I am late in answering this question, but I really wanted to answer it, so here I go.But before I do , I feel it is important to point out that I have my beliefs and my opinions and I am not here to push them on to others. I do believe it is important to express ourselves and to have the freedom to do so without others taking it personally.
My life is my own, I happily take responsibility for my actions and for the way I choose to live my life. I also happily take responsibility for my health and my well being. I feel very strongly about having the freedom to do so, to have the freedom to listen to myself and follow my own instincts. I can be inspired by others and I have a lot of respect for others who are being true to themselves and who show respect to all other living beings on the earth.
I am not religious, I do not believe that there is A God.
I was raised in Ireland, where everything was more or less controlled by the Catholic Church. From a very young age I rebelled against the idea of religion. It was mostly a silent rebellion, nothing about attending a cold grey building and listening to a man dressed in black felt right to me. All I wanted to do was be outdoors. In the sun, in the rain, under the clouds. Having a man talk down to everyone in that building was never something I enjoyed. All this talk of sins and penance and being unworthy, just felt so unnatural and very depressing. No wonder so many live their lives feeling guilty. Every little thing you did would be scrutinized in that church. Each of the commandments were broken down, that if you even where to think about them ,then you were breaking them. All of course the men in black, who as it turned out committed so many violent crimes, but hey they are men of God, they are Men so it was okay.
Then there is the part of it where you are born into original sin. How can such a sacred act be considered a sin. How can a baby be born with sin? How can so many people think that this is okay? How can so many not question this. I did not want to be part of this, I did not want to be part of something that people just follow because they are told to. I can think for myself, I know the difference between right and wrong and this felt very wrong to me.
Then we learnt about all the abuse that happened in convents, in churches in mother and baby units all around the country. Boys raped, women abused and treated like slaves, their babies taken from them and sold abroad or killed. All this done by the 'Chosen' ones of God, by priests and nuns. And somehow so many people continue to have faith in this religion and follow this God.
As I got older I learnt about other religions and realized that none of them were for me. All of them have created so much segregation, so much divide and for all the wrong reasons. Then there are all the wars that have been fought over religion. Sufficient to say I wanted no part of any of it. I want no ties to any organization that condones violence against others, that segregates people because of their sexuality, where they were born, what they believe. Who rip families apart because a member of that family does not live the way that their God would approve.
I want no part of any organization that tells people that the Earth was made for them and thus giving them the excuse to abuse and mistreat it. I want no part of these man made religions that were all created to benefit mankind. I am not above nature, I am not below nature, I am part of it. I want nothing to do with this dominant worldview over nature. This worldview that has led to nothing but greed and destruction. The earth is not ours, we do not own it, we have no right to take from the earth without giving something back in return.
Everything I need comes from the earth, it provides for me. It is so abundant and full of riches. I do not need to look anywhere else. I can feel my connection to the earth, I witness the cycles of nature and I have my place amongst them. I do not feel the need to be a part of anything else, because I am full with respect and love for that which surrounds me. I have no space in my life for a God.
Why do bad things happen
Sometimes bad things happen because we need a wake up call, something to shake us up out of our stupor. To get us to pay attention to what we are really doing with our lives. Our bodies may have been trying to communicate with us, to get us to pay attention, but we didn't listen and in the end something bad happens that finally makes us listen.
Sometimes bad things happen and we don't know why, we can question and question and spend our time looking for answers and never find them. Sometimes it is not about why it happened but more about how we react or respond. Maybe there is a lesson to learn, something to discover or rediscover about ourselves.
Sometimes bad things happen and there is no logic or reason behind it, no lesson to learn, only suffering. Why does that happen, I do not know, I will never know. Why is my sister suffering, going through so much, losing her beautiful hair. Losing her ability to ever have children. Why is that happening, I have heard her ask those questions, I have hugged her as she asked them and I could not say anything, because how can I.
I do not know.
But what I do know, is that this is not a time for questions, this is a time to be together, to laugh and cry together. To say the things that need to be said, to express the love we feel, to not hold back, to express freely and honestly.
What I do know is that time is precious and so valuable and every moment matters. That we have a responsibility to live our lives fully, to love and be loved. To be aware and mindful in all that we do. To open ourselves up to the beauty that surrounds us and be grateful for every second that we get to spend with those we love. To be grateful for every breath we take, for every drop of water we drink, for every sun we see rise and set. This is not a time for questions about why, but more a time for living and being grateful.
Shit happens, it always has and it always will, it is part of life's cycles. What we have to do is accept it and carry on. We can not always waste time asking questions and looking for answers. Life is for the living. Acceptance is the most important thing, acceptance of who we are and where we are in our lives. Acceptance opens doors, it heals and leads to love.
1st Image Source:https:https://www.alanheeks.com/earth-wisdom-glennie-kindred//
8 Pillars of TribeSteemUp
WE are God. This reality is so far the best that an infinity of individuals can imagine into reality. There is no REAL good or bad, there is only cause and effect, action and consequence.
Pain and suffering are part of being in the physical plane just as love and pleasure. It took an infinity to get everything this good!
It turns out that it is the Meaning we give the Feeling that creates the next moment. The secret to life is to experience all that is without casting judgement (opinion) about what is happening.
Each of us is an infinite universe existing within an infinite universe. It is all the same mind imagining this. Pain and bad things are just temporary moments of delusion followed by the kind and loving Truth.
All is well.
Thanks @steemer-x for your feedback it is always so insightful, I personally do not like the word God, so I do not use it. For me there is no word to describe that which we are and that which surrounds us, it is so vast, it just is and to feel it is enough for me I do not need to name it.
And yes our lives come with pain and suffering and love and pleasure.
This is perfect, thank you x
My honor and pleasure Trucklife-family. You definitely hit on something important; FEELING it is the truest form of interaction with the cosmic mind. Feeling is the first language of the Universe.
Keep feeling the love. It doesn't need a name.
And that's just it, isn't it? What others give the name god, should in reality be named love. Nothing more, nothing less. The people who started to give 'it' the name god, started the division between people. The men in black of the church, and others in organized religion took 'it' and turned it into something else entirely. Not love, that's for sure. This just came to mind and I had to write it down haha. Thanks for that :)
Awesome @misslasvegas, Yes. LOVE. Love happens when we recognize the "god" in each of us.
That's why I really love the word Namaste; "The God in me recognizes the God in you." What else can we feel but love when we see the beauty and perfection of each being.
🤗
thank you @steemer-x xx
Why do bad things happen? Also important to ask why good things happen! Why does grace happen? Why does the sun shine without scorching us? Why does gravity keep us on earth, yet not crush us!
This was the basic question of Job. Jesus was asked this question by the Pharisees. They asked who sinned, this man or his parents, that he had such and such disease. He answers weren't satisfactory to them. These are good questions to explore.
yes all good questions, Nature provides us with so much we really are blessed by the abundance that our world graces us with. Thank you @steveitt
That pretty much summarizes the correct answer. Bad things as well as good things happen because life have a random factor we cannot control. It doesn't matter if there is a god or not, or if we are good or bad people, the random factor will still be there, making random things happen.
yeah that is true also @dedicatedguy, that is why acceptance is so important. Thank you for dropping by xx
I'm stunned every time I read posts by some of the ecotrain peeps that are so close to what I feel. I know, it happens a lot here, but I still can't believe it when it does. I had exactly the same growing up in a Catholic place. Even though it was never anywhere as bad as here in Ireland. Those stories were something else when I first heard them. Growing up in Holland and Germany at the same time as so many others in Ireland who were gravely mistreated and abused by the church seems so surreal when it was so much different where I was. But still, I always thought the things they tried to teach us were BS and their god just didn't seem to resonate with me at all. I do remember how scared I was at confession before our first communion. The thing was, I wasn't going to tell the priest everything, I was lying through my teeth. I wasn't afraid I'd be punished by god for lying, I was afraid the priest would discover I was lying and tell my parents LOL. That was a no go in our house :) Thank you for writing your views on this subject, I loved reading it.
thanks @misslasvegas, it really nice to connect with people on here and it is happening more and more often I find, I have to go check out your post now xx
Lovely take on this subject. All these questions and many are unanswerable. We do struggle to live in the moment so shedding the whys? could be a good thing in moderation.
@trucklife-family, We own our lives and we should take responsibility for every action. Man is God and Man is the devil and its just left for us to decide whether we want to be God or the Devil.
Man is a part of nature and not a ruler of nature and it’s true the first thing about every religion is greed. They want to take ownership of people be it through baptism or confirmation or just any form that they can own you and decide the way we live and it’s this religious greed that is causing the world more troubles. People need to understand this religious greed, cut the chain and move on.
Admitting that we do not know something is much wiser than faking the answers and it shows just how big a person you are. Having the courage to admit that we do not know is having the courage to control our own ego and it is magnificent you are able to do that. Much love to you and your sweet sister 💚