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I guess so. Each is a mirror of the other. At its best I think it's a positive metaphor. Of course, like all metaphors if you emphasize the wrong bits it can be made nasty.

I think it needs to be read in light of the culture in which it was written. Jesus is referred to as the Bridegroom and the Church is his Bride. It alludes to the intimacy of the relationship with its mystical union of two becoming as one. It also includes the cultural meme of the time that the...

It's a metaphor. Don't break it.

I think you're right. 'If you see the Buddha on the road, kill him' and all that.

Some will claim revelation from the divine as a way to certain knowledge but I think this is problematic. We have so many contradictory claims of revelation that there is a possibility that even your own revelation may be in error, interpreted incorrectly or self delusion that we cannot accept...

Product warning first: While I'm interested in philosophy and I have read in the area, I'm by no means and expert and if I say dumb things be gentle with me. How certain can we be that what we think we know is really true? My personal position is that I suspect that there is very little that...

Imagine you're walking down a street. A flying rock strikes you on the head. You see stars. The experience you had was a real experience. You did see disturbances in your visual field that looked like stars. But they weren't really stars in external reality, were they?

No I mean now. Tap tap, is this thing on?

I'd be interested in knowing if there was intelligent life on Earth.

I am not doubting your recollection of an experience. I am doubting your interpretation of it.

We still don't know if there even is a precise moment of death. 'Vital signs' are limited to the technology of the measuring instrument. Measurements of brain activity with an EEG are, as far as I understand it, fairly gross. We just don't know what electrical activity is happening deep in the...

I think, by definition, if you come back, you haven't actually died. The precise moment of death is still a topic very much under discussion in the medical community.

True. Frankly after death stuff does not form a large part of my spirituality. I am more interested in a framework that encourages me to be a better person now.

I am unclear how your comment relates to mine.

lol. Been there. Done that. I have chosen to live AS IF there was something more but prepared to be disappointed.

I suspect this may be the result of confirmation bias. I did a quick search and found varying accounts.

Just reading over the thread. Some really interesting discussion. Thanks to Radarmark for his clear explanations and openness. I have always been impressed with the Quakers I have known. You are no exception.

Well, I hope I don't put a dampener on the party but I'm not convinced souls exist. Heck, I'm not convinced the 'self' exists as a meaningful enduring entity. Would this be the right place to ask what characteristics you see the soul as having?

Hi I'm a 57 year old Australian male. I've retired from a long teaching career, firstly teaching science, maths, and physics to teenagers, and then primary school teaching. I'm a musician and songwriter, primarily in jazz. I've always been fascinated by spirituality and have had a spiritual...