Posted inReligions

On being spiritually lost

Today I learned that I’m heading for the Sixth Level of Hell, where heretics are sent. Well, it could be worse. Fraudulent, malicious, pandering, and treacherous souls end up in levels seven, eight, and nine. I’ll be living the good afterlife by comparison. To find out how doomed you are yourself, head to Dante’s Inferno Test. After answering a few questions (be honest or you’ll make it worse on yourself!) you’ll know what’s in store for you, hell-wise. Funny thing is, I don’t feel spiritually lost. I realize that my Sixth Level of Hell score is based on Christian rules…
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Posted inReligions Science

Yoism, an open source religion

Hey, it works for Linux, the alternative to Windows. So why not apply open source principles to the creation of a new-time religion? Out with dogmatism and hierarchy; in with freedom and independence. Such is the allure of Yoism, which bills itself as the world’s first open source religion. Thanks to a link sent to me by Church of the Churchless visitor Steve, I’ve been able to browse around the intriguing cyberhalls of Yoism and get a feel for the Almighty Yo. Yo, I learned, is “the Infinite Unknowable Essence from which all that we experience manifests.” All right, I…
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Posted inChristianity/Jesus Religions

Bible and The Da Vinci Code are both fiction

I’m used to hearing absurdities when I listen to conservative talk radio, but this really jarred me: today I heard “The Da Vinci Code” being compared to holocaust deniers. Geez, righties, you should at least make a halfway attempt at rational discourse. This evening Victoria Taft interviewed Michael Chapman of the Media Research Center, which bills itself as “the leader in documenting, exposing and neutralizing liberal media bias.” He was frothing about all the Christian bashing that’s gone on with coverage of The Da Vinci Code book and movie. Funny. I haven’t noticed it. I’ve read quite a few articles…
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Posted inReligions Spiritual practice/meditation

Wave relaxing into ocean. Ahhhh….

I’ve spent a lot of time looking at Maui waves the past nine days. Hopefully I’m starting to get their spiritual message. “Dude, we’re the same as the ocean. Just like you are the same as God, Buddha nature, Tao, whatever you want to call it. Relax, brutha. Hang loose. Trust us, we know: when you’re not the wave, you’re the ocean.” The thing is, waves are a lot more interesting than the flat ocean. When I sit on the beach and gaze out to sea, mostly I focus on the waves. (Which, sadly, have been calm the whole time…
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Posted inReligions Wu Project

Tuning in to religion-less religion

A few days ago I used the term “religion-less religion” in a "I'm working on my Wu" post. Over at the Yoga Loft, they’re asking, “See It Three Times, Is It More Than Coincidence?” I don’t know. Could be a cosmic synchronicity. Could be a random happening. Could be something else. Regardless, I enjoyed what the Yoga Lofter had to say about religion-less religion. The first time this term came up was in a conversation with his or her mother. We agreed that all the world's problems seem to stem from people trying to stick the concept of God into…
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Posted inHumor Religions

Kissing Hank’s ass, the essence of religion

I never realized how much religion was like kissing Hank’s ass until, not surprisingly, I read “Kissing Hank’s Ass.” What a revelation! Every Church of the Churchless visitor should read it also. If you don’t, Hank will kick your ass. I guarantee it. Hank told me so. Well, not Hank exactly. But the thought, If you don’t, Hank will kick your ass, just came into my mind, and I sincerely believe that it came directly from Hank. You’ll just have to trust me on that. Oh, I almost forgot to mention the good news. If you do kiss Hank’s ass,…
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Posted inReligions Universism

Death of a religion: Universism’s strange demise

It isn’t often that we get to observe the birth and death of a religion. Especially a non-religious religion. Universism is, or was, such a beast. Its brief rise and sudden fall offers some instructive lessons concerning the dangers of institutionalized belief. I’ve been writing about Universism since I discovered it last July. At first I considered it a kindred unfaith that was completely compatible with my churchless leanings. I then plunged deeper into Universism and organized a local Salem Universist discussion group. But then the central Universist Movement started to turn weird. My posts became more critical, starting with…
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Posted inPersonal/Stories Religions

Dance to your own music

I’m taking tango lessons. Hard to believe. But I’ve got proof. Check out my “We tango and also get tangled” post. A month has passed and we don’t get quite as tangled now. I’m enjoying tango much more than I thought I would. It’s tempting to dive into an analysis of what I like about tango. However, the memory of some pithy advice I was given at the last class is still vivid: “Shut up and dance!” That declarative statement was a gift, not an insult. Borrowing a favorite word from Steven Colbert, I enjoyed the marvelous truthiness of it.…
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Posted inRadha Soami Satsang Beas Religions

Go ahead and believe

I’m a skeptic. That’s my nature. But if you’re a believer, more power to you. Skepticism feels right to me. Belief feels right to most people, since belief in a “God” of some sort is a decided majority opinion, particularly in the hyper-religious United States. I understand the allure of belief in a higher power. Faced with the uncertainties of life—death, disease, distress (to name a few)—it’s tremendously reassuring to consider that you’re being cared for and loved by God or some other manifestation of divinity. Such as a guru. In response to my “Who is the guru?” post, Nick…
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Posted inRadha Soami Satsang Beas Religions

Religion should make us more humane, not less

It strikes me as strange that ardent religious devotees often act in ways that are less humane, caring, and loving than a regular person you’d meet on the street. The Mohammed cartoon riots are a good example of this, since normally people don’t kill or pillage if someone offends them. So if an action wouldn’t be acceptable in everyday life, it certainly shouldn’t be acceptable in the name of religion. Spirituality should make us better human beings, not worse. Unfortunately, often the reverse is true. I heartily agree with these comments by Valerie about a religion I’m well acquainted with,…
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Posted inChristianity/Jesus Religions

Jesus says, “Beware of religion”

Here’s another great churchless teaching story from Anthony de Mello, my kind of Jesuit priest. The kind who was censured by the Catholic Church after his death for speaking the truth too freely. This is from his book, “Taking Flight.” The priest announced that Jesus Christ himself was coming to church the following Sunday. People turned up in large numbers to see him. Everybody expected him to preach, but he only smiled when introduced and said, “Hello.” Everyone offered him hospitality for the night, especially the priest, but he refused politely. He said he would spend the night in church.…
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Posted inChristianity/Jesus Religions

The greatest heretic of all

If you’ve ever been called a heretic, take heart. You’re in good company. Really good company. ------------------------------ “Prisoner at the bar, said the Grand Inquisitor, “you are charged with encouraging people to break the laws, traditions, and customs of our holy religion. How do you plead?” “Guilty, Your Honor.” “And with frequenting the company of heretics, prostitutes, public sinners, the extortionist tax collectors, the colonial conquerors of our nation—in short, the excommunicated. How do you plead?” “Guilty, Your Honor.” “Also with publicly criticizing and denouncing those who have been placed in authority within the Church of God. How do you…
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Posted inReligions

Throwing stones at the devil–idiotic!

I think it’s obvious from today’s news that God is sending humanity a clear and powerful message: religions are idiotic. Even more, they can kill you. At least 345 Muslim Hajj pilgrims have been killed while throwing stones at the devil. They were caught up in one of the stampedes that happen with disturbing regularity: 1,426 pilgrims were trampled to death in 1990. More recently, 35 were killed in 2001, 36 in 2003, and 251 in 2004. A rational person would say, “This is absurd. The devil-stoning ritual has to stop. When people are being killed in a devilish fashion…
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Posted inGod Religions

Mine disaster shows absurdity of prayer

“Just a few minutes before they were praising God, and now they were cursing.” That’s how a relative of one of the men trapped in the West Virginia mine described the abrupt mood change when the crowd gathered in a church learned that all but one of the miners actually were dead—not alive, as they had been mistakenly told several hours earlier. It shows the absurdity of prayer. The belief that God listens to pleas such as “Save the trapped miners, Lord” and decides whether or not to intervene in human affairs almost certainly is superstition. If prayer has any…
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Posted inReligions

Barbara Walters special may be closest I’m getting to heaven

I put in several hours last night watching a recording of Barbara Walters Tuesday special: “Heaven: Where is it? How do we get there?” Unfortunately, none of her guests said that watching a spiritually-oriented TV show garnered good heaven-karma. Otherwise, opinions were all over the map concerning Walters’ central questions. The head of an atheist society expressed her firm opinion that we weren’t alive before we were born and we won’t be alive after we’re dead. Several Christian clergy were just as sure that those who believe in Jesus and have been “born again” (whatever that means) are absolutely, positively…
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Posted inRadha Soami Satsang Beas Religions Science

Doubt differentiates science and religion

Here’s a simple way of determining whether you’re scientifically or religiously inclined: how do you feel about doubt? If you’re opposed to doubt, or even, well, doubtful about doubt, then you’re a religious sort. If you’re open to doubt, then you’re a scientific type. I got to thinking about the pros and cons of doubt after thumbing through the August 2005 issue of “Spiritual Link.” This magazine is published by Radha Soami Satsang Beas (RSSB), an organization based in India that also is referred to as the Science of the Soul or Sant Mat. I came across an article titled…
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Posted inChristianity/Jesus Religions

The Chronicles of Narnia: a myth about a myth

Christians are getting excited about the release this week of “The Chronicles of Narnia,” a movie based on C.S. Lewis’ “The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe” fantastical allegory. Newsweek reports that “preachers are reportedly urged to give ‘Narnia’-themed sermons and invite non-Christians to see the movie with the congregation.” Well, when my daughter, Celeste, was young I read “The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe” to her. I don’t remember thinking, “Ah, how Christ-like is Aslan the lion.” Of course, maybe if I had been a Christian the allegory would, let’s say, have leapt out at me. A few…
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Posted inHumor Religions

Prize for proof of superior religion

Do you believe that your religion is The One, the most fabulous faith in the whole wide world? Do you have a convincing reason why your belief should be believed? If so, you’re on the inside track to winning 25,000 yen, courtesy of The Huge Entity’s “Can You Prove Religious Superiority?” competition. Now, before you get all excited about the new car you’re going to be able to buy, I should point out that according to the XE.com currency converter your prize will be a not-so-huge $207.51. But, hey, that would buy a bunch of Bibles, Torahs, Korans, Dhammapadas, Adi…
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Posted inReligions Science

The Vatican gets it right (for once)

My thanks to Steve, a Church of the Churchless reader, for letting me know that the Vatican says the faithful should listen to science. Since it is likely that a majority of U.S. Supreme Court justices soon will be Catholics, maybe this will help spur the court to make a correct decision if an Evolution v. Intelligent Design case comes up. It was encouraging to hear that at least some Vatican functionaries have a decent understanding of what differentiates evolution and intelligent design/creationism: proof. Monsignor Gianfranco Basti, director of the Vatican project STOQ, or Science, Theology and Ontological Quest, reaffirmed…
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Posted inRadha Soami Satsang Beas Religions

Do you need to kill the Buddha?

Previously I’™ve written:

“If you meet the Buddha on the road, kill him!” Buddhists are fond of saying. And not just Buddha: also Jesus, Mohammed, Moses, Lao Tzu, Guru Nanak, every spiritual teacher. And not just these people are to be killed: also the concepts that comprise the shell of their teachings. For only then can the kernel of truth be released.

But is this really the case? Below you can read an email message from a person in the United Kingdom who argues otherwise. He, like me, is an initiate of Radha Soami Satsang Beas, also known as “Sant Mat.” The “satsangs” mentioned in his message are meetings of this group.

These are special words, unfamiliar to most people. But the questions being explored here are universal. To what extent does an evolving skeptic or agnostic need to disassociate from a religious organization to which he or she currently belongs? Can you discern grains of truth anywhere you look and find a way to separate them from ritualistic, dogmatic, fundamentalist chaff?

If you’re a questioning Christian and want to relate this message to your own experience, you could substitute “church”€ for “€œsatsang,”€ “Christianity” for “Sant Mat,”€ “Christians” for “€œsatsangis,” and so on. For the issues discussed below are common to anyone who feels an urge to move beyond the boundaries of a well-defined faith.

In Zen master Seung Sahn’s book “Dropping Ashes on the Buddha” he tells a student:

Throw away teaching, throw away everything. If you say you are not attached to methods of practice, this is being attached to method. If you cut off your attachment, then your words (“€œthe real ‘˜I’ functions without thinking or talking”) are not necessary.

And also:

You say that you have no faith in your Buddha-nature. I too have no faith in my Buddha-nature. And I have no faith in Buddha or God or anything. If you have no faith, you must completely have no faith. You must not believe in anything at all…€But when you see red, there is red; when you see white, there is only white. You must let go of both faith and non-faith. Things are only as they are.

Seung Sahn is fond of saying things like “If you understand yourself, I will hit you thirty times. And if you don’t understand yourself, I will still hit you thirty times.” When asked “Why?”€ he will say, “It is very cold today.”€

Here’s a weather report from my British correspondent:

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