Suspending disbelief

For the purpose of this post, suspend disbelief about whether there was a man called Jesus, and especially let go of any idea about who he is believed to be according to the Christian religion. Please leave those preconceptions at this metaphorical door before you continue.

Ok, with that in mind...

...if a man, at a time of hardship and oppression, preached a message of love and forgiveness, when there were many who wanted someone to lead the resistance and fight. Who as time went on, attracted a reputation for having things to say, real things, and acquired followers who liked what he said and wanted to help spread the message, but also wanted to be around him, learn from him, be guided by him, so as he went from place to place, as people began to know him, hear him speak, slowly but surely, he gets seen as a teacher, a prophet, enough to inspire and allow them to believe that he is who they need him to be, because for people poor and uneducated, whose lives are hard, to let go of that, even for a moment, would be incredibly powerful and liberating.

But this man was about self-empowerment. Not to lead the way but to show the way. So there would come a time when to remain would get in the way of what they’d need to do and how they’d need to do it.

If he stopped preaching, retired to some cave in the desert, in time many would forget him, but others would seek him out, take up residence nearby, look to him, take advantage of his nature and have him do it for them.

He’d have to go away, in a way that was unequivocal. That instead of seeing him as the son of god or god made flesh, or some other separating description designed to make people worship, they find another way.

Putting aside the corruption and misery that eventually came after man started manipulating the minds of the masses. Those people who never got the message, who only realised there was something real there afterwards, had to improvise and assume, based on what they imagined it to actually be.

Sometimes, it is only by losing something that we come to realise how we really feel about it. That as long as it is there, we take it for granted, or don’t really appreciate it, until it is gone, leaving a hole. Jesus had to go for this reason. That for these ideas to really take root, to really crystalize in the minds of those around him, the messenger could not keep giving the same message. So one of the greatest misunderstandings that perpetuates the church, because so many don’t get it, is the idea that you can only find your way to God through Jesus. Well, if you lead a group, and want people to belong to it because you like the way it feels, of course you’re going to make it sound like you have the way.

You could say the way is through the idea of Jesus. But not by making him God, not by worshipping, and all the crap that surrounds that, but accepting the simple truth about what it means to look within, to know yourself, be authentic, and express it, which in many ways religion was supposed to help us discover but instead covers up. We really don't need someone to tell us what that is or how to go about expressing it.

A religion that wants to make one size fit all is the opposite of what we need. It actually ensures that not only don’t we get it, but many believe they do. It interferes with the reality of who we are, and if we ever let go of it, there would be nothing that would stop us knowing it ourselves. That is the message of Jesus. It doesn’t belong to any one group.

Technology links us all together, and is actually creating the idea of a single consciousness in our lives. Mixed in with all the bullshit, are the best, the highest, the realest things that we are.

The Jesus story is an old one, of its time, and for those who needed it. We still need a story. It is the most effective means to express an idea. But we need a new story. One that is not full of corruption. That reveals these things for today’s generation. There are many teachers, many prophets, many messiahs, all with something to say, something that reveals that we need the inspiration that comes from it.

So how to help people find this, without becoming just another one of those who gets people to follow? Well, for starters, limit the idea of the messenger so that only the message is considered, by keeping most of who brings it hidden.

Because so many see the physical and assume something about it, it can easily get in the way. The messenger cannot matter, otherwise the message has no real truth to it. It is not about the person. That is the way to corruption. It is about self-empowerment, so the messenger cannot gain much from it, even to be known.

It is not about the messenger anyway, only what we need to know, and once heard, you walk away and get on with it, knowing you are who you need to be, and make a difference in your life, according to what excites and inspires you.

This is not a new idea of course, just a stating that everything you need you already have. Jesus said the truth will set you free. Live your truth. You are already free.

 

In exactly the same way you do when watching a movie. You do it in order to consider the idea without letting it conflict with what you know or believe. That's why I asked you to do that before reading. Perhaps you just weren't able to.

 

That is an odd way of taking this idea. What other people do doesn't take away the fact that following your excitement is the best way of doing what 'God wants you to do'. It's all a question of perspective.

Excitement or passion, is the soul's language. It is how it communicates to you that it is what you need to do. The only addendum is not to insist on any particular outcome. You use passion as the guiding light, and if you let it, it will become the organising principle too, showing you what you need to do, in what order and when. Simple really.

 

Except this is not about random feelings, but passion, excitement, doing what you love.

Of course that's going to change as you do, but what excites you, what you are passionate about now, is who you are in this moment. It is how to really connect with your true being because that is the language it speaks.

 

And for many, those guiding principles come from someone else, something else, that is an interpretation, often a corruption, of the original intention.

The organisations many look to for these principles are not the only way to find them.

 

I understand. You're a believer and a follower of the bible, and that's fine. If you do so with integrity, then I have nothing to say about it, other than to paraphrase Gandhi...

...I like your Christ, but I don't like your Christians.

Not to take away your personal connection, because it might be the real thing, but you have to admit that as an organisation, the corruption of the Catholic church and the insipid pedophilia by so many of its priests, must surely leave a bad taste in your mouth.

 

I like your Christ, I don't like your Christians.

It's not Christianity, or Judaism, or Islam, actually, as I have come across wonderful people in each, full of integrity, who are living their lives honourably, according to its teachings. It is the idea of organised religion generally.

I won't go into citing ancient pagan festivals, worshipping the sun, or the many other older cultures that have similar stories to the Christian one. Stories are stories and the ideas they contain need to come in some form for people to access them.

Are you familiar with the idea that Jesus was anointed with Cannabis? That it was his use of the plant, and other Psychedelic substances that are being referred to in what for many is an allegorical text. It's not told to the masses that the temple priests used these to commune with God, just as certain Shamanic practitioners do. Religion and its books are there for people on all levels. Remember, back in the day people were poor and uneducated, so things had to be simple, easy to understand, leaving the more esoteric, Gnostic, mystery teachings, for those who were ready for them.

 

I hadn't look at it like that before. I can see the symbolism now.

I think when one looks with open heart at anything there is truth to be found.

Exactly. There are a number of clear and unequivocal references to mushrooms, especially in early Judea/Christian art. It is now thought that in the OT, 'manna' was a hidden reference to the practice of the priests taking psychedelics. There is much evidence once you start to look...

 

Take a look at this...