Tuesday, August 27, 2019

All Nature Sings

i'm using what i write today to "think out loud" about some things i can't come to any conclusions about.  i'll probably never be able to have any finality about these matters, first because i lack the necessary scientific knowledge and second because these questions have no real answers.  i suppose there are lots of things in life that fall into that second category.  what i wonder is how necessary human life is to the continuation of other life on this planet.  would there be any great loss to nature on the whole if human beings disappeared from the earth?

we think of ourselves as somehow above the rest of nature.  those who take the bible literally remember passages that tell us we are to "have dominion" over the natural world, or that we are "fearfully and wonderfully made," or that we are created "a little lower than the angels."  christians think of jesus' words, "if that is how God clothes the grass of the field [speaking of the 'flowers of the field'], which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith?," which suggest that human lives are superior to other natural lives.  but aren't we elevating ourselves because we have minds that do so?

if we think of ourselves as part of nature rather than something apart from it and slightly above it, we may not be so important in the overall scheme of things.  i wonder how dependent the rest of life is on us.  i think nature is much more necessary to us that we are to the rest of nature.  perhaps there are some organisms that wouldn't exist apart from us, bacteria, for instance, that are unique to human beings, but i don't know if that's the case.  on the whole, i don't see that we're all that essential to the remainder of nature.

certainly, there are some domesticated animals that would change radically, reverting back to their feral forms.  some food crops would disappear or evolve different characteristics because they are dependent on human cultivation in order to flourish in the way they do now.  we've developed new plants and animals that didn't exist in nature without our intervention by methods of hybridization.  we are now experimenting with manipulating genes in ways that were not possible in the past and have the ability to transplant genes from one form of life to another, thus changing the basic structure of dna.  we have the ability to clone and are not so removed from the horrors or huxley's brave new world.  but these "unnatural" creations are not necessary for the continuation of life on the planet.

our unique ability to think, to reason, to imagine sets us apart from other beings and causes us to believe that we are the only beings, that other life forms are inferior to us because they lack the intellectual powers that we possess.  the longer i live, the less i think that is the case.  i'm not so sure that many of the "lower apes" lack these mental capabilities.  when i look into the face of a dog that loves it master, i'm not so sure that this "inferior creature" is so inferior after all.  so many of the attributes we characterize as human may simply be mechanisms to insure the continuation of our species, such as our care in parenting our offspring or our ability to manipulate the natural world.  probably, we're not as special as we would like to believe.

may we not be afraid to ask "big" questions.  may we see ourselves as part of the natural order of things, and not such an important part at that.  may we show reverence for the natural world around us, not reveling in greediness that sees nature as ours for the taking.  may we honor nature in ways that insure our continuation as part of it, rather than destroying it because we think ourselves superior to it.  shalom.

Tuesday, August 20, 2019

In All Life Thou Livest

i've been thinking about the nature of God and what we mean when we use the word "god."  i wonder if we're trying to talk about and contemplate something that is so far beyond our comprehension that words are incapable of describing.  i wonder, too, if many of us who disagree about the existence of a god aren't really talking past each other because of the limitations of language.  are religious naturalists, adherents of various theistic and non-theistic religions, and even atheists and agnostics using terminology that ultimately means the same thing in their quest to understand life and our purpose in the grand scheme of things?

i struggle with how to refer to God.  when i pray, i usually being my prayers with the words, "o gracious God,"  but i could refer to God as the Great Mystery, Great Creator, Source of Being, First Cause, Divine Providence, Being Beyond All Knowing, or any number of similar appellations.  some avoid any name for God, using G-d, for instance.   but how does one verbalize g-d?  we can avoid thinking about how we came to be here and why.  we could choose not to think about such matters and live rewarding lives that are full of love and compassion.  for me, it is important to try to ken such things even if i can't get beyond the search for answers.

if that Great Intelligence did indeed create everything that is by causing that first creative impulse, perhaps whatever we mean by God, or whatever name we use, is a part of everything, every molecule, every atom, every fiber of every life.  perhaps all matter vibrates with the creative energy that we call God.  perhaps the collective consciousness of everything that exists, even those things that we don't think of as having "consciousness," is what makes up God.  perhaps God is a part of all things and all things taken together are God.  whenever we sense the presence of something greater than ourselves, perhaps that is God becoming known to us.  so many "perhapses."

may we seek truth, even though we are unable to fully comprehend it.  may we not be so eager to separate ourselves into our various clans and religions.  may we look for what we have in common rather than what divides us.  may we listen more than we speak.  may we value silence.  whatever we do, may we be filled with love and compassion.  shalom.

Tuesday, August 13, 2019

Touch Me and Heal Me

a few days ago i read an article written by a man whose father, a devout christian scientist, had died in terrible agony because he refused to see a doctor for a condition that could easily have been cured by competent medical treatment.  i thought then that i would write about the absurdity of christian "scientist" teaching, but then i began to think of the issue more broadly.  we humans are easily persuaded to adopt the most bizarre beliefs, choosing superstition over science so often.  it's easy to ridicule another's religion without a thought to the farfetched beliefs that are part of our own faith.

christians point to the ridiculous basis of scientology, with its teaching that the "thetan" that is the embodiment of one's true self lives multiple lifetimes both on earth and extraterrestrial planets.  we make light of the central role of mohammed in islam and the reverence his followers have for the koran.  the buddhist teachings about reincarnation and enlightenment are condemned by christians.  yet, we don't stop and think about how outlandish many central christian beliefs seem to a non-christian.

is it possible that the creator of the universe would cause a virgin to become pregnant and give birth to a child that is the embodiment of that powerful creator?  would a loving god require that "his only son" suffer the agony of crucifixion in order to atone for the sins of humanity?  are we to believe that "the son" who died in that way rose from the dead three days later and subsequently ascended into heaven with his disciples as witnesses?  when we examine orthodox christian teaching in this way, our religion doesn't appear any less fanciful than many of the world's other religions.  our willingness as christians to only see what we want to see in our own and in other religions puts up barriers between us that don't have to exist.

i remember as a child watching faith healers like oral roberts on television.  there in black-and-white reality were these charlatans who laid their hands on the sick and prayed for or commanded their infirmities to disappear.  the "cured" walked away convinced that a miracle had occurred.  my family watched these so-called religious services in fascination and disbelief, but we were drawn to watch them again and again.  as i think back, i am certain that the emphasis on miraculous cures in the gospel accounts of the life of jesus have led to belief in faith healing with disastrous results for those who are desperate for cures that medical science can't always provide, and indeed those who are convinced that jesus really did cause the lame to walk and the blind to see are often willing to substitute "faith healing" for medical treatment even when scientific medical practice could cure, or at the very least, ease their dis-ease.

may we examine our own beliefs dispassionately.  may we stop substituting superstition for science.  may we be willing to admit that faith in the supernatural is no panacea for what ails is, both physically and as a society.  if we believe in a god, may our belief be in a god that encourages us to use our minds rather than accepting illogical teachings that have been passed down to us, a god of logic and love.  shalom.

Tuesday, August 6, 2019

Family All Are We

in the wake of mass shootings in el paso and dayton coming on the heels of the recent shooting in california, it appears that racial animus is not only alive and well in our country but being encouraged by many of its leaders, particularly the president.  while the motives of the shooter in dayton remain unclear, the other shootings are hate crimes inspired by similar shootings elsewhere and by the perpetrators' hatred for non-white people.  some of the actions, or failure to act, on the part of the president and his supporters in congress include:

  • refusal to close loopholes in gun laws that allow the purchase of weapons without background checks
  • refusal to ban weapons that are designed to kill many people quickly, weapons that have no place in sport shooting
  • blaming mass shootings on everything but the availability of such weapons and the incitement to violence by politicians, citing video games, the "breakdown in the family," violence in movies, mental illness, and same-sex marriage, among others, as causes for such shootings
  •  making a joke out of calls to shoot immigrants at one of the president's political rallies
  • glorifying people, like colby covington, who engage in violent racist rhetoric while vilifying athletes like colin kaepernick and megan rapinoe who disagree with the president's policies and public statements
  • attacking elected people of color such as members of "the squad" and civil rights hero elijah cummings
  • using disparaging terms when referring to countries with majority black or brown populations
  • attacking the public media when it accurately reports racist statements by the president and others who support him
  • describing immigrants as criminals, rapists, and murderers
  • threatening to label members of the antifa movement as a terrorists while ignoring white supremacists
  • saying that "there are fine people on both sides" when talking about the violence perpetrated by white supremacists at a charlottesville, virginia, rally

the list could go on.  while a few republicans are beginning to speak out in opposition to the party's and trump's racist pronouncements and actions, most have either supported him and their party or remained silent.  there is little doubt that trump's language has given the most vile racists in the country courage to speak out rather than doing their dirty work under the radar as they once did.  the richard spencers of the world are emboldened by the president's speeches and tweets.  racist nationalism is on the rise in places like hungary, france, germany, russia, myanmar, and the united kingdom, and we are all endangered because of it.  those of us who believe that we must work to end the scourge of racism around the globe and particularly in the usa must speak out against this hateful philosophy.  we must look in our hearts for the racism there and work to end our own racist tendencies.  we must vote out those who encourage and promote such vile ideas out of conviction or for their own gain.

may we look within ourselves for the courage to admit our own complicity in racist ideology.  may we support those who promote solutions to ending racism.  may we see beyond the color of another's skin and the religion or lack thereof of another to view the person who is like us.  may we love even the most hateful while condemning their despicable philosophies.  shalom.