Because I’ve had a week off, I have found myself a little mixed up about what day it is. Now I am clear it is Sunday and maybe this is why I have found myself thinking of my brother’s 4y/o twins and hearing them say like parrots we love Jesus and the Bible is the most important book over and over again when we visited their new home. I felt unsettled about seeing them with their cherubic smiles sounding like little recorders playing back the beliefs of their programming. This seems wrong to me but maybe it is just a reaction because it is such the opposite of my writing about questioning all of our beliefs. As long as they are also taught to question things, everything will work out just fine.
Is the Bible the most important book? For some it seems to be and they live according to what they think it says. I know many who are wonderful human beings. To me it isn’t even in my top 20. There are so many religions based on their own interpretations of this book, some kind and respectful of others and many filled with judgments towards those who believe differently. How can the Bible be the word of God when it was written by men? The idea that it was inspired has lost any real value since it has been interpreted by so many who seem to understand it in so many different ways and use it to support their own agenda. These so called words of God have been used to rationalize hatred, to go to war, to kill, to reject others, to act superior, to gain power, to build mega churches and so much more that is so less then compassionate and kind.
My experiences of life have taught me that compassion and kindness are two qualities that seem essential to humanity. If we are giving, if we care for each other, if we are accepting even if they are different than us, if we have an open and inquiring mind, if we seek to express who we are as fully as we can, then we are heading in a positive direction.
Everyone is welcome to their own beliefs but isn’t it a good idea to objectively look at what thoughts are running through our mind and see if they are real, see if they are valid, see if they are compassionate, see if they make the world a better place, see if they open us up to the infinite possibilities of being human.
What are you most important books? Here are 10 of the many books that have awakened compassion and consciousness in me:
The Power Of Now – Eckhart Tolle
Old Path, White Clouds – Thich Nhat Hahn
Illusions – Richard Bach
Be Here Now – Ram Dass
The Writings of Rumi
The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success - Deepak Chopra
The Artist Way – Julia Cameron
The Way Of The Peaceful Warrior – Dan Millman
The Alchemist – Paulo Coelho
Intention – Wayne Dyer
These same authors have written other excellent books that are worth reading. What are you most influential books?