While I am sure of very few things, I believe in many.

I believe in things still unprovable — the unexplainable “numinous” that permeates the Universe with its glow of wonderment … the omnipresence of Beauty, the integrity of Justice and the rightness of Forgiveness … I believe in the morality of Kindness & the immorality of purposefully causing others pain; in sacrificing personal success & comfort in order to enhance the well-being of the downtrodden … I believe in the Grace of consciousness, the Guidance of conscience, & the Power of free will … I believe in the teachings of Jesus Christ, the poetry of Jalālad-Dīn Rumi & the wisdoms of Gautama Buddha … I believe in the Selfless Way as enlivened by St. Francis of Assisi & Mahatma Gandhi & Peace Pilgrim … I believe in LOVE.

I also happen to believe in things supported by empirical evidence — in science and the scientific method; in gravity & inertia … I believe in “quantum interconnection”; the electro-magnetic attraction that binds us all as One … I believe in evolution … I believe in the wisdom of Galileo Galilei & Carl Jung & Victor Frankl, and in the intellect of Carl Sagan & Stephen Hawking … And I believe in the eloquence and the passion of Stephen Fry & Christopher Hitchens.

AND in addition to all of the things in which i do believe, there are a few things in which I do NOT …

*Even though humility demands that it very well might be possible, I do NOT believe in a supreme being who weighs in on the outcome of athletic contests while millions of innocent people die in wars and billions of innocent animals die on dinner plates.

*While it is indeed possible that God is a celestial tyrant who demands groveling & submission, I do NOT believe that over two billion people in India & China are going to Hell merely for not properly bowing down thereto.

*While it is indeed possible that there exists a supernatural deity who visits pain & torment on us “lesser beings” in order to teach us lessons or punish us for our misdeeds, I still see too much Love & too much Goodness in the world – and as such do NOT believe in a “Divine Dictator” who is so cruel & so callous.

And yet even if I am wrong — even if God DOES prefer Michael Jordan to all other basketball players & bets on football teams from the SEC; even if He IS sending billions of “heathens” to Hell for choosing the wrong religion; even if He IS raining down injustice & suffering in order to punish us for our sins; even if there IS no escape from His judgment & no appeasing His wrath (other than by caving in to fear and lying to Him about who we truly are and what we truly believe), then I — as a moral & ethical & caring representative of my self & my family & my species and indeed my planet — choose to stand boldly before Him …

I choose to stand boldly before Him and proclaim His wrongs;
I choose to stand boldly before Him and protest His injustice;
… and I choose to boldly stand before Him and forgive Him.

I choose to stand boldly before Him and remind Him of His LOVE.

(inspired by Piper Chapman)

Filed under: Wisdoms from the Journey by Scaughdt