Let There Be Love

(Above is some ones interpretation of the path to God.)



Often times, during our discussions about religious beliefs, I am amazed at the way many people are able to have such strong convictions about God. Never have I ever been fully convinced that there is a God, a greater being watching over me and guiding the lighted path I follow to his Kingdom. However, for many people, a belief in God is second nature. Why? Why is it so difficult for me to grasp while for others, their lives would be unfulfilled with out it?

Having been in this position for many years, I have come to accept it. Sometimes, I wish that I had a belief in a greater being, while other times, I am completely content with my state of mind. Something that has troubled me for years and years is the insistance some have to push their religion on yours. Many a time I have been to one of my leadership camps, with friends, or simply involved in a normal conversation when I have felt completely uncomfortable with the discussion of God. At times, I have felt like others have attempted to force their beliefs on me or look down upon me for not having the same beliefs as they do. Now I have not been involved in a situation that turned particularly nasty, but as we all know, in today’s day and age, religion is the source of many of our conflicts. While describing love for God and one another, John says “Those who say, ‘I love God’, and hate their brothers or sisters,* are liars; for those who do not love a brother or sister* whom they have seen, cannot love God whom they have not seen” (1 John 4:20). I find this slightly comical and ironic when considering the words of this verse in relation to the violence that occurs everyday. Thousands of people die yearly while fighting for their beliefs. Sometimes they fight those of another religion simply for not believing what they do. Sometimes they fight those who do not follow the religion exactly the way “the ones in charge” want them to. These conflicts often involve family members and death is not uncommon during these kinds of disputes. How is it these highly religious people can kill their brothers blood or by race and religion, and still claim to love and act in the name of God? It is stated plain and simply right there in the New Testament. These martyrs feel the need to act in extremes. Would God really like this sort of behavior? I believe that often times, people get so caught up in the fighting and the dignifying of God that they forget why they started fighting in the first place. They forget that God would not want our world to be a place of hatred and violence, bloodshed and discrimination.

In the movie A Walk to Remember, the main character Landon falls in love with a devout Christian, Jaime, dying of Leukemia. Despite his lack of belief in God, they are able to connect and feel true love in the face of death. They marry and during their ceremony, the priest says a very powerful verse that many know well. He says “Love is patient and kind; it is not jealous or conceited or proud; love is not ill-mannered or selfish or irritable; loves does not keep a record of wrongs; love is not happy with evil, but is happy with the truth. Love never gives up; and its faith, hope, and patience never fail” (1 Corinthians 13:4-8). If all of those our their fighting religious wars would read this verse and take it in, I believe they would, if only for a split second, realize that their actions are not representative of what their God would want. We should all love who we want, believe in what we want and all the while, be respectful of those who differ from us in love and beliefs.

Concrete Understanding of the Abstract

Out of all of the readings this week, Plato’s preservation and depiction of Socrates’ words after being sentenced to death was the most powerful and insightful.

To begin, I cannot imagine knowing that I was “not far from death” (Plato 55). Socrates, of course, is told and remains in composure enough to state his beliefs again and leave behind enlightenment for those who are taking his life and others to come. When I was trying to imagine knowing I was going to die, my thoughts wandered to my Aunt Nanci, who was diagnosed in January 2006 with colon cancer and expected to have about six months to live. I have written of her before, however, I believe Socrates’ condition in this passage is similar in some ways to my aunt’s. The comparison of the two situations shines a light on both the strengths and weaknesses of each “victim”.

Illness is far different from punishment and death due to actions, just or unjust. The thread between the two is a conclusion of ones life. When my aunt was diagnosed, she was terrified. I distinctly remember sneaking into the bathroom during school to talk to my mom about the devastating news. She told me my aunt had been too weak to walk after leaving the doctor so her husband had to carry her in and set her down on my grandpa, her father’s, lap. They sat and cried. As I write this, two years later, I am filled with sadness and tears come to my eyes. The idea of death was frightening, unimaginable, unfair, especially for a fifty-two year old mother of seven.

My aunt’s approach to death was far different from Socrates’ approach. Now, being that Socrates “himself wrote nothing” and what we know of his ideas are all from Plato, details and the exact manner in which events occurred may have been slightly or largely different from our current understanding. However, we must go by what we know, or think we know. And according to the text, after hearing his sentence, Socrates accepted it and continued to discuss his beliefs.

Socrates said “there is great reason to hope that death is a good” (Plato 56). How can one be so certain that death is good while they are staring it in the face? Death, for many, is the time they will journey into a “better place” where they are reunited with their creator. Those who believe this will have a much easier time accepting death. My aunt was a Christian and believed Heaven exists. After the initial shock of her potentially short time left on this earth, she was able to accept her new life and deal with her illness as needed. A year and a half (not six months) after being given her “death sentence,” my aunt passed away peacefully, with my mother’s hand in hers and her children by her side. If things went as she planned, she moved on to that “better place” with her God.

Being rather unreligious, I find the idea of Heaven extremely hard to grasp.
(The picture is a depiction of going from the concrete chair to the abstract design.) I am a concrete minded person and that sort of abstract thought is difficult to understand. Because of my uncertain beliefs in a Heaven, it is hard for me to view death as a good thing, like Socrates does. It wasn’t for quite awhile after my aunt’s death that it struck me how final it all is. She’s gone. She will never be back. Never again will I ride with her to visit her horse, stopping at Mr. Freeze on the way back to get an ice cream. Never again will we go shopping together or simply sit and talk. It’s all done.

Reading the passage of Socrates’ thoughts gives me a little more strength to stand up to and accept death for what it is. Perhaps “to die is to gain” (Plato 56) and it is not until you are at that point in your life that you understand the truth in that statement.

The "Age" of Religion

For many, college is more than a time to be educated on biology, art, history, foreign language, the basics. It is a time to become educated on the religions of our world find out exactly what each one of us will choose to believe in.

Undoubtedly, when religion is brought up in conversation, the tension amongst the conversers shoots up to an extreme level. Many feel uncomfortable discussing their beliefs with others, not only because they do no want their opinions to offend anyone, but because they are not quite sure what their opinions are. I can attest to being fairly uncertain as to what I believe and what beliefs I hold are reasonable.

From the time I first entered public school to the end of my high school career, teachers were instructed to stay as far away from discussions of religion and the possibility of a God that the topic became somewhat taboo. With the exception of literature that had a religious connection, I cannot once recall a time in high school when we discussed religion on anything but the superficial level.

In “Faith of the Quad,” the author emphasizes the importance professors should have in students’ religious discovery, helphing “students with their concerns about ‘meaning’ and ‘purpose’ in life and with their desires to connect spiritual development with their intellectual growth in college” (Jaschik 285). When I read this, I was shocked at the enormous difference this is from the high school approach. Why? Why should high school teacher not be permitted to have that sort of influence in a students life? If we look at this from the “public school, government funded” perspective, keeping church separate from state, the lack of religion in high school is understandable. But then why does this separation fade away in college?

College is a new and exciting time for many, a time of change, discovery, experimentation, and a time to pave the path for the rest of your life. I believe that many people who have not grown up being very religion feel pressure to “find God” and the “look for meaning in life” (Jaschik 288). Personally, I have felt this pressure to some extent as well. Growing up in a secular family, I never had a great connection to God or a certain religion. I went through a time in middle school when I explored the Methodist church and its beliefs. I find the connection some have with God to be fascinating. The ability to truly believe and devote your entire being to someone or something you cannot see. Faith is incredible. I, however, have a very difficult time believing in the abstract idea of there being an all-powerful being controlling and watching over us. I have tried, to “see the light” but the sparks have not flown and the bond has not been formed.

I am actually fairly content with my current state of beliefs. Sometimes, I long to have that relationship with a greater being, to be able to truth fully say that I know there is a God who loves me and watches me and guides me in all I do, but I am far from being so secure in my convictions. I will continue to learn about the different religions and the evidence for and against religion and modify my beliefs along the way.

Goodbye Old...Hello NEW Orleans!

"Most people seek after what they do not possess and are thus enslaved by the very things they want to acquire." -Anwar El-Sadat

In today’s society, wealth seems to have taken top priority. Day after day, the importance of class standing and material goods is reinforced through magazines, television show such as “The Fabulous Life of the Rich and Famous,” and constant media coverage of who is wearing what and what is in and what is out.

In the Bhagavad Gita, Krishna emphasizes the importance of “freedom from hate and vanity” (125), however it seems these are qualities that have become extremely prevalent today. How is it that our world has become so consumed with these superficial ideas and need for material goods?

The superficiality of our present world is devastating. During my trip to New Orleans over Christmas break, I was reminded of how little some people have. Since Katrina hit the historic and fascinating city, things have been remarkably different. I spent nine years of my life as a New Orleans resident and became extremely familiar with the city. Since leaving in 2000, I had yet to return to New Orleans. I remembered New Orleans as being like every other city, clean, not extremely safe but having nice areas, and a decent place to live. After arriving in the airport my family and I went to rent a car. The minute we opened the door, the smell of weed bombarded our nostrils. My mom looked down and found bits of weed wedged between the seat and the door. Only in New Orleans would this happen. We got a new car and proceeded to drive through the city. I was astonished by the filth and dirt that seemed to cover every square inch of land. I saw homeless men and women on corner after corner and each business seemed more run down than the next. It was not at all how I had remembered it.

Our second day in town, we drove through the ninth ward where the majority of the destruction had taken place. I cannot begin to describe the sadness that filled my heart as we explored street after street of abandoned homes. Each home was marked with an “X,” the top quadrant having the date it was searched written in it, the left quadrant having the group that searched it written in it, and the bottom quadrant having the number of dead people found in the house written in it. We spent about two hours cruising through the area viewing the wreckage. It was heartbreaking, to say the least, to see the people on the streets and the houses with nothing to them but the frame. While looking at all of this, I realized how pathetic our materialism and superficiality really is. These people would be grateful to have a something to eat for dinner while we’re worrying about which new pair of designer jeans we will get for Christmas.

Many people are “caught in the toils of a hundred vain hopes, the slaves of passion and of wrath, they accumulate hoards of unjust wealth,” (127) thinking it will be their path to happiness. They soon realized that there is more to happiness than money. Despite the bad hand people in New Orleans have been dealt, it does not stop them from tap dancing on a corner for a couple of bucks or livening the city with their upbeat and soulful jazz music. I think every single person could learn a lot from a trip to New Orleans and a look at what hope during hard times really is.

On Britney Spears and the Bhagavad Gita (a surprising correlation!)

While reading the Bhagavad Gita, I had a fairly difficult time relating to the lessons taught and the life that Lord Krishna suggests should be lived. Throughout most of the book, Krishna explains many life lessons to Prince Arjuna, from mediation, to ridding oneself of desire and lust, to the importance of sacrificing oneself for the purpose of the Lord and living a peaceful, holy life.

The first lesson I came upon that puzzled me was “Why grieve for those for whom no grief is due, and yet profess wisdom? The wise grieve neither for the dead nor the living” (13). As pathetic as it may seem, I immediately though of the current situation that Britney Spears has gotten herself in. After having an extremely successful four years in the music industry, Britney began making a number of mistakes that drastically changed her life. She had a quick marriage that lasted less than 3 days and from then on it was pretty much downhill. Her most recent drama consisted of her refusing to hand over her children to ex-husband Kevin Federline at the designated time. The incident ended with six cop cars, and ambulance, and a fire truck arriving at her house, eventually taking her to Cedar – Senai Hospital strapped to a gurney with suspicion that she was under the influence of a controlled substance. She was placed under suicide watch and after less than 72 hours, the normal time one would spend in the hospital after such an incident, was consulted by television psychiatrist, Dr. Phil McGraw, and released through an underground tunnel. Days later, Britney fled the United States and went to Mexico with a member of the paparazzi who she is currently having a romantic relationship with. She has been photographed videotaped doing extremely bizarre things, including screaming “I’m f**king over it!! Get out of my face!” to a mob of paparazzi members and adopting a British accent in normal conversation. It is as if she “perplexed by discordant thoughts, entangled in the snares of desire, infatuated by passion, [she sunk] into the horrors of hell” (127).

When Britney first popped in my head, I thought, “This fits perfectly and is so true. Why do I have feel sorry for this wealthy, previously successful woman who made so many poor decision that she is now is a state of total despair? It’s her fault!” And then I thought about it some more and realized that I don’t feel that way at all. Yes, Britney has made a ridiculous amount of mistakes and stupid decisions, but why should we cute her off from society and deem her “unfixable”?

My mother always told me, “there is more to be pitied than censored.”
I believe this applies to the entire uproar involving Britney. She has become so absorbed in the celebrity life that she has completely lost touch with reality. She has become someone entirely different from the blossoming adolescent she was when she began her music career. As a society, we should look to support those who are down rather than furthering the ridicule and worsening their state of being. I believe it requires wisdom to know that in regards to most situations, progress results from care and compassion rather than hate and resentment.

Legal Trouble :(

I don’t even know where to begin discussing the lessons I learned this past semester. It has been such a fabulous few months yet so very vital in forming who I am and will be for the rest of my life.

Now, I contemplated whether or not I should share this with the class, Professor Bump in particular, with the fear that people’s opinions about me may be tainted. However, I decided that since we are all fairly close and open with each other and I’m sure others have experienced this sort of thing to some extent, it would be just fine to share.

On my fourth night in Austin, my friends and I decided to go to a frat party together. As most do when attending a frat party, we had a few drinks, met a few people and enjoyed the evening. We left the party around one in the morning with the intentions of going back to Jester, hoping in bed, and getting a good night of sleep. Unfortunately, our night did not go quite as planned.

Having little experience with alcohol and my limit, I had over done it at the party and drank a little too much. Walking towards our building, I began to feel slightly uneasy and the effects were coming on. At about this time, a power hungry, evil little University police officer came towards us, insisting that we step inside and undergo an evaluation. Two other officers came who performed sobriety tests and proceeded to issue me and two of my friends Minor In Consumption (MIC) tickets for smelling alcohol on our breathe.


We were all three terrified. We had just begun our journey of freedom and were already being halted by a very unfortunate and devastating event. We cried (or at least I did) and tried to talk our way out of it, but to no avail.

The judge allowed us to do deferred disposition which means we had to pay $240, complete 8 hours of community service, attend 3 Alcoholics Anonymous meetings, an alcohol awareness class, and serve 90 days of probation. Now, this was not thrilling, however it was better than being convicted.

I cannot say that I am glad that I got an MIC, but I know that I learned a lot from this event. Most importantly I learned that my decisions now, being out on my own, could have huge impacts on my life. I chose to drink and therefore I had to deal with the consequences. I am not going to lie and say that I learned to never drink again, because as many college students do, I enjoy going to parties occasionally. I did learn that it is important to watch whom you go to parties with, what you drink, and how much you drink. Had I been with unreliable friends and taken a drink with something bad in it from someone at the party, I could have ended up in a very compromising situation. Fortunately, my friends stuck with me and I knew enough to watch what I was drinking (unfortunately I was not paying much attention to the amount).

There are many ways to have a good time and parties just happen to be one of them.
I often times spend weekends with the kids in my hall going to dinner downtown and then back to Jester, making late runs to Kerby Lane or TCBY. But when I do choose to go to a party, I am much more careful than I ever was before and will always remember the lessons I learned my fourth night in Austin.