One of the most frustrating things I face when talking to Christians about spirituality and belief systems is their image of me as a confused person who simply has not found true God yet. In the minds of many of the fellow human beings being a non-Christian means only one thing - that God Jehovah hasn't spoken to me yet, or, if He has, I wasn't able to hear Him due to my own spiritual flaws.
The assumption here is that eventually I will find God, accept Him as the ultimate truth, and change my spiritual path to Christianity. To many Christians, it is only a matter of time. It can happen tomorrow, fifty years from now, or after the death of my physical body. Of course, the sooner the better since it will give me the chance to repent and gain access to Heaven instead of ending up in Hell.
The assumption here is that eventually I will find God, accept Him as the ultimate truth, and change my spiritual path to Christianity. To many Christians, it is only a matter of time. It can happen tomorrow, fifty years from now, or after the death of my physical body. Of course, the sooner the better since it will give me the chance to repent and gain access to Heaven instead of ending up in Hell.
I think I get it. I understand where this comes from. When you are a believer, and especially when your faith is confirmed by the first-hand spiritual experiences (signs, angels in dreams, feeling God’s presence, etc.), it is only natural to assume that your religion is the right one. Since one of the Christian doctrines says there is only one God, it is also natural to assume that there are no other true deities (but there might be demons posing as Gods!). People who believe in other deities or worship them will certainly seem mistaken and confused.
In addition, there is another powerful factor – materials and numbers. Christianity is one of the most popular and widespread religions today. Yes, there is Judaism, Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism… but if you live in the U.S., Europe, Australia, Latin America, or Russia, for instance, Christianity is the thing. So many people just can’t be wrong, right? And if they are right, the others must be confused, judging from that same doctrine about one true God.
Plus, we have the Bible. One of the oldest books. The most popular book in the world. When it comes to the Bible and its authenticity, all arguments fall apart. Who cares how many times it’s been rewritten? Who cares if things have been lost in translation or removed by the Church on purpose? Does it really matter how many people wrote it? Does it matter that there are other wise spiritual books? Does the question “How can you tell it was God himself who wrote it?” even count?
No. The authority of the Bible remains amazingly strong in the minds of Christian believers, no matter how many times and in how many ways writers, researchers, scientists, and followers of other religions dissected it, finding conflicting information, misinformation, inconsistencies. When I talk to people about how they can know something for sure, many of them tell me "It is true because it’s in the Bible", and that's that. Circular arguments are hard to argue with.
All right. I don't want to stop believing in Jehovah. I believe in the freedom of religion. Moreover, I believe in the vast, neverending, mysterious, growing universe in which there is a place for everything, and everything - from God Jehovah to pink unicorns can exist (we cannot prove their nonexistence after all). If you tell me that you are a Christian, I will not dare say you are confused. I seriously believe that what you believe in is true, but I also know that your truth does not have to argue with mine. However, I believe in reciprocation, and there is none. People don’t reciprocate when it comes to admitting that the other person is right about what they believe in.
If you are a Christian, I respect that. I am happy if your faith gives you strength and happiness, and if you feel that you are on the right path. If you feel that way, it means you ARE. You've found the path of your heart, and you must be true to it.
So must I.
I know in my heart that I am on the right path.
Some Christians have told me they know they are on the right path because their spiritual experiences confirm it and because it feels right. Their faith cannot be proven by scientific facts, but it does exist and feel right and real.
I know in my heart that I am on the right path.
Some Christians have told me they know they are on the right path because their spiritual experiences confirm it and because it feels right. Their faith cannot be proven by scientific facts, but it does exist and feel right and real.
What if I told you the same thing?
I know I am on the right path because my spiritual experiences confirm it and because it feels right. What makes my experience less authentic than that of a Christ follower? Why is one perceived as true, and the other - as invalid?
Is it because there is the Bible to back up everything Christian, and not one particular book to describe and support my path?
This takes me back to the validity of today’s Bible interpretations, but no one wants to go there. Fine. Even if the Bible was complete, translated perfectly, and understood the way it was meant to be understood… To me it is just one of the several old wisdom and spirituality books that exist today in our particular world in this particular part of one of the million galaxies.
In addition, there are things which go beyond books and exist outside of them. We all - Christian, Buddhist, Wiccan, etc. - will never be able to put those things into words because no words or images can describe them.
This takes me back to the validity of today’s Bible interpretations, but no one wants to go there. Fine. Even if the Bible was complete, translated perfectly, and understood the way it was meant to be understood… To me it is just one of the several old wisdom and spirituality books that exist today in our particular world in this particular part of one of the million galaxies.
In addition, there are things which go beyond books and exist outside of them. We all - Christian, Buddhist, Wiccan, etc. - will never be able to put those things into words because no words or images can describe them.
This is my main question:
What makes my spiritual experience less valid than the experience of a Christian person?
What makes you think that your experience is authentic, and mine – false? If we both have experienced things on the spiritual level, unexplained by science, what makes the other person think that my beliefs result from confusion or malignant influences?
The Bible is a great book. I cannot deny its depth, symbolism, great advises on how to perceive the world and live harmoniously, historical value, wisdom, and complexity. But when it comes to the questions asked above, the Bible cannot be the argument. The answer “Because the Bible says so” is not the kind of argument I can accept.
Of course, it is my problem. If the other person feels that such an answer is satisfactory, that’s the end of the conversation on this particular topic. There is nowhere else to go with this. “Because the Bible says so” is a period at the end of a sentence. It doesn't make any sense for me to engage in a conversation about other wisdom books, or Bible's mistranslations, or the many possible perceptions of reality, or the way the Church hid some of the writings… or to ask the most horrendous (to the Christian mind) question of all:
What if whoever wrote the Bible (people, God, or another entity) may have done so to carefully control and manipulate human beings through this elaborate system we call “organized religion”?
This is just a possibility. This possibility can be taken into consideration when we talk about any organized religion, belief system, sect, organization, secret society, or any other gathering of people who are led by some leader and are required to live their lives in accordance with a set of particular laws.
My spiritual path leads me away from gatherings. But that's a topic for another post.
