Tag Archives: unity

Letter from God

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Date: Eternity
From: God
To: My Children on Earth
Re: Idiotic religious rivalries

My Dear Children (and believe me, that’s all of you),

I consider myself a pretty patient Guy. I mean, look at the Grand Canyon. It took millions of years to get it right. And how about evolution? Boy, nothing is slower than designing that whole Darwinian thing to take place, cell by cell and gene by gene. I’ve even been patient through your fashions, civilizations, wars and schemes, and the countless ways you take Me for granted until you get yourselves into big trouble again and again.

But… some things… are starting to tick me off.

First of all, your religious rivalries are driving Me up a wall. Enough already! Let’s get one thing straight: These are your religions, not Mine. I’m the Whole Enchilada; I’m beyond them all. Every one of your religions claims there’s only one of Me (which, by the way, is absolutely true). But in the very next breath, each religion claims it’s My favorite one. And each claims its bible was written personally by me, and that all the other bibles are man-made. Oh, Me. How do I even begin to put a stop to such complicated nonsense?

Okay, listen up now: I’m your Father and Mother, and I don’t play favorites among My Children. Also, I hate to break it to you, but I don’t write. My longhand is awful, and I’ve always been more of a “doer” anyway. So all your books, including the bibles, were written by men and women. They were inspired, remarkable people, but they also made mistakes here and there. I made sure of that, so that you would never trust a written word more than your own living Heart.

You see, one Human Being to me — even a Bum on the street — is worth more than all the holy books in the world. That’s just the kind of Guy I Am. My Spirit is not an historical thing, It’s alive right here, right now, as fresh as your next breath.

Holy books and religious rites are sacred and powerful, but not more so than the least of You. They were only meant to steer you in the right direction, not to keep you arguing with each other, and certainly not to keep you from trusting your own personal connection with Me.

Which brings Me to My next point about your nonsense: You act like I need you and your religions to stick up for Me or “win souls” for My Sake. Please, don’t do Me any favors. I can stand quite well on my own, thank you. I don’t need you to defend Me, and I don’t need constant credit. I just want you to be good to each other.

And another thing: I don’t get all worked up over money or politics, so stop dragging My name into your dramas. For example, I swear to Me that I never threatened Oral Roberts. I never rode in any of Rajneesh’s Rolls Royces. I never told Pat Robertson [or George Bush] to run for president, and I’ve never ever had a conversation with Jim Bakker, Jerry Falwell, or Jimmy Swaggart! Of course, come Judgement Day, I certainly intend to…

The thing is, I want you to stop thinking of religion as some sort of loyalty pledge to Me. The true purpose of your religions is so that you can become more aware of Me, not the other way around. Believe Me, I know you already. I know what’s in each of your hearts, and I love you with no strings attached. Lighten up and enjoy Me. That’s what religion is best for.

What you seem to forget is how mysterious I Am. You look at the petty little differences in your scriptures and say, “Well, if this is the Truth, then that can’t be!” But instead of trying to figure out My Paradoxes and Unfathomable Nature — which, by the way, you never will — why not open your hearts to the simple common threads in every religion?

You know what I’m talking about: Love and respect everyone. Be kind. Even when life is scary or confusing, take courage and be of good cheer, for I Am always with you. Learn how to be quiet, so you can hear My Still, Small Voice (I don’t like to shout). Leave the world a better place by living your life with dignity and gracefulness, for you are My Own Child. Hold back nothing from life, for the parts of you that can die will surely die, and the parts that can’t, won’t. So don’t worry, be happy (I stole that last line from Bobby McFerrin, but he stole it from Meher Baba in the first place.)

Simple stuff. Why do you keep making it so complicated? It’s like you’re always looking for an excuse to be upset. And I’m very tired of being your main excuse. Do you think I care whether you call me Yahweh, Jehovah, Allah, Wakantonka, Brahma, Father, Mother, or even The Void or Nirvana? Do you think I care which of My Special Children you feel closest to — Jesus, Mary, Buddha, Krishna, Mohammed or any of the others? You can call Me and My Special Ones any name you choose, if only you would go about My business of loving one another as I love you. How can you keep neglecting something so simple?

I’m not telling you to abandon your religions. Enjoy your religions, honor them, learn from them, just as you should enjoy, honor, and learn from your parents. But do you walk around telling everyone that your parents are better than theirs? Your religion, like your parents, may always have the most special place in your heart; I don’t mind that at all. And I don’t want you to combine all the Great Traditions into One Big Mess. Each religion is unique for a reason. Each has a unique style so that people can find the best path for themselves.

But My Special Children — the ones your religions revolve around — all live in the same place (My Heart) and they get along perfectly, I assure you. The clergy must stop creating a myth of sibling rivalry where there is none.

My Blessed Children of Earth, the world has grown too small for your pervasive religious bigotry and confusion. The whole planet is connected by air travel, satellite dishes, telephones, fax machines, rock concerts, diseases, and mutual needs and concerns. Get with the program! If you really want to help… then commit yourselves to figuring out how to feed your hungry, clothe your naked, protect your abused, and shelter your poor. And just as importantly, make your own everyday life a shining example of kindness and good humor. I’ve given you all the resources you need, if only you abandon your fear of each other and begin living, loving, and laughing together.

… I just want you to be happy, and I’ll sit in The Dark. I really Am, indeed, I swear, with you always. Always. Trust In Me.

Your One and Only,
GOD

Origin of the letter from God

I ran across this “letter from God” on a site with a nice collection of “silly and wise” quotes about religion. According to rudyh.org, the article was written for the Human Kindness Foundation newsletter around Christmas of 1989. It was then included in Bo Lozoff’s 1990 book, Just Another Spiritual Book.

I liked the letter from God, and since this letter has been included (while usually remaining uncredited) on so many websites, I thought I would include it here. I emphasized certain lines by making them bold.

I hope you enjoyed it – and as always, I wish you the very best in your search for inner peace and harmony. Remember the only two things we really have: the present moment and our relationships.

- your fellow seeker

Believing in only one true path: Your own

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I am going to make an effort to point out in a realistic, compassionate way one of the major issues with this particular fundamentalist religious belief:

“There is but one, sole correct religious path: (insert Fundamentalist Belief System here). All other religions, all other denominations within my religion, and all other spiritual paths are wrong.”

Proof supporting fundamentalist religious belief is nonexistent. It cannot be found; not yet, anyway – and probably not ever. After all, a true creative force – Mother Nature, God, Yahweh, Jesus, Allah, universal intelligence, etc. (whatever you choose to call it) – remains well beyond present science and is not yet decisively subject to logical or intellectual proof.

I become ready by meditating and receiving direction

The single greatest convincer that one’s own religious fundamentalist beliefs are true and right seems to be the mystical, intuitive reinforcement of esoteric knowledge that settles upon a believer during worship, meditation, or similar deep insight or spiritual practices.

For example, many fundamentalist Christians receive comfort in their reflective practices in the form of joyful feelings or spiritual experiences that are beyond description. There seem to be no adequate words to describe this ecstasy; the related flood of feel-good chemicals in the brain is often translated as religious correctness. In Christian mystical practices, the meditator simply “knows” their own ideas of Jesus and God are correct and real and true because, at the height of the meditative state, the holy Trinity itself seems to be whispering ultimate truth directly into the ear!

Likewise, in the Muslim mystical practices of Sufism, the practitioner “knows” that Mohammad and Allah are, in fact, part of the one true path. Once certain meditative states are reached, Mohammad and Allah themselves seem to directly communicate with the believer in a manner beyond mere words.

In the Jewish mystical practice of Kabbalah, the mystical spiritual experiences are equally powerful; however, in this case, the ultimate truth of Jewish religious belief is mystically conveyed. The Jewish practitioner is thus personally assured of being an adherent of the “one true religion.”

Amazingly, the truths communicated to the Buddhist meditator always seem to confirm Buddhist teachings.

In all of these cases, the ecstasy resulting from meditative states encourages the belief that the truth is being revealed in a personal way. It can hardly be put into words and must be experienced to be understood.

Need I say it? They cannot all be correct.

Or can they?

I have come to believe that all these views are “correct” at a certain, very superficial, non-literal level. Perhaps these wonderful intuitive experiences indicate that all honest, serious, open-minded, genuine spiritual seekers are on the right path. (In a sense this is true since the path itself is the goal: an important oxymoron.)

The true value of spiritual experience hides within the journey itself.

this optical illusion always seems to be moving

Perhaps each of these apparently conflicting and seemingly irreconcilable views – as beautiful as they are to the individual practitioner – relates only to the surface, a thin veil draped over truth. Like camouflage on a uniform, paint on a house, or the cover of a book, these conflicting experiences are not fully representative of the deeper truth.

Another possibility: These experiences mean nothing, objectively speaking; all of these experiences are purely subjective.

Or, maybe such spiritual adventures consist only of biochemicals and the reactions they cause in our brains.

Perhaps those religious experiences are just like the statement, “The ocean is a never-ending series of waves”: a seemingly true statement – but only when applied to the surface. The uncut onion appears to have but one layer.

When one perseveres, displaying the willingness to continue the spiritual quest by venturing ever deeper, the previous belief that the superficial waves actually represent the entire ocean can then be seen as the shallow, immature view it was. From this more enlightened perspective, it’s elementary and immature to believe the onion has only a single layer.

As new, previously unimagined depths are discovered beneath those now insignificant waves, the validity of the previous perspective simply evaporates in the face of the amazing new insight. This the progression of spiritual experience.

Venn diagram

When less experienced practitioners describe the ocean as a series of waves, you’ll just nod and encourage continued practice.

Sadly, the near-literal interpretation taught and encouraged within religious fundamentalist worldviews usually prevents this deeper exploration.

Isn’t it possible that ultimate truth, or a portion thereof, can be found in that special, beautiful place where all major religions and spiritual paths intersect – where they are congruent and in agreement, just like the common space shared by all the circles in a Venn diagram?

Venn diagram

Ultimately, religion and spirituality are intensely personal, non-congruent experiences and are largely dependent upon the content and strength of existing beliefs and knowledge, as shown by each group’s heartfelt belief that their own views are correct – and by further reinforcement of those beliefs through mystical experiences. When continued, hopefully, the eventual result will be enlightenment, the blissful realization of oneness, unity, and non-duality. The practitioner finally understands the ultimate silliness, futility, and impossibility of fundamentalist belief systems; that rigid minds cannot lead to enlightenment is finally understood and appreciated.

As I do not claim to possess any special, unique knowledge, I intend to remain teachable and open-minded as I trudge along the path as long as I may live. May my clay remain pliable, always!

I have the same hope for all the other truth seekers out there. Please share your experiences.

Older notes, set aside for now
By sharing these experiences with others, we are doing the world, ourselves, and spiritual seekers and students some good by joining in spiritual unity and oneness with others seeking enlightenment.

If you are a deeply religious person who once embraced fundamentalism and has since transcended it, I applaud and admire you. We hope you’ll share your thoughts with those who still believe that only one narrow, rigid worldview is correct and that all others are wrong, or even evil. When old rigid schools of religious thought are finally transcended as a result of persistent spiritual practice, the world seems brighter.

(However, I will allow for a sub-minuscule chance that science will eventually encompass what is presently considered to be supernatural. If it is real, then science will probably get around to measuring it at some point – if man is around long enough to discover how to do it.)