I understand. But do not agree that "it's hard to justify the good when the bad is right next to it". Good is good, bad will always be next to it on earth.
I solve this knowing that humans who wrote Scriptures could have made mistakes (and maybe I misinterpret)
Anyway, when it feels off to you, trust your conscience, skip it. At least that is what I do
But I do not throw out the baby with the bathwater (saying in Holland)
I would agree with you, but you gotta understand that I come from a fundamentalist background. I can read between the lines no problem now, but any time I think of my old faith, there was a fear. See, I believed my scriptures were flawless, and if I ever discovered one thing was off, it would shatter my ideas of my faith. Those flaws eventually did shatter my faith, prophetically, heh. Took a while, though.
Black and white thinking is unhealthy, and when one never challenges themselves with the truth, they end up believing a lie and tricking themselves.
Good point. My take on that "As long as we are not convinced it is still my imagination"
Aye. I've learned that it's important to have high standards for such things. Ochram's Razor is a nice tool to have!
You were in such deeper states, did you really feel not grounded? That is hard to believe for me. I never felt more grounded in my whole life.
That's the trick. See, my "transcendent" experiences felt totally real. I had felt closer to god than anything before. I wanted to cast aside all worldly things and follow after him, even if it meant neglecting myself in the process.
In retrospect, those experiences were most likely caused by my brain being flushed with dopamine. I was chasing after a high, and leaving my life behind. I felt grounded in my attatchment to god, but in reality I was adrift in the wind with nothing holding me down.
Cold, hard reality isn't as warm and fuzzy as a dream, but it'll still be there when I wake up.
A grounded and centered awareness is fantastic. Reading is useful to get there. Once there, why read more? But I feel no need to dismiss books
Hmmm... For me? Understanding, and to check myself. Every day I can learn that I was wrong or off about something, and that's a great feeling. I know that when I start to be right about everything, I've lost the ability to be intellectually honest with myself, and I don't ever want to be that way again.