TripodMillenium: I will try to address the things mentioned as I can bring them up...
But where does evil come from in Pagan etc. beliefs, who's to blame for everything that sucks in this world, if Nature is a religion in itself, why are we killing it, why is it losing the battle?
well - here I say that the source of evil, in my view, is people allowing themselves to go bad (like a 3-week-old tomato), letting themselves be tainted by refusing to see the truth and light that is there in them... Where a light is shut off, a room will fill with darkness, no? Both things are natural parts of things - so part of being a better being is not succumbing to the darkness...
Also, about the killing-Nature and Nature-loosing-the-battle stuff what I have to say is this: are we not ourselves part of Nature? We are able to be screwing it up and continuing because we are a part of that which we kill - think about people with heart problems... One thing gets f#$%ed up and the whole body can die... We are acting like a heart that is failing or a major organ that is cancerous and is spreading it like wildfire... Just like with diseases, there is a cure for what we are doing if we could just find it - it is in our hands to do it.... Nature is Nature, she is as loving as harsh - she isn't going to baby us and bail us out of jail, we have to serve the time ourselves (or get out early on good behavior...)
That leads me to the whole "framework" thing... Think of it this way... "God" is called "Lord" and, often, "King" - which is like what his religions' frameworks are (like a monarchy) So when you wonder what the Pagan framework is (for Nature-based) it is basically a pure democracy... All beings of all kinds come together to, in Union, form the framework.... And since it is our TRUE selves inside that "vote" the framework works, and in such an astounding way as to be incomprehendable due to its subtleties.....
NEXT!
Ok, here goes. I'm not sure if something is automatically wrong if you're not sure about it. Theres so many things i'm not sure about, my life would be a big fat lieif it were all wrong. I think that in every choice you make theres doubt, dillemma, and wonder. With small choices, and big ones.
On this I wasn't being as literal as it seemed - and I am sorry for the misunderstanding (when you spend most of your life mired in philosophy, you tend to naturally get a little cryptic without meaning to....).... What I meant by being sure was that you were sure of the choice you made - even if you are not sure if it was the "right" one.... If you have not settled yet and you are not comfortable with your choice, then it is not for you.... But I do NOT mean that to be in totality.... The specifics of it may just not be right for you... (for instance, the view on homosexuality may not aggree with what you, deep down, feel best fits your inner truth... How much of your religion is wrong for you depends on how uncomfortable you are with that choice... (if it nags at you like a swarm of killer bees attacking your flesh, then you are probably MILES way from your personal path, but if it is just a tiny, little, almost insignificant itch, then you probably are just a line or two of guidelines off.... I'm not saying that if you are AT ALL unsure that you have the wrong religion, but I AM saying that if there is another religion that better fits how you, personally, feel, then you should not hesitate for a second in following your heart to the truer path! For instance, if you come from a Christian family, but your internal beliefs are more like that of Judaism, then don't say "feh, they're close enough - I'll just stay Christian", because you would be betraying yourself....
And even if your decision suddenly doesn't feel right anymore written as it is, then don't hesitate to change your beliefs.... People change, so do their thoughts and beliefs.... And if you are thinking, "well I can't just be jumping around like that at the drop of a hat..." Then I have to say "What the F#$% is anchoring you there but YOU?" You don't owe your religion your continued presence - you only owe it to yourself to follow your heart where it may lead you, and to avoid living a lie AT ALL COSTS! I lived as a Jew for most of my life so far, just because I didn't want to hurt or dissapoint my family by "refusing" the religion they follow.... But I was living a lie, and I would have been 10 TIMES happier if I would have converted sooner... At least I didn't convert for such a shallow reason as my oldest brother became a Christian for, though.... His wife's family wouldn't support the wedding unless he was Christian.... If converting/staying in a religion for anyone else but yourself, and for any other reasons than your true beliefs, doesn't cheapen a religion and take all the meaning out of it, then I don't know what does!!!
< gasps for air
>
Now for SchroederJr's comment....
I don't know about earth-based religions, as most of those seem very centered on this world and its power, not of overcoming it. Correct me if I'm wrong, though, Tripod.
Well, as I see it, due to the framework of things, the world is what we make of it as much as it is set.... So, in a way, it is as much what you said as it is also about overcoming - but the overcoming always starts within yourself.... It is like what many old philosophers have spoken of.... the Macrocosm and the Microcosm.... The Big Universe (commonly just known as the Universe), and the Little Universe (the Self, and the body) - a person is like a little universe by themself (made up of trillions of tiny little cells as apposed to stars and planets). Both are a universe in themselves, and both are connected as One... It is always best to start in your own backyard before you move on to the world......
And finally, for mekkler:
< jumps with almost-giddy joy ;D > I am so glad to see I am not alone here, maybe we should talk personally sometime?....
Later all....
TripodMillenium
