ideas between peoples and religions have created an unprecedented situation.’ Author David R. Bosch, Transforming Mission, Paradigm Shifts in Theology of Mission believes ‘the dialogue we engage in should be a meeting of hearts rather than minds. We are after all dealing with a mystery.’( p 483)

He noted that Macquarrie identified 6 formative factors in theology: experience, revelation, Scripture, tradition, culture and reason. R.Pape adds a seventh formative factor- another religion. It’s not a one way street and militancy is ‘out’; dialogue ‘in’. My husband remembers buying a Bhagavad Gita to get rid of an aggressive woman in the airport. I remember when the Unification church attempted to gain converts in the '70's. Another colleague talks of street corner preachers shouting about 'the fire gonna git you!' on the OSU campus, and we've all had Jehovah's Witnesses come to the door with tracts.
Shared responsibility for education, healthcare, safety, food and water are all part of the new mission paradigm and building AIDs clinics, orphanages and schools. It is in that caring one sees the transcendent.

national day of prayer

continued . . . from

http://www.blogger.com/Columbus-Interfaith-Spirituality-Examiner~y2010m5d6-Spirituality-and-the-National-Day-of-Prayer

The National Day of Prayer website states, ‘The National Day of Prayer has great significance for us as a nation. It enables us to recall and to teach the way in which our founding fathers sought the wisdom of God when faced with critical decisions. It stands as a call to us to humbly come before God, seeking His guidance for our leaders and His grace upon us as a people. The unanimous passage of the bill establishing the National Day of Prayer as an annual event, signifies that prayer is as important to our nation today as it was in the beginning.’ [photo from the 1904 American families-33 identified by Nordisk Familjebok, Leipzig, courtesy Wikimedia Commons]

The site features statistics on Americans and Prayer from the Barna Research Group.
88% of Americans Pray
82% believe in the healing power of prayer
78% say prayer is an important part of daily life
63% pray often
25% pray occasionally
65% believe they have had specific prayers answered
79% say praying speeds recovery
(C) 2009 Barna Research Group

There are other statistics on prayer by the Alban Institute, The Pew Research Group and countless others (we often cite) from many points of view. The issue is, prayer matters for many in many individual ways and collectively. For We Believe Ohio, the 2007 National Day of Prayer statement regarding the State of Ohio Budget (cuts) read:

'We are called as people of faith and loyal Americans to be united in dialogue and action to say:
YES to justice for all; NO to prosperity for only a few; YES to diverse religious expression; NO to self-righteous certainty; YES to the common good; NO to discrimination against any of God’s people; YES to the voice of religious traditions informing public policy; NO to crossing the lines that separate the institutions of Religion and Government.'

The interfaith approach is not a part of the National Day of Prayer, recognizing our diversity. This perhaps underlies some of the controversy, the way one group has co-opted who/what our nation's religious point of view is butting heads with that touchy separation of church and state. There's a new book by Stephen Prothero called, God is Not One, the Eight Rival Religions that Rule the World and Why Their Differences Matter. In this, Prothero says we cannot assume there is one common vision of God over us all and he tackles what it takes to co-exist recognizing our differences. Its a powerful statement which flies in the face of cultural relativism as well as all the claims for exclusivity.

The Amazon book review says this, 'For good and for evil, religion is the single greatest influence in the world. We accept as self-evident that competing economic systems (capitalist or communist) or clashing political parties (Republican or Democratic) propose very different solutions to our planet's problems. So why do we pretend that the world's religious traditions are different paths to the same God? We blur the sharp distinctions between religions at our own peril, argues religion scholar Stephen Prothero, and it is time to replace naÏve hopes of interreligious unity with deeper knowledge of religious differences.

In Religious Literacy, Prothero demonstrated how little Americans know about their own religious traditions and why the world's religions should be taught in public schools. Now, in God Is Not One, Prothero provides readers with this much-needed content about each of the eight great religions. To claim that all religions are the same is to misunderstand that each attempts to solve a different human problem.'

I'll cover this book in a future post. Until then, good night and . . . say your prayers (if you do).

can't put g-d in a box

http://www.examiner.com/x-14414-Columbus-Interfaith%20Spirituality-Examiner~y2010m5d5-Spirituality-sky-and-Sufism-101

Spirituality, sky and Sufism 101 continued . . .

Pir-o-Murshid Hdayat Inayat-Khan says, ‘For a Sufi, the diversity of religious names and forms are like veils covering the phenomena of the Spirit of Guidance manifested at all levels of evolution. This explains why one of the great ideals of the Sufi is the awakening of a broader outlook, with deeper insight into the tragic misunderstandings which divide earnest followers of various cultural and philosophical traditions.’ http://www.sufimovement.org/teach_m_hidayat.htm Very much in sympathy with the mystical element in all religions and beyond, he continues . . .

‘All religions are in their origin of Divine inspiration, but, like the image of water poured into different coloured glasses, as soon as Divine inspiration becomes formulated in human thought it acquires the image of one's thinking. We then call one religion Hinduism, another Buddhism, and still another Zoroastrianism, while others are called Judaism, Christianity, Islam, as well as many other religious denominations, known or unknown to the world at large.’

In other words, you can't put G-d into a box. Buddhist and Eastern thought are not 'theistic' by nature-envisioning G-d as a 'Being', but more as an 'IS'; experience based. ‘A Sufi, by definition, is a religious soul whose nature is to be freed from imposed theories, and who is perfectly conscious that life is not necessarily just what one might think it to be. For a Sufi, life is not only lived at the level of physical experience, nor only at the levels of thought and feeling, but also, and most importantly, at a still higher level of consciousness where the self is no more a barrier separating reality from illusion.’

In her latest book, An Altar in the World, A Geography of Faith, Barbara Brown Taylor echoes similar sentiments. She says, 'I do not have to choose between the Sermon on the Mount and the magnolia trees (p13). . . . The House of God stretches from one corner of the universe to the other. I am not in charge of this House, and never will be. I have no say about who is in and who is out. I do not get to make the rules. . . . Human beings may separate things into as many piles as we wish-separating spirit from flesh, sacred from secular, church from world. But we should not be surprised when God does not recognize the distinctions we make between the two. Earth is so thick with divine possibility that it is a wonder we can walk anywhere without cracking our shins on altars.’ P 15.

For Brown-Taylor most of us have forgotten that the whole world is the ‘House of God’. In this sense, celebrating the creation of 'sky' isn't so strange (nor any other wonderful integral component of our lives-water, plants, creatures, etc.). The problem became that, ‘Somewhere along the line we bought –or were sold- the idea that God is chiefly interested in religion.’ (p6) In leading a workshop on ‘Spirituality of Place’, only one person said they sensed/felt the presence of ‘G-d’ in a religious setting; for everyone else it was a peak moment outdoors. What natural elements/symbols/settings fill our sacred stories? Lilies? Rocks? Flame? Streams? Mountains? Where do you most feel a sense of Transcendent Presence? As I struggle to find the words to capture the fleeting essence of a lilac-scented afternoon in May, I can assure you . . . It's not restricted to a vacant building for one hour a week.

Baha'i beliefs

http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-14414-Columbus-Interfaith-Spirituality-Examiner~y2010m5d4-Spirituality-and-what-is-the-Bahai-Ridvan-festival-about-101

continued . . .

The Bahai believe God is revealed through many prophets who were inspired by God: Abraham, Moses, Zoroaster, Buddha, Krishna, Jesus, Muhammad, the Bab and then Baha’u’llah. (Guru Nanak Dev 1469 was not mentioned) The Baha'i religion speaks of equality among peoples and upholds the value of education. Its teachings emphasize that because God is ingredient to all faiths and peoples, all endeavors of arts, sciences and religions there should be no conflict. There aren’t clergy in the Bahai tradition, but elected administrative people who govern the faith.

The Baha'i scriptures are available online at http://reference.bahai.org/en/

It's quite an extensive list http://reference.bahai.org/en/t/ In Gleanings of the Writings of Baha'u'llah XIX he says, 'To every discerning and illuminated heart it is evident that God, the unknowable Essence, the Divine Being, is immensely exalted beyond every human attribute, such as corporeal existence, ascent and descent, egress and regress. Far be it from His glory that human tongue should adequately recount 47 His praise, or that human heart comprehend His fathomless mystery. He is, and hath ever been, veiled in the ancient eternity of His Essence, and will remain in His Reality everlastingly hidden from the sight of men. 'No vision taketh in Him, but He taketh in all vision; He is the Subtile, the All-Perceiving.'… Source:
US Bahá’í Publishing Trust, 1990.

Like the Sikh faith, the Baha'i faith has a universalist approach and is based on the divine inspiration of its founder. We can't deny that exclusivist faith approaches would have a problem with this. There are several approaches one might take to other faiths: exclusionary (my way or the highway); inclusive (my faith respects your faith; there's room for us both- even though I prefer this route and you might also discover why) and universalist (all routes are on equal footing as ways to the divine) and secular/humanist (they're all human constructs; there may or not be a 'divine presence'-we don't know how/why/who/form).

What's truly important to glean from these transcendent universal approaches is to learn how to live together better in our times, to quit playing 'king of the hill' and begin to focus on a better quality of life for ourselves/one another and all creation. This could also be behind the appeal of Buddhism in the West; it improves oneself and the life of others through the growth of compassionate thought and meditation. Jesus' ministry was about what the reign of God could be like in the here and now; he inagurated it in his time. The torch has passed for us all to make it possible here and now. To create peace and abundance like life in a garden, the garden of paradise, a vibrant beautiful gem of a blue green planet swirling through space . . . beautiful and ever more fragile, teeming with life . . . in 2010.

copyright 2010, Patricia A. Rodemann