Piety????

by wonderwoman77 5 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

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  wonderwoman77

  I am reading a book called "The Blessings of Imperfection: Reflection on the Mystery of Everyday Life" by Peter Fleck and he makes some remarkable statements about piety and believing there is only one answer to spiritual and religious beliefs. He says "Pietism can also be expressed in the relationship between the individual and other individuals, that is as Adams puts it with the other Saints, with the chosen few, chosen by me, those who think as I do, live as I do, who are well clad and fed as I am, who do not disturb my inner harmony with questions of justice, equality, and freedom. Theirs is a relationship of partiality against with James warns 'If you show partiality, you commit sin.'"

  I thought this was interesting. I think that there are many spiritual paths and every person should follow the one that brings them inner harmony, yet many of you disagreed with me on other posts. I did not ask you to share my beliefs, but entertain the thought that you spirituality may be right for you and bring you harmony, but does that mean it must bring everyone else that same feeling?

  Fleck goes on to say "Is there indeed an implicit conflict between inner harmony and concern for, compassion with, the other? I believe there is. But the effort to resolve the conflict may lead to the height of human spirituality. The redemptivie quality of the Gospel story lies in the fact taht it presents a solution to that conflict. Some human beings find inner harmony in compassionate involvement with other." He then goes on to speak of Mother Teresa and how she found her inner harmony that way.

  I agree, it is all about finding our inner harmony. I know many of you find this in the bible, I commend you for finding that, but please do not be pious and think everyone must find their inner harmony within the bible as well.
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  Faithful2Jah

  Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." (John 14:6)

  So, WW, if you are right about there being different paths to God, then Jesus was wrong. If, on the other hand, Jesus was right and you are wrong, you can share passages of your book with Him on Judgment Day. For your sake, I hope He will be impressed.
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  wonderwoman77

  F2J--

  But Jesus was not pious as some of you present yourselves. He would spend time with people who did not share his beliefs and he would have discussions with people without telling them, YOU ARE WRONG. I think it is great that you have found what you need in the bible. And that you have found what you need in Jesus, that is wonderful. That did not bring inner harmony to me. SO according to you I should practice something that does not feel right to me and does not have meaning to me? It is not that I did not try, I really tried to be a christian for a long time for the fact it was the "right" thing to do, but it never felt right for me. What I do now feels right, I am tapping into my inner peace.
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  D wiltshire

  WW,

  I think you have made a valid point:

  "Pietism can also be expressed in the relationship between the individual and other individuals, that is as Adams puts it with the other Saints, with the chosen few, chosen by me, those who think as I do, live as I do, who are well clad and fed as I am, who do not disturb my inner harmony with questions of justice, equality, and freedom. Theirs is a relationship of partiality against with James warns 'If you show partiality, you commit sin.'"

  While I believe Jesus is the "Way" and the "Truth", I don't think all religions not Chrisitian are bad or worthless. I feel they are an expression of mans need to find God(groping).
  As a Christian we should show respect for our fellow man and respect for where his gropings have lead him.

  I feel it does no good to use what many Christians use way too much:
  The threat of eternal damnation, if one does not except the Jesus that I preach,(stop judging and you will not be judged).I don't think we as Christians know enough about God's judgements to keep falling back to this not so subtle threat all the time.
  Such negativisium does not seem to be "The Way".

  Elitisum, creates a false sense of security that I feel is not very Christ like, and no doubt has caused many Christians to share in many atrocities thru out the last 19 centuries, that were heaped upon the Infidels.

  Being set free by means of Christ and knowing the Truth, may mean a whole lot more than we as proclaimed Christians know.

  I think the words of Jesus to; "keep on searching and seeking" apply mainly to those who are Christians, and should cause us to keep reavaluating ourselves and our beliefs and avoid many of the pitfalls that history tells us befell those who thought they had found; "the Way the Truth and the Life".

  WW I wish you success in your search for peace and inner harmony.

  If someone lived a trillion X longer than you, and had a billion X more reasoning ability would he come to the same conclusions as you?
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  ElijahTheThird

  hmmmm, well just watch out WW when your inner peace is declairing "true peace at last!" grins and winks.

  Norval
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  ghenrymt

  Dearest WW,

  Like you, I am soooo fed up with all that judgmental stuff. If that is what Jehovah is all about, then I will worship other gods. If that is what Jesus is all about, then I will forego "salvation."

  I spent too many years, decades even, crippled by the notion that I am fundamentally "bad" or "wicked," and headed for adverse judgment (hell or eternal destruction) if I don't spend essentially all my time in this life working my butt off to prove to God that I love him, by preaching the message of judgment and redemption to others.

  What the WTS and Jehovah's Witnesses ultimately did "for" me was to separate me from any god who is much like the Jehovah they describe. I can tolerate and respect, even delight in, Christians who are open-minded and non-judgmental. I stay as far away as possible from the other kind.

  I even got past caring whether I would be judged and destroyed. I chose to remove the burden of Borg-imposed suffering (constant guilt, worry, and pressure to conform and "do good" according to the WTS's definition) from myself in this life, regardless of the eternal consequences. Some will call this cracking, and breaking my integrity under pressure. I see it more as being true to myself - adhering to MY OWN integrity, rather than the Borg's idea of integrity. It took me over 30 years to figure this out, BTW. I'd say it was a thoroughly-considered decision.

  I do not feel adversely judged by God and headed for destruction. I know this doesn't mean anything. I used to feel that I had a good relationship overall with Jehovah and Jesus because of being a Witness in good standing, and I now see that feeling as having been based on nothing but the activity of my own brain cells. But like you, I am seeking peace within myself. If I can find that, then perhaps I will be more qualified to move outward from myself and explore what the Universe has to offer in spiritual terms.

  I do not believe that spirituality has anything to do with being an active JW or involved in some fundamentalist church. That may be spiritual for some people; it may suit their level of awareness and their current stage of development. I don't know if my own mindset if more enlightened, although I sincerely hope so; but I know that kind of scenario is something that I can't see myself returning to - the Scripture about 'the dog returning to its own vomit' comes to mind. If that is the only kind of true sprituality, then I will be an atheist; but my in operating notion of reality it is NOT the only kind of spirituality. I tend to think of it as pretty much anti-spirituality, if anything - but again, it works for some people, and may be a necessary part of their development.

  Love and regards,
  George

  I would rather live in a world where my life is surrounded by mystery
  than live in a world so small that my mind could comprehend it.
  - Harry Emerson Fosdick