- This topic is empty.
-
Posts
-
I am bumping up this thread in response to ruthie’s comment on another thread. It also deals with how to see others who see and experience things differently than we do. Great thread and insight – thank you! Oh shi-. I lied in my introduction. I did have a very serious faith crises. But it’s all wrapped up in some very dark history.
There *was* a time where I felt no God and lacked a spiritual ear. I looked in my journals to verify, to make sure I wasn’t crazy. Nope, not crazy (at least not about this). Before the dark I had spiritual experiences but I did not recognize them for what they were until I was much older. I had forgotten that I had no recognition. I had forgotten the dark where I felt no God and no spirituality. I spent all day yesterday mulling it over, which was very difficult to do emotionally. I’m still thinking about it. It hurts to remember, but I need to.
Thank you for this post. I copied it and saved it on my computer. I hope you put it up on your blog for others to see.
I decided to bump this up since old-timer mentioned it in another thread. I remember reading this post shortly after I found this site and thinking. “I have come home.” It’s tremendously comforting to finally find and share with others who “see the thestrals.” Thanks for bumping this up MJ. A good thread.
I think when people can accept or tell themselves they are “OK” despite the new vision of things or new light and knowledge or whatever their faith crisis brings anew, they can say it is OK, then it becomes easier to start feeling peace and finding new joy and happiness for what is lost instead of being stuck in it.
We all make stories on what to believe or shape our hope. We know Harry Potter isn’t real, but we learn from it in some ways. Just like many bible stories teach us things about our world.
I also have used the analogy in the past of the 3-D optical illusion books where you can train your eyes to see pictures, and although the page doesn’t change, a whole new view of things is made new to you. Some people just can’t see it or train their eyes to see it, but it doesn’t make it wrong because they can’t see it.
So much of our reality is what we train our eyes to perceive, and therefore truth becomes adapted to our point of views, even if others don’t see it the same way.
I love Harry Potter, and a lot of it has to do with how the story is pretty much about how different people handle loss — it’s about what happens when Voldemort loses his humanity, when Harry Potter loses almost everyone he loves dearly, when Snape loses the object of his intense obsessive love, when Dumbledore loses the people he cherishes. It’s about loss and still managing to be good and brave and strong and not letting our losses define our lives, and I think that the story really can be a great source of comparisons for those going through their FC and their faith transitions. I definitely appreciate any awesome analogies using that series, and I haven’t seen this before, so thanks for bringing it back up. ^^
Old-Timer – This will go down as one of my all time favorites of yours. Still love it. Thanks for bringing it forward. Dementers are all around us. Now off for some chocolate.
For some reason, this post came strongly into my mind as I listened to a talk during the Priesthood session this evening. Remembering this analogy brought me peace as I disagreed with the person speaking. I hope it helps someone now who might not have read it previously – or even someone who already has.
Thank you for sharing. Excellently written piece. In the past, when I brought up religious issues which were essentially, “But what about the thestrals?”, too often I received odd looks and a stoney silence. As the years have gone by, this slow learner finally figured out it was best to not mention the therstrals. People were either going to see them or not.
A focus on kindness and connection to people goes further.
mom3’s comment about leaders not really understanding faith crises brought this post again to my mind. Most of you have read it already, so I hope it helps someone who hasn’t – perhaps only someone who lurks but doesn’t comment.
The advantage of aging is that you can re-read posts that are vaguely familiar and enjoy them as a new experience all over again. I enjoyed reading this. I think it describes a lot of the things we experience in a faith crisis. The fact that I watched a Harry Potter movie last night helps. The people who can see Thestrals are simply empaths who have experienced the faith crisis, or at least, can see the others’ point of view. It explains why many leaders dismiss us as apostates, as having “lost our way”, as perhaps sinning in certain area of our lives, darkening our minds….they haven’t experienced what we have experienced. I know, from a friend, that they speak negatively about me in their PEC meetings. If they had my point of view, even if they didn’t agree with how I act it out, they might be more compassionate.
I also think the people who are so focused on grief have trouble seeing the good in the Church. I know I have been guilty of that, and very negative at times. It’s part of the grief recovery cycle that is well explained on the internet — starting with denial, anger, and eventually acceptance (if I have it right). The problem is when we stay angry forever. Fortunately, I feel “over” any anger now that I have made my peace with the Church, and have “put it in its rightful place” in my life. And I see the good in it. My wife and daughter love the church and get happiness from it. Their experience is not mine, so I support it and see the happiness it brings them, particularly my daughter.
The Boggarts — not sure about that one. Perhaps I lack empathy due to no extended family to worry about judging me (I have some, but I don’t care what they think as they are not my biological parents, they are in-laws). A lot of people are afraid of what their family will say when they reveal their unorthodoxy or lack of belief. Perhaps that is the kind of fear addressed in the opening post. I am not sure that laughing at it is the way to handle it — but I do agree that not taking things too seriously is important. Letting things just roll off your back when they come up at church. Turn your back on the Boggart while you picture it in a bikini.
🙂 I want to bump up this thread for the new participants lately, since it deals directly with quite a few newer threads. After reading it, consider the following:
Debating with someone who is blind about something that requires sight is pointless – but it also is uncharitable, since it has no possible outcome except contention, pity, anger, condescension, etc. If someone can’t see something, they won’t see it simply because someone else does.
Old Timer wrote:
Debating with someone who is blind about something that requires sight is pointless – but it also is uncharitable, since it has no possible outcome except contention, pity, anger, condescension, etc. If someone can’t see something, they won’t see it simply because someone else does.
To get meta…
I think a lot of the issue has to do with people being blind to this observation. I wonder if pointing this out helps them see?
Old Timer wrote:
After reading it, consider the following:Debating with someone who is blind about something that requires sight is pointless – but it also is uncharitable, since it has no possible outcome except contention, pity, anger, condescension, etc. If someone can’t see something, they won’t see it simply because someone else does.
This is an astute observation. I agree that is a disservice to everyone involved trying to explain something unexplainable to the unseeing.
Here is another old post for new participants.
- You must be logged in to reply to this topic.