Few doctrines have done more to diminish faith in a loving God than the idea some people will suffer eternally with no hope of redemption. For many people, this isn’t an abstract theological puzzle, this is the image of a loved one lost forever. The doctrine’s moral repugnance and its prominence in the Christian tradition… Continue reading You’re Already in Hell, and Why That’s Good News
Category: Meaning
The Authentic Spiritual Life
Curing the dis-ease of your soul. When we come to the point of extreme disappointment with this material world, our authentic spiritual life can begin. We accept the futility of searching for lasting joy in a world of suffering and death. When we have the courage to accept that harsh truth, we stand on the… Continue reading The Authentic Spiritual Life
Does it Matter if God exists?
Naturalism’s magic bubble. One of my readers on Medium recently posted an article asking two questions: In all these discussions about God, we assume we’re using the word God to mean the same thing, but our conception of God is often very different. What does the word God mean? I generally don’t like using the… Continue reading Does it Matter if God exists?
The Dynamic Life of Consciousness
Embracing the idealist worldview. What does it mean to say the substance of the world is conscious? Is idealism just an interesting philosophical theory with no practical relevance? Or does it turn our view of the world inside out, and illuminate the path to a fulfilling life? The dynamic life of consciousness Consciousness is a… Continue reading The Dynamic Life of Consciousness
God is Love
When some people hear that God is love, it arouses the image of a benign old gentleman. An inoffensive chap who is insipidly polite and agreeably kind. This superficial idea comes from the dogma of materialist thinking. We’re accustomed to think of love as an emotion, a feeling evoked by an object in the world.… Continue reading God is Love
The Perfection of Free Will – Voluntary surrender to divine love
The will is the power which moves everything in the conscious world. How you choose to move and interact with the world is determined by your will. While our limited sphere of influence moves according to our will, the entire reality moves according to God’s will. God is omnipotent, his will is all-powerful. There is… Continue reading The Perfection of Free Will – Voluntary surrender to divine love
Heaven is not a Geographical Location
In the spiritual view of reality, the inner dimensions of the world are primary. The foundation of the world is consciousness. Instead of the naturalist view that consciousness is a state of matter, the idealist view is that matter is a state of consciousness. Matter is an idea. When we limit our view of the… Continue reading Heaven is not a Geographical Location
The Law of Karma – cosmic justice or natural law?
The doctrine of karma is sometimes interpreted as a system of cosmic justice. God is the chief prosecutor enforcing his laws through reward and punishment. Suffering is divine retribution for sin, and sin is disobeying God’s commands. With this interpretation of karma, it follows logically that people deserve to suffer. Their suffering is a just… Continue reading The Law of Karma – cosmic justice or natural law?
Can all the Different Religions be True?
The harmonious outlook of religious pluralism. There is a wide diversity of religious claims and practices. Conceptions of the divine range from the God of Abraham to Hinduism’s impersonal Brahman. This diversity exists between religions and within religions. Many of the different claims seem contradictory. Some people think this means only one religion can be… Continue reading Can all the Different Religions be True?
Reflections on the Nature of Faith – Transcending the limits of the intellect.
Faith is sometimes described as belief without evidence. Non-believers promote this idea, but many believers also say this is the substance of faith. If we had evidence, why would we need faith? But this is a shallow understanding of faith. If that was the substance of faith, faith would be irrational. But the deeper understanding… Continue reading Reflections on the Nature of Faith – Transcending the limits of the intellect.
Prudence Louise 