One Most High God – One Way

Road to the Temple of Peace

There is only one Absolute Reality.
There is only one source of all that is.
There is only one Most High God.

There appear to be many ways.
Yet in their essence they are all one.

Love God with all your heart and all your soul and all your strength.
Love your neighbor as yourself.

Identity and Change, Descartes, Mathematics, King David, Solomon’s Temple, Satan, Statistics, Pythagoras, Plato, and God.

I misspoke in this video saying that Pythagoras studied Plato. I meant to say that Plato was familiar with the teaching of Pythagoras.

Lead me not into temptation…

This is a tough one. On a theological level it raises questions. On a personal level it hits home.

If one says to Our Father who art in Heaven,  “Please don’t lead me into temptation,” that would seem to imply that when we are tempted it is God that is leading us into temptation.

If it is God’s will that His Kingdom come on Earth as it is in Heaven, then why would God lead us into temptation?

Now, to be clear, it does not say that God is the one who tempts us. It merely implies that God may lead us into a situation in which we are tempted.

That makes more sense, because if we are to become perfect as our Father in Heaven is perfect, then we should be able to resist temptation.

After his baptism by John, when the Holy Spirit descended and a voice from above said, “This is my only Son in whom I am well pleased,” Jesus was led by the Spirit of God into the wilderness to fast for 40 days before beginning his public mission.

During that 40 days, we are told that he was tempted by Satan himself with three great temptations. He withstood the temptations by reciting verses from scripture.

Moreover, the story goes on to say that, in addition to these three temptations. Jesus was tempted in every way that it is possible for a man to be tempted and he overcame every temptation.

God allowed the man Jesus to be tempted in every way before he began his public ministry.

Jesus began his ministry as the Messiah on the foundation of his spiritual victory.

Because he overcame temptation, he is the Way.

St. Paul said that Jesus is the first fruits and we are to become like him. So perhaps in order to become like Jesus, we also need to overcome temptation.

Therefore, we may be lead into temptation.

If one has never been tempted, how does one know how he or she will respond?

To teach the Way, one must become the Way.

There are many more questions, but for now I want to repeat that Jesus resisted Satan by quoting sacred scripture. There is power in the words of sacred scripture.

It is not only Christianity that testifies to this power.

To give an example. Five hundred years before Jesus lived, Buddha gave this advice:

Those who recite many scriptures but fail to practice their teachings are like a cowherd counting another’s cows. They do not share in the joys of the spiritual life. But those who know few scriptures yet practice their teachings, overcoming all lust, hatred, and delusion, live with a pure mind in the highest wisdom. They stand without external supports and share in the joys of the spiritual life.

-Dhammapada 1:19-20

Reincarnation Alexander the Great and 4 generations of Greek philosophy

I’ve been doing a series of talks entitled “It’s never a good idea to want to rule the world: pride cometh before a fall.” I’m thinking that maybe that is to absolute. Perhaps I should just call it ” A brief survey of people who have wanted to rule the world.” Then I can let people decide for themselves whether it is a good idea or not.

No doubt, the world needs good leaders. Some leaders are ambitious and want to rule. Others are reluctant leaders. I prefer reluctant leaders. They like to do good but prefer to work with others and often to act behind the scenes. They assume leadership only at the urging or insistence of others because the people want their leadership.

Some ambitious leaders may be inspired by the desire to serve others. However, often ambitious leaders are motivated by a drive for power that inflates their ego and proves destructive.

There are many styles of leadership. I will examine these over the course of time. I will say at this time that I like a leader who can build consensus while at the same time being decisive when the time calls for it.

Anyway here is a little video:

Frost Time

It is Frost time. The totem animal is the snake. We have passed the cusp into Scorpio. The ruling planets are Pluto and Mars. It is time to rest and get in touch with the inner world. This is a time of endings and beginnings.

The Origin of Confusionism

Long ago in the ancient land of Mu lived two brothers, Pro and Con

Con Fuse Us

Pro, the elder was very rational and dialectical in his thinking. He brilliantly analyzed and explained everything. Con on the other hand was very reflective and meditative. He thought with his heart and tried to see the underlying unity in things.

But the people were drawn to Pro because he was so fascinating. He became very popular. He went to the west, eventually ending up in Asia Minor, spreading his ideas as everywhere. People throughout the world adopted Pro’s dialectical way of thinking and much progress was made. The problem was that for every thesis there was an antithesis. So over time bitter conflicts developed between the various philosophies and religions that arose. Families, communities, nations were torn apart as they struggled over the conflicting ideas.

Con Fusing

Eventually, people saw that there was a need for reconciliation. All this time Con had been living peacefully watching the development of all of the ideas, observing the behavior of the people, meditating and testing the ideas in his heart. He never took sides. He learned, saw things, and evaluated things from all points of view. Yet in his heart he always maintained a calm internal center of love.

When the people came to the point that they felt that the conflict must end, they sent a delegation to Con. The delegation entered his chamber, bowed slightly and said, “Con please fuse us.”

Thus Confusionism was born.

The Fundamental Principles of Confusionism

The Confusionist Book of Genesis