Journal of August 11, 2005

August 11, 2005 4:45 PM

And so now here perhaps is the situation among the three brothers. One,, the atheist, has been convinced by sheer logic in application to our interactions with each other (two or more), that he cannot believe in moral purpose unless there be a God,, and since he must believe in moral purpose, he must perforce admit a God.

Now the big question will be this. Now that you, brother atheist made-aware, now that you see that you must come to terms with this God that you must admit, it seems to make sense to be able to decide what the best choice might be between the two of Christianity and Islam.

Now how should the three brothers proceed in each of the other two, the Christian and the Muslim. Each is a true believer in his faith, and so the sincerity of the presentation need not be considered, i.e., we can assume that people actually in accordance with these two ideas, having their lives ruled in effect and result of these two ideas.

What are we to look for in a religion? Let’s assume we were all recently atheists and were all looking at these two faiths. Let’s see if we can see what everyone else sees, for sometimes there are faces in clouds. I presume to insist that we go back to the core of the matter and see what we are dealing with. A man, say Paul, seeks the vision of Jesus as in sight into a really existing world just beyond the curtain of the sky, which cordons it off for humans. And in that big room, where the earth is like a garden on a platter, God gazes now in love and sees in a human being the spirit of his son, Jesus, that Jesus had introduced into and left in the world, while he is now on the right side of this God just beyond the sky, and he is gazing now with the father and weeping with Paul’s wounds and thanking Paul with his smile, “thanks for catching on and hooking on.”

But of course this is immaterial to us now, and rightly so, for now the Muslim and the Christian are to present their cases to this third brother, the former atheist and now-wondering-where-to-turn. Now I really want to try to present the essential doctrine of these two faiths.

Muslim. I see the Muslim speaking in this way to himself. Look, man, this is between you and God and you are to talk to him in a way that God will want you to speak in order to convince him to join you, or to rot in hell with the other. I know the choice, for I am Keen. Now the thing is this: figure how what God is actually telling you to tell him, and then tell him, and don’t worry that you might not get it right, for that is possible, but in that case, even though you miss the reward of the obedient, you get the reward of the sincere, and that is exceedingly valuable.

I assume this is the fundamental premise of the Muslim, and it holds true for those who sincerely believe that God wants them to discourse in commonly held truths among the humans and to speak with honest conviction. I am impressed by the story of the Muslim who slays a Jewish friend of the family. He is chided by his brother who reminded him that the Jew had helped their family very much. And he replies that if the Prophet should tell me to kill you I would do so with equal dispatch. The brother was so impressed that he also became a Muslim that very day.

And so I guess I should warn my new believer in God brother that I think this is the mind set of the Muslim in case my undecided brother might want to make inquiry as to the character of that religion.

5:22 PM I need to back up. We three brothers started out in our common brotherhood and then became separated by our believes. This then was the bond between us as brothers and this must always be held. I.e., no one brother can use another brother as a means to a personal goal.

I wonder if the three brothers will agree to that? This is the moral law, and this would mean that all brothers were under the constraint of the moral law.

This law of brotherhood is, of course, to be proclaimed as a divine injunction, to exemplify the worth of each brother.

Now I think what has happened is that one of us brothers has gone off into a trance which is only second best, and the goal is not only for me to convince you, my former atheist brother, to choose Christianity, for I will endeavor to show that it is the natural, first choice,, for it is a religion which honors the brotherhood law and calls for its promotion above and beyond all other revelations of God, alleged or true (John 5). In Christianity, merely as a practical matter, makes sense, for it is established on the divine command of the law of human brotherhood, and that means the world where everyone counts (even if it is not always clear when someone has been born a soul).

The fact that for most of its existence it has been in a scriptural and ecclesiastical straight jacket, and it has been horrid, has been sin. The Christian is unable to gloss over such, but to admit it and to declare that it was sinful, but without impairing at all the continuation of the same Holy Spirit as He sought to move men, but only according to their own condition and their own understanding. The Christian church (many) marry the divorce, but we declare it a Sin with a capital S and declare it therefore unacceptable and to be eradicated, and indeed in accordance with the condition of the people and according to their understanding.

For this reason historical complaints against the historical church are not really the issue here, but rather what promise the seedling had at the time of its establishment in the hearts of men and women. Slavery was and is evil, but the particular historical figures will be judged by God in accordance with their understanding and their code of conduct. Now the fact of indebtedness arises, but for Christians that is to be dismissed as unimportant, for the real solution is to make sure that all people, ex-slaves included among the impoverished for whatever reason, are given an opportunity to something with their lives. Our eye stays constantly on the goal, and we are not downcast, but press on to the high calling in Christ Jesus.

5:39 PM Now what does Islam give us. I can speak only of my impressions so far. These people do wonderfully good acts, but they do them for base motives, which I would like to try

Wait a minute. Let’s remember what we are about. The former atheist brother stands in the presumed bond of brotherhood (as an absolute code of conduct). The Christian has presented the

5:42 PM Wait another minute. We need to understand how it is that each brother knows (believes) that he has the true story. What is the belief based on? What must the former atheist now have to believe in order to enter in upon that same belief? What is being believed?

There are two ways to go, I think. We can go by the looks of things, or we can go by the rationality of things. This means that if the looks of things is thought to be of God, then anything you do is ok, for this is God. But this also means that we give up the absolute law of brotherhood, for now it is possible that a Muslim might conceivably be commanded of God to betray in brother, and while it might break his heart, he would of course have to do it for now each man is on his own,, and it doesn’t matter if you have a brother or not, you are standing now quite alone before God. So forget the others and do what you are led to do for God and be sure that you can never make a wrong move if you are simply sincere in your belief that it could easily be the guidance of God.

Now rationally speaking we can never expect a brotherhood, even when commanded by God for a tribe or some configuration of tribes, to ever exist in such a world. And so if our Muslim brother talks you into going into Islam with utter sincerity, you will exist the bounds of brotherhood and it will be each of you two for himself alone, and me being unable to do any more than stay alive and alleviate any pain that you feel in your condition. I cannot renounce my brotherhood to you, and only you can renounce your brotherhood to me by entering in upon Islam. I will pray for your awakening and rest assure that all things are in the hands of a merciful and all-powerful God who acts in mysterious ways his wonders to unfold.

Now according to the looks, both Paul and Mohammed, the originators of these two faiths (gentile Christianity and Islam) reported visions which they both sincerely saw as heavenly. They are both probably of one coin in imagining the sky as a great dome which covers the earth and goes in shades of color with stars moving about the ceiling and speaking to the humans. So these two guys decide that the vision was heavenly. It’s a difficult shot because

6:05 PM And so I think that is the bottom line. Based on the reported action of Abraham, even if mitigated by his son’s consent, and based on the actions of the Prophet, it is necessary, in order to be sincerely submissive, to forget the brotherhood and to look out for yourself first and foremost, and simply be ready to do whatever you are called to do. Be sincere and act according to your sincerity, for you will never err in doing that. Get knowledge and then act according to your sincerely understood guidance. No questions asked. Do as you are told. And you will avoid hell and enjoy paradise. No question about it. This is the message told to me by the being who calls himself Gabriel, and who appears to me occasionally.

With the Christians, on the other hand, the brotherhood is supported by a divine command. According to the revelation exemplified in the life and the writings of Prophet Paul, the law of the brotherhood is supreme, and Jesus even came to demonstrate that, that the brotherhood is the command of God himself. And so with the Christians you will never have to ever fear any guidance, be it so called, that might come from a supernatural being (God or demon for that matter), will called for a violation of the brotherhood, for the Holy Spirit, said to guide them, can be identified by the law of the brotherhood alone, without need for further instruction.

If you choose the Christian religion, my former atheist brother, you will live in a world where the law of brotherhood not only extend between us, but which also includes our Muslim brother, even if he chooses to look upon us as possible enemies, i.e., to be destroyed the sincerely believe guidance of God. He still remains our brother, and we, as Christians, will wish him well,and the best of all would be if he could realize that he has chosen second best, for he has chosen self over the brotherhood and is caught in his scramble for happiness through discovering and complying with the various guides of God.

The Muslim therefore always remains a member of the brotherhood in the eyes of the Christian and is saddened that the Muslim no longer considers himself a member of the brotherhood.

The Muslim will have his brotherhood of limited scope by means of a command of Allah. I.e., the Muslim will treat his brother as a brother not because of the law of brotherhood, but rather because of the command of Allah.

I get this picture: it is the slave of Allah versus the children of Abba. One forgets all allegiance except the allegiance to Allah and all else as derived from the sincerely believed guidances of Allah, and so where the brotherhood, if supported at all, is done so in piecemeal and then only as a command, and where the idea of the brotherhood is banished entirely and forever. I really think Kant hit it on the head with the “extortionist” bit. The Muslim has gone into business for himself and is convinced that he is making a good bargain. He does what he has to do in order to escape the flames and garner a nice paradise, and for no other reason than that. He is an independent entrepreneur and he is going after the best bargain. He is an intelligent and rational being. He is going to do exactly as he is told to do, and precisely and alone in order to feed the ego of some demon, or else by the beneficent Allah, Absolute God, who has decided to let the humans know in advance why they have been chosen to people a paradise or a hell.

With the Children of Abba, there is foreknowledge given in the example of Jesus, that all commands and guidances of Abba will be in terms of the brotherhood. It is as simple as that. Whatever the Christian religion calls for, it all works to the promotion of the law of brotherhood, that all people count. Believe that Jesus was physically resurrected or believe that he is spiritually resurrected. That doesn’t matter.

[The former atheist will have also discovered the moral necessity for a soul that continues past the grave. And so he will have no trouble with the notion of the continuation of Jesus’ life until now. He knows that the life continues and that he will in all likelihood die and so he must perforce believe in a resurrection. and so can opt for the spiritual resurrection and ignore the physical, except as an expression of the joy of resurrection in general.]

The point is to follow him on a road which must be anticipated to mean a crucifixion. It must be ongoing.

With the Christian side then both brothers could engage in a common effort to care for the well-being of the Muslim brother and thus have a greater chance of success, or else, if we have two Muslim brothers and only one Christian, then it will be far more difficult, for we have not a two for the sake of the third (and actually for all three), but a one for the sake of two thirds (and still for all three). Much weaker.

Why then would someone opt for Islam? A supernatural vision (which could be hallucination or demonic [and which is not the case with the vision of Paul, due to the content of the ensuing revelation, i.e., support of the brotherhood of mankind]) and a base appeal to the individual to be willing, even if not always eager, to sacrifice a brother if it were called for, i.e., for the sake of a great reward.

The Christian is not reward oriented, except in the mundane world, for he thinks to already possess his reward in the communion with God through Christ. He takes the cue from the Holy Spirit by means of the law of the brotherhood, “the thief is my brother”. What accords with this is clearly the guidance of the Holy Spirit and such an impulse is to be trusted. What does not contradict this be accepted in faith as the guidance (like the sincerity of the Muslim), that exemplifies a good heart, and that is all that is valued in the Kingdom of Abba anyway, the spirit which rules the heart.

7:25 PM For the sake of the world, and I believe also of his own soul, I pray for the former atheist brother to embrace Christ and work with me for the sake of our brother caught up in Islam.

Christ is the religion of liberty, where each person guides himself in all good work (and especially cooperative work) in accordance with the law of universal brotherhood (no exceptions). Islam is the religion of what Jesus called the “hireling”. Each man for himself and God “against” all. Where all is sold for the highest bidder and the heart remains ever self entered and manipulative.