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Image of chapel roof, monastery on the beautiful island of Patmos where John wrote the Book of Revelation (Steve)
A symbol of the old religions? Rebekah and Jordan running towards Maen Llia standing stone in the mountains near our home (Steve)Steve writes: As a scientist I have no problem reconciling the existence of God with science, and many of my colleagues - particularly in the physics group - came to faith at least in part through their studies of the natural world. I'm mainly inspired by the teachings of the Abrahamic Faiths (Judaism, Christianity and Islam) plus some insights from 'Eastern' religions and neo-paganism. Steve Feb 2012 OrthodoxyReading the Desert Fathers and other texts from the first few hundred years of Christianity has helped me to understand how early Christians were able to view Yeshua / Isa / Jesus as the living embodiment of God, the 'Logos' made flesh, fusing Judaism with Greek pagan concepts to create Orthodox Christianity, from which all of the other forms descended. The literalism of some Protestant sects is absent, but concepts such as the Trinity and the Divinity of Jesus, and the elevated status of Mary have all arisen from this potent fusion of ideas. SWANSEA ORTHODOX CHURCH - The Community Of St Zachariah & St Elizabeth South West Wales. Serving Swansea, Llanelli and South West Wales. An Orthodox Christian community within the Ecumenical Patriarchate. Archdiocese of Thyateira Great Britain - good site with lots of information about Orthodoxy, British Saints, sacrements and faith. BRITISH ORTHODOX CHURCH - The British Orthodox Church is a small communion affiliated to the Coptic Orthodox church. The FRIENDS OF MOUNT ATHOS - Society supporting the work of the Monastic communities of the Holy Mountain in Greece. If they can bring their knowledge to a wider audience the Athonite monks have much to offer our troubled world. It is striking how similar Athonite spirituality is to some forms of Sufism and Buddhism. In the 1980's as a young man I became a member of the Religious Society of Friends, better known as the Quakers. I've not resigned my membership but nowadays I rarely attend their meetings, my views have moved on but I still respect what Quakers stand for. Father Richard Rohr is an inspirational speaker and writer - I enjoy listening to his talks when driving long routes in my car. See http://www.cacradicalgrace.org/
Mosque in Kos, Greece (Steve) Islam Contrary to what the western press tells you, Islam is a beautiful religion that preaches peace, justice, equality of rights and tolerance for non-muslims. You could spend years learning about the various branches and doctrines, but the primary belief is that there is One God, by whom we will one day be judged, and that God (Allah in Arabic) has sent humankind many messengers including Abraham, Moses and Jesus. The last messenger is Muhammad - through him the message to mankind was completed so we have not needed to receive new teaching. Education and scientific understanding is encouraged and we are told that now it's up to us to live in peace, treat each other and the planet well, and vie with each other in good deeds 'as if in a race'. We are stewards of Allah's creation and we will be answerable for what we have done. We must create just and decent societies where the orphan and the widow are looked after, where the elderly are valued and where Allah has the central role in our lives. Muslims reject the concept of God becoming incarnate in the limited form of the man, they would argue that Jesus was a human empowered by God to do the things he did, not God incarnate. They point out that Jesus had limited knowledge, that he prayed to his heavenly Father constantly, and that he taught the One-ness of God, not trinity. Even Peter in the book of Acts refers to Jesus as a Prophet, not a God. Muslims hold Christians as dear partners in the worship of the one God, but who have fallen into the error of making a created being into God. Sadly Islam suffers from sectarianism, but the majority of Muslims are 'Sunni' - that is they follow the 'Sunnah' or way of the Prophet Muhammad. This is the mainstream (approx 80%) of Islam and is generally a peaceful and broad form, if rather conservative. Next largest (10-20%) are the Shi'a - a sect that split from mainstream Islam in the early years, mainly due to a dispute over who should be the Head of the Muslim state. The Shi'a believe that leadership should have remained within the family of Muhammad, whereas the Sunni felt that was not required - the best and most able candidate should be leader. The Shi'a have developed some ideas that are more like Roman Catholicism over the centuries, revering certain men as intermediaries with God, having doctrines of infallibility etc. Mostly they are limited to Iran but there are also Shi'a minorities in a few other countries. Another - these days very small - group are known as the Sufis. These are the mystics of Islam, and they developed very advanced approaches to philosophy and theology. Sufism suffered from persecution by religious conservatives, Sunni and Shi'a, and numbers fell in the 20th Century for many reasons including the loss of the intellectual classes from religious belief to political movements such as socialism and Arab Nationalism, and the banning of the Sufi lodges by the secular Turks. Sufis are present across the Islamic world and are making something of a comeback thanks to the internet, especially among Western converts and within well-educated Muslim communities who have seen how both Capitalist and Socialist political systems have failed to provide the answers hoped for. Movements such as Al-Qaeda and the really nutty Boko Haram sect in Nigeria are thankfully small, extremist groups that feed on the failure of Western political systems and economics, hatred of Israel and youth unemployment. They are similar to extremist movements in other world religions, and they adopt tactics that are fordidden in the Qur'an such as suicide and murder of non-combatants. Whatever you think of Islam, it is the daily faith of over a Billion people and is growing fast, and has a huge role to play in the achievement of a just, sustainable and scientifically advanced human culture that can one day reach the stars. Here are some links to start with - lots more on the internet.. If you're in the Southampton area Brother Anas and friends are available to help you learn more about Islam, see the South Coast New Muslims Project. Cambridge Khutbas - Muslim sermons and talks in English - mostly by Dr. Abdul Hakim Murad - good stuff! EMEL magazine - good monthly Muslim 'lifestyle' magazine The Muslim Institute - Aims to promote and support debate, research, creativity and knowledge Steve
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