It's All About Connections

I have to come to believe in the interconnectedness of everything. I don't pretend to know exactly how all this is accomplished, but being unable to explain everything doesn't bother me.

I have written before about the remarkable coincidences and connection between twins, for example the well-known case of the Jim Twins. Guy Lyon Playfair has written an interesting book titled Twin Telepathy which is worth a read.

Now comes the interesting story of  twins Sarah Mariuz and Leah Rodgers who gave birth to their babies on the same day (last Thursday) at the same time (1:18 a.m.). You can read all the interesting details by clicking this link.

When I was in college I had friends who were twins. That was probably my first fascination with twin-telepathy, as listened enthralled by their stories. These ladies were nearly identical and so similar in voice, mannerisms and personalities.

Some of the connections really blow the mind.

The Mind Is A Powerful Thing

Personal opinion warning: Because of the widespread and blatant fraud that surrounds so many professional psychics, fortune tellers and mediums, I don't have confidence in this aspect of the mysterious.  I believe in premonitions, intuition, bursts of insight, predictive dreams and prophetic visions. But it just seems to me that in my personal investigations of the matter, the pros have to resort to trickery in order to make and maintain a reputation.

The story I am about to relate, which was reported by the Associated Press back in 1965 and based on an article in the British Medical Journal, concerns a fortune teller who accurately predicted a woman's death.

The prediction was 38 years old when it came to pass. A five year old girl was told "you will die when you're 43." How nice to say such a thing to someone so young! Only that girl and her sister knew about this prophecy.

Fast forward 38 years and the little girl, now a woman, is facing a minor operation. Yet, having lived with the fortune teller's prediction, she confided to her sister that she felt she wouldn't wake up from the anesthesia. And when the day came for the operation the unnamed woman also told a nurse she was sure she was going to die.

Shortly after the operation was completed internal bleeding began and the woman lost consciousness and died. The doctors found no apparent reason that this happened.

The British Medical Association opined that

"There is no medical explanation to account for this. It seems rather like the case of natives who die on the date at the time which doctors predict."

Yes, I would say, exactly like that.

The doctors who performed the operation offered this:

"We wonder if the severe emotional tensions of this patient superimposed  physiological stress of the surgery had any bearing on her death."

Which brings me to the title of this post: The mind is a powerful thing.

Hey, I'm as skeptical as most people about such long term predictions. (Perhaps that's because I'm not a fatalist.) But here it is. Just as I firmly believe in the placebo effect, in mind over matter (to a reasonable extent), I believe a prediction like this can become a self-fulfilling prophecy. Just as positive thoughts bring positive results, so negative thoughts bring about negative results.

The Long Arm Of Coincidence

The wit Mark Twain observed: "Truth is stranger than fiction, but it is because fiction is obliged to stick to possibilities, truth isn't."

Below is a very old newspaper clipping which expands on this thought. 

For those of us look at life, our own lives especially, and find that many of the incidents in it seem just too coincidental to be mere coincidence, we suspect there is purpose and intention. The general order of the universe is our basis for faith in the idea of a Supreme Intelligence behind it.

Life seems to have a flow, a tide if you will, within which one can swim according to or against. I'm not arguing that going with the flow of your life will mean everything is always hunky-dory. Life isn't that way in general. The price of admission to this fantastic experience is that there will highs along with lows, sadness alternating with gladness and dark places  here and there in the light places.

The patterns are all there. Our intuition can be our guide if sought and relied upon. Life has often been referred to as a game. How we play it has everything to do with how it plays out.

A House. A Prayer. A Voice.

Anecdotal evidence is suspect to many people. I've written often that for me it is the preponderance of the anecdotal evidence that moves me. That coupled with my personal experiences brings about  a sense of conviction. The more personally I know a person (or people) the more persuasive their anecdotes are.

In this post I want to relate a story about my former neighbors, a young couple raising a small family. They lived beside me for over a year, until they were notified their lease would not be renewed. This was sad for me because they were good neighbors and genuinely nice people.

The young man has an interesting and truly inspiring story. A recovering drug addict who found deliverance by calling on a higher power. A bad drug deal left him in the hospital at the point of death. His parents, ever supportive, placed him in a long term recovery program. He was able to get clean and so far stay clean. His wife is a sweet young lady who has been supportive. Together they have faced troubles in life with their often sick infant. But they are people who have come around to a faith worldview. They believe in and live accordingly to the power of prayer.

When they were told they would have to move, it seemed a dire situation. Money is tight because of medical expenses. At first their plan was to move in with his parents in order to put aside some money for another place. But the couple looked around anyway for another house.

The husband found one that seemed right, but would be a bit of a struggle on a tight budget. His wife was encouraged, but they both felt they should pray for guidance before moving in. While that was happening, the house was rented out. It was yet another disappointment in an increasing run.

And then one day as she was driving around the wife noticed a house for rent . She drove past at first, mindful of the recent disappointment and fairly resigned to moving in with the in-laws.  But a voice in her head kept telling her to go back. Heeding the voice she did go back to take a look and get the phone number.

It turned out the rent was much lower than what they had been paying here, lower than the first house they had looked at - so low, in fact, the couple feared there might problems with the house. After looking at the house and talking with the owners, it turned out to be a matter of the house needing a little work (which would be done along the way).

Problem solved. They could now move out before their lease expired. They would not have to move in with his parents, which is an important thing to any young people starting out in life. The lower rent still allowed them time to improve their financial situation.

The subject of religion is a touchy one. I sometimes think more people pray than are religious in the conventional sense of the word. And to me that's fine. Spirituality for me is not creeds and associations. For me, spirituality is about a deeper sense of living, a deeper sense of self and others, and a deeper appreciation for the Supreme Mind.

So I believe in the power of prayer. I believe in seeking and finding divine guidance in life. My life has improved dramatically since I left my former cynicism behind and allowed myself to explore the spiritual realm with an open mind. And personal experiences - especially those of people I know - strengthen my faith.

Sting Of The Butterfly

If there is one saying that sums up the career of the "dancing master" of boxing Muhammad Ali it is "float like a butterfly sting like a bee," as performed in the above video by Ali and his assistant trainer Drew "Bundini" Brown.

Yesterday as I was reading about plans for Ali's upcoming funeral I came across this story of the strangest coincidence.

In the late champ's hometown at the Ali Center where mourners were gathering, a swarm of bees had settled in a tree beside a sign carrying the famous float slogan. For pictures click this link.

Beekeeper Kevin McKinney, who had been called in to help, called the event an "exceptional coincidence."

But it was the CEO and president of the Ali Center Donald Lassere who perhaps put it in a better perspective:

"The Muhammad Ali Center has always experienced what we have come to know as, 'Muhammad Magic,' but I cannot even conceive as to the genesis of those bees. However, it's possible his spirit is watching over the center, and he is wanting his fans to know that he is still 'floating like a butterfly and stinging like a bee.'"

Was that swarm off bees attracted by that "Muhammad Magic" in order to make a statement?

Muhammad Ali: Boxing Oracle

It was with sadness I received news of the death of Muhammad Ali. I had followed his professional career since I was a young boy. Brokenheartedly I watched as he overstayed on the boxing stage.

In keeping with the spirit of my blog, I wanted to post something about Ali's uncanny ability predict his victories: "They all must fall in the round I call."

This little shtick of his began very early in his career, while he was still know by his birth name, Cassius Clay. He had gone to a professional wrestling card in a packed-to-overflowing arena that was barely half-filled for his fight the next day.

The difference was in that master of self-promotion, Gorgeous George. Ali took notes and soon began employing the arrogant and obnoxious persona that earned him the nickname, the Louisville Lip.

His first prediction was in his sixth fight against LaMar Clark on 19 April, 1961. Ali predicted Clark would fall in two, and he did.

Several fights later he took on the ill-fated Sonny Banks (who later died of brain damage after another boxing match) and predicted a fourth round stoppage. Although he had to pick himself up off the canvas after his first professional knockdown, Ali did fulfill his prediction.

His very next fight was against Don Warner. Of that fight Ali (Clay) afterwards said:  "I would have let it go five as I predicted, but he wouldn't shake my hand and that made me mad."

George Logan was next in April 1962. Of him the prediction was for an end in four rounds. Logan did fall in four.

However, a month later his prediction failed for the first time when he faced a game Bill Daniels. In Associated Press coverage of the fight it was noted that Daniels was cut on the eye and bleeding from the third round on. The prediction was for a round five stoppage, but the fight went on until round seven. Correct outcome, wrong round.

In his very next fight Ali took on Alejandro Lavorante, another fighter who was later killed in the ring. The prediction was for a fifth round stoppage and that is exactly what went down. Next up. was to be former light heavyweight champion Archie Moore.

Here is where it get interesting, and the above well photograph which has appeared in books, newspapers and magazines everywhere attest to the fact that Ali had the future mapped out. It was to be Moore in four and the then heavweight Champ Sonny Liston in eight.

That latter prediction seemed particularly ludicrous, as Liston seemed near invincible. He had only lost once, a decision he dropped while fight with a broken jaw.  But Moore did indeed go in four. But a Liston fight was still in the future.

Next Ali took on a former pro footballer named Charley Powell. The newspaper coverage of this fight proclaimed Ali the "Champ of Prophecy" for calling for and delivering a third round KO of Powell.

On 13 March 1964 Ali faced the very tough Doug Jones in the famous Madison Square Garden. A tough crowd. Ali had predicted a sixth round KO. But it went the distance. It was a close and controversial decision that went to Ali. He was loudly booed another prediction failed.

Now Ali went to England to battle the rugged slugger Henry Cooper. He was predicting a fifth round knockout (It's no jive, Henry Cooper will go in five"). Yet it was Cooper who floored Ali in the third round. He was in bad shape upon rising to his feet, but a delay caused by the need replace his torn glove gave Ali time to recover. He fought on busting up Cooper's eye and forcing a stoppage in the predicted round.

Finally it was time for his title shot against Liston. He had been predicting he would beat "the Big Ugly Bear" in eight. I have found newspaper reports that he also predicted "Sonny will be all mine in nine."

Few gave the Louisville Lip a chance. Liston had a prediction of his own: Clay (Ali) would fall in two.

In fact Liston lost his title in a colossal upset, retiring at the end of round 6.

Ali would say Liston quit early to just to foil his prediction. There is little doubt had Liston not quit when he did, he could not have gone on much longer as he was out of gas and banged up pretty severely.

After this and especially during the time when he was facing prosecution as a draft dodger the predictions faded from his act. Later he offered predictions again after his three and a half year forced exile from boxing, but the magic was gone. His predictions failed time and again.

At the very least I have to think Muhammad Ali enjoyed a finely tuned intuition. It must be remembered that Ali was the light-heavy weight, not heavy weight champion in the 1960 Olympics. He was light for heavyweight (often under 200 pounds) in his first pro fights. He was never known as a devastating puncher. He didn't usually set for a punch, choosing instead to dance on his toes and throw punches in bunches. He could wear an opponent down through sheer accumulation of punches, or maybe cut him up, but was not know as man who would you out with one punch. Which makes his correct knockout predictions all the more remarkable.

I'm not arguing for anything paranormal about Ali's penchant for calling his early fights. I don't think intuition is anything other than natural. But I feel he did once possess a unique psychic gift. Perhaps one might think of the Law of Attraction, the philosophy of willing things into existence. It's fair to point out that there are records of his forecasts of fight outcomes he was not involved in and he was clearly poor at that.

I just can't convince myself that sheer luck can account for Ali's ability to accurately predict his fight outcomes in his early career. I think he once was a true oracle.

"This Is My Last Game And I'm Going To Strike Out This Time"

Those were the words Bill Klem, the man most responsible for making Major League Baseball umpiring the profession it is today, when foretelling his death.

For thirty-six years he served the National League as ump. For Klem baseball was more than a game, "it was like a religion."

But after two years of declining health from heart problems and a month of hospitalization, Klem was ready to put his house in order. His baseball metaphors referring to his premonition of death were relayed to his lawyer a week before the end came.

I'm fascinated by the occurrence of death premonitions. It isn't an usual thing at all, but rather common.  In fact, I've collected a sizable amount of these stories.  

It has become my personal conviction that we all have spirit guides and angels that can aid and direct us in our lives. Perhaps the majority of people are unaware of this, yet still are often directed by "voices" and strong "gut feelings."

Wild as that idea might seem at first blush, I find it more satisfying than the idea of all these thing being lucky guesses. Also, there is a vast amount of NDE data which suggest that often one is sent back to this life by dead loved ones or divine entities because it isn't time for one's death. That seems to me to be a corollary.

However one understands this death premonition phenomenon, undeniably it is a strange and interesting aspect of human existence.

When The Reverend Billy Graham Faced Angry Witch Doctors

Talk about a clash of cultures!

Back when your Strange World blogger was a newly minted infant just home from the hospital, American evangelist and ambassador of fundamentalist Christianity Billy Graham flew to Africa for a campaign.

In late February 1960  the Associated Press reported that "native medicine men have been parading around outside the meeting in their weird costumes, muttering incantations."

Then, several days later, it happened. According to a United Press International story, three "witch doctors" who were, it was assumed, attempting to "fix a curse" on Graham walked up to the speaker's platform.

This occurred after the meeting as the crowd was exiting. The committee of  "Jaluo witch doctors" was led by 90-year-old Okelo Onoko, who smoked the traditional conjure pipe.

But the Reverend Graham approached the committee, looking them squarely in the eye, and declared: "God loves you and Christ died on the cross for you." This was accomplished by a translator.

Of course we know that Graham continued a thriving worldwide evangelistic ministry for decades and is alive today at the ripe old age of 97.

So much for Jaluo folk magic, I suppose.

Then too, it doesn't escape me that this incident was perhaps a media creation (or least embellishment), which thought occurred to me after reading Life magazine's coverage of Graham's African tour in its March 21, 1960 issue.

Therein we are treated to large a photo of Graham and a "witch doctor," with a caption that reads:
"In Kenya, Graham touched the Calabash pipe of a "witch doctor" who turned out to be a phony, part of gag done by local journalists."

Okay, so it seems safe to assume that journalists covered this story with, to say the least, a lighthearted attitude. Such culture clashes can have humorous aspects.

In my mature years now I tend to think the idea that the Great Spirit sends missionaries to other cultures in order to set them straight spiritually is wrongheaded.

 My thought is that nature itself presents a divine message that interacts with the seed of divine awareness planted in each of us at birth. This work has brought about uncountable expressions of spiritual belief, but none without its charm and interest.

All part of this strange world I find so fascinating.

Sorry, Right Number!

Didja ever see the old suspense movie Sorry, Wrong Number? The incomparable Barbara Stanwyck plays a bedridden woman who serendipitously overhears on her telephone two men plotting a woman's murder. The movie revolves around Stanwyck's character trying to prevent the murder but there are, of course, plot twists and surprises which I won't give away here. Watch the movie or do a Google search if you want the details (best to see the movie, however).

But how about a real wrong number cases that turns into something of miracle in its own right. The story was reported in the Christmas 1966 edition of  the St. Joseph News-Press. It is available to read online via the Google news archive. Let me relate the details now.

It seems that Elizabeth Drake was at home on a Friday evening craving ice cream. So much so in fact that she was moved to call the information operator in order to obtain the phone number of a local ice cream parlor.

With said number in hand Drake made the call. The phone rang and rang and she was just about to hang up when a woman in weakened voiced answered the phone pleading for help.

Quick-thinking Drake immediately laid down the phone and went next door to a neighbor to call the police. The police were able to trace the phone call to an elderly lady, a Ms. Friedman, who was found unconscious after having suffered a stroke. At the time story was printed Ms. Friedman was in the hospital, still alive, and in fair condition.

Some people feel there are no accidents in life. How amazing is it that an ice cream craving directly leads to a life-saving rescue?

Perhaps you're thinking it was luck. The newspaper went on to report how a police Sgt. Kishman pointed out a "strange thing" about this case in that the numbers of the ice cream parlor and woman's apartment were not similar in any way, not even having the same prefix.

My personal worldview makes room for these amazing "accidents." In fact, my worldview is that life itself is not an accident or happy coincidence. I believe in purpose and direction.

One King-Sized Case Of Hives, Coming Right Up

I for some time have been quite interested in New Thought. I can't say I buy into all of it, but dang it, I have to believe that how we think about things has a lot to do with how things go for us. Upfront I admit that some of the New Thought emphasis on "think your way to riches" is a turn off. I think riches are often a snare. Moreover, being "rich" is a relative thing. Compared to most of the world, in my leanest times I was rich! Money can't buy happiness, so I'll settle for having enough to be content. (And it doesn't take much to make me happy).

But I'm saying I do believe in the placebo effect, nocebo effect and psychosomatic illness. The subject of this post, in fact, is an incident that took place during my eleventh year in, which I proved to myself for all time that the mind can conjure illness.

It happened in this way. For some reason (time has faded my memory somewhat here) my best friend Jimmy and I had a rather severe falling out. I don't remember the details but do clearly remember that he had promised over the telephone to beat me up the next day at school.

It wasn't the prospect of a "butt whooping" that troubled me so. Those things happen when you're young. But his being my closest friend - and he had been for years - and turning against me so violently upset me beyond measure. I wanted somehow to avoid this entire unpleasant situation.

Voila! Despite the fact I had never had a hive in my life (and haven't again to this day, more than forty years later), I began itching and finding the biggest, reddest hives you could imagine on my face, neck and arms.

My parents were flabbergasted. It did the trick. I was home from school in bed the next day "recuperating." The weekend came next and I made a complete and speedy recovery. Fences were mended with my friend over the weekend. He even felt concern that I had been so upset I broke out in hives.

Can't help but wonder now how many other illnesses my mind concocted when I was growing up. I can just say that as sickly as I was during my childhood, I've been quite robust in adulthood. "Disgustingly healthy" as one doctor put it to me.

On the score of attitude, I can say I've proved to myself that thinking oneself into an upbeat mood when one is down is doable. It works. Give it a try sometime.

So I am more than willing to study New Thought material with an open mind. I wonder how much we can do with our minds.

Overlooking Four Leaf Clovers (And A Lot More)

'Twas the Druids, I believe, who originally developed the belief that four-leaf clovers had magical powers and brought good luck.

They are rare, but not extraordinarily so. Perhaps you have known someone who had a knack for finding them. I once had friend who always seemed to be able to spot one in a patch of clovers. What the heck?

As a child I would look and look and look. I can honestly report I have never found one myself. Why? Lack of patience, I'm convinced. Finally I just gave up looking, except for an occasional glance whenever I come upon clovers.

Two thoughts occur to me while pondering this. One, I would suggest that the strange happenings in our lives go by unnoticed simply because we aren't really looking for them. Synchronicites, ("Godwinks" as SQuire Rushnell has termed them), which are defined as meaningful coincidences, do happen to all of us. But are we paying attention? I believe meaningful dreams are another overlooked source of intrigue. But how many pay attention to them? Dreams are most often had and then soon forgotten.

I have begun to suggest that keeping a journal for such things is a good way to put your journey into proper perspective.

My second thought is this: just as searching for four leaf clovers takes attention and patience, so the more mystical aspects of life are only noticeable to those who are actively watching for them.

I believe - because it seems to have been my experience - that prayers are not answered (and if that word troubles you read desires instead) apart from faith. I don't think of that, as some do, as attempting to cajole a sky-genii into granting a wish.

For me it is a matter of having a deep belief that life is not an accident, but has meaning and purpose. Perhaps I should say it can have meaning and purpose if we choose to live meaningfully and purposefully. If not, it can seem a veritable jumble.

Life is meaningful and the universe will cooperate with us - if we cooperate with it. I believe we must first open our spiritual eyes.

Psychic Goose

Saw this on the news and had to share. I believe in psychic power, that is as extra-sensory perception. I also believe animals are psychic. More psychic than most of us are. I would hazard to guess that as our brains evolved into much more complex organs, we humans eventually learned to rely more on reason and logic than our innate sensitivities.

Be that as it may, here we have a goose whose little gosling had become entangled in string. The mother goose, sensing the need for greater help than she could offer alone, sought out a police car and started pecking at its door. According to People Magazine, Cincinnati police Sergent James Givens reported it this way:

I was sitting in a patrol car in a parking lot, I heard something pecking on the side of the door and I looked down and I thought the goose was hungry. I was eating a bagel and I tossed it a piece but it didn't have any. It walked in front of me so I followed it.

The troubled goose led the officer to her troubled baby. With no one available to help from SPCA Wildlife, Givens called a fellow officer who untangled the gosling as Mom calmly looked on.

A pretty interesting little tale, I believe. Givens attributed all this to "motherly instinct." I think of it as using psychic abilities that animals naturally possess. And speaking of mothers, I should mention that the offending string that entwined the gosling had come from a Mother's Day balloon. Weird coincidence, no?

One further thought. I believe we are all interconnected. As Marcus Aurelius once put it: "Everything is interwoven, and the web is holy." That is my basic worldview and it colors my way of looking at life accordingly.

Religious Snake Handling And Psychic Power

I'm a "what if?" kind of person. Fascinated as I am with the subject of religion and being a native of the southern United States ( a hotbed for religious snake handling), I have pondered often those bold folks who "take up serpents" in accordance with their understanding of biblical teaching: "And these signs shall follow them that believe; in my name shall they cast out devils; they shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover" (Mark's gospel 16:17, KJV)

I've never seen this spectacle in person (never really desired to), but have read tons of material about the subject and viewed a number of documentaries. And I'm struck by what these folks can get buy with. The photo to the right is of a book written by a (now deceased) reporter for a newspaper in my old hometown, Chattanooga, Tn.

The "what if?" part comes in when I consider whether there might be some psychic connection between the snake and the handler.

Sure, these folks sometimes get bitten and sometimes die from the bites. But look at how many times they do handle these deadly animals in a frantic manner, yet suffer no bad outcome.

If the naysayer wants to doubt, let him try the feat himself. For those who handle deadly snakes in a non-religious context, their are certain methods employed to guarantee a good outcome. Snake bites in such circumstances usually come about because of mistakes and carelessness in protocol.

But the religious snake handler exercises what seems to be a recklessness (I suppose the religious snake handler might consider it "holy boldness").

The bigger question for me is this: can we humans communicate with our animal brothers and sisters? I think the answer is yes. Few would argue against this, even if they feel mainly voice tone and body language are the chief means. But I'm a believer in telepathy. I don't find non-verbal communication such a big deal.

More specifically, can snakes pick up this - for lack of a better term - vibe which the religious believer taps into? I'm open to this.

Death from snakebite here in the US is somewhat rare, no doubt because most of us seek to avoid confrontation with dangerous snakes. But how do we explain the rareness of snake bite deaths among those folks who regularly and very purposefully interact with poisonous snakes?

Thinking About Cremation And Religion

There is a strand of thought among conservative Christians (in which tradition I spent a good part of my youth) that looks down on cremation as a means of dealing with a person's earthly remains after death.

An article (click that if you want to see it) I was reading brought that thought back to mind. Actually, the article is a rehash of a Charles Colson article I had never read.

Evidently, the fear for conservative Christians is that cremation (and especially the example cited of having one's cremains buried in a biodegradable urn that could then be planted alongside a chosen tree in order that you could "become one" with your "personal" tree), heralds a drift towards paganism.

Frankly, I have for a number of years been drifting back towards paganism. As a child I remember having a distinct animistic drift that was trained out of me both by religious indoctrination and formal education. I can't fathom having a personal tree because nature belongs to all (however, I admit there have been many specials trees in my life).

But going on,  the article closes with this thought:

Once, members of western society aspired to, in the words of the Westminster Shorter Catechism, “glorify God and enjoy him forever.” And our treatment of our loved one’s remains reflected our anticipation of resurrected life. Now, too many in our society aspire to little more than spending the afterlife as a pine tree, which leaves us, as Chuck said, truly lost in the woods.

Cute: "lost in the woods." But as for aspiring to nothing more than an afterlife as a tree, let's remember that regardless of what may or may not happen in an afterlife, our bodily remains will eventually be reabsorbed into the ecosystem. What has that to do with an afterlife?

Personally, the idea of bodily resurrection has lost its grip on my thoughts of an afterlife. Inasmuch as I tend to think of the continuance of our personality after we leave this plane, the idea of bodily resurrection seems superfluous.

Cremation, it seems to me, is just a speeding up of returning us to dust. If we stay dead long enough  it will happen to all. Nothing disrespectful to God here that I can see.

On the other hand, I see nothing wrong with being buried. I'm saying, I don't see why this very personal choice should be controversial. My personal choice, at least for now, is cremation, with a celebration of life over a traditional funeral service.

I have found that many people in well-established religious traditions have a tendency to - at least in their own minds - pick and choose what they really believe and think of as important. Many conservative Christians ignore tradition and opt for cremation.

The bigger issue to me is the idea that we should all be free to connect with the divine in our own way. A personally developed spiritual worldview will be more meaningful than an instilled one.

I Believe In Miracles

I've left behind, forever behind, the old paradigm of pitiful humans pleading, cajoling, attempting to bargain with an old all-powerful (but apparently fickle) "man in the sky." I'm being a bit unkind there, for that isn't the way traditional religious believers think of it. It is however how I came to think about it. I didn't start with the traditional view. As a child I was an animist. Of course I soon absorbed the religious ideas of my parents (traditional theism). Now as an old guy I'm coming around again to my earlier view, but hopefully with more insight.

Oh, I still think about a higher power - okay, call it God, if you will. Use the metaphor of an old gray haired and bearded man as a metaphor if you must. But as an idealist, I think of a Supreme Mind. And I think of the Cosmos as being crackling alive and imbued with a kind of intelligence in all its aspects.

I believe there is a way of the Cosmos with which we should attune ourselves. Maybe something like Taoism's Way or Path.

About three years ago a path out of a serious problem I had been having was presented to me. With much fear I pursued that path to the resolution of my problem. I prayed about it, or as I also think of it: I communicated with the Supreme Mind of the Cosmos. This event led me to a complete re-examination of my worldview and re-evaluation of my ideas about religion and spirituality. My journey continues.

A friend read mine read my last post and told me I had left her wanting more. What does it mean for miracles to be in the eyes of the beholders?

For me it is the difference between the spiritual and the materialist worldviews. Either one is convinced that the Cosmos is a pure accident with no intrinsic meaning, or it is not an accident and instead is purposeful.

Okay, we can look at events and say either "hey, this means something"; or we can dismiss sign posts as coincidences. Now I'm speaking as a spiritually-minded person and not a materialist.

There seems to me no need to spend too much time arguing about the matter. Where we end up depends entirely on where we start. If you believe blind coincidence can give us this wondrous Cosmos, okay. If you are like me and find some "coincidences" to be just too coincidental, then you'll open your mind to the possibility that as Sir James Jeans put it, the "universe begins to look more like a great thought than a great machine."

We have to look at all this from the inside out. I believe in an inner voice. Listen or overrule it. The choice is yours.

It seems to me that children start out with an enchanted view of the Cosmos. That is either nourished and tweaked by one of the various religious traditions. Or the enchantment gets educated right out of that child over time. We tend to see what we look for. Look for the divine and you will find overwhelming evidence for it. Dismiss the divine and you will find ample reason to continue dismissing it.

As the poet Keat wrote in his Lamia:

Philosophy will clip an Angel's wings.
Conquer all mysteries by rule and line,
Empty the haunted air, and gnomed mine--
The tender-person'd Lamia melt into a shade.

I see direction. I find meaning. I believe in miracles in the sense that things can fall into place in unusual ways. But if you don't believe you won't see. Or to quote the late Wayne Dyer: "I'm realistic; I expect miracles."

Miracles In The Eye Of The Beholder

I have long suspected that when the majority of us speak of miracles we are talking not so much about events that violate the known laws of nature as events that have special meaning, either because of the timing or unlikeliness of said events.

A case in point is this item from Father Dwight Longenecker that has had me thinking lately.  I urge you to click that link to see the picture and read the story.

The skeptic would say "so what?" But the people who were there and witnessed this event in person have obviously found deep meaning in it.

I don't think it wise to waste time arguing with the skeptic.The natural minded person is just bound to see things differently from the spiritually-minded person - and I think that's fine. It's a difference of perspective. Live and let live.

For the spiritually-minded person the Cosmos is a miracle of sorts, pointing directly to an intelligence behind it. Therefore we think there is meaning and significance to be found in all this. For that reason the concept of miracles - or unusual meaningful events - make perfect sense to us, even if it is only in the eyes of the beholders.

Country Legend Predicts Death On His Birthday

I am fascinated by the concept of premonitions, especially those folks who have premonitions of their own deaths. There is quite a bit of evidence of this, and this week provided another example.

According to a Facebook post of Ben Haggard's, son of country music legend Merle Haggard, his father informed his family a week beforehand that he would die on his birthday. He surely did.

Haggard had been in declining health, especially since late last year, so he no doubt knew the end was drawing nigh. Still, it was a bit eerie that he was able to accurately predict the day of his demise.

It jibes with my personal persuasion that there is a field of knowledge that may be tapped into.

People sometimes can find themselves aware of things they shouldn't be able to know.  I mean, how should one be able to exactly predict the day of their death beforehand? Not saying a lucky guess would be impossible, but I've cataloged enough examples to satisfy myself that this type of thing is possible.

Many, many more examples could be presented of people predicting their deaths would occur within a certain time frame.

Is something going on in the Cosmos? I think so.

Interesting Article About Luck

Rationalists don't believe in luck, at least as the common person thinks of it. Guess I'm gonna go with the irrationalists. Lucky streaks, unlucky streaks ... is there some principle at work in the Cosmos?

My personal philosophy is this: embedded in the warp and woof of the Cosmos are strands of potentiality. I believe we can follow threads to fortunate or unfortunate ends. Also, I make room for the Cosmic Trickster:
 a force that can play havoc with the best laid plans of mice and men, as they say.

Be that as it may, I was happy to read Kate Rockwood's article How To Get Lucky, which was featured in the February 2016 issue of Reader's Digest. The Digest is always on my bedside table.

For those of you who aren't subscribers, you are in luck (ha, ha). Rockwood's article is online and may be read by clicking this link.

In four simple points Rockwood sums up the lucky lifestyle nicely, I believe:

1.) Expect Good Things

This "tilts the scales of serendipity in their favor," she says. If you're thinking "hey, that sounds like the Secret", please don't get turned off yet. I do believe that to a very large extent we are our thoughts. The power of the self-fulfilling prophecy is very real.

2.) Court Chance

Her explication of that point left me a little flat, but I do agree: "The goal is to stay open to possibilities. Or as the old saw goes, "nothing venture, nothing gained."

3.) Look For Silver Linings.

Good advice to be found in these paragraphs. I've never known a lucky "Negative Nellie" or "Pitiful Pearl." The most successful people I have known are those who just keep making lemonade when they are presented with lemons. It seems in my own life that the more I remain positive the more I am rewarded with positive outcomes. It works for me and I recommend this approach to others.

4.) Trust Your Gut

Perhaps this point interested me most. Starting perhaps three years ago I made a determined effort to try to trust my gut more and follow my intuitions better. This has paid great benefits to me (but please bear in my mind when I write this that material wealth is not part of the "good life" in my personal spiritual philosophy.)

How seriously do I take the concept of luck? I can't think about it apart from a conviction that there are principles that can be followed to tap into the good or ignored to the bad.

I understand those who don't want to get all metaphysical about it. That's okay. Rockwood's article isn't so-called woo. But I do like to think about the metaphysical. I tend to want to explore areas outside the box.  

The Mythicist And The Meaningful Coincidence

Speaking of Jesus mythicism, the very intelligent and lovely Christ Mythicist D.M. Murdock, who used the pen name Acharya S, died recently, losing a courageous struggle she had waged against cancer.

I always enjoyed reading her work, which was highly controversial, as I enjoy most work which dabbles in myth and comparative religion.

I followed her brave struggle against her illness. It seemed she was doing really well when her death suddenly came - believe it or not - on Christmas Day, 2015.

My first thought was being struck by the coincidence. Murdock's first book was The Christ Conspiracy: The Greatest Story Ever Sold. She also wrote Who Was Jesus? Fingerprints of The Christ.  Also, Christ In Egypt: The Horus-Jesus Connection.

After so much attention to Jesus of Nazareth, how strange she would die on the very day Christians celebrate the birth of Jesus!

It struck me similarly to the coincidence of John Adams and Thomas Jefferson - who both played such important roles in the United States - dying on same Fourth of July (in 1826).

Such things happen we are reassured by the rationalists. Okay. Whether it be mere coincidence or meaningful coincidence, I find these things fascinating.

I will miss Murdoch. Perhaps now she is in a position to know more fully the subjects that challenged her mind in this life.

Easter Baloney

I was tempted to a do an Easter post yesterday but declined. Later I was playing catch-up with some of my blogging friends blogs.  Over at Bruce Gerencsers blog he posted an interesting chart about contradictions in the Easter story as contained in the canonical gospels. (I followed the link he provided over to Jericho Brisance's blog, from whence the chart came.)

In common with those two bloggers I am a former Christian. They now identify as Atheists. It's hard for me to define myself religiously speaking now. Labels sometimes aren't very helpful. I suppose I'm a cultural Christian. Christianity certainly is my heritage and the tradition I'm most familiar with. But I tend to want to identify myself as a Unitarian (at least of sorts.) To expand on that, I believe there is one spiritual reality towards which we humans (at least those of us who are spiritually inclined) aspire.

That being said, I have a curiosity about what happened to inspire the theology of the resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth. I confess to being agnostic about whether Jesus literally rose from the dead in a miraculous fashion. But a chart such as the one I referred to above - while helpful for consolidating in handy fashion all the alleged contradictions in the resurrection story (it really is a first-class, impressive piece of work) - is of little use for me in attempting to decide what may have happened.

I can't fathom such a presentation would change a single mind of those who had sincerely committed to the faith. It might make biblical inerrantists uncomfortable, but would probably only cause them to dig in deeper.

For the already skeptic, it is just preaching to the choir. It will provide some ammo with which to shock and awe your Christian friends, family and acquaintances. But again, I just don't think that approach does much but build ill will.

 Faith must first be truly shaken to allow one to seriously entertain truly negative thoughts.

Because I think myths and legends usually have a basis in something substantial, I believe something unique inspired the biblical Easter story. For some time I have been exploring the so-called "Swoon" theory. Well, more accurately, the idea that Jesus did not die on the cross but survived his crucifixion and revived later in the tomb. I think it would explain a lot. (Not being an inerrantist, of course contradictions in the gospels aren't a problem to me.)

Let's be honest. The reason atheists reject the resurrection of Jesus isn't because there are inconsistencies in the accounts. It is because they reject miracles outright.

I don't rule out of hand such miracles as the resurrection. But to be honest, my personal theological outlook doesn't require such things. Therefore I'm free to explore these accounts with a more open mind than either the conservative Christian or the Atheist.

Certainly I think there are plenty of documented cases of people who had been declared dead, given up for dead, presumed dead, etc., who have revived as opposed to people who had been dead for three days coming back

Being preserved through such a harrowing ordeal as Roman crucifixion would be no small matter. Had such a preservation occurred in the Jesus case, it surely would have seemed to those who knew him that he had - if not literally returned from the dead -  returned from death's very door. A person of faith would have no problem attributing such to an act of God.

I have studied the works of the mythicists and find their case not only not compelling, but actually weak. Of course that is a matter of opinion, but it is mine.

Christianity has had a big impact on world history for two millennia. That seems to me a lot to account for with a mere mythical figure. (Which is why I think even some mythicists have been willing to admit that it's very possible there was a historical Jesus about whom such legends grew.)

Also, I find the many parallels in the various religions as added evidence for my conviction: there is one spiritual reality common to all but understood in many different ways.

My spirituality is derived from the various myths, legends, fables and so forth that fills every religious tradition. I think we humans crave stories, symbols, icons and such things to satisfy their deepest yearnings.

Even if the resurrection of Jesus is nothing more than myth and legend, it still fills a spiritual need that I think is significant. Therefore, I believe I do take the resurrection story seriously. What I don't do is use this issue as a recruiting tool.

Don't Throw Out That Baby!

Don't know if the origin of the old phrase "Don't throw out the baby with the bathwater" can successfully be nailed down, but do know it is a popular warning about being overly dismissive.

Too much rigidity in thinking and not enough openness to possibilities, methinks.

Shall will be hasty to wave off that which we can't possibly be sure about? Most reasonable would answer "no," I'm persuaded.

I've had to backtrack on a lot of things I had come to be very rigid about. Oh, the doubts always lurked beneath the surface, but with a firm a worldview in place it was simple enough to hammer things into their proper places. (I thought.)

My present blog is about what might be called anomalous experiences - my own and those of others. Well, that's the thing. When you look at the reports - bazillions of them - you find that strange experiences, eerie events, spooky happenings truly aren't anomalous at all. They happen to practically all of us. And has happened all throughout history.

Here's the rub: The popularity and extremely widespread devotion to the materialist, mechanistic view of the universe makes the aforementioned common experiences anomalous.

My solution was to explore idealism.as a worldview. For me it works, It makes sense. The unusual is not so unusual after all. At least I don't find it so.

Sure, I think we have to be careful not to become gullible fools. But we can approach a better understanding of some of the strange world experiences by freeing our minds a bit. It's a vast universe. We can't pretend to have all the answers.