A little girl asked her mother: How did the human race appear?
The mother answered: God made Adam and Eve and they had children and so was
all mankind made.
Two days later she asks her father the same question. The father answered:
Many years ago there were monkeys from which the human race was developed.
The confused girl returns to her mother and says: Mom how is it possible that you told me that the human race was created by God and Papa says they were developed from monkeys.
The mother answers: Well dear, it is very simple. I told you about the origin of my side of the family, while your father told you about his side.............!
Allan W Janssen is the author of the book The Plain Truth About God (What the mainstream religions don't want you to know!) and is available at the web site www.God-101.com
Visit the blog "Perspective" at http://Allans-Perspective.blogspot.com
Showing posts with label god. Show all posts
Showing posts with label god. Show all posts
Saturday, May 31, 2008
Saturday, May 17, 2008
Science and God need not be at odds!
Many scientists — 40 percent according to a 1997 poll — believe in some form of God.
This isn't big news to scientists, but might surprise people who rely on mainstream views of science.
A handful of those folks — including Jerome Groopman, a professor of medicine at Harvard, and William D. Phillips, Nobel laureate in physics and a fellow of the Joint Quantum Institute of the University of Maryland and the National Institute of Standards and Technology, argue that the natural world and the world of faith are relatively separate, yet personally reconcilable domains.
"I think that we are all comfortable with the idea there are plenty of things in our lives that we will deal with outside of the scientific paradigm," Phillips told about 70 members of the public who attended the discussion of these issues between himself, Shermer and AEI theologian Michael Novak. "And while I think faith is a particularly important part of our lives that we should deal with outside of the scientific paradigm, it is certainly not the only one."
Phillips, a Methodist, also drew from science to make his argument in favor of God's relevance, saying physicists know there are things that are "really, really improbable, but they are not really impossible according to the laws of physics ...! From what I know about physics, it's not impossible to imagine a world in which God acts but we never can prove it."
In her booklet, philosopher Mary Midgley, who was not at the AEI event, states that science is just one worldview that has come to prevail. Science and religion need not be at odds.
"What is now seen as a universal cold war between science and religion is, I think, really a more local clash between a particular scientistic worldview, much favored recently in the West, and most other people's worldviews at most other times," she writes.
"Scientism ... by contrast, cuts [the setting of human life in] context off altogether and looks for the meaning of life in Science itself. It is this claim to a monopoly of meaning ... that makes science and religion look like competitors today."
Worldviews that transcend that competition or dichotomy are offered in the booklet by Kenneth Miller, Pervez Amirali Hoodbhoy and Stuart Kauffman.
(Miller, the lead witness for the plaintiffs in the Dover trial of 2005 (in which Judge John E. Jones III barred intelligent design from being taught in a Pennsylvania public school district's science classes), takes the classic Darwinian "grandeur in this view of life" approach. God is behind it all.)
He rejects claims that the God hypothesis makes no sense, stating that "... to reject God because of the admitted self-contradictions and logical failings of organized religion would be like rejecting physics because of the inherent contradictions of quantum theory and general relativity."
Kauffman, director of the Institute for Biocomplexity and Informatics at the University of Calgary, takes a slightly New Age tack, saying we must "heal" the schism between science and religion by "reinventing the sacred" and evolving from a supernatural God to a "new sense of a fully natural God as our chosen symbol for the ceaseless creativity in the natural universe."
In other words, he suggests that we can get around the divide between science and God if we come up with a new concept for God that focuses on the wonders of nature, among other things.
This new concept is a global cultural imperative, Kauffman writes, if we are to overcome fundamentalist fears and reunite reason with humanity and the mysteries of life.
A middle ground that incorporates science more than the other God-friendly writers is offered by Hoodbhoy, a physicist at Quaid-e-Azam University in Pakistan.
Science hasn't necessarily made belief obsolete, "but instead you must find a science-friendly, science-compatible God," he writes. And that is possible, he claims, calling this entity a "scientific Creator."
Hoodbhoy thinks that God can be seen as operating within the laws of physics, tweaking outcomes in small ways that have big impacts by relying on phenomena we have observed already in the universe, such as the butterfly effect (in which the flapping of a butterfly's wings alters the atmosphere in a way that ultimately alters the path of a tornado).
In his own words, here are some things She (yes, Hoodbhoy uses the female pronoun) could do, Hoodbhoy writes:
"Extraordinary, but legitimate, interventions in the physical world permit quantum tunneling through cosmic wormholes or certain symmetries to snap spontaneously. It would be perfectly fair for a science-savvy God to use nonlinear dynamics so that tiny fluctuations quickly build up to earthshaking results — the famous 'butterfly effect' of deterministic chaos theory."
Hoodbhoy ends by saying that God is neither dead nor about to die. There is still plenty of "space for a science-friendly God as well as for 'deeply religious non-believers' like Einstein ... Unsure of why they happen to exist, humans are likely to scour the heavens forever in search of meaning."
A total of 5,000 copies of the booklet became available on May 2. Free copies can be obtained at www.templeton.org.
Allan W Janssen is the author of the book The Plain Truth About God (What the mainstream religions don't want you to know!) and is available at the web site www.God-101.com
Visit the blog "Perspective" at http://Allans-Perspective.blogspot.com
This isn't big news to scientists, but might surprise people who rely on mainstream views of science.
A handful of those folks — including Jerome Groopman, a professor of medicine at Harvard, and William D. Phillips, Nobel laureate in physics and a fellow of the Joint Quantum Institute of the University of Maryland and the National Institute of Standards and Technology, argue that the natural world and the world of faith are relatively separate, yet personally reconcilable domains.
"I think that we are all comfortable with the idea there are plenty of things in our lives that we will deal with outside of the scientific paradigm," Phillips told about 70 members of the public who attended the discussion of these issues between himself, Shermer and AEI theologian Michael Novak. "And while I think faith is a particularly important part of our lives that we should deal with outside of the scientific paradigm, it is certainly not the only one."
Phillips, a Methodist, also drew from science to make his argument in favor of God's relevance, saying physicists know there are things that are "really, really improbable, but they are not really impossible according to the laws of physics ...! From what I know about physics, it's not impossible to imagine a world in which God acts but we never can prove it."
In her booklet, philosopher Mary Midgley, who was not at the AEI event, states that science is just one worldview that has come to prevail. Science and religion need not be at odds.
"What is now seen as a universal cold war between science and religion is, I think, really a more local clash between a particular scientistic worldview, much favored recently in the West, and most other people's worldviews at most other times," she writes.
"Scientism ... by contrast, cuts [the setting of human life in] context off altogether and looks for the meaning of life in Science itself. It is this claim to a monopoly of meaning ... that makes science and religion look like competitors today."
Worldviews that transcend that competition or dichotomy are offered in the booklet by Kenneth Miller, Pervez Amirali Hoodbhoy and Stuart Kauffman.
(Miller, the lead witness for the plaintiffs in the Dover trial of 2005 (in which Judge John E. Jones III barred intelligent design from being taught in a Pennsylvania public school district's science classes), takes the classic Darwinian "grandeur in this view of life" approach. God is behind it all.)
He rejects claims that the God hypothesis makes no sense, stating that "... to reject God because of the admitted self-contradictions and logical failings of organized religion would be like rejecting physics because of the inherent contradictions of quantum theory and general relativity."
Kauffman, director of the Institute for Biocomplexity and Informatics at the University of Calgary, takes a slightly New Age tack, saying we must "heal" the schism between science and religion by "reinventing the sacred" and evolving from a supernatural God to a "new sense of a fully natural God as our chosen symbol for the ceaseless creativity in the natural universe."
In other words, he suggests that we can get around the divide between science and God if we come up with a new concept for God that focuses on the wonders of nature, among other things.
This new concept is a global cultural imperative, Kauffman writes, if we are to overcome fundamentalist fears and reunite reason with humanity and the mysteries of life.
A middle ground that incorporates science more than the other God-friendly writers is offered by Hoodbhoy, a physicist at Quaid-e-Azam University in Pakistan.
Science hasn't necessarily made belief obsolete, "but instead you must find a science-friendly, science-compatible God," he writes. And that is possible, he claims, calling this entity a "scientific Creator."
Hoodbhoy thinks that God can be seen as operating within the laws of physics, tweaking outcomes in small ways that have big impacts by relying on phenomena we have observed already in the universe, such as the butterfly effect (in which the flapping of a butterfly's wings alters the atmosphere in a way that ultimately alters the path of a tornado).
In his own words, here are some things She (yes, Hoodbhoy uses the female pronoun) could do, Hoodbhoy writes:
"Extraordinary, but legitimate, interventions in the physical world permit quantum tunneling through cosmic wormholes or certain symmetries to snap spontaneously. It would be perfectly fair for a science-savvy God to use nonlinear dynamics so that tiny fluctuations quickly build up to earthshaking results — the famous 'butterfly effect' of deterministic chaos theory."
Hoodbhoy ends by saying that God is neither dead nor about to die. There is still plenty of "space for a science-friendly God as well as for 'deeply religious non-believers' like Einstein ... Unsure of why they happen to exist, humans are likely to scour the heavens forever in search of meaning."
A total of 5,000 copies of the booklet became available on May 2. Free copies can be obtained at www.templeton.org.
Allan W Janssen is the author of the book The Plain Truth About God (What the mainstream religions don't want you to know!) and is available at the web site www.God-101.comVisit the blog "Perspective" at http://Allans-Perspective.blogspot.com
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
God and Aliens
The Vatican's chief astronomer says there is no conflict between believing in God and in the possibility of "extraterrestrial brothers" perhaps more evolved than humans.
In the interview headlined "The extraterrestrial is my brother," he said he saw no conflict between belief in such beings and faith in God.
Christians have sometimes been at odds with scientists over whether the Bible should be read literally and issues such as creationism versus evolution have been hotly debated for decades.
The Inquisition condemned astronomer Galileo in the 17th century for insisting that the earth revolved around the sun. The Catholic Church did not rehabilitate him until 1992.
Funes said dialogue between faith and science could be improved if scientists learned more about the Bible and the Church kept more up to date with scientific progress.
Funes, an Argentine, said he believed as an astronomer that the most likely explanation for the start of the universe was "the big bang", the theory that it sprang into existence from dense matter billions of years ago.
But he said this was not in conflict with faith in God as a creator. "God is the creator. There is a sense to creation. We are not children of an accident ...," he said. (Very True. -Ed)
AMEN
Allan W Janssen is the author of the book The Plain Truth About God (What the mainstream religions don't want you to know!) and is available at the web site www.God-101.com
Visit the blog "Perspective" at http://Allans-Perspective.blogspot.com
"In my opinion this possibility (of life on other planets) exists," said Rev. Jose Gabriel Funes, a 45-year-old Jesuit priest who is head of the Vatican Observatory and a scientific adviser to Pope Benedict.Asked if he was referring to beings similar to humans or even more evolved than humans, he said: "Certainly, in a universe this big you can't exclude this hypothesis".
"How can we exclude that life has developed elsewhere," he told the Vatican newspaper L'Osservatore Romano in an interview in its Tuesday-Wednesday edition, explaining that the large number of galaxies with their own planets made this possible.
In the interview headlined "The extraterrestrial is my brother," he said he saw no conflict between belief in such beings and faith in God.
"Just as there is a multiplicity of creatures on earth, there can be other beings, even intelligent, created by God. This is not in contrast with our faith because we can't put limits on God's creative freedom," he said.Funes, who runs the observatory which is based south of Rome and in Arizona, held out the possibility that the human race might actually be the "lost sheep" of the universe.
"Why can't we speak of a 'brother extraterrestrial'? It would still be part of creation," he said.
"There could be (other beings) who remained in full friendship with their creator," he said.THE "BIG BANG"?
Christians have sometimes been at odds with scientists over whether the Bible should be read literally and issues such as creationism versus evolution have been hotly debated for decades.
The Inquisition condemned astronomer Galileo in the 17th century for insisting that the earth revolved around the sun. The Catholic Church did not rehabilitate him until 1992.
Funes said dialogue between faith and science could be improved if scientists learned more about the Bible and the Church kept more up to date with scientific progress.
Funes, an Argentine, said he believed as an astronomer that the most likely explanation for the start of the universe was "the big bang", the theory that it sprang into existence from dense matter billions of years ago.
But he said this was not in conflict with faith in God as a creator. "God is the creator. There is a sense to creation. We are not children of an accident ...," he said. (Very True. -Ed)
"As an astronomer, I continue to believe that God is the creator of the universe and that we are not the product of something casual but children of a good father who has a project of love in mind for us," he said.
AMEN
Allan W Janssen is the author of the book The Plain Truth About God (What the mainstream religions don't want you to know!) and is available at the web site www.God-101.com
Visit the blog "Perspective" at http://Allans-Perspective.blogspot.com
Sunday, April 20, 2008
The Ultimate and Final Explanation of God!
Richard Dawkins has got a lot to say, and I have to admit I agree with most of it!
As a matter of fact I quote him extensively in my book "The Plain Truth About God!"
But, in spite of his rail's against the Creationists, and his disparagement of Intelligent Design, he is no better nor worse than the people he tries to discredit!
Don't get me wrong, Dr. Dawkins in one hell of a smart guy and I don't ever hope to equal him in the intelligence or education area.
But, I sure can and will take him on in the common sense field, and any day of the week too!
Here's why!
Any form of Athiesm is a belief system the same as religious conviction is.
You can believe that there is absolutely no God the same as you can believe that God made the world in seven days. No difference, because neither can actually be proven.
It's what you believe that counts!
Yes bunky, Richard Dawkins and Pat Robertson are two sides to the same coin!
But an agnostic (like me) on the other hand is a whole different kettle of fish! We don't know and say so.
And for that reason we are 100% correct!
I don't have the answer to the afterlife like Pat Robertson or Billy Graham or Dr. Dawkins or Isaac Asimov or Newton or Jim and Tammy Baker or Arthur C Clarke or Germain Greer or George Carlin or The Pope or Ghandi or Stalin or Lennon. (Vlad, not John)
I could keep going with the list but you get the idea. These people are all percieved to be a lot smarter than I, but they still base their ideas on a belief system which means they have a 50% chance of being right.
Stupid me, on the other hand, appears to be 100% right and I don't have to start following somebody that is long on faith and short on logic and only has a 50% chance of being right anyway. (This is even before we get into all the differnt types of religion that claim they are right and the others wrong, right!)
While there is no solution to this dilema I think that we have to take it upon ourselves to reach our potential as a people. We need to do the best we can with a bit of style, grace and maturity.
We can't keep running to God for help OR use God as an excuse for our actions. We have to grow up and become responsible for ourselves.!
Until God actually shows up on my doorstep I will try to keep an open mind, because if we strictly use logic and look at the world around us, then I have to conclude that there is no God.
But, if I look at nature and the universe in general with all its complexities and wonders, I have to conclude that there is a God.
Quite a conundrum, eh?
The safest course seems to be some sort of middle ground that is supported by what makes sense.
That seems to be why "The Universe" must have been started by something, but sure doesn't interfere with us in any way as far as our day to day living goes.
Intelligent Design (Not the I.D. the fundamentalists are trying to slip in the back door of religion!) or First Cause? Seems so!!!!
But then again, I could be wrong.
Your humble scribe;
Allan W Janssen
Allan W Janssen is the author of the book The Plain Truth About God (What the mainstream religions don't want you to know!) and is available at the web site www.God-101.com
Visit the blog "Perspective" at http://Allans-Perspective.blogspot.com
As a matter of fact I quote him extensively in my book "The Plain Truth About God!"
But, in spite of his rail's against the Creationists, and his disparagement of Intelligent Design, he is no better nor worse than the people he tries to discredit!
Don't get me wrong, Dr. Dawkins in one hell of a smart guy and I don't ever hope to equal him in the intelligence or education area.
But, I sure can and will take him on in the common sense field, and any day of the week too!
Here's why!
Any form of Athiesm is a belief system the same as religious conviction is. You can believe that there is absolutely no God the same as you can believe that God made the world in seven days. No difference, because neither can actually be proven.
It's what you believe that counts!
Yes bunky, Richard Dawkins and Pat Robertson are two sides to the same coin!But an agnostic (like me) on the other hand is a whole different kettle of fish! We don't know and say so.
And for that reason we are 100% correct!
I don't have the answer to the afterlife like Pat Robertson or Billy Graham or Dr. Dawkins or Isaac Asimov or Newton or Jim and Tammy Baker or Arthur C Clarke or Germain Greer or George Carlin or The Pope or Ghandi or Stalin or Lennon. (Vlad, not John)I could keep going with the list but you get the idea. These people are all percieved to be a lot smarter than I, but they still base their ideas on a belief system which means they have a 50% chance of being right.
Stupid me, on the other hand, appears to be 100% right and I don't have to start following somebody that is long on faith and short on logic and only has a 50% chance of being right anyway. (This is even before we get into all the differnt types of religion that claim they are right and the others wrong, right!)
While there is no solution to this dilema I think that we have to take it upon ourselves to reach our potential as a people. We need to do the best we can with a bit of style, grace and maturity.
We can't keep running to God for help OR use God as an excuse for our actions. We have to grow up and become responsible for ourselves.!
Until God actually shows up on my doorstep I will try to keep an open mind, because if we strictly use logic and look at the world around us, then I have to conclude that there is no God.
But, if I look at nature and the universe in general with all its complexities and wonders, I have to conclude that there is a God.
Quite a conundrum, eh?
The safest course seems to be some sort of middle ground that is supported by what makes sense.
That seems to be why "The Universe" must have been started by something, but sure doesn't interfere with us in any way as far as our day to day living goes.
Intelligent Design (Not the I.D. the fundamentalists are trying to slip in the back door of religion!) or First Cause? Seems so!!!!
But then again, I could be wrong.
Your humble scribe;
Allan W Janssen
Allan W Janssen is the author of the book The Plain Truth About God (What the mainstream religions don't want you to know!) and is available at the web site www.God-101.com
Visit the blog "Perspective" at http://Allans-Perspective.blogspot.com
Wednesday, March 05, 2008
THE UNIVERSE
ARE YOU READY?????
Now TRY to wrap your mind around this ... This is a Hubble Telescope Ultra Deep Field Infrared View of countless 'ENTIRE' Galaxies Billions of Light-Years Away.
A Dark Region......... Below is a close up of one of the darkest regions of the photo above.
And there's God, floating around out there, tinkering with all this... ... and he gets jealous if you worship from the wrong book???
Wake up !!!
Allan W Janssen is the author of the book The Plain Truth About God (What the mainstream religions don't want you to know!) and is available at the web site http://www.god-101.com/
Visit the blog "Perspective" at http://God-101.blogspot.com
Now TRY to wrap your mind around this ... This is a Hubble Telescope Ultra Deep Field Infrared View of countless 'ENTIRE' Galaxies Billions of Light-Years Away.
A Dark Region......... Below is a close up of one of the darkest regions of the photo above.
And there's God, floating around out there, tinkering with all this... ... and he gets jealous if you worship from the wrong book???
Wake up !!!
Allan W Janssen is the author of the book The Plain Truth About God (What the mainstream religions don't want you to know!) and is available at the web site http://www.god-101.com/
Visit the blog "Perspective" at http://God-101.blogspot.com
High on Mt. Sinai
You might have heard about this by now but just in case I will repeat it here!
When Moses was high on Mt. Sinai receiving the "Ten Commandments" from God, he really was "high" on Mt. Sinai!
Moses was on psychedelic drugs when he heard God deliver the Ten Commandments, an Israeli researcher claimed in a study published this week.
Such mind-altering substances formed an integral part of the religious rites of Israelites in biblical times, Benny Shanon, a professor of cognitive psychology at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem wrote in the Time and Mind journal of philosophy.
"As far Moses on Mount Sinai is concerned, it was either a supernatural cosmic event, which I don't believe, or a legend, which I don't believe either, or finally, and this is very probable, an event that joined Moses and the people of Israel under the effect of narcotics," Shanon told Israeli public radio on Tuesday.
Moses was probably also on drugs when he saw the "burning bush," suggested Shanon, who said he himself has dabbled with such substances.
"The Bible says people see sounds, and that is a classic phenomenon," he said citing the example of religious ceremonies in the Amazon in which drugs are used that induce people to "see music."
He mentioned his own experience when he used ayahuasca, a powerful psychotropic plant, during a religious ceremony in Brazil's Amazon forest in 1991. "I experienced visions that had spiritual-religious connotations," Shanon said.
He said the psychedelic effects of ayahuasca were comparable to those produced by concoctions based on bark of the acacia tree, that is frequently mentioned in the Bible.
Now don't get the idea that I think God is a hallucination, far from it.
But, the story of the psychedelic drugs makes a lot of sense and as usual, whenever humans try and explain God or tell us what God wants they have to put it into "Earthly" terms and it naturally gets all screwed up. Just like mainstream religion!
Allan W Janssen is the author of the book The Plain Truth About God (What the mainstream religions don't want you to know!) and is available at the web site www.God-101.com
Visit the blog "Perspective" at http://God-101.blogspot.com
When Moses was high on Mt. Sinai receiving the "Ten Commandments" from God, he really was "high" on Mt. Sinai!Moses was on psychedelic drugs when he heard God deliver the Ten Commandments, an Israeli researcher claimed in a study published this week.
Such mind-altering substances formed an integral part of the religious rites of Israelites in biblical times, Benny Shanon, a professor of cognitive psychology at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem wrote in the Time and Mind journal of philosophy.
"As far Moses on Mount Sinai is concerned, it was either a supernatural cosmic event, which I don't believe, or a legend, which I don't believe either, or finally, and this is very probable, an event that joined Moses and the people of Israel under the effect of narcotics," Shanon told Israeli public radio on Tuesday.
Moses was probably also on drugs when he saw the "burning bush," suggested Shanon, who said he himself has dabbled with such substances.
"The Bible says people see sounds, and that is a classic phenomenon," he said citing the example of religious ceremonies in the Amazon in which drugs are used that induce people to "see music."
He mentioned his own experience when he used ayahuasca, a powerful psychotropic plant, during a religious ceremony in Brazil's Amazon forest in 1991. "I experienced visions that had spiritual-religious connotations," Shanon said.
He said the psychedelic effects of ayahuasca were comparable to those produced by concoctions based on bark of the acacia tree, that is frequently mentioned in the Bible.
Now don't get the idea that I think God is a hallucination, far from it.
But, the story of the psychedelic drugs makes a lot of sense and as usual, whenever humans try and explain God or tell us what God wants they have to put it into "Earthly" terms and it naturally gets all screwed up. Just like mainstream religion!
Allan W Janssen is the author of the book The Plain Truth About God (What the mainstream religions don't want you to know!) and is available at the web site www.God-101.com
Visit the blog "Perspective" at http://God-101.blogspot.com
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
The Church of Allan. Reflections on the Human Condition!
A serialization of the Book; The Plain Truth About God! @2002
Humanity is on an incredible journey of which we are only now slowly becoming aware.
Whether our universe has been around for seven thousand or more than ten billion years is not relevant to this journey, this book, or people in general.
Let me explain; the common thinking now is that our universe is some ten to fifteen billion years old, with the most likely figure somewhere around thirteen and a half billion.
Meanwhile, the thought, (sorry, the belief) among some North American Fundamentalist Christians is that we are some seven thousand years on this planet and no more!
Although this line of thinking is patently absurd, it really has nothing to do with the basic reason we are here. Or, why so many people devote so much of their time to wondering about it.
It is the mere fact that we can, and do wonder about it, that sets us apart from all the other creatures of this planet.
As far as we know, not even the great apes, dolphins, whales, dogs, cats, or any other living thing has ever given even the slightest thought to our reason for being!
** You will never hear fido say to you, “What’s it all about - Alfie?”
People, on the other hand, spend an inordinate amount of time and effort on the question of purpose. So much so, that it seems to influence almost every aspect of not only our lives, but also everything around us.
It is a feeling everyone has felt at some time or other, to a greater or lesser degree. These are but small examples of the Divine spirit of God that is within us all.
There are many grand and spectacular wonders to be seen no matter where we look.
Nevertheless, it is the quiet affirmation of a loving God, and that sense of peace and tranquility, that is a constant reminder that we are not alone!
After all is said and done, the crux of the matter is that we do not want to be alone with the knowledge of our own mortality.
There is a basic human belief that is a common denominator among every culture and group on this planet. It is a sense that in a universe this grand, and even overpowering, there is a purpose to it all. We cannot imagine that we are here by random chance or luck and that our existence is dependant upon a simple roll of the dice!
**”God not only plays dice with the universe, He sometimes throws the dice where they cannot be seen.” - Steven Hawking
When viewed from space our planet is in stark contrast with everything else we have so far observed. Yes, we are minuscule in comparison to the rest of the universe, and no, we are not at the physical centre of things as was once believed.
We are however, central to creation in a very special way.
We, alone as human beings, are able to look out at the rest of creation and reflect upon it.
Whether anyone else on some other planet is in the position to observe and reflect upon this majestic universe is unimportant in the grand scheme of things.
Sure, it would make it a little less lonely if there were other intelligences' out there, but the mere fact that our planet Terra is a harbor of self-awareness makes us a very rare and precious jewel in the vast empty reaches of the universe.
** “I AM.” – GOD”
**” I Think, Therefore I am.” -Descartes
**” I yam what I yam, and that’s all what I yam.” – Popeye
All the different worlds we have studied seem bereft of life. Terra, on the other hand, is recognized as something quite different and out of the ordinary, no matter from what distance it is viewed from.
Terra, through incredible luck or Divine intervention, is not only just the right distance from the Sun, but has an amazing list of fortunate events that led up to our development. It is beyond imagination, let alone comprehension. It is a list far too long to have happened merely by chance.
Does this mean that we are unique in the universe? No! We are however, certainly so rare that when life does occur, it is to be cherished and celebrated.
There is a feeling of purpose that seems to pervade all of creation.
It is a feeling of connection felt by everyone who has ever lived. It is a feeling that will continue to carry us down through the ages and is a need that is inherent in all of humanity. It is the basis of all our religious beliefs and superstitions.
Since our ancestors first huddled together around a fire so many hundreds of thousands of years ago, we collectively tried to protect ourselves against the dangers and terrors of the world.
Then, with the advent of a rudimentary language, blind acceptance of our lot in life gradually gave way to questioning the meaning to all of the suffering that fell upon us. With the gift of awareness however, also came the curse of knowledge.
The knowledge of our own fate!
By taking the responsibility for life’s hardships from our own shoulders and putting it onto some Higher Power, Humanity’s misfortunes became easier to accept. “It’s not our fault,” became the haunting cry of humanity as it echoed down through the millennia!
The concept of a Supreme Being, whose pleasure / displeasure could influence how life treated us, was a thought that gradually evolved over time. When we had a feeling that we were being punished for some presumed misdeed, like a small child that was being admonished, we could make it right again with the proper thought or attitude!
If this great God, or many gods for that matter, could be appeased, then it put us into a position where we finally had some measure of control over the worst that life could throw at us.
Sure life was tough. Our fate hinged on the whim of a Deity we could never really know or understand. But, if we followed some simple rules and kept our nose clean, then we would at least have some hope that the human condition would eventually improve. If not in this life, then certainly in the next!
Naturally, our lot in life usually stayed the same, or if anything got even worse! In the natural order of things, events always seemed to go from bad to worse.
If, despite the constant homage and sacrifices made to the Great Spirits, things did not improve, then a crisis of confidence would develop.
This meant some other means of comfort was required and this is where early humans developed one of the most remarkable and insightful theories about how the world works.
By showing how well we could suffer and still carry on, we showed the gods our courage, tenacity, --- and above all, our Faith!
Everyone soon realized that our willingness to suffer for a higher cause was all that was required of us to gain the promise of reward at some time in the future.
“Voila,” the afterlife was born.
Allan W Janssen is the author of the book The Plain Truth About God (What the mainstream religions don't want you to know!) and is available at the web site www.God-101.com
Visit the blog "Perspective" at http://God-101.blogspot.com
Humanity is on an incredible journey of which we are only now slowly becoming aware.
Whether our universe has been around for seven thousand or more than ten billion years is not relevant to this journey, this book, or people in general.
Let me explain; the common thinking now is that our universe is some ten to fifteen billion years old, with the most likely figure somewhere around thirteen and a half billion.
Meanwhile, the thought, (sorry, the belief) among some North American Fundamentalist Christians is that we are some seven thousand years on this planet and no more!
Although this line of thinking is patently absurd, it really has nothing to do with the basic reason we are here. Or, why so many people devote so much of their time to wondering about it.
It is the mere fact that we can, and do wonder about it, that sets us apart from all the other creatures of this planet.
As far as we know, not even the great apes, dolphins, whales, dogs, cats, or any other living thing has ever given even the slightest thought to our reason for being!
** You will never hear fido say to you, “What’s it all about - Alfie?”
People, on the other hand, spend an inordinate amount of time and effort on the question of purpose. So much so, that it seems to influence almost every aspect of not only our lives, but also everything around us.
It is a feeling everyone has felt at some time or other, to a greater or lesser degree. These are but small examples of the Divine spirit of God that is within us all.
There are many grand and spectacular wonders to be seen no matter where we look.
Nevertheless, it is the quiet affirmation of a loving God, and that sense of peace and tranquility, that is a constant reminder that we are not alone!
After all is said and done, the crux of the matter is that we do not want to be alone with the knowledge of our own mortality.
There is a basic human belief that is a common denominator among every culture and group on this planet. It is a sense that in a universe this grand, and even overpowering, there is a purpose to it all. We cannot imagine that we are here by random chance or luck and that our existence is dependant upon a simple roll of the dice!
**”God not only plays dice with the universe, He sometimes throws the dice where they cannot be seen.” - Steven Hawking
When viewed from space our planet is in stark contrast with everything else we have so far observed. Yes, we are minuscule in comparison to the rest of the universe, and no, we are not at the physical centre of things as was once believed.
We are however, central to creation in a very special way.
We, alone as human beings, are able to look out at the rest of creation and reflect upon it.
Whether anyone else on some other planet is in the position to observe and reflect upon this majestic universe is unimportant in the grand scheme of things.
Sure, it would make it a little less lonely if there were other intelligences' out there, but the mere fact that our planet Terra is a harbor of self-awareness makes us a very rare and precious jewel in the vast empty reaches of the universe.
** “I AM.” – GOD”
**” I Think, Therefore I am.” -Descartes
**” I yam what I yam, and that’s all what I yam.” – Popeye
All the different worlds we have studied seem bereft of life. Terra, on the other hand, is recognized as something quite different and out of the ordinary, no matter from what distance it is viewed from.Terra, through incredible luck or Divine intervention, is not only just the right distance from the Sun, but has an amazing list of fortunate events that led up to our development. It is beyond imagination, let alone comprehension. It is a list far too long to have happened merely by chance.
Does this mean that we are unique in the universe? No! We are however, certainly so rare that when life does occur, it is to be cherished and celebrated.
There is a feeling of purpose that seems to pervade all of creation.
It is a feeling of connection felt by everyone who has ever lived. It is a feeling that will continue to carry us down through the ages and is a need that is inherent in all of humanity. It is the basis of all our religious beliefs and superstitions.
Since our ancestors first huddled together around a fire so many hundreds of thousands of years ago, we collectively tried to protect ourselves against the dangers and terrors of the world.
Then, with the advent of a rudimentary language, blind acceptance of our lot in life gradually gave way to questioning the meaning to all of the suffering that fell upon us. With the gift of awareness however, also came the curse of knowledge.
The knowledge of our own fate!
By taking the responsibility for life’s hardships from our own shoulders and putting it onto some Higher Power, Humanity’s misfortunes became easier to accept. “It’s not our fault,” became the haunting cry of humanity as it echoed down through the millennia!
The concept of a Supreme Being, whose pleasure / displeasure could influence how life treated us, was a thought that gradually evolved over time. When we had a feeling that we were being punished for some presumed misdeed, like a small child that was being admonished, we could make it right again with the proper thought or attitude!
If this great God, or many gods for that matter, could be appeased, then it put us into a position where we finally had some measure of control over the worst that life could throw at us.
Sure life was tough. Our fate hinged on the whim of a Deity we could never really know or understand. But, if we followed some simple rules and kept our nose clean, then we would at least have some hope that the human condition would eventually improve. If not in this life, then certainly in the next!
Naturally, our lot in life usually stayed the same, or if anything got even worse! In the natural order of things, events always seemed to go from bad to worse.
If, despite the constant homage and sacrifices made to the Great Spirits, things did not improve, then a crisis of confidence would develop.
This meant some other means of comfort was required and this is where early humans developed one of the most remarkable and insightful theories about how the world works.
By showing how well we could suffer and still carry on, we showed the gods our courage, tenacity, --- and above all, our Faith!
Everyone soon realized that our willingness to suffer for a higher cause was all that was required of us to gain the promise of reward at some time in the future.
“Voila,” the afterlife was born.
Allan W Janssen is the author of the book The Plain Truth About God (What the mainstream religions don't want you to know!) and is available at the web site www.God-101.com
Visit the blog "Perspective" at http://God-101.blogspot.com
Friday, January 25, 2008
GOD!
No, I don't believe in the Bible, (old or new testament) or the Koran! I don't believe in the Torah or the Tibetan book of the dead. I don't believe in the Book of Mormon or the Bhagavad Gita. I don't believe in the Tao-te-ching or the Veda.
I don't believe in Jesus or Muhammad or Buddha. I don't believe in Krishna or Moses or Santa! (Or the Easter bunny or Thor or Zeus or Horus)
I just believe in GOD.
God and me, that's reality! *
With that in mind I instructed the "Perspective" research department to go out and get me proof and as usual they did not disappoint!
This is what they came back with!
Allan W Janssen is the author of the book The Plain Truth About God (What the mainstream religions don't want you to know!) and is available at the web site www.God-101.com
Visit the blog "Perspective" at http://God-101.blogspot.com
* (With apologies to John Lennon)
I don't believe in Jesus or Muhammad or Buddha. I don't believe in Krishna or Moses or Santa! (Or the Easter bunny or Thor or Zeus or Horus)
I just believe in GOD.
God and me, that's reality! *
With that in mind I instructed the "Perspective" research department to go out and get me proof and as usual they did not disappoint!
This is what they came back with!
Allan W Janssen is the author of the book The Plain Truth About God (What the mainstream religions don't want you to know!) and is available at the web site www.God-101.com
Visit the blog "Perspective" at http://God-101.blogspot.com
* (With apologies to John Lennon)
Monday, November 19, 2007
God Hates Women Part #2
Allan;
You certainly aren't a feminist. Your crude treatment of women on your blog has been grossly propagated.
So, as an atheist, I guess that leaves you to worship... yourself?
All bow down to the god of demigods.
thx
Allan said...
Once again I will explain my position! (Sound like a lawyer here eh!)
First of all I believe you have to be female to be a feminist and no, I don't agree with the feminist philosophy but I don't mind helping their cause because it pisses-off the misogynists amongst us.
Just the same I don't like the way religion subjugates women and think it needs to be changed.
I am also not an atheist nor a Christian.
What I am is an agnostic who believes in God but not the fact that Jesus was physically resurrected. When you're dead, you're dead. Period.
(It is possible that the risen Jesus was actually his spirit, but certainly not his physical self.)
AND, my beef is with mainstream (man made) religion, not spirituality.
Allan W Jansen
Allan W Janssen is the author of The Plain Truth About God at www.God-101.com and the blog "Perspective" at http://God-101.blogspot.com
You certainly aren't a feminist. Your crude treatment of women on your blog has been grossly propagated.
So, as an atheist, I guess that leaves you to worship... yourself?
All bow down to the god of demigods.
thx
Allan said...
Once again I will explain my position! (Sound like a lawyer here eh!)
First of all I believe you have to be female to be a feminist and no, I don't agree with the feminist philosophy but I don't mind helping their cause because it pisses-off the misogynists amongst us.
Just the same I don't like the way religion subjugates women and think it needs to be changed.
I am also not an atheist nor a Christian.
What I am is an agnostic who believes in God but not the fact that Jesus was physically resurrected. When you're dead, you're dead. Period.
(It is possible that the risen Jesus was actually his spirit, but certainly not his physical self.)
AND, my beef is with mainstream (man made) religion, not spirituality.
Allan W Jansen
Allan W Janssen is the author of The Plain Truth About God at www.God-101.com and the blog "Perspective" at http://God-101.blogspot.com
Friday, October 19, 2007
Trying to fool GOD
- A man walks into a restaurant. He then proceeds to blow himself up because he is surrounded by "non-believers" who deserve to die. With his last breath he shouts; "Allah Akbar" (God is great).... because he thinks his act has pleased God. - Two armies clash in a battle to determine who will do Gods work. One side shouts "God willing, we will prevail" while the other side kills with a conviction that they are doing God's will as well! Insha'Allah (God willing!)
- How many modern Christians still believe in their hearts that God would have them slavishly and literally follow the metaphors and cautionary tales that were written in the Bible by mere mortals trying to tell us what God really wanted. One can only imagine what Jews and Muslims must think of ritual-laden Catholics or Anglicans or rattlesnake-handling Babtist fundamentalists. They must think that these Christian fools are only deceiving themselves!
- A couple let's their 8 year old daughter die for want of a blood transfusion even though there is no word about this at all in the bible.Should I go on? The point we are trying to make here is that the habit of humans trying to convince others that they know the mind of God, is arrogance of the highest degree. To think that any one of us has the inside poop what the wishes of a Supeme Being are, or even if that Being has any wishes about us at all is shear human folly!
Remember, if you want to go Biblical, then let me remind you that "Pride" is the greatest of all the sins! To assume that any of us has a handle in what God wants, does, says, is, or will be, is almost beyond belief.
No, let me clarify that, it IS beyond belief.
I imagine that for us to know the mind of God would be about the same as a lowly ant trying to figure out what humans are all about. There is no common ground at all in which any sort of a comparison can be drawn.They are so far removed from each other that they might as well be in different dimension.
With the term "Omnipotent and Omniscient" applied to God, then that would put us human beings in about the same position as the ants in the previous comparison.
And I'll we damned if I'm going to let some ant tell me how to live my life!
Allan W Janssen is the author of The Plain Truth About God at www.God-101.com and the blog "Perspective" at http://God-101.blogspot.com
Friday, September 28, 2007
The Plain Truth, so help me Howard!
My staff and I have done a lot of research over the past year into myths, conjectures, religious beliefs and hokum! (Hokum is a 1950's term for bullshit!)
Without getting into any long discussion about the results we have come up with, here is the poop on what is real and what isn't.
First the big question.
-Yes, there is a God. (Now what God is, or wants, or does is something that nobody knows. Why? Because it's GOD! So stop trying to tell other people that you and your group have the inside story!)
-No, there are no aliens or UFOs. (Other planets are just plain too far away, period. If you don't believe me then educate yourself and find out.)
-Jesus not only lived, but was a great prophet. As was Muhammad, Moses, Buddha, Confucius and my next door neighbor Charlie.
-Jesus was not crucified to erase our sins. He was killed because he pissed off the wrong people. (By the way, when you're physically dead.............you're DEAD! O.K.?)
-Yes, there certainly is such a thing as coincidence.
-There might be a certain amount of Fate, but you can change it.
-Yes, when you do GOOD it comes back to you, one way or another. Same with BAD. This is called KARMA.
-No, there is no Second Coming, or Rapture. It failed to materialize the last 25,434 times so why should it happen the next.
-Yes, if you act like an asshole people will treat you like shit!
-There was NO conspiracy in the death of Princess Diana, J.F.K., Boby Kennedy, Martin Luther King, Lee Harvey Oswald or Marilyn Munroe.
There was also NO conspiracy in the Moon Landings, 9/11, shooting the Pope or the Shuttle disaster.
-No, there is no "psychic healing," but attitude and belief can and does help in the healing process.
-Yes, there is such a thing as Love. It's the same as God, you can't prove it, but you can feel it and know it's there! (It's also the same as peeing yoourself in a dark pair of pants. No one can see it but it gives you a nice warm feeling anyways!)
-The jury is out on Psychic Stuff. Could be something to it or just result of that coincidence we talked about. (But, I swear my wife can read my mind!)
-Yes there seems to be such a thing as luck, but it is just a concept we have developed, because luck, one the whole, is totally arbitrary. (I other words, if you win the lottery, that's lucky. But someone else could just have easily been the lucky one! See?)
-There are no Ghosts, Spirits or Demons. All are the result of superstition and overactive imaginations.
-Although I choose to believe in God, I do accept the possibility that there is not, and the whole majestic Universe is just the result of chance and happenstance. But! This would be an incredible waste of time and space and I think it is even more remote a possibility than the existence of God.
Same goes for Aliens. No, they don't come here in flying saucers, but out of this unimaginably huge and majestic Universe I can't reconcile myself with the fact that we (Humanity) are the only intelligent species. (Even more so for life itself) However, if we ever do meet or talk to other life forms you can bet that they will be far less barbaric than we are now, because they realised long ago just how precious and rare life and intelligence is.
(There are many more examples.... which shall be added to this piece shortly!)
Your "Call me Houdini" scribe;
Allan W Janssen
Allan W Janssen is the author of The Plain Truth About God at http://www.god-101.com/ and the blog "Perspective" at http://god-101.blogspot.com/
Without getting into any long discussion about the results we have come up with, here is the poop on what is real and what isn't.
First the big question.
-Yes, there is a God. (Now what God is, or wants, or does is something that nobody knows. Why? Because it's GOD! So stop trying to tell other people that you and your group have the inside story!)
-No, there are no aliens or UFOs. (Other planets are just plain too far away, period. If you don't believe me then educate yourself and find out.)
-Jesus not only lived, but was a great prophet. As was Muhammad, Moses, Buddha, Confucius and my next door neighbor Charlie.
-Jesus was not crucified to erase our sins. He was killed because he pissed off the wrong people. (By the way, when you're physically dead.............you're DEAD! O.K.?)
-Yes, there certainly is such a thing as coincidence.
-There might be a certain amount of Fate, but you can change it.
-Yes, when you do GOOD it comes back to you, one way or another. Same with BAD. This is called KARMA.
-No, there is no Second Coming, or Rapture. It failed to materialize the last 25,434 times so why should it happen the next.
-Yes, if you act like an asshole people will treat you like shit!
-There was NO conspiracy in the death of Princess Diana, J.F.K., Boby Kennedy, Martin Luther King, Lee Harvey Oswald or Marilyn Munroe.
There was also NO conspiracy in the Moon Landings, 9/11, shooting the Pope or the Shuttle disaster.
-No, there is no "psychic healing," but attitude and belief can and does help in the healing process.
-Yes, there is such a thing as Love. It's the same as God, you can't prove it, but you can feel it and know it's there! (It's also the same as peeing yoourself in a dark pair of pants. No one can see it but it gives you a nice warm feeling anyways!)
-The jury is out on Psychic Stuff. Could be something to it or just result of that coincidence we talked about. (But, I swear my wife can read my mind!)
-Yes there seems to be such a thing as luck, but it is just a concept we have developed, because luck, one the whole, is totally arbitrary. (I other words, if you win the lottery, that's lucky. But someone else could just have easily been the lucky one! See?)
-There are no Ghosts, Spirits or Demons. All are the result of superstition and overactive imaginations.
-Although I choose to believe in God, I do accept the possibility that there is not, and the whole majestic Universe is just the result of chance and happenstance. But! This would be an incredible waste of time and space and I think it is even more remote a possibility than the existence of God.
Same goes for Aliens. No, they don't come here in flying saucers, but out of this unimaginably huge and majestic Universe I can't reconcile myself with the fact that we (Humanity) are the only intelligent species. (Even more so for life itself) However, if we ever do meet or talk to other life forms you can bet that they will be far less barbaric than we are now, because they realised long ago just how precious and rare life and intelligence is.
(There are many more examples.... which shall be added to this piece shortly!)
Your "Call me Houdini" scribe;
Allan W Janssen
Allan W Janssen is the author of The Plain Truth About God at http://www.god-101.com/ and the blog "Perspective" at http://god-101.blogspot.com/
Wednesday, September 19, 2007
The one dollar and eleven cent miracle!
We get a fair amount of e-mail everyday which keeps the staff busy and on their toes. My wife just sent me this piece and I thought you might like it too! (Don't know why she e-mailed it. Could have just printed it off and handed it to me!)
A little girl went to her bedroom and pulled a glass jelly jar from its hiding place in the closet.
She poured the change out on the floor and counted it carefully. Three times, even. The total had to be exactly perfect. No chance here for mistakes.
Carefully placing the coins back in the jar and twisting on the cap, she slipped out the back door and made her way 6 blocks to Rexall's Drug Store with the big red Indian Chief sign above the door.
She waited patiently for the pharmacist to give her some attention, but he was too busy at this moment.
Tess twisted her feet to make a scuffing noise.
Nothing.
She cleared her throat with the most disgusting sound she could muster.
No good.
Finally she took a quarter from her jar and banged it on the glass counter.
That did it!
And what do you want?" the pharmacist asked in an annoyed tone of voice. I'm talking to my brother from Chicago whom I haven't seen in ages," he said without waiting for a reply to his question.
"Well, I want to talk to you about my brother," Tess answered back in the same annoyed tone.
"He's really, really sick...and I want to buy a miracle."
I beg your pardon?" said the pharmacist.
His name is Andrew and he has something bad growing inside his head and my Daddy says only a miracle can save him now. So how much does a miracle cost?"
"We don't sell miracles here, little girl. I'm sorry but I can't help you," the pharmacist said, softening a little.
Listen, I have the money to pay for it. If it isn't enough, I will get the rest. Just tell me how much it costs."
The pharmacist's brother stooped down and asked the little girl, "What kind of a miracle does your brother need?"
"I don't know," Tess replied with her eyes welling up.!
I just know he's really sick and Mommy says he needs an operation. But my Daddy can't pay for it, so I want to use my money."
How much do you have?" asked the man from Chicago
One dollar and eleven cents," Tess answered barely audibly. And it's all the money I have, but I can get some more if I need to."
"Well, what a coincidence," smiled the man. "A dollar and eleven cents---the exact price of a miracle for little brothers. "
He took her money in one hand and with the other hand he grasped her mitten and said "Take me to where you live. I want to see your brother and meet your parents. Let's see if I have the miracle you need."
That well dressed man was Dr. Carlton Armstrong, a surgeon, specializing in neuro-surgery. The operation was completed free of charge and it wasn't long until Andrew was home again and doing well.
Mom and Dad were happily talking about the chain of events that had led them to this place. "That surgery," her Mom whispered. "was a real miracle. I wonder! How much it would have cost?"
Tess smiled. She knew exactly how much a miracle cost...one dollar and eleven cents....plus the faith of a little child.
In our lives, we never know how many miracles we will need.
A miracle is not the suspension of natural law, but the operation of a higher law.
I know you'll keep the ball moving!
Here it goes. Throw it back to someone who means something to you!
A ball is a circle, no beginning, no end.
It keeps us together like our Circle of Friends.
But the treasure inside for you to see is the treasure of friendship you've granted to me.
Today I pass the friendship ball to you.
Pass it on to someone who is a friend to you.
MY OATH TO YOU...
When you are sad.....I will dry your tears.
When you are scared.....I will comfort your fears.
When you are worried.....I will give you hope.
When you are confused.....I will help you cope.
And when you are lost....And can't see the light, I shall be your beacon.....Shining ever so bright.
This is my oath.....I pledge till the end.
Why you may ask?.....Because you're my friend.
Signed: GOD
Allan W Janssen is the author of The Plain Truth About God at www.God-101.com and the blog "Perspective" at http://God-101.blogspot.com
A little girl went to her bedroom and pulled a glass jelly jar from its hiding place in the closet.
She poured the change out on the floor and counted it carefully. Three times, even. The total had to be exactly perfect. No chance here for mistakes.
Carefully placing the coins back in the jar and twisting on the cap, she slipped out the back door and made her way 6 blocks to Rexall's Drug Store with the big red Indian Chief sign above the door.
She waited patiently for the pharmacist to give her some attention, but he was too busy at this moment.
Tess twisted her feet to make a scuffing noise.
Nothing.
She cleared her throat with the most disgusting sound she could muster.
No good.
Finally she took a quarter from her jar and banged it on the glass counter.
That did it!
And what do you want?" the pharmacist asked in an annoyed tone of voice. I'm talking to my brother from Chicago whom I haven't seen in ages," he said without waiting for a reply to his question.
"Well, I want to talk to you about my brother," Tess answered back in the same annoyed tone.
"He's really, really sick...and I want to buy a miracle."
I beg your pardon?" said the pharmacist.
His name is Andrew and he has something bad growing inside his head and my Daddy says only a miracle can save him now. So how much does a miracle cost?"
"We don't sell miracles here, little girl. I'm sorry but I can't help you," the pharmacist said, softening a little.
Listen, I have the money to pay for it. If it isn't enough, I will get the rest. Just tell me how much it costs."
The pharmacist's brother stooped down and asked the little girl, "What kind of a miracle does your brother need?"
"I don't know," Tess replied with her eyes welling up.!
I just know he's really sick and Mommy says he needs an operation. But my Daddy can't pay for it, so I want to use my money."
How much do you have?" asked the man from Chicago
One dollar and eleven cents," Tess answered barely audibly. And it's all the money I have, but I can get some more if I need to."
"Well, what a coincidence," smiled the man. "A dollar and eleven cents---the exact price of a miracle for little brothers. "
He took her money in one hand and with the other hand he grasped her mitten and said "Take me to where you live. I want to see your brother and meet your parents. Let's see if I have the miracle you need."
That well dressed man was Dr. Carlton Armstrong, a surgeon, specializing in neuro-surgery. The operation was completed free of charge and it wasn't long until Andrew was home again and doing well.
Mom and Dad were happily talking about the chain of events that had led them to this place. "That surgery," her Mom whispered. "was a real miracle. I wonder! How much it would have cost?"
Tess smiled. She knew exactly how much a miracle cost...one dollar and eleven cents....plus the faith of a little child.
In our lives, we never know how many miracles we will need.
A miracle is not the suspension of natural law, but the operation of a higher law.
I know you'll keep the ball moving!
Here it goes. Throw it back to someone who means something to you!
A ball is a circle, no beginning, no end.
It keeps us together like our Circle of Friends.
But the treasure inside for you to see is the treasure of friendship you've granted to me.
Today I pass the friendship ball to you.
Pass it on to someone who is a friend to you.
MY OATH TO YOU...
When you are sad.....I will dry your tears.
When you are scared.....I will comfort your fears.
When you are worried.....I will give you hope.
When you are confused.....I will help you cope.
And when you are lost....And can't see the light, I shall be your beacon.....Shining ever so bright.
This is my oath.....I pledge till the end.
Why you may ask?.....Because you're my friend.
Signed: GOD
Allan W Janssen is the author of The Plain Truth About God at www.God-101.com and the blog "Perspective" at http://God-101.blogspot.com
Sunday, July 22, 2007
God Damn the Pusher!
"God Damn the Pusher" is the title of a song written by Hoyt Axton and performed by John Kay and Steppenwolf back in 1968.
The reason I mention this tune is because it can be just as relevant today, but in a totally different way.
The "Pushers" I am referring to are the Televangelist and Evangelists here in North America and the Islamic Fundamentalist Clergy in the Muslim world.
Both groups are doing just as much harm as the drug pusher because they advocate the "Drug" of extremist religion.
It doesn't matter whether it's a rally call against modern science, reason and evolution, or the blare of trumpets proclaiming a particular version of Islamic Jihad, they are a drug that the masses can well do without!
The only real defense we have against these "fundamentalists and extremists" is constant vigilance and a sane and reasoned approach to their attempts to lead us down the garden path. (That would be the Garden of Eden boys and girls!)
I mention this because I ran across a book the other day that very closely mirrors my own views in the book "The Plain Truth About God-101."
It's by an guy you may have heard about, Christopher Hitchens.
There is no question that Christopher Hitchens is very smart, very well-read, very outspoken and, more often than necessary, very obnoxious. (Gee, a guy after my own heart!)
All this is fine if you enjoy hearing him defend the Iraq war, but perhaps less so when he mounts a caustic attack on organized religion, as he does in his best-selling new book GOD IS NOT GREAT: How Religion Poisons Everything.
A formidable debater, Hitchens recently appeared on Fox News' Hannity and Colmes, managing the difficult trick of offending the liberal Colmes and reducing the conservative Hannity to stuttering incoherence.
Hitchens seldom fails to deliver an impressive performance, and he does so in God Is Not Great, where the arguments are brilliant and the language marvelously crafted.
Hitchens, who excels in fine distinctions, has been careful to state that he is not an atheist. He is, he says, an "anti-theist,"a man who vehemently opposes the concept of God as defined by the three dominant Western religions, Judaism, Christianity and Islam.
That God, Hitchens argues, resembles the despotic ruler of a totalitarian state, monitoring our every thought, judging every action and keeping us in thrall not just in this life but for all eternity in a heaven (if you're lucky enough to get there) that resembles North Korea.
Since Hitchens believes this God is a Santa Claus-like fiction invented by human beings, he stands in amazement at our ability to make life harder than it has to be.
Although Hitchens does his best to demolish the claims of religions, he is very much a believer — in what he calls "a finer tradition."
It's the tradition of Socrates, Galileo, James Mill, David Hume, Kant, Descartes, Spinoza, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Paine, Charles Darwin and Albert Einstein, who wrote: "If something is in me which can be called religious, then it is the unbounded admiration for the structure of the world so far as our science can reveal it."
It is Einstein's view that seems closest to Hitchens' own. For Hitchens there is something in the material world that is "far more miraculous and transcendent than any theology." If we seek ultimate truths, they are right here in front of us if only we are diligent and clever enough to discover them.
In the end, Hitchens calls for a "new enlightenment," based "on the proposition that the proper study of mankind is man, and woman."
The tools are readily at hand: art, literature, philosophy and the "pursuit of unfettered scientific inquiry."
Hitchens sees the human story as still very much unfinished. There is a sense in the last pages of this book that our species is at a momentous turning point: The old self-serving myths are falling to the relentless revelations of science, through which we will be either transformed or destroyed. The choice will be in our own hands, not God's.
Allan W Janssen is the author of The Plain Truth About God-101 at www.God-101.com
The reason I mention this tune is because it can be just as relevant today, but in a totally different way.
The "Pushers" I am referring to are the Televangelist and Evangelists here in North America and the Islamic Fundamentalist Clergy in the Muslim world.
Both groups are doing just as much harm as the drug pusher because they advocate the "Drug" of extremist religion.
It doesn't matter whether it's a rally call against modern science, reason and evolution, or the blare of trumpets proclaiming a particular version of Islamic Jihad, they are a drug that the masses can well do without!
The only real defense we have against these "fundamentalists and extremists" is constant vigilance and a sane and reasoned approach to their attempts to lead us down the garden path. (That would be the Garden of Eden boys and girls!)
I mention this because I ran across a book the other day that very closely mirrors my own views in the book "The Plain Truth About God-101."
It's by an guy you may have heard about, Christopher Hitchens.There is no question that Christopher Hitchens is very smart, very well-read, very outspoken and, more often than necessary, very obnoxious. (Gee, a guy after my own heart!)
All this is fine if you enjoy hearing him defend the Iraq war, but perhaps less so when he mounts a caustic attack on organized religion, as he does in his best-selling new book GOD IS NOT GREAT: How Religion Poisons Everything.
A formidable debater, Hitchens recently appeared on Fox News' Hannity and Colmes, managing the difficult trick of offending the liberal Colmes and reducing the conservative Hannity to stuttering incoherence.
Hitchens seldom fails to deliver an impressive performance, and he does so in God Is Not Great, where the arguments are brilliant and the language marvelously crafted.
If one is disposed to his point of view, it's a terrific read. Certainly it's the best of the recent assaults on organized religion from Richard Dawkins, Sam Harris and Daniel C. Dennett.
Those who are planning a visit to the new Creation Museum in Kentucky or whose faith needs to be kept under lock and key are not likely to read this book. But those with a serious interest in the psycho-sociology of religion as a flawed human institution will find much to ponder here.
After all, we do live at a time when people who passionately believe God is great have no problem flying passenger planes into New York skyscrapers.
Hitchens, who excels in fine distinctions, has been careful to state that he is not an atheist. He is, he says, an "anti-theist,"a man who vehemently opposes the concept of God as defined by the three dominant Western religions, Judaism, Christianity and Islam.
That God, Hitchens argues, resembles the despotic ruler of a totalitarian state, monitoring our every thought, judging every action and keeping us in thrall not just in this life but for all eternity in a heaven (if you're lucky enough to get there) that resembles North Korea.
Since Hitchens believes this God is a Santa Claus-like fiction invented by human beings, he stands in amazement at our ability to make life harder than it has to be.
"The person who is certain," Hitchens writes, "and who claims divine warrant for his certainty, belongs to the infancy of our species."
Thousands of years pass, cultural forces work their magic, and primordial superstitions acquire a near-universal legitimacy and certitude, no matter their assault on reason or contradiction of fact.
Though we exist in a thoroughly material reality, religion does its best to persuade us otherwise.
Hitchens sees this as an invitation for all sorts of terrible mischief. Since there's no objective standard to judge anything having to do with religion's imaginary realities, one theology is pitted against another.
"It was never that difficult," Hitchens writes, "to see that religion was a cause of hatred and conflict, and that its maintenance depended on ignorance and superstition."
Although Hitchens does his best to demolish the claims of religions, he is very much a believer — in what he calls "a finer tradition."
It's the tradition of Socrates, Galileo, James Mill, David Hume, Kant, Descartes, Spinoza, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Paine, Charles Darwin and Albert Einstein, who wrote: "If something is in me which can be called religious, then it is the unbounded admiration for the structure of the world so far as our science can reveal it."
It is Einstein's view that seems closest to Hitchens' own. For Hitchens there is something in the material world that is "far more miraculous and transcendent than any theology." If we seek ultimate truths, they are right here in front of us if only we are diligent and clever enough to discover them.
In the end, Hitchens calls for a "new enlightenment," based "on the proposition that the proper study of mankind is man, and woman."
The tools are readily at hand: art, literature, philosophy and the "pursuit of unfettered scientific inquiry."
Hitchens sees the human story as still very much unfinished. There is a sense in the last pages of this book that our species is at a momentous turning point: The old self-serving myths are falling to the relentless revelations of science, through which we will be either transformed or destroyed. The choice will be in our own hands, not God's.
Allan W Janssen is the author of The Plain Truth About God-101 at www.God-101.com
Wednesday, July 18, 2007
In the Name of the Lord!
Got some mail today of the type that I usually ignore, (Especially if there are any biblical quotations involved!) but what the Hell, I haven't replied to one of these in a long time so here goes.
This was actually addressed to the book God-101 website.
To this I gave my usual reply which was; "Why can't I give my opinion when all you are doing is giving yours! To tell me that the Biblical quotes you gave are literal truth and then to stand by them is not only the height of arrogance, but ignorance as well! (But then again I keep forgetting that you have God on your side. Sorry.)."
By the way, that threat at the end was a nice touch! Always leave 'em wondering. And don't call me "Honey!"
Allan W Janssen is the author of The Plain Truth About God-101 )at www.God-101.com
This was actually addressed to the book God-101 website.
Honey, you need to read your Bible. Jesus not only said He was the Son of God, but He said, at the Last Supper: 'for this is My blood, the blood of the covenant, to be poured out in behalf of many for the forgiveness of sins.' Matthew 26:28. Also 'I am the Way, the Truth and the Life. No one comes to the Father, except through Me.' John 14:6. In fact, this is one of the reasons why He was crucified. He was killed because He claimed to be One with God. Be very careful what you claim. Jesus also said 'On the other hand, it would be better for anyone who leads astray one of these little ones who believe in Me, to be drowned by a millstone around his neck in the depths of the sea.' Matthew 18:6. Take care that you don't confuse fact with your own opinion.
To this I gave my usual reply which was; "Why can't I give my opinion when all you are doing is giving yours! To tell me that the Biblical quotes you gave are literal truth and then to stand by them is not only the height of arrogance, but ignorance as well! (But then again I keep forgetting that you have God on your side. Sorry.)."
By the way, that threat at the end was a nice touch! Always leave 'em wondering. And don't call me "Honey!"
Allan W Janssen is the author of The Plain Truth About God-101 )at www.God-101.com
Tuesday, May 15, 2007
Jerry Falwell pisses off GOD once too often!
The Rev. Jerry Falwell, the television evangelist who founded the Moral Majority and used it to mold the religious right into a political force, died Tuesday shortly after being found unconscious in his office at Liberty University. He was 73.
Ron Godwin, the university's executive vice president, said Falwell was found unresponsive late Tuesday morning and taken to Lynchburg General Hospital, where he was pronounced dead about an hour later.
In a terse one sentence statement God is quoted as saying "Enough is enough, and if Pat Robertson doesn't clean up his act, he's next!"
Your "direct line" scribe;
Allan W Janssen
Allan W Janssen is the author of The Plain Truth About God-101 (what the church doesn't want you to know!) www.God-101.com
Ron Godwin, the university's executive vice president, said Falwell was found unresponsive late Tuesday morning and taken to Lynchburg General Hospital, where he was pronounced dead about an hour later.
In a terse one sentence statement God is quoted as saying "Enough is enough, and if Pat Robertson doesn't clean up his act, he's next!"Your "direct line" scribe;
Allan W Janssen
Allan W Janssen is the author of The Plain Truth About God-101 (what the church doesn't want you to know!) www.God-101.com
Wednesday, March 07, 2007
Stand Up For Jesus, Damn It!
In an attempt to clarify a statement he made over the weekend, Jesus issued a news release today in which he said " Oh, excuse me, but I thought you said erection, not Resurrection.Allan W Janssen is the author of The Plain Truth About God-101 (what the church doesn't want you to know!) www.God-101.com
Sunday, March 04, 2007
Oh God
I don't know if it's just me being sappy but I looked at this picture and started to cry because it's so beautiful. And who says there is no God!
After looking at this I know there is a God........
Just don't know if God gives a shit!
And that's all I have to say about that!
Except maybe I'm a fucking asshole too!
While we are on the subject, let me give you a quote from my book "God-101" where God (George Burns) says to John Denver "Life is a crap shoot son, and you take your chances like every one else!!!!!"
Probably one of the most accurate statements ever made.
Or, to quote Jim Morrison...
You cannot petition the Lord with prayer!!
After looking at this I know there is a God........
Just don't know if God gives a shit!
And that's all I have to say about that!
Except maybe I'm a fucking asshole too!
While we are on the subject, let me give you a quote from my book "God-101" where God (George Burns) says to John Denver "Life is a crap shoot son, and you take your chances like every one else!!!!!"
Probably one of the most accurate statements ever made.
Or, to quote Jim Morrison...
You cannot petition the Lord with prayer!!
Wednesday, February 28, 2007
Religious Right Now Wants Unintelligent Design
The Religious Right has begun to change its tack in the battle over creationism versus evolution.
Stung by the proliferation of scientific evidence for evolution, public opinion polls running against them, and the transformation of Britney Spears from a slim chaste teen to a fat slut, leading theoreticians in the Religious Right are preparing to dump Intelligent Design for an new theory of Unintelligent Design.
“We were losing the battleground for hearts and minds.” said Don Wildmon, chairman of the Kansas School Board Associations. “So we needed a new pitch and a whole new campaign."
The group commissioned a lot of consumer research, which identified people’s fascination with wars, terrorism, natural disasters killing tens of thousands of people, NASCAR pileups, random violence and Donald Trump’s comb-over.
In an official statement Mr. Wildmon said; "People now have the feeling that the world is spinning out of control, and that they have no security anymore. They question whether the Big Guy is up there looking out for them, hence our new doctrine, Unintelligent Design."
Don Wildmon went on to say; "The idea is that the chaos on the world is all part of God’s plan and was put into practice by God's idiot Half-Brother Thor."
“We believe we are on are onto a winning marketing strategy," he said. "People are hard-wired to believe there is a Divinity and to blame the mess on an errant family member just seems natural."
Your "Biblical" scribe;
Allan W Janssen
Allan W Janssen is the author of The Plain Truth About God-101 (what the church doesn't want you to know!) www.God-101.com
Stung by the proliferation of scientific evidence for evolution, public opinion polls running against them, and the transformation of Britney Spears from a slim chaste teen to a fat slut, leading theoreticians in the Religious Right are preparing to dump Intelligent Design for an new theory of Unintelligent Design.
“We were losing the battleground for hearts and minds.” said Don Wildmon, chairman of the Kansas School Board Associations. “So we needed a new pitch and a whole new campaign." The group commissioned a lot of consumer research, which identified people’s fascination with wars, terrorism, natural disasters killing tens of thousands of people, NASCAR pileups, random violence and Donald Trump’s comb-over.
In an official statement Mr. Wildmon said; "People now have the feeling that the world is spinning out of control, and that they have no security anymore. They question whether the Big Guy is up there looking out for them, hence our new doctrine, Unintelligent Design."
Don Wildmon went on to say; "The idea is that the chaos on the world is all part of God’s plan and was put into practice by God's idiot Half-Brother Thor." “We believe we are on are onto a winning marketing strategy," he said. "People are hard-wired to believe there is a Divinity and to blame the mess on an errant family member just seems natural."
Your "Biblical" scribe;
Allan W Janssen
Allan W Janssen is the author of The Plain Truth About God-101 (what the church doesn't want you to know!) www.God-101.com
Sunday, January 28, 2007
Touche`
I am going to give you a statement, and you tell me who said it, and what it's about! O.K?...............O.K.!
Now after reading that, you would think they are talking about "Creationists" and that sure would be the logical assumption.
However, if you go HERE! you will find that things are not always what they seem!!! (Read the rest of the article as well. It's so funny I should have put it in the "Sunday Morning Funnies" section.)
This article is taken from a site called "Talk Origins" and is basically Pro-Creation and Intelligent Design! (Found at Talk Origins and also down the left side of this page under "Things Worth a Read." For better or worse!)
(Just so you know what's - going on - going in - Gunga Din!)
Now I have to say here that I believe in Intelligent Design to the point where I will put my faith in a "FIRST CAUSE," but that's as far as I will go.
There is absolutely NO evidence that I can see of any Celestial God interfering with things since!
Besides that, a God that was capable of creating this Universe would be so far removed from us that any attempt to explain or comprehend IT would be utterly futile. (I imagine it would be about the same as an Ant trying to explain why we humans play the "Stock Market," or conduct experiments on a Cyclotron!)
There is also a site here that is written by disciples of Michael Behe.
Overwhelming Evidence doesn't seem overwhelmingly rabid, maybe even rather thoughtful, but I haven't read all that much of it yet!
Your "Just the facts" Scribe;
Allan W Janssen
Sometimes I wonder as to why ********nists keep arguing, even after they have failed to make a case.
After awhile, I've noticed on these newsgroups, that ********nists will repeat the same arguments over and over even though they had already been logically refuted several times!
Now after reading that, you would think they are talking about "Creationists" and that sure would be the logical assumption.
However, if you go HERE! you will find that things are not always what they seem!!! (Read the rest of the article as well. It's so funny I should have put it in the "Sunday Morning Funnies" section.)
This article is taken from a site called "Talk Origins" and is basically Pro-Creation and Intelligent Design! (Found at Talk Origins and also down the left side of this page under "Things Worth a Read." For better or worse!)
(Just so you know what's - going on - going in - Gunga Din!)
Now I have to say here that I believe in Intelligent Design to the point where I will put my faith in a "FIRST CAUSE," but that's as far as I will go.
There is absolutely NO evidence that I can see of any Celestial God interfering with things since!
Besides that, a God that was capable of creating this Universe would be so far removed from us that any attempt to explain or comprehend IT would be utterly futile. (I imagine it would be about the same as an Ant trying to explain why we humans play the "Stock Market," or conduct experiments on a Cyclotron!)
There is also a site here that is written by disciples of Michael Behe.
Overwhelming Evidence doesn't seem overwhelmingly rabid, maybe even rather thoughtful, but I haven't read all that much of it yet!
Your "Just the facts" Scribe;
Allan W Janssen
Tuesday, January 16, 2007
Words to live by!
Excerpts from the book "The Plain Truth About God-101"
(what the church doesn't want you to know!)
I've found Jesus!
He was hiding behind the sofa the whole time!
I believe in God!
I just don't trust anyone that works for him!
“I look after the big picture, son.” Said God!
“Life is a crap-shoot. You take your chances like everyone else!”
-George Burns as God-
”Life is what it is!” –Anonymous
God inspired the bible, he didn't write it. People base their lives around the manic scribbling of a bunch of desert baked primitives who ate bugs and honey! Of course they saw God! -Anonymous
Muslims have their holy day on Friday, Jews on Saturday and Christians on Sunday. Since we are all "Theists" and "people of the book" it would be nice to find a way to harmonize all three beliefs. Aside from the obvious results of an end to religious strife, one of the most immediate benefits would be a three-day weekend!
-A.W.J.
The bible states clearly that nobody can earn his salvation through morality and good deeds (Gnosticism) since we are all sinful by nature. We have the perfect catch 22 situation were only in the blind acceptance of Christ atoning for our deeds can we be saved. In other words, we are in a no-win situation against the so-called logic of the shaman; if we do not take his word for it then all is lost! –A.W.J.
When I look at the arrogance of Islam with the way they treat women and the brutality they exhibit towards others under the direction of their Imam’s, it seems very disturbing that a major world religion can exhibit such barbaric acts.
That is until we realize that Christianity is guilty of just as many, if not more infractions against humanity through its history. Islam is one of the youngest of the major religions and still rooted in its origins. Let’s face it, almost everyone in the six and seventh centuries held comparable views to what Islam does today, including the Christians. -A.W.J.
“Consciousness is the physical manifestation of God within us!” -A.W.J.
"Conscience is God's presence in man.” -Emanuel Seidenberg
If faith were the result of logical reasoning, we could expect that most intelligent people would by now be converted to one ideology or the other! –A.W.J.
A Hinduism and Zen truism: “A person is like a drop of water separated from the sea. To fall as rain, it considers itself distinct from the world soul. Then, through hill and dale, its destiny is to return to the sea!”
"I have just three things to teach: simplicity, patience, compassion. These three are your greatest treasures.” --Lao-Tzu
You give but little when you give of your possessions.
It is when you give of yourself that you truly give.
--Kahlil Gibran, The Prophet
"The whole of life, from the moment you are born to the moment you die, is a process of learning."-Jiddu Krishnamurti (1895-1986)
I am approached with the most opposite opinions and advice, and by men who are equally certain that they represent the Divine will. I am sure that either the one or the other is mistaken in the belief, and perhaps in some respects, both.
I hope it will not be irreverent of me to say that if it is probable that God would reveal his will to others on a point so connected with my duty, it might be supposed he would reveal it directly to me. --Abraham Lincoln
"I do not consider it an insult, but rather a compliment to be called an agnostic. I do not pretend to know where many ignorant men are sure. That is all that agnosticism means.” - Clarence Darrow.
There seems to be an abundance of GOD'S on this planet. There is the God of Abraham, the God of Muhammad, and the GOD of Jesus. Then there is the loving GOD, the all-powerful GOD, the vengeful GOD, the GOD of grace, the GOD of peace and the GOD'S of war. There is also the “Holy Trinity,” which is actually “three for the price of one,” and even a "dead" GOD. -A.W.J.
”What can you say about a society that thinks God is dead and Elvis
is alive!” -- Irv Kupcinet
“If life was fair, Elvis would be alive and all the impersonators
would be dead!” --Johnny Carson
Sacred cows make the best hamburger. -- Mark Twain
“We are what we pretend to be, so we must be careful about what we pretend to be.” -Kurt Vonnegut Jr.
"One of my objections to religion is that it prevents the search for
God.” --Arthur C. Clarke
AND FINALLY:
Perhaps the greatest sin of the Western churches (Judaism, Christianity and Islam) has been the particular brand of narcissism that impels so many to feel they have God all sewn up and put in their back pocket. People who think that they not only have a ticket to heaven, but anyone who disagrees with them is going straight to hell! They believe in God, but do not believe that God is bigger than their own theology. In their arrogance they do not realized that God is not theirs to possess! -Paraphrased from M. Scott Peck.
Your "That's all Folks!" scribe;
Allan W Janssen
(what the church doesn't want you to know!)
I've found Jesus!
He was hiding behind the sofa the whole time!
I believe in God!
I just don't trust anyone that works for him!
“I look after the big picture, son.” Said God!
“Life is a crap-shoot. You take your chances like everyone else!”
-George Burns as God-
”Life is what it is!” –Anonymous
God inspired the bible, he didn't write it. People base their lives around the manic scribbling of a bunch of desert baked primitives who ate bugs and honey! Of course they saw God! -Anonymous
Muslims have their holy day on Friday, Jews on Saturday and Christians on Sunday. Since we are all "Theists" and "people of the book" it would be nice to find a way to harmonize all three beliefs. Aside from the obvious results of an end to religious strife, one of the most immediate benefits would be a three-day weekend!
-A.W.J.
The bible states clearly that nobody can earn his salvation through morality and good deeds (Gnosticism) since we are all sinful by nature. We have the perfect catch 22 situation were only in the blind acceptance of Christ atoning for our deeds can we be saved. In other words, we are in a no-win situation against the so-called logic of the shaman; if we do not take his word for it then all is lost! –A.W.J.
When I look at the arrogance of Islam with the way they treat women and the brutality they exhibit towards others under the direction of their Imam’s, it seems very disturbing that a major world religion can exhibit such barbaric acts.
That is until we realize that Christianity is guilty of just as many, if not more infractions against humanity through its history. Islam is one of the youngest of the major religions and still rooted in its origins. Let’s face it, almost everyone in the six and seventh centuries held comparable views to what Islam does today, including the Christians. -A.W.J.
“Consciousness is the physical manifestation of God within us!” -A.W.J.
"Conscience is God's presence in man.” -Emanuel Seidenberg
If faith were the result of logical reasoning, we could expect that most intelligent people would by now be converted to one ideology or the other! –A.W.J.
A Hinduism and Zen truism: “A person is like a drop of water separated from the sea. To fall as rain, it considers itself distinct from the world soul. Then, through hill and dale, its destiny is to return to the sea!”
"I have just three things to teach: simplicity, patience, compassion. These three are your greatest treasures.” --Lao-Tzu
You give but little when you give of your possessions.
It is when you give of yourself that you truly give.
--Kahlil Gibran, The Prophet
"The whole of life, from the moment you are born to the moment you die, is a process of learning."-Jiddu Krishnamurti (1895-1986)
I am approached with the most opposite opinions and advice, and by men who are equally certain that they represent the Divine will. I am sure that either the one or the other is mistaken in the belief, and perhaps in some respects, both.
I hope it will not be irreverent of me to say that if it is probable that God would reveal his will to others on a point so connected with my duty, it might be supposed he would reveal it directly to me. --Abraham Lincoln
"I do not consider it an insult, but rather a compliment to be called an agnostic. I do not pretend to know where many ignorant men are sure. That is all that agnosticism means.” - Clarence Darrow.
There seems to be an abundance of GOD'S on this planet. There is the God of Abraham, the God of Muhammad, and the GOD of Jesus. Then there is the loving GOD, the all-powerful GOD, the vengeful GOD, the GOD of grace, the GOD of peace and the GOD'S of war. There is also the “Holy Trinity,” which is actually “three for the price of one,” and even a "dead" GOD. -A.W.J.
”What can you say about a society that thinks God is dead and Elvis
is alive!” -- Irv Kupcinet
“If life was fair, Elvis would be alive and all the impersonators
would be dead!” --Johnny Carson
Sacred cows make the best hamburger. -- Mark Twain
“We are what we pretend to be, so we must be careful about what we pretend to be.” -Kurt Vonnegut Jr.
"One of my objections to religion is that it prevents the search for
God.” --Arthur C. Clarke
AND FINALLY:
Perhaps the greatest sin of the Western churches (Judaism, Christianity and Islam) has been the particular brand of narcissism that impels so many to feel they have God all sewn up and put in their back pocket. People who think that they not only have a ticket to heaven, but anyone who disagrees with them is going straight to hell! They believe in God, but do not believe that God is bigger than their own theology. In their arrogance they do not realized that God is not theirs to possess! -Paraphrased from M. Scott Peck.
Your "That's all Folks!" scribe;
Allan W Janssen
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