I recently linked to a video in which Doreen Virtue and her friend Jac discussed (and attacked) Steven Spielberg´s recent film "Disclosure Day". In that video, Virtue claims to have had an alien abduction experience as a child! In the video linked above (from two years ago), Virtue says that she isn´t sure whether it was a dream or a real experience. However, in the more recent video, she seems to be suggesting that it was real but (of course) demonic (not literal aliens).
About half of the 2024 video is all the usual fundamentalist Christian pep talk (I´ll get back to it in a moment). The other half is more interesting. For instance, Virtue talks about her involvement with controversial ufologist Steven Greer. Apparently, she partially financed his movie "Sirius". During her New Age period, Virtue used to believe that she was a mermaid from Sirius (!!) and would even pray to the Dog Star. Jac assumed she was from Orion, was into Alternative Egypt, Golden Dawn ritual magic, Crowley and so on. Sure, her experiences (or delusions?) do sound disturbing and "demonic". But...
Isn´t the fundamentalist Christian worldview both Virtue and Jac have adopted equally disturbing? First, the demons seem extremely powerful. They can manifest or create physical objects, including cars and buses. And perhaps UFOs? Indeed, their deception is literally everywhere. Second, God seems strangely aloof. Why didn´t God stop the demons from attacking Doreen Virtue *when she was an innocent child*? Or Jac for that matter. Why doesn´t God show himself to people during near-death experiences? Instead, the evil spirits seem to have full control over all or most NDEs!
And if you don´t believe in Christ - in the right way - you will end up in "the lake of fire" and be tormented forever, vividly described by Virtue at one point in the video. A scenario which simply becomes worse when the oblivious nature of God is taken into account.
It´s almost as if Virtue and Jac have just replaced one delusion with another one. Delusion. Or deception...
Helvetesläran är otäck i alla sina varianter men den skulle bli mindre moraliskt problematisk om man antog att Gud INTE är allsmäktig, att helvetet INTE är skapat av Gud, utan att det är någon sorts moralisk objektivt verkande naturlag som drabbar alla som skiljer sig från Gud och som Gud gör allt för att hindra människor att hamna i.
ReplyDeleteNågot liknande finns ju i mahayana-buddhismen, även om de inte kallar de mäktiga övernaturliga väsendena för "Gud". Avalokiteshvara och andra bodhisattvor försöker rädda människor från helvetet, inklusive personer som redan är där!
ReplyDeleteC S Lewis sade att helvetets portar är låsta från insidan. Fast i den här versionen, så försöker Gud (eller något liknande) faktiskt öppna dem! Fast Lewis ville ju tro det också ("Den stora skillsmässan").
ReplyDeleteMen mahayanabuddhismen har ju egentligen inget helvete, det som brukar kallas helvete i den är jämförbart med det som den katolska kyrkan kallar skärseld. Det vill säga det är inte evigt.
ReplyDeleteNja, det stämmer rent tekniskt sett, men i praktiken verkar helvetesstraffen vara långvariga och plågsamma. Vilket kan förklara mahayana-relaterade legender om att deras bodhisattvor faktiskt räddar folk därifrån.
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