Comedians in Heaven

The late Johnny Carson regaled audiences for three decades with his wry sense of humor. I'm not certain about this, but if I picked up the right vibes from watching his show, Jack Benny was his favorite comedian. Carson used Benny's famous stare to good effect. I'd like to think that somewhere in the Capitol City of Heaven, Carson now joined by Ed McMahon, is still doing his show. I'd like to think that Jack Benny is a frequent guest on that show. If you are thinking of searching for God within yourself, I can't think of a better place to start than with humor. In my opinion, being able to laugh at yourself is the portal to true self-understanding. If you take yourself too seriously, you are probably hiding something, and you are surely missing something about yourself; something important. Humor is a solvent. It dissolves pretensions, and eliminates arrogance and self-pity. Biting humor can work like a surgeon's knife to cut out the less desirable parts of ourselves. Wielded by an expert such as Carson or Benny, we learn to see ourselves as we really are, not as we think that we are. The point of this posting is to posit a truism. Without humor, religion is joyless. Humorless people tend to pass off God as a tyrant who wants nothing more than to punish you for your misdeeds. On the other hand, humor and love, like a great comedy team, sell the idea of God as something wonderful, positive, and worth looking into. In my last posting, I suggested that world has a strain of insanity. This insanity leads to war, riots, murder, starvation in the midst of plenty, and other awful results. These horrors do not come from God, they come from us denying God. When you look at a tyrant killing people to keep himself in power, you are looking at a man who has no laughter in his soul. When you look at a leader using his power to destroy rather than build, he has no real sense of humor; just sarcasm. Laughter from the heart brings us all together. The final point is a simple one. God wants us to join with Him in creating a world in which we all can live together as one people. If we are going to create this world we must bring to it all of our best points. Laughter is close to the top of the list. When I pass on, one of the things that I am looking forward to is seeing Johnny again. I hope that Jack Benny is on his show when the time comes.

A Gnostic Dream

Most human beings are good at dreaming. We all dream about something. Perhaps our dreams are about success, wealth, love, and a good life. The gnostic has a special dream. He or she knows that the world as we know it is insane. If you doubt this, I invite you to read today's newspaper. It is full of proof of this statement. We believe that one of the reasons that the world is insane is that human beings do not recognize that they possess this characteristic. We all have blinders on and fail to see how our thoughts and actions play out in the wider world we live in. A simple thing like driving too fast can have terrible consequences. Failing to support charities hurts thousands of people that we could easily help at little cost to ourselves. There are many more examples that I could cite, but the point is clear. Everyone of us fails to live up to the standard that we are capable of achieving. The gnostic understands the root cause of this condition. God has placed within each of us a piece of Himself. I recently read an article that said that this place is the pineal gland. I don't know if this is so, and I don't particularly care. God within us may be a metaphor for a greater truth. The greater truth is that we have powers within us that we fail to see. This is where gnosis comes into play. Saint Paul talked about looking into a glass; first it is dark and then we begin to see more clearly. I believe that he was referring to the process of seeing God within oneself. As we seek gnosis our eyes open to a greater world that is lost despite being right there in the room with us. As our vision increases we can begin to eliminate some of the insanity that attends our lives. When our vision is clear we can get rid of all of it. If we eliminate insanity in our own lives, we will inspire others to do the same. Is this important? You be the judge; after all the world belongs to you.

The Question that is Seldom Asked.

For most people the daily schedule is a hectic one. Do this, do that, and be sure not to forget to do the chore you were supposed to do yesterday (or was it last week). This leaves little time for a question that is bigger than all of the above. The question is, "Why are we here on earth?" If we compare our life span to the eternal life that preceded this one and the eternal life that follows, it is small in comparison. Most of the concerns that we have do not follow us into eternity, including most of the stresses that go with our life on this earth. Put another way, do we have responsibilities that stem not from this earth, but rather from our eternal life? I suggest that we do. I suggest further that life is a school and we are here to learn important lessons. Lessons that for the most part deal with our relationship to others. Let me give an example. You have heard the term the poor are always with us. Jesus stressed that he wanted us to help the poor. He stated that it should be our first priority, not our last one. How well do we do in this category? I give money to the food bank every month. The food bank feeds people who can't afford their grocery bill. Is this enough? The answer according to Jesus is no, it is not enough. However, if all of us gave a small amount of money to the food bank, how powerful would that be? How many more people would be fed. Would most of us miss the $25 or so given to this agency? If the responsibility does not lie with us, who does it lie with; the person down the street who just lost his or her job? If we say, "Support the Troops!", isn't it also right to say, "Support the sick and the lame?" If you were to ask Jesus for an answer to that question, what would he say? What is needed in my opinion is not a new policy, but a return to an old one. One that was propounded 2000 years ago. "He who does it for the least of these, does it for me." We will all enter eternity some day. Wouldn't it be nice to be able to say, "Yes Lord, I did my part to help."

Why is the Search for Gnosis Important?

Plato wrote a treatise called the "Republic." In it he envisioned the perfect state. Later he was given a chance to put his ideas into action. He failed, utterly. Others have put their hand into the exercise including a saint in the Catholic Church, Thomas More. He wrote a book called "Utopia." He was not without experience in government. He had been the Prime Minister of England during the reign of Henry VIII. Neither author or any of the many others who have penned such books have helped us find the perfect state in practice. What has this got to do with gnosis? I believe that our failure to achieve the perfect state is the result of our own personal failure to achieve a perfect life. Before any nation could achieve a status of perfection, that nation's citizens must achieve a personal state of perfection. That being said, it is highly unlikely that either event will take place any time soon. Actually, it would be more accurate to predict that most nations, if not all, will go up and down the scale of effectiveness, not once but many times. Today, Rome is a vibrant city. Once it was the center of the world. That has not always been so. At times it was a waste land inhabited only by dogs and very poor humans. We can probably expect our own country to have similar trials in the future. However, it is not a stretch to say that if you find God in a meaningful way inside your soul, you just might be a better citizen as a result. Enough of us doing so could transform our nation and the world. I am not suggesting that you become a gnostic so that you can make your nation better. I am suggesting, however, that there is an effect on your fellow citizens that comes from you living a fruitful and moral life. That effect, if you are not dogmatic and abusive in your ideas, can help transform your society as well as yourself. I say this because all too often, religion has had a negative effect on society. The inquisition comes to mind. The gnostic believes in a positive and forgiving God. Isn't this important?

Should Religion Be Morose

Perhaps a better title would have been, "Does God Have a Sense of Humor." Considering the history of religion with its long trail of wars, inquisitions, burning of heretics, and the like, it is easy to envision religion as a sober, serious, and sanctimonious enterprise. Recently, I read in the newspaper that a man wanted to leave his religion and adopt something else, and he was informed that he would be killed if he did so. Even more recently, an abortion doctor was killed in the vestibule of his church by an alleged anti-abortion fanatic. Its stories like this that make it hard to treat religion as a matter of humor; yet, humor belongs in religion just as it belongs in life. Deepak Chopra wrote a book called "Why is God Laughing?" I read it as a story of a comedian finding gnosis. I don't know if Deepak Chopra had that in mind, but since I bought the book and paid the price asked for by the book store, I have a right to read into it what I see. I like the main point of the book. The subtitle is "The Path to Joy and Spiritual Optimism." That's a pretty good pathway in my opinion; one that we all ought to contemplate walking on. A good place to start is to buy his book and read it. The next step is to put humor and optimism in your religion, whatever it might be. To do this you will have to shed the past and all of its grim compulsions. In my opinion, that's a good step to take for any reason you might have. But what if you bring joy and spiritual optimism into your world? Is that a bad thing? If God truly has a sense of humor, what better way to get to know Him?

One for All and All for One

Samael Aun Weor stated that the motto, "One for All and All for One," was a gnostic concept. I agree. This motto stresses that we and the universe are in unity with God. If God is All, then we as His creation are part of that All. If nothing can exist except through God the Creator, then we cannot exist except through God the Creator. With this in mind, I would change the motto slightly. I would have it say All is One and One is All. Many Christians mistakenly believe that the start of eternity for them is the same date as their birth date. This is illogical. If we are part of the One, we have no beginning date and no ending date. The real part of us, namely the soul is eternal. The atoms that make up our body do not die either. As the scientists say, matter cannot be created or destroyed. The gnostics believe in reincarnation as do so many other religions. The point of all of this is easily grasped. Our goal is to become one with the One and the One gives us plenty of time and lives to accomplish this goal. We are part of the One and being with the One is our ultimate destiny. Eternal life is not earned by good conduct, it is a gift from God to His creation. We need do no more than get on the pathway, stay on the pathway, and keep walking until we get there. While doing so, look around. All of your brothers and sisters will be on the path with you. I suggest that you try helping one along. It will make the trip better and faster. What could be better than that?

Christianity and the Gnostic Way

At the time of Constantine (around 315CE) the Christian Church established its place in the world as the religion of Rome. Constantine wanted the church to speak with one voice. That voice did not include the vibrant gnostic church that existed at that time. In short, gnosticism was eliminated from the church, including its churches, monasteries, and gospels. However, it never went away. This is a compelling story and no one tells it better than Richard Smoley in his book, Inner Christianity. For all of you who wish to retain some connection to the Christian Church, but who find that it does not satisfy your soul in the way you desire, this is the place to go. Despite his academic background and the intricate nature of his subject, Smoley has managed to create a highly readable book that will answer your questions about gnostic christianity and motivate you to explore it at the same time. Unlike so many tomes on this subject, you do not have to slog your way through it as if traversing a swamp. Smoley puts you on a road that is fully paved and easy to traverse while educating you in a major way about the gnostic gospel. If his book does not completely satisfy you, he has a bibliography in the back that will take you as far as you want to go. Even if you are not convinced that gnostic thought is the wave of the future in the Christian Church, read the book anyway. At the least it will open doors for you to go through. Who among us does not require exposure to the greater world? The world that so many people have worked so hard to keep us from exploring. To the gnostic this road leads to only one location; the Kingdom of God.

God's Plan for Human Beings

Having passed the magic age of 70 (and then some), I am mindful of my place in the universe. My body has used up most of the time allotted to it. I cannot say how much longer I will live, but compared to a twenty year old, my time is short no matter what. This is not a disaster. My soul has no beginning and it has no ending. In my search for gnosis (the understanding of God in my innermost being), I hold the key to God's Kingdom. When I have progressed to the point that God is within me fully, I will advance into the level of heaven where God can be found directly rather than by metaphor. When this will happen is the ultimate mystery. However, there is a lantern in the darkness. This lantern is Jesus the Christ who has proceeded all of us into the presence of God. He invites us to follow Him and He shows us the way. For those of you who are desirous to follow this pathway, you may ask, "How can I do this?" The Holy Spirit has the answer. Go to your computer or go to your nearest book store and ask for the following publication; "A Course in Miracles." On your computer you can find it at http://www.acim.org/ or at Amazon, Barnes and Noble and Borders. I have seen it on the shelves of both of those stores, and they both sell online. My advice is simple. Buy and Study it. If you take it seriously (and you should), you will be transformed. If you don't start the journey, how will you ever finish it?

Can we Judge Others?

My message for today is that people who are quick to point out the sins of others need to rethink this practice. Our actions follow our attitudes. Most everybody believes that he or she has the capacity to judge between good and evil. If this proposition were true, we have managed to make a mess of things in spite of it. Racism comes to mind. A person who denigrates people of different color or culture might well decide that he or she is perfectly qualified to determine between good and evil. In truth, the existence of racism in a persons character is inherently wrong and needs to be rethought. The same can be said of selfishness. Jesus talked often about giving to the poor. The rich are often quite comfortable that the poorest and most vulnerable of society are doing the suffering and not them. This is likely to be why Jesus said that the rich have a problem entering the Kingdom of God. There are many other examples of how our attitudes affect others adversely, and I am not so idealistic to believe that people will change their attitudes any time soon. My point is that we as a people need to be far more careful on how we judge the issue of good and evil. Until we are ready to take our religious views more seriously, we will continue to be guilty of these attitude problems for a long time to come. What does the gnositic do about these problems. Whether you are a literal Christian or a Gnostic Christian, your duty is the same. Do not judge your brother and sister. Instead help him or her to reach their full potential in the secular world and in the Kingdom of God. We are all Children of God, and we are all equal in His eyes. The sooner we recognize this, the sooner the Kingdom of God will actually be realized here on earth.