How I lost faith

[Guest guest]

Hi

 

In the latest issue of the magazine Ode there is an interesting article about

how spiritual beliefs and religions can be an obstacle to our own unique

experiences with God:

 

 

"Religion seems to get in the way of our true connection with God. It seems only

to connect people with others looking for the one pure faith, notes Ode senior

editor Tijn Touber, which leads to the formation of more sects. That's why he

recently severed his years-long connection with the spiritual community he

belonged to-an Indian Raja Yoga institute-and now believes that spirituality's

future may depend on dismantling the houses of the holy."

 

"Several years ago I spoke with the Episcopal priest Lloyd Casson, who at that

time was the vicar of Trinity Church, the prestigious church on Wall Street in

New York. I will never forget what he said when I asked him why religious and

spiritual leaders often think in such a restricted way and prescribe such

damaging rules to their disciples. I cited examples such as confession and

penance, harsh discipline, original sin, numbing rituals. The priest went quiet

for a moment, perhaps considering whether he should say something or not. Then

he sat up straight: "Most religious leaders barely have the time to connect with

God. They aren't practicing religion, but politics. These are senior civil

servants whose hands are full keeping the institution running. Their primary

concern is 'recruiting souls'."

 

Read more:

 

http://www.odemagazine.com/article.php?aID=4031

 

Lars

 

 

[Guest guest]

Dear Lars,

 

My humble greetings.

 

Having read this message, I too am in great shock of what you were told about

spiritual leaders. Neverthless, unless rigidity is maintained, the seriousness

of Godliness is very hard to get. For example, just a couple of days ago, maybe

from this or another, I came across an article from a few members

about "Spiritual Masturbation". That itself tuned me out of the senses...I don't

know anything about such a thing, but how on earth can such things be created by

God? I'm pretty sure He didn't, but the people of today have come up with

brighter and more appealing ways to get people follow rules of a religion.

 

Religion has regidity, which puts a determination into people's minds on

following it whole-heartedly. What exactly have you lost faith in, and which

aspect of the priest's answer deprived you of the faith? I apologize if I've

gotten off the point, but I wasn't convinced about yours.

 

Jai Venkatesha!

 

Krishnadasi

 

 

 

ALL-NEW Messenger - all new features - even more fun!

 

 

[Guest guest]

Lars wrote: "Religion seems to get in the way of our true connection

with God."

 

Krishnadasi wrote: "Unless rigidity is maintained, the seriousness

of Godliness is very hard to get. ... [Rigidity] puts a

determination into people's minds on following it whole-heartedly."

 

Now here is what Swami Vivekananda wrote. I have posted all of part

of this before, but I think it bears repeating:

 

STRAIGHT TALK ON RELIGION

 

[From "The Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda," Vedanta Press]

 

A man may believe in all the churches in the world, he may carry in

his head all the sacred books ever written, he may baptize himself

in all the rivers of the earth, still, if he has no perception of

God, I would class him with the rankest atheist.

 

And a man may have never entered a church or a mosque, nor performed

any ceremony, but if he feels God within himself and is thereby

lifted above the vanities of the world, that man is a holy man, a

saint, call him what you will.

 

As soon as a man stands up and says he is right or his church is

right, and all others are wrong, he is himself all wrong. He does

not know that upon the proof of all the others depends the proof of

his own. The test of true religiousness is love and charity for the

whole human race. I do not mean the sentimental statement that all

men are brothers, but that one must feel the oneness of human life.

 

So far as they are not exclusive, I see that the sects and creeds

are all mine; they are all grand. They are all helping men towards

the real religion. I will add, it is good to be born in a church,

but it is bad to die there. It is good to be born a child, but bad

to remain a child. Churches, ceremonies, and symbols are good for

children, but when the child is grown, he must burst the church or

himself.

 

We must not remain children forever. It is like trying to fit one

coat to all sizes and growths. I do not deprecate the existence of

sects in the world. Would to God there were twenty millions more,

for the more there are, there will be a greater field for selection.

What I do object to is trying to fit one religion to every case.

 

Though all religions are essentially the same, they must have the

varieties of form produced by dissimilar circumstances among

different nations. We must each have our own individual religion,

individual so far as the externals of it go.

 

**********

 

.... He who only studies books for religion reminds one of the fable

of the ass which carried a heavy load of sugar on its back, but did

not know the sweetness of it.

 

.... The whole point is to discipline the mind. That truth which you

swallow from others will not be yours. You cannot teach truth from

my mouth; neither can you learn truth from my mouth. None can teach

another.

 

You all talk [about] and get distracted over losing

your "individuality". You are losing it every moment of your lives

by this eternal swallowing. If any one of you believes what I teach,

I will be sorry. I will only be too glad if I can excite in you the

power of thinking for yourselves... My ambition is to talk to men

and women, not to sheep. By men and women, I mean individuals.

 

You have to realize truth and work it out for yourself according to

your own nature... All must struggle to be individuals -- strong,

standing on your own feet, thinking your own thoughts, realizing

your own Self. No use swallowing doctrines others pass on --

standing up together like soldiers in jail, sitting down together,

all eating the same food, all nodding their heads at the same time.

Variation is the sign of life. Sameness is the sign of death.

[Guest guest]

Krishnadasi wrote:

 

"What exactly have you lost faith in, and which aspect of the priest's answer

deprived you of the faith? I apologize if I've gotten off the point, but I

wasn't convinced about yours."

 

No, I haven't lost faith. I sent this article just because I thought it to be

interesting and something to learn from.

 

I have had religious experiences with the Godess, that's why I am here.

 

But when I have discussed the matter with other kundaliniyoga practitioners in

my homecountry, no one has had the same experiences as I have.

 

But I believe in my experiences and have a deep faith in them. But what if I had

had an authoritarian yogateacher who had denied my experiences, and if I had had

low self-esteem, then I perhaps had denied my own unique experiences and gone

totally lost.

 

It seems as our spiritual paths could be very different even if we do the same

yoga.

 

Lars

 

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

I believe Carl Jung said something about religion

leading people AWAY from God by cluttering up their

minds and limiting them with notions of what

constitutes "God". Many times I have seen people turn

away from an opportunity to connect with the Divine

because it did not come in a form that fit the

religious prejudices they had been indoctrinated with,

and thus they could not be persuaded that it was

important that they do so.

Lilith M.