Hmmmmm.....when you are not in your "believing in spirituality mode", what do you think?
________________________________ From: Susan <waybac...@yahoo.com> To: FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com Sent: Wednesday, September 12, 2012 6:08 PM Subject: [FairfieldLife] Re: Is Jesus = to God --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, Emily Reyn <emilymae.reyn@...> wrote: > > <snip> > "I think Yogananda wrote some long translations and commentary of the Gita > from a Christian perspective, explaining the similarities between > Hinduism/Gita and Christianity, what the terms in the Bible really mean in > Hindu terms etc. Yogananda claimed to see Jesus and talk with him. He was > devoted to Jesus and saw him as a realized Master." > > > This is completely consistent with my premise that there are many prophets, > but only one ultimate "God/Energy/Universe."  Tee Hee.  When in my believing in spirituality mode, I agree with you! Reading Yogananda can be very sweet, uplifting, and convincing. > > ________________________________ > From: Susan <wayback71@...> > To: FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com > Sent: Wednesday, September 12, 2012 5:46 PM > Subject: [FairfieldLife] Re: Is Jesus = to God > > >  > > > --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, Emily Reyn <emilymae.reyn@> wrote: > > > > I found this paragraph interesting, if not creative.  > > > > "I am not sure about this. For one thing, don't Christians take their > > Jesus to be equal to God, part of the trinity? What do you think they > > take him as? > > One of 3 different manifestations of the Divine: God (unmanifest), the > earthy/human manifestation is the Son, or Jesus, and the Holy Spirit/Holy > Ghost, which is not manifest like Jesus but is the active agent of God in the > universe and on earth. All are equal aspects of the Divine, with God as the > more Unbounded/Unmanifest version. Jesus had to go thru an evolution process > to realize his true nature as the Son, though. > > That's the criticism of Islam, which is precisely that the Christians see him > more than a prophet, but equal to God. If you think of God more in the > Eastern way, which means not a personal God, then it is easier to see how a > man can express that he is equal to God, that is, if he now locates his > identity with the principle of consciousness itself. If someone has > defeated the ego, one's limited imperfections, and is now completely clear > and open to the transcendent, can he not say he IS God, in essence? " > > Most mainstream Christians would agree with this understanding, that Jesus, > even while representing God on earth, was also human and had to go thru > typical human suffering and growth until he became pure enough to realize his > divinity. Still, they think of Jesus as a special human since he is God's > Son and his personal mission was to send a message about God to humanity. > And somehow (can't get this straight) his death wiped out humanity's sins, or > wiped out that bad karma for all believers in Jesus. > > >  I was taught about the "divine right of Kings" in the US education > > system."  ~Avram3 > > > > Of course evangelicals take their Jesus to be equal to God. > > I think most evangelicals feel that if you don't accept Jesus as your savior > and as the Son of God, then you won't be "saved" from all your sins by Jesus > and cannot go to Heaven in the afterlife. This is in contrast to more > mainstream Christianity, where many churches believe that there are many > paths to God, but theirs is Jesus. They tend to think that good people of > many faiths will be with God after death, whether thru Jesus or their own > faith. One of the main ideas in Christianity is that good works do not earn > you admission to Heaven. It is the Belief that counts, even if that belief > in God/Jesus/Holy Ghost happens in the last minutes of a nasty life. So, if > you "accept" Jesus then, and really believe, you are "saved." As opposed to > Judaism, where faith is not an issue, but observances are important. > >  Why do you think people pray to Jesus? > > They pray to Jesus for assistance or comfort. And Catholics also pray to the > mother of Jesus (Mary) and a whole host of saints (formerly alive people who > have been granted sainthood due to performing miracles). They believe that > Jesus or Mary or saints or God can intervene in our affairs. Similar to > Hindus doing yagyas and making offerings to get some assistance and to change > earthly circumstances. > > The son of God...I have never thought he was God.  Never.  I refuse.  Read > from Sentence 3 through the end.  Pretty much sums it up don't ya think? >  Or? What else?  Duality/Reality?  Do we ever defeat the ego?  Whaddya > think? > > Sounds as if Jesus had some good spiritual experiences and was charismatic > and had some followers who got some real benefits from his very powerful > darshan. People probably misunderstood much of what he talked about. > > Didn't Jim used to address this kind of stuff? > > I think Yogananda wrote some long translations and commentary of the Gita > from a Christian perspective, explaining the similarities between > Hinduism/Gita and Christianity, what the terms in the Bible really mean in > Hindu terms etc. Yogananda claimed to see Jesus and talk with him. He was > devoted to Jesus and saw him as a realized Master. > > >
