Entertaining angels by the light of my tv screen....

[geekyerin]

I've been thinking a lot about religion and faith lately, prompted mostly by some Mormon missionaries who asked me what I believed the other day. I've been through a lot of different places in my religious journey, and I think I'm finally content with where I'm at, but it's still hard to put in to words. I do a lot of things you wouldn't expect Christians to do...I curse, I have sex, and I don't judge people based on their beliefs. The biggest difference between me and other Christians and that I really don't think God cares about the first two. I also know that my God doesn't hate anyone, and if you're gay, God made you that way. I believe that Hell is is simply an absence of God, I don't think it would need to be anything more to be tortuous. The times in my life when I couldn't feel God's presence have been the darkest and most painful I've ever felt. I don't necessarily trust religion, and I think it takes away from the focus on your relationship with God. The only rules I believe in are treat others as you want to be treated, and always better yourself. I believe in karma. My relationship with God is not one of servitude, it's one of reverence. I choose to believe that everything good that happens is a gift, and I thank Him accordingly, I also choose to believe that everything bad that happens...just happens, and I thank Him for the perseverance to make it through tough times. I believe that faith is best when it's a dynamic thing, when you keep an open mind and listen to what other people believe, you can see the truth in their faith and refine your own opinions. Thich Nhat Hahn says "We human beings can be nourished by the best values of many traditions", and also "For any dialogue between traditions to be deep, we have to be aware of both the positive and negative aspects of our own tradition...In a true dialogue, both sides are willing to change. We have to appreciate that truth can be received from outside of-not only within-our own group." So, uh, yeah, I guess that's what I believe. What about you? Tell me what you believe, as explicitly as you can...don't tell me you're a Catholic, but you don't believe in blah blah blah, if you claim something like that you don't have a clear understanding of dogma. Unfortunately, if you don't believe every rule laid down by the Catholic church, that means you're a completely different religion. Maybe you're Episcopalian, or Lutheran, or one of the 500 other sects, but you're not Catholic unless you believe it all. Let's hear it people, think of it as one of those hip memes all the kids are doing these days, except this one makes you think. I leave you with my favourite praise song....

So Great A Salvation

Woke up this morning
And I just had to thank God for my life
Just read through James' book
Start to pray and ask God for a wife
It's a time of devotion
As I sit and speak to my God unseen
Why should He listen?
Well, I love Him and He's in love with me

Why me God? Why should You choose me?

On Your team God, can you use even me?

I think a few years back
On a road that headed to nowhere
Now that You've found me
I can see that You were always there
So great a salvation
But to You my Jesus what am I worth?
It's quiet times like this
I feel I get a glimpse of heaven right here on earth

Oh, hold me in your arms of love
Sometimes I swear I feel your heartbeat
I could never ever thank you enough
But heres my life for whatever its worth