Letter to a friend

Hello dear friend,

I appreciate your sending me that “silver refining” story. However, I believe it is in error with regards to the nature of God/Goddess/Source.
I do not believe in a God that chastises, tries, disciplines, “refines”, or punishes in any way. Remembering that Job was not tried by God but by the Adversary. This is an arbritrary concept conceived by a tribal mentality that needed to have a vindictive, judgemental “God” who would punish their enemies as they went forth to conquer neighboring tribes. Interesting how it’s still happening today with certain nefarious individuals claiming that “God told them” to go make war with Afghanistan and Iraq and spread imperialistic corporate tentacles everywhere. This concept is in the same genre as the one that says if you prosper you must be “good” and if you’re poor you must be “sinning”. And again, today we have that same concept in action as the poor of the world continue to be exploited with “some individuals” justifying it because they “can”. This is not the God who created the Universe, created and LOVES all sentient beings residing in it, with no prejudice and playing no favorites or having any so called “chosen people”. We are ALL chosen, loved, equal. Certain people would have us believing otherwise, believing LIES.
I believe that God gave us soverign FREE WILL. We make choices that have consequences for good or ill in our lives. Suffering, “bad luck”, pain, illness, poverty, war, hatred, prejudice, are all outcomes of the choices PEOPLE make. To ascribe these things to God is to abdicate personal responsibility, an immature attempt to “get off the hook”…too many people do this these days, especially fundamentalists (of all religions). Sometimes shit just does happen as a result of the “human condition” (which is NOT sin).
I believe we are all evolving beings and I have hope for the “salvation” of EVERYBODY. To evolve is to learn and grow and continue. Learning from our choices (like if you touch a hot stove, burnie burnie!) learning from the consequences of them. “Bad” things happen in the world because we’re all evolving even on a global level. The reason things are shitty right now is that people with the power are making shitty choices and it is affecting all of us, even innocent people having nothing personally to do with those choices. Even global warming is a result of shitty (oily) choices.
So when “bad” things happen to you, when things don’t go “your” way…it’s not God arbitrarly moving you around the chess board of life like some helpless pawn, you need to look at the choices you’re making.
Are they generous choices or selfish ones? Are they for the highest good or just for yourself? Are you choosing anger over understanding, grudges over forgiveness? Everything I am saying to you, I am of course saying to myself. What else can I do. You see I am responsible for my choices as well.

Much love,