[GJM] Fw: Bible is not Dark--there are various narrations

[mary rose]

----- Original Message ----- 
From: Steve Consilvio 
To: discussion at globaljusticemovement.net 
Sent: Friday, June 06, 2008 7:12 AM
Subject: [GJM] Bible is not Dark--there are various narrations


It seems to me far more likely that every society needs its prophets, and one is provided.  Why would God abandon his love of man for any one society?  That does not preclude the possibility that one prophet is above the other prophets.  Jesus worked miracles, but there have been other magical healers as well.  How does the narrative fit together from Adam and Eve (or the giant turtle) until today?  Perhaps in ways which we will never understand rationally, but can accept spiritually.  It is too much information for the human brain.  We are all connected.  The people of the past struggled with all the same issues we do, but are there turning points?  What is truth and what is misinterpretation?


I am of the opinion that history is linear, not cyclical, so therefore there is an event evolving of which we are a part of.  We are born into an ever greater tale of history, not as observers but as participants.  That is the shift from the rational to the spiritual that occurs both as individuals and collectively.  Some ideas are a dead end; "it can't be true because it is the same story," rather than "it must be true because it has happened before."  Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.


Think of how much joy it is to watch our children grow and develop.  Should God deny himself the same pleasure?  Or really, is it something that a parent can control?  The children make their own way, and while it may be new to them, it is not new at all.  Religious bickering is not "meaningless," but the method of exploring and discovering ourselves.  The Truth thousands of years old is still the truth, and errors thousands of years old are still errors.  The challenge (struggle, jihad) is the same as it has always been, to separate the light from the dark from within ourselves and others.  Paganism makes sense to the pagan, Christianity to the Christian, and so on, but where is the dividing line between truth and created fiction?  We bicker because the truth is important.  Getting it wrong has dramatic consequences.  Our "rituals" of habit are not benign, even more so than the unpleasant bickering. We are never a label, just as a book (Bible, Quran, Torah) is not just a book.  We are not pages and ink and word symbols, we are the meaning; the spirit and the flesh combined.


Is there any single concept more crazy than "love your enemy" and "give your money away."  Governments are instituted on the exact opposite theme:  hate your enemy and "create and control" money.  As long as there has been governments and money there has been a need for prophets to challenge the system.  They challenge the first assumption of every society, just as Paine challenged the legitimacy of the King, but there is a huge difference between a revolutionary and a prophet.  The prophet reveals, whereas the rebel destroys.  A rebel may have a vision, but not a strategy, and falls trap to "might equals right."  All bickering generally revolves around avoiding this question.  If you take upon yourself the power of force and the love of money, then how can one deny others the same right?  The rebel seeks to change places within the current system, whereas the prophet seeks to change the system by changing the people.  The religious disputes are essentially the same hierarchy of pride and control, where everyone wants to sit directly by God's side.  There can only be one in the first seat.  But Jesus is full of surprises.  He doesn't sit down, instead he washes everyone's feet, including those of Judas.  Like a lamb to the wolves, we get to choose which we shall be: the lamb or the wolf.  Both read the same books, live in the same world, but what they understand is very different.


peace,
steve

Dear Steve, 

What we are talking about here, from a scientific point of view is "brain dominance".  In 1981, neuroscientist, Roger Sperry won the Nobel prize for showing that the brain has two hemispheres which may operate independently of one another.  In fact, when one side was split from the other in people with epilepsy to find a cure for this disease, no difference was found in motor skills of the whole body.  

However, what we do know is that one side of the brain may be more dominant than the other side.  And frequently this is the left side.  In fact, recent research studies show that as much as 75 percent of the population of the U.S. may be left-brain dominant. However, there really is no such thing as complete brain dominance, and work of neuroscientist, Dr. Carla Hannaford reveals that there are in fact 32 different configurations of brain dominance. For more on how brain dominance is uncovered, I recommend her book:  "The Dominance Factor: .  

A short overview reads:  This book (i)ntroduces the idea of the Dominance Profile - a factor that shapes the way we think - as originally explored by Dr. Paul Dennison. The Profile gives important clues about learning preferences under stress and can point to, or explain, possible areas of difficulty. Methods are given for using laterality assessment to determine the profile. The possible 32 profiles are detailed with suggested strategies to expand the learner's profile. Details of a study involving 218 school students that supports the approach.

One of the key things to note here are the words:  "Dominance Profile: a  factor that shapes the way we think."  And, xome things that shape our dominance profile are: 1) our environment in utero, 2) the parenting factor, 3) and the manner in which teaching is directed, particularly up to age six, but also thereafter. Our present educational system is geared toward directing teaching to the left - linear side of the brain which accounts for much of the population of the U.S. being left-brain linear oriented -- a very imbalanced factor when one considers that the optimum brain configuration is "holographic" meaning that both sides of the brain are "entrained" or "integrated" and working coherently. 

But another surprising factor is learning that the heart also has a brain which gives the heart the ability to overide the brain's decisions, and so the heart brain must also be entrained with the brain in our head to bring about what is frequently called "the mind-body" connection which contributes to whole body coherence or balance.  

Brain dominance also very much influences how we receive information, and what information is received. It is impossible for us to handle the amount of information/energy that is being directed continually toward our system and within it. So, we have both fine- and gross-grained filters/screens that regulate our sensory systems, and determine what will be allowed in and what will not. And, how this is determined is main by frequency. As I have indicated previously, we are set up as highly refined sending and receiving units and it appears that each individual cell is a "computer chip" and that our personal body is set up like a personal computer.system which gathers information through the chips. And then, our personal computer system is connected to what might be described as a "big mainframe computer in the sky" now called the Akashic Field.  And, everything is connected and operated by the electromagnetic energy signals that underlie all of life and flow throughout the Universe as well as within each of our bodies, forming what many call "the web of life." 

When we are either predominantly right-brain or left-brain dominant, it is like we are driving down the highway of life, able to see only through one side of our vehicle. Consequently, we miss whole chunks of data that are not incorporated into the "big picture" that we need in order to make informed and intelligent decisions by considering the "whole dynamic" of any given situation.   

However, we can also change this by making a conscious choice to do so.  And there are several methods that work, structured movement being one of the most effective ways. Dr. Carla Hannaford recommends a process called "Brain Gym, or Educational Kineseology," which involves a series of movement designed to correct the bain/mind imbalance.  http://www.braingym.org/   However, one of the most powerful methods of accomplishing this is through the study and implementation of "Tai Ch and Qui Gong," both of which may be described as "moving meditations.  

Both of these martial arts practices are designed to enhance the flow of  "chi" or the body's life (energy) force. This art has been studied and perfected by the Chinese for over 4,000 years. What is taking place through exercise is "myelination". For more information on myelination:  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Myelin  .  Qui Gong is a derivative of Tai Chi, and is more of a "healing artform," Known to produce immense mnd power, Qui Gong is a prohibited practice in China.  

I practice lightly with a Black Belt Tai Chi/Qui Gong master, who now is able to manage his "chi" in such a way as to completely control and elimiate former epilepsy seizures. He now practices with some of the top Tai Chi master in the country and has told me of some of the feats he has witnessed. Such things as watching a master send another person reeling ten feet across a room without ever touching his body. A master sitting on the floor and asking as many as 6 - 8 students to remove him from that position -- a feat impossible for them to do.  

What science is re-revealing is that the power of the mind is the most powerful force in the world.  And, we now know how to train this force and use in a healthy manner by 1) developing our social intelligence, 2) to heal our bodies and maintain them in balance and coherence, 3) and, create health and sustainable communities.  

A Walking Meditation has been designed by Thich Nhat Hanh, Thich Nhat Hanh is a Vietnamese Buddhist monk who now lies in exile in France. While living in Vietnam he endured all kinds of hardships, yet he is a walking example of joy and gratitude. When asked how he survived such difficulties with such peace and love in his heart, he replied that "every morning he used to ask himself what he could count on that day; sometimes it was only the blue sky and the brown earth, and the fact that he was still breathing in and out. But in counting his blessings, so to speak, he reconnected to the miracle that he was, at least for the present moment, still alive in this beautiful world. "Suffering is not enough. Life is both dreadful and wonderful," he reminds us. "How can I smile when I am filled with so much sorrow? It is natural - you need to smile to your sorrow because you are more than your sorrow." 
"The Zen master Ling Chi said that the miracle is not to walk on burning charcoal or in the thin air or on the water; the miracle is just to walk on earth. You breathe in. You become aware of the fact you are alive. You are still alive and you are walking on this beautiful planet. . . The greatest of all miracles is to be alive."-Thich Nhat Hanh

Directions for a walking meditation by Thich Nhat Hanh may be found here:  http://www.care2.com/greenliving/thich-nhat-hanh-walking-meditation.html

Another peaceful and quiet means of entraining one's brain and heart may be accomplished by listening to music specifically designed for healing.  http://www.healingmusic.org/

Something I really want to point out and emphasize here, is that these practices were once known to and incorporated into the lives of the people by priests highly skilled in many of these exercises. And, they were used to heal. Most of today's clergy are completely bereft of knowledge in healing practics and use counseling as a technique.or in the case of the Catholic Church confession and forgiveness..The present practice within many churches is to stand up behind a pulpit and preach a sermon that parishioners are expected to obey.. And the fear of God has long been used to keep people in line, rather than to use "energy" as a healing modality.  Is it any wonder that religion continually fails to address address social challenges today as the pulpit is increasingly a place where politics are conducted, rather than a place from which healing takes place?  

Your essay here, Steve, is well written. With love and in gratitude for all that you do, and all that we do together. 

mary rose.

We must be the change we wish to see in our lives.  M. Gandhi      .                           .  .  .  . 

 .  .  .  .   .
   

      




On FridayJun 6, 2008, at 8:55 AM, discussion-request at globaljusticemovement.net wrote:


  Dear Muhammad, et al,

         Freke, and Gandy are highly respected scholarly authors, and check, and double check their information.I am sure they have read the Quran . What they have been trying to do is to get to the "hidden" truth of certain religions. 




  The book which they wrote about Christianity was quite fascinating. It was called the Jesus Mysteries. It revealed that the Bible teachings concerning the life of Christ were clearly copied in the main from specific tales about Osiris, and Dionysius. However, such claims have been known for decades amongst many Christian scholars. What Freke, and Gandy did was merely to popularize this "revelation". In other words, Christianity is largely a re-hash of pagan, or "heathen" thinking, and beliefs under a different name....




  As far as I am concerned this does not undermine a personal belief in Christ. It merely expands it into something more extraordinary, and wonderful. The Real Christ is the PURE HIGHER INNER SELF. It does not matter (eg. Allah, Krishna, Ram, et al)what name you give It because what matters is your FAITH, AND BELIEF in It. The SELF is nothing but a projection from God, and is WHO, AND WHAT WE REALLY ARE without all the negative mental/emotional baggage. So, all this religious bickering about who has the real ultimate spiritual authority becomes essentially meaningless in the light of all this.





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