I Have A Question About Christianity

[bazera]

Hey, 

As I understand, We don't know how Jesus got enlightened. But I am interested, does Christianity have many enlightened fathers, who reached the state of "Jesus"? If it does, then how did they reach enlightenment? Can a man use the bible to reach the highest state of awareness? So, those Saints that we know of today, were most of them enlightened? I am interested if any of them mean the state of no self when they talk about the God. 

Edited August 16, 2016 by bazera

[Leo Gura]

If you study early Christian mysticism it's clear that many of them pursued enlightenment (AKA God) seriously and successfully.

Monks and nuns are supposed to be pursuing enlightenment. That's their sole purpose in life. And some of them attain it. But this tradition is mired in a lot of ideology and politics which tends to get in the way, so many of them don't attain it as they get lost in dogma.

[Tim Green]

If you feel comfortable in the Christian tradition try Father Thomas Keating. http://www.centeringprayer.com/

 

 

 

Edited August 16, 2016 by Tim Green
wrong website

[bazera]

59 minutes ago, Leo Gura said:

If you study early Christian mysticism it's clear that many of them pursued enlightenment (AKA God) seriously and successfully.

Monks and nuns are supposed to be pursuing enlightenment. That's their sole purpose in life. And some of them attain it. But this tradition is mired in a lot of ideology and politics which tends to get in the way, so many of them don't attain it as they get lost in dogma.

 

 

Yes, I see that all around me. 

What about materialistic desires? Or sexual desires? There are people in my country (I haven't been elsewhere) who see the God as an "alien" sitting in the heaven somewhere behind the universe or something. They try as hard as they can to obey the rules (and there are so so so many of them) while there can be something totally different that's the core of religions. They don't sit down and question who they are and why do they believe in whatever they believe in and so on... I can't speak from their perspective, but as I see in myself, it backfires me when I repress my feeling and desires. And those priests are like me I guess. Doesn't repressing their feelings and needs cause problems in their lives? I have these questions because everyone around me is trying to obey these religious rules, while nothing changes in reality. I am trying not to fell in that trap, and answers to some of those questions would probably help me. 

Edited August 16, 2016 by bazera

[bazera]

15 minutes ago, Makis said:

There were some Christian mystics, who were most probably enlightened. The most famous one may have been Meister Eckhart (1260-1328). That is where Eckhart Tolle got his spiritual name from by the way. His real name is Ulrich Tolle.

They practiced Christian Mysticism (also see Christian Meditation and Christian Contemplation). The founder of the Society of Jesus, Ignatius of Loyola (1491-1556) for example published a well known book called the Exercitia spiritualia (ca. 1523).

I don't think so. But that's just my opinion.

I don't think "most of them", but some of them.

Most of them didn't. The churches official view of god is dualistic.

 

 

Thanks a lot for those resources

[cetus]

1 hour ago, bazera said:

Can a man use the bible to reach the highest state of awareness?

@bazera A man can read the dictionary and reach the highest state of awareness. Don't confuse the vehicle with the destination.

[cetus]

@bazera I hope you find this as moving as I do.

 

Edited August 16, 2016 by cetus56

[30secs]

@Leo Gura

is there possibility that someday a paradigm shift will happen, that all religions will combine and teach the humanity about this one  True Enlightenment?

Edited August 17, 2016 by 30secs

[Leo Gura]

@30secs No, because the point of religion is to distract you from Truth. That's it's function. That's the function of all ideologies.

All the major religions are already built upon enlightenment. They are the distractions unenlightened people created to avoid becoming enlightened.

The only paradigm shift that can happen is you deciding to throw all ideologies away, sitting down, and discovering Truth. Everything else is a distraction.