Since Jesus expected each believer to commune alone with "Our Father in Heaven", he was implying that God relates to each of us like a loving father relates directly to each of his children, no matter what kind of groups we form, or belong to, such as organized religions or churches.
Instead of slavish conformity to the precepts of some religious authority like The Pope, or The Roman Catholic Church, or The Bible, or The Urantia Book, ... or anything else that might be regarded as standing between God and individual persons, we can instead have a simple personal philosophy of life that embraces The Gospel of Jesus:
Recognition by the believer of the one God as sovereign spiritual Father of each (and all individuals), and secondly, love of each other human being as an equal spiritual child of God.
God loves each child equally. God is no respector of persons, one over the other. God relates personally and individually to each other person.
Organizations of believers can elect leaders and claim descent from the Apostles for the outward social or group aspects of believers, but they should not usurp the spiritual rights and privileges of believers to relate themselves to God primarily individually, and only indirectly relate themselves to God through groupings of people like churches and through organized belief systems, which are mere intellectualizations of the personal experience of knowing God.
This simple philosophy given by Jesus eventually embraces all possible truth, goodness and beauty - love.
I was moved to post this message because I hoped to eliminate fear of damnation by Roman Catholics who don't believe every doctrine deemed essential by the Catholic Church or The Pope. The church was made to serve and minister to the people; the people are not made to serve the administration of the church. Jesus recognized this danger when he said, "And call no one your father on earth, for you have one Father, the one in heaven." [Matt. 23:9]
I hope you all will have a good and loving Thanksgiving Day, will be free of religious fear, will recognize yourself as a free faith child of our Father in heaven who provides from within our individual minds awareness of the good, true and beautiful - the loving possibilities, and the opportunity to choose one of them, if we will. That is the invitation of the Father's spirit within each one's mind, to choose from among the many good things possible within "the will of God".
Instead of slavish conformity to the precepts of some religious authority like The Pope, or The Roman Catholic Church, or The Bible, or The Urantia Book, ... or anything else that might be regarded as standing between God and individual persons, we can instead have a simple personal philosophy of life that embraces The Gospel of Jesus:
Recognition by the believer of the one God as sovereign spiritual Father of each (and all individuals), and secondly, love of each other human being as an equal spiritual child of God.
God loves each child equally. God is no respector of persons, one over the other. God relates personally and individually to each other person.
Organizations of believers can elect leaders and claim descent from the Apostles for the outward social or group aspects of believers, but they should not usurp the spiritual rights and privileges of believers to relate themselves to God primarily individually, and only indirectly relate themselves to God through groupings of people like churches and through organized belief systems, which are mere intellectualizations of the personal experience of knowing God.
This simple philosophy given by Jesus eventually embraces all possible truth, goodness and beauty - love.
I was moved to post this message because I hoped to eliminate fear of damnation by Roman Catholics who don't believe every doctrine deemed essential by the Catholic Church or The Pope. The church was made to serve and minister to the people; the people are not made to serve the administration of the church. Jesus recognized this danger when he said, "And call no one your father on earth, for you have one Father, the one in heaven." [Matt. 23:9]
I hope you all will have a good and loving Thanksgiving Day, will be free of religious fear, will recognize yourself as a free faith child of our Father in heaven who provides from within our individual minds awareness of the good, true and beautiful - the loving possibilities, and the opportunity to choose one of them, if we will. That is the invitation of the Father's spirit within each one's mind, to choose from among the many good things possible within "the will of God".