Do you ever
wonder what “the truth” is? In posing this question, I differentiate between
belief (trust, faith, or confidence that something is true) and fact (a thing
that is indisputably the case). We shouldn’t confuse belief (I channel
Jesus.) with fact (At 1 atmosphere of pressure pure water boils at 100 degrees
Celsius or 212 degrees Fahrenheit.)
If you read
New Age thought, you find differing points of view on a vast array of topics with
varying degrees of agreement and disagreement between sources. And many of the
sources claim to be channeled communication from highly evolved, revered
persons. With this plethora of perspectives, how do you determine what is true?
For
instance, consider information about the death of Jesus. Some say he died on
the cross, rose from the dead on the third day, and ascended into heaven. Some
say he died on the cross, was buried, and that ended his physical life. Others
say he was removed from the cross by loyal followers, nursed back to health in
secret, and eventually lived the remainder of his life in India.
Do you
recall the perspective that we create our own reality, both in physical and
non-physical dimensions? Perhaps there are so many diverse points of view
because there are so many creators – you, others, and me. Since we are all
creating our own reality, should it surprise us that many different points of
view, some contradicting others, come out of this perpetual creation soup?
Or consider
the comments of Eliezer Sobel who proposes a different point of view on reality
creation in his article “Do We Really Create Our Own Reality,” which explores
the teachings of Werner Erhard. Sobel writes: “Erhard was suggesting we could
bring awareness to the fact that we are not merely helpless victims of the
buffeting winds of circumstance, but that our own personal stance in
relation to circumstances literally alters our experience of those same
circumstances, such that it can be said we create our own reality. What you see
is what you get. And how you see determines what you see. Thus,
we have choice and power not over what's actually out there or what
happens to us, but rather, how we see and interpret what's out there and
what happens.”
“But this
idea of ‘creating your reality’ can be one of those truths which, when
believed, becomes a lie…if it is adopted in such a way as to sometimes imply
that not only, for example, did the Jews create their own way of experiencing
or responding to the Holocaust, but since we're responsible for everything,
they created the Holocaust itself.”
“And that's
the philosophical leap that got many critics of est rightfully upset.
Responsibility, Erhard said, ‘begins with the acknowledgment that one is at
cause in the matter, whether one experiences that as true or not.’ That is
where we can get into trouble, because such an idea, even if ultimately and
philosophically true, can be turned into a lie when used to essentially blame
the victims and let oneself off the hook for everyone else's suffering, since
they are responsible for creating it.” (I took liberties selecting only parts
of Sobel’s article and omitting others for the sake of brevity. My intent is
not to misrepresent his thoughts. Find Sobel’s entire article at the following
link: http://www.realitysandwich.com/do_we_really_create_our_own_reality.)
Therefore, perhaps
we create our own reality or perhaps it is more accurate to state that we are
responsible for how we experience reality. Maybe it’s even something else. Regardless,
instead of stating anything that sounds like “This is the truth,” perhaps it is
more appropriate to state, "This is my understanding and experience"
or "This is what I believe." If so, our mission is not to communicate
“truth” or “the correct message.” Our mission is to acknowledge our own
perspectives, share our experiences, and contribute to the dialogue. By so
doing, we encourage others to discover their own spiritual selves, power,
abilities, and reality.
