Freeman
For you perhaps, not me.
To make such a statement underscores the fact that you have never been in a relationship with or felt connected to your own higher power.
Faith does not require proof. Faith is an experience, a relationship, something known as a result of an experience with that which is wholly other.
It requires an openness, a sense of wonder and humility. It is love in its purest form and a gift bestowed on a person who typically is seeking more, an amazing grace as it were.
I say 'typically' since sometimes it seems to crash in on a person for no apparent reason.
Why it is experienced by some and not others is a mystery to me and always has been. And as I've mentioned before, I understand why someone is an agnostic. I get that. Though I'm usually surprised by the absolute certitude of the atheist position.
I hope you experience God at some point in your life Freeman. It can be such a transformative encounter for the better. And if I could point to one aspect of such an encounter that makes it all worth it it's this....
The experience leaves the believer with a far greater capacity for love. There seems to be a greater depth, width and breadth to one's capacity that wasn't there before. That's the thrilling part and the part that leaves a person awestruck and forever grateful. And this experience cuts across the many truth claims from the various traditions and seems to hold true for all no matter their particular tradition.
Who knows, perhaps the agnostic simply doesn't have need for such. That may be true, but all I know is that I am thankful to the universe, God, universal spirit, source of love, whatever you want to call the "wholly other."
And I certainly hope that before you check out, you get to have this experience on some level that makes sense to you. In fact, I'll pray for that for you.
dag
proof is everything
For you perhaps, not me.
To make such a statement underscores the fact that you have never been in a relationship with or felt connected to your own higher power.
Faith does not require proof. Faith is an experience, a relationship, something known as a result of an experience with that which is wholly other.
It requires an openness, a sense of wonder and humility. It is love in its purest form and a gift bestowed on a person who typically is seeking more, an amazing grace as it were.
I say 'typically' since sometimes it seems to crash in on a person for no apparent reason.
Why it is experienced by some and not others is a mystery to me and always has been. And as I've mentioned before, I understand why someone is an agnostic. I get that. Though I'm usually surprised by the absolute certitude of the atheist position.
I hope you experience God at some point in your life Freeman. It can be such a transformative encounter for the better. And if I could point to one aspect of such an encounter that makes it all worth it it's this....
The experience leaves the believer with a far greater capacity for love. There seems to be a greater depth, width and breadth to one's capacity that wasn't there before. That's the thrilling part and the part that leaves a person awestruck and forever grateful. And this experience cuts across the many truth claims from the various traditions and seems to hold true for all no matter their particular tradition.
Who knows, perhaps the agnostic simply doesn't have need for such. That may be true, but all I know is that I am thankful to the universe, God, universal spirit, source of love, whatever you want to call the "wholly other."
And I certainly hope that before you check out, you get to have this experience on some level that makes sense to you. In fact, I'll pray for that for you.
dag