The

In another thread, we got off on a brief side tangent, discussing the meaning behind the

Interesting. Thanks for pointing me to this Spaceman *thumbs up!*

It's a different take then I have heard expressed, but as The Creator is the source of all that is, in essence everything serves 'him' unless he wants it to be otherwise...( He/She is the Alpha,,,so we naturally follow-suit in some way or another) and in many ways, it is impossible not to serve the universe as a teacher of either dark or light. as whether we like it or not we have been a teacher of both light and dark to someone somewhere.
Both light and dark are needed for definition.

I am still leaning towards looking at Satan as a corruptor influence, but I don't say this to shove it down anyone's throat.
I have seen this entity as one who seeks to disrupt balance in a somewhat sadist-based way... To play with power and such...out of decadence...much like the negative leadership and tyranny that has been influenced by this same force...
This could be religious programming and we all know the value of the mind and what we allow in it...
I was a child when I was exposed to Christianity, but even at age 6, I found the religion to be full of lies because when I prayed the energy I felt from God was very different than the energy in the church. my mother was gracious enough to stop bringing me and allowed me to worship God in the way I was comfortable. I will always thank her for that.

However the devil with all respect as a true being, would have to be a complete idiot to embrace tyranny, when he has surely been exposed to truths that would have cast illumination on this condition. Even a person with the average psychological savvy would know better, let alone one who is reputed to be the fallen remains of a once-favored Angel.
So yeah... the story seems to have some holes in it.


It is extremely possible thought that the 'devil' is working for God to help condition us. I think with testing, the test results are for us not God, because really... in my take the Creator knows all, so there would be no need to test us for his own knowledge because he already knows us right down to the smallest cell and the thought that came before the manifestation of that cell.., but it would help us to know ourselves by being subjected to tests that cause certain things to come out of our character that we didn't fully realize or admit were there...

The Adam and Eve parable essentially indicates to me, by the act of eating the apple, mistrust.
I don't think they were sent out from God's fury, but by natural dynamics.
When you distrust something you disconnect from it.
And in distrusting our Source, we distrust ourselves...leading to confusion, and wandering in a kind of wildernes, and having to learn in a less than supported way until we can reconnect to trust.
Without trust the world can be very cold indeed, often by our own choice...In that lays the trick, I think. When we are strongly mistrustful it indicates we don't trust ourselves, and can be very telling if we can analyze ourselves in a less egotistical way.
*winks*

Just thoughts...
Thankyou again for giving me the link to this thread.
I have enjoyed this. I appreciate being able to talk intelligently and with unnecessary passion about spirituality and religion. It's more valuable than you know.
Thank God for Interfaith...

And you know what...I think this thread will bloom again *winks*


Love&Light
-Blu

Blu mentioned this discussion to me, and since it's one of my favorite topics, thought I'd drop over with my two cents...

I view the Adam & Eve story as a representation of the moment we created the illusion of separation between ourselves, each other and God (or, insert name of preferred deity here).

God dwells in the realm of the absolute. In the absolute, everything is God and there is nothing that is not God. In order to experience that which we are, we need a way to experience that which we are not...

We live in the relative... everything here is relative to it's opposite. We know light, because we also know dark. We know left, up, and there, because we can also experience right, down, and here...

I think that A&E story depicts the moment when we chose to FORGET that we are all one, that we are not separate from God and from each other, so that we may experience our sense of ME or I or Self (ego?), and also experience OTHERS who appear to be separate from us, and then, through our experiences here in the relative, come to re-member who we really are...

I don't believe in the devil, nor in hell, in the traditional bibical way. I think the devil perhaps represents the choices that we make that are not in accordance with who we really are (beings of perfect light, a small piece of God experiencing itself). Hell too, represents to be the consquences of the choices that we make that aren't in accordance with our Higher Self, experienced here and now on earth (not in some dark, hot place we are cast because God is angry with us -- how can God be angry with or cast part of itself away?).

As a wave in the ocean is still part of the ocean as a whole, so are we, still a part of God as a whole, yet appearing separate...

JMO *shrugs*

Blessings
AngelGirlWing

Originally Posted by AngelGirlWing

Blu mentioned this discussion to me, and since it's one of my favorite topics, thought I'd drop over with my two cents...

God dwells in the realm of the absolute. In the absolute, everything is God and there is nothing that is not God. In order to experience that which we are, we need a way to experience that which we are not...

As a wave in the ocean is still part of the ocean as a whole, so are we, still a part of God as a whole, yet appearing separate...

JMO *shrugs*

Blessings
AngelGirlWing

Hi Angelwing,

I thought you might like this quotation from a famous saint called Chaitanya:

"On the transcendental platform everything is absolute. Yet there are also varieties in the spiritual world, and in order to taste these spiritual varieties one should distinguish between them."

He said we are simultaneously both one and different from God, and on the Absolute platform there is also activity and reciprocation between both God and His servants.

Hare Krishna,

your servant,

Das

Personally, I would agree with the essayist that choice is essential to being human. I believe it is also essential to G-d -- that G-d wants people to have free choice, because only when people are free to choose evil does their choice of good have any meaning. It's trite but true -- without evil, good does not exist.

If Adam and Eve had "obeyed" they would not have been good. As the essayist points out, they would have been robots. To have people automatically doing X, Y, or Z does nothing for G-d. People choosing to bring good into the world, people choosing peace, love, justice, and right ... that is what makes G-d's world complete.

I love the essayist's point that the serpent was an agent of change, not of evil. Change can be perceived as evil so often -- but it can also be good.

And now I'm going to scroll up to the top of the page and copy down his name.

Aha, Brian Takle. I fully agree with Brian Takle. :)

Originally Posted by Bluedigits

I am still leaning towards looking at Satan as a corruptor influence, but I don't say this to shove it down anyone's throat.

Take a look at this thread as well.

Originally Posted by Bluedigits

However the devil with all respect as a true being, would have to be a complete idiot to embrace tyranny, when he has surely been exposed to truths that would have cast illumination on this condition. Even a person with the average psychological savvy would know better, let alone one who is reputed to be the fallen remains of a once-favored Angel.


So yeah... the story seems to have some holes in it.

It is extremely possible thought that the 'devil' is working for God to help condition us.

Although (if I’m following you correctly), remember, Takle’s assertion seems to be that the Serpent figure did NOT represent/symbolize the Devil…

Originally Posted by Bluedigits

The Adam and Eve parable essentially indicates to me, by the act of eating the apple, mistrust.

Look at this thread as well.
___________________________

Originally Posted by AngelGirlWing

I view the Adam & Eve story as a representation of the moment we created the illusion of separation between ourselves, each other and God (or, insert name of preferred deity here).

I think that A&E story depicts the moment when we chose to FORGET that we are all one, that we are not separate from God and from each other, so that we may experience our sense of ME or I or Self (ego?), and also experience OTHERS who appear to be separate from us, and then, through our experiences here in the relative, come to re-member who we really are...

Interesting psychological interpretation here. But, ultimately, I think I’m with you on the theme of having to have separation before there can ever be re-union (if I’m understanding you correctly).
__________________________

Originally Posted by Elen0Sila

Personally, I would agree with the essayist that choice is essential to being human. I believe it is also essential to G-d -- that G-d wants people to have free choice, because only when people are free to choose evil does their choice of good have any meaning.

Originally Posted by Elen0Sila

If Adam and Eve had "obeyed" they would not have been good. As the essayist points out, they would have been robots. To have people automatically doing X, Y, or Z does nothing for G-d. People choosing to bring good into the world, people choosing peace, love, justice, and right ... that is what makes G-d's world complete.

Well said; I’m in complete agreement with you. This is the aspect of Takle’s interpretation of the Garden of Eden myth that I—personally—find so meaningful…