Is There Only One Path?

[Lightkeeper]

I heard a Christian talk show host yesterday reiterate that the only path to salvation is through Jesus Christ. His "proof" was quoting the Bible.

What happens to world peace when statements like this are made? We are in the information age and I find it highly interesting that someone would cling to this belief.

[Eolas Pellor]

...on the Titanic who were convinced it was safer to stay on the boat than it was to take to the lifeboats.

People often cling, irrationally, and often to their own despite, to things and people and ideas that serve them ill. It's sad.

[vivamis123]

I do believe there is only one path.....but everyone is on it.

I don't see anything wrong with the statement quoted. When I hear something other than the words I use and am familiar with...I translate them into "my words"...and then they make sence and I can agree.

In christ we are one....in spirit we are one....one thing we all have in common is life....love is all there IS....God takes up all space. Different wordings for the same.....

[RevKathyV]

I do the same thing, Vivian. The buddha self, the christ, all of these are expressions for the same thing. However most traditional christians do not mean it that way. The point is however that we are all working towards the same goal. Closeness to God (higher consciousness, god within, universal intellignece- they are all the same thing). We use different paths sometimes getting there...Prayer, meditation, yoga, or something else...but they all work for the people on their journey. Some people are connected to rituals which for others are nonsense..but these rituals work for the ones that believe in them because they believe in them...and we are to see the love that is behind it and let them do what makes them feel connected...that is the basis for interfaith...I think we are heading towards a universal awareness of this..the consciouness is being uplifted world wide.... I don't think christianity or buddism or islam or any are faith that is serving even one person is a sinking ship...peoples attitudes and lack of connection tothe true source of their teaching may cause problems...but I really believe people as a rule are coming to a deeper understanding of our interconnectedness..and the interconnectedness of the different spiritual paths.

[octavius]

Hmmm...I politely disagree. I am a proponent and practitioner of what is commonly called the "Left Hand Path." Think of it in terms of Frost's poem...

I am not on the same "path" as deists in any way.

[evangelicalhumanist]

Wouldn't the correct path depend at least a little on where it was you thought you were going?

[RevKathyV]

Modern definitions of "Right-Hand Path" elevate spirituality, the strict observance of moral codes, and the worship of deities. The intent of "Right-Hand Path" belief systems is to attain proximity to divinity, or integration with divinity.

Conversely, "Left-Hand Path" belief systems value the advancement and preservation of the self, glorification of more temporal and terrestrial goals, and personal power rather than spiritual attainments.

Rather than valuing proximity to the divine, followers of Left-Hand Path belief systems seek to "become divinities" in their own right.


The above is from Wikpedia


According to this I see it as we are still headed towards the same place because the divinity is within us...we are god, god is within...we make take a different route getting there but we are going the same place in reality...IMO!

[octavius]

Originally Posted by RevKathyV

Modern definitions of "Right-Hand Path" elevate spirituality, the strict observance of moral codes, and the worship of deities. The intent of "Right-Hand Path" belief systems is to attain proximity to divinity, or integration with divinity.

Conversely, "Left-Hand Path" belief systems value the advancement and preservation of the self, glorification of more temporal and terrestrial goals, and personal power rather than spiritual attainments.

Rather than valuing proximity to the divine, followers of Left-Hand Path belief systems seek to "become divinities" in their own right.


The above is from Wikpedia


According to this I see it as we are still headed towards the same place because the divinity is within us...we are god, god is within...we make take a different route getting there but we are going the same place in reality...IMO!

There is a danger when certain philosophies become homogenized into a utopian ideal or vision of equality. The "moral" observance of strict codes held by RHP adherents are almost always politicized into a general vision of right and wrong. Conversely, LHP adherents view morality as uniquely personal. Right and wrong are completely subjective. Personally, I think it's disgusting that the US is holding juveniles at Gitmo under the perception of possible terrorist involvement. There are children that were only 11 years old when they were first "detained." However, my government finds it perfectly reasonable to hold these children as enemy combatants and subject them to the same torture as adults. Hence, morality is subjective.

When you homogenize RHP and LHP down to the idea that we're all just seeking the divine, you dismiss all that makes each philosophy unique...IMO.

[Nick_A]

The host IMO is both right and wrong and being that the concept is misunderstood, I hope the information age doesn't come to destroy the value of the concept entirely.

There are two basic universal flows: involution and evolution. Involution is the workings of the descent into creation and conscious evolution or the Way back to the source is the concern of the great traditions.

When Jesus said that the way to the father is through me, we no longer understand it because we've forgotten the vertical scale of being itself. But if you imagine the notes on a piano beginning with Low C and ascending to High C, then it is obvious that the scale has to continue through Middle C. In this analogy man on earth is Low C and Jesus is representative of the level of reality we'll call Middle C, The Absolute is High C. Man's conscious evolution then must pass through the level of Jesus" being or at least become a connected part of the body of this level of reality that is saved for the next go round..

As I've come to understand it, there is only one Way as it pertains to man's conscious evolution and this Way is evolution. However, there are several paths that lead to the Way that include the Great traditions initiated by a conscious source. There are also a lot of secular versions of these paths that lead nowhere along with many imaginary paths normal for the imagination of these times.

So IMO I believe the host is right but I doubt he knows why which is the shame of Christendom.

[angeleyes]

Originally Posted by octavius

There is a danger when certain philosophies become homogenized into a utopian ideal or vision of equality. The "moral" observance of strict codes held by RHP adherents are almost always politicized into a general vision of right and wrong. Conversely, LHP adherents view morality as uniquely personal. Right and wrong are completely subjective. Personally, I think it's disgusting that the US is holding juveniles at Gitmo under the perception of possible terrorist involvement. There are children that were only 11 years old when they were first "detained." However, my government finds it perfectly reasonable to hold these children as enemy combatants and subject them to the same torture as adults. Hence, morality is subjective.

When you homogenize RHP and LHP down to the idea that we're all just seeking the divine, you dismiss all that makes each philosophy unique...IMO.

I agreee that there are unique paths on the surface, but I'm not quite sure why you object that they should not be the same underneath. Afterall, we're all looking for the same thing, don't you think?