Sunday, February 28, 2010

Who Owns it?

It was asked to me by a professor "is beauty in the eye of the beholder or is it in the object being beheld?" My answer, after taking a moment to think it through, was "beauty is in the eye of the beholder". Because it is right? Just because one person sees no value in something doesn't mean that no one else find value in it?

I think that most people in our society will answer this question the same way. It's a saying that we are brought up with. We also have some take off's of it like "one man's trash is another man's treasure". We use it in all kinds of situations. If you have a friend who is dating someone you do not think is attractive, you may use a saying like this. If you see an unattractive person on television, you may use a saying like this. This idea that things can have value to one and not another is something that I had never questioned before. But there's a problem with this thought process. The problem is that by ascribing to this ideal you take away any intrinsic value the person/object has irregardless of what others think. "Beauty is in the eye of the beholder" means that if no one finds the person/object valuable then it has no value. See how that gets you into all kinds of conflicts of conscious.

This idea that our society holds on to leads to a lot of issues. It leads to people feeling isolated and alone. It leads people to have eating disorders so that they can fit a certain irrational body image. It leads to suicide and homicide. All this because people look at themselves and, since no one else sees value in them, they see no value in themselves.

So in summation, "beauty is in the eye of the beholder" = bad stuff. "Beauty is in the object being beheld" = the object having a sense of self worth no matter how the culture around it sees it.

Wednesday, February 24, 2010

Annoucement: kind of

A few weeks ago I made an entry about the importance of the journey and how, sometimes, it's better to take the road that leads you through your passions, even if you don't know the outcome. That entry was my mindset when I made the decision to change majors. I was previously enrolled as a Computer Science major. However, as I've gone through those classes I've quickly come to realize that I don't really have much interest in that area. When I would talk to people who are in other areas of study, the classes that I always wished I were taking were the Humanities classes. So I've changed my major to...*drum roll*...a BA of History/Social Science.

As a Comp Sci major I was pretty sure where I would end up. You know there are jobs waiting for you and that those jobs will pay you well. I finally was at the point a few weeks ago where I was really honest with myself and admitted the only reason I was doing Comp Sci was for the money. I knew that it would pay well and that was the only reason I was doing it. I decided a long time ago, that making major life decisions based on financial gain will not lead you, or at least it won't me, to happiness.

So the big question that I am going to be asked about a million times is "what are you going to do after school?" And the answer is...be a drifter. Yup...Jess and I will sell all our worldly possessions to buy a used, environmentally friendly, RV and hit the road for a life time of adventure.

Not really. What I really plan on doing is keeping my GPA up above a 3.33 and getting accepted into ODU's accelerated Graduate program and get my MA in History a year after I get my BA. Oh...I forgot to mention...my new BA in Hist/Soc Sci gets me licensed to teach on a secondary level. So once I finish with my BA and my MA I'll probably go teach High School History for a few years. Before trying to move on to a Museum or to teaching at a Community College. Eventually, I'd like to get hired on by a University somewhere that will put me through my PhD program while I teach there. But that's a while away. Right now I'm happy that starting next semester I'll be entrenched in something that I am already entrenched in. I'm also nervous because while I have a plan, the light at the end of this tunnel is much less defined than it was for my Comp Sci track. But I'm going to trust that this decision is the right one and in the end it will work out. If not...there's always selling all our worldly possessions, buying a used, environmentally friendly, RV and hitting the road for a life time of adventures.

Sunday, February 21, 2010

Is there a point?

God, according to the definition I’ve heard throughout most of my life, is omnipotent (all powerful), omnipresent (all present), and omniscient (all knowing). If this is the case then God knows the outcome of all situations at all times. So why do we pray?

Many people pray in a way that treats God like a sort of cosmic Santa Clause. They only do it when they want or need something. But they rarely, if ever, approach God in a truth seeking, communing way. For instance someone may see that their neighbor gets a new car and they start to notice their 5 year old automobile isn’t looking as pretty as it did five years, so they start to pray that they will get a new car. In this case they are attempting to use God for personal gain. So is this why we pray, simply to gain material possessions? I have a hard time seeing a God that fits our original definition as being someone’s cosmic sugar daddy (or sugar momma if you prefer).

What about people who pray for the sick to be healed? This seems like a more noble cause than the previously mentioned one. But if God already knows the outcome of all situations is there a point? God, by definition, knows when and where we will all die and death is something that is common to all of us. So even if the prayers are answered isn’t it really just delaying the inevitable? And if this is the case did things really change?

So why should we pray? Is possible that prayer doesn’t change God nor does it change the future. It also does not get us more objects so that we can keep up with the Jones’s. Maybe it’s possible that what prayer is changing, is us. Through honest prayer we feel a connection with the eternal. Then through that connection we can find comfort, enlightenment, wisdom, love, and so many of the other by-products that are discovered through a connection with the divine. And then, just maybe, these things will fill that need for new stuff so that we no longer want to pray to God for more material possessions. But instead we will pray because we are aware that the change that occurs is good.

Tuesday, February 16, 2010

The Emoting of Music

Sometimes when I listen to music I become an emotional "it". I feel a million things at once. I feel part of something bigger. Like suddenly I become complete. Whole. I am able to feel all the things I normally cannot. I am simultaneously lustful and repenting, cursing and praying, elevated and weighted down. A giant unfocused "it" that senses things in all directions at once. A kind of emotional anarchy. It's a nice place.

Sunday, February 14, 2010

The Sterility of Modern Day Faith

When did faith become so pragmatic? Faith deals with God. And God in turns deals with our spirits. Therefore, faith is a spiritual pursuit. Why then do so many faithful approach their faith in such a non-spiritual way? They accept their faith as truth without ever searching and questioning and really trying to find their own spirituality. They pray little. They meditate little. They search little. And they ask little. All of these are spiritual paths that people ignore or even worse, mechanize. Well, you may ask, how can you mechanize prayer? The answer is simple. Praying in a way that reassures you that you are right and that you have the divine figured out and by not praying in a way where you are open for change.

But the problem goes beyond that. I think the problem comes down to our society's view on...well...just about everything. Our society is based on a fast paced, goal oriented life. Where 40 hours a week at work is no longer enough if you want to get ahead. This environment does not easily breed people who are interested in pursuing a spiritual life; which takes time, patience, and dedication to cultivate. One of the major culprits is that many of us are told what to believe growing up and that that belief system is the only truth out there. So there is no need to even search. The path of a spiritual faith, based in spiritual pursuits is cut out at the beginning. Another problem is that we are so comfortable in our society. Many of us have no real needs that we can't provide for ourselves. Therefore, we have no need to have faith in anything other than our paychecks. Which means, we have no need for any kind of day to day spirituality.

We approach our faith like we approach our science. People treat God, like God is gravity. Here's what it looks like: oh yea God, He's there. Yea I know what he does and what he looks like. Yup...time to go to work. Science is for our heads, God is for our hearts. And approaching God from such a sterile, non-spiritual point of view will only yield the same.

As I said earlier pursuing an honest spiritual faith takes time, patience, and dedication to cultivate, so maybe a good first step is to simply be still.

Wednesday, February 10, 2010

The Destination or The Journey

Do you look at life as a journey or a destination? I feel we are pushed to look at life as a destination starting in elementary school. We are suppose to know what we want to do when we grow up then we are suppose to go to college to get there. Already the experience of college is just a means to an end and not an end. Lately, I've been looking at life as journey. The process is as important if not more important than the outcome. What do you think?


Wednesday, February 3, 2010

Nihilism...is it really possible?

Ok. So I've decided to try this blog thing again. But it's going to be a little different. I'm going to be posting thoughts, once a week. This week's thoughts were inspired by my watching of the Cohen's "The Big Lebowski".

Nihilism is defined by my computers dictionary as:

nihilism |ˈnīəˌlizəm; ˈnē-|
noun
the rejection of all religious and moral principles, often in the belief that life is meaningless.

or as defined by most people...the belief in nothing.

So the question is that if you tell people you are a nihilist is it possible to even be one? Here's the thought process...since Nihilism is the belief in nothing, wouldn't the act of telling people you are a Nihilist mean that you believe that by telling them you may have them think about nihilism or refuting their own beliefs and embracing the belief in nothing? Therefore you don't really believe in nothing. You actually believe in telling people you believe in nothing. Which in an of itself is something. What are your thoughts?