Originally posted by jaywill
What you discribe doesn't sound like the experience of Christ to me. There is nothing sensual or visual attached to my touching the life giving Spirit. There is no scent or accompanying aroma or such.
I studied zen for a time. And I think I understand that since early human civilization man has cultivated various ways to tap into latent soulical powers ...[text shortened]... sible to imitate the genuine experience of the resurrected and living Jesus.
What you discribe doesn't sound like the experience of Christ to me. There is nothing sensual or visual attached to my touching the life giving Spirit. There is no scent or accompanying aroma or such.
Not all such experiences have the same elements; some are simply rich with emotional content, for example. Also, some people describe any visual or auditory experiences in very much an “as if” way—e.g., someone might say, it was as if he spoke to me, but I really don’t hear voices, etc.
The question is why, for yourself, you assign that experience as one of Christ (that is, I mean a question for your own self-inquiry—certainly not as something that you ought to think you have to convince me of). There might be many reasons: upbringing, environment, recent studies, etc., that might lead your mind to translate that experience as Christ, whereas someone else might translate it into Vishnu. You can, of course, automatically dismiss an experience that might be in all ways exactly like yours, except that it is attributed to Vishnu instead of Christ, simply because you decide that all other such experiences must be false (or, indeed, decide that they couldn’t possibly be like yours in all other ways).
Now, I admit that one can assume that we can put all such reaching out to God as left brain / right brain activity. You could lump these matters all together as the various meditation techniques of parapsychology. I think it would be a mistake to do so.
My main point is that I think it is a mistake—and a dangerous one—to
assume that such experience must be of a supernatural nature (pun intended). My only call is for people to exercise some intellectual restraint and honest self-critical inquiry. I have known people (close friends, which we remained) who had such experiences that, in the end, they concluded was an experience of the risen Christ—but they were willing to subject themselves to a great deal of ongoing self-inquiry, and did not mind honest challenges from others but rather welcomed them.
BTW, I do not put Zen in the “parapsychology” category, since Zen explicitly rejects paranormal and occultic experiences.
I have found that it is easier for people to think of a force or vibration into which they may touch some form of "spiritual" energy then it is for them to confess Jesus Christ as their Lord. You are still "above" a force or vibration which you may "use" for your benefit. The experience of coming under the lordship and being headed up under the Lord Jesus, I think, is approached with far more caution by practically everyone.
Interesting. I have found almost universally the exact opposite—that is, people who grow up in an environment fully enculturated with a Christian (or Jewish or Muslim or Hindu) worldview, tend to find it quite challenging, difficult, uncomfortable and often even terrifying to let it go. And even among those who change particular religious “affiliations” there is often a tendency toward escapism in the sense of seeking a higher authority to which to submit, in order to avoid the existential burden of self-responsibility.
Now, I have seen the opposing cases, such as you speak of, as well, and I accuse neither you nor any other particular person on here of such escapist motivation, consciously or otherwise.
So I think you'd better be certain before you mix Christ and Krishna and Transcendental Meditation and Zen all in the same bag together.
I certainly do not mix them all in the same bag. Again, Zen does not have anything to do with the supernatural. It is quite as possible to be a Zen Christian as it is to be a Zen Buddhist, if those are the particular worldviews you want to add on to it.
As for your choice for Christ, May it be for you and others a path of blessing.
A Simple Way to Experience Christ
23 Aug '06 16:35
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