I have been a huge fan of the British t.v. show that ended recently, named Merlin. I fell in love with it, and even though I haven't seen the last 3 episodes yet, I committed a big no-no.... I watched a clip on Youtube of the biggest moment of the whole series.
For those of you who are not familiar with the series, Merlin is loosely based upon the mythic stories of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table. The series took quite a bit of liberty with it, but it was still incredibly good. So, Merlin, a wizard, is hiding his powers from King Arthur, his best friend, because of Camelot's laws forbidding magic in the kingdom. The punishment for having magic was death. And so, Merlin, the most powerful sorcerer ever born, gets the help of the great dragon to win a battle. The battle is just barely won, and Merlin crawls off the field joined only by a wounded Arthur.
Then, the big scene, as Arthur is lying there bleeding, Merlin finally tells him of his talents. Arthur is at first angry with him, but then thanks him and acknowledges Merlin's previously unknown deeds that saved him and all of the land of Albion. Then, Arthur dies in Merlin's arms, leaving Merlin devastated but hopeful, now waiting for the "once and future king" to rise again.
The last scene is what got to me, though. A big-rig truck suddenly rides by, and down a modern road, in a modern neighborhood. The camera pans, and you are looking out at an island with a castle. Then, what do you know, but a bedraggled old man walks by, with overgrown white hair and matching beard. He looks out at the castle, and then you see his face. Merlin, in our world today, still waiting for his best friend to come back in Albion's greatest time of need, over two millennia later.
I thought to myself, how is the Church so different? Our hero, Christ, died in our name, and we are now waiting for Him to come back and rescue us, two millennia later. Are we worthy enough to call ourselves that dedicated, though? How long, if we had been alone and lost and had watched all your friends die with the passing of time, would we be willing to wait? I am not sure I would have hung on that long. But if I couldn't wait 2000 years, how long will I be willing to wait? For all we know, it will be another 2000 before He does return. Can I stand to wait that long?
Wednesday, May 22, 2013
Saturday, May 18, 2013
Exploring Scientology
One thing that has been on the news of late, and for a while now, is the religion of Scientology. I had heard by some that it could be dangerous, and that it tended to split up marriages, breed lots of hate, and require large amounts of money to rise in the "ranks". I was curious though. So, when I came across the youtube video promoting it, I naturally took a look, just to see. What I found fairly threw me.
Scientology is the use of various schools of thought in combination to form a religion, or something thereof. Mostly, the idea as promoted there, was to use scientific methodology, along with several eastern religious aspects, and use them to find the meaning or basis of life. Started by the very intelligent L. Ron Hubbard, it seems to encourage making science spiritual on some level, and worshiping it as the solution to life's biggest questions on another.
The video I watched put some pleasant music in the background and some pretty pictures to match their narrator, but all of this just disguised what I consider to be a very dangerous way of thinking. It subtly claimed that this was the collection of all intelligent men of the past, and therefore was the thought of the future too. It also claimed that, through Scientology, man can become bigger than science itself.The video shunts to a book, saying this makes it all attainable as never before in history.The video literally claimed that this religion will bring full understanding of the universe, the body, and life itself, and the relations among them.
If there is one thing, however, that science and the scientific method have taught humanity throughout our use of them, it is that they cannot provide those answers. To try to push eastern, especially more Asian, thought with science in this notion simply will not work. that is why we have had religion and science separate throughout the ages, because when the mix, one ends up overpowering the other.
An example of this is the Roman Catholic Church. No, I don't mean now, I mean like long before the Reformation, when the Church was the government basically. At that point, if a scientific discovery was made that contradicted the Church's views, or that the Church leaders didn't like, the discoverer of said discovery could and often would be burned at the stake as a heretic. I am not saying that Scientology will be pulling out the matches any time soon, but this is basically destined to end badly...
Can we really understand everything? I think that this privilege is reserved for God alone. Would life really be the same if we suddenly had complete understanding, anyway? What would be the point of life if we understood it?
Scientology is the use of various schools of thought in combination to form a religion, or something thereof. Mostly, the idea as promoted there, was to use scientific methodology, along with several eastern religious aspects, and use them to find the meaning or basis of life. Started by the very intelligent L. Ron Hubbard, it seems to encourage making science spiritual on some level, and worshiping it as the solution to life's biggest questions on another.
The video I watched put some pleasant music in the background and some pretty pictures to match their narrator, but all of this just disguised what I consider to be a very dangerous way of thinking. It subtly claimed that this was the collection of all intelligent men of the past, and therefore was the thought of the future too. It also claimed that, through Scientology, man can become bigger than science itself.The video shunts to a book, saying this makes it all attainable as never before in history.The video literally claimed that this religion will bring full understanding of the universe, the body, and life itself, and the relations among them.
If there is one thing, however, that science and the scientific method have taught humanity throughout our use of them, it is that they cannot provide those answers. To try to push eastern, especially more Asian, thought with science in this notion simply will not work. that is why we have had religion and science separate throughout the ages, because when the mix, one ends up overpowering the other.
An example of this is the Roman Catholic Church. No, I don't mean now, I mean like long before the Reformation, when the Church was the government basically. At that point, if a scientific discovery was made that contradicted the Church's views, or that the Church leaders didn't like, the discoverer of said discovery could and often would be burned at the stake as a heretic. I am not saying that Scientology will be pulling out the matches any time soon, but this is basically destined to end badly...
Can we really understand everything? I think that this privilege is reserved for God alone. Would life really be the same if we suddenly had complete understanding, anyway? What would be the point of life if we understood it?
Tuesday, May 7, 2013
Hello!
Well, this whole blogging thing is new to me, so if anyone reads this, don't hate! XD If you read my bio you know that my name is Missy, I am Christian, and am looking forward to a career in science someday (hopefully!). I have discovered as I go through life that fact seems to be skewed by some, and I promise that I will do my best to find the real truth. I may get opinionated at times, but there will be times when I will do some very righteous digging and try to be as good a "reporter" as possible. I hope you enjoy what you see! My email address is anabellqueen@gmail.com if you want to get ahold of me or complain if I fail to get it right. Trust me, I appreciate feedback!
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