02 Sep 08
Originally posted by ZahlanziHi Z dude;
Let's invent our own religion. What would be appealing to you, what system of beliefs, what kind of afterlife program, what deity or deities, what rewards and punishments, the works.
and then we will discuss and persecute each religion in turn.
No religion🙂
02 Sep 08
Originally posted by black beetleok thats a valid entry in our game too. by religion in this contest, i don't understand necessarily a church and an someone to whorship but a system of beliefs philosophies. build your own idea of what a religion is.
Hi Z dude;
No religion🙂
but it is insufficient. expand on your idea
02 Sep 08
Originally posted by ZahlanziA religion based on sex would be appealing to me.
Let's invent our own religion. What would be appealing to you, what system of beliefs, what kind of afterlife program, what deity or deities, what rewards and punishments, the works.
and then we will discuss and persecute each religion in turn.
02 Sep 08
Originally posted by ZahlanziI dont find the idea of an invented religion appealing. I would want a religion whose beliefs match the facts as close a possible. Of course that is my religion already.
Let's invent our own religion. What would be appealing to you, what system of beliefs, what kind of afterlife program, what deity or deities, what rewards and punishments, the works.
and then we will discuss and persecute each religion in turn.
02 Sep 08
Originally posted by ZahlanziI already have a religion—or a spiritual philosophy, if one prefers (either way, it reflects how I live)—that appeals to me. It is based on observation (which includes meditation as a kind of observation without any overlay of thought-making) and thinking about what is observed. It rests on such notions (drawn from meditation/observation) as coherence, non-separability (or existential entanglement) and nondualism.
Let's invent our own religion. What would be appealing to you, what system of beliefs, what kind of afterlife program, what deity or deities, what rewards and punishments, the works.
and then we will discuss and persecute each religion in turn.
It also has a rich aesthetic side that can be expressed in poetry, music, dance—lots of dance. Oh yeah, sex too. Aesthetics are at least as important to me as observation and reason for living out this existential venture I call my life.
Since it is non-formal in nature, it can use the symbols (including ikons, metaphors, mytho-poetic speech, parables, extended allegories, etc.) from various religious forms. Often religious formalists object to that, thinking that I play a bit fast and loose with their theologies and doctrines. I do. I don’t apologize for that (though I try to make it clear to folks who might not realize by now the how and why of my doing that).
All religious language is either iconographic or becomes idolatrous at some point; folks as diverse as Zen Buddhists, and Orthodox Jewish Talmudists and Kabbalists have recognized and acknowledged that principle.
Since non-dualism makes more sense to me than theistic dualism, there are no deities as such in my religion; nor is there any supernatural (extra-natural) category at all. I do not, however, object to theistic symbolism (such as that of Kashmiri Shaivism—a thoroughly nondualistic religious expression—or Christian Trinitarianism). I also sometimes use the “trinitarian” formulation of ground-of-being, power-of-being and being-manifest (or form-of-being);* but that is just a matter of different perspectives on the whole, one “going-on”.
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I am likely being over-serious and not playing the game the way you offered it. I have always found the language of animism appealing, and would likely be some kind of animist if I were not whatever it is that I am—seeing everything in the cosmos as “enspirited” by various manifestations (or “faces” ) of divinity.
I might call my animistic religion “The Many Faces of the One I-Am”. In this religion, the one Spirit-Presence is manifest as being-present as presence in all the myriad presences. I’ll try to come up with some creedal statement based on that (strictly aesthetic, remember!).
Having just communicated briefly with Spider in the window, I must go outside now and whisper with the wind, call to the hawk circling high in the light, and dance with the hummingbirds.
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* Adapted from what Paul Tillich called a “pre-trinitarian” formula; he used the phrase “being-itself” for both the third aspect, and sometimes also, I think, for the whole tri-unity.
02 Sep 08
BTW, thanks for the game, Z! I will now only post in this thread from the perspective of my chosen animistic religious paradigm. I will also cast my personal day-by-day spiritual aesthetic practices in its terms (much as I once used the Reconstructionist Jewish siddur [prayer book] for my daily meditation).
Note that it is still fundamentally non-dualistic—however, that is not necessarily unusual among the animisms I have studied; some are also ultimately monotheistic, there being a single creator-god behind all the rest.
Again, great idea!
02 Sep 08
1 edit
Here is just a beginning (a tentative fragment) of some kind of creedal statement on The Many Faces animism:
Not only do I recognize
the many spirits in my world,
the myriad presences
among whom I walk,
they also recognize me
as one of them—
Not only do I see,
I am also seen!
Not only do I touch,
I am also touched!
I am present to them
as they are present to me
in this inescapable, entangled
tela of presence.
“All good-willed spirits, welcome!
I greet you: Blessed be!
“All ill-willed spirits,
you also do I greet!
and bid you on your way.
By the power of my own presence
I am from you protected.”
Ay.
02 Sep 08
Originally posted by ZahlanziIn my world we would be sitting quietly doing nothing and every Automn we would see the grass growing by itself and then we could have a smoke or two along with blindfold simuls with Tal, Bobby et all, staring to the playing joyfully houris brought in place by Bosse de Nage -and later not just staring (but I would be again married to my beautiful Maria so I would just stare I reckon); even jaywill could be with us preaching happily his joyful humanistic dogma to Kelly Jay and to the other kids -but in one condition: he should reveal where from he picks his mushrooms.
ok thats a valid entry in our game too. by religion in this contest, i don't understand necessarily a church and an someone to whorship but a system of beliefs philosophies. build your own idea of what a religion is.
but it is insufficient. expand on your idea
Vistesd would be in charge of arranging the philosophical, Symposium like, conversations, and Sonhouse and the rest miserable science/ atheism junkies would be free to dig in full and solve the mystery of the Origin of Life and to produce the ultimate theory regarding the genesis and the evolution of the Universe; Palynka would bring the sardines and the port; forgot to mention that everybody in our world would be an immortal creature, able to transform itself from the state of pure energy to a fully functional creature with the body of any existing species and vice versa; also we would have a segment with all the banned RHP players which they would be free in their reservation to play under the constant control of the ruthless sharp eyed No1, while !TONY! would use his lethal Fritz 111.000.000 in order to check asap if they actually cheated (the cheaters could apply to Corch, who would finally judge the situation);
03 Sep 08
Originally posted by black beetlehehe it seems to me that you skipped right to the afterlife portion of the religion because you changed the environment and the religion practitioners to an utopic view. how would your faithful reach this state in the context of this real world(our sucky world)?
In my world we would be sitting quietly doing nothing and every Automn we would see the grass growing by itself and then we could have a smoke or two along with blindfold simuls with Tal, Bobby et all, staring to the playing joyfully houris brought in place by Bosse de Nage -and later not just staring (but I would be again married to my beautiful Maria ...[text shortened]... hey actually cheated (the cheaters could apply to Corch, who would finally judge the situation);
03 Sep 08
Originally posted by twhiteheadYour religion doesn't have to be mind-numbing and restrictive. you could invent one where a deity does absolutely nothing and allows you to find your own answers.(wait that is my religion 😀)
I dont find the idea of an invented religion appealing. I would want a religion whose beliefs match the facts as close a possible. Of course that is my religion already.
03 Sep 08
My religion involves a deity who is very potent(omnipotent doesn't exist), vast knowledge, and mostly benevolent. My deity hovers near every individual and takes notes of his accomplishments and awards points, however he never interferes. My deity is like a landlord who never bothers his tenants until their deaths when he collects the rent. The downside to this is that the tenants must fix their toilet themselves when it breaks down.
As such all of life's mishaps are either the tenant's fault or a produce of chance.
03 Sep 08
Originally posted by Bosse de Nagenot to me. if you are a true believer it would mean you have to communicate to God through having sex with unappealing people as well. An ugly person could demand sex from you as an offering to your sex god and if you refuse you would be branded a heretic and burned 😀
A religion based on sex would be appealing to me.