Alternate Worlds Explored Archive b/j

Unofficial Question: March 3 Conversation

If you were allowed to speak to your creator and your creator would be obligated to answer, what would you discuss? Write down how you think the conversation would go?

Remember to state your reasons and support your thesis.

Conversation With God

         I am a nontraditional Christian with a spattering of traditional background. The other spattering background was such that probably caused my nontraditional development.

         I see that you may be confused. I will try to explain.

         By spiritual belief I am a Christian. However, I do not follow the strict guidlines of any of the Christian religions. The rules don't always make sense to me and actually condemn me according to my nature.

         I believe Jesus was sent to this Earth to represent and demonstrate the evolution, the next step, to what God wants his children to accomplish in their spiritual development. I know Jesus represented God in the flesh.

         So my first question to God is this, "Why did you fill the Bible with all those strict rules about what was proper attire, food, social status between men women and children and assorted social and private behavior? There are so many rules that it is impossible to follow all of them. And many of the rules, pertaining to animal sacrifice and other ritual practices would get a christian thrown into prison or the looney bin."

         Now picture if you will, George Burns with his unlit cigar standing before me and smiling. (Oh MY! He really is God!)

God: "Now, I am glad you asked this question. Do you know how long I've waited for someone to ask this?"

Me: "Um, a long time?"

God: (laughing) "Yea, since Moses broke the Tablets, that is how long I've been waiting. You realize I I would have applauded Moses for that single act of anger if it had not been based on a childish tantrum? But that isn't answering your question. Why did I create so many rules?" (God looks at me and rolls his cigar thoughtfully between finger and thumb). "Are you familiar with the theories of child/adolescent development?"

Me: "Vaguely, I remember some of what I was taught in college."

God: "Well, go back and review, I know you still have your college books, so go back and review. Then you will see why it was necessary to bombard these tribes with so many rules."

Me: (I look at God not comprehending what he is getting at.) "Well, okay, but I was hoping..."

God: "...That I would give you an answer rather than make you search for it? I know that if I answer your question you won't review the texts. But, that is okay, as the theories are rather limited and somewhat vague. I made all those rules because the people wanted me to. Adam and Eve's descendants were immature, just children and children need rules so they develop good moral character. The tribes under Moses care and guidance were at the stage in their spiritual development when they needed extra guidance to get past their insecurities and doubts from being exposed to the other unGodly practices in Egypt. They were at the stage of adolescent rebellion. They had all the previous rules to guide them, but they needed a booster shot at this point in their development, so I gave them the Commandments.'

"I thought it was a rather nice touch, having Moses go up on the Mountain and come back with the written word. It was poetic and the image has endured all these centuries. Children really are impressed with magic, you know."

Me: "So you basically reinforced all the rules with the commandments so as to stablize the spiritual growth of the Jewish people?

God: "Yes, they needed and wanted that guidance."

Me: "Do you want your devout followers to continue adhering to those strict rules in the Bible?"

God: "I want my children to grow and mature in their spiritual being, that is why I sent Jesus to teach."

Me: "You sent Jesus to be sacrificed so that I could find salvation through his teachings."

God: "I sent Jesus to teach and to steer the people back onto the spiritual path. There was always the chance he would be rejected and killed. The Abraham/Moses laws had become entrenched so deeply and expanded upon so thoroughly that spiritual growth was actually being stifled.

Me: "So you sent Jesus to stir up the old rules a little bit."

God: "You could look at it that way. Jesus' purpose was to shake up the stale and insert a new vitality. Mankind was maturing into young adulthood. I'd given the tribes all the guidance they would need to find a moral and spiritual growth, but now it was time to cut the ties of dependency and Jesus was sent to help do that. The church leaders were politically entrenched and I knew they wouldn't give up their power over the people so easily. But, it was time to end the spiritual stagnation.

"I arranged it so Jesus would challenge the temple heirarchy and teach a simplification of the old testament rules. It was time to stray away from the concrete and get into the higher moral reasoning. The judge not rule held significant power in this strategy. Salvation would now be through belief in him and not through the strict following of rule and ritual. In this way moral growth would be given a new vitality.

"There was a high possibility that the rigid leaders would use the heresy defense to silence Jesus so I had the contingency of his resurrection to drive home the point that what he taught was valid. The schism of the Jewish faith and the emergence of the Christian was a direct result of the crucificion and resurrection, but since the leaders chose to kill my teacher, there had to be a catalyst to ensure the teachings continued through his followers. Also since the Jewish leaders condemned my teacher it also opened up the rest of the human population for inclusion into the Jesus sphere of growth. If the temple leaders hadn't killed Jesus the inclusion of the heathen races would have happened slower and more gradually.

"As it was, Jesus physical death almost happened too soon. His followers weren't quite ready to teach the less rule makes better faith concept."

Me: "So the rules in the new testament reinforcing the rules of the old testament weren't necessarily part of the Jesus plan.

God: "For one, Paul was a lawyer. He couldn't get past the concrete need for law and order. Everything had to have a good or bad, a black or white, he couldn't fathom just being true to your nature and living life by the the Golden rule. He had to have things spelled out. Paul wasn't ready to step out and be an adult."

Me: "Dare I ask what you mean by being true to your nature?"

God: "I created you to be as you are. I know you understand what I mean about being true to yourself."

Me: (I look at the image of the thin old man with the raspy quiet voice as he slips the unlit cigar into his mouth and smiles at me.)

God: "Yes, you got it. I will see you later. I have other conferences to attend."

         With that George turned and walked through the wall of my bedroom fading into the night among the trees in my back yard. Buddy, my cat jumped up on the filing cabinet and sniffed around the wall where God just passed through.

Me: (thinking out loud) "Okay, I know I need to live my life according to my own nature and follow the golden rule, but what can be done about all those judgemental people who are still stuck with the concrete concepts of old and new testament moral law?"

God's voice: "Attend to your life and be an example of spiritual growth. Let me worry about the maturing of other people. Follow the Golden Rule by not judging other's for their judgemental ways."








Take care and may your road lead to only good places.

Deb

Compassion and the effort to try and understand some thing that was not understood before is a step toward acceptance not only of others but most importantly of yourself.

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