For those of you who are tired of the same old conservative/liberal dualism, and looking for another choice....
John Stossel's new show, "Bullshit in America", will air Friday, March 13. John Stossel is one of the few libertarians that have a voice in mainstream media. He will be interviewing Drew Carey, another libertarian, about immigration reform, medical marijuana, eminent domain abuse and much more.
Take a look at the topics and take some time to educate yourself here.
Thursday, February 26, 2009
Saturday, February 21, 2009
One
As part of my spiritual inquiry I've been looking for the common thread in our world's religions, believing that what is common to us all must be closer to a "real" God. Perhaps the answer is mysticism.
When I was in a fundamentalist Baptist bible college and you mentioned the word "mysticism" the professors gave you the raised eyebrow and wondered if you'd been puffin' the green after chapel. I was told once by the guy preaching in our church that God didn't actively communicate with people in our time and anyone who thought so was in serious error because all we needed was "God's word". Fundamentalism at its best.
On the other hand I've watched things like The Secret and What the Bleep that tries to merge mysticism and science but really is just a form of magic in disguise. I've hung with good meaning, but irrational people who told us we shouldn't eat any candy for two weeks after Halloween because it was "the Devil's candy." Irrationality at its best.
But there are mystics who have transcended both fundamentalism and irrationality. There are people in this world who have delved into the interior of themselves, and interestingly, all found similar things.
Trish and I stumbled across "One: The Movie" this week. It is a documentary inspired by a guy who woke up one morning with an idea: To make a movie that asks people on the street 20 important questions about life. The problem was he had no experience in the film industry. With no experience and little budget he set out and winds up getting interviews with not just people on the street, but some of the greatest mystics of our time. If you are seeking a broad view of spirituality and mysticism I would recommend it.
Here's what I liked and noticed:
The movie is a view of the spiritual landscape from a pluralistic point of view. Mystic strains of Christianity, Buddhism, Hinduism, Sufism etc. are all presented with an open point of view. If you would like to see how people from a postmodern/pluralistic worldview view spirituality, this is as good as any.
I've been interested in what is common among world religions. Mysticism is one of the obvious candidates. EVERY major religion has a form of mysticism, and interestingly enough, they all have come to very similar conclusions.
In my experience Christianity has caused more issues then it has helped, however, I think the issue is really fundamentalism. In this movie the Christian and Islamic fundamentalist have very small, trite answers to the big questions of life. For instance, when asked about the meaning of life the fundamentalist says it is to "make a decision to accept Jesus or not". Sigh...I understand where he coming from, but that answer is just not satisfactory to me today. I see a world to diverse and complex for that answer to work for me today.
When asked to describe God, or what is the meaning of life? those with smaller worldviews have clear-cut answers; those with real knowledge can't help but laugh. I can't help but giggle when I hear the first guy's response in the clip below.
Life lived with intense awareness of the hear-and-now is amazing.
The oneness in the middle of our uniqueness is beautiful and God-filled.
Is there a difference in the questions: What is the meaning of life? and What is the meaning in life?
What is the meaning of life?
Describe God.
When I was in a fundamentalist Baptist bible college and you mentioned the word "mysticism" the professors gave you the raised eyebrow and wondered if you'd been puffin' the green after chapel. I was told once by the guy preaching in our church that God didn't actively communicate with people in our time and anyone who thought so was in serious error because all we needed was "God's word". Fundamentalism at its best.
On the other hand I've watched things like The Secret and What the Bleep that tries to merge mysticism and science but really is just a form of magic in disguise. I've hung with good meaning, but irrational people who told us we shouldn't eat any candy for two weeks after Halloween because it was "the Devil's candy." Irrationality at its best.
But there are mystics who have transcended both fundamentalism and irrationality. There are people in this world who have delved into the interior of themselves, and interestingly, all found similar things.
Trish and I stumbled across "One: The Movie" this week. It is a documentary inspired by a guy who woke up one morning with an idea: To make a movie that asks people on the street 20 important questions about life. The problem was he had no experience in the film industry. With no experience and little budget he set out and winds up getting interviews with not just people on the street, but some of the greatest mystics of our time. If you are seeking a broad view of spirituality and mysticism I would recommend it.
Here's what I liked and noticed:
The movie is a view of the spiritual landscape from a pluralistic point of view. Mystic strains of Christianity, Buddhism, Hinduism, Sufism etc. are all presented with an open point of view. If you would like to see how people from a postmodern/pluralistic worldview view spirituality, this is as good as any.
I've been interested in what is common among world religions. Mysticism is one of the obvious candidates. EVERY major religion has a form of mysticism, and interestingly enough, they all have come to very similar conclusions.
In my experience Christianity has caused more issues then it has helped, however, I think the issue is really fundamentalism. In this movie the Christian and Islamic fundamentalist have very small, trite answers to the big questions of life. For instance, when asked about the meaning of life the fundamentalist says it is to "make a decision to accept Jesus or not". Sigh...I understand where he coming from, but that answer is just not satisfactory to me today. I see a world to diverse and complex for that answer to work for me today.
When asked to describe God, or what is the meaning of life? those with smaller worldviews have clear-cut answers; those with real knowledge can't help but laugh. I can't help but giggle when I hear the first guy's response in the clip below.
Life lived with intense awareness of the hear-and-now is amazing.
The oneness in the middle of our uniqueness is beautiful and God-filled.
Is there a difference in the questions: What is the meaning of life? and What is the meaning in life?
What is the meaning of life?
Describe God.
Thursday, February 19, 2009
Seeking Happiness?
We seek happiness in our mother and father before we can speak, but when they cannot understand our cries, we suffer.
We seek happiness in our possessions, but when they break or get stolen, we suffer.
We seek happiness in friendships and marriage, and we find our flaws in others, and we suffer.
We seek happiness in sex, but happiness is not found in a spasm, so we suffer.
We seek happiness in religion, but happiness is not found in buildings, hierarchy or structure, so we suffer.
We seek happiness anywhere we can find it.
Perhaps happiness is not found in seeking, but expression.
We seek happiness in our possessions, but when they break or get stolen, we suffer.
We seek happiness in friendships and marriage, and we find our flaws in others, and we suffer.
We seek happiness in sex, but happiness is not found in a spasm, so we suffer.
We seek happiness in religion, but happiness is not found in buildings, hierarchy or structure, so we suffer.
We seek happiness anywhere we can find it.
Perhaps happiness is not found in seeking, but expression.
Monday, February 16, 2009
Friday, February 13, 2009
Derek Trucks - Sahib Teri Bandi
Derek Trucks is coming to St. Louis on Feb. 24th. I do believe I will be there.
This is one my favorite songs of his.
Love the groove! Live the groove!
Or if you prefer rock/blues, Mr. Trucks can go there.
This is one my favorite songs of his.
Love the groove! Live the groove!
Or if you prefer rock/blues, Mr. Trucks can go there.
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
Obama - From Hope to Fear?
It seems that our new president has gone from a person of hope to a person of fear. I've been listening to him trying to use the bully-pulpit to persuade Republicans to vote for the stimulus, and quite honestly, it is the same old tactics of instilling fear in the American public....boring....
In his speech last night he started with this (highlights mine):
"And that is why the single most important part of this economic recovery and reinvestment plan is the fact that it will save or create up to 4 million jobs, because that's what America needs most right now.
It is absolutely true that we can't depend on government alone to create jobs or economic growth. That is and must be the role of the private sector. But at this particular moment, with the private sector so weakened by this recession, the federal government is the only entity left with the resources to jolt our economy back into life.
It is only government that can break the vicious cycle, where lost jobs lead to people spending less money, which leads to even more layoffs. And breaking that cycle is exactly what the plan that's moving through Congress is designed to do.
When passed, this plan will ensure that Americans who've lost their jobs through no fault of their own can receive greater unemployment benefits and continue their health care coverage."
Then later:"Now, despite all of this, the plan's not perfect. No plan is. I can't tell you for sure that everything in this plan will work exactly as we hoped, but I can tell you with complete confidence that a failure to act will only deepen this crisis, as well as the pain felt by millions of Americans."
One minute "Super Government and Superman" will save 4 million jobs (and I'm not sure where he is getting that number anyway), and the next he's not so sure. But the "fact" is that we are being asked to mortgage our children's and grandchildren's future to pass a stimulus package that our fearless leader is not even sure will work. This doesn't give me a "warm-fuzzy".
Thursday, February 05, 2009
Christianity, Science and Culture - A Man Without a Home
I am neither especially intelligent or talented as anyone knows who reads this blog. I have documented parts of my journey, and the thoughts behind it, for the past six years. I post this because I suspect there are others that are "losing their religion". Struggling to make sense of the world as seen threw their current religious framework. Living with an uneasy, gnawing feeling that their has to be something more. Stuck between worlds, with an inner longing for transcendence, and a deeper, more full reality, yet feeling trapped by religious values that conflict with science and culture. Feeling confined, limited, restricted....like something is about to be born.
I've found myself frustrated, conflicted, confused, depressed, and even angry on this journey. Looking back, I was a person without a home, torn between mythic religion, rational science and pluralistic culture. I was part of a religious system that provided no support or framework to make sense of the fragmentation of my soul.
I had given my life to that which was of "ultimate concern". I found myself in a church full of people who loved deeply, but were in the middle of moving from a magic faith to a mythic faith. From belief that when someone was baptized "every hair and part of the person needed to be submerged for salvation", to "we aren't sure who we are as a church, but we are together as a family". It was a move from magic values to mythic values, from egocentric to ethnocentric. For someone looking to belong, ethnocentric values suited me fine.
However, over time I began to feel "confined" by my religion. I assumed the problem was the structure of the church, uneducated church leadership, worship style, etc. I wasn't sure what, but I knew something was missing, something was wrong, something was askew. I noticed the inconsistencies of church culture as compared with the words of Jesus. I went to Bible college and learned about a text to be worshiped, dogma to be adhered to, not a God to be loved. We were divorced from culture, ignorant of art, isolated by science, and for all the love we had for each other, we inadvertently excluded others on the basis of race, sexual identity and religious belief. The subtle and not so subtle spiritual arrogance gnawed at me, and I was in a constant state of unsettledness.
Perhaps, I have a better understanding about what was going on during this past six years. It seems to boil down to three things: mythic Christianity, rational science and postmodern cultural values. Three distinct sets of values, and ways of viewing and being in the world. Three ways that God has shown himself in humanity. Three ways that my soul was torn.
Maybe I misunderstood my journey. For a long time I thought it was about the "church", but perhaps my journey could be interpreted as a journey through worldviews. A searching for a framework that would allow the best of a pre-rational mythic worldview, the best of rationality and science, and the best of pluralistic values. Unfortunately, the forms of Christianity that I was exposed to were not flexible enough to provide such a framework. So I began to search elsewhere.
With one foot in thoroughly in mythic religion, another foot in rational science and (I don’t, know pick another appendage) in pluralism, I found myself restricted, confined, squeezed into a mythic religious worldview that kept getting smaller. The truths of the other worldviews rumbling around in my unconscious, unable to come to terms with my understanding of what was of “ultimate concern” and causing my discomfort.
So I found myself moving from one worldview, one stage of awareness, to the next with no framework to understand it. One part of me clinging desperately to my religious worldview that was increasingly becoming smaller and more confined. Afraid to be out of the “umbrella of protection” of the church. Fearful of losing friends. The word “heretic” buzzing around in my head. Yet all the time subconsciously knowing, the myth was dead. So, I found myself conflicted, confused, depressed. . .
Moving from one worldview to the next is like being squeezed through a tube and reborn into a more roomy home. It must be similar to the experience a baby has at childbirth (and perhaps death). The comfortable, close quarters of the womb becomes restricted in the end, and the baby must escape and be born into a new world with expanded possibilities, more relational opportunities, a broader worldview. A worldview that, unfortunately, will likely be labeled heretical by mythic forms of fundamentalist Christianity.
Human values have unfolded over time. You may argue this point, but the data is fairly conclusive. Looked at from a 50,000 ft. view, science and postmodern critiques have dismantled mythic religion. Individuals and churches that hold on to mythic values and worldviews find themselves increasingly marginalized and isolated. The "circle the wagons" rhetoric continues by those firmly grounded in mythic belief systems and any attempts of inclusivity or reinterpreting the Bible and Jesus for higher stages of awareness are reacted to with vicious intent (Here is an example from a brother I attended church with and love. It is typical rhetoric of an ethnocentric, mythical value system.)
Fundamentalist Christianity is rooted in a mythic worldview. It comes out of a value system that is ethnocentric - it looks at the world from the perspective of ones own culture (which incidentally, everyone does to a greater or lesser extreme) and is primarily concerned with the preservation of that culture. The mythic worldview sees life in terms of black and white, good and evil, and because it is primarily ethnocentric, if you do not have the same belief system as the predominant culture, you are isolated by the rest of the group in one way or another. So, there is always pressure to "toe the line" of doctrine and belief. Rules and roles are typically rigid and unbending and are not supposed to be challenged.
Let me be clear. There is nothing wrong with a mythic worldview in an of itself. It is a necessary step in human development, and there is absolutely a place for it. It's just not the only place, and several stages of awareness have emerged since its heyday. A mythic worldview becomes unhealthy when it looks at any worldview that came after it, and declares it as false; or when it views other cultures, ideas etc. as wrong in and of themselves because they are different from “the clan“. A mythic worldview simply cannot accept any worldview that will challenge its own. For example, think about the fact that many Christians reduce Postmodernity to "not allowing for ultimate truth", when the Postmodern critique is actually much more complex than that. To make matters worse, the fact is, that we cannot really "see" worldviews that are at a higher altitude. In other words, it is impossible for someone at a mythic worldview to experience the world from a rational or pluralistic worldview, and will therefore reduce other worldviews to threats and must declare them as dangerous and false. Dialogue about these issues will degrade into the being "kicked out of the club". So it provides a limited framework to fit the experiences and knowledge of other cultures and worldviews. It either discounts science or tries to twist it for its own purpose, interpreting the data through a grid of mythical thought. It leaves little room for discussion, little room for dialogue.
Unfortunately, attempts at a rational form of Christianity has not fared much better. Pragmatic approaches to church, such as Willow Creek have just exacerbated the consumerism, egotism and narcissism that is typical of orange/rational values gone bad (and leaks into postmodern values too). Ken Wilber calls this "boomeritis". The churches reaction to the pluralistic values of postmodernity are still "emerging", led by people like Brian McLaren, Rob Bell, and Spencer Burke. However, many of these small groups of people are merely clinging to an ideal of "community" that is nothing more than a return to ethnocentricism, a way that makes themselves "set apart".
There are ways to overcome these issues that does not do away with your faith, but expands it. Making faith more inclusive, more caring, more concerned, more complex, more comprehensive. It does not throw out mythic, rational or pluralistic worldviews, but integrates them, allowing us to see reality in all its complex beauty. Frameworks that allow the best of pre-rational, rational, and trans-rational thought.
I don't know if this is the completely "right way" to view my experience. Time will tell. I will say that it takes into account all of my phenomenological and relational experiences in church, and does not discount science or culture. I have a framework that allows me to hold the "I, We and It" of life together in a holistic fashion. I am able to see the beauty and perspectives of other religions and cultures. The world has become more beautiful. I still see God in the beauty of nature and in the eyes of my children. God is unfolding the universe, and human kind along with it, in what appears to be waves of consciousness or awareness. And I am aware of, and participating in that fact. God is far bigger than my mythic beliefs would allow. I have room to stretch, and breathe in God's continuing display.
I suspect some will view me as no longer “in the club”, and that is okay. While I can choose to leave behind a mythic framework of understanding the world, I cannot leave behind the mythic worldview that has helped form me. It has been integrated, and I just see it for what it is: a stage in the evolutionary process of a human being named Roger.
As always, I would love to hear your thoughts. For those interested in understanding how I’ve come to these conclusions. Here are some links that may help you on your journey.
Introduction to Integral Theory and Practice
Colors of Thinking in Spiral Dynamics
A Spirituality That Transforms
The History of Mysticism
An Integral Spirituality
I've found myself frustrated, conflicted, confused, depressed, and even angry on this journey. Looking back, I was a person without a home, torn between mythic religion, rational science and pluralistic culture. I was part of a religious system that provided no support or framework to make sense of the fragmentation of my soul.
I had given my life to that which was of "ultimate concern". I found myself in a church full of people who loved deeply, but were in the middle of moving from a magic faith to a mythic faith. From belief that when someone was baptized "every hair and part of the person needed to be submerged for salvation", to "we aren't sure who we are as a church, but we are together as a family". It was a move from magic values to mythic values, from egocentric to ethnocentric. For someone looking to belong, ethnocentric values suited me fine.
However, over time I began to feel "confined" by my religion. I assumed the problem was the structure of the church, uneducated church leadership, worship style, etc. I wasn't sure what, but I knew something was missing, something was wrong, something was askew. I noticed the inconsistencies of church culture as compared with the words of Jesus. I went to Bible college and learned about a text to be worshiped, dogma to be adhered to, not a God to be loved. We were divorced from culture, ignorant of art, isolated by science, and for all the love we had for each other, we inadvertently excluded others on the basis of race, sexual identity and religious belief. The subtle and not so subtle spiritual arrogance gnawed at me, and I was in a constant state of unsettledness.
Perhaps, I have a better understanding about what was going on during this past six years. It seems to boil down to three things: mythic Christianity, rational science and postmodern cultural values. Three distinct sets of values, and ways of viewing and being in the world. Three ways that God has shown himself in humanity. Three ways that my soul was torn.
Maybe I misunderstood my journey. For a long time I thought it was about the "church", but perhaps my journey could be interpreted as a journey through worldviews. A searching for a framework that would allow the best of a pre-rational mythic worldview, the best of rationality and science, and the best of pluralistic values. Unfortunately, the forms of Christianity that I was exposed to were not flexible enough to provide such a framework. So I began to search elsewhere.
With one foot in thoroughly in mythic religion, another foot in rational science and (I don’t, know pick another appendage) in pluralism, I found myself restricted, confined, squeezed into a mythic religious worldview that kept getting smaller. The truths of the other worldviews rumbling around in my unconscious, unable to come to terms with my understanding of what was of “ultimate concern” and causing my discomfort.
So I found myself moving from one worldview, one stage of awareness, to the next with no framework to understand it. One part of me clinging desperately to my religious worldview that was increasingly becoming smaller and more confined. Afraid to be out of the “umbrella of protection” of the church. Fearful of losing friends. The word “heretic” buzzing around in my head. Yet all the time subconsciously knowing, the myth was dead. So, I found myself conflicted, confused, depressed. . .
Moving from one worldview to the next is like being squeezed through a tube and reborn into a more roomy home. It must be similar to the experience a baby has at childbirth (and perhaps death). The comfortable, close quarters of the womb becomes restricted in the end, and the baby must escape and be born into a new world with expanded possibilities, more relational opportunities, a broader worldview. A worldview that, unfortunately, will likely be labeled heretical by mythic forms of fundamentalist Christianity.
Human values have unfolded over time. You may argue this point, but the data is fairly conclusive. Looked at from a 50,000 ft. view, science and postmodern critiques have dismantled mythic religion. Individuals and churches that hold on to mythic values and worldviews find themselves increasingly marginalized and isolated. The "circle the wagons" rhetoric continues by those firmly grounded in mythic belief systems and any attempts of inclusivity or reinterpreting the Bible and Jesus for higher stages of awareness are reacted to with vicious intent (Here is an example from a brother I attended church with and love. It is typical rhetoric of an ethnocentric, mythical value system.)
Fundamentalist Christianity is rooted in a mythic worldview. It comes out of a value system that is ethnocentric - it looks at the world from the perspective of ones own culture (which incidentally, everyone does to a greater or lesser extreme) and is primarily concerned with the preservation of that culture. The mythic worldview sees life in terms of black and white, good and evil, and because it is primarily ethnocentric, if you do not have the same belief system as the predominant culture, you are isolated by the rest of the group in one way or another. So, there is always pressure to "toe the line" of doctrine and belief. Rules and roles are typically rigid and unbending and are not supposed to be challenged.
Let me be clear. There is nothing wrong with a mythic worldview in an of itself. It is a necessary step in human development, and there is absolutely a place for it. It's just not the only place, and several stages of awareness have emerged since its heyday. A mythic worldview becomes unhealthy when it looks at any worldview that came after it, and declares it as false; or when it views other cultures, ideas etc. as wrong in and of themselves because they are different from “the clan“. A mythic worldview simply cannot accept any worldview that will challenge its own. For example, think about the fact that many Christians reduce Postmodernity to "not allowing for ultimate truth", when the Postmodern critique is actually much more complex than that. To make matters worse, the fact is, that we cannot really "see" worldviews that are at a higher altitude. In other words, it is impossible for someone at a mythic worldview to experience the world from a rational or pluralistic worldview, and will therefore reduce other worldviews to threats and must declare them as dangerous and false. Dialogue about these issues will degrade into the being "kicked out of the club". So it provides a limited framework to fit the experiences and knowledge of other cultures and worldviews. It either discounts science or tries to twist it for its own purpose, interpreting the data through a grid of mythical thought. It leaves little room for discussion, little room for dialogue.
Unfortunately, attempts at a rational form of Christianity has not fared much better. Pragmatic approaches to church, such as Willow Creek have just exacerbated the consumerism, egotism and narcissism that is typical of orange/rational values gone bad (and leaks into postmodern values too). Ken Wilber calls this "boomeritis". The churches reaction to the pluralistic values of postmodernity are still "emerging", led by people like Brian McLaren, Rob Bell, and Spencer Burke. However, many of these small groups of people are merely clinging to an ideal of "community" that is nothing more than a return to ethnocentricism, a way that makes themselves "set apart".
There are ways to overcome these issues that does not do away with your faith, but expands it. Making faith more inclusive, more caring, more concerned, more complex, more comprehensive. It does not throw out mythic, rational or pluralistic worldviews, but integrates them, allowing us to see reality in all its complex beauty. Frameworks that allow the best of pre-rational, rational, and trans-rational thought.
I don't know if this is the completely "right way" to view my experience. Time will tell. I will say that it takes into account all of my phenomenological and relational experiences in church, and does not discount science or culture. I have a framework that allows me to hold the "I, We and It" of life together in a holistic fashion. I am able to see the beauty and perspectives of other religions and cultures. The world has become more beautiful. I still see God in the beauty of nature and in the eyes of my children. God is unfolding the universe, and human kind along with it, in what appears to be waves of consciousness or awareness. And I am aware of, and participating in that fact. God is far bigger than my mythic beliefs would allow. I have room to stretch, and breathe in God's continuing display.
I suspect some will view me as no longer “in the club”, and that is okay. While I can choose to leave behind a mythic framework of understanding the world, I cannot leave behind the mythic worldview that has helped form me. It has been integrated, and I just see it for what it is: a stage in the evolutionary process of a human being named Roger.
As always, I would love to hear your thoughts. For those interested in understanding how I’ve come to these conclusions. Here are some links that may help you on your journey.
Introduction to Integral Theory and Practice
Colors of Thinking in Spiral Dynamics
A Spirituality That Transforms
The History of Mysticism
An Integral Spirituality
The News - Quick Hits
Daschle withdraws his name because he didn't pay taxes....yet he has spent his carrier spending my taxes....hmmm....Wonder if he'll do any time for that....? I'd be surprised.
Michael Phelps is caught hitting the bong. 14 Olympic gold medals. 8 medals at one Olympics. Holds more records than I care to type....I bet other swimmers test positive for cannabis at the next Olympics. It may be on the next Wheaties box.
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