Avatarian News Issue Two
by Taras Balderdash
January 09, 2007 |
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| The ground level at Great Avatar Temple in Rieul, showing the new offering vessels |
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Infinite Volition If God is infinite, and He can hardly be anything but inifinite, then His volition, His will, is also infinite. I have always thought of God's will, in the smaller context of our visible world of human affairs, as being like a Swiss Army knife. Only there are not three or even twenty blades, but several billion. Oh, and the knife is the size of a star, invisible, but effects real and visible objects. So He wants to open a bottle of water for someone in one place. What happens? In moving the knife He sets off several earthquakes, causes unexpected hail, several car accidents, a wedding, and two discoveries that will help people live longer. Quite a bottle opener. It is hard enough to accomplish small things for one person or group without offending or harming another. Think of trying to do it at a cosmic scale. Everything 'wants'. All His creatures seek a livelihood. But practically all of them live by consuming other creatures (with plants and bacteria hastily categorized as creatures). Only the stones remain neutral, and no one has really ever asked them their opinion.
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So even my silly example of God's Swiss Army knife doesn't approach what is really infinite. But perhaps it can give you something to think about for a bit. After all, what I describe is just a convoluted volition, not an infinite one. Tolerance Our Avatarian Order is based on tolerance, so it is high time to explain what is meant by the term. To be tolerant of someone else's belief means respecting them as a person and tolerating their beliefs. It does not mean that their beliefs are utterly mistaken, in your opinion. But it does mean being very careful not to insult the person 'ad hominem'. That is, if I say to a believer in God: there is no God, I am entitled to my opinion. But if I go on to say: ...'and you're an idiot for believing there is.' That is an ad hominem, and is not behavior that will be tolerated in the Order. What of those who hold that their religion is the only way to salvation? That includes just about every religion in the world, after all. Well again, that is what you believe and no one has the right to tell you to silence that belief out of 'politeness' or 'correctness'. It is your faith. But if you make that exclusiveness of salvation the main point of your approach to other faiths you are unlikely to make a lot of converts. Speaking of converts, is it all right to try to convert others to your faith? Of course it is! How do you think the religious meme spreads? How does any
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;)