Allow me to share some excerpts from Buddhism and then the lectures on faith by Joseph Smith before I get into this piece. It will inform a lot of what I have to say.Essentially faith of one sort or another is a guiding principle of temporal and spiritual life and with it we can walk on water with Jesus or move mountains as Jesus said we could do. Without it we drown in the murky waters of a constantly changing world.This is a Buddhist story of faith allowing a man to walk on water. Sounds familiar doesn’t it?
SOUTH of Savatthi is a great river, on the banks of which lay a hamlet of five hundred houses. Thinking of the salvation of the people, the World-honored One resolved to go to the village and preach the doctrine. Having come to the riverside he sat down beneath a tree, and the villagers seeing the glory of his appearance approached him with reverence; but when he began to preach, they believed him not.
When the world-honored Buddha had left Savatthi Sariputta felt a desire to see the Lord and to hear him preach. Coming to the river where the water was deep and the current strong, he said to himself: "This stream shall not prevent me. I shall go and see the Blessed One, and he stepped upon the water which was as firm under his feet as a slab of granite. When he arrived at a place in the middle of the stream where the waves were high, Sariputta's heart gave way, and he began to sink. But rousing his faith and renewing his mental effort, he proceeded as before and reached the other bank.
The people of the village were astonished to see Sariputta, and they asked how he could cross the stream where there was neither a bridge nor a ferry. Sariputta replied: "I lived in ignorance until I heard the voice of the Buddha. As I was anxious to hear the doctrine of salvation, I crossed the river and I walked over its troubled waters because I had faith. Faith. nothing else, enabled me to do so, and now I am here in the bliss of the Master's presence."
The World-honored One added: "Sariputta, thou hast spoken well. Faith like thine alone can save the world from the yawning gulf of migration and enable men to walk dryshod to the other shore." And the Blessed One urged to the villagers the necessity of ever advancing in the conquest of sorrow and of casting off all shackles so as to cross the river of worldliness and attain deliverance from death. Hearing the words of the Tathagata, the villagers were filled with joy and believing in the doctrines of the Blessed One embraced the five rules and took refuge in his name.
http://thriceholy.net/Texts/Faith.html Lectures on Faith
FAITH: A PRINCIPLE OF POWER (1834-35)
Lecture First
“1. Faith being the first principle in revealed religion, and the foundation of all righteousness, necessarily claims the first place in a course of lectures which are designed to unfold to the understanding the doctrine of Jesus Christ. 7. The author of the epistle to the Hebrews, in the eleventh chapter of that epistle and first verse, gives the following definition of the word faith:
8. "Now faith is the substance (assurance) of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen."
9. From this we learn that faith is the assurance which men have of the existence of things which they have not seen, and the principle of action in all intelligent beings.
10. If men were duly to consider themselves, and turn their thoughts and reflections to the operations of their own minds, they would readily discover that it is faith, and faith only, which is the moving cause of all action in them; that without it both mind and body would be in a state of inactivity, and all their exertions would cease, both physical and mental.
11. Were this class to go back and reflect upon the history of their lives, from the period of their first recollection, and ask themselves what principle excited them to action, or what gave them energy and activity in all their lawful avocations, callings, and pursuits, what would be the answer? Would it not be that it was the assurance which they had of the existence of things which they had not seen as yet? Was it not the hope which you had, in consequence of your belief in the existence of unseen things, which stimulated you to action and exertion in order to obtain them? Are you not dependent on your faith, or belief, for the acquisition of all knowledge, wisdom, and intelligence? Would you exert yourselves to obtain wisdom and intelligence, unless you did believe that you could obtain them? Would you have ever sown, if you had not believed that you would reap? Should you have ever planted, if you had not believed that you would gather? Would you have ever asked, unless you had believed that you would receive?
Would you have ever sought, unless you had believed that you would have found? Or, would you have ever knocked, unless you had believed that it would have been opened unto you? In a word, is there anything that you would have done, either physical or mental, if you had not previously believed? Are not all your exertions of every kind, dependent on your faith? Or, may we not ask, what have you, or what do you possess, which you have not obtained by reason of your faith? Your food, your raiment, your lodgings, are they not all by reason of your faith? Reflect, and ask yourselves if these things are not so. Turn your thoughts on your own minds, and see if faith is not the moving cause of all action in yourselves; and, if the moving cause in you, is it not in all other intelligent beings?
12. And as faith is the moving cause of all action in temporal concerns, so it is in spiritual; for the Saviour has said, and that truly, that "He that believeth and is baptized, shall be saved."
Mark 16:16.”
“Is not faith the principle of action in spiritual things as well as in temporal? It is.”Hebrews 11:6: "Without faith it is impossible to please God." 1 John 3:7: "Little children, let no man deceive you; he that doeth righteousness, is righteous, even as he (God) is righteous." According to a booklet published in 1908 by Elder Widtsoe entitled “Joseph Smith as Scientist: a Contribution to Mormon Philosophy,” which was a collection of essays expounding on what strikes many as the metaphysics of our faith. Widtsoe informs the reader that Joseph taught that God did not create matter; it is as eternal as he is. All of the matter that exists in every part of the universe has existed from the beginning with God. Creation basically consisted of God organizing the matter that was already in existence. Through Joseph Smith, mankind first learned that matter can change its properties, but it cannot cease to exist. And ditto with energy. As Widtsoe points out, “when any form of energy disappears, it reappears immediately in another form.”Or as science has proven matter can turn into energy but it will always exist, because it always has. And it is the same with God.As Alan Rock Waterman once wrote “He (Joseph Smith) describes this spirit as not merely the spirit of God. It's more than that; a substance, a light, that reaches throughout space. It is made up of all consciousness. It fills and permeates you and me and all solid matter, and it connects us not only with God, but with each other. In section 88 of the D&C we're taught that this ‘light’ proceeds forth from the presence of God to fill the immensity of space. It is in all things. It gives life to all things. It is the law by which all things are governed, ‘even the power of God.’ (D&C 88:6-13)” See his post on this same topic here.Joseph Smith used the word “intelligence” to describe what we might call “consciousness.” To describe the spirit he used the word “light.” Which he tells us is made of matter but a finer and more pure form of matter.In the book Science and Mormonism byMelvin and Garfield Cook they define this light as more than physical light. It could more accurately be called enlightenment. According to them the scriptures, “explain that light, truth, spirit, and enlightenment are all intimately related” and that all consist of a form of matter, or at least intrinsic properties of matter.And quantum mechanics describe matter as almost having a form of intelligence; it cannot be defined until you attempt to measure it. You cannot determine its location until you observe it. It’s almost as if it only responds when and the way in which you ask it to. When you want light to behave as a particle by asking it that type of question, it does and when you want it to behave like a wave by asking it that type of question, it does.Top of FormBottom of FormQuantum Mechanics and String Theory appear to be the nexus where science and spirituality can comfortably coexist. But I won’t characterize it by saying science and religion because both sides are very much polarized and science is as much a religion as any theology is these days (“Don't make the mistake,” cautions physics professor John Hegelin, “of thinking that the scientific community is scientific.”)Faith says Joseph Smith is the principle inspiration and means of action in life both spiritually but also temporally. If we did not have faith we would cease to function mentally and physically. We would not have taken our first steps if we had not some form of faith that we too could walk. We would not accomplish anything in life had we not the faith that we could because often when we fail it is to be argued that our doubts became self-fulfilling prophecies much as faith in our potential serves the same ends.When we feel the spirit we feel that we are in the presence of God, we feel connected to our friends our family, all those we have lost along the way and the world, the universe as a whole. Joseph Smith didn’t have a modern vocabulary so he used what wordage he had available the word he chose was light, same as Christ chose when describing similar teachings. Joseph Smith went into detail about how “light” was the substance that made up the universe only it was much finer, a very fine substance.This substance connected us to God, and each other, all of God’s children both living and dead. It is the instrument by which the power of prayer works, and the priesthood also. So far as I understand these teachings without quoting them at length; this is the best I could do in relating these mystical teachings and I find then much needed since we are dwindling in an age of unbelief.I think the reason angels showed up and had lunch with the early saints whenever the angels felt fanciful or the saints were in need is because the saints had the faith needed to realize such miracles. We expect nothing more than a still small voice, so that’s all we get.We are like the Israelites who sent Moses to meet with God, they wanted to know what was required so they could get on with their daily lives unburdened needlessly by the responsibilities of a faith that requires much of us but blesses us with angels and heavenly spirits and messengers to guide us along life’s journey.That is the average person, not everyone. This explains why so many sleep during church.My wife struggled to accept bad medical news about her oldest daughter almost 17 years ago. She had taken the toddler to a doctor who spotted something worrisome on an x-ray then examined the child. After which he said he need her to have a cat scan. My wife was deeply troubled and in tears, hysterics and praying with a broken heart and a contrite spirit.In the middle of the night she awoke to a “being of light” who spoke to her saying that her child had a fatal type of brain cancer/tumor but that she would be healed because of her purpose to be fulfilled in this life.My wife described this light as being so bright and intense she thought the fabrics on the bed would catch fire but they did not nor were her eyes hurt by the light. But when this heavenly messenger finished its message they left and the room returned to darkness.My wife has a special faith. I have faith, but not like that. And my wife is uniquely attuned and is often moved by the spirit. I envy that faith but maybe I will receive my personal revelation or miracle one day when my faith matches my wife’s.This is a great article on the same subject http://www.religion-online.org/showarticle.asp?title=574To quote British scientist J.B.S.Haldane, “Now my own suspicion is that the Universe is not only queerer than we suppose, but queerer than we can suppose.” “It's an energy field created by all living things. It surrounds us and penetrates us. It binds the universe together.” That’s in essence what Joseph Smith is getting at when trying to describe the tangible sort of light that connects us all to God and each other and the rest of the universe. Those aren’t his words but that’s the point he was getting at. He more or less cribbed Gorge Lucas’ dialog given to the character of Obi Wan Kenobi.That the benefit of being a prophet, you can quote people before they’re even born, nifty huh? Joseph Smith didn’t have the vocabulary to describe what he was getting at but he got the message across with what he had to work with. We often forget that we have this aspect to our faith, and a lot of that has to do with modern Mormonism being ok with just tuning in to general conference and listening to the talks that we think of as our marching orders and getting nothing more fulfilling than that. Not that those talks are bad it’s just that they lack the luster and life that early Mormonism had in things like the lectures on faith by Joseph Smith.He gets into topics and delivers them in language reminiscent of eastern religion, after all that’s why Obi wan’s description of the force reminds me of Josephs description of the force that connects us to each other and God, that its part of the universe but that it also is the universe. And why should our mysticism not be reminiscent of eastern religion?If you take the “our church is the only true church” philosophy out of the equation, just for a moment, put it aside and what you’re left with is every world religion and if you smudge them all together all that connects them should be evident in which ever religion is the closest to the truth, the full truth. And our faith has that. And why not? After all Joseph Smiths calling was to be the prophet that restores the truth in all its fullness back to the Earth.Dr. Masaru Emoto, a researcher and alternative healer from Japan has given the world a good deal of evidence of the magic of positive thinking.
You may have heard of Dr. Emoto. He became famous when his water molecule experiments featured in the 2004 film, What The Bleep Do We Know?
His experiments demonstrate that human thoughts and intentions can alter physical reality, in this case the molecular structure of water. Given that humans are comprised of at least 60% water, his discovery has far reaching implications... can anyone really afford to have negative thoughts or intentions? When positive words were marked on these jars of water the molecular structure of the water molecules were in good condition. When negative words were marked on jars then the water in them, the molecular composition of the water was unhealthy.
The good doctor tried the same type of experiment on rice.
Dr Emoto’s experiment with rice consists of placing portions of cooked rice into two separate containers. On one container he wrote "thank you" and on the other he wrote "you fool". He then instructed school children to say the labels on the jars out loud everyday when they passed them by. After 30 days, the rice in the container with positive thoughts had barely changed, while the other was moldy and rotten.
So thoughts do seem to have a physical measurable effect on the natural world. So then, wouldn’t our prayers have an effect as well? And if thoughts and emotion have a measurable effect on matter what is the effect on the spirit? Both positive and negative? A person of faith can give you an answer, Jesus gave many saying it is not what goes into your mouth that defiles you but what comes out.
And if you have faith that God is love and that the love of Christ is unconditional then all you have to do is tap into that, just allow yourself to be one with God and you will feel the love you need and want anytime you like. All you need do is knock and it shall be opened unto you, remember?
The universe is teaching us something about God, but if it proved God that would negate faith and all the lessons of it. Einstein said the most incomprehensible thing about the universe is just how comprehensible it actually is. God loves us too much to rob us of our faith. And after all, for the believer no miracle is ever needed and for the skeptic no miracle is ever enough. Replace miracle with the word proof and you are left with the modern “scientific” mindset toward God.
