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Insurance Executive:
Whether it’s the Christian God or Buddha, I take comfort in what
each teaches but I’m not one to ask for help every time I have a
problem, a dilemma, or have to make a difficult decision. In fact, I
rarely ask for anything at all. Actually, I can’t think of the last time I
did.
I watched a documentary recently about prostitution in a Southeast
Asian country. In one scenario, prostitutes were shown praying
before the Buddha and asking for lots of customers that night. Are
you kidding me? By his own words Buddha isn’t a god and is
incapable of granting favors for anything, to include wealthy johns.
These women have been taught a twisted Buddhism not to mention
a twisted view of their own bodies.
I like to say I’m a recovering Catholic. I learned all the bells and
whistles of Catholicism but it didn’t connect with me. Some might say
I was led astray by the devil, which I also think is absurd. I have
studied Buddhism for a few years and it has connected with me for
the simple and appealing reason that it puts me in charge of me, not
some invisible deity that allows brutal wars, thousands to starve,
children to get cancer, and a terror called ISIS. “What?” Someone
will surely exclaim. “You dare judge God?” I sure do.
Am I saying I don’t believe in God? Not at all... Well, not as a
bearded man sitting on a thrown. I believe there is intelligence
behind all existence but I also tend to think this intelligence doesn’t
really care about us; we are just one part of all that makes up the
planet and the universe. I respect the intelligence and I’m in awe of
it, but I don’t ask it to help me with my report at work or to improve
my front kick. In other words, I respect the teachings in the Bible and
the teachings of Buddha, but I don’t count on God or Buddha to help
me.
Writer Louis Kronenberger said, “There seems to be a terrible
misunderstanding on the part of many people to the effect that when
you cease to believe you may cease to behave.” Likewise, I heard a
psychologist on a talk show say that he truly believed that if there
were no God most people would be good, anyway. Most being the
keyword here. Though the world seems to be such an evil place
anymore, I still agree with both men and live my life in accordance to
what the bible and the Buddha teaches about benevolence and
compassion.
I might not believe as I was taught as a child, but I try to be good
simply because it’s the way I choose to carry out my days. I want to
be good for my husband, family, friends, fellow workers, and myself.
I like myself when I’m good. It’s as simple as that.
I like the expression, “Believe in God but row away from the rocks.”
You would think with God’s hit and miss record people would for sure
always “row away from the rocks just in case.” But this isn’t always
the case. As I write this, a man in Dubai allowed his 20-year-old
daughter to drown because he was worried about the lifeguards, that
is, someone from outside the family, touching her. The father, a large
and powerful man, actually blocked the lifeguards from rescuing her
to, as he stated later, “To prevent her modesty from being violated.”
One can only think he was waiting for God to save her. You would
also think anyone with a semblance of intelligence would know there
is a risk when swimming in the sea. Combine this with the strict rule
of this father’s religion that says no one outside of family can touch
the girl, perhaps she would be alive today if he had “rowed away
from the rocks,” in this instance by insisting that she only swim in
shallow water.
There was also a case in Saudi Arabia where religious police forced
15 girls to perish in a fire because they were not wearing traditional
Islamic head coverings, and therefore not allowed to go outside.
Most people are shocked by these incidents. The exception would
be those following beliefs to the extent of ignoring, dare I say it,
common sense. If I lived to be a thousand years old, I will never
believe that God or any divine force would require such nonsense.
Respect whatever religion you follow, but also consider that you
have a brain to use to take care of yourself and others.
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