Belief is Not and Cannot Change Truth

You know what. Humanity, because it has created its own virtual reality has deceived itself into believing perception is reality. Westerners believe this. Easterners believe this. Islam believes this. Christianity believes this. Judaism believes this. Atheists believe this. Politicians and Corporate America certainly believe this. Everyone believes this, it seems... but not, of course, everyone. You see how easy it is to get on a roll and just keep rolling along with ones thoughts.

You know what else. Humankind knows the absolute truth about nothing. If there is anything I can say that approaches absolute truth I think I just said it.

You know what else. We believe lack of absolute truth gives us license or wiggle room to tweak, outright distort, and otherwise degrade what we believe to be the truth. We carry this so far as to call white black and visa versa... don't we?

Today, who can point to any topic or issue and associate unequivocal unanimity with it? One's truth is another's lie.

You know what else. It doesn't matter to truth itself. No matter how we present truth to support our beliefs, an absolute truth about everything is out there. The mere fact that human minds cannot grasp it is not a license to "make perception reality." Why not tailor truth, you might ask, if there is no absolute truth within humanity's ability to comprehend? This is my point. Humanity tends to run like a catfish with bait if that bait is mere perception. Followers are easy to swallow hook, line, and sinker. Keep this in mind. One who swallows enough sinkers soon sinks.

So we humans flounder about in our virtual reality but absolute truth, in the end, rules. Pat Robertson's perceptions of truth, had his bait been swallowed, would have Venezuelan President, Hugo Chavez, six feet under by now. Nutcase "prophets," however, don't worry me nearly as much as those intellects who finesse their perceptions into reasonable sounding "prophecy." These are not to be feared for fear itself is an antagonist and works against peace. The reasonable prophet should be heard out and then called out for his or her fallibility.

Some suggest, mostly those who distrust religious institutions altogether, that self-proclaimed modern day prophets simply be ignored. I think that theory was tested on Osama bin Laden.

Some prophets will be heard no matter what they have to do to achieve this desire.

Who would disagree with my perception that the entire world would be better off if religous doctrine was eliminated from consideration among our world's leaders? I did not say they had to lose their religion did I? I have yet to hear or read a reasonable Church/State defense from those who believe mere mortals possess enough absolute truth to tell other mere mortals how or what to believe concerning spiritual matters. I grew up in a tiny church of around 75 to 150 members. I can recall no time when everyone in that tiny assemblage of souls agreed entirely on the nuances of any given topic... spiritual or otherwise. I remain at a loss to explain why, almost globally, humanity's leaders are entrusted with spiritual matters when they cannot agree on even the most mundane and basic physical matters.

I wonder how many have innocents have died in the crossfire of soldiers fighting for religious "dogmas" cloaked as national security?

I suppose millions of innocents have died in the crossfire of soldiers fighting for some truth they claim, oddly, their God of Love has imparted unto them. More often soldiers are well-meaning proxies through which some modern mortal prophet like Pat Robertson, George W. Burning-Bush in-the-desert, Osama bin laden, Pope so and so, Benny Hinn, Hitler, John ben Kathryn and the like pursue their prophecies. People of all faiths are quick to point to Jim Jones of Jonestown Massacre infamy as a self-proclaimed "Christian" prophet and maniac. He (so the story goes) lead 913 believers to their own graves via suicide.

Let's see. At last count, I believe just over 2600 U.S. soldiers have marched, driven or flown to their deaths in Iraq. Soon we will have lost as many young soldiers in Iraq as innocent civilians killed on 9/11/01. Speaking of civilians, the most conservative credible estimates are well over 100,000 innocent Iraqi civilians have been killed since the U.S. invaded their country. Some U.S. citizens squirm at the phrase "innocent Iraqi civilians." But friends, there is such a thing as innocent Iraqi civilians. Little to year old girls blown to shreds by bombs dropped from invisible plane can hardly be viewed as anything but innocent. Even if the 10 year old little girl would shoot a U.S. soldier with an AK-47 there is still the issue of a fair fight. Stealth Bombers against 10 year old little peasant girls with AK-47s hardly, in my mind, strips them of their innocence. For God's sake, does anyone really believe all is truly fair in love and war? If I error in this judgement I must err on the side of the 10 year old girl... so call me a traitor.

Bush is open about his belief that God hand-picked him to lead us into Iraq. Read his claims friends.

( Judy Keen, USA Today, April 2, 2003 ) W's spiritual adviser Rev. James Robison W said that Bush told him: 'I feel like God wants me to run for President. I can't explain it, but I sense my country is going to need me. Something is going to happen... I know it won't be easy on me or my family, but God wants me to do it.' The Observer, November 2, 2003

An assessment of Bush's God Complex.

More Recently:

Nabil Shaath says: "President Bush said to all of us: 'I'm driven with a mission from God. God would tell me, "George, go and fight those terrorists in Afghanistan." And I did, and then God would tell me, "George, go and end the tyranny in Iraq …" And I did. And now, again, I feel God's words coming to me, "Go get the Palestinians their state and get the Israelis their security, and get peace in the Middle East." And by God I'm gonna do it."

Sure, all this religious hocus pocus comes served on a platter of political strategy but beneath it all lurks religious doctrine sprinkled with an exciting dose of prophecy about a new earthly yet, somehow, divine Kindgom of Heaven on earth. Even though the idea is a bit of an oxymoron people love the idea. Who doesn't want Heaven to come to them instead of them having to reach for it? Yes Bush, claims God is on his team but then...

Below is a random selection (with commentary from one medium of our virtual reality, the internet). Noooo... I'm not picking on Jews. That should be obvious. I did not know any modern Jewish prophets so I went to the internet. The following is first page I came to. The pesher or commentary included in the Book of Kathryn makes the case for my assertions above. Christian, Muslim and every other religion will have its commentaries as well.

One can spend an hour in virtual reality and find "righteous hate," often disguised as thoughtful and even gentle analysis, in contemporary religious commentaries. It is difficult to find religous commentary that does not incorporate some pseudo-religious agenda with politics.

I have to pause once again and state: I am a Christian in that I try to model (however imperfectly) my thoughts and actions after Jesus Christ's teachings.... His teachings... not some commentary's dogma. I comment on everything. You can see that, but I do not comment on Jesus' teachings... I will, when solicited or otherwise appropriate, discuss the Bible with anyone. Few these days seem to have much interest in doing so... and I say, is it any wonder? With all this blood-letting over religion I truly understand why I will have already lost the vast majority of those who started reading this. I do. I really understand. For those hanging with me, I continue.

Below is just one random flavor of human tragedy. It might be worth ones time to float on over to this website and look around.

John ben Kathryn
Although these two chapters do not contain all the relevant apocalypticism which is for to come, they seem the most compact and chronological . A great deal of the book of John ben Kathryn surrounds events that are to happen shortly in their primary fulfillment, but like with all prophecy could have long term and repeating inspiration. Any look at chapter 45, must take into consideration chapter 44 and the implication that the events draw nigh by the statement the prophet is to set a caldron by Damascus Gate at the appropriate time.

The pesher (prophetic commentary) will be in blue between the paragraphs. It must be said that no pesher holds equality with the written word. The entire book of ben Kathryn can and should be read here:

When I read religious commentary I am reminded of the assertions below.
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There are no whole truths: all truths are half-truths. It is trying to treat them as whole truths that plays the devil.
Alfred North Whitehead (1861-1947) English philosopher and mathematician.
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Penetrating so many secrets, we cease to believe in the unknowable. But there it sits nevertheless, calmly licking its chops.
H. L. Mencken (1880-1956) American journalist, writer. In: Minority Report (1956).

I reserve my claim to possess irrefutable truth for the hereafter. Then, I may know absolute truth after all. That my friends, would be my Heaven at least as far as I am capable of imagining Heaven.

So while here on earth, I choose peace and to believe what I believe and to respect what others believe. Now, who would want to kill me for believing this and living this kind of life? Osama, would you kill me for respecting your beliefs. If you must kill me, kill me. Really, I am not afraid.

Perhap we should leave this world to those who think they can kill their way to Heaven on Earth. My guess is - the last one standing would look around google-eyed, find nothing but human and environmental destruction, loneliness and hopelessness, and in a matter of time kill off that one last person on earth he or she can simply no longer tolerate. In an instant it would be lights out for the last one standing. Finally... Heaven on Earth... at least for earth itself.

Maybe in the hereafter, sacrificial peacemakers will fully understand all truth and appreciate the eternal spiritual Heaven we seem to have forgotten in this mad endless war to protect "land" that some believe will become Heaven on Earth.

I will die to achieve peace. I will not, I cannot, kill to achieve it.

I love this planet earth. All who know me know this but I do not believe this earth is my spiritual destiny and I am not enough afraid of the unknown to pretend I can make God come to me and set me up in some gold-filled mansion in some physical Holy City on a Hill. Perhaps many religious folks are just scared to death to let their spirits soar off into eternity? Space only looks dark from earth, my friends. Don't fear the concept of a spiritual Heaven. The "Good News" is, you needn't kill anyone to get there.