A Conservative's View on Reincarnation

[I Have A Dream]

<snip>

I was a hardened disbeliever in reincarnation until about four years ago (late 2000). Though I had read many books on the subject, reincarnation seemed to me a moral and mathematical impossibility. On its surface, it sounded like an excuse to squander one’s life over and over again, even to sin, with complete impunity. From population charts I had first seen in high school, I had concluded that there were more people alive in the early 1970s than there had been at any other time in recorded history, so the number of souls needed to fill all the bodies on earth today just did not exist. The moral and statistical improbabilities alone closed the case for me, but considering the vast amount of suffering on earth throughout recorded history, I could never imagine why any soul would want to consider a second visit to earth, not to mention multiple ones.

Coming to an acceptance of reincarnation was, by and large, not an easy or pleasant experience for me. Over my lifetime I had experienced multiple dreams that I would characterize today as memories from previous lifetimes. The most vivid and frightening one occurred while I was visiting England in August 1973, at the age of 17. After an exhausting day of hiking with a friend along a country road on the Salisbury Plain, I relived a brutal death from a past life that I now suspect had occurred somewhere in the vicinity of that makeshift campsite. Here is how I related the experience to Dr. Semkiw:

One night, after an exhausting day of hiking, when we had been given but a single ride by some friendly farmers, we stopped by the little country road we had been walking on and set up camp. We were almost too tired to cook dinner, but we did. After eating dinner we got in our sleeping bags and fell asleep immediately.

(continued at link below)
http://www.johnadams.net/cases/samples/Alexander/index.html

[SheilaT]

1. Interesting.

Just one nit-picky little thing: Every so often you'll run across the claim (as in the above quote) that there are more people alive now than at any point in history. Which completely misrepresents the total number of humans who have lived and died since we became humans. Various estimates exist (and a simple Google search will turn these up) but good estimates are in the 90 to 110 billion people to have ever lived. So the six billion plus currently living, are just a fraction of that number, which certainly allows for multiple lifetimes, to say the least.

[rumpel]

2. I now believe, Dr Newton

had a very important role for our collective to be readied for the time that is to come. This is a moving piece, especially coming from someone who was under Helms.
:)

Thanks for posting, Dream.

[NJCher]

3. language used by republicans

Did you notice the language? Can't remember where I read it but it was here and it was about the psychological predisposition of republicans and Democrats. Republicans are predisposed to the authoritarian father model of the family. So it was with this in mind that these phrases leaped out as I read:

hardened disbeliever

excuse to squander one’s life over and over

drew from a hard scientific background

personal responsibility


Notice how they like words like "hardened" and their outlook is very Puritan--no dilly-dallying! No squandering one's life!

But then toward the end, he gets some of those softer-sounding words, like "humble" and "patient" into his language. I actually really liked this paragraph:

And so it is that my understanding of reincarnation has only reinforced within me the need to take personal responsibility for my actions and continue to expect the same of others – an idea that has always been at the core of my political and spiritual beliefs. However, an understanding of reincarnation has made me far more humble and patient in my expectations of both myself and my fellow man. I now understand that we ALL made a choice to be here and that it took incredible personal courage and creative power to make that choice, regardless of the race, ethnicity/nationality, gender, religion or socioeconomic class we chose to embrace as part of our human experience.

Glad you posted this, IHAD--just the other day I was wondering if any republicans believed in reincarnation.



Cher

[mother earth]

4. Thanks for posting this, Dream. Very interesting website too...

I can't stop reading...:toast:

[stellanoir]

5. Thanks Dream

Often when affirmation or corroboration on many issues come from the most unlikely sources, they are all that much more powerful.

I never thought Scott Maclellan (sp?) would ever experience the conversion he's so clearly experienced. But it's great to see and affirms my theory that those born in '66-'68 time has seemingly come.

Given what transpired in those years I find it really exciting.

I first learned of Walter Semkiw, and the "Return of the Revolutionaries" site back around '04.

I always joked that I was one of the founding father's cleaning ladies and that's why I take political and constitutional issues so darned personally.

So it interested me greatly. Thanks for the reminder.

I just knew I was exposed to those ideas and concepts in a secondary role back then. I've been told I was a scribe and that may or may not be true. Just know I was exposed to those concepts in a cursory sort of way.

"Interesting times" indeed.