Understand you not that every thing from without entering into a man cannot defile him: Because it entereth not into his heart... The things which come out from a man, they defile a man. For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed [sins]...All these evil things come from within and defile a man. Mark 7:18-23
I say those evil things that come from within can only defile you if you let them out...
What if God vs. Satan is just a metaphor for Man conquering the Devil within himself?
What if our inner demons are only part of our humanity, and divinity lies not in conquering and banishing them but in balancing them with the rest of our humanity, instead of allowing them to reign?
What if all of the things we label as evil - wrath, greed, sloth, pride, lust, envy, and gluttony, for example - are not even evil, but human? Wrath can become righteous anger with which we create change or right wrongs. Laziness can be the rest we need to find solace through reflection. Even gluttony has its place, because the consequences of overindulgence are what teaches us the importance of moderation. And if pride and lust are kept in check, and not allowed to rule, what sin can have been committed simply by feeling proud or by having felt desire?
Why should we take feelings that come naturally to humans and label them as always forbidden? Shouldn't what you do as a result of your feelings be more important? If I kill a man in anger, I have sinned. If I, in anger, end a relationship or quit a job, have I sinned? If I am too proud to accept an apology or admit that I still love someone who has wronged me, perhaps that is sin. But if I am proud of an accomplishment or even of who I am as a person, is that a sin? If I do nothing my entire life but sit around, I have wasted my life. Perhaps this is sin. But if I take a two month vacation, and spend it lazing about in the sun with a good book, is that sin?
Religion paints things so black and white. Then there are those that acknowledge Yin and Yang and the balance that must be maintained between the black and white sides of the Yingyang. What if there is no black and white side? What if the universe is simply gray, and so is humanity? What if you really can't sin at all: you can only be human, and through doing so, learn better how to be divine?
Perhaps this is just coming from a selfish person, who feels that her anger is usually justified, who has a great deal of pride and a healthy sense of lust, who has been a jealous lover and dreamt of wealth, who enjoys a leisure and stuffing herself with sushi, and who doesn't want to admit that all of these things are wrong and doesn't have the willpower to resist temptation. It is rare that I allow my anger, pride, lust, envy, or greed to harm others, nor do I usually allow sloth or gluttony to make me neglect responsibility. Isn't that a much more reasonable goal than to hope to abolish these things altogether?
God banished the demons to Hell, but he did not destroy them. They come to Earth to tempt man, who repents and is forgiven. It is impossible to destroy your demons. You can banish them, but they will always tempt you. It is up to you whether you give in. When you do, you learn from the mistakes, make amends, and hopefully try not to make them again. And through this, usually, you can be forgiven by those you have wronged and by yourself. What if it's all just a giant metaphor for finding balance? What if this is just the cycle through which we become Divine?
I mean, Hell, what's a world without lust?
I say those evil things that come from within can only defile you if you let them out...
What if God vs. Satan is just a metaphor for Man conquering the Devil within himself?
What if our inner demons are only part of our humanity, and divinity lies not in conquering and banishing them but in balancing them with the rest of our humanity, instead of allowing them to reign?
What if all of the things we label as evil - wrath, greed, sloth, pride, lust, envy, and gluttony, for example - are not even evil, but human? Wrath can become righteous anger with which we create change or right wrongs. Laziness can be the rest we need to find solace through reflection. Even gluttony has its place, because the consequences of overindulgence are what teaches us the importance of moderation. And if pride and lust are kept in check, and not allowed to rule, what sin can have been committed simply by feeling proud or by having felt desire?
Why should we take feelings that come naturally to humans and label them as always forbidden? Shouldn't what you do as a result of your feelings be more important? If I kill a man in anger, I have sinned. If I, in anger, end a relationship or quit a job, have I sinned? If I am too proud to accept an apology or admit that I still love someone who has wronged me, perhaps that is sin. But if I am proud of an accomplishment or even of who I am as a person, is that a sin? If I do nothing my entire life but sit around, I have wasted my life. Perhaps this is sin. But if I take a two month vacation, and spend it lazing about in the sun with a good book, is that sin?
Religion paints things so black and white. Then there are those that acknowledge Yin and Yang and the balance that must be maintained between the black and white sides of the Yingyang. What if there is no black and white side? What if the universe is simply gray, and so is humanity? What if you really can't sin at all: you can only be human, and through doing so, learn better how to be divine?
Perhaps this is just coming from a selfish person, who feels that her anger is usually justified, who has a great deal of pride and a healthy sense of lust, who has been a jealous lover and dreamt of wealth, who enjoys a leisure and stuffing herself with sushi, and who doesn't want to admit that all of these things are wrong and doesn't have the willpower to resist temptation. It is rare that I allow my anger, pride, lust, envy, or greed to harm others, nor do I usually allow sloth or gluttony to make me neglect responsibility. Isn't that a much more reasonable goal than to hope to abolish these things altogether?
God banished the demons to Hell, but he did not destroy them. They come to Earth to tempt man, who repents and is forgiven. It is impossible to destroy your demons. You can banish them, but they will always tempt you. It is up to you whether you give in. When you do, you learn from the mistakes, make amends, and hopefully try not to make them again. And through this, usually, you can be forgiven by those you have wronged and by yourself. What if it's all just a giant metaphor for finding balance? What if this is just the cycle through which we become Divine?
I mean, Hell, what's a world without lust?
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