Sometimes staring into the abyss lets me surpass my panic and find a certain peace that motivates me.
For example after reading “Before The Law” I thought to myself “I wonder what the man’s life would’ve been like if he chose not to seek entrance into the law, but instead lived by his own principles. It could’ve been a whole different story.”
Okay so Jesus was definitely a successful real estate developer but I personally don’t believe that was his intention. Judging intentionality is impossible of course, but that’s why I said “I believe”.
Counterpoint is probably to look at real estate prices on Mlk Jr Blvd’s? Idk.
I assume that when they die they’ll wake up from their wizard coma and it will coincide with some sort of cool plot point. Maybe his wizard body gets kissed by a frog or something.
Christianity to me means trying to follow in Christ’s footsteps. I believe we exist to love and be loved. Judgement is reserved for God, I’m here to give what I can.
The story of Jesus isn’t super unique from a mythological perspective, but it’s the one that was taught to me first as I was growing up so it’s a foundational part of who I am. As a kid I didn’t like Christianity because it seemed like there were too many contradictions in the teachings and the behavior of the believers.
As I got older and gained more experiences I started to realize why those contradictions exist, and I approached the source material from a more nuanced perspective instead of dogma.
Learning about other religions and mythologies really solidified my faith in “God” as something truly transcendental that can never be captured or understood from a logical perspective. I think Christianity is flawed in that it is the human interpretation of “divine” experiences, but everything is “flawed” when. I believe we can always find a path back to grace.
The fixation on “completing” things isn’t healthy imo. An attitude like that will rob you of the ability to find joy. I have to eat every day, sleep every night, and do laundry on a weekly basis. None of these things will ever be “done” for as long as I’m alive. Being “complete” is being dead.
It’s scientifically impossible to prove free will exists, so it’s difficult to accurately interpret what it means to “deliberately think of ideas.”
Sometimes I’ll make a joke or have a thought and I can’t tell if I’ve heard it somewhere else before, or if it was an original idea. I used to stress out about not knowing things like that, but I’ve learned that as long as I’m honest with myself I don’t really have to worry.
In a certain sense nothing “new” exists. Everything you think of is already in the past because it has been observed. You don’t know what thought is going to jump into your head next, but I think that with practice you can sort of “train” yourself to be more receptive of different ideas/thoughts.
Stay curious, honest, and believe in yourself. Consciousness is weird, but it allows you to do cool things like make pizza and play games with friends.
Hard work and passion.