Merle, Edgar,
If you don't see why even Protestants quote the line...
"Love God and do as you please",
then Christianity has not much impinged on your world. That's OK.
So I'm glad to be one to tell you that it's an entirely proper expression of
understanding for a Zen Buddhist, or even for a Zen-person with no development
as a Buddhist.
The reason is -- and as I've mentioned here -- with regard to the Buddhist
Precepts being, "The BEHAVIOR of a Buddha", and thus being descriptive, not
normative.
Bear with me; I know this may be News:
The Ten Commandments are descriptive, if one loves God.
But, you see, in Xianity, God *is* Love.
And love is such that there are no boundaries, no duality.
Love is identification, in the very STRONG sense.
Love of God is unity with God. Unity with Love, *as* Love. Unity with all.
No separation. It is truly, and in fact, Becoming, or having become.
It is the "Intimacy" we return to in the Zen tradition at awakening.
So, "Love God, and do as you please."
It means: united with God, as God, you do God's Will. Because that is what you
please, and what pleases you, and what pleases God. There *is* no separation,
see? And there is no alternative.
So, the wise-guy line, "Love God and do as you please", is a tautology. Just
don't break or separate from the first admonition, "Love God...", or the rest
of the sentence is blasphemy and corruption.
So, *do* "Love God", as Xians understand it, and the second half of the
sentence is redundant, and can be omitted.
The pedagogical purpose of running the sentence at full length is so that
people who have no experience with that first condition can understand it, by
challenging the sentence as Edgar has done. It is an exercise for the hearer,
for the reader. And now you.
We're doing pretty well, here!
I admit my catholicism. Small "c". I am catholic enough (and then some) to
know you are my cousin, and Edgar is my brother. Bill! too. And Mike. And
Chris. And Suresh. And Salik. And Carl. And RAF. And Rocket Rose,
Zen-chaplain aspirant. And untold gazillions of beings deep in the crevices
between the keys of my keyboard, and in my vacuum-cleaner bag.
Happy understanding,
Love God, no matter how you can do it,
awaken to our true Face,
open the One-Eye to Wisdom! Hail!,
w/ Wishes,
--Joe / sacred cat
PS If you're not multi-lingual in this life, you are usually a Bigot.
Beware!! Be catholic.
> Merle Lester <merlewiitpom@...> wrote:
>
> edgar and joe..
>
> i had that tiny thought too way way back... and was nervous to suggest it.....
> joe your catholic roots are still there..
> as i always say.."once a catholic always a catholic"..t
> they get em sucked in the day they are born and indoctrinate them big time...
>
> saying that edgar..thomas merton was a catholic...
> let's think BIG...
> let's think woh..
>
> maybe just maybe there is a tiny lesson to learn here for all of us..
>
> i ask is your slate squeaky clean edgar?
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