Tom From Hong Kong
Sleeping with one eye open . . .
I have had the pleasure of traveling to Tibet, India and Thailand on numerous occasions, and my travels have left me with the impression that the most spiritual people on this earth are oftentimes the poorest materialistically -- although there certainly are exceptions. People have strong religious traditions in all these places, but generally there is a deep respect for those with a different viewpoints and a recognition that we are each here for a different purpose. Rarely do you hear poor people in these places claim they possess the only road to salvation.
When you do hear individuals like Pat Robertson claim that the Haitians are 'cursed' for making a deal with the devil, I am left with the impression that we are dealing with a very young soul who has much to learn. The true old souls are probably the people you hardly ever notice -- the homeless person who sits on the busy street corner, quietly teaching us all about compassion and gratitude. Or perhaps occasionally the individual does make headlines in unconventional ways -- the rock star who suffered from polio when a child, fought with addictions, had children with cerebral palsy but went on to sing about the plight of the common man and organize Farm Aid.
My suspicion is that things are rarely as they appear, including some in charge of organized religion -- as many on this thread have pointed out. Jesus himself was an outsider at the time and a revolutionary.
For the record, I am also a Deist: we have all been tossed down here to sort it all out, and there ain't no help coming soon, so we better get our act together.