My friend, a person who shares my religious view, communicated certain skepticism and made the comment that if it doesn't come through the veins of church leaders, she just doesn't believe it.
I mulled that over. And, to me, it feels incredibly closed.
It's like I can see all these lights of truth around me. Hundreds of truths everywhere I look! Starting with things that have been on my mind most recently, but not limited to: differing political view points, basic natural tendencies, psychic power - ok, I know I've just freaked you out, and sciences of all sorts.
I see hundreds of different lights of truth. Some of my friends see some of them. Other friends see a different set. And they argue about which is really true. And I see them all and think to myself, "why can't they both be true? How come they can't all be lights that emanate from the same sphere of truth?!" I observe certain fallacies within them, and perhaps a change necessary in future perfection, but there are certain points of truth that are the burgeoning of the fundamental philosophy. But we get lost in the ticky-tacky.
Then I came across a quote from Brigham Young that said, "Mormonism embraces all truth that is revealed and that is not revealed, whether religious, political, scientific, or philosophical."
I thought of Christ and the creation of the Earth. Is He not the ultimate scientist? He took the elements of the Earth; dust, water, particles and created life! Also, He commanded the seas to obey Him! He was a master healer who realigned human defect enabling the blind to see, the palsy whole, and the leper cleansed. He walked on water!
Yet, He still obeyed all the laws of physics. He just knew more about science than we mortals. And since His purpose in coming was not to teach science, but to bring eternal truths that would lead to salvation, He left the science lessons out and instead spoke of behavior (which lesson we struggle to master and I also believe to be fundamental in our understanding for any of the rest of it).
I must admit, never once in attending church have I had a science lesson. Yet there is truth within it. Just because my religious leaders didn't speak of it, doesn't make it untrue. And that's just science! What about the rest of it?!
Our gift is to seek for personal development. Our gift is to seek for ".. anything virtuous, lovely, or of good report or praiseworthy". The article of faith 13 makes no mention of it to be only within Church walls. As understood from John 17:11-17, We are to be in the world, but not of the world!
I do not believe in closing my mind to the truth that is in the air. I choose to use my religious knowledge as my base of understanding for everything else. And it's not something I will release my grip on. It is my ground. Where would I be if I didn't have something to stand on? And what could be more firm footing than God and his divine principles?
I will continue to find truth in the essence of life all around me. I believe God is in control of the whole world. I believe it is all going according to His plan. How can He not be everywhere within the truth of it's creation in some way or another? And I will seek the Holy Spirit of God to alight upon me and verify to my heart whether the things I view are true or not. I believe He will reveal certain connecting dots that I am unable to comprehend on my own because He "knoweth all things." Which thing I certainly cannot claim. But I will not close my heart to understanding them.
It is all within the right attitude where all things can be learned. If you close your mind to something, you close your ability to learn about it. I pray my attitude will continue to allow development and that my mind will never be closed to what I might find that is good and true.
...me
As a side note, I'm sure that my friend would agree that there is truth in science. Gravity is just too easy. My point is, what truths have we closed our minds to? For whatever reason, are our minds closed to seeing the truth that could be within something that we would, at first glance, choose to ignore or judge as false before we inspect it?
As a side note, I'm sure that my friend would agree that there is truth in science. Gravity is just too easy. My point is, what truths have we closed our minds to? For whatever reason, are our minds closed to seeing the truth that could be within something that we would, at first glance, choose to ignore or judge as false before we inspect it?
Your friends comment is one of the things that frustrate me most about religious people. Many, NOT ALL, but many religious people will only consider their faiths point of view and nothing else. If my church leader, prophet, pope, the bible, or other religious figure doesn't mention it well, it must be sin, wrong, or not true. It drives me CRAZY!!
ReplyDeleteThe bible doesn't mention science so science must be of the devil. Why? Why can't God have created science? If God created the earth as many believe, then it seems logical that he has a great knowledge of science. Right? I have asked the same question, "Why can't they both be true?" many, many times. As an example: Why can't God have created evolution? To me, evolution and God are not mutually exclusive.
I feel it's a great learning experience to talk to someone with differing views than my own. I enjoy listening to the other side of the issue because it regularly makes me see things in a way I had not thought of. It generally doesn't change my mind about the issue but it brings a fuller understanding.
On our last night in Belize 6 of us went out to dinner including Jordan and Lindsey, who are atheists. A conversation developed between Lindsey and Jordan, myself (who believes in God), and Luke (who doesn't know) about faith and whether God exists. It was a long but respectful discussion, no arguments or anything like that, just a discussion between friends about our differing beliefs. When we got up to leave, a lady at the next table (an American) made a snide comment about how she was offended by our discussion and glad we were leaving. Why?? We weren't rude, obscene, or obnoxious. (Well, for the most part, I mean it is Jordan we're talking about!) We were just talking about views that differed from her own. That's it.
If only people could see that differing view points are what makes humanity great! If we were all the same the world would be pretty darn boring.