By Heart, With Faith

[insilentmeditation]

I decided to go ahead and sign up with Linked In.  Not sure why, but for some reason it seemed expedient at the time.  I became a member of a Linked In group for "Spiritual Writers."  The first post I read was one man's question about how, as a spiritual writer, one reaches atheists.   This one question led to a thread that was unbelievably argumentative between some rather more conservative Christian writers, some Buddhists and Universalists, and a couple of Christians who are more pluralistically minded.  It sure veered away from the original question!  Nevertheless, after reading through all the arguments, tedious as some became, I wanted to post my answer to the original question.  Once I did, I realized that what I had to say was at the core of my personal understanding of the Gospels and what it means to be a follower of Jesus.  It really has nothing to do with what religious tradition we choose to grow in.  It explains why I could consider myself a believer and follower of Jesus even when I walked with Wiccans and Pagans.  It explains my discomfort when faced with the multitudinous arguments about which "religion" is the best one or the right one or the only True one.  I really believe that religion is a construct of humanity. It can be a useful tool for spiritual growth and service to humankind.  A particular religion is not, however, the only way to realize our connection to the Creator and to one another.  Within Christianity, no particular denomination is the only way to follow Christ.  While some denominations stress the sacrifice of Jesus and blood atonement, others stress the resurrection of the Christ and the hope of eternal life in God, and yet others stress the teachings of Jesus in light of social justice.  Are any of them fully wrong?  Are any of them fullly right?  Are any of them any more right than other teachings that are parallel to those of Jesus?  These are rhetorical questions, by the way...my own thoughts as I struggle with the foundational structure of my own chosen denomination, the Gospels, Paul's writings and all the things I have learned of other belief systems in other cultures and the shifting understanding of Spirituality and "God" as something that transcends all understanding and all structure.  Anyway...this was meant to be a simple introduction to my sharing of the comment I made on the post.  So, here it is:

I have come to believe that while the so-called "Great Commission," recorded as being said by Jesus (but not called by that title in the texts) to preach his Gospel (i.e., the good news that it is possible to find the "kingdom of God" in this life and there is hope for all in the transcendence of death etc., etc.) and to make disciples in all the world DOES NOT mean to bash people over the head by proselytizing our particular understanding of what has come to be known as "Christianity." I believe that He meant for the Apostles and the disciples to teach others to live as Jesus lived and to follow the ONE commandment that He gave: to love the Lord with all our heart, all our soul, and all our strength and to love our neighbor as ourselves. If we just followed that commandment, all other commandments would be followed by default. Not only would we be an example of Christlike living, but we would change the world. Jesus also said that whomever is not against Him is for Him (Mark 9:40). Therefore, it would behoove those who find their spirit enlivened by one of the many forms of Christianity to simply live as Jesus taught, and stop making enemies for Him. The more "atheists" and others are beat over the head with judgment by those who call themselves "Christian," the more they will choose another path, be it a "spiritual" path or not. Whichever it is, they will grow in antipathy against Jesus, all because His so-called followers cannot live the life He taught them to live.

Therefore, just write with your heart and live by your faith. All else will fall into place.

That's just my view of it, of course.