Category: Religion

The God Encounter

Encountering God is not as complicated and so far away, as most of us think.
(Photo: Motoki Tonn)

In his epic manuscript, ‘Where Do We Go From Here – Chaos or Community?’, Martin Luther King Jr. writes in the sixth chapter of the book, entitled ‘The World House’, and I quote: “Every man lives in two realms: the internal and the external. The internal is that realm of spiritual ends expressed in art, literature, morals, and religion. The external is that complex of devices, techniques, mechanisms, and instrumentalities by means of which we live.”

The “internal ” of which MLK discusses is the inner person. The Control Panel; The ‘Who, What, When, Where, Why or How’ foundation of every individual.

With that being said, every mechanism is engineered and constructed for a specific purpose, function and limited durability – as it is with human beings. We are not the conception, or the intermediate offshoot of an ongoing evolution. Organised religion is the result of vast collections of people realising this and responding in their own customised perceptions and rituals. But despite the colour and variability in all of these, the common reasoning – which is all things are created with purpose and a definitive function – affirms the undeniable, that there is an Absolute One Truth. And There is an Absolute God. The plurality or singularity of this God is a separate issue (one that I may discuss in the future, exclusively).

Most people agree that it’s wrong to steal, murder, rape, and disrespect and/or assault another human being. These morals are universal. Therefore, there must be a Universal Ultimate. With that being said, there are two possibilities that can result from this universal ultimate; it’s either all truths are true, or there are just multiple versions and perceptions of the One Particular Truth. And I articulate that the latter is the most likely. Please understand, this is not discriminatory or segregation; it is just plain reasonable logic.

Understanding this basic concept, though it may not be identified clearly, drives the human urge to acquire moral perfection. A personal endeavour to appease this Divine Authority, with the limited abilities and resources available in our means. There is either going to be a final outburst of discovering self-inability to attain righteousness, and finally resign the effort altogether; or, evolve into a person of self-righteousness and self justification.
All religions teach “do and don’t do” to gain a favourable impression and approval from God. But only the Bible proclaims that we can only attain reconciliation with God, not by any holy performance, lest any person should boast; but by the simple confession of personal moral imperfection, and a realisation of the personal capacity of limited abilities. Then following that, there is an urgent request for the removal of the guilt and shame; and the imparting of a spiritual anointing to supernaturally empower a resistance to evil, and its diverse appeal to our lusts; and resulting ultimately in gradual destruction. Fortifying the mind with evidences and life lessons from the Bible now becomes the foundation to “keeping the faith”. It is also important to understand, the God of the Bible invites individuals to a development of an intimate relationship. The Bible is the profile and history of the unchanging, ever-loving Creator God.

The Ten Commandments is then the marriage covenant between a person and God. It is the “please don’t, coz I won’t” summary of the mutual trust between God and an individual.

In conclusion, God is a personal and relatable Divinity. Not a deity that requires human obsession and radicalism, but an intimate God, “not willing that any should perish, but that all might come to repentance.”

If you like the stories you’ve read, and it motivates, provokes analysis, inspires you to search for the answers to Life’s Big Questions, please leave a comment, like, follow or give us direct contact at big.life.questions.101@gmail.com

Also check out Tevita Mataika’s new books, Sex. Hell? Evolution and Religion and The Holy Ghost – an Introduction. Cheers! We need your support. Vinaka!

God exists? Really?

A humorous topic…some find theology as fairytales, while the majority don’t.
( Photo: Kurt Kleeb)

Some find the discussion of deity and theology, humorous and irrelevant. Tell that to the majority of humanity – of present and of yonder. Pew Research Center’s Forum on Religion & Public Life (a research team based in Washington D.C.), finds that there are 5.8 billion adults and children who are practicing religion. This represents 84% of the 2010 world population of 6.9 billion people. Are they all a bunch of losers? Depends on your definition, facts and motives.

It is fair to say that religion has helped societies maintain a fair level of civility, especially in the developed countries. But what about the existence of God? Are there any evidence? In my book, Sex. Hell? Evolution and Religion, I address many false evidences presented by mainstream science, in support of Darwinian Evolution.

So, if Darwinian Evolution is on unstable foundations, then raises the open dialogue for a consideration of Intelligent Design. A simple example is DNA. The language structure and coding and execution of those genetic codes is a red alert, in itself! The distinctive thumbprints, retinal structures and unique patterns on each flake of snow is just mind-boggling, if you may!

I mean, I don’t have to be a genius to come to these conclusions.

But what about pain, suffering, sickness and poverty? These areas heavily affected by such plagues and infestations usually don’t practice good hygiene, moral tolerance and respect for human life. Places such as large portions of Africa, India and the Middle East subscribe to a religion that does not address the basic elements of daily life.

A fine example of Social Darwinism in full execution was Nazi Germany. If the Holocaust didn’t happen, with all due respect to all the individuals and families who were in direct involvement, humanity would’t fully comprehend the DANGERS OF SOCIAL DARWINISM, and we would continue in beliefs of what makes the minority elite feel happy; while the majority suffer.

And looking also at ISIS and Al-Qaeda. Why does God allow them to live and do the things that they do? These vigilantes profess a certain basis of beliefs that are obviously promoting violence, and oppression of those who think and believe differently. And yet the majority continue to follow those creeds and religious forms.

Therefore, with life – forced obedience, love, and civil order, is not realistic. There needs to be a process of having all other alternatives explored or allowed to grow, but by their fruits you shall know them. As for the dead, they are in a much better place then a living-breathing middle class worker struggling to keep the bills paid, or a person on I.V. in a hospital bed unconscious in a coma.

The Bible sheds some light on the existence of a just and fair God, in Matthew 13: 24-30, which says “Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his field. But while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way. But when the blade was sprung up, and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also. So the servants of the householder came and said unto him, Sir, didst not thou sow good seed in thy field? from whence then hath it tares? He said unto them, An enemy hath done this. The servants said unto him, Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up? But he said, Nay; lest while ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn.”

Likewise, God allowed Lucifer to dwell in His Presence in Heaven, until “iniquity was found” in him. (Ezekiel 28:15)
Iniquity, the willful act of sins, and an accumulation and repetition of it despite knowing the wrongfulness.

God does exist. Open up your eyes and see that our planet floats on NOTHING! It is upheld by NOTHING visible! God is allowing every man to live the life of which they want to live, but know this: God will bring all actions into judgement. The fruits of every person’s life choices will determine their destiny! Not only after death, but every single day ahead!

If you like this, please show some love. Please also check out my new book, Sex. Hell? Evolution and Religion. It’s a fairly logical book based on the major religions and the various aspects of life. Connect with us via e-mail: big.life.questions.101@gmail.com

A Religious Influence in Society

June 17, 2019


































  • Religious Influence…Music artist Rihanna poses in a papal stylized outfit for the 2018 Met Gala in New York.
    (Photo: Jamie McCarthy/ Getty Images)

Religious practice and worship of deities and supernatural beings, have been the foundations of human history and society ever since. This is proven by history and archaeology.

For example, in 1994, German archaeologist Klaus Schmidt, in collaboration with the Turkish Şanlıurfa Museum, excavated the Göbekli Tepe temple site in Southeastern Turkey. They unearthed the first few pillars of what archaeologists claim to be the site of the oldest megaliths ever discovered in human history. It is presumed to be older than the Stone Henge (measuring through stratigraphy, or the observation of rock layers and stratification). The ancient site contains 200 large pillars all above six metres in height and weighs up to 10 tonnes (10,000 kg) in weight. This would have required hundreds of people to construct. National Geographic writer Charles Mann, in his article The Birth of Religion (which appeared in the June 2011 National Geographic magazine) writes, ‘As important as what the researchers found was what they did not find: any sign of habitation. Hundreds of people must have been required to carve and erect the pillars, but the site had no water source—the nearest stream was about three miles away. Those workers would have needed homes, but excavations have uncovered no sign of walls, hearths, or houses—no other buildings that Schmidt has interpreted as domestic. They would have had to be fed, but there is also no trace of agriculture. For that matter, Schmidt has found no mess kitchens or cooking fires. It was purely a ceremonial center. If anyone ever lived at this site, they were less its residents than its staff.’ This reveals that the gathering of worship sparked civilization – not agriculture.1

  • Massive pillars at the temple Göbekli Tepe, (more than 5,000 years old) in Southeast Turkey.
    Claimed to be the oldest megalith ever discovered in human history (Picture: Vincent J. Musi)

Atheism and its rise to fame, owes a lot to the Greek philosopher Protagoras (B.C. 481-411) who famously preached, “As to the gods, I have no means of knowing either that they exist or that they do not exist. For many are the obstacles that impede knowledge, both the obscurity of the question and the shortness of human life.” For this ideology, the Athenians rejected him for thinking nonsense and burned his books. 2
On the other hand, modern agnosticism was publicly defined by Thomas Henry Huxley at the meeting of the Metaphysical Society in London, in 1869. Huxley, a British biologist and a Darwin-evolutionist, stated, “It came into my head as suggestively antithetical to the ‘Gnostic’ of Church history who professed to know so much about the very things of which I was ignorant.” 3 Modern atheism, agnosticism and skepticism are concepts meditated upon by certain influential individuals, but does not reflect the beliefs and affirmations of the majority of humanity.

A demographic study of more than 230 countries and territories, done by the Pew Research Center’s Forum on Religion & Public Life (a research team based in Washington D.C.), finds that there are 5.8 billion adults and children who are practicing religion. This represents 84% of the 2010 world population of 6.9 billion people.4
While on the other hand, another recent Pew Forum research study found that about 1.1 billion (16% of the world’s population) have no religious affiliation. But ‘Surveys indicate that many of the unaffiliated hold some religious or spiritual beliefs (such as belief in God or a universal spirit) even though they do not identify with a particular faith.’ 5

But religious non-affiliation (atheism, agnostic, skeptic) does not mean absence of religious practices such as belief in a god, use of or in reference to a god, rituals, or prayer. Another ironic finding was that non-religious atheists were actually MORE religious than Christians – specifically in the United States of America. In fact, in the United States of America, the secular society have adapted and used religious themes in social gatherings on numerous occasions. The biggest example recently was the 2018 Costume Institute Gala at New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art. It is the biggest annual event on the fashion fundraising calendar. Started in 1948, today brings together the most famous faces from fashion, film, music and art to celebrate the launch of the Institute’s latest exhibition. The 2018 fashion exhibition was themed Heavenly Bodies: Fashion and the Catholic Imagination.

The BIG LIFE QUESTIONS here is Why is there insufficient evidence of an existing god or gods? If God so exists, who is it/he/she? how are they/them/it/he/she , in terms of personality? Or, if there is a God, why is there so much suffering and killing?

Please look forward to the second part of this article where we will answer these questions. Also, we are launching an e-book at the end of this month entitled, ‘Seven Religious Doctrines Not Found in the Bible.’ The short book will simply discuss pilgrimages, sexual obsession and perversion in religion, blind faith and the Force, among other interesting Food For Thought topics. If you are interested, email us at big.life.questions.101@gmail.com. We would be happy to converse and get in contact with you!

Citations
1. Manns, C. (2011). The Birth of Religion. The National Geograhic. [online] Available at: https://www.nationalgeographic.com/magazine/2011/06/gobeki-tepe/ [Accessed 17 Jun. 2019].

2. Laertius, Diogenese (2013). Lives of Eminent Philosophers (English Translation). 9th ed. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, pp.464, 465.

3. (AGNOSTICISM Encycloaedia Britannica: Encyclopaedia Britannica Deluxe Edition. Chicago: Encyclopaedia Britannica, 2011)


4. https://assets.pewresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/11/2014/01/global-religion-full.pdf


5. https://www.pewforum.org/2012/12/18/global-religious-landscape-exec/ 3. (AGNOSTICISM Encycloaedia Britannica: Encyclopaedia Britannica Deluxe Edition. Chicago: Encyclopaedia Britannica, 2011)