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You know, lately, I’ve been thinking of stripping all my beliefs to the bone and starting over. Get rid of the shoulds that have crept into my philosophy of life due to ALL outside influences (family, Church, society) and really, START OVER. Start from the bottom, and really evaluate what I believe, and write my own Personal Articles of Faith. Things I REALLY believe and can commit to with enthusiasm because they are at the core of what I believe. Have you ever thought of this, and what would be some bedrock Articles of Faith for you personally? And what implications would that have for the way you live your life?
This is such a good idea SD. I have actually been doing that in my head for awhile lately. The biggest concept I have come up with is from when Jesus was asked, “What is the Greatest Commandment.” The Jews (and Mormons) have like a million rules one must obey in order to be righteous or saved. But, Jesus answered with “Love your neighbor as yourself and love God. Upon this hang all the law and the prophets.” So, every thing is relative to this one principle Jesus gave. The principle of Love. Is it a loving thing to do, is what I ask myself first now. I see this in everything that Jesus taught and was asked. Like when the Jews were upset at Jesus for working on the Sabbath because he healed a withered hand. Jesus answers with a question? How many of you having an Ox in the myer on the Sabbath would not pull it out?
I have been intensely reading Rob Bell’s book, “Love Wins’ lately. He does alot of what Jesus did in his book; asks questions. “Would a loving God create the world and condemn someone to hell for a few years of life on earth because he never got Jesus presented to him in a loving way? Rob Bell, gives scripture after scripture about how much God wants to save us. He paints a picture of the kind of God I can actually believe in. Yet so many evangelicals like Franklin Graham call Rob Bell a heretic and evil.
Now, the lds gospel has alot of teachings that give answers to difficult spiritual questions about the purpose of life and God wanting to save us. I like many of those teachings such as the law of eternal progression, the pursuit of excellence, and of man’s potential. I hope they are true. I do not have a testimony of temple work and that it is the way to achieve that kind of exhaltation. I do believe in Jesus Christ, and that He is my Savior. That he has atoned for my mistakes so that I can grow and learn on this earth life.
I believe that anything that hurts others or myself is harmful and bad. Like cheating on your mate would hurt your spouse and children and family so it makes sense that it is wrong. Now, I know that is not always easy to determine as someone may see a doctor lancing a boil and seeing the child cry as something bad. Yet, with knowledge we can come to learn that painful things can also be a good thing in the long run.
I no longer trust lds church leaders at the top as speaking for God. I absolutely, need my own comfirmation from God that what they say is actually from Him. What is strange though is I have read how different members can get different comfirmations from God about what the prophet says. Like on the Prop 8 thing for example. Many prayed about it and got opposite answers. Same on the black/priesthood issue. Logically, I ask myself if any old Satan worshipper couple can get married civilly, why not a committed gay couple. Does God really require someone with a same-sex attraction to live without romantic affection their whole life on earth? Now, I understand that God or a loving parent may ask a child to do something that may not sound logical or reasonable because we do not have an eternal perspective but I would have to be darn sure it was my loving parent or God telling me that and not just David Koresh, or Thomas Monson speaking on their own. All I can go by is what my inspiration tells me.
This is exactly my kind of thinking…this ground up evaluation of everything a person believes. I tapped out a bit of thinking on this in my journal today. I see that both you, and myself Bridget, are forming personal belief systems that are partly a result of our life experiences so far. Personally, the impossiblity of reconciling the temporal behavior of the Church with its claims to a divine commission have made the whole thing very hard to believe; and I think that is reflected in the personal set of beliefs below. For you, having a gay son has driven certain beliefs. Anyway, I guess I’m rambling, but when I read each of he points in the quotation below, I feel this sense of freedom. I’m sure each of us could write our own.
Does it mean you have to reject the Church? I think not. There are overlaps with the Church’s operations and ways of doing things that could co-exist quite comfortably with this creed. For example, I have not worked in the Bishop’s storehouse very much. However, it’s very consistent with some of my beliefs…so Suddenly, what seemed like an annoying inconvenience (storehouse assignments) seems like a personal mission, and represents a way I can participate without feeling stilted by our like for mechanistic processes and rules.
The interesting corrolary of this is that I should be working at the Bishop’s storehouse at every opportunity. I should not embrace home teaching efforts or reactivation efforts that have slim chance of any impact. I should continue teaching music lessons for free to people who can’t afford them, and I should be more heavily focused on preparing for those times when I may not have sufficient resources to support myself, such as being elderly, in poor health.
This process is necessary for a continued, expanding faith journey IMO. It is the “dark night of the soul.” It can’t be only an intellectual exercise either. It has to be fully emotional and spiritual too. I think the emotional component is in fact more important and powerful than the intellectual portion. I think a great many people experience this without consciously articulating in concrete ways. You have to stare into the abyss, and see your reflection staring back. There is no God. There is no soul. There is no meaning or purpose. My life and the life of those I love and cling to could end without warning, without reason, for no purpose at all. I could lose all my possessions any time. Religion is all made up. The stories I grew up with are not literal or factual. My feelings are neuro-chemical reactions. The universe is an accident…
(long deep pause to reflect on that)
… after that happy moment
Then you can do whatever the hell you want. All the conflicting views around you are equally as meaningless, so why get yer panties all in a twist about what they think? You are the new architect and the construction company: the owner of the land and the design-build professional of your soul.
Zen Bhuddism has a great process for deconstruction and rebuilding of faith/belief/worldview. Socrates and Descartes also.
HiJolly
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