Okay. Go get yourself a cup of coffee, take a potty break, then come back and settle yourself in your seat. Get comfortable. This might take a while. I’m going to cover a lot of territory. I might even have to split this up into multiple posts in order to enhance easy digestion. And I am certainly wanting your comments on what I will be saying here, because, after all, that’s what this whole project is about: an exchange of ideas. But let’s get something straight right off the bat: I am not, nor have I ever had an interest in becoming, an evangelist. It is not my intent to sway your opinion one way or another regarding anything at all. Least of all, a philosophical belief. Chances are excellent that I couldn’t change your mind about what you believe, anyway, at least regarding your basic tenets. But what I am hoping is that we can begin a dialogue which, perhaps, will help us to understand one another. Equally important, outlining my own beliefs here and now will help you to make sense of what is to come on this blog. I won’t have to repeat myself.

That said, let’s begin with some important basics:

• There is a God. This is an unarguable point. I can’t tell you why this is true for me; it just is. It’s something I can’t not see. I learned long ago that a belief in God (or, for that matter, belief in anything) isn’t always a matter of choice; sometimes it’s a matter of genes, a predisposition we’re born with or without. Some might call that grace. From my standpoint, there simply are certain questions that can only be answered by a belief in God—and I’m one of those unfortunate souls who can’t leave a question permanently unanswered. Of course, we all hold paradoxical views, so while on the one hand I’m happy to admit that one can never truly know God (can we truly know anything?), I will on the other hand assert our capacity to at least know something , even if it’s just little bits here and there. Certainly, not knowing or understanding a thing in no way means it doesn’t or can’t exist .
• God is All There Is. This is an extremely important point, because everything else I believe has this point hovering somewhere in the background. Conversely, without an understanding of this concept, nothing that follows can be understood. Now we’re getting into (as I see it) the realm of conscious choice, the identifying and choosing of God’s ostensible traits. I realize I’m stepping into blasphemous territory here, recalling a quote by the philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau: “God created man in his own image. And man, being a gentleman, returned the favor.” Rousseau certainly offered this insight as a criticism, but I’m frankly not sure Man could have behaved otherwise, confronted as he was (and has been throughout the ages) by an Infinite, Eternal Mystery that begs definition. (There’s also this little psychological trait Man was endowed with called projection.) Anyway, I think I first encountered this idea about the nature of God while reading a book by Richard Bach, although I am sure it didn’t originate with him. I remember coming across a reference to God as “The All That Is,” and it was a concept I immediately resonated with. This, of course, led to the next point, which is:
• There is nothing that is NOT God. I mean this literally. If it is, it is God. Even the space between things which might appear separate is God. I’m tempted to say “Duh!” here, because it follows logically from the previous point, but unfortunately even those who subscribe to the idea that God is All There Is often hold onto the impossible idea that there is something or some place in the Universe that is not a part of God. (Oh, wait, I also mentioned that we humans maintain paradoxical views in our brains. Duh!) Most notably, they will hold onto the (again, impossible) belief that they are somehow not a part of God.
• God (The All That Is) is pure love. Of course, I believe God is many other things as well, but they are ultimately comprised of the one essence: love. John Lennon had it right: “Love is all there is.”
• If Love is truly All There Is, then there can be nothing that is not love. Och, this is the heavy one, the point over which most of us stumble. Because if there is nothing that is not love, then it follows there can be no evil. No sin (at least, in the conventional usage of that term). No Devil; no hell. (I realize, given the apparent state of the world, this appears to be an insane claim, but bear with me; it will all make sense shortly.)
• God is omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent, eternal, infinite, etc. Of course, this all follows given the above. I just want to articulate these traits, because they’re important to this next point:
• Anything comprised of God, IS God. This might sound redundant, but the essence of the point bears repeating. The lampshade is God. Your cat is God (something your cat has probably known all along, given how cats typically behave). And here’s a biggie: YOU are God. And here’s one more: everybody else is God, too! The implications of this point are staggering. It means seeing the entire Universe from the perspective of the One Who created the Universe—because, in fact you were and are still an active participant in its creation. What does this mean? Just this:
• YOU are—and have always been— the architect of your own life, down to the minutest detail.