Tuesday, December 25, 2007

Belief is Irrelevant

Spiritual agnostics tend to think that beliefs about the divine are unimportant and irrelevant to real life. Rather, the actions are what count.

This train of thought originates from the rejection of paying "lip service" to the name of a religion. Spiritual agnostics prefer to place importance on the actual actions of an individual. For example, if one is kind to others, gives, is loving, pays respect when it is due, tries to refrain from murder, theft, lies, etc., (in other words, follows the basic benevolent human instincts that almost all religions emphasize), then that person does not need to be rewarded for following a particular faith. Rather, that person will be rewarded on Earth, where he/she will reap the benefits of stable relationships, a clear conscience, and an overall satisfaction with life.

3 comments:

  1. Kambo -
    I apologize for the novel, but truly hope to get your thoughts. Truly. This blog is amazing. Please help me answer this question.

    Would you call me a spiritual agnostic? (see below)

    I've been struggling with the idea of what I really am. I was raised Catholic, but have never really agreed with "religion" for the fact that it seems man made, and for the most part contradicting.

    Though I appreciate some aspects of religion (the morality it tries to teach) I have a really hard time believing that if there is a God(s), that it would look upon one religion and punish the others. But I certainly do not deny an existence in god, god(s), and certainly believe in spirits/energy.

    How can I be a true friend of a Muslim (which I am) and people of other religions, and truly believe that they are wrong, and because they haven't accepted Christianity, that they are going to hell.

    How can I be a friend to someone of a different religion and accept their BEING (inner spirit/soul/energy) as positive influences in my life but since it goes against mine, they are going to hell?

    I find it hard to separate the two, as many people do. I find this ideology of religion flawed.

    How can I look at a homesexual person, who is a good person but chooses to love the same sex, and think they while living a morally just life they are banished to hell?

    Which by the way goes against Christianity if God is supposed to be an all forgiving God.

    My girlfriend is an agnostic athiest, and has been questioning my beliefs raised as a Catholic. I keep trying to explain to her, that though raised as a Catholic and appreciating some of the aspects of it, that I do not consider myself a "practicing" Catholic, but more of a spiritual person. I actually take things from all religions, and find them all interesting.

    She looks as religion as evil. Which to a degree it is, and has been (radicals, division of people, wars, political policies in place today, etc). I for one see both sides, but also feel like there are some admirable things about religion (discipline, teachings, etc).

    I see it as we're all trying to find and get to the same place, and different cultures have different ways of expressing them. And they express them relative to their environment and culture. WHO am I are ANYONE to assume that person is wrong, which NONE of it can be proven?

    I believe that there may be a god, gods, or spirits because of things that have happened to me. But I do not find the need, or even WANT to tell others what they should believe in, because I believe that finding yourself is truly the best way to find your way through life.

    (continued)

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  2. I try to align myself spiritually with the energies around me and be sensitive to them. I feel like my energy is better served loving, living, and trying to live a moral life, instead of focusing my time on convincing others they are wrong, or right, or even discussing it. Especially being that it cannot be proved anyway.

    I stumbled along this blog, while doing some research so I can better explain to my gf how I feel.

    I've always felt SPIRITUAL but not religious. I've always felt that if you focus on your own energy, and focus on positive experiences, while living a clean life filled with love, that is the right way to live life. I've always felt that you do not need MAN to find a spiritual connection that is bigger than us all, and possibly beyond our understanding (if there is a god, or god(s))

    I've told her that I would rather focus on loving her and the people important to me rather than focusing on all the pain, conflict, and destruction that religion(s) have caused. Controlling what I can control, while doing my best to respect the energies of everything around me and beyond.

    I've also recently taken some inspiration from vegetarian/vegans, because the older I get the more connected I feel to BEINGS. Animals being one of them, and I feel that spiritually eating another BEING with a conscience is not conducive to treating that conscience as an equal.

    Who am I to say that animals aren't equal beings? They share the same planet we do.

    I don't know. I apologize for the novel. I just have never really dated someone who has brought up these questions, enough for me to even research it for myself, because, that is not my desire in life. My desire is to find myself through the environment in front of me.

    I actually dislike the fact that people have to label themselves a certain thing, instead of just BEING, or BE and focusing on creative a positive life around them.

    I feel there is a connection to something, and I don't know what it is. But I focus on living my life the best I can on this earth, and I believe that this would be good in God's eyes (if there is a god) and if not then I lived my life with happiness, and most importantly a clear conscience that I was respectful, loving, kind, and moral to everything in my direct environment.

    Thanks so much for your input here.

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  3. WhyteCollar:

    I appreciate your compliments and your priorities. Your determination to love is absolutely correct, and I'm sure you know this. Each of our spiritual journeys involves the process of identifying which questions are truly important. You have realized that love is more important than any doctrine and that the name of your religion is far less important than your actions. For this reason, I would call you a spiritual agnostic. I know that it is difficult to reconcile your friendship with non-Christians and apparent sinners with the idea that they are going to hell. However, as long as you value their love and offer yours, then you may find peace of mind by improving the quality of their mortal lives. Perhaps you will still pity them, which they will find insulting, but you will all give the issue far less importance as you become more satisfied with the love you give them on Earth.

    If you are capable of loving animals as fellow living beings, and if you are capable of valuing their experiences, then vegetarian and vegan diets should be useful to you. Just make sure that you continue to obtain essential amino acids. Also, if you find yourself feeling guilty while eating meat, then your goal should be to vanquish that guilt in the present by making a decision about how to use the memory of that guilt in the future.

    After you die, I don't know if you will continue to have experiences. Scientific models suggest that your brain will release a flood of DMT (a documentary on Youtube calls this "The Spirit Molecule"). Christianity suggests that you will continue to have experiences forever (whatever the word forever means).

    However, if you are truly concerned about others and not yourself, then your post-mortem fate should not trouble you. The effects of your actions will persist in the world around you. They will influence the people you love. This is clearly your priority, and it should be.

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