Praise Me! I'm writing a Church of the Churchless book

Well, the title of this post is accurate, but it needs some explaining.

Actually, I've already written almost all of the Church of the Churchless book, since after I started this blog in November 2004 I've written 2,601 posts. Assuming each has around 500 words (likely more, so this is a conservative estimate), that's 1,300,500 words.

Wow. 

For quite a while I've been thinking I should fashion those posts into a book. Recently that thought became action. I've already gotten 58,000 words worth of blog posts selected and mildly edited. Mostly I've just been removing links and a bit of extraneous material.

An 80,000 word book strikes me as a good length.

That's in the totally cool range of a Writer's Digest article. Since I'll have many short churchless "sermons," each starting on a new page, 80,000 to 85,000 words seems about right for this first Church of the Churchless book -- almost certainly with more books to come.

I'm enjoying the process of selecting and re-reading the blog posts, which will simply be listed chronologically in the book. Last Sunday I talked with an old friend about the book. He told me about an author who said, wisely, "I write the book that I'd want to read."

Since I'm feeling inspired by reading what I wrote quite a few years ago, I figure I'm on the right track. It looks like I'll be able to find 80-85,000 words worth of book-worthy posts in just the first year of this blog, between the end of 2004 and 2005.

Early on I decided that I'd only correct typos, not change what I'd written, even if now I don't agree with what I said back then. Likely I'll include a sentence or two of present-me commentary before each post, such as "Wow! I sure sounded like I believed in God here. Makes me cringe a bit to read this now."

Having written three previous books about spirituality/philosophy that I no longer believe in, to a large extent, it feels really good to be working on a book that comes much closer to my current atheistic world view.

The way I see it, converting to a religion is akin to walking up the stairs of a building with many floors. The height you reach depends on how strongly and completely you buy into the tenets of a religion.

Since I spent 35 years as an ardent devotee of the guru/meditation-centered Sant Mat teachings promulgated by Radha Soami Satsang  Beas (RSSB), I did a lot of stair-climbing. When I deconverted from those teachings, it was a gradual process, just as walking down the stairs of a tall building to ground level takes time.

So it makes sense that the blog posts which will appear in the first churchless book are filled with mentions of God, soul, and such, since I was still a speaker at RSSB meetings until October 2005, eleven months after I began writing Church of the Churchless posts.

Here's one of the early posts that made it into the book manuscript, "Become a religion of one" from October 5, 2005. I like it a lot.

Most people belong to a religion with many members. There are about two billion Christians in the world, over a billion Muslims, and nearly a billion Hindus. Sure, company is nice, but here are some reasons to become a religion of one:

-- You can hold a worship service whenever and wherever you want. Your church just needs to be as big as you are.

-- No contentious arguments about leadership. Any jockeying for power in your religious organization will be between you and you.

-- Doctrinal disputes are easily resolved. What you say, goes.

-- If you’ve ever wanted to be known as “Most eminently enlightened great being” or “Her highly esteemed holiness,” within your own mind at least, this is your chance.

-- Beer and tortilla chips can be your holy sacraments. Or, cake and chocolate.

-- Sex between clergy and parishioners is absolutely fine. Encouraged even. It’s all in your own hands. Literally.

-- Finding a name for your religion is easy: just look at your driver’s license. The hard part is deciding between “ism,” “ity,” or whatever. In my case, Hinesism sounds OK, Hinesity terrible. Hinesiosity, maybe. I need to schedule a meeting with myself on this.

-- No worries about declining membership. You’re already as low as you can go (death will take your religion down to zero devotees, but that’ll be the least of your worries).

-- Salvation is assured. All you need to do is write “salvation is assured” on a holy post-it note and then have faith in your divine revelation. Heck, if it works for Christians, Jews, and Muslims, it’ll work for you.

-- The next time someone says, “Who died and made you the pope?” you can reply with a straight face, “What do you mean? Nobody had to die, I’ve always held that office.”

But seriously…I’ve got shelves of books from each of the world’s great mystical traditions — Christian, Sufi, Buddhist, Taoist, Hindu — that support the contention, “Become a religion of one.”

Science seeks universal material truths through a collaborative process of rigorous investigation. Mysticism seeks universal spiritual truths through an individual process of rigorous investigation.

Don’t believe it when you hear, “When two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I” in reference to spiritual presence. In truth, that’s when God is not present—in a group.

Believe it: the best religion has a membership of one.

Comments

[Laurel]

I like the idea; especially of having the chapters be the sermons. That first post is a great way to start it. But will people then expect the whole book to be humorous????

[Sonya]

Congratulations, Brian!!! I can’t wait to read your new book when it’s out!

[Sonya]

I hope your new book does something to restore my faith in mankind. And by mankind I mean MANkind. Right now my view of the hierarchy of creation goes like this:

Women
gods
dogs
pigs
men

I think I finally became a feminist just this week. Don’t get me wrong, I do believe there are a few good men left but all of my life I’ve lived in a bubble being pretty blind to the gross gender inequality in the world. A few things happened recently that really opened my eyes. There will never be peace on earth or in “heaven” until there is gender equality. Amen.

Sorry, can’t find the right song to share... ☹️

[Spence Tepper]

Brian, you have the basis not only to present your eloquent views, but those of others as well. So many sincere posters, and a few ludicrous ones, have offered their hearts, minds, and a few fists here.

But what I think would be most interesting is the synthesis of an idea.

The shaping and refinement of understanding, but not only what you have written, but the responses, sane and insane. And your growing understanding of the depth of illusion, the depth of darkness, the multi-faceted powers of will behind a lie,
And the basic innocence and vulnerability of Truth.

The synthesis of an idea.

It is possible, I would think, to have an idea, a seed, and then share your take, and others, for or against. To help share what you have come to see, and us from you, about the power and harm of a false idea once held pure and sacred, but now seen as the very basis of harm.

The power of ignorance....

And the synthesis of a simple truth.

[Jesse]

Brian, hopefully the book is an enjoyable project. You should sell signed copies for all of us crazies who comment here.

Sonya, let me know when you want to sign up for military conscription and get your leg blown off by a bomb like my grandpa, or when you want to work in a coal mine and die from black lung just so a bunch of women can enjoy more leisure time.

You can take the first brave step toward equality and immanentize the eschaton!

[Sonya]

OK, Jesse, and let me know when you want to give birth to children demanding 24/7 attention and care while being subordinate to men and having to support your children making half the wages a man would make.

Women also go to war (btw, I’ve been shot before and been in numerous knife fights).

My “current hierarchy” list was more sarcasm than sincerity.

Few of us are what we appear to be on the surface. I started my training young when I was just 8 years old. I guess that sort of thing stunts emotional growth.

I keep my favorite book by Dr. Seuss, “Oh the Places You’ll Go!” as a reminder.

[Sonya]

Jesse, I guess you know this—it’s interesting how getting stabbed by a sharp knife is a lot less painful than having your skin scraped badly by a fall. Weird.

That said, we ALL have our wounds to heal be it physical, emotional, mental or all of the above. Such is life... of course, the hardest part is having to fit into the normal conventions of society when you’ve experienced such long periods of violence. That’s why PTSD is so devastating. But whatever, I guess that’s why God gave us alcohol and drugs...

People really piss me off when they assume I’m some WASPy female that has no understanding of the immense darkness lurking in the underbelly of this completely bipolar world.

[s*]

Man and woman are not the same,happily, but they have are equily worthy..
Woman a bit more Sonya ;0) !!

[Georgy Porgy]

Reckon I’d rather risk the leg getting blown off then 24/7 childcare - gdam. Dunno how women multitask like that.

No one should be treated unequally. I like societies were women are more empowered. Still got a long way to go. I got no issue with any cause for equality except if it’s rammed down your throat by morons who want to be more equal than others. Communism great in theory, not so great when put into practice. Animal farm by Georgy Porgy Orwell.

But I figure the world would probably be a better place generally if run by females who ain’t hormonal or lunatics.

[Sonya]

Georgy Porgy,

OK, that was funny.

I have finally found my calling in life. I’ve always been told by people—everyone really (not just astrologers and psychics) that one day I would do something really big. I don’t why they say that... I’ve just heard it so many times and always responded with “seriously??”.

But I’ve never been particularly ambitious. So, I’ve always just been trying to figure out what this “thing” was. I had a very lucid dream last night and now I know. If I only accomplish one thing before I die (aside from enlightenment lol) it’s going to be helping the women of India. It’s just all so clear to me know. Why India? Because women are more discriminated against their on a while than any other place on the planet right now. Of course, I know there are some African countries where women live under horrific tyranny. But have to start somewhere and my “soul” has always been somewhat entangled with India for some reason. It’s a good place to start.

Anyway, I’m really good at bringing people together for events and have had a lot of success with fundraisers so here we go!

[Sonya]

Hope you can make sense of my last comment with all of its typos. This is why posting long comments from my iPhone is a bad idea... iOS spell check often has no idea what I’m actually trying to say!

[Arjuna]

@ Sonya

I think it was Bruce Lee would once said: " a man is still a man" 😀

@ Jesse - your response was pretty awesome. And great point too.

[Sonya]

I hope Brian’s book addresses this. I’m mean it’s practically an argument for atheism. I can accept the scientific explanation for why different species evolved into male and female more than I can understand any religious explanation for it.

I’m not saying I’ve given up on the idea of a Higher Power or Creator, but it does raise many questions. If there is a Creator who designed this world and had the power to do it in any manner possible then why yin yang, male and female? The Creator could have just made all beings asexual and able to reproduce on their own.

I haven’t found a single religious text that explains in any way that makes sense at all of what the Creator was thinking. Even the spiritual texts that resonate most deeply with me offer no real explanation. At the core of this creation—the greatest polarity is male and female... more so than even good and bad or right and wrong.

It’s truly bizarre when you think of it in context of there being a Creator. Could have prevented a lot more wars if there wasn’t the yin yang thing.

Is romantic love that powerful? Does it overshadow the predominantly accepted belief that love of God is the highest form of love?

So many questions... so many questions...

[Jen]

Hi Sonya, hope this helps. This is why I like Taoism and Zen... keeps me balanced...

From Daily Zen - Understanding Dualism

"When everyone in the world sees beauty, Then ugly exists. When everyone sees good, Then bad exists.
Therefore: What is and what is not create each other. Difficult and easy complement each other. Tall and short shape each other. High and low rest on each other. Voice and tone blend with each other. First and last follow each other.

So, the sage acts by doing nothing, Teaches without speaking, Attends all things without making claim on them, Works for them without making them dependent, Demands no honor for his deed. Because he demands no honor, He will never be dishonored."

Tao Te Ching
.................

Dualism is a concept describing the general human tendency to split things up into two opposing parts. Binaries. We observe dualism in nature: there’s night and day, male and female, hot and cold, big and small, tall and short. In an emotional sense, we tend to sort things into twos as well: happiness and sadness, mania and depression, focus and unfocus, love and hate. Even mythically we like to split stuff into binaries. There’s man and god, winner and loser, the sacred and the profane, the dionysian and the apollonian, the erotic and the thanatotic. The list goes on.

https://www.thedailyzen.org/2017/10/30/understanding-dualism/

[Sonya]

Hi Jen,

That’s really interesting. Thanks for sharing. I’m still stuck on the idea that romantic love is more powerful than Godly love. In fact, I’m thinking God must have been in love himself with the Divine feminine. Even gods can be fools for love. 😉

[Mike England]

I too have started writing a book:
The Invisible Meaning, an Antibiography on Dr Eugene Genetics.
The soon to be published book will contain many of His anodyne analogies, meaningless muses, abstract anecdotes and cognitive compositions.
His early scribbling was often overlooked and labelled. In His formative and most productive days He expounded the Infinity Principle Theory, whereby the silent solitude of stillness in the brain mind would create certain channels of non-thought. This channels allow the practicing participants to enter the Hidden Realm of unknown unknowingness Infinitely, in theoretical principles.

Few of us are what we appear to be on the surface. I started the immense darkness lurking in the underbelly of this completely bipolar world.

[Sonya]

@Mike England,

Very interesting. You’re a very talented and witty writer. Are you really publishing a book??? I can’t tell what’s real or unreal in people’s comments anymore. I’m completely jet-lagged. Horrible mix up of flights and seats and lost baggage on my way to Hong Kong. I wonder if they’ll ban religious gatherings her in Hong Kong once it’s fully “converted”.

You started this darkness??😂🤣

[Sonya]

Mike England...

I read what you wrote a few more time. You’re really clever... such sharp sarcasm. I’m impressed.

People are profoundly unique yet equal.

[Jen from Austin Texas]

Sonya do you mind sharing your email address again?

[Mike England]

Dear Sonya
Fair praise indeed 🙏

I have been told off by Dr Eugene Genetics for posting too much. He sent me to bed early with no supper.

In Oneness we can be our True selves

[Dr Eugene Genetics]

In the most productive period of my early life, I wrote a treatment “People are profoundly unique yet equal”
The presupposed value of the egoic; that which makes the I me, can be countered by the group mind of compassionate usness. Individuals have collectively surrendered themself to the betterment of all, to fully support, explore and extrapolate the equal Uniqueness that profounds people. In other words “Unique people are equally profound “

[Sonya]

[email protected]

I check it like once a year but will try to check it today...

[Sonya]

Brian will your book be available on Amazon?

[Brian Hines]

Sonya, absolutely. In fact, I'll be publishing it via Amazon's Create Space group, using the publisher name I formed for my Return to the One book, Adrasteia Publishing. So it will be available in both softcover and Kindle formats on Amazon.

I've gotten all the blog post content selected, a bit over 80,000 words worth. Now I'm adding some brief commentary before each post. Then I just need to finish the introduction, and the book will be ready to hand off to someone for the interior design and cover design.

[Sonya]

Brian, so you’re publishing it through your own publishing company? Are you able to publish someone else’s book through your publishing company? I’ve been editing a memoir from the 70’s about life on the Skeleton Coast of Africa. I’m assuming you charge a fee but that’s fine... I’ll email you about it.

80,000 words?? Wow

[Sonya]

@Mike England and Dr. Eugene Genetics,

Your posts are beginning to convolute my sense of reality. You’re messing with my mind. Reality not being really real but made up of our perceptions... (go ahead quote that). You’re taking this game to a whole new level, Mr. Geisel. LOL

[Mike England]

Dear Sonya
During our lunch break Dr Eugene Genetics achieved a state of samadhi and recited the following using the tongue of Pythagoras.
This message has been communicated directly along the ether to the Church of the Churchless in this blog.
Reality is really the only Realness

To solve the so called Pulitzer enigma, the researcher does not really have to be a reclusive. Many mystical mutterings in the past, have shown a vast number of firsthand insights and produced well over a voluminous lot of papers; the result is eternally illuminating.
Intimate the self portrait of a dreamer. It is akin to viewing the World through the wrong end of a convuluted telescope. An open invitation will enjoy an absolute sense of reality beyond perceptions. The brain mind cannot be messed with, so the saying goes.