Have you ever come across an article, book, or video that resonates with you so deeply that it brings you close to tears, simply because it somehow manages to describe exactly how you feel or what you believe?
I've struggled so hard to describe on this blog, and so inadequately, my own beliefs regarding my place in this universe, and my reason for getting up in the morning despite not believing in a god. In just five minutes, the video below (I came across it here) does a far better job than I did in five years. It's a beautiful representation of how I view life.
If you watch this video, then you will gain some understanding of what it means to be a naturalist. But more than that, you will gain some understanding of the person named Kevin Parry.
Welcome! This blog covers my thoughts and struggles as an ex-Christian. If you like, read my introductory post. I've also written two "concluding" posts on why I no longer post here that often. Feel free to comment!
9 comments:
I too was moved by this video. Glad to see it making the rounds.
Beautiful words... Beautiful images. I just might have to post that on my Blog too.
Thanks for that!
Thank you for posting this video. I am on the fence between Christianity and Deism, and I always think it's nice when I see *anybody* who takes their beliefs seriously enough to actually *think* about them.
A lot of people I know who claim to be Christian will argue that there are a lot of inexplicable mysteries. I disagree: I think that there are some, but I believe that a lot of stuff is explainable. -Not from a religious standpoint. I mean like... extensions of medical science; that sort of thing.
Simply beautiful.
~Dar
A lot of people I know who claim to be Christian will argue that there are a lot of inexplicable mysteries
Hi Chris. Welcome! The fact that there are mysteries that we can’t explain doesn’t lend any support to the claim that God exists. If a mystery exists, the only thing we can claim is that a mystery exists. Any person who tries to use our lack of knowledge to argue for God is simply arguing from ignorance.
I've struggled so hard to describe on this blog, and so inadequately, my own beliefs regarding my place in this universe, and my reason for getting up in the morning despite not believing in a god.
THE GOAL OF LIFE
So what exactly is the goal of life here on earth? Is it to be rich? To be famous? To have a big fancy car? To have a huge house? To have a big screen HDTV? To go on expensive vacations every year?
To have unlimited sex on demand? To be constantly entertained? To eat like a king every day of the week? To work all of the time? To attain power? To get drunk?
To have lots of friends? To collect collectables? To have lots of things? To play sports? To watch sports all the time? To watch movies? To play games? To look at pornography? To play computer games all day long?
Of course, the answer to all of the above is no. None of those things are the goal of life here on earth. So what is the goal of life? From the old Baltimore Catechism, the goal of life here on earth is:
TO KNOW, LOVE, AND SERVE GOD IN THIS LIFE, SO THAT WE CAN BE HAPPY WITH HIM IN HEAVEN.
Jesus said in Matthew 6:19-20:
"Lay not up to yourselves treasures on earth; where the rust and moth consume and where thieves break through and steal.
But lay up to yourselves treasures in heaven; where neither the rust nor moth doth consume, and where thieves do not break through nor steal. "
THE GOAL OF LIFE - CONTINUED
So now that you know the real goal of life here on earth, the questions we then have to answer are:
Do we know God through studying His Word in the Holy Bible? Do we even have a copy of the Catechism of the Catholic Church in our home so that we can know what His Church teaches?
Do we listen to the words of the Mass, or are we thinking about NFL football, the blond in front of us, what's for Sunday lunch, or the show we saw on TV last night?
Do we listen to Catholic radio and TV so that we can learn our own faith? Do we think that being a nice person is more important than reading and studying the Bible?
Do we obey the 10 Commandments? Can we even recite from memory what the 10 Commandments are (most Catholics cannot)?
Do we truly love God by telling Him each and every day that we love Him? Do we recite our prayers like an auctioneer, or do we say them with meaning and love?
Do we even know what we are saying when we say the Our Father and Hail Mary? Like the tax collector (Luke 18:13) in the temple, do we beat our breast and continually say to God "Have mercy on me a sinner"?
Do we love our neighbor and our enemies as well? Do we take time to meditate without words on the passion of Jesus?
Like Jesus, do we love His mother and saints?
Like Jesus from the cross, do we forgive our enemies, even those enemies who have done us the worst? Do we totally trust in God as our loving Father to take care of us all of the time, or do we trust more in ourselves, our smarts, and our bank account? Jesus said in the Sermon on the Mount:
Matthew 5:42: Give to him who begs from you, and do not refuse him who would borrow from you. "You have heard that it was said, `You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.'
But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.
For if you love those who love you, what reward have you? Do not even the tax collectors do the same?
And if you salute only your brethren, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same?
You, therefore, must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.
Do we serve God in this life by asking God what His plan is for us? Do we pray that our own will may be united to God's will ?
Do we try to attend daily Mass in honor of His great sacrifice?
To we help out the less fortunate by giving up our time, our talents, and our treasure, or do we try to avoid them in favor of personal comfort and leisure time?
Are we uncomfortable around the poor, or do we see the face of Jesus in the poor? Jesus said in 25:40:
THE GOAL OF LIFE - CONTINUED
"Whatever you did for the least of my brethren, YOU DID IT TO ME."
Christianity is not a religion for wimps. Rather, it is a 24/7/365 way of life. Satan is envious of us (Wisdom 2:24) because he had his chance for heaven, and blew it.
He knows that we humans will one day take his place in the heavenly realm, and he is doing all he can to prevent us from enjoying that.
He tries to distract us from the true meaning of life on earth by showing us his glitz and glamor through TV and the movies.
He tries to make us think that being rich is a wonderful thing, that being beautiful is important, that eating tasty foods all of the time is a great thing, and that unlimited sex is fantastic.
Jesus, on the other hand, teaches us all just the opposite. Remember, God doesn't desire you to love Him some of the time, or most of the time; rather, He desires that you love Him ALL OF THE TIME!
So now that you know all of this, what is your response? It should be to pray for the Holy Spirit to come into your life (Luke 11:13) and to guide you away from the things of this world, and to desire to know, love, and serve God now and until you die, so that you can be happy with Him forever in heaven.
The alternative is hell, so what are you waiting for!!
It's good to know that this video this has also touched others.
Chris Chen wrote
A lot of people I know who claim to be Christian will argue that there are a lot of inexplicable mysteries
I've heard this too. But the important point is that the existence of a mystery doesn't prove (or disprove) the existence of a God, anymore that it proves or disproves any myriad of other explanations. All that it does is prove that there is a mystery. This is an invalid argument, as it argues from ignorance.
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