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Saturday, February 6, 2010

Religion, Faith and God

For some reason, faith often causes a lot of cahos. Wars are faught when people's faiths conflict. Men and women stay awake at night, unable to sleep beause they are scared of what will happen to them after they die. In other words, all of humanity gets consumed by their beliefs.

However, faith is not something to pull your hair out about. And when I say that, I don't mean that faith isn't an important thing to think about. It is. What I am saying is that the experience of descovering and eventually expressing one's faith should be an enjoyable process.


I mean, think about it this way. Right now, in this moment, you are presented with an infinate amount of new ways in which you can view the world. You are open to the possibility that there is a God, one specific entity that oversees and touches all of creation. At the same time, you are open to considering the possiblity that there may not be a God. You also probably admit that if there is a God, you are not sure as to what said God is like.
People say that "The wisest man is the man that understands that he understands nothing."  However, if this is true, we are all wise. Everybody in the world questions their surroundings. Every individual is open to the possiblity that he or she might be wrong about something, or might need to know more (whether or not he or she likes to admit it). In other words, people are are admitting that they are not sure of their surroundings. Nobody is positive about how the world works. Nobody is 100% sure of God. As a result of this, people are strongly compelled to look even harder for answers. They are open to seeking out truth. And that is pretty damn wise!

However, at the same time, many people are very scared. They seem to be under the impression that God is a both a mystery and a well-kept secret. They seem to believe that over the course of your lifetime, they either will or will not solve the mystery that is God. They also seem to believe that it is your mission to uncover this secret truth about God.

In my opinion, this line of thinking is flawed. For example, As of right now, you are a human being living on earth who is confused about God. Surrounding you, are a billions of other people who are just as confused as you. Other than that, the world is fairly empty. It doesn't matter how long it takes. In fifty years, you are still going to be a confused human being, surrounded by other confused people. And that will be about it. The world isn't going to change much as you get older. In other words, you will have no further clues to help you solve the mystery of God than you already have right now. And if nothing changes and you can't figure it out now, what makes you think that you will ever be able to fully comprehend the complexity of devine power? What are the chances that you will actually fugure out God's secret?

But, none of that really matters, because faith isn't about knowing for sure. The entire concept of faith relies on believing in something without proof.

In other words, if you are having problems, look to your heart. Decide what you want to believe. Even though God does not reveal himself/herself directly to us (provided that God exists, of course), he/she has provided us with excellent intuition and reasoning abilities. Look to those. Even though God (provided he/she exists) may not be coming right out and telling you the truth about the universe, he/she did create you with an abundance of curosity. So go ahead and explore your thoughts and feelings. Begin your journey towards faith; towards believing in something that cannot be proven. And do not worry about being wrong. If God wanted you to know who he/she is, he/she would have told you. Obviously you are meant to struggle through this and think for yourself!

Also, stop telling other people what to believe. We are all equally knowledgeable on the subject of the devine. Please allow every individual to look into their own hearts and minds, in order to let them begin their own journeys towards faith. Allow them the freedom to to make their own judgements, decide what God(s) they believe in (if any), etc. Do not deny others a spiritual journey!

...Discuss? :)

Miss Tanya

Wednesday, February 3, 2010

Valentine's Day Gift Giving

Having trouble thinking of a gift to get your girl or guy? Here are some tips to get you started:

1. Start with the classics. Chocolate, candy, card and some romantic time alone. Valentine's Day is about expressing your feelings towards your loved ones. So begin with that. Do something small, with the aim of showing him that you care. Once you know what you are doing to take care of the romantic aspect of Valentine's Day, half of the battle is over.

2. Something related to his or her interests is always a good idea. For example, if he/she likes the Bruins, go for that. Maybe you could get him/her a pair of tickets to a game and the two of you could go together!

3. As far as jokes go, by all means, make your significant other laugh. Buy her or him something related to an inside joke that the two of you share. Or, think back to the funniest moment the two of you shared and give her or him something that is representative of that.

4.If all else fails, just go browsing. Walk around your local mall or shopping centre and just see what's there. There may be cool items out there that you never would have even thought of buying him or her.

Any other thoughts? 
What are you people giving your lovers this Valentine's Day?
Do you celebrate Valentine's Day at all?
What are your thoughts on this topic?

Let me know!

Miss Tanya