Category: Essay

Meaning and Points of View

There is both meaning and no meaning in things we hear, read, say and do. Sometimes we try to add meaning to things, and sometimes things are meaningful to us, but not to others. Sometimes, things that were once meaningful lose their meaning, and sometimes the meaning is renewed after we experience new things, have new conversations, or read new books.

Meaning is never objective, but is instead always subjective. There are always various points of view for the same opinion, and opinions change with each point of view. There are no facts, no proof, no absolute truths, only opinions and subjective experiences.

Every so-called fact can be called into question and rendered meaningless according to certain points of view. But certain things can seem true or untrue, depending upon one’s point of view. Any bit of so-called evidence used to prove a so-called fact can be called into question according to different points of view. That’s why witnesses are important. But any witness can be discredited by another witness, and any fact can contradict another fact.

In the end, every point of view of every witness is subjective. No matter how many witnesses you have, there is always the potential for contradiction from a new witness. Apparent facts are simply a carefully controlled and constructed point of view of one or more witnesses that agree on the same opinion. Their subjective experiences can always be doubted and questioned based on new evidence or witnesses.

The Apostles’ Creed with Commentary

I believe in God the Father Almighty, but if he’s almighty, why doesn’t he stop crime, hunger, murder, rape, theft, abuse, neglect, war?

Maker of heaven and Earth, but why did God make the world? Was he lonely? Was it a mistake? If not, why the flood?

And in Jesus Christ, his son, our Lord, even though Jesus never directly proclaimed to be the Son of God,

Conceived by the Holy Spirit, but how does that happen?

Born of the Virgin Mary, ???

Suffered under Pontius Pilate, yep, sadly,

Crucified, dead and buried, again, sadly,

In three days he rose from the dead, but the witnesses weren’t recorded until long after, and by people other than the witnesses,

He ascended into heaven, ???

And sits at the right hand of God the father almighty, no witnesses for this, of course.

From there he shall come to judge the living and the dead, sooner or later, at the end of time.

I believe in the Holy Spirit, some evidence like evidence of the wind. You can’t see it, but you can see it’s effects.

The holy universal church,the church is holy, but not due to its own state, actions or deeds, but by Jesus saving grace, boasting nothing but God’s grace and mercy.

The communion of saints, this happens every Sunday, does it not?

The forgiveness of sins, we trust and hope this happens,

The resurrection of the body, simply a matter of faith, not science, which is okay.

And the life everlasting, we can only hope.

The Lord’s Prayer with commentary

Our Father, the best father imaginable, and if not imaginable, the best Mother, or Brother, or Sister, or Friend;

Who art in Heaven, that place that isn’t a place, the perfect state of being, of existing, of living; that paradise of another dimension;

Hallowed be thy name, holy, righteous, special, divine, separate, perfect, lovely, beautiful, worthy of worship by all, Daddy, Momma, Grandpa, Grandma, Uncle, Aunt, Friend, Confidante;

Thy Kingdom come, a world where God’s love and holiness is the guiding principle for all, an experience of grace that exists right now, anytime, is accessible to all, no matter where they live or what state their life is in;

Thy Will be done, a state of purpose that comes only from God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit; A goal that has already been achieved on the Cross, by paying the sacrificial debt for the sins of the world, from the beginning to the end of time; The perfect obedience and righteous existence that comes from God’s gift to humanity;

On earth, as it is in heaven, can you imagine everyone on the earth following God’s will? Can you imagine anyone obeying 100% of the time? Well, it happens sometimes, which is a miracle in itself;

Give us this day our daily bread, give us physical, emotional and spiritual sustenance , whatever is necessary to do God’s will, God provides it, and all we have to do is ask;

And forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us, grace that only God can give to pardon us from our shortcomings, provided we are as charitable with those who hurt us, loving our neighbor as well as even our enemy;

And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil, God protects us from so much temptation that we could not handle. And when we need deliverance, he’s right there to save us;

For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory, all goodness and great things belong to God. They are only possible with his grace and power;

Forever and ever, from the beginning of time to the end end of time, god with his grace, power and love exist and are provided to those who ask.

Amen, all this is true.

Rhymes and Reason

Rhyming is saying the same thing backwards. Realms of tattered words fill lots of wheelbarrows. Reading rhymes is fun until you think about it. Nonsense is saying the opposite of what you usually would say, for each word in the sentence. Rhymes replace meaning sometimes. Saying what you might do is always a predicate to what you have done, at least when the two are the same thing. I’ve always thought that what I might do far outweighs what I will do, but is not nearly as true.

Writing “Unpoetry“

It’s simple. It’s succinct. It’s honest. It’s random. It’s crazy. It’s different. It’s me. I’ve written and still do write straight ahead poetry, but I’m not that interested in writing it that often. I want to create a new form. Something to make people think. Something interesting. Something that comes out of nowhere and knocks people off their little step stool. I think sensical poetry has an important place and time, but that’s just not what I usually like to write. I think in poetry, it’s not advertising, so the writer doesn’t have to appeal or go to the reader. The reader stretches their self to appreciate what the poet is trying to do or communicate. And the communication may not be direct. It may be artistic, it may be creative. It may be only understood as a whole, not meant to be dissected line by line and picked apart. Then again, there is always room for analysis, but that’s just not the goal of the poetry. Rather, it is to just enjoy reading it, just for pleasure. That’s what I try to do.

Bible Stories, True or False?

Bible stories are an enigma. Some of them are so intimate, private and personal. Some of them are so extraordinary, hard to believe, supernatural. So many are so alien to life as we know it. And who could have originally accounted for each story? When John leapt in Elizabeth’s womb upon a visit from Jesus’ mother Mary, who recorded that story to be passed on for centuries? When Moses encountered the burning bush, when the Hebrews followed a pillar of fire and smoke, when a touch of Jesus’ robe healed a bleeding woman, who wrote down these things? Who told the story to others? So private, so personal. So hard to believe that they came to be part of a book that we read. I don’t think Jesus told these stories. Was it a disciple? An apostle? Who passed it on? Did leaders in the first churches started by Paul tell these stories in church? Before there was a written record from the Catholic Church? So many questions, so many unanswered doubts. The Bible stories are so foreign to life as we know it today. How could they have really happened? Isn’t it more likely that they were made up to enhance the power of the church over its followers? And the synagogue over its faithful people? Other religions have stories that we assume are just literature made up by followers of a religion to give power to their leaders. Why don’t Christians believe the same thing about their own religious books? Is it too terrifying to consider that these stories could be false, made up, simply literature to build up a myth?

Banned Books

Banned books are silly. Why try to control people’s access to knowledge? Let them read what they want to read, especially if teachers approve it, and even more so if it’s considered a classic. Banning books is futile anyway, as it just makes people curious about them and want to read them even more. And usually the reasoning for banned books is based on incomplete knowledge of the book or misinformation about the book from people who haven’t read the book or people who don’t understand what they’ve read.

The Uncertainty of Truth and a Leap of Faith

Knowing the truth is possible but being certain of the truth is not possible. Certainty is a luxury of the ignorant. There is an argument that can be made against the existence or presence or activity or feeling of about anything. Claiming certainty is possible only for those who ignore some or all of the facts. What is truth? Well, that depends on who you are, where you come from, how you were raised, etc. there is not one truth that is superior to all other truths. That’s ridiculous. The only thing certain about truth is that truth is not certain. It must be accepted by a leap of faith.

Meaning in Relationships, not Objects

There is no meaning in the word unless it is an extension of a personal relationship and it is about the relationship, not about objects or things. Words about things are empty, and carry little meaning. There is little meaning in the management of objects around us. Moving them, cleaning them, buying them, selling them—it is all empty and meaningless. The meaning comes when we give them away to another person as an extension of caring or love, not as a transaction, or a evening up of favors, but with no expectation for reimbursement, payment or reciprocal kindness. Only as a gift does it gain meaning, and this only because it is an extension of a relationship. The same goes with management of objects. If the movement, cleaning, buying or selling or giving of objects is an extension of a relationship, with no expectation for reciprocity, it gains meaning for the relationship. None else.

Objects Have No Meaning

There is really no meaning in a word. The meaning is in the thing and the word is not the thing. And even things don’t really have meaning. It’s our relationship to the things. Actually meaning cannot be found in relationships to things either, but in personal relationships only. There is only emptiness in things and in relationships to things. It is a bottomless pit of regret and abandonment that never ceases to disappoint. Things disappoint every time.