Here's a story that I've heard several variations on. While I don't personally believe in Heaven or Hell, I think it's a great little bit that says a lot about human nature... There was a man who was a very, very good man. He did good every chance he could, even at his own expense. God noticed this man, and after watching him for a few years, he decided to reward the man. So he summoned an angel, and told her to visit the man and ask if there was anything she could do for him. The angel finds the man herding his sheep and greets him. The good man invites the angel inside. "You must be so tired from your journey", he says. "Please come and have some tea." So the angel accepts, and between sips of tea she tells him that he has been choosen specifically by God because he is such a good man. She asks if there's anything he wants for himself. He looks a little sheepish, and says, "Yes, there is one thing. Before I die, I'd like to see both Heaven and Hell." The angel is a little startled by this, but nods her head. "Where would you like to go first?" "Hell." He says. Finishing her tea, the angel stands and takes the man by the elbow. "Close your eyes, and don't open them until I tell you to." says the angel. He closes his eyes. There is a 'whooosh!' and he feels a cool breeze washing across him. "Open your eyes," says the angel, "Welcome to Hell." He looks around, and he's in a beautiful clearing in a lush forest. Birds of all kinds are twittering and flying about in the trees, and there is a lovely cool breeze carrying the odor of a huge banquet. He sees an enormous table at the end of the clearing with people seated all around it. He walks over to see better. As he gets closer, he notices that the people are all starving despite the mounds and mounds of delicious looking food. When he gets close enough he can see why - their arms are bound in steel rods that don't allow them to bend their arms to their mouthes to feed themselves. Horrified, the good man backs away. "Enough, enough!" he cries. The angel takes him by the elbow again. "Don't open your eyes until I tell you to" she says again. Again a 'whoosh!', and a warm breeze washes over the man. "Open your eyes now, and welcome to Heaven." The man opens his eyes, and he again sees a lush forest, a clearing, a banquet table surrounded by people. This time, he hears them singing, and gladly walks over towards them. Everyone is in high spirits, laughing and talking to eachother, and singing praises to God. When the man gets closer, he notices that their arms, too are bound with steel rods that prevent them from bending their arms to feed themselves. He continues to watch, puzzled. Then he sees how they are able to eat, and gratefully asks the angel to take him home. The man had a song in his heart as he was taken back to his humble home, because he had seen one of the people take a bit of the wonderful food, then reach over and feed his neighbor. Well, what do you guys think? Nice moral to the story, doncha think? Hope you all enjoyed it.
Good one, SkyeBlue! Here's another one I think you'll like: A man and his dog were walking along a road. The man was enjoying the scenery, when it suddenly occurred to him that he was dead. He remembered dying, and that the dog had been dead for years. He wondered where the road was leading them. After a while, they came to a high, white stone wall along one side of the road. It looked like fine marble. At the top of a long hill, it was broken by a tall arch that glowed in the sunlight. When he was standing before it, he saw a magnificent gate in the arch that looked like mother of pearl, and the street that led to the gate looked like pure gold. He and the dog walked toward the gate, and as he got closer, he saw a man at a desk to one side. When he was close enough, he called out, "Excuse me, where are we?" "This is heaven, sir," the man answered. "Wow! Would you happen to have some water?" the man asked. "Of course, sir. Come right in, and I'll have some ice water brought right up." The man gestured, and the gate began to open. "Can my friend," gesturing toward his dog, "come in, too?" the traveler asked. "I'm sorry, sir, but we don't accept pets." The man thought a moment and then turned back toward the road and continued the way he had been going. After another long walk, and at the top of another long hill, he came to a dirt road which led through a farm gate that looked as if it had never been closed. There was no fence. As he approached the gate, he saw a man inside, leaning against a tree and reading a book. "Excuse me!" he called to the reader. "Do you have any water?" "Yeah, sure, there's a pump over there." The man pointed to a place that couldn't be seen from outside the gate. "Come on in." "How about my friend here?" the traveler gestured to the dog. "There should be a bowl by the pump." They went through the gate, and sure enough, there was an old fashioned hand pump with a bowl beside it. The traveler filled the bowl and took a long drink himself, then he gave some to the dog. When they were full, he and the dog walked back toward the man who was standing by the tree waiting for them. "What do you call this place?" the traveler asked. "This is heaven," was the answer. "Well, that's confusing," the traveler said. "The man down the road said that was heaven, too." "Oh, you mean the place with the gold street and pearly gates? Nope. That's hell." "Doesn't it make you mad for them to use your name like that?" "No. I can see how you might think so, but we're just happy that they screen out the folks who'll leave their best friends behind." ------------------ www.indigenousrocks.com
Another great story. Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image! Some Christian once tried to convince me that animals don't have souls, that they were created only to be pets or food and were incapable of anything relating to the soul. I say they do have souls. What do you think?
Searcher, yours is a good one too. Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image! Oxygen - I think that since humans ARE animals, how could a dog or cat have any less of a 'soul' than we do? I don't really believe in the 'soul' the way the Christians do - I think I have to go the pagan route with that one. I think there's a general life force that permeates the entire universe, as we live we are merely 'borrowing' some of that life force, and when we die it is disbursed back into the environment. I think EVERY living thing has a 'soul' in that sense - from the anteaters to the zebra's, from the apple trees to the zinnias. And I think you already can guess my view on the whole "everything in and on the earth was created for man" idea. I don't think us dumb humans are any more special than any other critter on this great green globe. We tend to destroy a lot more than any other species, but I don't think that's because God wanted us to. I think we're just more intelligent than we are smart, if you get my drift.
Every single living organism has a soul. But that's not to say that they all got riddim, as well! Zapper, this may not be relevant to you but it is aimed at people who may be tempted to buy a dog on some kind of impulse, without considering the where with all's. Owning a dog is a great responsibility, it's like having a young child who never grows up, who wants your constant love and attention, a dog is for life and the phrase, a 'dogs life' should have only good connotations. Consider well before committing yourself.
Since animals have the ability to dream (I've had the misfortune of waking my cat up while it was dreaming of attacking something Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image!), I think it's pretty clear that they have some sort of soul. Animals are certainly self-aware. Of course, the interesting question is whether there is a threshold (a critical mass, if you will) complexity at which self-awareness emerges. Where along the gradient from fruitfly to human does self-awareness emerge? And to extend that, can we scale this upwards? Could we create (or evolve into) a species with more massive 'soul' or capacity for self-awareness as our mental capacity increases??
