A better Belief

I want to believe that I am safe, loved, and in good hands. I want to believe that whatever created me, nurtured me as I was being made, and will take care of me when I pass on.

I do not want to have constant fear that if I were to offend a God, that for the rest of eternity I would pay for that sin, error, or transgression.

Regardless of the beliefs we hold, we live a natural world. It has air, water, plants, animals and people.

Nature is beautiful, but you have to go out in it to appreciate it. Pictures or merely ideas or notions do not do it justice.

We live in the high arctic. Some that live south of us think of this as a desolate, wind swept place, stark and cold.

I prefer to describe the arctic in terms of its seasons.

Spring. This is the time when nature awakes. The creeks run, the plants bud, the animals come out of their hibernation. You can see nature getting ready for summer. The sun shines warm, and the days are getting longer. Inside ourselves we are brimming with anticipation.

Summer. Here the plants become a riot of greenery. The earth is rich, the animals greaze and feed, the salmon return to the rivers, life is carefree in its abundance. We all rejoice in Summer for it is a time of abundance and play.

Autumn. The leaves turn color, the squirrels are busy putting their store away, all animals and people hurry to complete their tasks, for the season of abundance is coming to an end.

Winter. With the arrival of snow, and the cold, the land does not die, it goes to sleep. A blanket of snow covers all that will blossom again in Spring. Many animals hibernate, others live off their stores. Few venture forth, for it is a time of sleep, rest, introspection and planning for the next season.

This cycle repeats every year. It is beautiful, a natural rhythm that is unequaled anywhere. Here, in the arctic, the seasons are very distinct, sharp. They satiate the senses and show us what it can do, yet retains the mystery of its self. We who live here are thus blessed.

The same forces that govern the seasons, and brings forth the Blossoms and the greenery of the summer has also brought mankind.

Mankind is perhaps different from most other creatures in that we can contemplate the expanse of nature, appreciate its beauty, and share it with others.

And at the same time, man is the most dangerous creature on the planet. It can enjoy killing and savagery. Man can deceive and be cruel. And he can enslave and control.

And yet, are we not all part of nature? Are we not just another cog in the wheel of time? Would the earth perish without us? Are we that important, after all?

Genesis 1:26 says: "And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth."

With that one commandment, man has justified the enslavement of nature's animals, razing of forests, and the performing of dangerous and cruel animal and DNA experiments.

We have not shown ourselves to be particularly adept at managing this planet. Whole species are dying. Forests are being cut down to extinction. We live in the fear that someday, wallowing as we are in toxic poisons, Frankenstenian experiments, and just the sheer greed of those that will rape the earth, will eventually cause our death, or even the death of all life on the planet. The earth is undergoing an extinction event right now.

I utterly reject the idea of Genesis 1:6 (??). I believe all life is precious, and that we should not take it lightly. We have a right to feed ourselves, but we do not have a right to use our intellect to utterly savage the planet and destroy all that gets in the way. You might rightfully ask, "Don't other animals do the same thing?"

Perhaps they do but they are in balance. They follow the path of nature and do not combine intellectually to destroy, for the safe of destruction. For man, the triumph of technology presages a dark and dangerous future.

I believe in spirits. I have experienced them. They are elusive, yet I often meet people that regularly experience them as well. There are all sorts of spirits, the vast majority of them are not 'people spirits.' In fact, ghosts, mediums and the sort make me a bit nervous -- it shows again man trying to control and dictate to what lies beyond the veil.

I believe that these spirits can influence us. They live in an alternate world, parallel to ours, that is separated by a thin veil. If we but look, we can discern shapes and movement on the other side. The spirit that lives within us, our personal spirit, is much more readily able to see across -- or even has a foot in it.

When we die, our spirit is set free. I do not know the nature of my spirit, and hesitate to tell you what exactly it is. My speculation is that it is a separate entity, and that when we die, and our body dies, our "self" passes to the other side. Only our dead body remains.

But I like to think that when we are conceived, the union of spirit and flesh was blessed and nurtured by Gaia, the mother earth goddess. That she and the spirit within us do nurture are guided by the gods during our development. We have a second mother, a spiritual one that parallels our flesh and blood mother.

All the creatures of earth, and all significant objects and plants have spirits. They permeate the living earth.

I believe that Gaia cries when a Sparrow falls.

And I believe that Gaia cries when a bulldozer rips up the earth, and stomps to death the little squirrels and field mice, and poison the rivers.

I believe that Gaia cries when a young girl gets drunk repeatedly, and is ravaged by men that have nothing but carnal pleasures in mind.

But I also believe that when I die, Gaia will take the hand of my spirit and welcome me when I cross the veil to the other side.

And I do not believe that any punishment awaits the spirit for things that I did while alive. Nor do I believe in a future life where I am slaved to sing praises to some superior being.

Nor do I think we should cower in fear at night, thinking of horrible things and punishments on the beyond.

We are not truly dead as long as we are in the memory of someone. Once those also pass on, or forget us, we are truly dead. But that is the cycle of life.

We are conceived, born, we live, we love, we procreate, we get old, we die. It has been that way for billions of years, and will be so for many more unless in our greed we destroy mother earth's creation.

Our reward for having lived is the sense of accomplishment. How I pity those that die before their time? Who cannot but cry when a child is run over by a car? What could have been? What that child missed? She never loved, never gave birth to another life, never watched her children grow in turn? What the boy could have accomplished? He never felt the pride of watching his sons and daughters grow?

Yes, Gaia cries too when a child dies.

But Gaia is content when an old man goes to sleep, for he has fulfilled his purpose and derived deep satisfaction. And even more so for an old woman, who in life brought forth children, caring and teaching them; and imparting wisdom to those around.

I also believe that there will be satisfaction when on the other side, some creature exclaims: "When I walked the earth, I was a Dog, and was known as Skipper. I will speak for this man."

Then my spirit will be set free upon the Summerlands. Beauty, clear streams, fields of flowers, friends and former pets will all be there, and we shall all run and play together and our spirit will be cleansed of the dirt and evil that rubbed on us during our passage on earth.