Every Day is Good

We've all heard the expression that everyday is a good day. Usually when we are having a bad one. ;) In reality though there is a real truth revealed in this expression. The reality is that every day truly is a good day. I can hear some objecting already. You may think that your day was horrible but in truth that is only your perspective and doesn't affect the truth of the statement. Every day is perfect in and of itself. Every day is exactly as it should be. Every day contains all the past as well as all the future. Every day expresses the fullness of time, actually every moment. Usually when we say that it's a bad day what we really mean is bad for us. If we planned a picnic and it rained then it didn't work well according to our plans. However if you're a farmer it was probably a great day for you if it rained. Every day is perfectly what God intended it to be, regardless of how we feel about it or what happened to us. What we add to the day is merely our perceptions of how the situation and circumstances of our life worked according to how the day went. We may perceive this as good or bad, but both are false. The day is just what it is: perfect. Every day contains the entire of history as well as the future, this is why we can say every day expresses the fullness of time as it contains all of the past, present, and future. So how was your day?

Sin as Selfishness

All sin can be boiled down to one concept, selfishness. All sinful actions are the result of selfishness and have their root in selfishness. The selfish, ego driven person sins again and again. The ten commandments would have been the most unnecessary rules for living had man not been a selfish being. If you read the ten commandments they are all warnings against selfish behaviors. A person who lies is being selfish. They only care about preserving and protecting themselves and what is inevitabley a false identitiy. The person who steals is operating with the idea that what they want is the most important thing and anything done to fulfill that want is justified as long as it benefits them. Killing is a selfish act. Think about the other commandments and you will see that they are all warnings against a egocentric world view.
Jesus' entire teaching was against selfishness hence him saying, "My kingdom is not of this world." John 18:36 The main teachings of Jesus centered around forgiveness, love, compassion, and renunciation of worldly treasures. All of these things take a unselfish and altruistic person to fulfill.
Buddhism doesn't have sin in the same way that Christianity does but the law of karma is a very close relative. Karma is plain to see; negative thoughts and actions produce negative results. All bad karma is the result of the false view that there is a tangible self that exists seperate from the world and the desire to preserve this sense of self. Bad karma = selfish action. When we act out of loving kindness, operate from a position of understanding and forgiveness good things naturally flow into our life. The person with few desires and wants is liberated and happy knowing they have what they need.

Formerly Solitary Buddhist

I have not posted here for a long time. I'm now back and should be posting regularly. The title of this blog was formerly 'Solitary Buddhist' but I have changed the name to reflect where I am at in my current spiritual life. I have been on a journey over the last year that has involved dramatic change in my life personally and spiritually. I have come to a new and greater understanding in my life as well as a renewal of my traditional upbringing in the Christian faith. I used to be very anti Christianity, you could almost say hostile. For years I never looked at the bible or read it. This was after having been very religious in my youth. I turned my back on Christianity when I was about 17 years old after feeling that it didn't answer some of the questions I had back then. I also just didn't connect with the majority of people that I met calling themselves Christian. I found Buddhism and it seemed to answer the questions that Christianity didn't. Namely, Buddhism gave a very clear description of why we suffer and the way out of that suffering. It offers a very clear and valid way of understanding the world around us. Recently I returned to reading the bible with the goal of just discovering for myself what it contained. I entered with the intention of ignoring all the things you hear from preachers, TV Evangelists, born agains, and others with their own selective and often selfish opinions on the teachings of Jesus. What I found is that the problem isn't with the bible and what is written therein but with the people who read it from a purely surface perspective. The things Jesus talked about were mainly meant to be understood and contemplated in a spiritual vein. I think that many who preach, teach, or call themselves Christians do not have a very deep understanding of what the message of Jesus truly is. Especially those who use Christianity as a way of judging others and justifying their own prejudiced beliefs. I also do not think many Christians understand real meditation. I have heard Christians talk about meditation but it seems that their idea is really just more thinking. Meditation is meant to go beyond mere thinking. It is meant to help us transcend the chatterbox that is rambling incessantly all day and return to our selves in quietude. The posts that will follow will be about what I think it means to be a Christian-Buddhist from my perspective. Also, I will include insights into scripture as well as correlations between Buddhism and Christianity. There will also be a chat group connected with the blog that will meet every Saturday so that others who agree or disagree with me can gather and have discussions.