It’s beyond belief

I’ve been thinking about my last post and wondering why billions of people have a belief in something even if it’s simply reading the stars in the paper each day yet I have no sense whatsoever of anything supernatural in origin.  Sure, I attended church when younger but it was more to socialise over a coffee afterwards than to engage with anything spiritual.

I was chatting with a friend the other day about spirituality.  He was saying that although he possesses a strong belief, spirituality for him was about connecting with something greater and doesn’t necessarily have to be about God.  He said that when he hears a particular piece of music or sees the beauty of nature, for a split second he’s taken out of himself and experiences a oneness with everything.  I mentioned that I do too.  He said “then you’re spiritual, it’s as simple as that!”  But is it?

In terms of belief, I refer to myself as agnostic.  To theists, this is their chance to impose their views which often are along the lines of “I have the absolute truth and you will believe as I do or suffer the consequences.”  To atheists, it’s someone who’s sitting on the fence and doesn’t have the courage to be one thing or the other.  Biphobia anyone?

For me, it’s not that cut and dried.  I neither believe nor disbelieve.  There might very well be an underlying supernatural component to life, I personally have never sensed it in any form and without proof I’m not able to.  Proof enough for me would be feeling that I’m not alone when calling aloud to whatever, I’d be perfectly happy with that.

I’ve met people who’ve said to me “of course I don’t believe in ghosts but I wouldn’t want to spend time in a haunted house” and seem to really baulk at the thought but why?  If someone disbelieves then what’s the problem?  If ghosts do not exist in these people’s minds then what harm is there in going to a place where they’re purported to be?  Unless of course, people do believe but can’t bring themselves to admit it.  I think a great many people try to apply logic to things which they believe cannot be and find that although that can help in very many cases, in some doubts will always remain.

I feel the most ’spiritual’ when I’m out in nature.  There’s nothing I like better than sitting down on a bench someplace and just looking around.  I love trees.  I also love birdsong.  All this activity is happening around us yet very few people stop long enough to appreciate it.  I watch birds flying overhead and the various little animals scampering about, going about their day and no doubt, doing all the things which you and I do – looking for food, as well as tending and sheltering loved ones.

I may not have a belief in anything other than the natural evolving world but every now and then I find myself transcending the mundane and tapping into Something Greater than this world ordinarily reveals and that’s good enough for me.  I don’t need reassurances of paradise after this life because I’ve got my very own idyll here, all around me all of the time.  What more could I ask for than that?

It’s a shame

I’ve been watching the evolving arguments relating to the Pope speaking out against homosexuality. Why aren’t people able to comprehend that Catholicism (and Christianity to a larger extent) will always be against homosexuality, well homosexual acts to be more specific.

The Christian line has always been, it’s okay to be homosexual providing you aren’t doing anything about it which is sort of like having a brand new television but not plugging it in. “Look, it’s a Sony Bravia LCD TV, it has a 32 inch screen and a whole range of amazing features, look it says so on the box!”

There are two things which have always puzzled me about all of this. Firstly, why do people take advice and suggestions about sex and sexual relations from an elderly virgin? I can’t comprehend that at all. Would you go to a mechanic who not only didn’t possess a car but in fact had never learned to drive to begin with? Of course you wouldn’t.

Secondly, why do gay people (when they know what Scripture has to say about them) persist in believing in the Christian god? Okay, so Jesus never said anything specific in relation to it but the vast majority of Christian churches and traditions are against same-sex relationships and unions.

One could fall into the trap of believing that the Church has moved towards being more accepting of homosexuality but then we hear of the schism developing in the Anglican church whereby whole sections of believers are wishing to fall away to go back to what they view as the correct teachings of the Bible and we see that there is a genuine crisis developing.

I simply cannot comprehend why someone would wish to be allied with a belief system which has caused so much heartache, so much devastation down the ages. There are of course beautiful passages within the Bible which do portray a loving and just god but there are many more which show the Christian god to be a murderous, tyrannical, wrath-filled, vengeful, bloodthirsty psychopath.

It has got to have an adverse effect on the mental and emotional wellbeing of LGBT’s of faith when they’re surrounded by people who profess to believe as they do but in fact are dead against who and what they are on a deep and personal level. Love the sinner but not the sin. Where’s the sin in expressing sexually the love you have for another? For many who still wish to believe, the answer comes in seeking out more liberal churches/denominations.

I’m not seeking to bash anyone’s beliefs, if it makes you genuinely happy then fair play to you. What I’m continually astounded by is the reaction of the gay community to an outburst by the Pope or by an Islamic cleric who despises homosexuality. Christianity, Islam and in fact most of the major religions, aren’t accepting of gays and probably never will be so why is there always such an outcry when someone within each tradition makes such a remark? Religion isn’t even especially accepting of heterosexual sex, wishing for it to be only within the confines of marriage and then really only for the act of procreation.

Sex is wondrous and beautiful as are people. I think it would be a greater shock if the world’s religions and their leaders promoted this idea. Their power lies in diminishing us so that we look to something greater for the solution. Do you know what the sad thing is? We’re all pretty okay as we are. Unfortunately with all of this negative programming most of us will never get to fully realise it and that truly is a shame. In fact, it’s the shame of our age.

Happy Holidays

~~~HAPPY HOLIDAYS everyone~~~

I hope you have a wonderful time over the festive period.

Thanks for stopping by, for reading what I write and leaving comments.

Thank you also to lurkers who come along, read and don’t comment.

HAVE A GREAT ONE,

Jonathan xxx

Quentin Crisp

Quentin Crisp became a gay icon in the 1970’s on the back of (do you get the pun?) the tv film The Naked Civil Servant, which featured an incredible performance from John Hurt as Crisp. In fact, John has just finished the sequel An Englishman In New York which charts his later years and which will be released next year.

Anyhow, December 25th 2008 marks the 100 years anniversary of his birth. For those who are unaware of Quentin Crisp, he was openly and outrageously gay at a time when it was still a criminal offence to be seen or believed to be homosexual. He wore make-up, dyed his hair and was unashamedly honest about who and what he was.

I can remember watching The Naked Civil Servant way back in the 80’s and I did so covertly and with one hand on the remote just in case someone walked in and wondered why I was watching the antics of an outlandish and effeminate gay man. I felt a kinship with him which soon made itself very clear. His wiki page is here if any of you are interested. I will be burning a candle for him on Christmas Day.

Alive…

I’m sitting here listening to the track Alive by Pearl Jam.  I broke up with someone I was going out with at the time and to be honest, the relief was palpable.  Still, I had gotten used to them being around and so it stung in some ways.  A chap who I always thought was as hard as nails and unfeeling up to then, handed me his tiny (smaller than mine) media player and said “here ya go, this will take your mind off things” and left me to my misery.  I never forgot his momentary kindness.

I’ve resisted the urge to hear this track since then in case it became inextricably linked to that time but nope, enough time has passed where I can listen to it and appreciate it for what it is.  It’s funny isn’t it how some songs, films, books, places and things are tied in with what’s gone before?  As an example, there’s an album by Santana which I can’t listen to at all because I heard it around the time I realised I was going to die.

I know that sounds odd but I always thought death was something which happened to everybody else and when I realised that no one, not even I, were going to be able to get out of it, it hit me hard.  I still don’t like the idea of it if I’m honest, made worse I suppose by the fact I’ve never believed in an afterlife.  Of course, I won’t know about it when I’m there as I didn’t know about anything before I arrived here but the thought of being sentient and then not being anything FOREVER, I find a tad difficult if I’m honest.

I look around this world and I see extraordinary beauty and am reminded that paradise is actually here with us, all the time.  Why then is there so much hatred and injustice in place?  If more people viewed this little life as the only one we have rather than a competition for the affections of God and all that entails, maybe we’d appreciate things more and would concentrate on making what time we have here worthwhile.

I mean, how stupid is racism when all’s said and done?  How can the colour and hue of your skin mean that one person is treated with respect while another is viewed as second-class in many parts of the world?  How can someone who has a penis be given greater financial rewards in the workplace than someone with a vagina when they’re both of equal experience and ability?

How can love be seen as lesser to some people just because of the gender of the two people concerned?  Why are people still dying because of poverty when we’ve got enough money (even in recession) to see that everyone can have a good standard of living?  Why do we waste so much money on wars and disharmony when we can spread love and unity and make a far greater difference by doing so?

We’re alive.  One day we won’t be.  Let’s live.  Let’s laugh.  Let’s love.  Let’s enjoy.  Let’s embrace.  Let’s educate.  Let’s see beyond all that’s gone before.

Let’s BE.

Hard thing to do…

I ended a friendship earlier.  Well, that’s not precisely true, I ceased contact with a user.  Ever since I’ve known this person we’ve always had to do what they’ve wanted, what I have thought and felt has never really come into it.  They only contact me when they need to and when I have something to say, they show a distinct lack of interest.

I’ve always been expected to drop what I’m doing for them yet when I express the need to do anything, they’re not prepared to meet me halfway or even some of the way unless there’s something in it for them.  When I’ve seen them out and about and have gone over and said hello, they’ve made it abundantly clear they haven’t wanted me there and that’s been quite hurtful.

I discovered today through a text they sent me that they’d lost their job.  I texted back to say I was sorry and they were quite curt in reply, which I disregarded because of the circumstances.  I wrote back to say would they like me to go and see them and perhaps cheer them up and a reply came back basically telling me to stop texting them and that I should stop bothering them as I was interrupting their evening.  I found that very upsetting.

I sat and thought about it for a while then replied stating it would be my last text, literally!  I told them to take care and I added that I hoped they treated future friends better than they had me.  I don’t regret it, I should have done it ages ago if I’m honest.  Whenever I’ve been in contact with them recently, I’ve come away feeling bad about myself and that’s no good at all.

I have no understanding of how anyone can go through their lives being so utterly selfish and unfeeling.  This person is well liked and is always going here there and everywhere and I’m sure their friends, if I bump into them, will want to know why I have stopped contact but frankly, I’m worth more than being continually rejected and shit upon by someone who doesn’t seem to understand or even value the friends they have.

The festive season…

What says Christmas to you?  I always know when it’s getting near the festive season when the man (same guy every year) sets up his little stall and starts selling hot chestnuts which he hands out in little white paper bags, the inevitable grease stains soon appearing down the sides.  He seems a happy chap, always has a broad smile on his face.

Then there’s the man who stands outside Boots the chemist with his white stick, whistling.  As far as blind whistlers go, he’s the main man!  There are the inevitable carolers who stand in the middle of the high street with their hymn sheets while men and women playing tubas and various other brass instruments are seated and accompanying them.  A little way away is someone shaking a bucket from the Salvation Army.

There’s a stall further along which sells didgeridoos and ‘ethnic style’ mirrors and trinkets, I’ve bought quite a few items from him before now.  He seems to do a good trade.  More often than not, there are steel drum players and these Peruvian guys wearing ponchos and hats who play souped up Pan Pipe music.  They have a whole bank of effects they put on them but they still sound utterly dreadful.

There’s one very unusual looking man, he arrives and sells these huge balloons.  He looks like his face has been prepared by an out of work and down on his luck mortuary assistant!  As to his wares, if you can imagine a very large saggy condom filled at the bottom with a small quantity of fluid, that’s what these balloons look like and he stands there holding them while trying to encourage people to part with their hard earned cash with his scary features and croaky voice.  He scares the life out of me if I’m honest but this time of year wouldn’t be the same without him.

There’s another man who sells these tiny wooden puppets and considering how small they are, they’re suprisingly mobile, like miniature people dangling on strings.  I must make mention of the ‘bird calls’ man.  He stands further down the street, with one of those small metal contraptions in his mouth which he whistles through.  They’re very good in that they do sound like tropical birds but when you’re freezing your arse off on a late December day, it does stretch the imagination ever so slightly to try and imagine that you’re somewhere pleasantly forested and warm.

Do you know what really puts me in the spirit of Christmas though?  An ice rink and the Natural History Museum in London has got one and it can be seen HERE.  I guess it’s the hopeless romantic in me but I love the idea of skating around with lots of other happy smiling people, holding the hand of my love (if I had one!) amidst lots of glittering lights and with the scent of marshmallows and hot chocolate carried on the air.  I’m not even vaguely religious or spiritual but I must confess a liking for this time of the year.

Happy Holidays everyone xxxx

Media manipulation…

I currently have a small 1Gb Sony media player and it works and plays fine.  The sound quality is really good yet because friends have larger looking players with more capacity, I’ve found myself looking online and in regular stores for another player.

Why am I doing this?

I don’t need another yet I find myself looking for the best deals.  Okay, so mine is tiny (the player!!!!!) but it does the job.  It’s discreet, it’s easy to use and it holds a reasonable amount of songs.  I’ve currently got about 10 full albums on it, many of them doubles.  Okay, so I can’t suddenly say “oh I think I’ll listen to such-and-such” then scroll through what is, to all intents and purposes, my entire CD catalogue but why would I want to do that anyway?

Very occasionally, I will think of a song which isn’t on it and wish I could listen to it but I can then delete some stuff off I’m not listening to and put that on.  I’m finding myself looking to get something I don’t really want and definitely don’t need when what I do have is a perfectly serviceable media player.

What is that all about?!?!?!?!?

Facial hair policy

I’m supposed to be going for a job interview tomorrow but have just found out that facial hair is not allowed for employees of this company yet I would be able to work there with no problems if I was a member of a religion which denoted that shaved hair was a no-no.

I mean, what’s with that?

Either, people with beards can work there or they can’t surely?  If I was Sikh or Muslim, I could work there with an unruly beard right down to my ankles but a very neatly trimmed beard and moustache is apparently unacceptable.  What do you guys think?  Should I go along or not?

Name of the blog…

Howdy all.  You may be wondering about the new blog and the unusual name.

According to Wiki:-

A strange loop arises when, by moving up or down through a hierarchical system, one finds oneself back where one started.

Strange loops may involve self-reference and paradox.

A tangled hierarchy is a hierarchical system in which a strange loop appears.

As I’ve always been rather strange and definitely loopy (or a nutter, as one Sarf Efrican dyke is always informing me) it seemed apt to plump for a different name, one which allows me more freedom in which to write and hopefully, develop.

So, there you have it.