Quaker women told me

[RJM]

I don't think so, its comparing apples and oranges. To me Western and Eastern thought are fundamentally different. I don't need get the need to make them equivalent or parallel, why not just understand and respect the differences?

I believe they separately describle exactly the same truth.

There are a lot of differences. There are also many parallels. As someone observed earlier: God is one and people try to split him up?

The alternative is many gods?

I am prepared to understand that the Gods of worlds may change -- or move on or be promoted, say -- to become gods of groups of worlds and arcs of space -- ever onward and upward -- and so the God of Abraham may indeed be different from the God of now -- impossible for us to know -- but that would still be the arm and manifestation of the One God?

We wouldn't know the difference?

To us it wouldn't make any difference? The difference between the Archangels Gabriel and Michael would not mean much to us? Unless they told us? They are both 'the arm of God'?

Then there is the timelessness of any existence beyond the natural -- beyond/outside of time and space?

Religions may be different, but there can only be One God, imo?

There can be discussions about it: 'My religion alone identifies the true God, or the only way to God.' We know that's not the case? Still we defend our own religions?

It goes on?

 

[RJM]

Someone, I think it was @Gatekeeper said: 'God meets us where we are.'

I like that one. It has stuck with me ...

 

[Namaste Jesus]

Well put @RJM Corbet. You know, something Aussie once told me comes to mind as I read your posts. Apparently when Aussie was a kid, he and his dad were driving one day and the subject of religion came up.

From what he told me and I'm paraphrasing here as I wasn't there, the gist of their conversation was why eastern and western religions say different things. Aussie's dad, pointing to the road in front of them, said if I asked you to describe this road, you'd tell be exactly what you saw. Now if someone in those houses off in the distance were to ask their kid to do the same, they'd describe what they saw as well. No doubt though, because of the distance between us and them, they'd describe something very different. Thing is, you'd both be describing the same road.

Always liked that story. I never knew Aussie's dad, he passed some years back, but if his son in any measure, I would have liked to have met him.

 

[RJM]

Well put @RJM Corbet. You know, something Aussie once told me comes to mind as I read your posts. Apparently when Aussie was a kid, he and his dad were driving one day and the subject of religion came up.

From what he told me and I'm paraphrasing here as I wasn't there, the gist of their conversation was why eastern and western religions say different things. Aussie's dad, pointing to the road in front of them, said if I asked you to describe this road, you'd tell be exactly what you saw. Now if someone in those houses off in the distance were to ask their kid to do the same, they'd describe what they saw as well. No doubt though, because of the distance between us and them, they'd describe something very different. Thing is, you'd both be describing the same road.

Always liked that story. I never knew Aussie's dad, he passed some years back, but if his son in any measure, I would have liked to have met him.

@Aussie Thoughts Father seems to have been a quite impressive person; very wise. Best wishes

 

[RJM]

@Mrs Malaprop

I hope my responses to you are not being taken as 'new age non-duality golly gee wow it's all so beautiful and right' sort of stuff. It's not at all the intention or direction. I have a picture of a statue of Mary cradling the broken body of Jesus at the foot of the cross -- from the Catholic Church in Exeter that really brings it home -- but it's too large to upload here ...

 

[wil]

I'm not sure we've changed significantly over the last couple of millennia?

Exactly my point, we've come a long way baby only to see how far we have to go.

 

[Aussie Thoughts]

.... the gist of their conversation was why eastern and western religions say different things. Aussie's dad, pointing to the road in front of them, said if I asked you to describe this road, you'd tell be exactly what you saw. Now if someone in those houses off in the distance were to ask their kid to do the same, they'd describe what they saw as well. No doubt though, because of the distance between us and them, they'd describe something very different. Thing is, you'd both be describing the same road.

Yeah, you got the gist of it mate. Dad added though, "Therefore don't assume you know what the other bloke sees or that what he tells you he sees is wrong just because you see something different." Guess that was the moral of the story.

Always liked that story. I never knew Aussie's dad, he passed some years back, but if his son in any measure, I would have liked to have met him.

Dad was a right bloke for sure. -