Embracing good,the Supreme example,Trinity,Unity (Jesus Christ, punishment, Earth)

[Davidium]

They say there are many paths that lead to God and yet Jesus said "I am the way, the truth and the life" in John 14:16 which is in the book, that they say is their text book, the bible. The same book they read each year.
Puzzling

As UU's we also realize that the Bible is not as monolitihic as some others perceive it to be. First off, it is not one book... it is a whole library. It has been bound into one cover for convenince sake, but it is not a "book" at all, but an anthology. Written by many different authors, over almost 2.000 years, and for wildly different reasons. Even in the New testament, there is considerable time between all the writings, and they are not in the modern bible in chronological order. If that were true, then the letters of Paul (not even books, but letters) would come before the gospels.

As one example of what I mean by motives, I would refer anyone to "Beyond Belief" by Dr. Elaine Pagals, (an Episcopal Bible Historian from Princeton) where she puts forth a very compelling argument that the last of the 4 Canonical Gospels to be written, the Book of John, was in fact written for a specific purpose... to refute the Gnostic Gospel of Thomas. This is why John is the only one of the four gospels to insist vehemently on the Divinity of Jesus.

Such critical biblical scholarship is an inherent part of Unitarian Universalism. To not take the bible on faith, but to really seek to understand it, set in its context, and to then learn from it. To me, the lessons and truths I take away from the bible due to such critical study are so much more profound than if I simply believed...

And the same method is of great value in learning from the scripture of the world's other religious traditions as well. For my part, I have been studying the Tao Te Ching by Lao Tsu, and the writings of the students of Confucius. I take neither on faith, but try to apply the same kind of critical study to them that I do to the bible... placing them in context, accepting what makes sense, rejecting that which does not, and going beyond the surface understanding.

Yours in faith,

David

[Nozem]

I second what David has written. I view the Sermon on the Mount as one of the greatest texts known to humanity, but also view the Tao Te Ching in the same manner. So would find it hard to accept that the Bible contains a unique and absolute truth which could not be accessed elsewhere by another culture. Also to accept superficially what one reads in any text without truly believing what is being said just causes inner friction and disharmony. One type of behaviour that Jesus would not tolerate according to the Gospels were people who could only give an outward display of religious piety without real understanding.

[soma]

The microcosm cannot grasp the macrocosm because it is too vast. The image that our unit minds can grasp is another unit being who serves as a model for spiritual life. Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life." Jesus is pointing the way to the macrocosmic mind and is the tangential point between the macrocosm and the microcosm. By using Jesus as a personal model and a focal point, we can attain Christ consciousness. It is the perfect consciousness for the human model because it has attained all of the possibilities in the human state. In it all potential is actualized on this earthly plane so it becomes the prototype of being for the Christ conscious mind. It admits and supports the idea that there are varied upward paths to pure consciousness, and the diversity in different world faiths diminishes as one approaches Christ consciousness. Evolution and all spiritual paths lead to pure consciousness.
It is nice to see people appreciating the Bible and other great spiritual books and teachers. They are all pointing to the goal.
http://thinkunity.com

[Nozem]

I have been thinking over this thread again. I am not sure about other cultures but in western European terms the vast majority of Christians could not read their Scriptures for many centuries. Broadly speaking the 16th century Reformation started the trend for the laity to be able to access the scriptures, and even then there were Reformers who did not want all the literate people ( still much in the minority) to be able to read the Bible. It is hard to imagine any other time besides the 21st century where literate people had so much information at their fingertips to read if they choose to do so. Sometimes it seems difficult to place exactly how significant sacred texts are within a religion with reference to previous times; are beliefs and practises passed down through other means just as important-or is the idea of communal worship also a major factor within religion? New Year's greetings to you all.