Subnostr

Wasn't it Augustine that got the monasteries going? Idk, maybe someone else... I think there's value in having a group of men outside of normal society, subject to totally different incentives.

gojiberra 1y ago

I wouldn't be surprised if it were him. He had mistress and a kid in his 20s before his conversion.

I can see value in monasteries as well. I didn't previously, but about 2 years ago, I visited a monastery and I was surprised by some of the answers the Catholic monk gave us.

The truth resonates somehow, even when it's uncomfortable and from unexpected places.

He was especially interested in Buddhism and had spent time in India. If I remember correctly he had worked on some Hindu/Catholic/Buddhist peace initiatives back in the 70s or so. Apparently there was some violence at the time.

Belief systems...kinda like operating systems. The atheists are like, why can't we all just run Linux.

I'm at the point where I'm wondering if I have a choice in the matter of belief systems. Is it somehow genetic.

Reply to this note

Please Login to reply.

Discussion

Comte de Sats Germain 1y ago

Of course you have a choice. If its genetic, then what do people with mixed heritage do? Maybe they slip through the cracks and fall forever... Aaaaahhhhhhh.....!!...

I'm not of the opinion that there's one "correct" belief system. Truth exists, so it can stand forever without the belief of people, and is always there to be discovered. And whatever the truth of spiritual matters is, it can't be exactly as presented - at best it can be orthogonal to what's presented, possibly orthogonal to all traditions.

IMO there's no deep contradiction between the dharmic religions and Christianity. I believe Buddhists when they say that meditation can make you a better Christian. And both the Pentacostals and the Sufis have found a spiritual path in ecstatic dance. Why not be all of these religions? Or take what you need and make your own thing. This will probably trigger some evangelists... I just think the Spirit is knownable to anyone, regardless of whether they've read this or heard that. Its all the spirit.

ᴛʜᴇ ᴅᴇᴀᴛʜ ᴏꜰ ᴍʟᴇᴋᴜ 1y ago

i'm a fan of taoism, buddhism and sufism... i like and intermittently practise ecstatic dance... "but the people are retarded" guy, Osho, that was his prescribed form of meditation, his system was largely based on zen buddhism

also a big fan of the african style of worship, with the singing and dancing

i'm inclined to think that it's the blind men and the elephant with God... everyone sees different parts, reflections of themselves, but none of them are complete

Comte de Sats Germain 1y ago

If money and age weren't a problem, I'd probably check into a monastery and be a monk for a couple of years. I like the fight-dance-meditate style of those taoists in the wudang mountains

ᴛʜᴇ ᴅᴇᴀᴛʜ ᴏꜰ ᴍʟᴇᴋᴜ 1y ago

yeah i'm a huge fan of that style indeed

this discussion of the matter of monasticism does kinda ring some bells for me these days, since i think i'm in the late days of my viability as a potential father... not gonna let that go until it's unrealistic but i know it's not many years before it's gonna take a lot more luck to find something other than a crone

Comte de Sats Germain 1y ago

I already feel that way and I'm way younger than you! Just gotta get out of America... Dating is just absurd here.

ᴛʜᴇ ᴅᴇᴀᴛʜ ᴏꜰ ᴍʟᴇᴋᴜ 1y ago

yeah, it's been a mess everywhere in the world in the last 12 years

literally every woman i've had dealings with in the last 16 years or so have been fruity as christmas cake... there's something really wrong with the world these days

i'm literally thinking, probably no chance at all but better chance to find a woman in a church at this point, not that i'm thinking "oh yeah that's the place to find them" in as much as i want to go to a church anyway, for various reasons aside from that silly one, but hey, i mean, i think the first commandment in the bible is "go forth and multiply" so, traveling and getting married are two definite requirements

gojiberra 1y ago

i know a gal who's been looking and it seems like the problem she has is the exact inverse. dudes she meets don't add a lot of value. after late 30s, she's already built a life, house, etc, so it's actually hard to find someone who measures up to that level of success.

one dude just looked at her like a cash machine

the next one liked her a lot but wanted her to do all the traveling to go see him. she likes to travel all over, but he couldn't coordinate a simple trip beyond inviting her to his hometown.

i feel a certain level of freezing into my own routines to the point of it being exclusionary to other people. I still hang out with friends that I met in college, or who are very aligned to my personality.

church does seem like a good place to check in. and hopefully the gal is also seeking and ends up at the same church.

ᴛʜᴇ ᴅᴇᴀᴛʜ ᴏꜰ ᴍʟᴇᴋᴜ 1y ago

yeah, i think this is low key one of the functions of churches... it's a nice, formal, neutral context where mundane conviviality is eschewed in favour of meditation and reverence, and i think this also is conducive to good contacts between men and women

gojiberra 1y ago

i have heard of people talking to buddha and jesus on a trip

ᴛʜᴇ ᴅᴇᴀᴛʜ ᴏꜰ ᴍʟᴇᴋᴜ 1y ago

nah, atheists want us to all run Windows... Catholics want Windows 3.1... christians, taoists, buddhists, sufi, muslims, most jews... they wannan linux