I accept the facts now:
- God is not real
- Man has evolved
- Life ends forever when we die
But I recognize that there is validity in things other than "facts." People gather strength from their belief system. They need something for their minds to calm the hopelessness. I have come to a sense of peace from recognizing that I don't need to know all the answers but I also don't need false hopes.
I am not calling them all ignorant, although many are. I am not suggesting that people cling blindly, although many do. They just have different minds that hope or believe different ways than I do.
I have a belief in a general kharma- good people seek goodness and hopeful people seek hope. Good things and hope tend to be attracted to those seeking them. Optimism seeks optimists. Pessimism seeks pessimists. I had been a pessimist for so long. It's good to see some light.
But my very beliefs above could be "religion" or "belief in a higher power" to others. They are not in my case. Still, I must accept that others see it that way. While I may be asking, "Don't you get it yet?" they may be asking that of me.
I have gathered much strength from eastern thoughts from Buddhists, Taoists, Confucionists. They allow you to view things differently and they freely allow you to accept the wisdom and push aside all the religious crap. But at the same time, they are loaded with religious crap. Some of the most successful authors of eastern thought are the Dalia Lama or people who like to go study with a "Master Yogi." They write of the famous founders of their thoughts equating those humans with Jesus (the Jesus that people worship). So even in reading/applying eastern thought, I have had to step cautiously.
Personally, I seek peace on my own path. That's the main thing. Peace is tranquility that can be found on a beach or on a bicycle path or walking in the woods or in the snow. Peace can be watching kids play Double Dutch or baseball. I still find some peace from reading and posting on JWN, but it's not as effective as it used to be. Still, peace comes from connecting with good friends. Knowing what I find peaceful helps me to understand that others might find their peace in sitting in the lotus position saying their mantra. It's not for me, but great if it works for them. Peace may also come to some who sit in a church pew and pray while looking at the statue of a man nailed to a cross. That's a bit "out there" for me, but great for them.
This part is difficult to say without argument. In my opinion: It is not peace to remain a JW. Even for those that think they are at peace, they are clinging without thinking- Oh, some try to think but allow the logic circle to derail them. They are hoping without meditating- Oh, they think they meditate but instead they are like the pharisees in their own WT example who thank God that they are not like those outside of "the truth." They meditate on some WTS mantras that have misguided them. They are just letting someone else tell them what to believe and are having fear implanted. There are others outside of the dangerous mind-control cult that do the same with their beliefs. These are the ones I pity.
