I would not be the strong woman survivor I am today without my belief that our spirits have purpose and live beyond this earthly life. My faith in a God without boundaries keeps hope alive for me.
Christian Upbringing
I am thankful for my Christian upbringing in a Bible-based church. The teachings that made sense I held onto but let go of the rest. Psalms are my favorite verses in the Bible because of their elegant wisdom and divine poetry. I do not, however, consider myself a religious person and no longer belong to any religious organization.
Over the years, as I wrote about in The Baptists, I searched long and hard for a spiritual home without success. I attended services at these churches: Episcopalian, Catholic, Methodist, Presbyterian, Lutheran, First Church of Religious Science in Albuquerque, Huntington Beach Church of Religious Science, Center for Spiritual Renewal, and a Buddhist Temple. In all these places of worship, the lack of attendance had me thinking: where are all their believers?
In every attempt, I didn’t feel a spiritual connection that energized me like how I feel when I walk in natural places, hike in or near the mountains, walk along the ocean, look up at the expanse of stars decorating the night sky, or watch children at play. Perhaps my search was unsuccessful because I realized that whoever I want to be in this world comes from within and is not found in a building with a “thought leader” telling me what I should believe.
In all the hours I spent attending church services, I never heard any presenter quote and then discuss this verse from the Bible: 1 Corinthians 12-5: “There are differences of ministries, but the same God.” I wonder why. Could it be that the majority of religious leaders, as the self-appointed Messengers of God, only want to promote their version of faith? Is it the sorry old struggle, Ego v. Spirit? Which would be the right religion? The same God implies unity, not judgment and superiority.
God A Human History
A few years ago, I read God A Human History by Reza Aslan. He is a leading expert in world religions, author, and producer. http://rezaaslan.com
The research that went into this book is remarkable. I have never seen a more detailed Bibliography or Notes section.
The author writes: “And so this book is more than just a history of how we have humanized God. It is also an appeal to stop foisting our human compulsions upon the divine, and to develop a more pantheistic view of God. At the very least it is a reminder that, whether you believe in one God or many gods or no god at all, it is we who have fashioned God in our image, not the other way around. And in that truth lies the key to a more mature, more peaceful, more primal form of spirituality.”
According to Dictionary, the word pantheism means:
- a doctrine which identifies God with the universe or regards the universe as a manifestation of God.
- Worship that admits or tolerates all gods.
Another paragraph that got to me was: “Numerous studies on the cognition of children have shown an instinctual propensity for “substance dualism”-the belief that the body and mind/soul are distinct in form and nature. That means we enter the world with an innate sense-untaught, unforced, unprompted-that we are more than just our physical bodies. There are certain cognitive processes that can lead us to apply this inborn belief in the soul to others-human and nonhuman alike. But when it comes to belief in the soul, we are, to put it simply, born believers.”
When I lived in California, I took a Founders of Science of Mind 10-week course. It is a faith that believes in the unity of all life and that the highest God and the innermost God is one God. Each student had to present a project inspired by the lessons to complete the course.
The title of the memoir I was working on then and hope to complete by the end of 2023 was only partially decided. The title possibilities were To Be Able To Walk, Hero On Wheels, Let Me Go Now, and Ordinary Days With An Extraordinary Hayes.
While working on the required project, a new title kept repeating over and over in my mind, Promises To Myself. The tag line was A True Story About Trusting Transitions. Below is the photo of the project I presented to the class.
On the back, I included some of my thoughts:
- I believe God cherishes all people no matter where they reside on earth or what their religious or spiritual beliefs are.
- I believe God accepts each of us just as we are and knows we are a spiritual work in progress.
- I believe God wants us to be happy, live with passion and purpose, and be treated with dignity and respect.
- I believe God hurts right beside us when devastating events happen to us, our loved ones, people of the earth, and natural disasters.
- I believe in life after death and that we have an everlasting spiritual home with our loved ones, including our pets, in the great beyond.
- I hope there are zero domestic chores since there is no dust in heaven. Smile!
In January of this year, I did a survey on my Facebook page asking what title was the most interesting. The result of the survey was Promises To Myself, which was the message sent to me ten years earlier. Finally, the title is decided. I don’t ever want to tick off the Divine.
I have always admired Ralph Waldo Emerson’s writing-his ability to compress thought-provoking words into one-liners. Here are three of my favorites.
Tough Cookie Tip: I would rather have a mind opened by wonder than one closed by belief. An authentic life designed by me is forever in progress. So, I keep gazing inward and up! Which way are you headed?
Copyright © 2022-2025 Marilyn K Fuller. All Rights Reserved.
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The thing I love the best this week is your tough cookie tip!
I’ve got many more TCTs to come. Thanks for reading my posts every week and giving me your take on things. I appreciate it!
I tried the religion thing too. Never quite felt comfortable going to church. I’d rather live by the golden rule.
Thanks for being one of my faithful and I appreciate your support of my writing!
I sit somewhere in the middle. I still (and probably always will) identify as Catholic, although I rarely go to Mass. I am very spiritual, sharing your thoughts on religion. My best story: I raised my kids Catholic, dragging them to Mass every week, teaching CCD, hauling them to youth group, celebrating their first communion and confirmation…the whole shebang. However, having an autistic son was always interesting, entertaining and humbling. One day as we left church after Mass, my son Kevin sat grumbling under his breath in the back seat of the car. I finally asked what his problem was. He replied incredulously, “Father Starkey kept talking about listening to the word of God. He said if we listen, God will speak to us. I was listening. I didn’t hear God talking, Did you hear God talking?!?!” Days before his death, he told me that he knew he was going to go to heaven because he knew God accepted him just the way he was. How I miss him.
I so enjoyed your comments, especially Kevin’s insight about God. Always I have felt that children are our best teachers about what truly matters in this life. Who knows-maybe Kevin and Hayes are buds in heaven.