TEXAS FAITH: When the pew and the pulpit don't see eye-to-eye?

There is a difference between the pew and the pulpit on this matter. Of course, that is not the first time a divide has been seen between the leaders of a religious tradition and those who adhere to that faith. What I would like to hear from you all this week is how such a divide gets resolved in your tradition. I recognize that sometimes they aren't resolved, but I would like you to elaborate upon this question.

Indeed, there is a great difference between the pew and the pulpit and most certainly a few issues get resolved and a few go to the holding pen to be unleashed whenever the opportunity arises to get even.

Continued

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Mike Ghouse is a writer, thinker and a speaker on pluralism, politics, Islam, peace and building a cohesive America, links to details at www.MikeGhouse.net. 

Israel Palestine commitment, part 2 of 3

Israel Palestine commitment, part 2

Israel's security and justice to the Palestinians are directly proportional to each other. Hundred percent security for Israel comes with 100 percent justice to the Palestinians. A majority of people in the conflict understand this, but the leadership runs aground with short sighted false perceptions.

Huffington post on Israel Palestine solutions : http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mike-ghouse/commitment-to-israelpales_b_1263793.html

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Mike Ghouse is a writer, thinker and a speaker on pluralism, politics, Islam, peace and building a cohesive America, links to details at www.MikeGhouse.net.

Israel Palestine commitment, part 2

Israel's security and justice to the Palestinians are directly proportional to each other. Hundred percent security for Israel comes with 100 percent justice to the Palestinians. A majority of people in the conflict understand this, but the leadership runs aground with short sighted false perceptions.

Huffington post on Israel Palestine solutions : http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mike-ghouse/commitment-to-israelpales_b_1263793.html

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Mike Ghouse is a writer, thinker and a speaker on pluralism, politics, Islam, peace and building a cohesive America, links to details at www.MikeGhouse.net

TEXAS FAITH: When the pew and the pulpit don't see eye-to-eye?

There is a difference between the pew and the pulpit on this matter. Of course, that is not the first time a divide has been seen between the leaders of a religious tradition and those who adhere to that faith. What I would like to hear from you all this week is how such a divide gets resolved in your tradition. I recognize that sometimes they aren't resolved, but I would like you to elaborate upon this question.

Indeed, there is a great difference between the pew and the pulpit and most certainly a few issues get resolved and a few go to the holding pen to be unleashed whenever the opportunity arises to get even.

Continued

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Mike Ghouse is a writer, thinker and a speaker on pluralism, politics, Islam, peace and building a cohesive America, links to details at www.MikeGhouse.net. 

A commitment to Israel and Palestine dialouge

Who am I to worry about Israelis and Palestinians? What inspires me to be involved in the Israel Palestine conflict? The following is the story of my struggle to see a cohesive world, the story will take you through different emotions but at the end, I hope you feel a sense of completeness of the story. Please let me know. Thank you.

I believe at the heart of the world peace is the Israel Palestine conflict, it is the mother of all conflicts, and if we can find a solution to this, peace is on the horizon ready to shine on us.

Until we can see our own faults, peace for both people becomes a forlorn hope. The burden to find solutions falls on all of us, but particularly Jews, Muslims and Christians.

HUFFINGTON: Continue 

Do Jews, Christians and Muslims better understand each other since 9/11?

TEXAS FAITH: Do Jews, Christians and Muslims better understand each other since 9/11?

Abstract: Jews need sincerity and not duplicity. Native Americans need an apology and there is a good amount of phobia embedded in Hindus about conversions. We believe in Jesus as a Prophet and not as a son of God. Unless we deal with tough issues about our differences, we will continue to fake being nice to each other and brood with ill-will within. There is indeed improved understanding among faiths since 9/11. But there also is deepening suspicion among them. One is spiritually motivated and the other is political. Please note, most of my writings are inclusive of all theist and atheists traditions, we all inhabit the earth and we need to figure how best to co-exist cohesively.

# # #

Since September 11, 2001, many conversations have taken place among Muslims, Jews and Christians. There are official interfaith conversations occurring all over the globe, where participants dig into each other's texts. And numerous personal dialogues have been established over the last decade. Many of us have learned more about the three Abrahamic faiths since September 11, 2001 than perhaps we knew before that day.

But here's this week's question, which is simple in its wording but not necessarily simple to answer: Do followers of the three Abrahamic faiths really understand each other better since 9/11?

Eight Texas Faith Panelists including Mike Ghouse weighs in at: http://religionblog.dallasnews.com/archives/2011/09/texas-faith-do-jews-christians.html

MIKE GHOUSE, President, Foundation for Pluralism, Dallas

There is indeed improved understanding among faiths since 9/11. But there also is deepening suspicion among them. One is spiritually motivated and the other is political.

We were better off when we knew very little about each other. But as we faced the hostage crisis in 1979, the evangelical foray into politics, the Baptist convention on harvesting poor souls and finally 9/11, religion moved on to center stage. It will get better when we know more about each other.

On September 11, 2001, I was on the radio in Dallas attempting to make sense out of the chaos of the day and pave the way for relevant actions. Interfaith-faith prayers, blood donation and fundraising for the men and women in uniform were all in place by evening. The fog was clearing up. Osama bin Laden was the bad guy and Muslim-Americans had nothing to do with his actions, nor did they authorize him to terrorize any one. Indeed, he placed a wedge between Americans that still needs to be undone.

Atheists, Baha'i, Buddhists, Christians, Hindus, Muslims, Jains, Jews, Native Americans, Pagans, Sikhs, Wicca and Zoroastrians along with area city mayors, FBI, police and fire chiefs and community leaders graced the first interfaith event in Frisco. Out of which a new tradition evolved called Unity Day. It continues year after year.

But while we are trying to know more about each other, more needs to be done. Here are a few examples;

* Mosques in Dallas/ Fort Worth area opened their doors right after the 9/11 incident. As Christians walked in, they were naively welcomed by yet-to-be trained volunteers who said, "We believe in Jesus as a Prophet and not as a son of God." However, the volunteers were trained to welcome without conflict the very next week.

Of course, back in the 8th Century, a Syrian bishop had declared that Islam was a false religion. That declaration has remained in the psyche of a few Christians forever.

Pastor Robert Jeffress of the First Baptist Church of Dallas reiterated the statement and added, "Quran is a false book written by a false prophet." He was asked to prove it but failed.

There are several verses in Quraan that are mistranslated for political gains. Steve Blow in Dallas Morning News quoted me, "In the Middle Ages, European leaders commissioned a hostile Quran translation to foster warfare against Muslim invaders. Later, Muslim leaders produced another translation to inflame Muslims against Christians and Jews."

One such difficult passage is "Kill the infidels wherever you find them." Ten such propaganda verses were read to separate the myths from reality. They were not read by Muslim clergy, but by Baptist, Mormon, Protestant, Catholic, Unitarian, Methodist, New Age, Unificationists, Sikhs, Hindu and others at the Quraan Conference

*Shamelessly, anti-Semitism continues to operate under the radar. The anti-circumcision bills in San Francisco and Santa Monica were irksome to some, but frightening to others. Indeed, there are still a few Christians out there who cannot shake off what Fred Phelps was demonstrating with reckless posters such as "Christ Killers."

The Judeo-Christian phrase was thrown around in the 40's to build relationships between Jews and Christians. A whole industry of opportunists was born from it. The support for Jews by Billy Graham, Richard Nixon, Pat Robertson, John Hagee, Glenn Beck and other chest thumpers have ulterior motives. They want to cash in on the name of Israel and perhaps convert them. Jews need sincerity and not duplicity to feel genuinely secure.

*Native Americans need an apology for the destruction of their religion and there is a good amount of phobia embedded in Hindus about conversions. Some of them feel that Governors Nikki Haley and Bobby Jindal made it in politics because they converted to Christianity.

*The spiritual balance in the community needs to be restored through observing and following the Golden Rule, which is treat others as you would like others to treat you. Although we have failed in the past, such as when the city of Plano rejected a permit to build a Hindu temple in the early 80's and Richardson did not permit a Muslim school to open there in the mid-1990s, we still have come a long way. Thank God, those are now history and the public in the metroplex welcomes diversity.

* Interfaith meetings are still social gatherings. Leaders from smaller groups are invited as tokens rather than to genuinely get to know each other. Unless we deal with tough issues about differences, we will continue to fake being nice to each other and brood with ill-will within. There is plenty of room for honesty to grow and mature.

If we can learn to respect the otherness of other people and accept the God-given uniqueness of each one of us, then conflicts fade and solutions emerge. One of these days we will get there. Meanwhile, I am pleased to invite you to the 7th Annual 9/11 Memorial, the Unity Day USA on Sunday September 11 at 5:00 PM at the Unity Church of Dallas on Forest Lane. Details are at www.UnitydayUSA.com

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References:
Steve Blow – Dallas Morning News: http://www.dallasnews.com/news/columnists/steve-blow/20100919-In-defense-of-Islam-pursuing-9397.ece

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List of difficult passages: http://quraan-today.blogspot.com/2010/12/difficult-passages-in-quraan.html

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Quraan Conference program sequence: http://quraanconference.blogspot.com/2010/12/quraan-conference-program-sequence.html

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Mike Ghouse is committed to building a cohesive America and offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day to the media and the public. He is a speaker thinker and a writer on the topics of pluralism, cohesive societies, Politics, Islam, interfaith, India and Peace. Over a thousand articles have been published on the topics and two of his books are poised to be released on Pluralism and Islam. Mike's work is reflected in 4 website's and 27 Blogs indexed at http://www.mikeghouse.net/ and you can find all of his current articles at www.TheGhousediary.com

Standing up for Jews, Gays and Mexicans, why should you?

Standing up for Jews, Gays and Mexicans, why should you?

Pastor Fred Phelps is staging protest against Jews, Gays and Lesbians and the Mexicans right here in Dallas, Texas. Here is an opportunity for you to stand up for the rights of others and add purpose in life. Join us for goodwill prayers and hope the positive energy will open people’s hearts and minds towards each other, leading to appreciating the value of living in harmony. - Mike Ghouse

A few pictures: http://www.flickr.com/photos/mikeghouse/sets/72157624336357507/

Pastor Fred Phelps of Westboro Baptist Church in Topeka Kansas boasts of holding 43,660 peaceful demonstrations. This weekend he is staging protest against Jews, Gays and Lesbians and the Mexicans. We need to be unselfish to serve our selfish interests. Here is an opportunity to find a purpose in life and stand up for the rights of others.

Why should you stand up for others? You may find answers in the following lines inspired by Martin Niemoller’s eternal poem about co-existence;

First they expressed their hate for Jews,
it did not bother me because I am not a Jew;

Then they condemn Gays & Lesbians,
it did not bother me because I am not a Gay;

Then they deny the divinity of Catholicism,
it did not bother me because I am not a Catholic;

Then they want to look down upon Mexicans,
it did not bother me because I am not a Mexican;

Finally, they want to harass me the new immigrant,
It does bother me, that there is no one left to speak for me.

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One of the most beautiful things religions teach us is living for the sake of others; seriously, when we are concerned about ourselves, and we become utterly selfish and care about ourselves in the moments of our strength, then what happens to us in our vulnerable moments?

Religions help us sustain peace and balance in the society in the times of our spiritual, physical and societal ups and downs. Living for the sake of others is not a charity or even a noble thing to brag about; it is indeed the pragmatic thing to do.

Jesus taught us how to co-exist in peace by removing prejudices and embracing every one that God has created, not just the ones who act, eat and look like us, but those whom the society had neglected. He embrace the then socially rejected prostitutes and the lepers, was that his limit of compassion?

We hope the Ministries of Westboro Baptist Church seriously consider the role of Jesus in creating a world of love and peace. I request them to ponder;

1. What would Jesus do if he ran into a HIV infected person, condemn him or bless him?

2. What would Jesus do if he had a line up of prostitutes, Lepers, Pious Pastors, Ordinary people, Gays and Lesbians, Mexicans and immigrants; hug them or curse them?

3. Should we reduce Jesus to be a partisan fellow to take sides?

4. Would Jesus agree if God were to sign a deal behind others back?

One of the gifts of Jesus was his helping us to create the kingdom of heaven on earth where every one of God’s creation lives in peace and love, without fear, and lives in unison with the cosmic universe. Can we follow Jesus and remove the fears and bring peace to all? Didn’t he say: A new commandment I give you - Love one another as I have loved you so that all men may know you are my disciples, John 13:34, 35. Are we to be known for our love and compassion -- or our hostility?

Didn’t Jesus have the power to change the world by merely saying let it? Why did he not? Did he want to test us to see if we follow him? Are we going to follow the path of compassion and forgiveness that he chose, or act out of fear and hatred for others?

Please show your solidarity by standing with the ones who need to be stood by now. Let there not be any hate for the men, women and children of the Westboro Baptist Church. We can always overcome ignorance with love and kindness – just as Jesus did.

As a Muslim, I am standing up for the rights of every human being; it is not against the individuals but against the ignorance. As a Muslim I have stood up for Atheists, Bahais, Buddhists, Christians, Hindus, Jains, Jews, Natives, Sikhs, Zoroastrians and many of them in between.

I hope to meet the Jewish man whom I met at the Gaza Rally in downtown Dallas in December of 2008. I was with the banner of Dallas Peace Center and saw a Jewish teen taking pictures followed by heated discussion between him and a Palestinian. The police officer stepped in and told the teen to be out of there; I walked up to the officer and defended his right to be there as any one else. The officer told me not to interfere while I asserted that I will stand up with the teen. Then he told me that he would arrest me and I was ready for it, but the Jewish teen went to the other side and I followed him with my camera until the teen left behind the screen wall.

Unless we learn to stand up for the rights of others, we cannot claim to be just and we have no right to expect others to stand up for us.

The folks form the Westboro Baptist church are holding demonstrations at various place in the D/FW Metroplex. A few of them are the Dallas Holocaust Museum, The Cathedral of Guadalupe, Jewish Community Center, Chabad of Dallas and several other places including Arlington, the complete list is at: http://www.godhatesfags.com/schedule.html . I will be there at the Holocaust Museum and hopefully other place. Please join me for a prayer of peace and prayer of co-existence. We have to live together; we might as well live with harmony and cohesion.

Mike Ghouse is a speaker, thinker, writer, optimist, educator and an activist of Pluralism, Justice, Islam, India, Peace and Civil Societies. He is a conflict mitigater and a goodwill nurturer offering pluralistic solutions on issues of the day and is a frequent guest on the media. Mike's work is reflected at three websites & twenty two Blogs listed at http://www.mikeghouse.net/
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Last week, as a Muslim I stood up and joined in with the Jews, GLBT, Catholics, Immigrants and others and offered prayers of Good will outside and inside of the Holocaust Museum and other places. Indeed, the Holocaust Survivors including Max Goldblatt and one of the founders of the Holocaust Museum, Mike Jacobs and other members joined in with me for the goodwill prayers. This is the kind of Dallas I envision, standing for each other and being there for each other and we hope that the Parliament will become a catalyst in helping us all look to each other as Americans and nothing but Americans, meanwhile we need to continue with our individual and group efforts. http://religionblog.dallasnews.com/archives/2010/07/texas-faith-dallas-and-the-201.html

ACTIONS ITEMS
If you support this initiative, please list the name of your organization and the weblink and contact info in the comments section below, we will list it on the following websites and five related blogs.

http://www.foundationforpluralism.com/
http://www.worldmuslimcongress.com/
http://www.mikeghouse.net/

I will be at the following places:
Friday, 07/09/2010 2:15 PM - 2:45 PM Dallas Holocaust Museum 211 North Record Street, Down Town Dallas

Friday, 07/09/2010 3:45 PM - 4:15 PM Texas Jewish Post 7920 Belt Line Road, Addison

Sunday, 07/11/2010 08:30 AM - 09:00 AM Dallas, Chabad of Dallas 6710 Levelland Road, North Dallas

The Resource Center is located at: 2701 Reagan St. Dallas TX 75219

The anti-GLBT/Jews/Catholics/Hispanics Westboro Baptist

Church protests will be protesting both Beth El Binah (a Jewish congregation) and the Resource Center of Dallas. Last week, the Resource Center of Dallas released an announcement about their attempt to use this protest as a way to raise much needed funds for a new ice machine that it badly needs to continue serving the homeless with HIV. For every minute Fred Phelps and his hateful "church" intends to protest, RCD is asking for a donation pledge. So if you pledge $1/minute, your donation will be 30 bucks. So far, RCD has raised over $800 from over 25 contributors. Donations have come from all over Texas and as far as New York. Equality March of Texas is one of the organizations helping the Resource Center to raise funds. Please take a stand by donating and being present at the Resource Center with Equality March of Texas!

For the entire schedule is at this link,
may God help them with goodwill:

http://www.godhatesfags.com/schedule.html

Iran's Ahmadinejad may have Jewish past

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad revealed to have Jewish past. The focus of my comment is not his past, but what his and others past like his makes them do.

An interesting observation is made in this news paper, “Every family that converts into a different religion takes a new identity by condemning their old faith.”

This statement needs to be explored further and see if there is any truth to it or not.

There have been many such instances to be reckoned. Recently there was an anti-gay Pastor Paul Barnes of Metro Church in Denver who admits Homosexual Relationships in his life. Newt Gingrich had the balls to go after Bill Clinton while he was cheating on his wife. The New Life Mega Church’s Ted Haggard was the gay pastor who had a male prostituted in Denver and had made extremely hateful pronouncements against gays and lesbians. Even in the business world the former employees have gone on head on collisions like Burger King against McDonalds etc.

There are many Muslims who have moved out of Islam and act and manufacture hate against their former faith; Wafa Sultan, Ayaan Hirsi Ali, Walid Shoebat, Taslima Nasrin and a host of them. They are transfering their personal bad experience on to a whole group of people, their family or the little community is to be blamed if they wer mistreated, not their nation or their faith. No one should fall for this stereotyping.

However the Neocon* extremists pick these available men and women to parade them to promote their hate agenda.

What is the dividend for Ahmedinejad in being hateful towards Israel or Jews? Is he appeasing the Iranian Neocons? Is the media falsifying his statements, per Juan Cole they have falsified his statment he made about Holocaust, originally I condemned Ahmedinejad for denying Holocaust? But now I want to find the truth if our Media has done it again as they have done with so many other things.

What does Netanyahu’s hate for Palestinian translate into? We need to understand these men who hate others. We need to ask these men if they have the absolute power, would they be templted to annihilate the other? Is it their personal vendetta at works here?

Neoconic attitudes are shaped by the fear that their life is at risk if others exist, if they can, they will wipe every one off from the face of the earth who ever differs from them. They are powered by the arrogance of power and don't see the need to dialogue and find resolutions for sustainable peace for theri people. They trust their Gun power but invoke God in vain, they do not want to dialogue, as it may settle them down. * Neocons redefined - http://hatesermons.blogspot.com/2008/03/neocons.html

Mike Ghouse is a thinker, writer speaker and an activist of pluralism, interfaith, co-existence, peace, Islam and India. He is a frequent guest at the TV, radio and print media offering pluralistic solutions to issues of the day. His websites and Blogs are listed on http://www.mikeghouse.net/

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Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's vitriolic attacks on the Jewish world hide astonishing secret, evidence uncovered by The Daily Telegraph shows.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/iran/6256173/Mahmoud-Ahmadinejad-revealed-to-have-Jewish-past.html

By Damien McElroy and Ahmad Vahdat
Published: 7:30AM BST 03 Oct 2009

Ahmadinejad showing papers during election. It shows that his family's previous name was Jewish

A photograph of the Iranian president holding up his identity card during elections in March 2008 clearly shows his family has Jewish roots.

A close-up of the document reveals he was previously known as Sabourjian – a Jewish name meaning cloth weaver.

The short note scrawled on the card suggests his family changed its name to Ahmadinejad when they converted to embrace Islam after his birth.

The Sabourjians traditionally hail from Aradan, Mr Ahmadinejad's birthplace, and the name derives from "weaver of the Sabour", the name for the Jewish Tallit shawl in Persia. The name is even on the list of reserved names for Iranian Jews compiled by Iran's Ministry of the Interior.
Experts last night suggested Mr Ahmadinejad's track record for hate-filled attacks on Jews could be an overcompensation to hide his past.

Ali Nourizadeh, of the Centre for Arab and Iranian Studies, said: "This aspect of Mr Ahmadinejad's background explains a lot about him. "Every family that converts into a different religion takes a new identity by condemning their old faith.

"By making anti-Israeli statements he is trying to shed any suspicions about his Jewish connections. He feels vulnerable in a radical Shia society."

A London-based expert on Iranian Jewry said that "jian" ending to the name specifically showed the family had been practising Jews.

"He has changed his name for religious reasons, or at least his parents had," said the Iranian-born Jew living in London. "Sabourjian is well known Jewish name in Iran."

A spokesman for the Israeli embassy in London said it would not be drawn on Mr Ahmadinejad's background. "It's not something we'd talk about," said Ron Gidor, a spokesman.
The Iranian leader has not denied his name was changed when his family moved to Tehran in the 1950s. But he has never revealed what it was change from or directly addressed the reason for the switch.

Relatives have previously said a mixture of religious reasons and economic pressures forced his blacksmith father Ahmad to change when Mr Ahmadinejad was aged four.

The Iranian president grew up to be a qualified engineer with a doctorate in traffic management. He served in the Revolutionary Guards militia before going on to make his name in hardline politics in the capital.

During this year's presidential debate on television he was goaded to admit that his name had changed but he ignored the jibe.

However Mehdi Khazali, an internet blogger, who called for an investigation of Mr Ahmadinejad's roots was arrested this summer.

Mr Ahmadinejad has regularly levelled bitter criticism at Israel, questioned its right to exist and denied the Holocaust. British diplomats walked out of a UN meeting last month after the Iranian president denounced Israel's 'genocide, barbarism and racism.'

Benjamin Netanyahu made an impassioned denunciation of the Iranian leader at the same UN summit. "Yesterday, the man who calls the Holocaust a lie spoke from this podium," he said. "A mere six decades after the Holocaust, you give legitimacy to a man who denies the murder of six million Jews while promising to wipe out the State of Israel, the State of the Jews. What a disgrace. What a mockery of the charter of the United Nations."

Mr Ahmadinejad has been consistently outspoken about the Nazi attempt to wipe out the Jewish race. "They have created a myth today that they call the massacre of Jews and they consider it a principle above God, religions and the prophets," he declared at a conference on the holocaust staged in Tehran in 2006.

# # #

The Monster Among us

Jewish-Muslim dialogue, a necessity

PROMPTED BY THE DOCUMENTARY "THE MONSTER AMONG US"

Mike Ghouse, Dallas, Texas

The Jewish Community Center in Dallas recently screened a documentary called, “The Monster among us”, produced and directed by Dallas filmmakers Allen and Cynthia Mondell. Watching this film (as well as other films in the past) and listening to the responses of the audience has confirmed my belief that one of the primary obstacles to peace is simply inadequate communications stemming from the unwillingness to see another point of view.

Muslims should participate in Jewish events and vice-versa. Staying away from each other will not contribute towards peace-making that both communities so deserve. We have to come together without conditions and learn each others concerns and clarify mis-information and together find solutions. If we don’t, the who will? Continued

If you wish to screen the movie in your town, please contact the producers or me to arrange for the same.

Religion and One God

Religion and One God
Mike Ghouse

Oneness of God is also expressed as oneness of the creation, oneness of the humanity and oneness of the people.

The phrase like God is one; the world is one or Vasudeva Kutabam express Unity of the universe referred to as numerical number “one”. It is a large embrace of diverse people to live together without conflict, when you do that, you have embraced them all and a sense of oneness surfaces. A conflictless world can be described as one world, where one God has acted out.

The guardians of the faith have a vested interest in promoting the idea that their faith is the best, and others are deficient, or even inferior or illegitimate. This protects their interests, but spritually they are wrong, a majority of the people believe otherwise, the majority simply wants to get along with others and do not believe for a moment that, their good friends who follow another faith will go to hell, they instinctively know that God will not cheat them.

Continued at: http://wisdomofreligion.blogspot.com/2008/07/religion-and-oneness-of-god.html

Everywhich way Jesus

Everywhich way Jesus
http://mikeghouseforamerica.blogspot.com/2008/04/everywhich-way-jesus.html

Deepak Chopra on Jesus follows my comments;

This is a fascinating account by Deepak Chopra, a cosmic Jesus.

I have expressed time and again the injustice done to the teachings of Jesus Christ. Christians have bottled up his teachings by exclusively owning them, just as Muslims have done with Muhammad or Hindus with Krishna and similar stories go with the believers of different faiths.

It may not be wise to classify or claim the teachings of Jesus as Christian; they are indeed for every human. He was a great teacher who taught us how to attain nirvana or freedom from the bondage of suffering by simple teachings like love thy neighbor, treat others as you would want to be treated and turn the other cheek. This is the stuff for every one, it is pure wisdom.

By making Christ divine and owning him, the Christians have alienated Jesus from making home in the heart of billions of people in the world. He is a guide and whatever anyone wants him to be in their lives. No one needs to insist Jesus has to be one way or the other, he is every which way.

Jesus is a prophet and a great spiritual teacher to me and I will not take away the divinity Christians ascribe to him, he is everything to what any one wants him to be. As a Muslim I was taught to revere Jesus Christ, and Muhammad conveys God’s words that all the teachers are on par. About 25 are listed by name and the others lumped as an infinite number of 124,000, a prophet, a teacher to every community, every tribe and every nation was the promise of the creator.

When Jesus says follow me, to a few Christians it is invoking his name and believing him to be an absolute savior, savior from what? It is saving from going to hell. That works for the believers in that theme; however, others have their own understanding. To me he is a savior from the miseries (hells) of life, as following his teachings like love thy neighbor, treating others as you wanted to be treated, would bring peace and tranquility. The same message of bringing goodness to humanity was expressed in every nook and corner of the world by sevaral teachers.

Following Christ, surrendering to Krishna or submitting to the will of Allah is no different. They mean the same thing; to become like God. When you do that, you do not have a conflict with others, you would treat everything in your embrace and everyone along with you is in his (her or it) embrace. It is conflictlessness, the ultimate in salvation, nirvana, mukti, moksha or any name you would give, it is a blissful state of mind.

Let’s free Jesus, Muhammad, Moses, Krishna, Buddha, Bahaulla, Nanak, Zarthustra, Mahavir and all the great teachers. Let’s look up to each one of them with respect, it will take the conflicts out of us; let’s not own them any more. Please do not look at some one else to begin this, if you don’t begin, don’t expect others to. I am on.

Mike Ghouse
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Deepak Chopra provides a different take on Jesus

Religion in the News By TANIA FUENTEZ, The Associated Press 2008-04-04 10:47:50.0 Current rank: # 8,333 of 8,507 NEW YORK


Before he became known for promoting holistic health and spirituality, Deepak Chopra adhered to traditional Western medicine as an endocrinologist in Boston. He eventually questioned this approach, returning to the centuries-old Indian system of Ayurveda to find a balance between faith and science.

"I wanted to extend my idea of healing," Chopra said in a recent interview. "If you don't understand spiritual experience, you'll never understand healing."
Now, at 61, the physician and best-selling author hopes to extend conventional thought again - even more controversially - in "The Third Jesus: The Christ We Cannot Ignore" (Harmony Books). Chopra challenges Christian doctrine while presenting an alternative: Jesus as a state of mind, rather than the historical rabbi of Nazareth or son of God.

The third perspective - which Chopra calls "a cosmic Christ" - looks at Jesus as a spiritual guide whose teaching embraces all humanity, not just the church built in his name. Chopra argues that Christ speaks to the individual who wants to find God as a personal experience.

"I said to myself, 'Why not write a book that takes Jesus' teachings - and it doesn't matter if you're Christian or not - and learn from this and improve your life,'" he told The Associated Press at the Chopra Center and Spa in midtown Manhattan.

Considered a pioneer of mind-body alternative medicine, Chopra is president of the Alliance for a New Humanity and he has been listed among Time magazine's top 100 heroes and icons of the 20th century. His books have been translated into dozens of languages, with topics that range from aging and sexuality to golf and Buddha's path to enlightenment. In 1995, he co-founded the Chopra Center for Wellbeing with Dr. David Simon, which officially opened the following year.

Fascination with Jesus' life began during his lessons while attending a Roman Catholic school in India, Chopra said. Though his parents were from Hindu and Sikh families, "if you were relatively affluent, education was always in the Christian school because of the missionaries."

He moved to the United States in 1970 after graduating from the All India Institute of Medical Sciences. Chopra did his internship in New Jersey, and residency and fellowship at various institutions including Boston, Tufts and Harvard universities. He also was chief of staff at Boston Regional Medical Center for two years.

His interest in Hinduism and medicine evolved while observing a mind-body connection in his research, and a chance encounter in 1985 with the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi at a conference in Washington, D.C.

"I first leaned toward Ayurveda medicine and then actually went on to study other wisdom traditions of the world ... this happened during my training in neuro endocrinology where I saw what happened in consciousness in biology," Chopra explained.

"I was just extending my understanding of healing from physical to mental to social to environmental," he said. "That's what the 'Alliance' is all about ... healing the body politic, healing the world."

Chopra devotes substantial time to his own spiritual development. He meditates and exercises daily, though he occasionally enjoys a triple hazelnut latte.
During the interview, Chopra switches his Blackberry, covered in an orange case, to vibrate as he speaks on faith, politics and a list of projects like a new comic book launched with his son and Sir Richard Branson. The in-demand speaker is at ease quoting Scripture or talking quantum physics. He has studied the Bible closely, reading it hundreds of times.

Though "The Third Jesus" was on his mind for 25 years, it took him six months to complete once he began writing. The next book will be a fictional account of Jesus' missing years.

"Where else do you read a story of the Son of God being executed by their own?" he said. "It is dramatic. It's three years of his teaching and it has shaped the world for 2000 years."

In a review, Harvey Cox, Hollis professor of divinity at Harvard, said "The Third Christ" is "bound to provoke both admiration and condemnation." Chopra references the New Testament and Gnostic Gospels to deconstruct church doctrine and conservative Christianity on issues such as war, abortion, women's rights and homophobia.

"I see blogs every day that are negative and very nasty because this is not a literalist interpretation of Jesus," Chopra said. "My book is about Jesus as a state of consciousness. If I can aspire - maybe not achieve - but aspire to be in that state of mind and if a lot of people were aspiring to be in that state of mind this would be a better world."

"I emphasize this over and over again that whatever we do is about improving ourselves and improving the world."
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