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literarydiscussions.myfreeforum.org Literature, Poetry, Essays, Dialogues, Philosophy, Theology
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Sitaram Site Admin


Joined: 14 Sep 2005 Posts: 1079
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Posted: Tue Oct 25, 2005 5:53 pm Post subject: From the Jordan to the Ganges |
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literarydiscussions: so what is it you were saying about Fr. Seraphim literarydiscussions: he told you things about Hinduism, did he?
peterromanus: well he seemed very down on Hinduism
literarydiscussions: well, but they are so down even on GREEK new calendar church
literarydiscussions: not to mention idolators
literarydiscussions: they are down on roman catholic and anglican
peterromanus: yes
peterromanus: he was down on the charismatic movement
literarydiscussions: did you spend time in brookline or jordanville
peterromanus: I never spent time there....I just read his books
literarydiscussions: ok... i see... but you know, in the 1970s, one convert to orthodoxy told an interesting story, about some hindu guru, who met
them, and said "Oh, for your nature and makeup, I suggest that you become eastern orthodox"
peterromanus: hmmm
literarydiscussions: they thought it quite odd that such a "servant of satan" would advise them to become eastern orthodox christian...
literarydiscussions: but, that is exactly the spirit of Vivekananda, who once met a Mormon, around 1900
literarydiscussions: he said to that mormon, "Oh, I cannot join your religion, because I am celibate, and you believe in more than one wife,... but you should come to India and preach..."
literarydiscussions: the mormon was astounded, "Why do you tell me to come to your native land and preach, when you reject my religion personally.."
peterromanus: mormons no longer believe in more than one wife
literarydiscussions: and Vivekananda explained,...."Well
literarydiscussions: (thats besides the point)
literarydiscussions: "Well, there are so many people in india who find no happiness with ANY RELIGION... so, if you can appeal to some of them...
literarydiscussions: ... then they will know the joys of spirituality through YOUR religion"
literarydiscussions: i guess, vivekananda had a certain understanding of polygamy,.... from their previous history.... but... that is not the essential aspect of the story
peterromanus: right
literarydiscussions: so, vivikananda and ramakrishna see things in a very ecumenical perspective... that spirituality is a smorgasboard of diversity
literarydiscussions: and different personality types require different kinds of religions
peterromanus: but religion is more than just a personality type...it makes claims to truth
literarydiscussions: the strictest of Jains, the Digambra (naked, skyclad) have such a notion
literarydiscussions: they believe that one is reborn in many different religions, until they are spiritually ready to become digambra jain monks and take full vows
literarydiscussions: the Saivites also have such a notion...
literarydiscussions: the single biggest problem for Christianity, is Jesus' prayer in Gesthemene, "Father, all those whom thou has given to me, make them ONE, even as you and I are one..."
literarydiscussions: that prayer for unity never materialized...
literarydiscussions: that is just my perspective and "take" on things
peterromanus: I see
literarydiscussions: Russian Bishop Anthony Krapovitsky theorized that mankinds salvation was wrought in Gestheme, with that prayer, and not by the Crucifixion,... and he was condemned for that theological teaching
literarydiscussions: I hope I am not offending or angering you...
peterromanus: no
peterromanus: are you familiar with solovyov?
literarydiscussions: no...
literarydiscussions: i will tell you of two interesting people i encountered...
peterromanus: he had similar mystical ideas....he expounded a system of sophiology
literarydiscussions: one was in a bookstore for books on hinduism... i met a fellow, and we started talking... and he had been a novice at Jordanville.... but left, and followed the same
literarydiscussions: same path as I did, to eastern religions
peterromanus: did you begin in the eastern orthodox church?
literarydiscussions: the other person, on the internet, read some of my writings, and emailed me to say that he had been in the monastery in Colorado, with that Iconographer, who left... Fr. Gregory...
literarydiscussions: and he experienced the same thing as I did in brookline.... and he also wound up becoming buddhist/hindu
literarydiscussions: i was so startled to meet two other people who had exactly the same experiences that i did
literarydiscussions: i learned to speak and read greek and russian and slavonic, and remained eastern orthodox for 20 years, before I gradually fell away
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