Posts by JamesThomas

Tell him you can no longer find it in your heart to attribute an infinite universe to a tiny desert deity; for certainly the true Source of such glorious unending grandeur must be far greater still. Tell him you do not know what God is, but you are now wise enough to know what it's not -- and so not shrink and reduce it down to the murderous, anthropomorphic, tribal-god found within the pages of the Bible; your heart simply can no longer belittle the Divine in such a foolish and gross way. The rest of the world can, but you will not.

This is along the same lines that you presented above. Hopefully you can get a genuine sense of this yourself and so then presenting it in this way may place you in a more honorable and respectful light that may help motivate your dear nephew to humbly question his own beliefs.

Good luck,

j

36

Why would God...

by Crooked Lumpy Vessel in

put us on this planet...giving us life with all its beauty.

flowers, children, relationships, clouds, trees, kittens...then.

tell us we are imperfect human beings and that there are invisible evil forces and demonic influences that are much greater and stronger than we are trying to sway us in the wrong direction.

JamesThomas

Put us on this planet...giving us life with all its beauty. Flowers, children, relationships, clouds, trees, kittens...Then
Tell us we are imperfect human beings and that there are invisible evil forces and demonic influences that are much greater and stronger than we are trying to sway us in the wrong direction. That we are suppose to follow and believe in a doctrine based on writings of men assumed to have been inspired by God with no real visible proof. But have a 'ring of truth' only to those predisposed to hear it...and that if we fail to recognize these invisible forces we are doomed to death for all eternity? Why would he set up people for failure. Why not just show himself or his legion of angels so that we can dicuss our concerns and problems and obtain a real relationship through conversation and visual proofs of his realm?
What's your thoughts?

When there is no thoughts, no dramatic story weaved by the mind such as above, what is here? What is real? What are we really when void of everything believed to be?

Perhaps if attention rested in reality rather than illusion, the hunger for authenticity and truth would be quenched. Only one way to find out.

j

26

How can you be faithful yet not gullible or misled?

by The Dragon in

i hear all the time how leaders justify why people should buy into and follow their guesses...and the whole defense is if you don't you have no faith.. what protects a "faithful" person from becoming prey to a self-exalted leader and their guesses?

or are the faithful meant to be prey or something?.

JamesThomas

Dragon, perhaps the answer to your question is to discover what is so undeniably genuine as to not require faith.

This of course would demand first hand realization -- as no testimony from books or other people is supplying the actual reality that you seek. You've outgrown storybooks and make-believe.

I suggest investigating into your own raw senses of conscious being and existing, and becoming aware of the mind's story of what it all may or may not mean. Shift attention from this energetic dance, into the silent purity of what is seeing it. Find what is at the core of your most intimate sense of silent being and existing.

Don't need faith in stories and deities for this (in fact they may only blind you). Don't need the Bible or any other book. Don't need religion or science. Don't need to go anywhere or earn anything. Conscious-awareness and a simple sincere and earnest desire for genuine truth is all you need. These simple keys, you already have.

Who/what, are you, really? Shift attention from out-there, to the vast immediacy of consciousness itself. Look beyond all that you believe "self" and universe to be.

Good luck.

j

10

my sisters are petty and sad

by itsallgoodnow in

jw
friends

sure, they are jws, but it's not about that.

they have never really cared about me.

they have always kept me out of their stupid little "club".

JamesThomas

I know they need to paint a scenario in their warped little minds where I'm always gonna be the bad guy.

Congratulations, goodnow, for seeing that your sisters are lost in a story that is untrue. Chances are that their entire "life" is pretty much a story they tell themselves about their own believed "identity" and the "reality" of people and things around them. They are not their story, and as long as they can not see out of it, they are as the walking dead living in illusion.

Be careful you do not do the same. Gently, kindly and nonjudgmentally investigate into your own story-life. When we clearly identify what is false, there can be a wonderful revelation as to what is genuinely true and real.

Peace to you, dear.

j

15

EVIL AND SIN

by Bible_Student777 in

i am a student of the bible, though not a follower of charles taze russell.

it does not deny that some sins are much more than a mere mistake.

compare the words in ezekiel with those of john.

JamesThomas

all is of God

Pretty much every word you said beyond this, is the mind attempting to dramatically break and reduce wholeness into a myriad of tiny pieces.

Why so easily accept a book which foolishly diminishes, limits and conditionalizes what is already perfectly complete?

Rest in the one true bit of wisdom you seem to have, and throw your Bible and its fragmented little god away. In my opinion you will be far better off.

Welcome.

j

13

Purpose...What is it

by Crooked Lumpy Vessel in

jw
friends

after losing my father-in-law last week, who is not a jw, but was a loving, kind and generous man, i find myself pondering that age old question about the purpose of life.

leaving the jw organization after 15 years, i am completely turned off to religion itself.

i am not even sure about the bible anymore.

JamesThomas

My brain tells me

Perhaps this is the problem.

The minds interpretation of life, is not life; its concepts of reality, not real. What vibrant-actuality is genuinely present when attention is shifted away from illusory abstracts like "purpose" and "meaning"?

Doesnt it make sense that we are meant to coincide with multidimentional reality rather than exist in the flatlands of abstract interpritations and false representations?

Discover what it is to be and exist without the minds continual numbing and distracting input. Think, only when necessary; silently delve into the rich and bottomless depths of this present moment of conscious existence.

j

11

Is belief in God just "wishful thinking"?

by TheCoolerKing in

when i was a jw i didn't question the existence of god.

there was no doubt that jehovah or god was real.

occasionally though, i did have doubts.

JamesThomas

Dear King,

Belief in a loving "God" -- amongst a tragic world, does seem counter intuitive and gives witness to a "God" with less morals than our own (we who would fix and heal this mess if we had the power to).

What are beliefs other than abstract constructs of thought and emotion? Shall we now put together a new group of beliefs called: "not believing". Perhaps there is another way. Perhaps there is an outside to the box we have lived in.

When all beliefs of "self" and "other" are absent, what remains? When all mental interpretation of existence and judgments of good and bad are silent, what actually exists?

I suggest forgetting about believing one way or the other about "God" or the ultimate significance and Source of life, and instead be deeply present with Life....and see what wisdom and treasures can be found right here, right now. Who/what is this person who wants to know "God"? What if we stop looking outside ourselves for meaning, and instead thoroughly investigate into the most intimate sense of being and existing? What are you, really?

j

75

I'm going to be disfellowshipped on Wednesday

by Thinking of Leaving in

the elders cames to my home on saturday and i didn't answer the door, so they told my sister to relay the message.

the message was "you know what it's about, we're going to make the announcement next meeting".

i knew it was coming...but it feels so weird.

JamesThomas

Dear Thinking,

Though it may not seem so, it's a time for celebration. One way of celebrating is to be kind, gentle and aware of the internal dynamics such a situation can bring on.

Silently and gently meet with the inner sorrow of losing what the Witness gave you. It is a kind of death. Know that they are not "demons", but simply people lost in a story; a story which says that disfellowshipping you is the right thing to do. No need to make enemies here, for this will only cause you pain and suffering.

I suggest clearly seeing that the mind will want to weave a grand drama around this situation; one easily lost in. You'll know you are lost in the story when the body is tight and the emotions full of angst. Respect these signs, heed them, and step out of the minds drama and into the cool-warm reality of the moment of life in and around you void of a story.

There is a freedom which comes with disfellowshipment. Freedom can be a little scary. Be aware, and do not allow yourself to step out of one jail cell and into another religious belief system.

Don't allow others, or some book to define life's ultimate significance. Take this time to learn what it is to be silently alive and one with the entire flow of existence in and around you. You carry within you all that wisdom you will ever need.

Congratulations!

j

24

BUT I HAVEN'T EXPERIENCED IT......................

by Dansk in

jw
friends

you can go on and on but the fact is you can't prove it!

i only have your word for it that you had your experience.. and the books you cite don't help, either, because i've only got the author's word that he's telling the truth.

how can i believe him if i haven't experienced it myself?.

JamesThomas

Every word ever spoken, every thought perceived,, every experience ever known, may be an illusion and only as real as the "reality" we give it. But who/what is this "we", this "me" that all "reality" seems to revolve around? What is the one undeniable actuality and truth upon which all other things hinge?

Take away all objectifiable experience of "self" and "other", and what remains? What is it that we all share? What unites us one and all? What has no beginning and no end?

j