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Spirituality & Religion
Out of African spirituality came the world's religions. The God concept of Judaism, Christianity and Islam came out of pre-God religions. There was a time when man thought of a force in the universe presiding over the universe. Though he meant God, he did not use the word, God. Man had more spirituality before he consistently used the word, God. He used the God force and the God concept without using the word. He meant the same thing and ultimately Western man interpreted it as meaning the same thing.
Spirituality is a way of accepting the fact that there is a spiritual force in the universe larger than all of mankind. In ancient times there was no religion, but there was a spiritual way of life. They honored their Ancestors and nature. They knew the cosmic laws of the universe and these were the laws by which they lived their lives.
Man must be in harmony with nature. Man must not be in a violent struggle against the elements. All life is linked together in cause and effect. Life is a harmonious chain, a continuation of life. There is no death. The European concept of life is a violation of harmony. If we are to create a new decency for all people, we must bring things in harmony with nature.
Messing Up Spirituality
Despite the pure form of spirituality that existed, someone had to come along and invent a word called God. Then someone had to have another God and say mine is better than yours. Someone had to create faith and say I have the true faith.
Religion is the organization of spirituality into something that became the handmaiden of conquerors. Nearly all religions were brought to people and imposed on people by conquerors and used as the framework to control their minds.
Spiritual Imprisonment
If you are the child of God and God is a part of you, in your imagination, God should look like you. When you accept a picture of a deity assigned to you by another people, you become the spiritual prisoner of that other people.
The
psychological jail of depending on someone else for religion, culture and image is a more binding jail than any steel can erect for you.
Unless noted, this message quoted and paraphrased from,
African Spirituality (The Laws of Nature and Universe) featuring Ancestor John Henrik Clarke & Others.
