Today I came home to find a tract on the Four Spiritual Laws from the Baptist church down the street hanging on my door. Yup, despite the signs posted at the entrance to the trailer park that say "No Solicitation", the missionaries are at work. It's too bad that I wasn't at home when they came, because they would have been fun to take on, after the conversation I had the other day with the college student.
Because, again, they are making the same assumptions as she did. The tract was entitled "How to Get to Heaven From Michigan" and featured a picture of the Mackinac Bridge. Assumption number one is that I even believe in Heaven/Hell and am interested in going to the former and not the latter when I die. But what if I don't? This pamphlet ONLY makes sense if one believes that there is a soul that survives the body--I do not. My reasoning is based on what I understand science has learned about the brain and the fact that to date, there have been zero lifeforms discovered that are purely spiritual. Even the smallest of microbes has a physical body of some sort. Now, if science were to discover some form of energy that was also alive then maybe I might revisit the conceot of soul but for now I think it is a beautiful but wistful fantasy. I think I threw the assistant pastor of my old church slightly off-guard when I asked "If the soul can live without the body, then why does there need to be a resurrection? What would we need our bodies for?" He said something about the body being like clothes and presumably we need to have them otherwise we would just be naked souls running around Heaven and God knows THAT just won't do.
Earlier when I was out and running around town I saw another church's marquee that read, "Life Without God is Like Dribbling a Football." Really? The assumption here is that non-believers like myself are struggling through life, always fumbling and never getting it right, while the believers enjoy smooth sailing. I have to admit you can't lose with that. Not only do you get to go to Heaven when you die, you get to have it good right here on earth as well. The problem is, it's not true. And if I recall correctly, the Book of Job takes direct aim at such nonsense. Being of a scientific mind, however, I'd like to see how they arrived at that conclusion. Because from where I stand it is not so clear-cut. I've known plenty of "believers" who live as if they were trying to dribble a football (can't be done, which is the point) and plenty of people who don't give God in whatever form a second thought who are scoring touchdown after touchdown and making basket after basket. And the people who put up that marquee know it too. It doesn't stop them from making the claim though.
Anyway I am sure disappointed that I missed the good Baptists because I have been itching to spread the Gospel of the Four Noble Truths and lead them to see that there is a way out of this endless cycle of reincarnation. It must break Buddha's heart to see people living over and over and over and not getting it right. Why there are millions of people who haven't a clue that they don't have to keep on this way! As my old pastor said regarding Hell, what kind of hate does it take to simply watch people go down the road to perdition and not say a word? So if you will excuse me I think I will print up some tracts and take them over to the Baptists. They are such good people even if they are ignorant of the Noble Eightfold Path. After all, recycling is for materials, not souls.
Because, again, they are making the same assumptions as she did. The tract was entitled "How to Get to Heaven From Michigan" and featured a picture of the Mackinac Bridge. Assumption number one is that I even believe in Heaven/Hell and am interested in going to the former and not the latter when I die. But what if I don't? This pamphlet ONLY makes sense if one believes that there is a soul that survives the body--I do not. My reasoning is based on what I understand science has learned about the brain and the fact that to date, there have been zero lifeforms discovered that are purely spiritual. Even the smallest of microbes has a physical body of some sort. Now, if science were to discover some form of energy that was also alive then maybe I might revisit the conceot of soul but for now I think it is a beautiful but wistful fantasy. I think I threw the assistant pastor of my old church slightly off-guard when I asked "If the soul can live without the body, then why does there need to be a resurrection? What would we need our bodies for?" He said something about the body being like clothes and presumably we need to have them otherwise we would just be naked souls running around Heaven and God knows THAT just won't do.
Earlier when I was out and running around town I saw another church's marquee that read, "Life Without God is Like Dribbling a Football." Really? The assumption here is that non-believers like myself are struggling through life, always fumbling and never getting it right, while the believers enjoy smooth sailing. I have to admit you can't lose with that. Not only do you get to go to Heaven when you die, you get to have it good right here on earth as well. The problem is, it's not true. And if I recall correctly, the Book of Job takes direct aim at such nonsense. Being of a scientific mind, however, I'd like to see how they arrived at that conclusion. Because from where I stand it is not so clear-cut. I've known plenty of "believers" who live as if they were trying to dribble a football (can't be done, which is the point) and plenty of people who don't give God in whatever form a second thought who are scoring touchdown after touchdown and making basket after basket. And the people who put up that marquee know it too. It doesn't stop them from making the claim though.
Anyway I am sure disappointed that I missed the good Baptists because I have been itching to spread the Gospel of the Four Noble Truths and lead them to see that there is a way out of this endless cycle of reincarnation. It must break Buddha's heart to see people living over and over and over and not getting it right. Why there are millions of people who haven't a clue that they don't have to keep on this way! As my old pastor said regarding Hell, what kind of hate does it take to simply watch people go down the road to perdition and not say a word? So if you will excuse me I think I will print up some tracts and take them over to the Baptists. They are such good people even if they are ignorant of the Noble Eightfold Path. After all, recycling is for materials, not souls.
