Heretic or not..? I can take the heat.

This thread will be the last one focused on my personal experience - it's a rapidly tiring theme I can appreciate. It was spawned in a response to a thread by Ptenjakin ('My Dreams & Visions' in Paranormal forum). The thing I'm getting at it this - does my experience of 'religion' as described below leave me to be considered as a heretic, or as a 'Christian'..? This thread is not a discussion about whether 'God' is real or not. With all due respect, please don't come in with comments about the validity of religious experience.

Having experienced a lot of whacked-out, scary and freakish things since a very young age, I sought answers everywhere. I desperately tried to avoid the Bible - and Christianity - as I had an aversion to what I saw as conflicting philosophies/worldview and a total lack of scientific credence.

What I discovered, after years of trying to find answers in the New Age, was that positive changes only began to occur when I accepted my limitations and stopped seeing myself (my'Self') as the centre of the universe. I reached out to the God who I wasn't sure was listening, or cared, and said something along the lines of:

'If you're there, and you give a stuff about me, please give me a sign.'

The next day I was drinking heavily, and was completely wasted, floating and stumbling around the town centre in a completely ruined condition. A lady walked past, then suddenly stopped, looked at me, and said:

"You've been praying. God answers prayer..."

She spoke with authority; it was a statement of fact, not a question..! She proceeded to get me booked into a local hostel, and afterwards sat chatting about all sorts of things related to her beliefs; there was a great aura about her, and I started to feel peace for the first time in years.

That night, I had a dream. I was being chased by a military special forces group, and was running at full pelt through a bombed-out school building complex. I was jumping over piles of smashed desks and chairs, when out of the window I saw a helicopter gunship (Apache) doing a rotational strafe, rapidly firing heavy, high calibre rounds. It was rotating towards me, and I became aware that there was nothing I could do - I turned to face it.. Within seconds I would be dead.

Sure enough, three heavy blows struck my torso (no pain, just impact sensation) as the helicopter came round - I saw the pilot, they were that close (about twenty yards away). After the bullets hit, I felt myself falling gently backwards, through a blanket of darkness, which - while seemingly empty blackness - felt very comforting. An ambiguous length of time passed (at the same moment it seemed like less than a minute, and yet somehow an age of eternity; very strange). I found myself waking up, as though from a totally unconscious state, lying on the floor of some pristine woodland; sunlight filtering in golden rays through the trees, birds calling out melodiously, and warm, gentle quietness.

I pulled myself up, and immediately saw two magpies, standing next to a large golden ring - it was faced with onyx, inlaid with a raised gold insignia of some sort. I turned and saw a man, dressed in white. Bearing a peaceful aura of immense power, He headed towards me. I asked him what was happening, and He said "It is finished; no-one will persecute you any more". I felt immense joy, an emotional upwelling of gratutude as I realised what that meant. As I fell prostrate onto the floor in reverance / as a gesture of servitude, He left, and I felt that I was being given time to acclimatise.

I woke up in the hostel. Soon after, I gave my life over to Christ - I have since struggled to reconcile usual aspects of doctrine with the hidden mysteries, but despite this, for several reasons, I believe that Christ is the Commander-in-Chief of the Universal Powers. I don't resonate well with much of what Christianity appears to be, but I am confident that the Truth is in Christ. The Bible is a book of codes, mathematical precisions, layered meaning and metaphor, which can be read and understood in different ways, hence differing doctrine. I see key aspects of correlation between Christian philosophy and scriptures, and the scriptures in the Bhagavad Gita. Most Christians would deem me a heretic at this point, but I think the point is we should not be bigoted, that GOD reveals Himself in different ways to different cultures etc.

So that's my 'religious' background... I believe that the Supreme Being is leading us all to a position on Earth wherein we will have personal and collective decisions to undertake, that will lead us through (in one way or other) massive changes in the cycles/progression of the galaxy, time, multi-dimensional/ universal 'masterplan'. Dreams are a key aspect of this plan...imho.


PS - On waking from that dream I just described, I realised that the two magpies symbolised 'joy'. (The old rhyme goes: 'One for sorrow, two for joy, three for a girl, four for a boy. Five for silver, six for gold - seven for a secret that's never been told...') Only later was I told that the ring may have symbolised the 'seal of the King'. There's another experience relating directly to this possible element of symbolism, but I'll save that for another time...


Keep searching everyone..!

MODS - Truly sorry; I meant for this to be in a religion forum...! Please move as appropriate.

reply to post by NoahTheSumerian

The churches have usually put the label of "heresy" on non-standard statements about God and Christ, who they are and how they relate to each other.
I'm not going to call you a heretic on the basis of what you've said so far.
Keep going.
I may be able to pin something on you yet!



[edit on 19-6-2010 by DISRAELI]

What an interesting experience. What did the man in your dream look like?

reply to post by Phlynx


Thanks for your comment Phlynx.. And Disraeli too, thanks for the vote of confidence - I also believe in aliens if you can work with that

Phlynx - His was aura too bright to really discern features, and I felt I couldn't look properly for the power/holiness anyway - but the associated discernment was that it was either Christ or one of the senior Angelic group..? Now that I think about it, He seemed disinterested in being 'worshipped'..

If anyone has had any similar experiences I'd be fascinated to hear about them..


Noah.

You dragged me along there with your story... Good job on the writing...

I dont think the bible condems you for looking into other things... But I think that if you are sincere about your motives you will be able to tell yourself wether you're doing right or wrong... It's called conciousness.

I am curious though... what stream of christianity was that woman part of?

The bible, when talking other religions says the following

Judges 10:6-7 (American Standard Version)

6 And the children of Israel again did that which was evil in the sight of Jehovah, and served the Baalim, and the Ashtaroth, and the gods of Syria, and the gods of Sidon, and the gods of Moab, and the gods of the children of Ammon, and the gods of the Philistines; and they forsook Jehovah, and served him not.

7 And the anger of Jehovah was kindled against Israel, and he sold them into the hand of the Philistines, and into the hand of the children of Ammon.

He doesn't take kindly to worshipping the wrong god...

I guess that pretty much answers your question. To see if you can use other "holy books" would be wrong but I think if it were for studying purposes there is nothing wrong... Its a matter of were your loyalty lies I think..




[edit on 19/6/2010 by faceoff85]

reply to post by faceoff85


Hi there FaceOff85...

She was a pentecostal/baptist/evangelical type, though not sure exactly which. She talked about the gift of the Holy Spirit, and explained how God gives everyone certain abilities which can be used to aid others. Some people receive the ability to predict the future - others receive the ability to hear from God about someone else's life. There are many more, and they're all quite specific. Will try to find a summary for you.

EDIT TO ADD - NB - after that day, I never saw her again.

Thought I'd share the first scripture that was shared with me by the pastor who led me to Christ:

Judges 6

11 The angel of the LORD came and sat down under the oak in Ophrah that belonged to Joash the Abiezrite, where his son Gideon was threshing wheat in a winepress to keep it from the Midianites. 12 When the angel of the LORD appeared to Gideon, he said, "The LORD is with you, mighty warrior."

13 "But sir," Gideon replied, "if the LORD is with us, why has all this happened to us? Where are all his wonders that our fathers told us about when they said, 'Did not the LORD bring us up out of Egypt?' But now the LORD has abandoned us and put us into the hand of Midian."

14 The LORD turned to him and said, "Go in the strength you have and save Israel out of Midian's hand. Am I not sending you?"

15 "But Lord , [a] " Gideon asked, "how can I save Israel? My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family."

16 The LORD answered, "I will be with you, and you will strike down all the Midianites together."

17 Gideon replied, "If now I have found favor in your eyes, give me a sign that it is really you talking to me.



Immediately after hearing this and the following passages (and having considered numerous other incidents in the preceding days) I was convinced in my innermost being that God was speaking to me personally, through the recent interactions I'd had with His people. I gave my life to Christ - then the trials really started...

Noah.

[edit on 19-6-2010 by NoahTheSumerian]