The way I see it, it hurts to know that there are seriously people alive who do not acknowledge the presence of a REAL God-the ONLY, TRUE God.
I was doing some work last weekend and had to solicit the help of someone very close to me and you know when you are doing work, you have the occasion to strike up a nice conversation.
And so, we struck up a conversation. I happened to mention something about church and his response caught me totally unawares. I almost fell out of the vehicle.
He said quite nonchalantly: ‘Church is a joke—a waste of time!’
Well I newa!
Now, this is a man who was brought up in the Anglican Church and there was a point when he attended church quite regularly and accepted that there was a God—THE GOD.
When I had overcome my obvious shock, I asked: ‘So, what about heaven and hell?’
‘There is no heaven and no hell,’ he said, again offhandedly.
‘I was really curious now: ‘So when you die, what will happen to you?’
‘Nothing will happen. I won’t die. I will live on forever,’ he said confidently.
‘So, you believe in reincarnation?’ I asked dumbfounded.
‘Yes,’ he said casually.
So, I reviewed my understanding of REINCARNATION. My good friend MR. GOOGLE indicates: ‘Reincarnation is the philosophical or religious concept that an aspect of a living being starts a new life in a different physical body or form after each biological death. It is also called rebirth or transmigration, and is a part of the Saṃsāra doctrine of cyclic existence It is a central tenet of all major Indian religions, namely Jainism, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Sikhism. The idea of reincarnation is found in many ancient cultures, and a belief in rebirth/metempsychosis was held by Greek historic figures, such as Pythagoras, Socrates, and Plato. It is also a common belief of various ancient and modern religions such as Spiritism, Theosophy, and Eckankar, and is found as well in many tribal societies around the world, in places such as Australia, East Asia, Siberia, and South America.’
‘So, what about GOD? Don’t you have respect for a higher power?’ I persisted.
‘Well, there is God but God is nature—the sun, the moon, the stars and such like,’ he said.
I was flabbergasted.
I again reviewed my limited knowledge on the subject and again checked with Mr. Google:
‘‘Pantheism is the belief that reality is identical with divinity, or that all-things compose an all-encompassing, immanent god. Pantheist belief does not recognize a distinct personal anthropomorphic god and instead characterizes a broad range of doctrines differing in forms of relationships between reality and divinity.
Pantheism was popularized in Western culture as a theology and philosophy based on the work of the 17th-century philosopher Baruch Spinoza, particularly his book Ethics, published in 1677. The term “pantheism” was coined by mathematician Joseph Raphson in 1697 and has since been used to describe the beliefs of a variety of people and organizations.
Pantheistic concepts date back thousands of years, and pantheistic elements have been identified in various religious traditions.’
I realized that my trend of conversation would be futile and I told him that the most I can do for him, is to pray for him and hope that he returns to his former sound beliefs in the God of Gods.
Sadly, since my conversation, I have been told that there are many more like him, even in my beautiful Nevis.
Small wonder, our island has become so chaotic in recent times and our children do not like to nor go to church.
The problem is that we have raised a generation of parents who have never gone to church and therefore naturally will neither take nor encourage their children to go to church.
Now, Nevis alone has approximately 69 churches, at the last unofficial count and so we are viewed as a RELIGIOUS island.
Sadly, our general behaviour does not match the teachings that are purported by the church.
And so dear reader, if you are so minded, rather than engage you in another useless debate, let us do some SUPPOSING:
Suppose there is really no God and no heaven nor hell, then you can live your life as you please and there will be no punitive measures when you die, or sorry, ‘when your spirit leaves your body.’
However, if I continue to trust God and die seeking to please him, then I will gain heaven at last and even if I die without seeking forgiveness for my sins, there will be no PUNISHMENT for me either.
But now, let us suppose that there is indeed a heaven and a hell and we don’t live to please God, then those of us who don’t will be damned to an eternal punishment.
So, ‘let us reason together.’
Isn’t it better to be SAFE than SORRY?
Shouldn’t we trust God even if we cannot trace him?
I firmly believe so and by God’s grace, I want to continue to trust and serve him, despite my many frailties.
That’s the way I see it. How do you see it?
The Way I See It
The way I see it, it hurts to know that there are seriously people alive who do not acknowledge the presence of a REAL God-the ONLY, TRUE God.
I was doing some work last weekend and had to solicit the help of someone very close to me and you know when you are doing work, you have the occasion to strike up a nice conversation.
And so, we struck up a conversation. I happened to mention something about church and his response caught me totally unawares. I almost fell out of the vehicle.
He said quite nonchalantly: ‘Church is a joke—a waste of time!’
Well I newa!
Now, this is a man who was brought up in the Anglican Church and there was a point when he attended church quite regularly and accepted that there was a God—THE GOD.
When I had overcome my obvious shock, I asked: ‘So, what about heaven and hell?’
‘There is no heaven and no hell,’ he said, again offhandedly.
‘I was really curious now: ‘So when you die, what will happen to you?’
‘Nothing will happen. I won’t die. I will live on forever,’ he said confidently.
‘So, you believe in reincarnation?’ I asked dumbfounded.
‘Yes,’ he said casually.
So, I reviewed my understanding of REINCARNATION. My good friend MR. GOOGLE indicates: ‘Reincarnation is the philosophical or religious concept that an aspect of a living being starts a new life in a different physical body or form after each biological death. It is also called rebirth or transmigration, and is a part of the Saṃsāra doctrine of cyclic existence It is a central tenet of all major Indian religions, namely Jainism, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Sikhism. The idea of reincarnation is found in many ancient cultures, and a belief in rebirth/metempsychosis was held by Greek historic figures, such as Pythagoras, Socrates, and Plato. It is also a common belief of various ancient and modern religions such as Spiritism, Theosophy, and Eckankar, and is found as well in many tribal societies around the world, in places such as Australia, East Asia, Siberia, and South America.’
‘So, what about GOD? Don’t you have respect for a higher power?’ I persisted.
‘Well, there is God but God is nature—the sun, the moon, the stars and such like,’ he said.
I was flabbergasted.
I again reviewed my limited knowledge on the subject and again checked with Mr. Google:
‘‘Pantheism is the belief that reality is identical with divinity, or that all-things compose an all-encompassing, immanent god. Pantheist belief does not recognize a distinct personal anthropomorphic god and instead characterizes a broad range of doctrines differing in forms of relationships between reality and divinity.
Pantheism was popularized in Western culture as a theology and philosophy based on the work of the 17th-century philosopher Baruch Spinoza, particularly his book Ethics, published in 1677. The term “pantheism” was coined by mathematician Joseph Raphson in 1697 and has since been used to describe the beliefs of a variety of people and organizations.
Pantheistic concepts date back thousands of years, and pantheistic elements have been identified in various religious traditions.’
I realized that my trend of conversation would be futile and I told him that the most I can do for him, is to pray for him and hope that he returns to his former sound beliefs in the God of Gods.
Sadly, since my conversation, I have been told that there are many more like him, even in my beautiful Nevis.
Small wonder, our island has become so chaotic in recent times and our children do not like to nor go to church.
The problem is that we have raised a generation of parents who have never gone to church and therefore naturally will neither take nor encourage their children to go to church.
Now, Nevis alone has approximately 69 churches, at the last unofficial count and so we are viewed as a RELIGIOUS island.
Sadly, our general behaviour does not match the teachings that are purported by the church.
And so dear reader, if you are so minded, rather than engage you in another useless debate, let us do some SUPPOSING:
Suppose there is really no God and no heaven nor hell, then you can live your life as you please and there will be no punitive measures when you die, or sorry, ‘when your spirit leaves your body.’
However, if I continue to trust God and die seeking to please him, then I will gain heaven at last and even if I die without seeking forgiveness for my sins, there will be no PUNISHMENT for me either.
But now, let us suppose that there is indeed a heaven and a hell and we don’t live to please God, then those of us who don’t will be damned to an eternal punishment.
So, ‘let us reason together.’
Isn’t it better to be SAFE than SORRY?
Shouldn’t we trust God even if we cannot trace him?
I firmly believe so and by God’s grace, I want to continue to trust and serve him, despite my many frailties.
That’s the way I see it. How do you see it?