Modern Religious Experience: Reflection #9: The Incarnation of God

The Incarnation of God

In any source that speaks of Jesus, this man is portrayed as God in a human form, amongst his children on earth. He is the man that God sent to this world to show us what is essential in our life, what morals we should value and how we are to live our lives not through taking, but giving. Through this, he saves people from the act of sinning, because he shows them a new path that they can take in life, giving everyone a new chance. He is a liberator from our own evil.

The Christmas carol I listened to is called Silent Night. The following verse is the very first of the song:

Silent night, holy night

All is calm, all is bright

Round yon Virgin Mother and Child

Holy Infant so tender and mild

Sleep in heavenly peace

Sleep in heavenly peace

This verse does not describe a significant action in particular, but simply speaks of Jesus sleeping in a peaceful environment. The word choice in this verse is incredibly significant however. Jesus was not born amongst a huge crowd of people, his birth was not promoted in an advertising manner, not only did the circumstances not allow it, but God did not want it to happen this way either. Instead, Jesus was born in a stable, surrounded by animals, not even in a real bed. It was a ‘silent’ and ‘calm’ night, there was no huge uproar, many were unaware that their Savior was being born possibly right next-door. Jesus himself is described as ‘tender’ and ‘mild’, these are not supernatural features, and he is said to be ‘sleeping in heavenly peace’, but important is the fact that he is sleeping as any baby does. All these words in the verse show how God wanted Jesus to be born quietly, not in the middle of a huge scene, but as any baby could have been born, and most importantly: not the way some may have expected the birth of the Son of God.

God, being the most supreme power (according to his believers), is of course capable of forcing all people on earth to believe in him. But belief without free will is no longer belief, and hence God gives people opportunities to believe in him. Before Jesus’ birth God has shown humanity that miracles do exist, through our strength of belief, but Jesus was a way of putting this into a human shape. Jesus had the power of direct speech, approaching his people in a manner that may have been easier for some to understand than if Angels appeared to them in dreams, or the voice of God in a bush in the middle of a cave. Jesus was seemingly just like any other man and hence much more approachable.

I believe that often people do not have belief in a higher power because they lack belief in themselves. If they don’t have this strength in the first place, they cannot get anywhere. Jesus showed the people that he was just like anyone else, just any other man who simply believed so strongly, and that this power gave him strength to create miracles. Jesus was born just as any other baby, not under elegant circumstances, not praised by millions from his day of birth on either. He grew up like many other children, and eventually died on a cross, like many other men; dying through physical torture. He was like many other people – and this gave people hope for themselves, that if belief in oneself and God could result in such supernatural powers, they too may have the chance to lead a better life.

God intended for Jesus to be a subtle idol, an example that people could follow, but less as a king, and much more as a friend, alongside whom they could spread the word of God.

Islam - Two perspectives


Middle Eastern View on the Event: Iran media airs 'murder confession'

http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2010/12/2010121022517738514.html

Western View on the Event: Woman convicted of adultery, murder appears on Iranian TV

http://edition.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/meast/12/10/iran.woman.stoning/index.html

The first article speaks of Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani, an Iranian woman who, in collaboration with the man she had an affair with, killed her husband. This affair with Isa Taheri had leaked out to the public and Ashtiani was sentenced to death by stoning, before which however she admitted to the murder.

In an interview, Ashtiani states that she gave her husband an injection, which rendered him unconscious, then waited for Taheri to come to her house and kill her man through electrocution.

The article also states that Ashtiani had had two previous affairs for which she receives 99 lashes, but the conviction leading to death had been put on hold for her children’s sake.

The article from CNN however expresses a slightly different viewpoint. In this article, the reasons for Ashtiani’s conviction are also made clear, however it is also stated that her family ‘steadfastly denied that she played any role in her husband’s death’. To add on to this claim, a human rights organization called the reasons for the conviction a ‘theatrical melodrama’. The head of this organization, Hadi Ghaemi, stated that the public was looking for someone to speak guilty and that Ashtiani was the perfect target; that her death sentence is what Teheran wanted to hear. Ghaemi also states that ‘since the international outcry, the Iranian government is tap-dancing, trying to justify executing her.”

Both articles however agree on the fact that Ashtiani re-enacted the death of her husband for a video recording, as proof for her guilt. She did not resist to this. Both of these facts are unusual for Iranian trials, but the acting was supposed to promote the government’s position.

A fact that only the CNN article states is the 10 year prison sentence for her alleged cooperation in the plot to kill her husband.

In general, these two articles differ in their point of focus. The Middle Eastern article talks puts forward Ashtiani’s death much more, and what she has been convicted for, with what consequences.

The Western view on this story however is based much more on the human right perspective. It states that the convicting of Ashtiani is only a pretext to diverge interest in abolishing the stoning in Iran.

Overall: two perspectives, two intentions, two mindsets.

Modern Religious Experience: Personal Commemoration- Reflection #7

In Remembrance of James

James Sprake – a friend, brother, son. Merely eighteen years old this summer James left this world to leave to a better place. Eighteen years, not a long time, but I can say with certainty that James lived every single one of the days within these years, and whoever was around him at any time always felt a little more alive too. James was a boy of amazing character, but the greatest gift that he shared with anyone was his smile and laughter, this unbelievable contagiousness about it. No one could escape his aura of joy and ecstasy.

Even if we wanted to, it would simply be impossible for us to forget about James, he has touched too many lives, changed to many for the better, we’ve shared too many laughs. Setting an example that life is too short to be wasted he still makes us think and pray for him every day of our lives. However, in his honor, I believe that we will be celebrating his life every year on the day of his passing, on July 12. Somehow commemorating James every day of our life already, through prayer and thought and memories carried in pictures, a day completely and fully dedicated to him is the least that we owe him. I wish as many of his friends and family to be able to reunite, to come together as they were when James was still physically with us, and to talk about him, to remember days, events, jokes, laughs, and even fights and hardships they have had and shared with him. But most of all I see all these people coming together and amongst the tears they may be shedding, I want to see smiles. We cannot simply cry because James is no longer living in the same world as us, but we have to do him justice by being grateful for every moment we have had with him, and every moment I personally have had with him makes me smile infinitely even if it this smile is always accompanied by tears.

On this day, every single year, we remember James by making him come to life in our words, and by reuniting his friends and family, as he knew them. It does not matter where this is held as long as everyone is together, if not physically, then in spirit.

A small writing that a friend of James made up has become one of my favorites ever since. I think this would be a beautiful contribution in his remembrance:

James, you entered our lives like a comet and passed by so abruptly.

You always told us you’d go to all the better places before us…

What was all the hurry?

We will live your share of life and head to where you are.

Just don’t forget us and do what you want to do and wait for us along the way.

All of us will remember the bright image you portrayed.

God bless, and rest in peace.

Modern Religious Experience: The Morality of Greek Myths- Reflection #6

The Morality of Greek Myths – Jupiter

The skit that I took part in tells the story of Echo and Narcissus. Starting off with Jupiter’s cheating on his wife Juno, Echo, a beautiful and talkative nymph helps him to escape by distracting Juno with her chatter. Echo is punished by Juno herself, and left with no words but the repetition of others’ speech. Not much later, she falls in love with the self absorbed and beautiful man Narcissus whom she follows, ashamed of her lack of voice, and eventually gets her heart broken because his own is too cold for anyone else’s love. As a punishment, the prayer of several other nymphs lead to Narcissus’ death, which falls upon him after he becomes so obsessed with the image of himself in the reflection of water.

This myth is overall quite somber and depressing, but this is an important factor as it emphasizes its moral a lot more. Echo is punished because of her obsession with the sound of her beautiful voice; she herself cannot get enough of a feature that is part of her. This leads to the conclusion that the Greeks did not believe in egocentrism, it would only lead to bad things. Narcissus too is infatuated with himself only. His love for himself leads to the rejection of others, even people that are in love with him, and so, he rejects external love for internal, self-absorbed, and of course narcissistic love.

This myth puts in the foreground the importance of an open mind and heart. The most valuable things in life are those that we share, such as love, and by mistakes such as Echo’s, of having used up her voice she has lost the chance of ever being loved by another. Vanity will have its consequences, both these characters had to suffer the consequence of death. Of course this is only an exaggeration of this self-absorbed act, but the characters of Echo and Narcissus are a representation of the arrogance that humans express too often, and how this particular arrogance and egotism drive a wedge between each of us humans.

Modern Religious Experience: Reflection #5: Bongwonsa Temple and Nature Walk

After spending the morning in nature and a beautiful Buddhist Temple in harmony with my friends and classmates this automatically made me think of the origin of our seeking of religion, or the answers to life. Some people dedicate decades to the search of answers, and some never even find some. But so often people manage to find themselves, and by practicing meditation and rituals of repeated prayer and bowing also find answers to some of these questions. But why look for answers anyway? I think that it is our fascination for nature and creation that leaves us speechless. We are overwhelmed by the perfection, and even though we can explain the function or role of elements in nature through our scientific knowledge, we cannot explain how these creations even started existing, and this exact lack of knowledge leads to our need to look for these answers.

So as in Buddhism, meditation is one of the keys to find some of these answers. Meditation is an individual journey to our soul, and to what lays behind it. We find out who we are, where we come from, and if we even manage to reach this stage in the first place, some are able to find out secrets of creation. This is a process that requires an immense amount of work and dedication, but in the end, personally I am not quite sure if it is worth it. While people spend so much time thinking about creation or where the beauty of nature and its mind-blowing creations come from, why don’t they rather interact with it? What better way to get as much out of it as to spend time with it, to live life to the fullest out in nature, in the creation of some upper being? However I really think that it is this fascination for nature and the things about it that we cannot explain that make people seek out religion, the fact that our human world does not contain enough might to create such captivating things, that we believe there must be a higher power.

Buddhist Meditation

After receiving the task of meditating for 20 minutes in a quiet spot I wondered how this was going to get me to understand the truths or life or attain a state in which I think of nothing at all. I have never really meditated before, the closest to it are moments where I leave the house to just be a little farther away from school work and stress, and a little closer to nature and myself. I think this can be called mediation in one way or another, I reach a state that I cannot be in when I am with other people and I simply have time for myself and to think about what I care about, love, want, do not want, get frustrated with or anything else. 
But these 20 minutes were different than my previous 'meditations'. Being assigned not to think about anything was incredibly tough. First, I had to relax from all the stress, especially since this week has been one of the most homework packed in my entire high school career I think. I tried to forget all about the sleepless nights and the countless essays, charts, numbers and researches I had written or put together and managed quite well, I soon felt a lot more relieved. Now that the major obstacle to relaxing was out of the way, I still had a million other things in my mind. Current things going on with my friends, their troubles, their successes, ours together. I thought about laughs of the day and some worries too, things I had discussed with my friends, planned, smiled at, simply the little things of the day, those that seem not to matter but make a huge difference in the way I feel at the end of the day. Realizing that I could not get my mind empty, I forced myself to think about the truths of life. "The origin of suffering is attachement". I realized that this truth was indeed one, but it is so easily opposed with a counter-argument: The origin of happiness is attachement. As I had just thought about the relationship of myself and my friends I connected this thought to the truth of life. Without friends and family, the people I am attached to, would I still be laughing as much? What would I be living for? It is obvious to have to bargain some suffering in order to experience happiness, but I think that is a worthy price to pay. Alot of people around me tell me that I laugh alot, even at the simplest things, and I like this idea of enjoying little things. So what if I have to let go of some of these sooner or later, those laughs and moments of happiness were worth it. There is suffering in life, but we don't live for that, we live life for the moments that make us smile, and I think that is what buddhism doesn't acknowledge as much as I believe it should. Attachement is risky, but in the end, I would chose that over detachment any day. 
I thought about this aspect for a long time and resulted in thankfulness, for everything around me. I think this thought only got me to hang on to what I am attached to already even closer, because I realize the positive impact and huge happiness it all throws upon me. So why let go of it? 

Gandhi – Hindu and Activist

Gandhi was a Hindu, but exactly this showed us that a Hindu was never only a Hindu. Gandhi’s own words were that he is a Hindu, Christian, Jew, Muslim, and a man of any other religion. His mind was open and accepting to all religions of the world, just because a religion differed does not mean the mindset on the world of a man would differ, his intentions, his morals could be identical. Gandhi emphasizes this idea with his strong opposition to the split of the Indian population and the move of all the Muslims to Pakistan. His will to keep India united is stronger than anything and his belief that men of all religions are equal proves his own feeling that he has failed by not keeping Muslims and Hindus in the same country of India.

Gandhi once said, “A man who was completely innocent, offered himself as a sacrifice for the good of others, including his enemies, and became the ransom of the world. It was a perfect act.” This quote shortly and efficiently sums up Gandhi’s life perfectly. His belief was that if he wanted to really help the people around him, he would have to sacrifice anything he had. And so he did, detaching himself from everything around him, including his children. Giving up precious aspects of one’s life would make someone see the needs in the lives of those around one, and only once this sacrifice had been made, they could be helped. As the quote also says, it was a completely ‘innocent’ man that offered himself, this being an example for Gandhi strictly living after his own set of rules, never breaking them, always believing that non-violence was the best solution for any problem, and trying to inspire others of this. Gandhi was prepared to suffer abuse by those that stood in his way to peace, only to achieve it, and was not afraid of what the consequences of their dislike were. To achieve what he truly believed in he let go of everything he loved, and was trying to inspire the world around him with the message that by gaining something good, good things have to be sacrificed.