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Originally Posted by OmDaath
Christianity has a lot in common with Paganism. Take the celebration of Christmas, which was simply a celebration of the Winter Solstice. Easter- Spring Equinox, and so on.
I've actually found an interesting take on Astrology and Christianity in the Youtube movie Zeitgeist.
Watch it if you haven't seen it and tell me what you think. :)
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oh yes that's a good point. Christianity basically stole a lot from Paganism.. but the thing with Christianity, Catholicism, and any religion like that, is that I think it's been used for both good and evil.. and when I use the word evil, I use it in the sense as akin to 'unconsciousness'
because I think that it becomes clear most that seems to be evil is just unconsciousness. that can either be of ignorant origin, like something isn't trying to be evil it just doesn't know better or invest enough to find out, or more deliberate evil revolves around creating unconsciousness. and that can be literal if you consider the evil of violence or murder, which tries to take away consciousness of a being's core. but for the mostpart in my opinion it has to do with depriving information and insight.
So I wasn't going to talk bad about religion here, but it is evident throughout history that the bible and Christian religion, I dare say especially Catholicism, has been used to keep people in the dark. The Dark Ages, which I think I remember correctly but might be wrong, were a time when The Church basically kept the bible under lock and key and it wasn't made available to the population. and I think in that time The Church which was like royalty or may have actually been directly connected to it, well they modified the bible it seems and took away some books from it and corrupt things like that. again I might be inaccurate, but it is fact that various times throughout history the bible was highjacked and modified.. so does anyone have the full original version intact? probably not, but I heard that the Ethiopian bible is closest.
My thoughts on the bible are that it's a lot of fearmongering and describes many situations that "God" did that seem extra evil, like giving all these plagues and smoting people, much violence and corruption and all that.. (same with other religions like Islam) My fiance says that the God in the bible is not the real God they're talking about, but sort of like the devil they're referencing, but I don't know, he still considers himself Christian so I don't think he really understands it as he doesn't actually practice it, just calls himself Christian cuz he thinks Jesus is swell. and some years ago I was afraid to stop calling myself Christian for that same reason. He was also raised more religious than me but anyways Idno it doesn't seem like it's an important part of his life at all, but he did buy a Jesus on crucifix decoration to hang up a couple months ago. which I think is weird but ok. I prefer to look at the bible as a code book. A lot of it I would completely disregard, but some of it I think is interesting and can be deciphered in a different way
Like when God warns all the people and is so destructive, well when he tells people that they Must honor him or else they will fall, I think that really has to do with the Earth and nature.. and how we on Earth must abide by natural laws and certain rules here, or else we really will die. If we destroy the Earth and do all kinds of weird things to it before we consume it, ie processed foods, artificial products and most of the stuff available in the mainstream, those are all disease-causing foods and products. Because they've been too far deviated from nature.. and that is going against divine laws of life here. If you mess with nature, nature gets messed with if it consumes it, and we need to eat food from the Earth. so if it's even been cooked it becomes less healthy for us. now the bible talks about eating a lot of things that aren't actually good for us so that brings into play ignorant energies and people throughout history that didn't actually get it.. Since people literally made the bible up from the ground up right? It's just all kind of strange I think, how they say all these various people were spoken to by God and they got published in this book that became the bible. eh pretty unlikely story
I'm sorry but it is.. but that's especially true when you throw in the fact that, as OmDaath mentions, Christianity swipes a lot of holidays and other things from Paganism. So ,maybe they got the honoring Earth thing right, but Idno maybe all of them don't realize that you're not supposed to modify food from the Earth in order to eat it. though the bible does say some things about how we should eat fruit and stuff from the trees is provided for us.. but really convoluted is a good word to describe the whole thing and religion as a whole.
Many things that are popular only got that way because corruption was involved, and there was a deliberate plot to make people fall in line because of them. So we have to question why certain things or beliefs or practices have survived, or are so present and upheld in the mainstream. A lot of the things humans are actually supposed to know and practice have been hidden from us, and much of that fault lies in religion. I think that religion could have a rightful place. but I have to interject here that as I said in my previous post, I do see plenty of goodness that has been created because of the people who are following a certain religion, mainly just because people are inherently good and try to do positive things.. but they'd be better off without religion and are in the dark directly because of it. But anyways, I think that religion is *supposed* to be a personal thing. Spirituality is awareness of the reality of the magic of life, and religion should be the conscious practice and preparation of experiencing that deeper. whether it's done alone or within a group, religion could be all sorts of wonderful things. and is to some, but if they knew and were taught the most magnificent truths of life, then it would be something entirely different. there are some less nescient religions, but just saying, the mainstream ones deprive people of important information and insight on purpose. so it's almost the opposite of what I think religion should really be.
Then you have the greatness of Astrology, which has to do with discovery and understanding and transforming energies into something more positive. This kind of evolution is a threat to the Church, which doesn't want people to think that they have their own power, right? but if God or the divine is responsible for our existence, naturally we are part divine or part God, though that is taboo for most to hear. it is the simple truth. So I say in conclusion, hopefully nothing I said offended you, but I think if you want to keep the things about Catholicism that you like, and the community and ritual that is comforting or exhilarating for you, then go ahead. Because everything is what we make it.. I certainly wouldn't give up Astrology which offers a lot more truth and tools to find out answers for yourself. If you want to continue being Catholic then just take what parts of it are meaningful to you, and if you feel like you have to fake it around some people, go ahead and pretend. just think of it as playing along, instead of being dishonest. cuz if you want to play in that religion it seems many would object to you playing with Astrology too. If it was me I might test the waters and see if I can find anyone accepting of or interested in Astrology, but if you fear the outcome too much then don't bother, let them keep their stringent views, but remember, even if you don't share the entire truth, the fact that you do practice Astrology is having a positive benefit and that reaches out around you energetically and into the universe. so even if you don't tell anyone it's still essentially impacting them positively. Sort of like the monks and mountain gurus who devote their lives to meditating in the middle of nowhere or locked away at some sanctuary.. Most are never known by others, yet somehow their existence and activity has incredible meaning and impact on the world and all of us. So you can think of it like your special secret which is helping other Catholics around you even if they can't be conscious about understanding and accepting the brilliance you're creating by your interest in the Stars.
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