Before and After

Bob, you just made a commentary.

Bob your opinion is your opinion obviously most of us disagree.

This is one of the stupidest questions imaginable.
Not worth any commentary.

Thank you.

Another interesting conclusion is that we die every moment and are reborn, come back to life again and again from moment to moment. "If time does not come in bundles it's the only thing that doesn't" I read somewhere, guess where. Quantum physics needs a "particularized" time added to it's formulation.

The distance from earth to heaven in space is zero and just a silly nanosecond or much less in time. To get from this world to other worlds one must travel not in space but in time. Is this where UFOs come from, time and not space?

We're almost there. All that is left to notice is time, the key ingredient in existence. Then Norrie's Buddhist metaphysics becomes physics. And, we can give life to more life after this one but only in our imaginations. Where have I heard that before?

Oh yeah, now I remember, http://www.hoax-buster.org It's a "mental" thing called the "nebol bridge" that joins this world to the next world. And, that next world is not a spirit, bodiless world. It's just like this one.

That philosophy goes all the way back to ancient Egypt. From it springs heaven and hell yielding the trinity of life. This world, the next world joined to this one by the nebol bridge and hell, the third leg of the trinity that is at the bottom of all beneath the nebol bridge.

The tap root of the three great faiths is in ancient Egypt. The problem with the three great faiths is a lack of understanding of their roots. Yes indeed, it's the same God, Pharaoh that all worship, honor, adore and glorify for it is Pharaoh that invented hell. Take hell away and the three great faiths become speachless.

I should have added:

And if there is no God, you won't be around to be aware you don't exist.

It is easy to read between the lines of your essay to see its REAL meaning: You are afraid of death approaching for you. By engaging in mindless activities --such as video games -- you wonder whether you are wasting your precious time left?

And the answer is: Yes. You need to get out, enjoy life, smell the roses, and be happy now.

Don't worry about tomorrow. If there really IS a God, he or she wouldn't be so petty to judge you by whether you were born into the right belief system. The latter view is the invention of ancient, petty priests.

INteresting I will Celebrate my 34th anniversary this September 1st. Yet I believe imaginatin had far less to do with it than a resolute decision on my part and that of my beloved wife to refuse to keep score!

3/23/07 http://newsweek.washingtonpost.com/onfaith/james_anderson/2007/03/before_and_after.html

Ba'al - you say, "I have been repeatedly struck by the humanity of the Episcopal essays in this series. Many of these are from people I think I would like to know."

Yes, Ba'al - I know some Episcopal clergy and they are lovely, sophisticated, intelligent and thoughtful people. I urge you get to know some of them and then to push them in the direction of Christian Humanism. I think many are already there in their hearts, but would have to figure how to finesse it with parishioners and the church hierarchy.

Just think how great it would be if the Episcopal church could keep all their fabulous music (much borrowed and preserved from the Roman Catholic church) and even the incense, why not? And drop all the supernatural stuff that many of them don't believe in anyhow.

A lot of parishioners don't either, they just go along for the ride, because there are so many other benefits of membership. It's a big game of "Don't ask, Don't tell" that's got to end somewhere. Now that the church has firmly planted its feet in the future, by rejecting the Anglican’s communion offer to reconsider their accepting stance on gays, it’s time to really move ahead to Christian Humanism.

I have been repeatedly struck by the humanity of the Episcopal essays in this series. Many of these are from people I think I would like to know.

Ann O. Thank you - I turned to the comments this AM because I found myself thinking that I probably should have made the empathy point in a more forceful manner. You have made it for me with fine clarity.
Jim A.

Fr. Anderson says: I sometimes wonder if the immediate sensate nature of modern life isn’t leading to the gradual decay of imagination. After an hour spent playing games on the computer, I realize that past, future, and imagination have been parked and forgotten on a remote shelf of my brain.

Ann O. replies: Fine observation, Fr. Anderson. It has huge ramifications. Things happen so fast on those dumb games that the kids don't have enough time to imagine what might be happening within his "opponent" in the game. His opponent is simply one object among others.

The Piagetian psychologists find that if we cannot *imagine* the experiences of other people -- if we cannot put ourselves in their place, then we cannot possibly develop empathy for them. And if we have no empathy for them we cannot develop a conscience. Put another way, without imagination we cannot understand why violence against a person is usually wrong.

Ann O.

There was a time when the solar system did not yet exist. I suppose that is not any more scary than the time after it no longer exists. At least that's what I try to tell myself.

In the mean time, though, it would be nice if our species would behave in a way that prolongs our existence a bit more.

Father Anderson,

The Buddhists have it right: be fully present in the present moment.

In that state, there is no past or future.

In that state, things take care of themselves.

Perfectly.