There are those who continuously strive to prove their believe is true. They even painfully change their believe to what seems most true. They may be unfaithful to their belief at certain times, but not to the truth, and they are seekers of the truth.
There are those who state their believe is the truth. They even insist their believe is truth in spite of evidence it is not the truth. They may be faithful with their consistent belief, but not to the truth, and they are not seekers of the truth.
At any given time we need to have faith our belief is true, but we must be open to other beliefs, and change ours if it is not the truth. If one of our individual beliefs contradicts another belief, one must be rejected. Nothing is absolute or sacred, other than the truth.
Our understanding and belief in the truth is developed over time and is a continuing process shared with others. Our understanding of the truth must never be fixed and isolated in the past.
Beware of those who would have us simply belief in something without requiring and even rejecting verification. In verse 29 of chapter 20 of the Gospel of John, the writer John has Jesus saying that Thomas has seen Jesus and believed. But blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed. How can we wrong Thomas or anyone for wanting to verify their belief and seek the truth?
Beware of those who indicate that theirs is the only belief pointing to the truth. In verse 6 of chapter 14 of the Gospel of John, the writer John has Jesus saying that Jesus is the way and the truth and the life. And no one comes to the Father except through Jesus. It is incorrect and self-serving to think that your particular belief is the only one pointing to the truth?
Truth is primary and sacred. As time reveals the truth to each of us we must adjust our beliefs to be inline with the truth. That includes our belief in any god or any other particular theory or law. If our faith is not inline with the truth, then we are foolish and dangerous.
The truth may be approached but never fully possessed. No one fully possesses the truth. Perception and conception of truth, may enable survival, but not necessarily a full understanding of that truth.
If our beliefs would have us harm others with different beliefs, then we must first understand the opposing belief and challenge our own belief. If there is any doubt, then we must remain loving and do no harm.
The truth always exists despite the untrue. Those embracing the truth are enlightened but are always plaqued by uncertainty. Those embracing the untrue, only imagine enlightenment and have certainty by faith alone.
Recent history has shone the danger of belief without verification and the danger of over-confident faith. It has put us at odds with religion and 'believers'. They seem to be more concerned in expressing their correctness than verifying what they believe is true. They value hunch or belief above proof and truth. They sanctify their faith easily perpetuating lies. Believers easily exclude unbelievers, limit love to like believers, and demonize any opposition.
Thankfully, our perception allows us to survive but not necessarily fully understand. Common sense may not be suffient for full understanding.
The truth may be more simple than what we have come to believe.
An individual's life may simply begin with birth and end at death. Thankfully, we exist even for this short time.
Life exists as individuals. Over time individual death allows life to evolve by successively changing individuals.
Our soul may simply be a function of our brain and also cease at death. Thankfully, we exist now but may not exist forever.
Jesus of Nazareth was of the Jewish tradition but questioned the validity of Jewish practice. He emphasized the summary of the law as loving one another. He became a threat to the sanctified Jewish tradition, its understanding of truth, and was eliminated.
Long after Jesus' death, his followers began to write a new liturgy to influence Jewish tradition. The later the writting the more fantastic the stories. The Jewish tradition was sanctified and could not change. So the followers split from the Jewish tradition, the new liturgy became the basis for Christianity, a similar tradition that deified Jesus.
In this new tradition, we are told of the words and actions of Jesus of Nazareth. The telling may be well intended, but we are only being given the followers' final written version, after years of verbal tranmission of what happened. The telling is also in support of the new Christian tradition. We have the task of discerning what Jesus actually said and did from what we are told by followers, who had a different understanding of reality, and were highly motivated by their new Christian tradition.
The founders, in their selection and interpretation of particulat writtings, increasing assumptions based on those writings, just created a new sanctified Christian tradition with their understanding of truth.
In both cases, Judaism and Christianity, their understanding of truth become problematic when their 'truth' is simply not true. The truth is sacred, not any tradition, no matter how longstanding and comforting.
The Christian tradition has had problems accepting the possible validity of other traditions, the sun's centrality, the probable evolution of the cosmos, the probable normalcy of homosexuality, women's rights, and firmly denouncing racial prejudice.
The Christian tradition assumes God is in control and praying to Him may alter outcomes, yet we still find it necessary to control our own lives and counter adverse events.
A series of events may benefit you but not another. The events may have just happened without any direction from God. To consider the events as God protecting just you but not another is self aggrandizing and indulgent. Instead of enjoying the feeling of being God's special one, you should be sad and feel compassion for the one not benefited.
The Christian tradition assumes we are created in the image of God and are dominent, but we may be just a result of and dependent on our surroundings.
The Christian tradition tells us we have unique eternal souls, possibly unlike lower animals around us, but this sense of higher self worth may just be our imagining.
The Christian tradition instructs to just believe and so never die, when we all die, and would best live our lives because they are so short lived. Any pain or injustice may never be rectified in an afterlive.
Christians believe in god, but have difficulty just understanding existence. Some believe we have existed before birth, but we probably only begin to exist at birth. Christians believe we have enternal life, but we probably cease to exist when we die. We should live our lives according to what we incompletely know more than comfortably believe.
Christians continue to attribute occurrences to the deliberate actions of God. Obedience to God being beneficial. Not appeasing God resulting in suffering. Yet, the amount of suffering is unreasonable.
Christians believe in a all powerful loving God to be worshipped, who answers prayers, and controls outcomes. However, a God of true love should allow His creation to determine its own collective future. Thinking very locally, God may seem to exert His will. Yet, on a global scale, His will is not fathomable and may simply not exist.
Christians believe humans are made in God's likeness, have eternal souls, things of the flesh should be shunned, and they will have eternal bliss if faithful. However, this life may be all we have as just another evolved animal. We may be just born into existance and cease to exist when we die. If we wish to be loved and thrive in this brief existance, we must love one another.
Christianity is too comfortable, relying on ancient texts, rigid beliefs, and blind faith. Often rejecting verification and truth seeking science. Religious liturgy lulls and comforts, emphasizing faith by repidity rather than verifying the truth being believed.
To truly follow Jesus one must differentiate between what Jesus said and what the Christian church says. Jesus wanted us to love one another but being properly converted or saved sounds like a motivation of the church.
Christians frown on sexual activity. Virginity is diafied. Being celebate makes one pure. The shunning rather than thr channeling of sexual drive has resulted sexual pervertion and persecution.
It is often said that Judaism and Christianity have given us our law and morality. The Ten Commandments are mentioned. However, law and morality may be independently derived by determining the best way we may live and thrive together, to order and stablize society. It is quite obvious that we must respect others, not murder others, and not lie to one another. We must support sexual commitment and should not even desire the specific possessions of others. As Jesus of Nazareth summarized, we must love one another. This is not just lawful and moral but logical. Living apart we will not thrive. We come together to benefit ourselves by benefiting all. Living together requires our mutual love. Our love should be extended to all of life and the whole cosmos of which we are simply a tiny part.