tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3810514527237098008.post4238353567382462091..comments2023-10-16T06:52:23.061-04:00Comments on Notes From The Outside: Comparative ReligionBrandonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12704525078859327898noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3810514527237098008.post-29725245649968844182012-04-13T15:50:31.233-04:002012-04-13T15:50:31.233-04:00Heh, that thing about the glory of God being blue ...Heh, that thing about the glory of God being blue reminds me of a hiker buddy of mine; we were walking along, playing 20 questions to pass the miles on a rather boring stretch of trail, and his first question was, "Is it blue?" Just cracked me up. You can just imagine how the guy's mind works, haha. <br /><br />Anyways...<br /><br />Yeah, always wanted to read Merton, never got around to it yet. <br /><br />Trey, I hear what you're saying, and I didn't write this post to argue against your posts, though I've long disliked them. I think it's wrongheaded to go comparing Tao to Yahweh and ending up with the Tao clearly being the better, "right" choice. The comparison stays on the same level you disagree with! I know you have to start on that level when talking with a fundy, but eventually I'd want to move on to more depth, rather than stay on some literalist, this vs that level.Brandonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12704525078859327898noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3810514527237098008.post-70083943605240282782012-04-11T13:35:43.383-04:002012-04-11T13:35:43.383-04:00I was an "out there" Christian (Presbyte...I was an "out there" Christian (Presbyterian, not Catholic). My view of Jesus was a lot like what you stated in this post -- which put me at odds with most Christian doctrine. The narrow definitions of spirituality is what led me away from the faith toward Taoism.<br /><br />I write a lot of polemical stuff on my blog against Christianity, but I try to make clear that it is against the myopic fundamentalist view -- the view that holds the loudest sway right now. If I lived in a place where there were lots of zealot Muslims or Hindus, I would take aim at them! <br /><br />In my opinion, ALL belief systems wrestle with the same basic ideas. The difference is in how these ideas are expressed.The Rambling Taoisthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04730292897416827840noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3810514527237098008.post-751002336856122642012-04-10T16:45:30.116-04:002012-04-10T16:45:30.116-04:00I hear you!
You might want to read a bit of Thoma...I hear you!<br /><br />You might want to read a bit of Thomas Merton too. Although you probably have. <br /><br />I have been having a discussion with someone, a European, doing cross-cultural studies of Taoist and the west, who says one will always view another tradition through the lens of the original. (He says this even of the Chinese, although I think that flys in the face of syncretism and the fact that Chinese are often Taoist/Buddhist/Confucianists, as the "need" presents itself.) You and I share this Catholic/Christian background; it is hard to just turn it off; there is much richness there.<br /><br />As we are limited to the visible spectrum, we can never see light energy as it really is, all the "colors" blended into one. But we can guess at it. Though Theresa of Avila said she say the glory of God...and it was blue. <br /><br />Nice post.baroness radonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14593108634484542286noreply@blogger.com