Tuesday, July 3, 2007

Hallowed Secularism and Longing

7/3/2007--[I learned the following from my teacher, whom I will not name only so that he may not be blamed for my misunderstanding.] The point of Hallowed Secularism is for us to relearn to be open to the teachings of our religions, especially, here in America, the teachings of Judaism and Christianity, from whom most of us have sprung. But, what is it we most need to learn? Is it dogma? No, for the dogmas are unbelievable. Is it moral order? Of course not. Is it ritual? Well, not immediately, for ritual would only be empty, as it is now. Is it prayer? Not for the unworthy. It is longing. Without longing, compassion does not happen and the world grows ever darker. Secularists are totally without consciousness of their longing. But, then, so are many of the religious.

2 comments:

  1. Do you think this lack of longing is escalating the moral decay of America? We have legalized murder at the beginning and ending of life. We are fat, lazy, and lack accountability. We are elistist war mongers with a violent sense of entitlement. Even our priests are abusing children. We have no tolerance for those who are different. We put our elderly in nursing homes, which I fondly refer to as the "secular pergatory" and wait for them to die. We are all about status and materialism. I think a lot of us are bored and already so successful, that we foolishly believe that we don't need to be intimately involved with God.

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  2. I think longing is a good way to put it... this is worth exploring!

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