This morning I finished Richard Dawkins "The Greatest Show on Earth," a fascinating book that demonstrates why evolution is almost certainly true and intelligent design /creationism is almost certainly false. (In science, there are no 100% certainties.)
I've been reading a few pages every day before I meditate. Now, I' [...]
Death isn't to die for. At least, that's how my churchless psyche looks at mortality. I like being alive. Being dead -- that has a disturbing ring of nothingness to it.
If it was up to me, I'd pass on the whole dying thing. And who wouldn't? Almost no' [...]
Some books are like last night's 20 degree dog walk, much of it facing into a brisk wind. I hated it and I loved it. My overriding perception during the two miles was: This is marvelously real. And fucking cold!
E.M. Cioran's "A Short History of Decay" struck me the' [...]
Wow, what a non-surprise! Religious believers consider that God favors whatever moral positions they do. Egocentricity rules.
Such is the finding of research conducted at the University of Chicago.
The researchers noted that people often set their moral compasses according to what they presume to be God’s standards. “The central feature of a [...]
I like Roger Ebert's take on religion. He has a nuanced, properly skeptical attitude toward God and matters metaphysical.
During in all the endless discussions on several threads of this blog about evolution, intelligent design, God and the afterworld, now numbering altogether around 3,500 comments, I have never said, although readers have [...]
While on a dog walk yesterday, I ran into a neighbor who I don't talk to very often. He started off our conversation in an appealing fashion:
"I read your blog regularly." Nice! But then he said, "Being a confirmed atheist, it's a bit too kind to religion for me. I'" [...]
God. Just three letters in this word. But they sure pack a punch.
Countless people have died in the name of "God." Countless good works have been performed. Countless arguments have ensued over what this word signifies.
Dahlia Lithwick dives into this fascinating linguistic tangle in a Newsweek article, "Jesus" [...]
What makes life meaningful? How is it that we can wake up in the morning and feel like jumping out of bed, rather than hiding beneath the covers?
A sense of purpose. Our life seems like it has a direction. We have a reason for being. Goals, intentions, to-do's.
In the' [...]
It's Thanksgiving Day here in the United States. Almost everybody is into thankfulness, whether sincere or feigned.
Myself, I'm thankful that I was able to get a HP wireless printer working with my wife's new iMac this afternoon. It was touch and go for a while but I finally figured it' [...]
Back in my true believing days, I used to enjoy feeling that what I was doing was an act of service to my guru.
This, of course, is a decidedly Eastern perspective. Western religions don't have living perfect masters, who often are considered to God in human form.
But Christians seem' [...]
Religion isn't all bad.
That was the not-so-surprising consensus at the monthly meeting of the Salon discussion group that my wife and I helped start up here in Salem about seventeen years ago.
The members are almost all godless Prius-driving, expresso-sipping, organic food-eating progressives like us.
Religiosity comes in for' [...]
You'd think that an omniscient, omnipresent, omnipotent, and/or omnibenevolent being would leave some evident trace, given all this omni'ness.
Yet God, whether considered from an impersonal Eastern perspective or a personal Western viewpoint, has left no demonstrable signs of his/her/it's existence.
Why?
A theologian would answer, "It isn't possible to know'" [...]
Einstein showed that we live in spacetime, a continuum comprised of the familiar three dimensions of space and the much more mysterious dimension of time.
Nobody knows what time is really all about. Not scientists, not philosophers, not mystics. And certainly not theologians.
We have a sense of it [...]
I've got a love-hate thing going with Ken Wilber, a prolific writer and creative thinker who relentlessly preaches the marvels of an Integral approach to understanding reality.
Sometimes I like what Wilber says (see here and here). Sometimes I don't (see here and here).
His misunderstanding [...]
When I ponder what line spoken by a character in a movie has inspired me the most, here's my answer (share yours in a comment, if you like).
Jodie Foster, playing Ellie Arroway, a scientist searching for extra-terrestrial intelligence, in Contact -- a movie based on Carl Sagan's novel.
Strapped [...]
Don't like facts? Hate science? There's a handy four-step guide to generating your very own scientific controversy. I think some religiously-minded commenters on this blog already know #3.
When people point out that the facts don’t back up your claim, ignore them. As those people get angry and shouty at' [...]
The natural world doesn't come with names attached.
Look up at the full moon. Do you see a label on it, "moon"? (Leaving aside the question of what language that word would be written in.)
Both religion and science make the mistake of confusing human thoughts about what is real with' [...]
Recently I got an email message from someone who wanted to know why I felt so special when I was an active member of Radha Soami Satsang Beas, a Sant Mat organization headquartered in India.
In your posts, you often make mention of having felt special when you were [...]
People are fond of saying to someone they disagree with, "get real!" It's a put down to be told that you're living an illusion.
So when Eastern religions tell us that this physical existence is maya, not really real reality, it's natural to feel concerned.
Even though life seems pleasant' [...]
I started to practice yoga and meditation when I was 20 years old. Forty-one years later, I'm still at it: trying to find the real me and the truth at the heart of the cosmos.
Along the way, in 1990, I married a woman who has taught me as much, or' [...]
It's a burden to believe that you're special.
Especially when it isn't true. Feeling special places you in a starring role. You're at the center of a script that has a marvelous ending -- with you at center stage taking bows.
Religions appeal to people because dogma leads them to feel' [...]
Well, I've got to start off my Halloween cheering with a big shout-out to the Oregon Ducks football team, who crushed fifth-ranked USC tonight in Eugene -- an hour's drive away from Church of the Churchless headquarters here in south Salem.
Next, praise' [...]
Ah, I love instant enlightenment.
OK -- not exactly instant, because I had to watch 54 minutes of a You Tube video before I got to Thomas Metzinger's philosophical "money shot" right at the end.
But I had enjoyed Metzinger's book, "The Ego Tunnel," which I blogged about here, [...]
Some people think that science and religion operate in two different spheres, with never the twain meeting.
This often is called NOMA, non-overlapping magisteria -- a term coined by biologist Stephen Jay Gould, who said:
The magisterium of science covers the empirical realm: what the Universe is made of (fact) and [...]
I picked up the book. Thumbed through the pages and located the right chapter. Scanned a few paragraphs. Then found the lines I was looking for:
Mysticism has little quarrel with the theory of evolution -- as long as it is recognized that life evolves not randomly, but under the guidance [...]
Problematic symptoms can have many different causes. Differential diagnosis aids mental health experts like me*** to tell what you're suffering from.
(*** I have a Master's Degree in Social Work. I had field placements in a Community Mental Health Clinic and a Family Counseling Agency. The fact that I never' [...]
Reality is so much more attractive than illusion. This is why science is so much more beautiful than religion.
It just takes an open (and humble) mind's eye to see. Science places us within an interconnected cosmos where we are part and parcel of everything in existence.
This is akin to the [...]
Since I love my iPhone, and it can reliably guide me to earthly destinations, I figured that spiritual enlightenment also would be available via one of the many downloadable applications for this marvelous device.
And yes, it was. In the form of Guided Insight Meditation.
Buddha must have been [...]
My prophesy turned out to be correct: I didn't agree with the final chapters of Robert Wright's "The Evolution of God," just as I anticipated.
But there wasn't anything miraculous in my ability to see into the future, just as a transcendent divinity isn't needed to explain how religions change' [...]
I'm expecting to disagree with the final chapters of Robert Wright's "The Evolution of God," as I prophesied a few months ago.
So I wanted to write a positive blog post about this book, which I'm almost finished with, before I turn more negative. As a New York Times [...]
Religions offer up a damn good deal on death: have faith, do what you're told, and you won't die.
If this was really true, I'd sign up in a heartbeat, since then I wouldn't have to worry about what will happen after my last one. Which appears likely to be nothing... [...]
A friend of mine is fond of saying, "No one's life is ever completely wasted. He can always serve as a horrible example for others."
This adage came to mind as I watched a video of Bill O'Reilly showing his ignorance in an interview with Richard Dawkins.
Dawkins is an' [...]
Well, already there's a seeming contradiction in this blog post -- the title. Because if a religion truly reflected reality, it'd be part of the scientific world view, not religiosity.
So what I mean by "religion" is something more like a philosophy, poetic vision, or statement of what life is about.' [...]
This being my birthday, I figured it was a great time to fire up my Burgman scooter, head to my favorite Salem coffee house, and write a blog post -- stimulated by 20 ounces of the Beanery house blend.
Next month is this blog's five [...]
Driving around yesterday, I heard a Portland talk-show host get enraged about a lawsuit that seeks to have a Christian cross removed from the Mojave National Preserve in California.
Right-winger Lars Larson said that a plywood box has been placed around the cross. "Unbelievable. How can this be happening in" [...]
Hopefully my Suzuki Burgman 650 scooter won't burst into flames from the blasphemy of riding it while wearing a Harley-Davidson t-shirt.
But I liked the message of the most philosophical piece of wearing apparel I came across in the Indianapolis International Airport shopping' [...]
In the almost-five-year history of this churchless blog, erotic dreams is a subject that hasn't come up for much discussion. Time to make up for the omission.
I don't have erotic dreams very often. But last night featured an interesting and pleasurable brief one -- nicely PG rated for open sharing.
I [...]
Hey, it's Labor Day.
Which, rather paradoxically, is a national holiday in the United States where the goal for most people is to do as little as possible -- since the long hot lazy days of summer are coming to an end.
So I'm going to take it easy on my [...]
Let's start mildly negative with this book review so I can end up strongly positive. I can understand why the author, Michael A. Singer, wanted this blurb prominently displayed on the cover, but I was turned off by it:
"Read this book carefully and you will get more than a" [...]
I was planning to write a blog post about another subject tonight.
But, hey, when someone leaves a comment on an Open Thread that focuses on me, wanting me to answer some questions about me, suddenly I found this topic a lot more interesting.
I'll put "Cell's" words in italics [...]
A few days ago I posted a message from Shiloh, "The anguish of losing a loved one to exotic religion." That was part of my communications with her.
Here's the other part: a question and answer dialogue we had about Radha Soami Satsang Beas, the India-based spiritual organization that [...]
Here's a well-written, thoughtful message from a woman who is disturbed that her sister has joined the spiritual group that I was a member of for many years, Radha Soami Satsang Beas (RSSB).
Shiloh emailed me a while back, asking some questions about RSSB that I answered. I'll share those' [...]
I thought I'd just thrown twenty bucks down a non-fiction hole.
A few scant hours after buying Robert Wright's "The Evolution of God" (at 25% off!) my wife, who was reading the Sunday Oregonian, said: "You're not going to like this review of the book you just got."
She [...]
