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 |  This is my blog & my hope, writing daily will help me see my progress and log supporters. |
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| Today, at the market, Nada and I bought vegetables to make Papaya Salad, along with sticky rice that we will have for dessert. Normally, we also get mangoes to have with the sticky rice, but mangoes are out of season right now. When we got back, I was putting things away in the fridge when I realised I had dates, and their sweetness would go well with the sticky rice. As I cut the dates into smaller pieces, I quipped that Jesus lived on dates while he was alone in the desert. Nada looked at me briefly with a puzzled expression, so I asked the obvious question. "You do know who Jesus is, right?" I've never met anyone before who has never heard of Jesus. Then, as I explained exactly who he was, I could see her becoming impatient. After all, I was delaying her from her favourite thing in the world...preparing food for the man she loves. I let her get back to it, but I wanted to know more about her belief system. So, I'm presently asking her questions she can answer 'qwickwy', as she would put it (God, she is so cute). First of all, I asked about her going to temples in the past. It turns out that Nada used to be a more devout Buddhist than she is now, so I asked her why that is. She stated that Buddhism has become a big business here, and she believes that an element of corruption has crept into the many big temples that are prolific all over Thailand. How poignant that her opinion reflects that of my own regarding organised religion. The amount of money generated by these large and well-organised churches has seen many become corrupt. Many of the people who once flocked to sermons and filled the pews of these large monolithic structures (places that, in my opinion, Jesus, if he does return to Earth again, wouldn't be seen in), in my opinion, find them less relevant than in the past. Smaller, family-focused places of worship are, to me, of more value than churches where tithing (and other methods of gaining wealth), and the wealth that is generated, is hoarded, not for the good of the community, but for the love of money itself...a sin that cannot be denied. I ask any Christian the question, what will happen to Nada when she dies? A beautiful soul who has never even heard of Jesus let alone the word of God. Will she be condemned to hell simply because she has never had the opportunity to hear the word and make her choice on whether she believes Jesus died for our sins? A choice that so many believe is crucial in determining their, and everyone else's fate after we die? A question I have asked many times, and so far, not one person of faith has been able (or wanted) to answer. For the moment, Nada is happy to take care of me. Ignorance is bliss, and these (mostly) rhetorical questions I ask are not relevant to her...and I for one am glad that is so. |
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