friends: i have a question....

by thebeliever 6 Replies latest jw friends

• 

  thebeliever

  Since leaving the jw's, with what have you replaced your belief system? Meaning, since we know there is no armageddon, heaven, hell, etc... how do you now understand the world and your place in it?

  I personally believe in evolution, but that doesn't help with the matter of spirituality. Sometimes, I'm very comfortable knowing that I don't know and that is part of our experience as humans, the letting go of the need to know, because inside of us, we all have the "intelligence of god"... meaning, we came from something.... and that means to me, we are god-body...

  I recently talked to some kind, intelligent (or educated, I should say) people who don't believe in god, or who believe in god, but consider the personification of god to be part of christianity, it made me re-examine my thoughts on god, as I like to reexamine my thoughts on many things when am presented with new information. I had never really thought of it like that....

  I lean toward jung's theory of archetypes (I like many of his theories)... that there are recurrent themes in our lives (mom, dad, warrior etc.) and by giving these archetypes power, and by living them, we in essence make them a god... i don't know, if i'm explaining that right. One should read it for themselves. Perhaps this is all an illusion... that even our suffering is an illusion as zen teaches.... (I believe this, in part too.) Which is why it's important to separate from our ego... like through meditation (which i don't always enjoy, but value).. our ego makes us feel separate from everything, like there is something in this life we must hold on to, when we can see all around us that everything is moving as even science has proven (the atom)... our personality is not our soul, it is not who we are.... it's merely who we pretend to be...

  I aspire to be in a position where I can inspire people to not get caught up "the suffering" because by changeing a few thoughts, one can see their "suffering" in a new light and step back from it... Is suffering necessary to know joy? Perhaps... we cannot deny the need to balance the polarities of our existance, the yin and yang, male and female, but just hanging out in the "pain" is almost to no advantage... most people are so used to suffering, though... and some people merely strive for the distractions of this world and hold on to that, the way fanatics hold on to their relgion for a sense of security.

  but I think this is changeing slowly... for example, more people than ever are no longer interested in organized religion and are seeing it for what it is... they may just be leading a sort of existential life, but are still good people... I think this evolution of sorts is absolutely amazing... think of times when man first started to question his existance (antiquity, then the middle ages, the renniscance, and the way it's progressed to our day)... so... any thoughts?

  If this topic is inappropriate, I'd like to know....I apologize if I am offending people by bringing this up, but I'd like to know what other ex-jw's are thinking.... thx

  thebeliever
• 

  cruzanheart

  I don't see anything offensive by your question -- I think it's a good one! We have a lot of belief systems on this forum and it makes for very interesting conversations. I personally still believe in the God I was raised with. My beliefs have changed in that I am no longer sure about what happens when we die but I feel right now that's really none of my business and my assignment is to make the most of what I have now, which is life. I feel that I have seen God's hand in a few events in my life, which strengthens my faith in a Supreme Creator, and I also feel that the harmony, wisdom and humor in the earth and its creatures is evidence that it all was created. However, I don't completely reject the idea of evolution as being a part of that universe and working with it.

  I don't attend a church. I read the Bible with my children and try to apply Jesus' message of love in what we do each day. And that's about it. I'm enjoying the luxury of not having to put up with a multitude of STUPID rules on the smallest of issues, and just living each day as best I can and appreciating the beauty in it.

  It is hard, though, to get used to the idea that I will one day die. I think that may be the hardest thing to get used to after leaving the Witnesses. Like Jack Benny said, "if I can't take it with me, I'M NOT GOING!"

  Nina
• 

  integ

  Believer,

  I think you're on the right path. Try www.non-dualitysalon.com. You'll find it interesting.

  Integ.
• 

  integ

  WOOPS....Not the right link..sorry. You can type in non duality on a search engine and find it though
• 

  acsot

  hey believer - I could have written your post my - except that you did a much better job of it!). My JW experience has left me with a bitter taste in my mouth towards Christianity, and a rather rapid examination of biblical historicity led me totally away from the Bible and even the gospels. We don't know what was really written, by whom or even when, and so to base our every day life and death decisions on what we call the Bible seems to me at this point in my personal evolution to be insanity. Of course, not so long ago I was convinced that I would die for those very beliefs I now find irrelevant at best and repulsive at worst.

  What I enjoy about Buddhism is its pragmatic approach to life: god or no god, doesn't matter. This life now is what we have to work with, and "enlightenment" or peace is an attractive philosophy towards life, rather than succumbing to suffering and thinking there's no way out. We don't need a "savior" to fix our problems or redeem us from suffering, we can do much of the work ourselves, within ourselves, for ourselves and then extend this wisdom and compassion to others. Difficult, yes, but possible.

  I too find meditation hard and don't always make it a practice, but is something I strive for. It took me about three months to go from dub to agnostic, pretty rapid from what I've been able to glean by reading some of the posts on this forum where people spend a year or two researching everything from chronology to the deity of Christ. Perhaps I was always a Buddhist a heart and it just took me a long, long time to get there !

  I too like Jung and will put more of his writings on my "to read" list (which I should be able to finish around the year 2246).

  Good post.
• 

  John Barleycorn

  i apologize in advance for not being a jw at any point in my life, only merely having associated problems.

  -what you outlined in your post indicates to me that you have a much more correct view of spirituality... definitely keep exploring those realms of thought, word and action, the reality of deity is something that is inherent in human beings, and true spiritual practices are designed to systematically refine ordinary human beings into the deity and/or awaken spiritual qualities of the deity such as compassion...

  ...keep exploring, treasures are hidden within us and waiting for those willing to dig deep! -Know Thyself

  ;]
• 

  Satanus

  Hi believer

  I am mostly w you on your post. Jung also had a theory about a group or community consciousness, actually a communal subconscious. This explains a lot of the socalled answers to prayers to god. These prayers are almost always answered through actions of people. "God" never does it directly. Actually, i doubt that 'god' ever answers. The communal subconscious does practically all of it.

  Most people aren't aware of their parts in this. Maybe fully illuminated ones can see the movements. Meditation is the road toward that.

  SS