The Universal Christ

I don't need a specific view of the world, religion, philosophy, to understand the world needs more compassion and kindness, now. Unsure why many have chosen, let's argue until death's end, as though death does offer life's grace, but I feel most are just looking to prove, have their intellectual ability seen.

A different perspective, though, my nephew, very intelligent, sensitive, with a chip on his shoulder, while able to score 90% in philosophy in University. I love, he probably has a man more intelligent than him as his partner. My nephew is giving his partner room to prove his thesis needed to complete his PhD, which will come with needing to take on all criticism (from peers more than able).

I imagine that a very scornful room, but if true in spirit of academia, purpose towards advancing ideas, I support. That kind of room, academia, where egos will be flaring, maybe rightfully, in positioning our world to where it needs to be.

Yet most of many of us, must see our lives matter as any other's life matters, instead of measuring the value. There is a reason for the term, common people. Where we find healing matters less, but how we weave that healing. I looked at the moon tonight, thought how beautiful all of those I love would be looking upon this moon, and I thought if anyone could be looking at this moon, they might find themselves thinking of those they love.

Jesus answered:[b][c=BF0000] “Watch out that no one deceives you. 5 For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah,’ and will deceive many. 6 You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. 7 Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. 8 All these are the beginning of birth pains.

9 “Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me. 10 At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, 11 and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. 12 Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, 13 but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved. 14 And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come."[/c][/b]

Of course, such an outlook implies Universalism, which has always been a strong current in the Christian Faith, particularly in its early years. And a current now growing ever stronger as many recover their moral sense after its corruption by dogma and creed.

Universalism, that ALL will eventually be gathered in. A teaching only outlawed and declared heretical by the Roman emperor Justinian (6th century), possible concerned more with crowd control than seeking to truly understand God's love and His plans for the world.

But it was St Augustine (4th century) who truly set the seal on the repugnant doctrine of eternal conscious torment, a man who could not even read Greek and therefore unable to read the New Testament in its original language. Protestant Reform Theology owes much to his influence across the whole Christian Tradition.

So what of those who still adhere to the doctrine of eternal conscious torment? Given that our perfection will in part consist of love for [i]all[/i] (to love our neighbours as ourselves) will God perform a lobotomy on the "saved" so that they can forget those they knew on earth who never made it to heaven? Does perfection consist of being in a state of pure felicity when so many will be perpetually in torment? Those we perhaps knew and loved on earth? To have no concern for them, in effect to forget them, is our "perfection"?

But hey! They had their chance! Freedom was given for three score years and ten, they chose wrong - so then "freedom" (so invaluable to God) is then taken from them for eternity! So valuable that it is only ours for a small tick on the eternal clock. No freedom (to be respected by God) to ask for annihilation and thus a peace of sorts.

No doubt there will be an appeal to the "clear teaching of scripture" by those determined to cling on. In fact it is NOT the clear teaching of scripture. It is only "clear" to a particular time conditioned interpretation born of lack of true knowledge of the original language in which the New Testament was written. This made clear by those such as David Bentley Hart who has in fact made his own translation of the New Testament and is a Universalist. The notes contained in his translation explain all the relevant passages in detail. His book "That All Shall Be Saved" is worth a read.

Anyway, enough said. Sighs of relief all around!

On "paths as home" , I think perhaps the first time I heard the term was when reading the beautiful travelogue of the Japanese poet Basho, this in his own introduction to that work (i.e. "The Narrow Road to the Deep North"):-

[i]The moon and the sun are eternal travellers. Even the years wander on. A lifetime adrift in a boat, or in old age leading a tired horse into the years, every day is a journey, and the journey itself is home. From the earliest times there have always been some who perished along the road. Still I have always been drawn by windblown clouds into dreams of a lifetime of wandering.[/i]

I see now a relationship between any thought of final arrival with the thought that one has found a final truth, even [i]the[/i] truth. Worse, of thinking it is "ours", a possession. I'm reminded of some words found in a letter of Thomas Merton, speaking of an American religious group, the Shakers....

[i]The Shakers remain as witnesses to the fact that only humility keeps man in communion with truth, and first of all with his own inner truth. This one must know without knowing it, as they did. For as soon as a man becomes aware of "his truth" he lets go of it and embraces an illusion.[/i]

Emptiness, kenosis.

Just to share, having mentioned "The Narrow Road to the Deep North", a small passage from this (from the edition translated by Sam Hammil)

[i]Out in the field, a horse, and nearby a man cutting grass. I stopped to ask directions. Courteous, he thought awhile, then said, “Too many intersecting roads. It’s easy to get lost. Best to take that old horse as far as he’ll go. He knows the road. When he stops, get off, and he’ll come back alone.”
Two small children danced along behind, one with the curious name of Kasane, same as the pink flower.

With this kasane
she’s doubly pink
a fitting name

Arriving at a village, I tied a small gift to the saddle, and the horse turned back.[/i]

Simply another world, another time, another place. Yet here and now.