A Psychedelic Christian At An Art Gallery
Exclusivism Devolved & A Few Other Updates
I met a psychedelic Christian at an art gallery. He surprised me with a combination of two ideas I had never heard before.
Initially I did not know where he stood philosophically, because the man makes psychedelic artwork. After I shared my book title, Original Sin Is A Lie—as the discussion of psychedelia made me feel safe to do so (ha!)–he mentioned that he is a "born-again Christian".
Usually 'born-again Christians' are even more rigid and fundamentalist in their beliefs. When a person comes to an institution in their adult life, it can make them especially closed off to everything else. This is not always the case, as I've said many times: Christianity is a valid path to God. In my view, the initial image of being "born again" by Jesus (John 3:3) is a powerful mystical symbol of our rebirth as a Divine Child of God. Sadly however, that term in English & American church culture, means something totally different in terms of Christianity or Churchianity's spiritual superiority. It tends to create an egoic moral righteousness, "I'm born-again!"; which is the exact opposite of the authentic spiritual experience, seeing All as One. Exclusive elitist spirituality is the enemy of the Truth—the Truth of Our Inherent Divinity, that every sentient being is Equally Beloved in the Eye of The Creator.
Anyway.
What this artist said was that he did believe in reincarnation(!!). That it was taken out of the Bible by the early church fathers—for example Jesus refers to John the Baptist (a contemporary) as “Elijah” (an ancient prophet), who has “come again” (Matthew 17 & John 1)—which is what Yogananda says, and a few others.
But this is what got me.
You know that doctrine from American Christianity: that everyone will, eventually, have a chance to find the Gospel of Jesus Christ? Shocker, it's actually from Paul of Tarsus, not Jesus, in Paul's letter to the Colossians (Col 1:23). And it's the mantra behind all colonizer missionary work. It's the Manifest Destiny proselytizing bullshit anthem that creates armies of evangelicals in the developing world. "Saving" indigenous populations from... their own spiritual harmony with the planet and Creator.
My new friend said that 'everyone might not find The Gospel in this incarnation, but thanks to reincarnation, they'll ultimately run into the Bible at some point and have the opportunity to be saved.'
I wish someone had recorded the reaction of my jaw breaking the tile floor we were standing on.
This is is how hardcore Christian apologetics can be. This is how many backflips they can do to make the case for their exclusivist, egoic moral high horse, Only-Way garbage.
I get so worked up about this because I've studied the mystics, and they all preach Unity. They tell us of our Inherent Beauty. And I've contemplated this Truth, this Reality in my own humble way for many years. There is no 'Us & Them', reincarnation or otherwise! We're all One. Warmly, lovingly, Jesus Christ is not needed to be “Your Personal Savior” in order to be reunited with our Divine Creator. According to the mystic masters, and the nondualists (like Jesus himself), there is actually nothing you can do to become separate from God! Try as hard as you can, the Infinite Current of Unconditional Love Behind All Creation is inescapable. It is merely our own ignorance of our True Nature. As the great Swami Vivekananda writes, “It is we who have put our hands over our eyes and cry that it is dark!”
The Palestinian people continue to endure the most apocalyptic hellscape in the modern era
Speaking of “the chosen people” delusions, the Israeli government & military continue their morally-depraved, dystopian annihilation of an entire people. If for some reason the Palestinians survived six months of intense bombing in civilian areas, they are now facing starvation en masse. To be clear, this is an entirely man-made famine by the Israeli government, the military who uses an AI software called “Where’s Daddy?” to more effectively eliminate entire families, and who just murdered seven World Central Kitchen workers last week.
These humanitarian angels cooked and dropped off 100 tons of food for starving Gazan families the day before their third van was destroyed by Israeli missiles. The message is clear, if you feed starving Palestinian men, women, children, and babies, the Israeli military will fucking blow you up.
Last month was the anniversary of peace activist Rachel Corrie’s death, you can see my tribute to her on IG or TikTok.
And if you’re completely unaware of what’s happening in Israel-Palestine, read Democracy Now, The Intercept, and CounterPunch. Help feed Palestinians by contributing to the Palestinian Childrens’ Relief Fund here.
Podcast SZN
I’ve been humbled by a couple new podcast appearances:
Melissa Denyce is the charming, prolific host of Love Covered Life. She was generous to interview me on the best YouTube video title I’ve been associated with yet:
Michael Phillip is a brilliant podcast host, Platonic philosopher, and absolute Jung-nerd who has become a good homey. He generously texted me a month ago to come back onto Third Eye Drops to talk about … Gnosticism! I have long admired the Gnostics and despite my lack of a PhD on the topic, we had an in-depth conversation about “the church’s oldest enemy” with a few laughs. (YouTube, Spotify)
MINE. COMING. I SWARE. It’s now called “Karmic Relief”—a podcast, YouTube, and public access show where I delve into the intersections of spirituality, creativity, scholarship, and activism with thinkers who embody the overlap of these realms. I’ve been interviewing friends at Austin Public, a public access studio in East Austin since December. The first episodes should be available to enjoy next month. IG is @karmicreliefpod (& this Stack) to stay tuned! Here’s a still of me and Laurén Janelle Green, a brilliant creator, businesswoman, and philosopher pal!
Closing
You might find it unusual that I have a deep sense of our Internal Unity, and yet, I refuse to mince words on the actions of the Israeli military, for example, as well as any other purveyor of injustice and moral depravity.
Hey, Jesus flipped the tables. Spirituality and unconditional love do NOT mean doormat-ness. In fact, the spiritual path actually offers us even more power in this world, because it comes from A Place Beyond It All.
That said, I am still doing my best to see the inherent beauty of all beings, including the seemingly-soulless warmongers pressing red buttons to eliminate neighborhoods. Unlike my friend at the art gallery, within the mystics’ view of reincarnation, we’ve all been every one of these roles… hundreds or thousands of times. We’ve all gone through it all… and while we MUST stand up for the vulnerable, feed the hungry, and serve all; I try to do my best not to judge. To keep peace in my heart, knowing that this world is merely a bridge.
“Continue practicing until you see yourself in the most cruel and inhumane political leader, in the most devastatingly tortured prisoner, in the wealthiest man, and in the child starving, all skin and bones. Practice until you recognize your presence in everyone else on the bus, in the subway, in the concentration camp, working in the fields, in a leaf, in a caterpillar, in a dew drop, in a ray of sunshine. Meditate until you see yourself in a speck of dust and in the most distant galaxy.”
—Thich Nhat Hanh