Thoughts on life and death of Isaac Bonewitz
Isaac Bonnewitz, religious leader loved by some of my friends is dying of cancer. There is an effort to use prayer to help him get better. Although there is a definite value to a community coming together for such an act of will and compassion, it should not be ignored sometimes the greatest test of life is the way a person faces death. Because of this, there does need to be some preparation for a reality that he may die.
Now granted, I should admit that I have never been a follower of Isaac. I have great respect for a lot of the work he has done, such as his efforts in creating a standard for a realistic assessment of religious cults (the ABCDEGF that separates the truly dangerous groups from the ones people just disagree with). I have attended his lectures, and found his thoughts to be unique and enlightening. And i even volunteered at one of the charity shows to raise money for his treatment. However, in all good conscience, I need to premise my comments not as a particular follower of Isaac, but as a person who has spent a good part of his life studying religion.
Praying for the health and healing of another has a real benefit to individuals and a community. There are studies that do show such prayer can improve health (though also studies that show no effect). There are more supported studies that have shown that religious participation improves overall psychological, adjustment physical health, and general well being. Though the mechanisms are not agreed on, the positive effects of the religious involvement are there on the health of the member in question. On a more qualitative level, coming together to pray for the health of an individual joins the community together in an act of compassionate intent. It focuses the intent of the community on love and health (rather than such things as hate and violence).
However, their still needs to be included provisions for the acceptance of the inevitability of death.
How a person faces death is just as important as how one faces life. Death is the great equalizer. Every man in history, great and small, poor or noble has died or will die. Death is inevitable. When you acknowledge this you can prepare for the final test of your humanity, and meet death bravely and on your terms. Being able to face death frees your from it.
Failing to prepare for the inevitability of death is where such efforts to prolong life becomes corrupted by fear and hubris. It is Hubris to believe that death can be avoided, but many communities who focus on the power of prayer fall to this hubris. Even though there may be a reality to the power of prayer and powerful intent, we have to remember that such power does not place us into the position of gods ourselves. When we forget this, we fall from faith into dangerous delusions. This delusion can cause us to neglect our own personal development, because wish fulfillment is a child's desire, and maturity comes when one learns to sacrifice personal desire for higher causes. This delusion can become dangerous to others because if such attempts to heal don't work, the hubris of the practicioner gets challenged, and often that challenge is met through a narcissistic lashing out against the sick and his friends, claiming its their fault, their lack of face, and not the reality that we must all succumb to death.
In addition, failure to prepare and face death enslaves you to death and the fear of dying. When you accept death, you can deal with the fear and terror of it. You can ensure your life is not lived with regret. When finally have to face it, you can be prepared to face it proudly and with dignity. This does not mean rejecting life, it means not wasting life hiding from fear. However, when you fail to prepare for death, the fear of death begins to run your life. Every risks become too great, fear becomes paralyzing, and you become obsessed with the loss, not the gain. When you refuse to acknowledge and face death, your fear of death drives you, and you fall to powerlessness and helplessness before death.
Now I don't know what Isaac has said about his own death. If he has been making preparations, and if he is willing to face death proudly, he needs to discuss this in order to prepare the community for his passing. If he has not, then this discussion needs to be started, lest this refusal to face death entraps the entire community.
Now granted, I should admit that I have never been a follower of Isaac. I have great respect for a lot of the work he has done, such as his efforts in creating a standard for a realistic assessment of religious cults (the ABCDEGF that separates the truly dangerous groups from the ones people just disagree with). I have attended his lectures, and found his thoughts to be unique and enlightening. And i even volunteered at one of the charity shows to raise money for his treatment. However, in all good conscience, I need to premise my comments not as a particular follower of Isaac, but as a person who has spent a good part of his life studying religion.
Praying for the health and healing of another has a real benefit to individuals and a community. There are studies that do show such prayer can improve health (though also studies that show no effect). There are more supported studies that have shown that religious participation improves overall psychological, adjustment physical health, and general well being. Though the mechanisms are not agreed on, the positive effects of the religious involvement are there on the health of the member in question. On a more qualitative level, coming together to pray for the health of an individual joins the community together in an act of compassionate intent. It focuses the intent of the community on love and health (rather than such things as hate and violence).
However, their still needs to be included provisions for the acceptance of the inevitability of death.
How a person faces death is just as important as how one faces life. Death is the great equalizer. Every man in history, great and small, poor or noble has died or will die. Death is inevitable. When you acknowledge this you can prepare for the final test of your humanity, and meet death bravely and on your terms. Being able to face death frees your from it.
Failing to prepare for the inevitability of death is where such efforts to prolong life becomes corrupted by fear and hubris. It is Hubris to believe that death can be avoided, but many communities who focus on the power of prayer fall to this hubris. Even though there may be a reality to the power of prayer and powerful intent, we have to remember that such power does not place us into the position of gods ourselves. When we forget this, we fall from faith into dangerous delusions. This delusion can cause us to neglect our own personal development, because wish fulfillment is a child's desire, and maturity comes when one learns to sacrifice personal desire for higher causes. This delusion can become dangerous to others because if such attempts to heal don't work, the hubris of the practicioner gets challenged, and often that challenge is met through a narcissistic lashing out against the sick and his friends, claiming its their fault, their lack of face, and not the reality that we must all succumb to death.
In addition, failure to prepare and face death enslaves you to death and the fear of dying. When you accept death, you can deal with the fear and terror of it. You can ensure your life is not lived with regret. When finally have to face it, you can be prepared to face it proudly and with dignity. This does not mean rejecting life, it means not wasting life hiding from fear. However, when you fail to prepare for death, the fear of death begins to run your life. Every risks become too great, fear becomes paralyzing, and you become obsessed with the loss, not the gain. When you refuse to acknowledge and face death, your fear of death drives you, and you fall to powerlessness and helplessness before death.
Now I don't know what Isaac has said about his own death. If he has been making preparations, and if he is willing to face death proudly, he needs to discuss this in order to prepare the community for his passing. If he has not, then this discussion needs to be started, lest this refusal to face death entraps the entire community.