Okay, I see what you're saying.

But this is how I think of it:

If I were to post this in the Christianity forum, someone would object that it belongs in the Interfaith forum. You can't make everybody happy. For me, everyone's last name would be "Christ", because I am rooted in the Christian tradition -- it is my first language, so to speak. And it's the spiritual language of the majority of my countrymen, who I would like to help learn to speak and interpret it better. I do this by tweaking the traditional interpretations of Christian terms. I give those terms a more universal application. If that offends you just as much as it would offend a fundamentalist Christian, well, I'm afraid it can't be helped.

Although I endeavor to meet people of all faiths on a neutral ground, I do not desire to renounce the land of my origins. And even if I did, I'd still see and interpret things from my own vantage point. If you ask a Spaniard what that round thing is perched on top of his neck, which houses his eyes, ears, mouth and nose, he will tell you it is his cabeza. If you ask him what an American has on top of his neck, he will still say cabeza. Does it offend you, that a Spaniard thinks everyone, regardless of the language they speak, has a cabeza? Would you insist that he use another word? Would you suggest that he use the French word tête, when referring to a Frenchman's head? Or maybe the German word kopf, when referring to a German man's head? Or perhaps some other, more "universal" word? What word would that be, I wonder?

If using the term "Christ" is a show of favoritism, why would using any of the other terms you suggest be any less so? Can you give me an example of a term which would be "universally acceptable"?

My sense was that an "Interfaith" forum would be a suitable place to try to illuminate the universals between various faiths. If I were to speak only of "Source", or whatever seems like a sufficiently neutral term, then the thread would not address the theme of the forum, as I see it. I may as well post in "General Spirituality" or something like that.

As for the Higher Self being a limited goal...

I suppose when any of us gets that far,
then we can talk about going further.

But maybe it's enough to say "you can't please everyone", and leave it at that. If you disagree with my method, or my style, then perhaps this is just not for you. If your path, or destiny, lies in another direction entirely, then nothing I say, no matter how reasonable, will carry weight for you. And that is precisely as it should be. Does it mean that I'm being "arrogant"? Not at all. It just means you need to find what resonates for you. "My grind ain't your grind, dawg." (~Mos Def) Then again, maybe you're just a fault finder, who refuses to see the good?

I hope that clarifies my position somewhat.

If not, then don't let the door hit you on the way out.

God Bless,
Namaste,
Whatever,