November 2007 Archives

Friday is Book Day on the blog, when we take a look at books – old and new -- that I highly recommend you not miss. This week’s recommended reading: Soul to Soul: Communications from the Heart

My wonderful friend Gary Zukav has just released his latest book, a collection of his personal and heartfelt thoughts about many aspects of life.

In its review of this new volume Publisher's Weekly said:

"This new work claims to be written directly from his heart, and the personal, intimate tone fulfills that promise. The first half explores soul subjects, or observations of physical circumstances plus a recognition of what they mean. The second half answers philosophical ponderings labeled here as soul questions.

"In very brief essays both sections address key subjects: love, fear, choice, responsibility, letting go, trusting life's processes. In Zukav's understanding, we are all attending Earth School, where in repeated incarnations we are given opportunities to fulfill our soul's mission. He cogently asserts that as more of us gain multi-sensory perception-the ability to intuit meaning beyond data gathered by our five senses-we are coming to understand how our choices impact our every moment and therefore our soul's work."

Of course, I agree with Gary profoundly in this regard. Our soul HAS come here to do "work" -- and it is the work of deciding and defining Who We Are and Who We Choose to Be. In other words, it is the work of Self Creation. Or, as some would have it, of Evolution.

In my view we are evolving the spirit; we are "evolving God." We are God, in the process of "godding" -- or becoming what we next choose to be. This is the work of the soul, and it is accomplished as a moment-to-moment encounter with life.

Gary Zukav has one of the greatest minds of our time. His spiritual insight is wondrous to behold, and that is apparent in everything he has ever written. Moreover, he is a kind and gentle man, utterly without bile. He has curbed every violent tendency of word or action that he might ever have (like all humans) had, and he sees everything through the lens of spirituality. That is, he views all of life -- each and every single moment -- as a spiritual event, a spiritual encounter, a spiritual experience, and an expression of spirituality itself.

I am excited that Gary has released another book -- and I note with interest the final line in the Publisher's Weekly review:

"His probing choice -- revenge or compassion -- regarding September 11th is alone more than worth the cost of the book."

Even if you do not agree with everything that this magnificent observer has to say, I predict that you will surely find it intellectually stimulating, spiritually inspiring, and emotionally rewarding to pick up this latest Zukav volume.

(The Publisher's Weekly review is Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

On Tuesday in this space I wrote about a young woman in Saudi Arabia who has just been sentenced to over 180 lashes for meeting a man on a beach in the dark of night and daring to have sex with him.

The situation is more aggravated than that, however. Let me begin today's entry by re-printing here what I wrote on Tuesday. If you already read that entry, skip past it here...

By now you have all heard about it. A 19-year-old woman in Saudi Arabia was gang-raped by a group of seven men who attacked both her and the man she was with -- and the woman was sentenced to 90 lashes for meeting with the man! When the woman appealed her sentence, a Saudi court more than doubled it.

No one inside or outside the Saudi Arabian legal justice system disputes the fact that the woman had been brutally attacked. But after international outrage, the Saudi government over the weekend sought to explain why the woman was sentenced to over 180 lashes.

(It should be noted here that, after the appeal, the men who attacked her also had their sentences increased, from the initial sentence of 10 months to five years, to two to nine years in prison, by the Qatif General Court.)

The explanation for the severe lashing sentence given to the woman? The Saudi Arabian government said Saturday that the woman had an "illegitimate relationship" with a man who was not her husband, and that both "exposed themselves to this heinous crime."

In Saudi Arabia, it should be explained, people are subject to pure Sharia rulings -- strict Islamic law. The Sharia is the official legal interpretation and application of the Qur'an. In other words, it is the legal pronouncement of What God Wants.

What God Wants in this case is for a 19-year-old woman to receive more than 180 lashes because she fell in love with a man, allegedly went with him to a beach after dark, where, according to the Saudi government statement, the group of attackers "saw her in a compromising situation, her clothes on the ground. The men at this point assaulted her and the man with her."

The Saudi statement went on to say that the woman knew that being alone with a man who wasn't her husband was illegal, "and therefore she violated the covenant of marriage." The statement did not say, however, that the multiple brutal rape took place in March 2006, when the young lady was 18 and that at the time the woman was engaged -- not married. Apparently this circumstance makes no difference to God, or to the Saudi court.

I am so sickened when I hear of any situation or event that involves violence, one human being upon another...but I find it especially repugnant when that violence is perpetrated upon a person based on the idea of someone in authority about What God Wants.

Does God -- as interpreted by Sharia law -- really want this 19-year-old woman to suffer over 180 lashes because she was brutally attacked and gang raped, allegedly while making love to a man on the beach? What kind of God wants that???? Does God say 'No!' to an 18-year-old girl who simply fell in love -- or lust?

To make matters worse here, the young woman claims that she was forced to meet privately with the man. There are allegations that she simply wanted to retrieve some photographs from him since she was now engaged -- and that he forced her to meet with him in order to get them back, leading to the incident on the beach.

However the two happened to be there, whatever bad judgment may have been used (if it was 'bad judgment' at all), is it really our thought that the decisions made here are not What God Wants? What kind of a God spews anger and retribution in the form of 180 lashes upon an 18-year-old girl who is accused of doing nothing more than take off her clothes and make love with someone?

(And while we are on the subject, what does the Sharia say about What God Wants with regard to an 18-year-old MAN who does the same thing???)

And while we are on the subject of God's desires...what kind of God wants the State of Texas to kill more people intentionally through the death penalty than the rest of the United States combined?

What is going on here? What kind of a God do we think we have? Even presuming that an unmarried 18-year-old woman deserves punishment for making love to a man on the beach in the middle of the night -- would not suffering a brutal multiple rape be considered punishment enough? Could not the Saudi court see past its strict interpretation of Shari law and arrive at a place of mercy or compassion in this case?

It is small wonder that people in many Western nations are leery, to say the least, about Islam and Islamic law and some Islamic countries and radical Islamic terrorists who want the whole world to live under Islamic law. This is the law they want the world to be ruled by?

And what about fundamentalist Christians who support the death penalty based on their understanding that this is What God Wants? Does God really want us to purposefully kill people as a means of stopping people from purposefully killing people? Is this how we deter people from a certain behavior? By exhibiting the behavior ourselves?

What gives here? What is wrong?

I wrote that on Tuesday, and then I promised some ideas about this today. So here are my thoughts on the matter. I think that many people have no understanding at all of Who God Is and of What God Wants. I think that many people have...

Wednesday is Question and Answer Day on the blog...a time for exploring many of the questions that people have recently asked about the nine Conversations with God books and the New Spirituality. Here's this week's entry...

Topic: Are you a Christian?
Question asked by: Jacqueline
Question: Neale...I just saw the movie based on your book and I cried so hard for the situation you were in (making eye contact with a young boy while leaning up against a dumpster eating a sandwich).

I. too, was raised Roman Catholic and left the church in search of truth. I became a non-denominational christian. I still find many people do not understand the depth of my love for people, it is not from me, but from God. I started a ministy called "God's kitchen" feeding and delivering hot meals to local shelters WITH LOVE. Not to be mistaken with a soup kitchen where many are treated like cattle. My children and I made cards for the shelter residents encouraging them to keep on going.

Unfortunately, our church no longer wanted "that riff-raff" to come to service on Sunday mornings, so I left the church too. Do you consider yourself a Christian? I am not sure what to make of all of this. I love your philosophy, but is it considered "Christian" or something else? It seems like I finally found one who thinks as I do and loves as deeply as I love.

Neale's Response: My Dear Jacqueline...I would not describe myself as a Christian, at least not according to the fundamentalist Christian definition of which I am aware. I would describe myself as a Chrismuslijewdian.

I do not believe that there is only "one way to God", and that everyone who does not take that way is going to hell. I simply do not believe that. And frankly, I don't know many people who do. I know that they are out there, but I do not know many, personally. I think we've pretty much graduated from this limited idea. I think most of us pretty much understand that God welcomes all God's children back home, and that "spiritual worthiness" is not about taking a particular path or adopting a particular belief or saying a particular prayer or doing a particular ritual or following a particular discipline. I think most of us are clear that there is more than one way up the mountain.

And so I can declare that there is enormous truth in every religion -- but not the Whole Truth in any single one of them. Thus, I am also a Hindudibuddian. And a Mormonishintodian. In short, I guess I am an Everythingian.

Thank you for your kind words. And for the way you are choosing to show up in our world. If you keep this up -- sending all this love and goodness into the world -- I think I could become a Jacquelinian!

Love....Neale.

(Ask Neale may be accessed on a daily basis in the Messengers’ Circle at Neale's personal website: www.nealedonaldwalsch.com. Each week Neale selects a question from those posted there and publishes it in this blog.)

By now you have all heard about it. A 19-year-old woman in Saudi Arabia was gang-raped by a group of seven men who attacked both her and the man she was with -- and the woman was sentenced to 90 lashes for meeting with the man! When the woman appealed her sentence, a Saudi court more than doubled it.

No one inside or outside the Saudi Arabian legal justice system disputes the fact that the woman had been brutally attacked. But after international outrage, the Saudi government over the weekend sought to explain why the woman was sentenced to over 180 lashes.

(It should be noted here that, after the appeal, the men who attacked her also had their sentences increased, from the initial sentence of 10 months to five years, to two to nine years in prison, by the Qatif General Court.)

The explanation for the severe lashing sentence given to the woman? The Saudi Arabian government said Saturday that the woman had an "illegitimate relationship" with a man who was not her husband, and that both "exposed themselves to this heinous crime."

In Saudi Arabia, it should be explained, people are subject to pure Sharia rulings -- strict Islamic law. The Sharia is the official legal interpretation and application of the Qur'an. In other words, it is the legal pronouncement of What God Wants.

What God Wants in this case is for a 19-year-old woman to receive more than 180 lashes because she fell in love with a man, allegedly went with him to a beach after dark, where, according to the Saudi government statement, the group of attackers "saw her in a compromising situation, her clothes on the ground. The men at this point assaulted her and the man with her."

The Saudi statement went on to say that the woman knew that being alone with a man who wasn't her husband was illegal, "and therefore she violated the covenant of marriage." The statement did not say, however, that the multiple brutal rape took place in March 2006, when the young lady was 18 and that at the time the woman was engaged -- not married. Apparently this circumstance makes no difference to God, or to the Saudi court.

I am so sickened when I hear of any situation or event that involves violence, one human being upon another...but I find it especially repugnant when that violence is perpetrated upon a person based on the idea of someone in authority of What God Wants.

Does God -- as interpreted by Sharia law -- really want this 19-year-old woman to suffer over 180 lashes because she was brutally attacked and gang raped, allegedly while making love to a man on the beach? What kind of God wants that???? Does God say 'No!' to an 18-year-old girl who simply fell in love -- or lust?

To make matters worse here, the young woman claims that she was forced to meet privately with the man. There are allegations that she simply wanted to retrieve some photographs from him since she was now engaged -- and that he forced her to meet with him in order to get them back, leading to the incident on the beach.

However the two happened to be there, whatever bad judgment may have been used (if it was 'bad judgment' at all), is it really our thought that the decisions made here are not What God Wants? What kind of a God spews anger and retribution in the form of 180 lashes upon an 18-year-old girl who is accused of doing nothing more than take off her clothes and make love with someone?

(And while we are on the subject, what does the Sharia say about What God Wants with regard to an 18-year-old MAN who does the same thing???)

And while we are on the subject of God's desires...what kind of God wants the State of Texas to kill more people intentionally through the death penalty than the rest of the United States combined?

What is going on here? What kind of a God do we think we have? Even presuming that an unmarried 18-year-old woman deserves punishment for making love to a man on the beach in the middle of the night -- would not suffering a brutal multiple rape be considered punishment enough? Could not the Saudi court see past its strict interpretation of Shari law and arrive at a place of mercy or compassion in this case?

It is small wonder that people in many Western nations are leery, to say the least, about Islam and Islamic law and some Islamic countries and radical Islamic terrorists who want the whole world to live under Islamic law. This is the law they want the world to be ruled by?

And what about fundamentalist Christians who support the death penalty based on their understanding that this is What God Wants? Does God really want us to purposefully kill people as a means of stopping people from purposefully killing people? Is this how we deter people from a certain behavior? By exhibiting the behavior ourselves?

What gives here? What is wrong?

Some ideas about this on Thursday...

-- described by her attorney as a former friend from whom she was retrieving a photograph.

Is the Bible literally accurate? Was the world created in six days? On the seventh day, did God rest? Did this all happen thousands of years ago...or millions?

Can you even comprehend what a million years looks like? Feels like? I mean, can you hold that kind of a number in your imagination? Is there any path allowing you to relate to that in a meaningful way?

Dig this: A man named Paul Sereno--a National Geographic explore-in-residence and paleontologist at the University of Chicago--has recovered, assembled, and displayed "a dinosaur with a strange jaw designed to hoover up food" with a vacuum-like mouth, having teeth only in the front. The dinosaur is said to have grazed in what is now the Sahara Desert 110 million years ago.

Are you listening to this? I said 110 million years ago.

Is somebody kidding me here? Are we saying that mammals walked this earth 110 million years ago? Does anybody have even a beginning idea, even a primitive concept, of how long 110 million years is?

Now you tell me this: How is it possible, in the face of evidence such as this, for anyone to claim with a serious face that God created the earth and gave it Life a few thousand years back?

Now, what is really astonishing, what is really mind-blowing, is the realization that 110 million years is like yesterday in the history of the Universe. Our earth is one of the youngest of the planets in the cosmos.

What does that do to your mind? Does it kind of rattle things around a bit? Does it sort of shake things up?

And where does God fit into all of this? Did "God" create the heavens and the earth? How? When? For what?

I was asked, a few years ago, by Matt Lauer on the TODAY show on NBC, what is God's message to the world? "We have only 30 seconds, so could you put it into one short paragraph?" I told Matt I could do better than that. I could put it into five words...

"You've got me all wrong."

I don't think we understand a thing about the Universe. Not a doggone thing, on the scale of Reality. And I don't think we understand a thing about God. Not a doggone thing, on the scale of Ultimate Reality. We have the arrogance to think that we do...and that arrogance is leading us to kill each other. (SEE: The New Wars of Religion, The Economist, Nov. 3-9, 2007, an 18-age special report on faith and politics, mentioned in this space two days ago.)

Do you think we might, one day, actually grow up? Actually admit that we know nothing...nothing...about God and Life and Ultimate Reality?

Yet if this is true, where does it leave us? Ah, yes, that is the question, isn't it....

As for dinosaurs, is it possible that the real dinosaur here is the Creationist Doctrine of some religions, a dogma that would have us believe that all life on the earth was created a few thousand years ago?