Meditate Like Christ

What you say of  Jesus son of God and son of Man is beautiful. But nothing can defeat one's faith better than feeling  self-righteous about it. The history of religion has taught us that much and many have turned away from their native creed for exactly that reason. Actually, I owe to some of those modern gurus and thinkers to have re-discovered the great value hidden inside the perenial teachings of Jesus who spoke through symbols, as was the use in his time. Two very enlightening 'gurus' or rather scholars I would like to recommend are Bishop Spong, an Episcopalian scholar, and Andrew Harvey, author of Jesus Son Of Man, two persons whose faith cannot be questioned.

Dear Thierry, 

I don't even want to pretend that I'm self-righteous. I'm a sinner, totally depraved like all human beings needing my Savior and my Lord Jesus Christ all the time. I don't understand deep thinking and philosophy...all I know is I'm saved by the blood of Jesus who died for my sins. All I wanted to tell my friends here is, to understand that GOD is Holy, righteous,loving,faithful....everything good and perfect, which none of us are and we can't be meditating and rationalizing ourselves by this one attribute that it is all love. We can't even begin to think of Agape (unconditional) love, like Jesus Christ...not one human being can! I'm praying that people understand the Truth, read the bible like a child and accept Christ for what He is!  Love to all :)

In Him,
rajeev

 For whatever reason, I found Thierry and Rajeev' words up on my iPad this afternoon! Of course, I had to read them. . . and read, again!  Amen to you!

This is why I am so thankful for our new Pope!  From the very beginning, in action and word, I see and hear Jesus in him . . . simple truth and active love.

A blessed Advent season to you . . . As we wait in joyful hope for The One and Only, righteous King of kings, JESUS.

 I wonder if we are to "wait... for The One and Only...JESUS? Or are we to seek to develop ourselves in ways that reveal the Jesus in all of us? My hunch is that waiting for JESUS will be much less productive than "seeking what he sought" and thus evolving ourselves so we manifest more and more of the principles his life either embodied or has come to embody.  

 YES, NO INCARNATION, NO RELIGION, NO SCRIPTURE CAN EXHAUST THE TREMENDOUS MYSTERY OF GOD. JESUS WAS FULLY OPEN TO THE DIVINE. LIKE THE ROOT IS IN THE STEM, THE STEM IN THE BRANCHES, SO GOD WAS / IS IN JESUS. WHEN I MEDITATE LIKE JESUS, I AWAKEN THE CHRIST IN ME.

 That is blasphemy.

 What is blasphemy? And what is blasphemy?

 google it. Jesus was God.

 Is there anything in the universe that is NOT God if one is receptive to perceiving through the eye of empathy and love?

 then go worship a milk carton.

 OH my GOD!! no creature in the universe is God. Only God is God. One God in three different Persons, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. We humans are made to be like Him but always fall short, because of sin. He is perfect, we are not. The best thing we can do is to strive for holiness.

Meg is there room for different people and different religions to have different views on this or is there one truth only? If so, how do you know this truth is the one truth? Why isn't there room for different beliefs based on different spiritual traditions? How can you be so sure that what you believe is the one true belief?

 Well said, Jon Madian. I love Jesus, though I'm a Hindu, because Hinduism believes that all religions are different pathways to the ONE God. Just because you love or revere a prophet from another religion, it does not make your own faith less, or your religion less holy !!

Jesus had come to India and had studied with Indian Masters. SANATANA DHARMA, the vast religious and spiritual philosophy of India existed much before Christianity or Islam. To believe that JESUS alone is the SON of God, is akin to saying that before Jesus, in the thousands and thousands of years of human civilisation, God did not bother to send any Messenger to Earth; was GOD's love for humans less till Christ was sent ?

Dogmatic Christians should look at the historical context of Christianity.

 Jesus himself said, No one comes to the Father but by me. Quite exclusive sacrifice. 

 Oh of course Jon, there is room for everyone! God wants us all! But there is no room for contradictions and relativism… There is a difference between the Creator and the creatures, if we say that all are the same, that we “are God” because our empathy and love and whatever noble things we may have or feel, we are diminishing Him and exalting ourselves. We are made by Him and for Him, but because of our falling nature we need a Savior, Jesus, He came and opened the door again for us or better yet He is the door. How can I be so sure? Because that ‘s what Faith Is. To believe, and be sure of it without any proof, or it won’t be faith. Do we really want to believe and spend our energy and life in something that may not be true?
 

 Lakshmi, the historical context of Christianity is that God revealed Himself in Jesus. God, the One God, took human form and came to earth, before that, He prepared the people for it.…  I don’t think God’s love ever changed or ever will. It is just that he chose that specific time in history to fully reveal Himself, besides He is timeless, not bound by time, as we see it. I think Hinduism is fascinating,  it’s not really a religion… it’s acceptance of everything is somewhat admirable but at the same time could be a hindrance.. Jesus wants our total and complete surrender to Him.

Meg. I am amused and touched by your faith that DISMISSES everything else other than Christianity, which according to the Church is the one true religion. Why are you people so scared to acknowledge others ? As I said, this would mean that before Jesus, God never manifested on Earth, right ? So what was God doing for humanity for those THOUSANDS of years, I ask again?

HINDUISM is a very all-comprehensive way of life as well as a very ENLIGHTENED ancient religion. It is the tolerance of our culture that gave asylum to Jews persecuted everywhere else and a home to the PARSEES (Followers of ZOROASTER from Persia/modern IRAN).  Neither the violence of Islam nor the conversion-tactics of Christianity could wipe out this ancient culture. This ancient system is the oldest living religious and spiritual way of life in the world.
India was the home  to Buddhism, Sikhism, Jainism; she accepted Islam and Christianity as co-reliigons and gave asylum to Judaism and Zoroastrianism. This all-inclusiveness comes from the FIRM belief that ALL human beings are manifestations of DIVINITY. and there exist MANY PATHS to GOD. This does not mean that we give up our beliefs. Only when you are STRONG in your belief can you accommodate another's and not feel either threatened or superior.
SIN cannot touch the DIVINE core/ATMA. But the human being, ignorant of his/her true identity as DIVINE makes many mistakes. When ENLIGHTENMENT happens, ignorance vanishes and you realise your true nature.

If you were in India, you would have known that the concept of AVATAAR, a word often misused out of context, refers to GOD coming down to Earth assuming a HUMAN form, but with all DIVINE capabilities intact, to lead man towards enlightenment. It is a slow and torturous process of EVOLUTION. Jesus was ONE such messenger of God.
It is time for dogmatic  Christians to wake up to the fact that you SHARE space on this earth with other and perhaps more enlightened people. The ancient texts of India mention at least 10 Avatars in pre-historic times. So, this is not a concept unique to Christianity at all.

JOE, like MEG here, you both are very ardent Christians and kudos to that.

However, what you think is Christianity, is a very watered down version of what Jesus actually taught. Don't believe ALL that your churches tell you. JESUS said, "My Father's House has many mansions. . ." Jesus spoke about many concepts that were REMOVED from the Bible because it did not suit the Church. Pray to your JESUS ardently and believe it or not, He will directly answer you. An APOSTLE of LOVE like Him can never teach His followers to disrespect or ridicule other faiths.

I cannot apologize for God's unpopular exclusivity that Jesus' substitutionary death has opened a narrow path to life. Your broad way, the scripture says, leads to death.  

Hinduism is the OLDEST surviving religion in the world !! Inclusiveness did not kill it, my dears.
EXPANSION is LIFE; contraction is death. LOVE is expansion and cannot die. Where love contracts, it smothers life.

When a balloon filled with air bursts, the air within it merges with the air outside it'; It is the death of the small entity called balloon, true. And thus the ego (individuality)  has to die for AWARENESS to be experienced.

Anyhow, no hard feelings. Much LOVE from India, as always !

 For sure no hard feelings since your argument is essentially with God and the Bible - not me. I didn't write the unpopular commands of God.

 Oh, and by the way, is this the same Hinduism that murders more Christians every year in India than all other countries combined worldwide? Sounds enlightened to me.

 Folks, I'm afraid this conversation is polarized in ways that can not lead to new, life affirming insights on either side, so I thank the open-minded who welcome a diversity of perspectives and wish others well. At least we all agree on the value of pursuing a spiritual path and I assume this includes loving and not judging others--a challenging task indeed. 

 That's it, Jon. Jesus is Polarizing. That's why they nailed Him to the cross, not because He agreed with everyone and gave life affirming thoughts. They hated Him because He said One Way. Now you got it!!!

 Joe, truly I agree with the "one way" if it involves love, compassion, non-judgment of self and others, witnessing (mindfulness) and so on, for that one way is the way of many wisdom traditions. Jesus is in me as doorway, as is the beauty of nature, Buddha, and those who share the journey of love and loss with me. Wishing you well, and apologies for NOT quite joining your camp. 

 Alright Jon. Don't apologize to me. It is Jesus the Christ with whom you must do business. The "one way" statement referred to himself. You got a lot of syncretistic stuff going on.

 I love the balloon "story picture"!  My personal balloon is popped!  My personal "air" beyond what an eye can see. 

Amen to you, L!

 Ohh Lakshmi, I can only talk for myself.. I am not scared of acknowledging anyone, I  think everyone try their best and that is exactly why I believe everyone should know Jesus, because He and only He is The Best; but  to know Him in the whole and full sense. Knowing Him means to have a relationship with Him, a relationship of love, when you love Him you will submit to Him, no matter how crazy it is or how ridicule, or funny or whatever you sound for others. I don’t have the specific answers for your question… just what I told you, God is not limited to time, so those thousands of years are not really that much… yes it is very simplistic or “watered down” but what Jesus teaches is very simple, to believe in Him to get to the Father that’s all.
By no means I want to ridicule or dismiss or diminish any other religion, much less Hinduism with all that it has and it is. I would love to be an expert on it, but I won’t even say anything about all those fancy words that you mention.  You probably heard and know about Fr. Bede Griffith, I think you will love him.
Hard feelings? never…
 

 Dear all,

Came across this interesting article. The world is expanding in understanding !

http://diversitychronicle.wordpress.com/2013/12/05/pope-francis-condemns-racism-and-declares-that-all-religions-are-true-at-historic-third-vatican-council/

With much love from INDIA