Aloha Camilla,

I wanted to thank you for your transparent post. I have yet to publish my own introduction here in STEEM, but while I was working on it, I was forced to grapple with sharing something similar. My background in Christianity, as a Minister in the Pentecostal church of God, as an 18 year old - the road that lead me there, and the one that lead me away - I feel is a key component to my character and integrity.

I may still provide a small blurb that addresses my relationship with Christ and the church, but I am finding a real struggle to be concise. There is a certain "flow-a-try" that envelopes me and therefore invokes another set of interpersonal interpretations that are not easily silenced.

I'd like to attempt a brief commentary on what you have shared here. I feel my sharing is loosely woven into my own need to express certain truths and awarenesses, and to commune with others who regard the impetus of this commentary. In addition, it ties the spirit of STEEM into mix.

One thing that stuck with me through out the years, was something that my Youth Pastor encouraged me to practice. He told me simply, "read the Red Letters. Familiarize yourself with the words of the 'man you call you savior'." Like you, I began developing a keen sense and ability to "read between the lines." I came to centralize my self in an open exchange of inquiry, always asking myself - "what did Jesus mean when he said that." Of course, this eventually lent itself to reading into the other passages of the bible the same way, as well as other sacred texts, and eventually all of life.

Regarding the "other sacred texts," I'd like to share a unique passage that offered itself to me along my path of spiritual development. I made a kindred friend in High school, who was a foreign exchange student from German. You might guess that his nature was inclined toward traveling. He later spent years in various countries, and one day returned to my small home town. Auspiciously enough, when he came to visit I had just experienced my first Socio-Relious rupture. My schism with church, and my career as a minister was well underway. Because of this, I felt isolated and foreign in my own home. Having Georj as a wayward friend really booned my self-hope.

He gifted me the book "The Alchemist" by Paul Coelho, and ultimately it changed my life. The simple reason being that it sparked my creative intuition and catalyzed my associative thinking. I was on the hunt for deeper meaning, and opened up to the various channels that life afforded me. One might call these, "easter eggs" that lead to "rabbit wholes."

Being familiar with the word "alchemy," although immature and innocent - was my ticket to graduating into new levels of understanding. My grandmother introduced me to some texts that she had about the St. Germain, one of the greater known alchemists. Reading through those books, I stumbled upon her library where I found books of great intrigue that had to do with "lost years of christ" and his "secret teachings."

The small box that encapsulated my young mind kept being pryed open, more and more. What I eventually concluded (for the time) was how the sacred symbols of the ancient teachings were co-opted by those in high castles. Of the MANY denominations of Christianity, it became blaringly apparent that texts like the bible were used to validate whatever position, opinion, or stance one wished to take. Unfortuanatly this usaully ment a lot of biggotry, racism, hatred, and intolerance for one reason or another.

Like you have stated, the fear factor of heaven and hell carried A LOT of weight in determining the actions of people.

I later overheard a dear friend say that "people are inherently good, just not good at it." This is a phrase that would have served me greatly as a 21 year old. Even later I heard Daniel Vitalis say, "you give people INFORMATION to keep people IN FORMATION."

What the churches were saying didn't seem line up with the message of love that life itself, along with those RED LETTERS were emanating. It seemed like a way to siphon people away from their ability to grow and prosper, and create army's of thought.

What ultimately moved me away from the ministry was a bible verse. I was studying Corinthians 12 - the gift of love. I was suprised to read onward in chapter 13 that there were other gifts of importance. But I was mostly moved by chapter 14, where I learned a word that changed my view forever. "The greater gift," it reads "is interpreting tongues" because "one who speaks in tongues edifies themselves." However, if one "interprets the tongues for the people, the CHURCH is EDIFIED."

In a small town where the blue collard hard working and underclass people were vexed by a Meth epidemic - there are chruches on every corner. Only one among them used the word "community." None of the messages from these buildings were about building people up. Not one.

The most one could hope for was more fear propaganda. Church was where you sat in a pew listening to why "gays are going to hell" and how you "better get saved" (whatever that means, ** I take it to be a gaurentee on membership, & therefore tithe). Following the conclusion of the service, everyone would return to their thrown of judgment, and bicker over value meals at McDonalds.

So I left.

And Life started teaching me what I couldn't hear through the iron clad curtain of double-speak nonesense. I came to know in my own way, that people can be gently reminded of their own innate potential, to connect and feel connected. But wading against the tidal power of culture, language and the emphasis of dogma has been the challenge.

Now I follow the passage, which you can read directly after Jesus teaches us to "turn the other cheek." He says, "walk the extra mile." You see, when you spend time with a person you earn something worth of great value, and that is "TRUST." When the bond of trust truly matures you can enter into a new conversation that allows a true connection. The best thinking can happen, and furthermore - one can gracefully challenge the limiting assumptions of another.

If I disagree with a guy at the bar, and I call him an asshole, what good will come of that? At best we'd fight and forget. But, if with longsuffering love, I "walk the extra mile," I enter into a smart contract with some one, where our language is shared - and becomes a common currency that buys meaning in exchange.

We call them "inside jokes," and therefore dismiss them as arbitrary. But the power of coining words, and making up new names is a human power that many authors, poets, and myths talk about (Adam in the Garden, Samson and Delila). This is the mint of community. The community develop-mint. This is where we coin new words, that like keys, unlock the mind and allow for greater clarity in navigating this chaotic world.

Jesus is often refereed to as "the Logos," or by St. John as "the Divine Word." The word lives, and is not dead, in a crypt. The word lives through us, and among us when we gather together to share (when two or more are gathered, I am there). The speaking of these words in confluence, leads to a confluence. It leads to a "fluency" that is a flow, much like "rapture." From rapture comes the apocalypse...the lifting of the veil

I meant to be brief. And yet I still didn't address some of the things I wanted to.

But you might be able to see how I place importance on the concept of word banks and money banks. Coining words is the part of the brilliance that the Crypto-Currency unshers into human evolution.

Thanks for you the post and willingness to share,

Jyoti

...16 paragraphs later, after I said "I'll attempt to be brief" ...