A religious argument for relativizing all belief systems

[trenton]

Our sense of reality is often threatened when opposed by contradictory beliefs.  For example, Islam is the one true religion, Hitler is good, Trump should be re-elected, feminism is wrong, God is not real, and many more.  A common reaction in humans is "my worldview is true, therefore the people with whom I disagree are evil and I should kill them".  This can lead to mass genocide which happened frequently in religion.  For example, "we should cut off the hands and genitals of Africans who don't convert to Christianity".  Similar with Christian vs. Muslim.

This creates corruption in religion because of the distinction between self and other being reinforced by belief systems.  Many religions agree on this similar point.  Murder becomes a consequence of clinging to the false self, such as an ideologue about any one religion.  This denies the true self and creates hatred of anything in reality that contradicts the piece of existence you attach significance to.  Human suffering is thus caused by misalignment with God.

Recently there has been a trend where more deeply religious people open up to the theory of evolution.  A similar trend could continue with relativism as sacred beliefs have been shown to change over the course of generations.  If you seek truth, then you may recognize belief as an obstacle which when eliminated can reduce suffering and lead to unconditional love for everything.

What do you think are some religious arguments for relativizing all belief systems?  Could some people in stage blue be open minded enough for this?  How might this perspective be rejected?

[silene]

@trenton hi, a religious approach which works for me, and leads me towards a form of relative syncretism is that the basic Religious Truth is mystical awareness which cannot be expressed directly in language (ineffable). Therefore all scriptures, teachings, sermons, creeds and the like are just pointers to look beyond words, ideas, thoughts. Prophets and religious founders usually have some type of vision or special experience which could be mystical, but these get written down in the relative culture of the time, so the unawakened  followers mistake relativity for the absolute. 

How to convince stage blue people? I'm not sure I would try to push them too far, they are developing at their own pace, but just drop a few little seeds here and there, to point towards the mystery behind the beliefs; find some good quotes from their own scriptures, which have multiple meanings, whatever works for them. Like 'I am that I am', 'God is Love',  'forgive my trespasses as I forgive those who trespass against me', 'I and the Father are one'. Sorry all these are Biblical quotes, but every stage blue tradition has its own. Don't make out that you are more advanced than anyone else, be humble and community minded else they may not respect you. 

[trenton]

 @silene

You make a good point.  You show how to distinguish between relative and absolute.  I had a feeling after posting this that people would feel threatened.  What lead me to typing this is how different society would look if this was common rather than backwards from most religions in the world.

As for more advanced than anyone else, this is a great point as well.  A sense of pride in many different fields can be problematic.  I must observe this constantly because if I feel better than somebody, then I am tricking myself into denying the similarities which cause me to be drawn to the people I compare myself to.  This becomes a shadow that limits my growth.

That was painful, but honest.  I learned something and thank you for that.  I'm tempted to throw away non duality in order to avoid turning it into my own ideology.  I noticed this tendency constantly and am not sure how to stop it, but when I am drawn to ideologues, then I know I've done it.  My guess is that self observation will adjust this, but I don't know that that leads to truth.  I see my frustration, but it is only temporary, and I will not give up on truth seeking.

[VeganAwake]

Non-duality is a word pointing to everything without outside Observation.

You can't throw away something that's referring to everything as itself because the throwing away, the in-between and the picking up something new is also everything...?

Damn it we have no Freedom right...

 

[Aaron p]

5 hours ago, trenton said:

A sense of pride in many different fields can be problematic.  I must observe this constantly because if I feel better than somebody, then I am tricking myself into denying the similarities which cause me to be drawn to the people I compare myself to.  This becomes a shadow that limits my growth.

@trenton you don't exist

(While this is true, *believing* this will actually get in the way of you actually coming to the realization. Adopt it as a hypothesis to be proven or disproven) ❤️?

Edited April 7, 2020 by Aaron p

[trenton]

@Aaron p interesting dilemma.

I have adopted a hypothesis that God is a verifiable experience because the Aztecs and Christians and many different religions make many similarities even though they had not contacted each other.

I notice that when I have a shift in awareness, I often tend to add interpretations.  These interpretations might be one thing that builds belief.  Do you add these ideas and did it limit you?  Secondly, is it a problem if I listen to too many spiritual teachers?  This might be the cause of belief.  How much time do you spend reading and listening?