Baptist Pastor talk
I had an interesting talk today with my wife’s pastor. For context, I found Autobiography of a Yogi and the Eknath Easwaran classics of Hindu spirituality (Gita, Dhammapada, Upanishads) in 2020 and they made a profound impact in my life. Today I consider myself a Hindu Buddhist, as I identify with and believe in aspects of both. Up until then I considered myself a luke warm Christian but I always felt like it was never taking me to the level I wanted to get to and once I found these books, I never looked back.
Anyway, because of my path, I wasn’t going to church anymore, and my wife who is still a Christian, wanted to go. So for her sake, I went with her the first month or so, so she could tend to her spiritual needs. Once she felt comfortable, she kept going on her own, and I continued in my practice.
Her pastor, sensing something was wrong, dropped in on me today, thinking I was in some spiritual crisis, and we had a hour long respectful chat today as I told him what I now believe. This came as a total surprise to him, a 51 y/o midwestern White guy, as I told him about my belief in the Self and about meditation, reincarnation, the cycle of Samsara, the Buddha’s 4 Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path, etc. It was my first time ever discussing it with a genuine pastor. I told him I believe in both God and Jesus, but to me Christ, although holy, was one of many Self Realized beings capable of healing and miracles and I believe that we are all God, as we were made in his image and we have the ability to access God/Christ Consciousness within ourselves through the practice of meditation.
He asked me about sin and judgement, hell and the like. I told him that to me sin in nothing more than action that produces negative Karma, I was not afraid of judgement or death, and that hell to me was this illusion, Maya, the physical plane, absent from the presence of God. Heaven being the astral and causal planes. He asked me if I believed Christ was the Son of God. I said Yes, but so are you and so am I, so is everyone.
I didn’t feel like I explained everything to the best of my knowledge, but I was kind of ambushed with a drop in visit. Anyway, I’m glad I got that aired out and there will no longer be any questions. We departed on good terms, with him hoping I’ll return to church soon. I go to church everyday, the temple of the mind to worship God within.
Curious if anyone else has ever had to have an awkward conversation like that. To be clear, I’m not a theologian. I’ve only been learning and practicing about 5 years now, but everything inside me tells me it’s the absolute truth.