Tag: Religion

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Taking Personal Responsibility…

RJ Walters

In my mind taking personal responsibility is a big part of the bedrock of what makes the U.S. a success story among the nations of the world. We encourage, some would even demand, that each of us take personal responsibility for our well being and especially for our future needs. The graphic to the right pretty well sums up the benefits and obstacles associated with personal responsibility. It starts with self control and eventually peaks with wisdom. Self control means that we make the choices necessary to provide the desired outcomes. All of us need to take personal responsibility for … Continue reading Taking Personal Responsibility…

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There Is Nothing Wrong With Myth….

RJ Walters

There is nothing wrong with myth, as it is an ingrained part of a cultural and religious traditions. Here is a little about mythology from Wikipedia: As a collection of such stories, mythology is a vital feature of every culture. Various origins for myths have been proposed, ranging from personification of nature, personification of natural phenomena to truthful or hyperbolic accounts of historical events, to explanations of existing ritual. …  A culture’s collective mythology helps convey belonging, shared and religious experience, behavioral models, and moral and practical lessons. Lets look at a couple of ways that myth is created: There … Continue reading There Is Nothing Wrong With Myth….

Philosophical Thoughts1 Comment

God Is ….

RJ Walters

I really don’t know how it happened that God became this old guy with flowing white hair and beard laying on the clouds and watching everything we do and getting involved in every aspect of our lives. I don’t know if Michelangelo’s Sistene chapel was the first depiction of that persona or if he was just mirroring someone else. But it seemed to catch on and go from there.  For many God is now a father figure who looks out for our every need. I was pretty deeply involved in theology for more than a decade devouring perhaps a hundred … Continue reading God Is ….

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Listen Up….

RJ Walters

Many organized faith groups are wringing their hands over the growing category of “nones” and wondering how to attract young people, especially, back to the fold. What words of wisdom would you give them? Listen, listen, listen. Listen again. Don’t think that stuff like beer nights and church meeting in a coffee shop and pastors in flannel and skinny jeans is going to be enough: it’s not, and many people see right through it. Meet people where they arrive rather than drawing a line and expecting them to cross it. Be present to people’s doubts and questions in honest ways. … Continue reading Listen Up….

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Pope Francis and Consumerism…

RJ Walters

In Francis’ encyclical Laudato Sí, he took aim at the West’s “extreme and selective consumerism” and “throwaway culture,” arguing that the developed world’s voracious appetites are a bigger threat to the planet than population growth. Blaming overpopulation in poorer parts of the world, he writes, “is an attempt to legitimize the present model of distribution, where a minority believes that it has the right to consume in a way which can never be universalized, since the planet could not even contain the waste products of such consumption.”… If Pope Francis is working at least partly on faith, surely the same … Continue reading Pope Francis and Consumerism…

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The Decrees of Constantine…

RJ Walters

I am pulling up another past post form Red Letter Living that I wrote almost three years ago. At that time in my spiritual journey I was trying to decide where church doctrine and its creeds belonged in my faith. Needless to say this book by Harvey Cox did a lot to show me a different path on this topic and many others. When I came to realize just how much man had a hand in formalizing current Christian doctrine it convinced me that Christianity is an ever evolving process and is not to be paralyzed by some of the now outdated … Continue reading The Decrees of Constantine…

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America doesn’t trust its experts anymore

RJ Walters

It’s healthy to question expertise, but we need actual experts. The brilliance of the Fox News motto, “We report, you decide,” is that it encourages our vanity that we can know as much as anyone else, we can be experts, given a stream of carefully curated facts and opinion. MSNBC, which has a similar business/editorial model, is stuck with the less-empowering “Lean Forward.” There are a number of ways forward for expertise in America. We can become increasingly mistrustful of scientists, doctors, professors, bureaucrats, bankers, and other experts in their fields; or we can find a better way to filter … Continue reading America doesn’t trust its experts anymore

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About Islam and terrorism…

RJ Walters

I have been meaning to study more about the Muslim world. I know it rivals Christianity as the largest religion in the world. Here are some supposed facts I recently found about it from a recent on-line article. Click the source below to see the complete article. 1. There are 1.6 billion Muslims in the world. 2. European Muslims are more moderate on sharia law. Eighty-four percent of Muslims in South Asia, 77 percent of percent of Muslims in Southeast Asia, and 74 percent of Muslims in the Middle East and North Africa believe that sharia law should be official … Continue reading About Islam and terrorism…

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We’re worshipping religion, not God….

RJ Walters

We’re worshipping religion, not God. It’s hard, when we’ve been endowed with these amazing buildings, these historic legacies and these time-honored traditions, not to mistake them for the thing we’re supposed to really focus on. To paraphrase the recent TV show, ‘Halt and Catch Fire,’ religion isn’t the thing; it’s the thing that gets us to the thing. Organized religion, and all that comes with it, is a means to an end. It’s intent is to facilitate community, spiritual growth, mutual accountability, worship of God and transformation of the world around us. But so much of our energy in recent … Continue reading We’re worshipping religion, not God….

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America’s Religion…

RJ Walters

People say that professional sports fuel what is worst in us. Our greed, our impatience, our willingness to ruin our bodies for the sake of fame. Our glorification of the worst human impulses, our blindness to the crimes these athletes sometimes commit…. It’s been said that sports are America’s religion and that this idolatry is our downfall. SOURCE: These Royals Make You Believe in God | Angela Denker | Red Letter Christians. I suspect that there are many more who will be sitting around their TV sets this Sunday afternoon watching  a football game than there are sitting in a church pew. … Continue reading America’s Religion…

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If Grace Is True…..

RJ Walters

I didn’t consider this for many years. I actually thought my experiences rare. I was one of the chosen. I was special. Now I know the truth. God whispers his love in every ear. He isn’t interested in declaring his love to a select few. He doesn’t limit his presence to Vatican City, to the halls of seminaries, to the offices of preachers, or to church altars. God doesn’t restrict his communication to the Bible. He doesn’t confine his presence to any single denomination or religion. God speaks to all people, even when they’re not inclined to listen. Gulley, Philip; … Continue reading If Grace Is True…..

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Six Things Continued…

RJ Walters

Being Pessimistic … Today’s Christians have a bad habit of seeing the worst in everybody and everything: A natural disaster is surely a sign of the end times. An MTV show reflects our hideous moral decline. A particular nation (obviously not one of our political allies) is being used as the Anti-Christ’s puppet to eventually invade and destroy the United States. The apocalyptic and hopeless assessments about our world—and Christianity—propagated by Christians themselves are pathetic and worrisome. Do we have nothing to be thankful for? We treat our faith as if it’s in a rapid decline, as if the “glory … Continue reading Six Things Continued…

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What In The Name Of God Did You Do?????

RJ Walters

This is going to be one of those posts that jerks at my soul. I remember hearing the title phrase pretty frequently when I was growing up. It usually meant that the speaker was surprised at what I had done and usually disapproved of it. Today it seems so many people are doing things, abominable things, in the name of God. Almost every war in my lifetime has been in the name of God. So much hatred is spewed in his name. If God is really paying attention to all of us puny human beings I wonder if he is … Continue reading What In The Name Of God Did You Do?????

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All Trying To Arrive At The Same Place…

RJ Walters

“Now, just suppose, for a change they preach to you about the Lord and not about the other fellow’s church, for every religion is good. There is none of it bad.  We are all trying to arrive at the same place according to our own conscience and teachings. It don’t matter which road you take.” – Will Rogers March 11, 1923 Since Will Rogers is a hero of mine, of course I get a daily dose of his Facebook page. Here is one that strikes me as typical of his wisdom. Will was not particularly a religious person, his mom … Continue reading All Trying To Arrive At The Same Place…

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Shake, Rattle, & Roll…

RJ Walters

Hancock, MA – Hancock Shaker Village Hancock Shaker Village is one of the original Shaker communities so it has much more history than the one I visit most often near Lexington KY.  The round barn as show above is their most distinctive feature. America is great because it allow so much religious diversity.  We are all seeking God in one manner or another.  To be tolerant of diverse religious views is uniquely American… Continue reading Shake, Rattle, & Roll…

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SCOTUS Said So…

RJ Walters

My religious belief strongly oppose war. I think our military budgets are totally outrageous! We, 5% of the world’s population, spend more on our war machine than the rest of the world combined.  With the latest ruling SCOTUS (Supreme Court Of The United States) tells us that religious groups can pick and choose which laws they choose to obey. Thanks to you my tax bill just got smaller. Thanks Mr Scalia and your co-conspirators for making it happen. You guys never fail to amaze me as to how far you are willing to go to reshape this country to your … Continue reading SCOTUS Said So…

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Shaker Village…

RJ Walters

Pleasant Hill is one of my favorite living history sites. I have been there probably a dozen time and stayed overnight in one of the restored common dwelling building on four or five occasions.  I am just fascinated with religious communities of the past. I seek them out whenever we travel. Pleasant Hill is located near Lexington Kentucky. It is a restored Shaker community. Being a lifelong fan of Shaker furniture is what originally attracted me to this site but the story behind the village and its past inhabitants is what keeps me coming back.  That and the totally serene … Continue reading Shaker Village…

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Revolution….

RJ Walters

Young and old, rich and poor, and people from every social, economic, political and cultural background are starting to rethink their faith. A fresh movement is happening, and in its purest form is about one thing: following Christ. This transformation is reshaping the Christian landscape. Believers are starting to simplify their faith in order to exemplify Christ—a simple yet profound way to live out the gospel. This has become a revolutionary concept. This “new” Christianity is sick of culture wars, political agendas, hypocrisy and legalistic doctrines. They prefer inclusion over restriction, dialogue over debate, practice over preaching, and love over … Continue reading Revolution….

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Revolution….

RJ Walters

Young and old, rich and poor, and people from every social, economic, political and cultural background are starting to rethink their faith. A fresh movement is happening, and in its purest form is about one thing: following Christ. This transformation is reshaping the Christian landscape. Believers are starting to simplify their faith in order to exemplify Christ—a simple yet profound way to live out the gospel. This has become a revolutionary concept. This “new” Christianity is sick of culture wars, political agendas, hypocrisy and legalistic doctrines. They prefer inclusion over restriction, dialogue over debate, practice over preaching, and love over … Continue reading Revolution….

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Starry Eyed…

RJ Walters

I know many think of me as one of those starry eyed liberals who doesn’t have any sense of reality. With this post I will probably cement that vision with many of my more conservative friends. But what would happen if we just refused to be enemies with those our leaders dictated us to hate.  What would happen? Let’s look at maybe the worst leader in that regard in the twentieth century. What would have happened it the German people had refused to invade their neighbor in 1938? Would Hitler’s power have been erased? What would have happened if people … Continue reading Starry Eyed…