Religion, Politics, and Reclaiming the Soul of Christianity

Contents

Foreword 5

Introduction : Enough Is Enough! 7

Part 1 Background to better assess our religious conditioning in order to achieve a freer view of our own spirituality—Overview of Bible nature, history, use, and abuses

Section 1 Reflections on the meanings of selected episodes, words, and symbols
The Wrath of God? 23
Abraham and His Son, Isaac 26
Misogyny in the Biblical Portrayal of Women 30
The Plagues of Egypt 36
The Anger of God or of Moses? 42
Moses, the Mystic 46
Words, Numbers, and Symbols 49
The Bible and Its Historical Context 55

Section 2 Reflections on the evolution of the Christian dogma throughout history
In the Beginning 67
Ieschoua of Nazareth 73
A New Religion? 81
The Early Christians 90
Theology: From Moses to Jesus 97
Peter, Paul, James, and Mary 104
Paul’s Teachings and Controversies 111
John and the I Message 121
Constantine, the Roman Emperor 125
Sacrifice, Suffering, Salvation 131
Augustine, the Theologian 135
Mohammed, the Prophet of Islam 140

Section 3 Reflections on use of Scriptures for political purpose in modern times
The Two Gregorys and Papal Sins 149
Luther and Calvin, the Protesters 154
Reformation 156
The Truth about Christopher Columbus 161
The Founding Fathers and American Values 165
American Fundamentalism 171
Fundamentalism Beyond the United States of America 183
God Bless America! 187

Conclusion, Part 1 190

Part 2 In search of spiritual Truth freed from religious dogmatism leading to the message of “good news” from Jesus Christ, as well as messages from other spiritual teachers

Introduction to Part 2 : Spiritual Discernment 197

Section 1 Metaphysics: The Nature of God
The One and Only God 205
Too Pure to Behold Iniquity 209
Jesus and “My Father” 216
God, Love, and Mathematics 219
Job, the Patriarch 222

Section 2 Metaphysics: The Nature of Man
Man Whose Breath Is in His Nostrils 229
Carnal Mind 233
Computers, Internet, and Emotions 235
Original Sin and The Mysteries of Genesis 239
Consciousness, Soul, Spiritual Center 247

Section 3 Metaphysics: The Nature of Error and of Evil
The Eternal Perspective 255
My Kingdom Is Not of This World 257
Creation: The Great Question 263
The Tree of Knowledge 267
Maya 271
Of Heaven and Hell 276

Section 4 The Nature of Prayer and the Nature of Supply
As Ye Pray 285
Two Cases of False Identity 291
As Ye Sow 294
The Father Knows Our Needs 298

Section 5 From Law to Grace: the “Good News”
The “Good News” 303
Christ and Jesus 309
The Books Jesus Never Wrote 313
The Vine and the Branches 321
From Law to Grace: What Remains? 328

Section 6 Toward Spiritual Freedom
The Great Judeo-Christian Derailment 335
God, the Substance of All Form 343
How to Love God 346
Imagine! 351
The Infinite Invisible Conscious Universe 353

Conclusion Part 2 358

Part 3 Living in harmony with our beliefs

Introduction : God’s Work Is Already Done! 363

Section 1 Reflections on the life of the individual awakening to his or her spiritual identity
The Tyranny of the Ego 369
Conscience 374
The Trap of Personalizing 376
Conscious Being 381
Body, Mind, and Spirit 384
The Beholder, the Witness 389
Joy, Love, Trust 393
I Am and I Have 398
The Path of Meditation 404

Section 2 Reflections on social issues from the standpoint of the spiritually awakened individual.
“L’Enfer C’est les Autres” 411
Born Again 415
Poverty 418
Truth and Life 422
Sex 428
The Right to Live, to Marry, and to Die 434
Abortion 439
Education and Democracy 444
Justice for All? 450

Section 3 Reflections on discordant and counterproductive national actions and policies contrary to spiritual teachings from the masters.
Christianity and Xenophobia 457
Hierarchy of Values and Principles 460
Abu Ghraib and Its Effects on National Consciousness 468
National Lies and Consequences 472
Of Rights Taken for Granted 476
Capitalism and Democracy 479
The Pursuit of Happiness 487

Section 4 Reflections on urgent and mega issues threatening mankind.
Global Issues 495
Who Leads? 499
Christians, Jews, and Muslims 504
Spirituality in Modern Times 509
Is Spirituality Practical? 513
Spiritual Healing 517
Conclusion Part 3 520
The Bottom Line 525

Index 531

Foreword

I wrote The Great Spiritual Robbery: Abuses of Religious Ideology from Jerusalem to Washington and Baghdad in 2005 and part of 2006. It was published in early 2007. Three converging factors motivated me to write The Great Spiritual Robbery of which this book is an updated and revised version:

1. The reelection of George W. Bush in 2004 with strong support from Christian Fundamentalists pointed to a growing number of Americans unconcerned with the essential principle of separation of church and state dear to the Founding Fathers. That trend appeared to me to become an existential danger to the ideals of our American democracy that I have always revered, and which were instrumental in my migration from France to the United States when I was twenty years old.

2. The unabashed support the Bush administration received for its preemptive war in Iraq sadly occurred with hardly any opposition from Christian leaders. Many of them, in so-called red states, urged their congregation to approve the Republican agenda as if it were from Jesus himself. Unfortunately, most members of their congregations obliged.

3. The increasingly more numerous, larger, and deadlier natural catastrophes in the United States and around the world, erroneously and repugnantly referred to as acts of God.

All three factors have God and Christianity in common, and two of them are intertwined with politics. Since I live in the heart of a so-called red state, I was forced to reflect on my neighbors’ perception of the nature of God and of their role as citizens:

1. How could my religious neighbors accept, and even support, the policies and actions of the conservative politicians they continue to elect?

2. How could so many Christian Fundamentalists, who champion pro-life slogans, have supported a preemptive war in Iraq that inflicted numerous casualties among innocent civilians?

3. How could so many Christians hold views and condone actions totally inconsistent with the teachings of Jesus of Nazareth but for the possibility that they do not actually understand his teachings? Or that they are willing to ignore them for the sake of electing an administration that will move forward the narrow and restrictive Fundamentalist agenda opposed by a majority of Americans?

Jesus was a way shower with a good news message. He told us, “Know the truth and the truth shall set you free” (John 8:32). It must be clear that the Truth does nothing on its own, but that it is our conscious knowledge of Truth that does. But our knowledge is not true and active in our consciousness if we do not live our lives accordingly, not only as individuals but also as members of our community, of our nation, and of the world.