Walk in the Glow of Each Other's Majestic Presence

Do you believe in a higher power?

Not really, no. At best I believe in a greater power, some kind of collective consciousness, or sustained zeitgeist. Mostly I’m deeply agnostic. I think that we do not have the perspective to understand existence as a whole. And I think that we are pattern-creating beings, so any pattern that we claim to perceive without hard data is suspect. We see pictures in the stars and clouds and can enjoy them and find meaning in them, but that meaning is intrinsic to ourselves, not an external reality.

That said, I have deep respect for the religious faith that sustains and nurtures many people. I tend to understand it as a metaphor for an underlying reality that we do not have the tools to comprehend directly. It makes sense to me that many people find the metaphors they were taught as children to be powerful and meaningful. I haven’t found one that gives me any sense of certainty, or that can be sustained on a universal scale.

The story I like best is The Egg, by Andrew Weir. In it a person discovers that they are every human being that has ever existed and that our world is a process of becoming. When we truly grasp that there is no “other,” that all human beings are ourselves, then we will attain a different level of awareness and transcend to a different level of existence. I don’t really believe that, but I see no downside to trying to behave as if it were true.

In the meantime, I don’t see that it really matters. Watson was shocked to discover that Sherlock Holmes doesn’t know that the Earth orbits the Sun and Holmes points out that he has probably known it at some point, but discarded it as information that makes no difference to his life. I do not think I would live my life differently if I believed in a divine spirit and since I don’t think we can ever truly know, I don’t spend a great deal of time focusing on it.

A Pew Form study released today shows that atheists/agnostics are more knowledgeable about religion than religious people themselves. That's not particularly surprising, but I found some of the results interesting. You can read the results here and take a sample quiz from the survey here.

The General Synod (national meeting) of the United Church of Christ, the denomination of the church where I work, that hosts Theatre@First, has overwhelmingly passed a resolution in support of equal marriage rights for all people, regardless of gender.

Conveniently, written out by Christopher Hitchens on Slate.

This is the jihad for me!

snitched from dpolicar

And if you want your own Unitarian Jihad name, you can go here

This was pointed out to me by audioboy.

An evangelical Christian group in the UK has changed its policy about homosexuality: http://tinyurl.com/4zbm7

So, this happened a few months ago and I meant to write about it then, but I don't seem to have done so. If I missed it, and you're reading this for a second time, my apologies for the redundancy.

( See, I got this phone call at work... )

I mention this now because of a conversation going on in dpolicar's journal. It's not a direct response, but it's what popped up when I started to think about his questions, so I thought I'd post it over here.

For those of you following the ongoing story of my former housemate, Lori Berenson's imprisonment in Peru, here's an article about her most recent appeal failing:

http://www.salon.com/news/wire/2004/12/02/peru/index_np.html

And for those of you who would like to make known your annoyance over the networks' refusal to carry the UCC's ad, here's an online petition you might like to sign:

http://www.workingforchange.com/activism/petition.cfm?itemid=18182

http://www.ucc.org/news/u113004a.htm

CLEVELAND -- The CBS and NBC television networks are refusing to run a
30-second television ad from the United Church of Christ because its
all-inclusive welcome has been deemed "too controversial."

The ad, part of the denomination's new, broad identity campaign set to
begin airing nationwide on Dec. 1, states that -- like Jesus -- the
United Church of Christ seeks to welcome all people, regardless of
ability, age, race, economic circumstance or sexual orientation.

According to a written explanation from CBS, the United Church of
Christ is being denied network access because its ad implies
acceptance of gay and lesbian couples -- among other minority
constituencies -- and is, therefore, too "controversial."


This is the denomination in which I was raised and also that of the church where I work and that hosts Theatre@First.

EDIT: Here's some contact info, if people want to voice their opinions to the networks...

CBS Television Network 51 W. 52nd St. New York, NY 10019 Main Number:
212-975-4321

CBS News 555 W. 57th St. New York, NY 10019 Main Number (National):
212-975-4114

NBC only has email online:

advertiseonline@nbc.com