The following are a series of articles discussing issues common to Natural Christian ideals.
It may be noted that I do not present or elaborate very much on the teachings of Jesus Christ on this web page or in the discussions that follow. There is a reason for this. Religion can be a very controversial subject and even though I consider myself to be somewhat knowledgeable about Jesus and consider his teachings to be very important, I am not an expert on history or religion from the world perspective. I would hate to misrepresent more than others have some historical fact or belief, so I leave the presentation of facts to others and the selection of beliefs to the individual reading the web page. I believe that my point of view, that is based on my understanding, can be treated as a next step, and should be viewed on that basis and on whatever understanding the reader may have. This is consistent with the Natural Christian philosophy that each of us is naturally religious and should find our own "educated" interpretation to determine our own beliefs.
Copyright 2010 Greg Baenziger
Nature is God's Church
My favorite place to reflect about
Creation and God is outdoors. There the multitude of Creation’s gifts,
the magnificent splendor and the power of God are readily apparent. It
is there that we feel most vulnerable, a reflection of our
insignificance in God’s creation. We have learned to rise
above this vulnerability, which is not bad in itself, but has led to us
losing sight of what we are and our part in creation. We are not Gods,
but that is how many act. We do not know all the answers, but that is
how many speak of themselves. “Ours is the only way!” This kind of
attitude is pure vanity. I believe the best way to avoid these mistakes
is not to build churches of wood or stone, but rather find outdoor
places where nature is the most significant part of the surroundings to
gather and think and speak of what we believe, a place where we can be
reminded of what God is and what we are, as part of God.
I do not rule
out the possibility of some shelter, such as a roof or canopy, so that
we can be there in stormy weather, but would ask to use such
protections only when needed and to eliminate at least most of the
walls depending on the conditions. I would also see a greenhouse or an
arboretum as an acceptable place. Too often the building and the constructs of man have become more important than the beliefs that caused them to be built. The important thing is us thinking in the correct way so we can learn of God, devote ourselves to God and find harmony with all that surrounds us. This can truly be done wherever we are.
I also prefer the Quaker
concepts of gathering of friends to the idea of services. We are all
individuals and of value to God. No one person should speak for all. No
one person should have a better idea of what God and Creation mean, so
as to be able to preach to the others. If this were so it would be a
weakness for the society. Each should be able to stand alone in what
they believe and only use the group for support in times of need, to broaden our perspective with new ideas or to help us learn.
God does not need man, but man does need God.
In my belief, that is, Natural Christianity, God is not a wizened old man (or woman for that matter). God exists and is present throughout creation (not separate from it)
and is therefore within each of us, within animals and within things. We are ALL as the children of God - that means every living being, animal and human, alike. We are sons and daughters of God. We are part of God.
We carry out God’s will. It is not in that we enforce some belief of
our own on others. That would be a misunderstanding of the nature of
creation and a presumption that we alone are God. It is not in that we
accept and behave according to some commonly held or authoritative
group’s beliefs. Instead, it is that we act as representatives of our
beliefs and our idea of what God is. We should try to be an example of
a "Way of Life" that is consistent with an enlightened understanding of
God and the creation. In this way we are teachers about God, life and
ourselves. Thus, people who dominate and are vengeful represent that as
their idea of what God is. People who are loving and sharing represent
that as their idea of what God is. WE get to choose what we think God
is by what we believe and we then represent those beliefs in the way we
behave.
God is all-knowing and all-powerful, therefore EVERY
action we take must be God’s action. This can only be true if we are
part of God. This makes it clear what is meant when it is said that we
should create a heaven on earth. If we act like devils we will create a
HELL, and if we act like angels we will create a HEAVEN. Again, we get
to choose. This is the free will we have often heard of. It seems then
that both forces can exist and be acting around us (as we can plainly
see really occurs), and only by joining together (as responsible
individuals) and promoting the HEAVENLY choice can we achieve it in
more than an isolated way.
The important thing is that WE are
responsible for what WE do (or do not do), and not some external entity
like a devil or a separate god. Those idealized entities are merely created to
be our scapegoats. It is important that we do this, because our soul is
the characterization of our intent and behavior, our representation of
God or the reflection we present of Nature. It exists through us and
recurs throughout time in our re-creation and rebirth. Thus all that we
have is our soul and we present our soul for all to see with every act
we do.
The idea that we define what God is has always been true.
The history of religion has been of men saying what they believe God
is. The bible was written by men who selected between the holy
teachings of Jesus to decide what should be in their version of the
bible. There are many versions! There are many religions! These
represent what those people wanted God to be.
All things have a spirit. We know the spirit of a thing to the extent
that we know of the thing. The better we know a thing the better we
know its spirit. If we are clever enough and knowledgeable enough we
can understand the spirit of a thing and thereby predict its behavior,
know the subtle variations of its behavior and take advantage of our
knowledge. Our soul is our spirit and our behavior makes known our
spirit to our fellow beings and to all other observers. What then is
God’s Spirit? As for any spirit what is known of it depends on the
observer. We observe God all around us and within us, so it is possible
for us to know the spirit of God as well as we know our own spirit. We
often delude ourselves in our observations of and judgment of our own
spirits, so knowing ourselves may be the more difficult task, though it
is possible to delude ourselves in our judgment of God.
The
spirit of God is clouded by all the judgments about God that have been
voiced in our ears during our lives, but if we are honest with
ourselves, then we know the spirit of God. We can see the behavior of
God in Nature and the natural laws that are pervasive in nature and in
ourselves. We could characterize the spirit of God by the observed
behavior of Nature, but is that a complete understanding? I would add
to this characterization an additional understanding of what I believe
is also pervasive in Nature. I believe there is infinitely more
complexity and higher designs and spirit that transcends the observable
behavior. There are universes within universes and presumably our
universe may be only an iota in an infinitely more vast accumulation of
universes. At each level that we are able to see, there are subtle
variations, continual change and an infinite number of complex
combinations making possible a plethora of existences.
On our
own level of existence there seems to be a natural tendency for
sentient creatures to seek out and find what is referred to as
religion. I would propose that the creation, the universe, and perhaps
all universes tend to develop sentient life forms that tend to form
beliefs that include a God. At first they use these gods as a repository of all
the power and the cause of all things in their world. As beings become
more and more attuned to their world and develop understandings of
their world, their gods have less and less a place in the world, for
the beings see the cause and effect that explains most of what they
once did not understand. Once they have developed significant
understandings of nature, they focus on and keep only a single God to
explain the remaining things which they do not understand and are
beyond their power to explain. Because of the nature of the sentient
beings, this single God takes on either a paternal or maternal
character, depending on the group hierarchy. The beings may develop a
considerate loving social belief, which derives from the benefit of
group cooperation.
The
relegation of phenomena that are newly understood to nature, which is less
respected than phenomena not understood or associated with God is an ongoing
mistake that leads mankind away from the understanding of God. The identification of a pattern or principle
of creation does not denigrate that aspect of the creation, but rather
illustrates the magnificence of the new aspect of the Spirit of God. In relegating the world to separate from "self",
something that is understood and therefore under control, an observer alienates “self” from
God and from the world. The mistake has resulted
in the development of an ego to reflect the misunderstanding of the self as a
separate and powerful form, neither of which is correct. As the world continues to demonstrate our
lack of separateness and lack of power, we struggle to maintain our ego by
deluding ourselves.
All of the issues, which caused the
formation of the idea of a God or a “someone else” who is responsible
for everything that is not understood, do not go away. Our own
smallness in the scheme of things does not allow us to see all the
answers and we never will be able to know the answers to some of the
questions and issues that confront us. What remains and how we look at
and react to those issues and all the important issues that confront us
determines our view of religion and what we are and what we see God as.
There is often a void within us that cries out for answers to help us
find our way. We each seek for answers to these questions in whatever
way we can.
It is the Natural Christian belief that these
developments and issues are not unique on our world, are not a result
of random or unusual development, but rather are an inherent property
of nature. It is a property of nature and of sentient life in our
creation that we form these ideas and beliefs about our creation. It is
in the nature of our being that we doubt that which is difficult to
believe and that which does not make sense to us. It is the nature of
our form of being that we should individually and as groups try to
understand and recognize how creation or nature works and adapt the
best possible model of the creation to explain our existence and to use
our best understanding of how nature works and what our place is within
the All, however small or great it is, to develop a basis for our way
of life. It is in the nature of creation that we develop such beliefs
and aspire to be as close to and as much like the most powerful view of
ourselves, as we can. It is the nature of our creation and existence,
which is the power and cause of things, which we attribute to and can
think of as God. This ordering force, energy or power is what I call
the Holy Spirit. It is this Holy Spirit that influences our behavior
not on the level of the sentient being, but on the level of the
creation of our being and the development of our species and of nature.
This power or spirit is that, which is omniscient and omnipotent,
because it is an inherent component of everything and therefore is an
inherent component of us, one of an infinite number of interdependent components.
Many people look at nature and try
to define its apparent rules and principles, which may be ascribed as
merely man’s attempt to learn of and form a simplistic view of nature, and think
they understand nature as that simplistic view. We pigeon-hole nature
as simple ideas and formulas, as a base thing that we walk upon and
swim through, and as unimportant and separate from ourselves. This is
analogous to our fingernail looking at the rest of our body and
thinking of our head as nothing more than a distant lump of no
importance. We are completely and totally dependent on every aspect of
a very complex nature and its function. We can not separate ourselves from nature any
more than we can separate ourselves from our fellow beings. To think we
can do so is a failure of understanding. To do so is forgetting a
fundamental fact of life. To do so is like living in the presence of
something so long that you forget that it is there. One only has to
look in detail at an image of a galaxy and understand that every single
light is a sun like ours with all the little meteors, comets, planets
and possibly creatures swirling around it, to see the infinite complexity and
extent of nature. Nature is not some little, simple or base thing to be
belittled or denigrated, as many religions do to raise their own ideas
to a loftier level. Nature is, even in their words, God’s creation. We
will never know the full extent of nature or the most fundamental basis
of its existence. There is always a more fundamental particle beyond
our ability to sense it. God is not separate from creation, but rather
is manifested fully throughout creation and is reflected by each and
every aspect of creation, including us, our beliefs, and our reflection
of what we believe God to be.
We seek to understand nature and
to form the best model possible for representing its behavior and
spirit, but our model of creation and way of life is not a direct copy
of the reality of the creation. A primitive understanding will not be
the same as an enlightened understanding and thus different religions
will be developed according to the level of understanding of the
individuals and groups of a society. These religions will necessarily
be at odds with one another because of the importance to the
individual. The individual’s own identity and security are tied to such
a belief in God, the model of creation and to a group of people, which
agrees with him. There is safety in numbers. It is in the more
enlightened understanding of how people believe and develop their
beliefs, in the nature of creation and models of creation and ideal
behavior or philosophies, in which true understanding develops to the
point where tolerance, forgiveness and love can dominate. It is the
Natural Christian belief that the end result of the Holy Spirit will be
such an enlightened understanding which best models reality.
The
spirit, the beliefs within us, and our behavior and actions as a
result, form the next level of the manifestation of God. As we choose
and cling to a set of beliefs we support the spirit of those beliefs
and the manifestation of God in the form that we represent. We further
contribute to or detract from the ideals that form the core of the
beliefs by our consistent or divergent behavior relative to the
beliefs. As stated in another discussion, we choose what God is to us
and through our words and actions we present our own soul and our God
to those around us. To the extent that our beliefs, words and actions
represent reality truthfully, our religion is closer to enlightened
religion that will persist and continue. If the beliefs that we hold
are not consistent with reality then our religion will fade away as did
primitive religions that were more limited in understanding.
The
greatest choice which we continue to make is how we refine our ideals
as we learn more about our universe(s). This is the reason why we must
forever study nature and all that surrounds us, so that we continue to
learn all that we can to understand what God is and how we need to
adapt to survive and create the world that we would choose to live in.
The Christian in Natural Christianity is such a choice. I would that we
all could behave as the best representations of how Jesus Christ
behaved. Jesus and his followers were devoted to a set of ideals which
diverged from his native religion. He provided us with a representation
of a God, which is loving, giving and understanding. Jesus believed in
a God that would forgive the misbehavior of people. Jesus tried to
understand how and why people could behave so, and then tried to help
to teach them that there is a better way to live and to behave. The
personal behavior of Jesus exemplified that better peaceful loving
behavior. He not only believed, but acted consistently with his beliefs.
This is a difficult task - to stand up for what you believe in the face
of a world that would kill you for doing so. Few people today are
capable of doing so. It is a constant struggle for us not to buckle
under to the forces and the intimidation that surround us. This is why the
beliefs we choose must be our own beliefs and not merely beliefs we accept
from others. We must believe strongly in our ideals and fight hard to
behave accordingly. We need to represent the spirit we believe in, so
that our world becomes a reflection of that better ideal behavior that
we choose.
As
each of us goes through life, we search for the best for our family,
friends and for our own lives. We would like to see more of what we
like and would like the unpleasant parts of our life to go away. We
work hard to put food on the table and make sure we have a roof over our
heads. Mostly we make the right choices and sometimes we make sure we
get a chance to smell the roses and watch that beautiful sunset.
Unfortunately, many people put off the important parts of their life to
get ahead in the world. As a result they often miss out on those
moments of bliss when they realize that we already are in heaven. It is
sad to see people struggling to satisfy everyone around them while
holding the belief that the only heaven is after they die. Their reward
is missing the Kingdom of Heaven here on earth. We can look around us
and not find anything at all that resembles our idea of heaven and this
is partly our fault. We do not take "on earth as it is in heaven"
literally, both in not working toward a heaven on earth and in not
searching for what heaven would be and recognizing that this is it. In
our reality perhaps it is these two endeavors that we can begin to
realize that this is heaven. God is magnificent in everything that we
see. In helping to care for a young boy with angel-man's syndrome for a
day, I have seen the vibrant reality of God's will combined with the
grace of the behavior of those who go far beyond themselves to love and
care for him. It is in relationships, such as this, where God's heaven
is obvious and God acts through us. Those who act like angels personify
our ideals of heaven in our world. While we seek the answers that lead
us to find the Kingdom of Heaven, our behavior can be angelic and we
may both find out what Heaven on Earth can be and devote our lives to
learn of and to live in the Kingdom of Heaven, which is here now.
Natural Christian beliefs are formulated around an understanding of
nature and reality that recognizes the existence of actions and
behavior that are considered evil and sinful. There is an understanding
that these behaviors are not in and of themselves contrary to God’s
will. They exist in nature and therefore are a manifestation of God.
The more common view of nature is in and of itself an often brutal and
harsh manifestation of God. The nature of our existence is that we are
brought into a world which is only a doubtful haven for our period of
survival. We live in often difficult circumstances which can include
starvation, disease, wild animals, bitter cold, droughts and fierce
storms. These are manifestations of God as is the brutality of our own
fellow creatures. How then do we understand what evil and sin are?
Unlike other religions, Natural Christianity would state that all
things are possible and will happen. There are no promises of being
saved or protected by some distant and benevolent force. This is the
will of God. We all live and die. That is a fundamental understanding
of the nature of God. Our choice and our free will is in how we behave
while we live.
Natural Christian belief considers all actions to
be God’s actions. Deadly actions exist through natural forces as part
of the basic nature required for the world we live on to be created and
to exist. Deadly action exists in the rays of radiation that shine upon
our world to keep it warm enough for us to survive. There is a layer of
ozone there to protect us somewhat from those deadly rays and allows
our survival and has allowed the development of our species. The layer
did not always exist and may not survive if we continue to damage our
environment. We may all then be killed by the very process that keeps
our world warm. There are delicate balances in nature that may be
affected by our understanding of our world, our own behavior and the
behavior of those around us. The same is true for the others of our
species who would choose to do evil to us. The delicate balance in each
of our educations, experiences and understandings can be distorted or
prejudiced in ways to endanger our lives. Also the balance can be upset
by the chemicals we consume or the biological forces within us. A being
that could be our friend could very easily also become our enemy. A
person who is normally reasonable, gentle and kind can in an instant of
emotion, fear, misunderstanding or insanity, become a murderer.
Further, isn’t it obvious that a person who is brought up in an
environment of hate and killing, can hardly be expected to act
otherwise or to not perpetuate some of what he has learned from his
environment. People often give as an excuse, that killing is a fact of
nature or that it is the natural order of things that beings dominate
and prey upon other or lower forms of life. This is, however, with
education and understanding, a choice and not a fact of nature. We are
creatures of both environment and intellect. All creatures can be
loving, generous, loyal and benign to their neighbors. Some just choose
not to be. We are each part of God, but each aspect of nature and each
of our species has a different experience, and so we are each different
and as a result we represent through our behaviors different
reflections of nature and God.
Part of our nature also includes
a desire for self-preservation. This desire helps to keep us alive
within the harsh realities of our existence. This desire and the
understandings we develop in staying alive make it obvious to us that
some behaviors and practices are an anathma to our survival. We say
that murder is evil, because it is the very act that would prematurely
end our lives. We have a deep seated prejudice against killing, at
least of ourselves. We think about such acts often in our lives and
consider what we can do to stop them from happening to us. We have not
the power by ourselves or in groups to prevent killing, because we are
part of discordant populations that can not agree on almost anything.
Also, we often become hardened to the terrible behaviors that we
witness or become involved in. One person’s murder is another person’s
survival or even another person’s pleasure. Finally, it is often easier
and safer to turn away and not fight the behavior that could end our
lives or hurt us.
The evil and violence in the world and our
reactions to it is a result of human nature and although it seems to be prevalent in our species, both the evil behavior and our reactions to
it are learned behaviors that for the most part can be unlearned,
corrected or eliminated through proper education, societal organization
and controls. The idea of sin is an example of a society’s attempt at controlling its evils. Religion and society attempt to define what is
evil and to induce its members not to engage in it. Unfortunately
society and humankind do not seem to be very good at dealing with
behaviors that are not good for the society. Often a society’s actions
themselves are as evil as the acts that it is trying to curb. How can a
society expect to stop the murder of its citizens when it sanctions the
murder of those of another country or the murder of one of its own
citizens in the form of an execution?
Natural Christian beliefs
would not eliminate the concepts of evil and sin or deny their
existence, but would seek to understand them and our basis for
considering them. The very basis of a religion is to form a set of
beliefs for us to deal with the aspects of our lives that are difficult
to understand and to know how to behave accordingly. Natural Christians
must see beyond the morals of other group’s or society’s written or
unwritten laws and find a reasonable basis for deciding what evil is
and how to curb their own behavior. If everyone would do this same
thing and there was some close correlation between each of our
understandings, and we all behaved as good people and did not do evil,
we could conceivably eliminate evil. The concept of evil and what
should be considered sinful is perhaps one of the most important issues
for Natural Christians to discuss between themselves. These are the
focal points for our own control of our behavior. Once we arrive at our
understanding of what is sinful and why, then we can take the next
important step and eliminate the behavior in ourselves and thereby
represent truly our beliefs.
What
then should be done about the lazy people and even more difficult, the
antagonists, who would rather see others knocked down and trod beneath
their feet than see them be given a hand up? How do we make them see the light
of enlightened civilization that could be constructed to help all of us
strive for a better life?
First, we need to stand up for what we
believe. We need to announce that we are against war, genocide and
torture. We need to push and poke the lazy among us to stand up and do
their part, since none will succeed fully unless we all do.
Second, we
need to create a constructive environment for changing how we live and
behave in the face of adversity and evil. Few of us as individuals are
able to stand up to the worst the world has to offer, so it is best to
form a group of like-minded individuals to work together and support
each other.
Third, we need to formulate a standard for behavior,
not to limit or exclude others, but instead to provide a goal for us to
try to achieve. The standard must be a high one, representing the best
ideas that we can imagine, including the teachings of all great philosophers, prophets and of course Jesus
Christ.
First, seek to nurture and help those around you. As they survive
to live then you have helped to give or maintain life. Second, teach others of your knowledge and of
the best known path to follow through life to be in harmony with all. Third, seek to build an enlightened civilization
where all creatures work together for the benefit of all. Cooperation and constructive behavior will cause the accumulation of good behaviors and improvements to society. Fourth, give respect to all creatures that live and
struggle for life. Seek to prevent the
suffering of all creatures. Allow no
member or creature to suffer or fall ill due to thirst, hunger, exposure, sickness
or maltreatment that can be cured or prevented.
If creatures around you are suffering and doing without the means for
survival then all have failed and not just those who suffer. Skills and gifts of achievement are gifts
from God and not vain glories of the receiver.
Seek to offset the weaknesses of others through the balance of the gifts of strength to you. Offer challenges rather than mere employment;
offer employment rather than charity; and offer charity rather than
nothing.
Where discord occurs or reason fails, seek to cure the lack
of harmony through understanding and resolution of the differences. God’s creatures are much alike and the discord
may be a small matter. Reason may be
found again in the understanding of nature, in restoring balance or harmony, in
the quiet of contemplation and study, and in the repetition of the correct way
of living. Greed, violence and war are evils
and crimes that are caused by ignorance and lack of reason. Seek reason in your understanding of nature,
God’s creatures and yourself.
If you defeat your brother in battle do you win or do you
lose your brother? All people are
brothers and sisters. If you defeat your
enemy in battle it is the discord between you that wins and not you or your
enemy. Seek to eliminate the discord and
not your enemy. True evil is the choice
to live in disharmony, to be greedy, to cause violence, to dominate or to subjugate
others. Do not engage in violence to
solve your problems, for violence is a destructive and poorly aimed tool. Even if you strike your target you miss your
goal, for your goal is to rise above greed and desire to create a civil
society.
Seek harmony in all things.
Where harmony does not exist, separate the discordant parties until
resolution of the discord can be achieved through understanding and
tolerance. Where violence ensues, defend
against the damage of violence while attempting to restore reason. Redirect the blows of your enemy and
frustrate the plans of destruction. The
best defense is one that ends the battle before it begins. Violence and domination are crimes that are
best minimized.
Jesus Christ was first and foremost a teacher. The subject he was
teaching was not the conventional subjects that our children learn in
public school. Nor was it simply the historical or religious
interpretation of religious texts, though this was an important part of
his own studies. Jesus was a teacher of life. He spoke of how we can
live and behave to overcome our day to day trials and tribulations, how
to live life to find ourselves and to find fulfillment in devotion to
God. He used religious texts to illustrate and teach his ideas, for
that was the function of such texts, but they were not the subject that
he was teaching. He taught that devotion to God was the path to
salvation and that by believing in God, being close to God, and by
following God’s word that we can all find peace, contentment and our
place in heaven. By teaching us and helping us find our way Jesus
Christ was most definitely our savior.
Part of what Jesus taught
was that many of the normal pursuits of mankind lead us away from the
very things that we wish to attain. If we want peace and contentment,
the complex and demanding struggle for gain and the trauma of loss is
not going to attain it. If we want the friendship and love with our
neighbors, then we are not going to attain it by competing with them
for wealth or power. We also will not find it by denying them the
status we accord ourselves or by denying them the simple respect they
deserve for their existence and for their struggle for survival. If we
exclude others from receiving a share of the bounties we achieve, we
can not hope to be included in the bounties of others. The devotion to
God is to lead us away from the worst of these other pursuits and to
lead us on a better path. The path that we should be following will not
only bring us closer to God, but must also lead us away from the
various forms of greed, which invariably lead to the various forms of
bad behavior and the disharmony within mankind and the disharmony
between mankind and nature.
As a Natural Christian each of our
neighbors is part of God, as are we. To devote ourselves to God goes
beyond learning of the nature of God’s creation and discovering our
place in it, to finding God in all that surrounds us, including each
and every neighbor. This should also include other animals, trees,
rivers, and all of nature. We are all the same being, God’s being, and
each action we take to hurt other beings or nature, affects God and
hurts ourselves. We must share as part of God and cooperate to live a
life of goodness so that we can bring goodness to all of God’s
creation. We must develop our own rules for behavior which reflect our
understanding of God and attempt to attain the highest level of
civilization possible, where all contribute and all benefit from our
work, where nature is conserved and life is sustainable and good for
all.
Devotion to God does not mean abandoning life’s pursuits
and our responsibilities. Instead, it means looking at those pursuits
in a new light and finding better ways to accomplish our goals and
fulfilling our responsibilities that will help others to do the same
and not lead us in the wrong direction. It means remembering to share
and consider others in your actions. If I have more than I need then I
should find a way to provide the excess to those who have less than
they need. If I am planning for the future then I should include
consideration in the plan for the effects on others, for including
others in the work and in the benefits. This does not necessarily mean
simply giving away the fruits of our labors, though at times that may
be needed. Rather it might mean that we give of ourselves to help
others to better work for themselves, use our excess to employ others
who need employment or contribute to works that benefit all. Devotion
to God is finding the ideals within ourselves that reflect the best
that we can be and the highest ideals of God and God’s creation.
What needs to be the motivation in a civilized and enlightened world?
How do we decide what we should be working toward and what we should
expect in return?
The benefit to society of ambition, hard
work, and desire to make a better life can not be ignored. The tendency
is to allow these and especially the latter to drive the economy and
the society, and then to provide the spoils of success to the
benefactor. If each of the members of our society were truly
independent, like we like to think we are, then this would not be a
problem, but we are not independent. Our actions indirectly affect
everyone and directly affect others. The resources used, the
disturbances created and the ramifications from our actions affect all.
We live in a finite world – a closed group of societies. There is not
enough to go around if everyone has what they want. When these
independent actions become systemic what might be a small unnoticeable
effect become serious and earth-shattering. Pollution, global warming,
failing resources, unemployment, disparity of quality of life,
litigation, violence, crime and others are all directly related to the
disregard of the dependent relationships between us.
The
motivations in our society range from those who say they want nothing
at all, to those who say they want only their fair share, to those who
want whatever they can get. The consistent result of the American Dream
has been a regular series of problems resulting in regular requirements
to correct for the immoral excesses of the dreamers. It seems that
whatever reasoned limits we can place on behavior, can be worked
around. It seems that if we allow ourselves to wish for the moon, then
we will not only succeed at possessing it, but we will also destroy our
world to do so.
I propose a change in the American Dream to a
different aspiration for those of our society. What is there to compete
with aspirations for wealth and power? First, it is not reasonable to
eliminate the struggle for wealth and power, for the society as a
whole. Wealth relates directly to the level and functionality of
civilization, though it may be measured in health, good food and
comfort, rather than gold and silver. Power relates directly to security
and must be maintained to resist the forces that would reduce
civilization to destruction and anarchy. We can not eliminate these
goals but we can and need to limit them. Power and wealth are best when
evenly distributed throughout the society. In that way nobody has
unreasonable power over others and there are not millionaires while
people are starving. Second, money is not wealth. We need to measure
wealth in terms of the quality of our lives, our pleasures, comforts
and well-being. We need to measure our civilization in terms of the
pervasiveness of that quality of life. If there are any in our
civilization that suffer from poverty and disease then our society has
failed and civilization is less than it could be. Third, we can have a
thriving culture through creativity and shared experience, the hallmark
of civilization, once quality of life is improved for all.
I
believe the American Dream should be the creation of a heaven on earth
in which all contribute to and share in a quality life. There can be no
poor or suffering people in heaven. Given human nature as we know it,
this could be a daunting task, but we can not get there if we do not
first aspire to the correct goal. God’s creatures should be able to
work toward that ideal of civilization. If we succeed our reward is a
heaven on earth as it is in heaven.
First,
I should point out that Natural Christian beliefs are based on a
pervasive God and not a separate God, that is, God is the basis of all
creation or nature and can not be separate from them. Each stone, each
bird, each flower is as much a part of God as we are. We are part of
God and not separate from God. God is all there is. There is no being
and no thing that is not part of God.
Several things have always bothered me about the concept of a separate God. One problem I see with a
separate God is the disconnect between God and nature and between God and us.
As soon as God is separate, then it becomes harder to understand and
explain how God can be in full control or full contact. Thus, how can
God be all powerful or all knowing?
Another problem I see with
a separate God is the loss of absolutism. If there is one separate God,
why not another, and another? What makes God different from some
extremely powerful creature? Why can't we be Gods? This dilemma
continues until we have a world full of demigods, who usually behave
badly.
The idea of a single absolute God is a choice. I prefer this choice. Natural Christian belief does not require a blind
faith to make this choice, because once the understanding of what is
God is reached then these questions are answered and these beliefs are
understood. The concept of a pervasive God eliminates these issues. We
no longer need to consider where God came from or who created God. We
rest assured that God has always been here, will always continue to be
here, and will always be within us.
There is always the issue of Creation. Was there a Creation and if so how can God be part of that Creation?
My
point of view is that we know that God and nature are magnificent
creations. We are in awe of the complexity, extent and power of
creation. The scope and detail of creation extends beyond our limits of
vision and thought into space and into the microcosm. For us to believe
that we know what creation is or was, is simply incorrect, coming from
pure vanity and egotism. The story of creation was written in ancient
times to explain what people did not understand. We still do not
understand, but we continue to search for answers and to broaden our
understanding of God and Nature.
The idea that the big bang
represents creation is equally limited by our ignorance. The more
likely explanation is that the big bang represents a significant event
in an ongoing manifestation of God. By saying that God's creation is
limited to what exists after the big bang suggests a finite God. Is it
not more likely that God existed before the big bang? What was God
doing before? Did Gof create existence from nothingness? If there was
only nothingness, what was God? Who created God? All of these questions
are beyond our understanding and will likely be beyond our ability to
find an answer.
I would prefer to think of God as more
magnificent, not only existing in this universe (through Nature and
us), but also in an infinite number of additional universes outside of
ours, both in the macrocosm and in the microcosm. I believe that God
has existed for all time and will continue to exist for all time.
Again, with the Natural Christian understanding of a pervasive God, the
question of who is God is answered and many of the other questions and
the concept of creation become nonsense.
First, it must be stated that it is the truth that we act
out God’s will. Without equivocation
even the worst that mankind has done was God’s will. How could it not be so? The acts of a crazy man or of a rabid dog are
the acts of God, but this does not mean we should accept these behaviors as our
behaviors. God provides an infinite panoply
of universes and behaviors within those universes. What then should be our behavior? Certainly our behavior should be the ideal
model that we would choose to represent of good behavior. We need to be angels providing a wonderful
role model for others to follow. We need
to be strong, courageous, thoughtful, loving, generous, and all of the best of
the traits that we value. We need to
reason out how everything around us works so that when we are faced with a
choice, we make the correct choice. All within
the world is interconnected and dependent on each other as all parts of God are
interconnected and balanced. By behaving
our best we represent that behavior as the behavior that we believe others
should adopt. We represent our soul
through that behavior.
We are part of God and if we choose acts of evil then we
represent ourselves as evil. Further, if
we are a normal rational being, we know that they are acts of evil. We have chosen the nature of our soul. We are responsible for our behavior in any
case and will judge ourselves, will be judged by others and by God. God is
not an external entity that will strike us down from outside of our reality,
but rather from within us and from within all of nature, God will balance acts
of evil with reactions from our reality.
The justice system, legal and official re-courses of our society, is one
such reaction. Acts of vengeance are
another reaction, though these acts may be as evil as the act that caused them. Our conscience showing
us the disparity between our evil acts and what we should have done, is
another reaction. Attempts within
ourselves and by others to reason with the forces of evil are also a reaction
of nature. There are many forces of God
and nature that seem to be without reason, but there are also trillions of
sentient creatures on our world. Most
creatures act out of reason to affect their environment and react to the forces
around them. Our behavior is a dance
that we perform within God’s heaven (our reality).
The individual who performs an evil act will realize that he
has injured others who are also part of God, as he will realize that others can
and may do evil to him. Further he will
realize the he will perpetuate further acts of evil, by the response of others if
their reasoning is also limited. It thus
falls to reason and our sense of responsibility as to how we behave. If we fail in our responsibility to act for
good or we fail to reason how good behavior helps us and evil behavior hurts us
then the world around us degrades into something we will consider a hell. Eventually we will see the results of our
actions and we will be filled with remorse for our behavior and with
frustration for our inability to correct the behavior or repair the damage done
to the world. It is thus that we realize
that our behavior has damaged ourselves as much as anyone else. If the behavior of our species, and
especially the behavior of the most powerful and dynamic individuals and
corporations, continue in greedy and evil ways then our world will become an unpleasant place for more and more of us.
We must be responsible and think about what we do and what
goes on around us. If we act without reason
or fail to act to avoid evil then we will find ourselves in a wild and evil
world, a hell on earth, rather than the heaven on earth that we would choose.
The following is a somewhat refined list of earlier notes and writings that attempts to prioritize and provide order to the way we should approach the world around us. 1. Seek Truth and Understanding
• The Creation, The All, our
Universe, Nature or whatever we want to call that which we are made of
and surrounds us is VERY important, regardless of what we believe. It
seems obvious that the better we understand our own nature and the
Nature that surrounds us, the better off we will be. •
Enlightenment of understanding requires that we study the creation and
know all we can about Nature to understand, interpret, anticipate,
behave best and survive. Individuals should study and learn about
Nature throughout their life and form the best understanding possible. •
Seek out God’s design in Nature and learn to understand it, to be
closer to God. As we understand, then shall we see beauty in what once
we saw as ugliness. As we understand we will be better able to see what
God is. Put understanding first, then define what God is, rather than
taking what others have defined God as and trying to understand it. • As we learn we may better reflect the beauty of our universe through our understanding and our behavior.
2. Seek Peace and Love
• Peace is the reward of our labors and designs to make the world a better place. • Love is the reward of our social behavior, in our constancy, commitment, tolerance, humility and association.
3. Seek To Preserve Life
• Thou Shall NOT Kill! • Life is the only thing of value. Each life acts to serve God, whether knowingly or not.
4. Seek To Do NO harm
• Many of the commandments fit here, the Hippocratic oath, as well as, other beliefs…
5. Seek Moderation
• Seek harmony and balance in nature so that all God’s creatures may live together. •
Greed is the greatest sin and is the basis of most evils of our
society. It is often the reason for imbalance in our world and can be
the cause of violence and killing. Greed is more than just the pursuit
of money, it is also the pursuit of power, control and influence - whether it is our pocketbooks that we attempt to fill or our egos. We
should seek a society where no individual or group has more power or
influence than any other. We should seek a world where no individual
has dominion over another. • I would eliminate money and ownership
from society. Doing so could lead to the elimination of greed and many
ills in our society. To do so would require an ordered society where
there was a system for distribution and control of resources, power and
wealth (commodities, tools and possessions – not money), so that
individuals had what they needed to pursue their way of life without
others suffering without. This would require a more advanced
civilization than we can manage in our primitive state. I believe the
Christian path requires us to pursue these goals. As a rational being, I tend to think of how to accomplish a more advanced civilization through group social action and change, but I also see that the path that Jesus followed would suggest that first we need to devote ourselves fully to God and to understanding of God.
6. Seek To Find Reason and Order in the Chaos
•
I believe the purpose of religion is to find a reasoned understanding
of Creation and God. What are we if not God’s tools to create order or
civilization in the midst of what seems disordered or archaic.
Civilization is a creation of God through us. It is the nature of that
civilization that we must find. Our purpose is as much in that pursuit
as is the understanding and reflection in our behavior of what God and
Creation are.
7. Seek First To Find Your Own Path
• Know
your own mind, when it comes to God and religion, before you speak to
others of what they believe. Decide your own rules of behavior, before
you speak of rules imposed by others on themselves. Find a way of life
that you believe is good and right, before you speak of how others live
life. Only after you know what you believe can you truly represent the
individual that you are. Once you know what you believe, then allow
others to do what you have done – that is find themselves without
outside influence. • Each of us grows up in a world of choices and
opinions. If we are seeking our own path then we do not want others
influencing it unduly. Neither do we want possible options blocked from
our view. This is the greatest trial for a parent. We want our children
to make the right choices. We think we know the right choices for them
to make, but we are wrong if we think that. We know the right choices
we would make, if we were them. We are not! Parents should provide all
of the choices possible, explain why we think about the choices the way we do,
and then let the children decide for themselves. We can enter into a
dialog with our children that can serve both them and us. We can
continue to think and learn along with our children if we can keep from
trying to control them and how they think. Do we really want children
who are slaves to our ideas and thoughts? What kind of people would
they be? Or would we rather have children that are strong independent thinkers who can
face whatever challenges await them.
8. Seek Others of Like Mind and Ways
•
After you know your own mind, it is natural to seek out others to form
groups of like minded individuals. There is strength in doing this.
There is power and safety in numbers. By forming groups of peace-loving
individuals we form an extended family or community within which we can
live, from which we can seek better understanding of Creation, Life and
God, and from which we can seek a heaven on earth. • It is natural
to form groups in this manner, but there are great dangers, as well.
The group must be trained not to impede the individuals from finding
their own way of life. The group must be trained to not present its
views as the only way. The group must evolve as the members of the
group evolve in their thinking and behavior. The group must not take on
a character or importance that is greater than its individual members.
One for all and all for one – these are not alternatives, but
simultaneously imposed requirements. Our society has decided to make
the majority decision the right one. This is both good and BAD! As a
collection of individuals we say by this that the individual is not
important, just the group. Rather we should say that we should do the
right thing for all and not just the majority.
The following is a collection of my early writings and notes to myself that have been collected into a list. They form some of the bases for the more organized statements listed above and variations in wording that may help the reader.
• Individuals will naturally search for and find their own religious
beliefs based on their best understanding, because of the Nature of
Creation. This is good! It does take a long time
for some people to find themselves and start down their own path. If
parents would provide just a framework for the religious education of
their children rather than providing preconceived and subjective
conclusions, they would be teaching their children to find their own
way in life, rather than forcing them to walk like slaves in their own
footsteps. • No group or church prescribed religion is necessary or appropriate in an enlightened religious society. I
would not throw everything out - just the obviously mistaken points of
view and archaic religious dogma that people have been bathed in since they
were born. The idea of someone finding their own way through the world
does not mean they need to throw out everything they have seen. I do
say, however, that nothing is sacred. Each person must take each thing
and learn about it and decide for themselves what its merits are. It
should be obvious from reading my perspective on these issues that I
have personally chosen to throw out much of conventional religion to
reach my perspective. I believe it was absolutely necessary to do so.
Not every one will agree with the spirit of what I have said and
therefore there will always be people who are not Natural Christians.
• Beliefs and religion are in the heart of an individual. The only good reason for forming groups is to help support the individuals (and overcome their
weakness) against the tyranny of society and power.
•
Beliefs do not exist in a church or building. In other words, churches
are not religious, people are. For one person’s beliefs or one group’s
beliefs to rise above and supersede the beliefs of another individual
is the greatest vanity and failing of many organized religions. It
is especially a waste in these troubling financial times. I would say
that religious groups need a place to meet, however, but the place is
not the important aspect unless you can feel closer to God there (see
my "Natural" Christianity). • Beliefs should not be forced upon others - they should only be shared with other people. •
One problem with many churches and religions, even in the modern world,
is that sharing religious beliefs has a tendency to intimidate
believers or to extort beliefs and this can lead to passive, lazy and
irresponsible believers. A person can be a member of a church just as a person can be a member of a gang, but does the person believe everything that the church teaches?
Modern religious dogmas and the behavior of the zealots provide enough
danger for individuals that sometimes they feel the need to hide in a religion,
whether they believe it or not. It is unfortunate that such sanctuary
is needed. I would not mind providing such a sanctuary for others, but
would rather the individual would take the time to think out what they
believe and the way they would like to live. Then they would be a thoughtful and possibly active
supporter and not part of the silent majority. • The development of a church or group
religion has in many cases been first for the security of the group and second for the purpose of exercising power over those in
the group and others outside the group. This is not consistent with an
enlightened Christian understanding and the Natural Christian way of life. My
point is that religion is inherently the province of the individual. I
doubt that there could ever be a completely unified set of beliefs for
humankind. It would require religious enlightenment - a truly ideal
state of mind. I find it hard to believe that every member of "an
organized religion" believes every idea of that religion. The coercion
that sometimes results is to add power and significance to the group so that the members feel
important and more powerful than others around them (again basic gang
theory). I choose to avoid any possibility of conversion or attempting
to influence others to join. Rather, I would have a gathering of
friends or like-minded individuals, who by their own choice want to be
in the group. • It is in our nature to form groups of like-minded
individuals. We must do so with care. We must guarantee that we have
formed our own religious beliefs and then we may seek like-minded
individuals to live with and discuss those ideas. This should not be
exclusive. We learn from other ideas and should discuss ideas with
those of differing opinion to test our own understanding and beliefs
and possibly form a synthesis of ideas that is better than our original
beliefs. Care should be taken to avoid placing ourselves in a position
where we might be intimidated by others and that is why we also seek
like-minded individuals for support. Formalizing a group of like-minded individuals is always a
serious risk, however, which should not be taken lightly. I believe it
is important that the group help provide security for the individual.
Regulation of membership should be controlled and maintained.
Individuals who intimidate rather than share should simply be asked to
form their own separate group. • I would not want to form a
church, such as the “Natural Christian Church,” instead I would say
that there might be many with the same religious ideas, such as Natural
Christians or Natural Christianity. • To avoid the problems
inherent in any such groups, each person’s beliefs must remain sacred
and not made secondary to common church beliefs and policies. Religion
is the beliefs of the people and not some entity to tell them what to
believe. Any religious institution must not be as important as the
people and must not become an adult gang with an agenda of it’s own.
This is a very difficult thing to accomplish. The natural tendency of
human nature is to cultivate power in a form we as individuals can
control.
Sin is a
litany of behaviors that society and religious culture has found should be
avoided. If we consider them one by one
we can see that each of the sins may be reduced to the result of some form of
greed. If this generalization does not
seem fair to the business world, then it should be pointed out that the
definition of greed is the desire for excess and not desire for a reasonable
share (from Encarta: greed is “an
overwhelming desire to have more of something such as money than is actually
needed”). The appropriate selection of
what is reasonable and what is excess may be all that prevents the original
assertion from being accepted by most of the society. It is certainly true that many who are
engaged in business are greedy to a point far in excess of what is appropriate.
The term
greed can be applied to other than money, such as, the overwhelming desire to
end the life of another, resulting in the evil of murder, also banned in the
Ten Commandments. In this case as in
many other cases the desire is for some excessive effect or gain that benefits
one or more people to the exclusion or detriment of others. The act of murder is evil and sinful. There is possibly some benefit to the
murderer, but the extreme detriment to the murdered person is excessive and
unreasonable. In the case of adultery,
the excessive desire commonly determined by the society is in having more than
one spouse. In the case of the
commandment thou shall not bear false witness, the excessive desire is in the
desire for whatever benefit comes from concealing facts or making false
accusations or assertions (lies). The
list goes on.
It is
the Natural Christian belief that desire is a natural behavior, which can help
to preserve the species. Unlimited desire
or greed however can be and often is harmful to the function of society and prevents
the changes and improvement of the individual and the overall civilization required
to benefit all. Thus greed should be
limited to avoid conflict and the excesses that can result. The control of greed is a difficult thing to
accomplish. If the decision to limit
greed is left to the individual then the natural human behavior will dominate
in many cases and excesses will occur.
Limits placed upon the individual by the society to curb the excesses
may help avoid greed, but the individual will feel mistreated and as if he is
being singled out, while others are not.
Basic behavior modification might be accomplished by requiring that everyone observe total
abstinence from the pursuit of greed and thus avoiding the sense by the individual that he is being singled out. Once the avoidance of greed is agreed upon by
all to limit harmful behavior, the acculturation into the basic behavior of
society can be more uniform and transcendent.
The society can then specify exceptions and the basis for controlling
the accepted behavior. The most
intrinsic form of desire that is beneficial to society is the energy, drive and
ambition required to create, produce and provide the goods and services the
society requires. A simple uniform
scheme to provide rewards for these contributions to society should be
maintained with limits by a serious and rational consideration of the needs and
benefits of the provider, without endangering the needs of the remainder of the
society. It is in the seemingly lack of unified agreement by individuals, religions and society that the apparent acceptability of greed erupts. If not uniformly rejected, greed will continue to fester and plague the world.
God created the heavens and the earth and then he populated the earth
with the animals, the beasts and then men and women. In versions of the
bible that I have read, God gives dominion over the animals and beasts
to mankind. I think there is a very real truth to Genesis. I say this
in all sincerity even though I disagree with much of what organized
religions and the bible try to teach us. I know that almost all of
creation happened before even our most distant ancestors walked the
earth.
I take exception when the perspectives of our distant
ancestors are used to tell me what to believe. Would we listen to those
men who wrote the bible if they told us that God has not given man the
power of flight so we should not attempt it? Our ancestors did not have
all the answers. They did not have many answers at all. They were
struggling to find a way to survive amid droughts, famines, wars,
invasions and the brutality of their neighbors. That is why they needed
to envision better ways to live and to behave and they needed prophets
to lead them out of the difficult existence that they lived with.
I
suggest to you that Genesis is still occurring and that there was never
a day of rest for God. We could add additional days to the creation
story, which accounted for the further transformations of our world and
our venturing into space. As I said in previous discussions, each of us
must seek truth and understanding of the universe around us, and so it
must be done in looking at our perspectives of history, religion and
science. We do have dominion over many animals, but we can also see
that we are just animals ourselves. We are so similar to the other
animals in so many ways that I can not allow my vanity to say that I am
better than them. If I am better than them and I am more intelligent
than they are then doesn’t that mean that this intelligence should
allow me to rise above animal desires to kill and eat warm flesh? If
not, then I am certainly an animal like they are.
I believe
that mankind is blessed and has gifts that other animals do not, but I
believe they are gifts and not rights. If people choose to live by the
law of the jungle and have dominion over the beasts in that way then
they will reap what they sow. There is nothing to keep animals (man)
from preying upon each other. That has been our problem since the time
of our ancestors. If society continues in the way it has there will be
ever new ways for man to kill each other and feed off each other.
Genocide still exists today. Our level of civilization has not
eliminated the evil perpetrated by man (the blessed animals), it has
just finally been able to bring these crimes to light. No, we can not
let things continue in the way of the jungle.
We need to stop the killing and to stop
the exploitation of the weak by the strong and the feeble minded by the
clever and quick. This is a difficult task, which we may never
completely succeed at, but we will not succeed if we do not put every
effort into the task. To succeed we need a strong goal. We need a
standard of behavior, which rises above greed. We need to become
standard bearers for civilization, caretakers of nature and defenders,
as if we were knights defending the weak, the poor, the innocent and
all the “lesser” creatures.
I personally have chosen to make
it my goal to defend and protect all animals. In doing so, I have
chosen to abstain from eating meat. I do so in a very rigorous way,
suffering no animals to die, so that I can live. I have often heard the
counts of the numbers of animals slaughtered in a week to fill the
dining tables of America. The number is equivalent to the populations
of great cities of mankind. I will not contribute to that number and
the behavior that it represents. When I see that many health experts
say that eating meat is not as good for us as a grain, bean, fruit, nut
and vegetable diet, and I know that the production of meat is far less
efficient than these other foods, I begin to realize that as
populations grow the world will not be able to sustain a meat based
diet. Thus we again will have a progression of Genesis to a point, if
man (and animals) survive, that he will need to rein in his behavior
and turn to a more enlightened diet based on a symbiosis and harmony
with animals and nature.
God is not a king that placed the
animals on this earth for his children to glut upon. The animals were
here for hundreds of millions of years before man evolved. They were
part of God long before the first man started to hunt. If we are better
than the animals, we should show that we are by protecting their lives
and by not feasting on their flesh. We are all citizens of this world
and the mouse, the squirrel and the deer are my cousins and not lower
forms of life.
Prayer is the manner in which we remind ourselves what we believe, what we feel is important and all that we strive to be in our lives. The best prayer bespeaks of the goodness within our hearts and the beauty of our souls. A prayer should be thoughtful and considerate of others and should demonstrate our best ideals. Prayer should not be based on asking for others to give, but should remind us of what we need to give of ourselves. A prayer may remind us of sickness or need around us so that we can keep others in our thoughts and be mind-full of who and what we value and consider how help may come to those in need. A prayer may be for the purpose of meditation, contemplative thought or centering. A prayer may be for the purpose of reminding us of our connection with God. Although a Natural Christian, as part of God, perhaps would not refer of God as a separate being to pray to, by speaking to God, with the correct perspective, individuals can remind themselves of their own smallness relative to God, their connection to God and their part of God's will
Prayer Favorites
In Jesus Christ We Pray (by GP)
God we give thanks for the birth of
Jesus Christ.
We celebrate his life for the warmth of his love,
For the breadth of understanding of
his teachings, and
For the depth of his devotion to
God and to his fellow beings.
Help us to learn and understand God
through Jesus Christ,
To listen to his teachings and to
act according to his way,
Help us to remember that he has
shown us the way to live, and To behave in this world filled
with both Good and Evil.
We pray to remind us of his
teachings and of what we are in God,
So that we may live a Good life and
be saved by Jesus Christ. Amen.
May
We Live in God Prayer
(by GP)
May the weather be pleasant and safe. May the snow be white and soft.
May the pine trees be green and fragrant. May the branches be supple and
strong.
May the decorations be bright and colorful. May the cards be clever and
loving.
May the carols be melodious and jolly. May our house be warm and
sheltering.
May the fire be bright and warm. May our table be laden with good food.
May our hands be kind and comforting. May our pockets be full and generous.
May our neighbors be friendly and kind. May our friends be many and
gracious.
May we know God. May we preserve God's bounty.
May we remember that God dwells within us.
May we hold the love of the teachings of Jesus Christ in our hearts for all the
years of our lives. Amen
Family Prayer (Based on "Evening Family Prayer" by Robert Louis Stevenson)
God that is all around us and within us, we are thankful for our family here assembled, for this place in which we dwell, for the love that unites us, for the peace accorded to us this day, for the hope with which we expect the morrow; for the health, the work, the food and the bright skies that make our lives delightful; for our friends in all parts of the earth. Amen.
Children's Prayer ABCDEFG, Jesus help teach me to see,
HIJKLMN, thank you for the food and then,
PQRSTUV, may god always dwell in me,
WXY and Z, wondrous God be good to thee.
Quick Meal Prayer God is great and God is good and we thank thee for this food, by God's hand must all be fed, a gift from God, our daily bread. - Amen
Simple Meal Prayer This food is truly blessed, as it comes from the great and magnificent bounty that is God. Let us remember how we all depend upon others, God, and nature for sustenance. When we see others in need, let us also remember that we are God's angels. May God be always in our hearts and may we be healthy and live to show goodness to all. - Amen
No Man is an Island (by Joan Baez)
No man is an island, No man stands alone,
Each man's joy is joy to me, Each man's grief is my own.
We need one another, So I will defend,
Each man as my brother, Each man as my friend.
I saw the people gather, I heard the music start,
The song that they were singing, Is ringing in my heart.
No man is an island, Way out in the blue,
We all look to the one above, For our strength to renew.
When I help my brother, Then I know that I,
Plant the seed of friendship, That will never die.
(Though not
a Christmas Prayer, per se, the words are often used as a prayer and
resonate in the love, behavior and teachings of Jesus Christ and are
presented here as a Natural Christian ideal.)
Christmas Eve
Prayer (by Robert Louis Stevenson)
Loving God, Help us remember the birth of Jesus,
that we may share in the song of the angels,
the gladness of the shepherds,
and the worship of the wise men.
Close the door of hate
and open the door of love all over the world.
Let kindness come with every gift and good desires with every greeting.
Deliver us from evil by the blessing which Christ brings,
and teach us to be merry with clear hearts.
May the Christmas morning make us happy to be thy children,
and Christmas evening bring us to our beds with grateful thoughts,
forgiving and forgiven, for Jesus' sake. Amen.
Prayer
for Christmas Morning (by Henry Van Dyke)
God in heaven, the day of joy returns, and crowns another year with peace and good will. Help us
rightly to remember the birth of Jesus, that we may share in the song of the
angels, the gladness of the shepherds, and the worship of the wisemen.
Close the doors of hate and open the doors of love all over the world…
Let kindness come with every gift and good desires with every greeting. Deliver
us from evil, by the blessing that Christ brings, and teach us to be merry with
clean
hearts. May the Christmas morning make us happy as the little children, And the Christmas
evening bring us to our bed with grateful thoughts, Forgiving and forgiven, for
Jesus’ sake. Amen
Christmas
Dinner Prayer (adapted by GP)
God of all gifts, we thank you for the many blessings
this day.
We are grateful for each of those who are
gathered around this table, and
We look outward for those we love who are not
with us today. We are grateful for our food, and
We look outward for how to help those who are
without enough to eat.
We remember the humble birth of Jesus into our
lives.
We remember the stable in which Jesus was born,
and
We look outward for how to help those who have
no place to live.
We remember the message of caring and giving,
and
We look outward for how to find peace for families
and nations throughout the world.
We give thanks for the Spirit of Jesus who
brings our hearts to life Christmas Day, and
We look inward to find the same Spirit of goodness
within us so that we may Christ forever. Amen.
