Oct 2004

<livejournal>

<entry>

<itemid>2808</itemid>

<eventtime>2004-10-01 21:22:00</eventtime>

<logtime>2004-10-02 01:37:32</logtime>

<subject>Faith and Truth</subject>

<event>

I obtained the following from Dictionary.Com. A. Faith ( P ) Pronunciation Key (fth) n. 1. Confident belief in the truth, value, or trustworthiness of a person, idea, or thing. 2. Belief that does not rest on logical proof or material evidence. See Synonyms at belief. See Synonyms at trust. 3. Loyalty to a person or thing; allegiance: keeping faith with one's supporters. 4. often Faith Christianity. The theological virtue defined as secure belief in God and a trusting acceptance of God's will. 5. The body of dogma of a religion: the Muslim faith. 6. A set of principles or beliefs. B. Truth ( P ) Pronunciation Key (trth) n. pl. truths (trthz, trths) 1. Conformity to fact or actuality. 2. A statement proven to be or accepted as true. 3. Sincerity; integrity. 4. Fidelity to an original or standard. 5. 1. Reality; actuality. 2. often Truth That which is considered to be the supreme reality and to have the ultimate meaning and value of existence. ************************** That is how the dictionary definese them. Now let me tell you how I define them. If you didn't (or don't) care what I think about such definitions, you wouldn't be reading this....and thus, I take my interest and authority. "Who am I to define a word?" I'm someone that obviously someone, somewhere is reading, even if it is only myself. My beliefs in these definitions come from both personal reflections and my professed faith. I've never lied about that, nor do I pretend to be anything other than what I am, or at least I endevor to do my best not to do so. I consider myself to be a man of Faith and of Truth. Not because these qualities are my strengths, but because they are my goals. And it is my firm belief that a man (or woman) is defined by not only who they are, but who they define theselves to be. I define Faith as, "That which is True but is not Seen." I define truth as,"That which Is." I am a believer in Universal Truth. I believe that there is one truth, and that that one truth does not care whether we believe in it or not. I believe in seeking that truth with every tool at my disposal both mental, physical, spirital and emotional. I believe in God. I know that God exists, but that is for me a truth. I am capable of acknowledging that I am not perfect. If I am not perfect, my knowledge of the truth is not perfect. How do I refecty the difference between the two? Well, that for me is Faith. To me its true, like touching a rock with your eyes shut, but it is a consistant feeling, and I feel it. To someone else it might be dementia, a desire for something to be so true that my mind made it up, or even aliens or magic or fairies or whatever. I have chosen my explanation for the feelings I feel, but to me it is but one part of the truth. Others chose their own explanations, and I concede to them that right. There is both truth (I feel what I feel) and perception of truth (what I choose to believe about WHY I feel it.) This is not, however, an essay about by beliefs (at least in detail) nor is it an attempt to sway others to my belief in God. Personally, I don't find a livejournal the most effective way to have such a conversation, because it is an emotional and spiritual thing to me, and with the possible exception of poetry, it is very hard to convey that in an intellectual argument. What you CAN convey, however, is logic and truth. IF I honestly respect the truth, and IF I honestly seek after it with my entire being, then I must be prepared to accept ALL the truth, including the parts that I am not entirely enthusiastic about accepting. To me, at least, faith is not about belieinvg something so hard until it becomes true. One could argue that that might be 'Hope'....and I think Hope is very necessary for our dreams. If you HOPE something enough and WORK for it, sometimes it can come true. Dreams are made reality every day. But that is not the same thing as Faith. Faith is believing in something which IS. Moreover, it is a continual process of reaffirmation. It is a matter of truth in the NOW. Memories can be faked, lost or rearranged. Photographs can be altered, and even science itself (of which I, by the way, have considerable faith in) has proven itself fallible. Indeed, the one consistant lesson in science is that science is always wrong. No belief, fact, theorum or trend in the thousands of years of science (of which I am aware) has held ENTIRELY true over time. Even Einstein got a few things wrong. But the wonderful thing about TRUE science is that when confronted with logical, empirical evidence to refute a fact, the theorums are changed, the formulas and hypothesis also move to reflect that fact. I am quite definately aware that there are numerous and factual cases of physical evidence which prove that God does not exist. I weigh this with the feeling that I feel about the existance of God on a constant basis. For me, this equation still heavily balances out in the favor of the Lord. On the other hand, mere knowledge of the existance of God does not automatically prove that every action I take is automatically approved by Him. I think you might see where I am going with this. Just because you might have gotten a few things right, just because (by the fact that it happened which is very powerful evidence indeed) you managed to become President, doesn't mean that everything you DO is automatically the Will of God. Then again, everyone has their own definition of Faith. And it is my sincere and honest desire that the Truth come out in this election, all of it, no matter how painful for me and others on either side....because as painful as it is the Truth is what sets you free, it is what makes you a stronger person. It is what lets you win a challenge in a debate when you don't have people sitting around filtering reality for you so you do not have to face it. Let us hope (and since I brought a little religion into this) PRAY that the American people see that sometimes TRUTH is the MOST important thing of all...not just the way you WANT things to be. Just because you BELIEVE that your President believes things and says things, doesn't mean he ACTUALLY believes them...or does them in a way that God approves.

</event>

<security>public</security>

<allowmask>0</allowmask>

<current_music/>

<current_mood/>

</entry>

<entry>

<itemid>2838</itemid>

<eventtime>2004-10-17 23:55:00</eventtime>

<logtime>2004-10-18 03:58:28</logtime>

<subject>Meme, Myself and I</subject>

<event>

Meme, Myself and I ------------------- By T. Craig Drake What do the blind think of the color blue? They know of it, they read of it; Each image in their mind mixes and slashes and sloshes with Every other color that ever wasn't. The sky is blue And the sky is a lot of things You can read about the sky People talk about the Sky all the time. You reach for it, yearn for it, fly through it. When the sky is gray people are sad. When the sky is black and the stars are out people dream and Wishes happen Upon a star. So what is it like when you are blind But aren't. What if you're deaf, or mute or can't smell. What if you're Disconnected. What if there is a different kind of blind; Where people don't make sense around you. What if you can talk to them, and you know them And they know you But there is something else Something without words; Its the color blue. You read about it, and talk about it And no one else knows you don't know what Blue is. Because you can't see it. Except that this is a different kind of see. It's the hodgepodge of living memes. Influences and exploitations and warpings. And what if you weren't a part of any of it. At least not if you wanted to be. What if you saw what no one else could. What if you were right, and everyone else was wrong. Does that make you crazy? Does it even matter if no one else can see it? If you know that blue is 0.755124 on the spectrum scale of light Could you tell someone...and could they look it up? Does it matter if they don't care? George Bailey Had a Wonderful Life. The Richest Man in Town Was He. Not by the measure of the $ in his bank But by the friends who he had in his life. But what if it was all a lie. George only pretended to like them or to know them Or what if he liked them, but didn't really understand them. Or what if he thought he understood them But didn't. How Wonderful is your life if you can't see the color blue? What if you never saw the color blue again.... Would it matter to you? Would you miss it if you'd never seen it? Should you care? Should you look up in at the grey monochrome sky and say "Yeah...I know what you're talking about... That's some crazy crazy blue sky up there. Let's sit up and see things in the clouds together." And you both share a smile and a laugh. But are you sharing a smile and a laugh ... You didn't see the color blue You just pretended you did So your friend wouldn't feel awkward Or is it so your friend wouldn't think you were weird? What if your friend never saw the color blue either? What if there wasn't really a color blue? But you are pretty sure there is a color blue. Because everyone talks about it. And like isn't a Reality Television show. Real Life is Real. The Real World isn't. So the world doesn't revolve around you. You know this because you get up in the morning. And go to work. Sometimes people say hi. But most of the time they don't. Because they don't know you. They don't care. They have their own problems. Like whether or not they are seeing the color blue.

</event>

<security>public</security>

<allowmask>0</allowmask>

<current_music/>

<current_mood/>

</entry>

<entry>

<itemid>3820</itemid>

<eventtime>2004-10-28 10:51:00</eventtime>

<logtime>2004-10-28 14:53:44</logtime>

<subject>Momentary Casting Call</subject>

<event>

Momentary Casting Call by Redwin Tursor Take a moment Freeze it still Notice it in the palm of your hand. Can you see the frayed edges? Slowly it melts like a snow flake. The heat of observation Makes it become a memory. Moments want to hide In the Labyrinth of Your Mind They Hate Daylight. Do you remember the first time you fell in love? Where did it go? Its still there, lost amongst all the other moments. All the other times you fell in love. All the other times you fell out of it. All the times you fought. All the times you weren't sure. Its still there, but its hiding. So many people question Questing, Quietly Querying for that Perfect Moment The Eternal Bubble of Time The Memory that will not fade Yet they always do. What a fickle mortal creature is humankind. We put our hopes in moments And yet they break so easily Mountains come and go in our minds Oceans are flat blue hazes in mist We sort of remember Grandpa Tinted through the glass of other people's anecdotal evidence. Things are no better. Moth and Rust Sand and Dust Gold is turned to Dross. They last as reminders, these unkind dead things The forgotten autograph in a hope chest Without Hope The tattered wedding gown for a marriage That ended long ago. The pages of the great unwritten novel Used as toilet paper by the Toothpaste Thief. Things betray. Only one thing holds from moment to moment Sad or happy or brilliant or dark The flickering chaos of setting, cast or emotion You are the moment. You are the single passenger in your mind. Do you enjoy the time you spend with yourself? You are the moment. Change what you want, your color coded destiny is written In the silent script you approved with the silent cast The laughing screaming madness of moments approves it But you are still the producer You are still the director and the star You provide your own special effects. You are the Moment.

</event>

<security>public</security>

<allowmask>0</allowmask>

<current_music/>

<current_mood/>

</entry>

</livejournal>