Perhaps many are familiar with those reassuring words that Christians often say in church and during good times, but few people probably know that they came from a song. I took the lyrics and added my own verses between certain lines while attempting to follow the rhyme and flow of thought. The original lyrics are in black. My words are the ones in red.
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God is good all the time His ways are always sublime
He put a song of praise in this heart of mine And took away my doubting mind God is good all the time Though He often allows crime
Through the darkest night, His light will shine You just can’t see it sometimes
God is good, God is good all the time.
If you’re walking through the valley
And there are shadows all around
Do not fear, He will guide you
He will keep you safe and sound And if these shadows jump at you
And try to chase you on the ground Do not run and do not hide
When your heart begins to pound.
‘Cause He’s promised to never leave you (Most of the time He’s just gonna scare you)
Nor forsake you and His Word is true But if He does, there’s a reason too.
We were sinners – so unworthy
Still for us He chose to die He chose not to outright forgive us
He had to be crucified.
Filled us with His Holy Spirit
Now we can stand and testify That His love is everlasting
And His mercies – they will never end Though we must redefine His “mercy”
To include the pain it belies But for all the world’s sufferings
He will make eternal amends.
Lord I may not understand
All the plans He left for me Your ways are sometimes cruel
For an omnipotent deity
My life is in your hands
And through the eyes of Him I can clearly see Unless my own eyes are opened
To His monstrous atrocities.
To all the warriors of laughter who fought in the Gay Pride March FUNdie hunt.
Sometimes, being nice to people is not being nice to the truth. Politeness must never be allowed to trample honesty. Offending by telling the truth is not being rude, keeping the truth from others is.
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Our beliefs are not just our beliefs. We can’t just say, “Well, these are my belief and yours are different. We disagree, but that’s alright. Now, can’t we just all get along and be friends and say everything is fine and dandy?” Our beliefs dictate how we live life and how we view it; they dictate how we treat others and how we want to be treated. Most importantly, our beliefs will, if we are conscientious enough, define how we act in matters of life and death – in other words, in everyday matters. We therefore cannot skirt around our beliefs. In the face of the world, this we must say: “These are my beliefs, and these are my reasons for believing them. If you disagree with them, let us argue that we may see who is in the right.”
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We must learn how to laugh at matters of life and death from time to time, for after all, a good hearty laughter is what makes life worth living. But we must never use laughter to hide the truth. Rather, we must employ laughter to entice the truth. Hence, never must we forget that the truth does not like the dumb laughter of the shallow and dishonest. The laughter that will entice the truth is like the laughter of a warrior: bold, hearty and harsh.
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Fighting for the truth is not defending a conviction to the death. Fighting for the truth is seeking after the truth. We must never argue to win an argument. In any argument, it must be the truth that is the victor, for otherwise, both sides lose. But before we enter any dispute we must never forget this: any argument from which no laughter was derived is a waste of time.
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The truth is a jester and loves only a jester. The truth never comes to him who takes everything with a heavy heart.
Ever since I lost my faith
A few old things I start’d to miss:
The warm embrace of the Sacred Wraith,
The gratefulness when I’m at bliss.
.“The worst moment for the atheistIs when he is really thankful and has nobody to thank”
That’s true because unlike the theist
No Sky Daddy ever covers his flank.
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He has only himself to thank for
Well perhaps some people too
It’s still not like having Someone to adore
One to whom he’d kneel on a pew.
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But gratefulness comes naturally
At least that’s what I think
Perhaps driven evolutionarily
Lest we get too close to the brink.
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Imagine a race ungrateful
No “thank you” for good deeds
Everyone would soon turn hateful
And unable to sow their seeds.
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And so I thank the Big Bang cause
For starting all this cosmic mess
I thank Nature and her constant Laws
For keeping me at this address.
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I thank Time and Space for setting me on
A point abundantly suitable for life
Most of all I thank Evolution
And my ancestors for enduring the strife.
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When a mind bears great promise, we call it pregnant, but when this promise is fulfilled, we almost always call it a father – the father of an idea, of a school of thought, of a science, and so on. The contradiction before us is clear. To be consistent, this we must profess: All creators are mothers, and all creation is like giving birth – painful, bloody, and dangerous. And this too we must profess: All creations are like children – they come from one’s very bowels, yet after being born they take on a life of their own.
“My Bliss is KNOWLEDGE, yours is IGNORANCE,” is a quote I made that, despite having struck my friends – whether they’re online or in person - is one they respect. For several years it has been like this. As I was seeking for answers and looking for truths regarding life, I was disappointed and dismayed. I learned that truths are only illusions. I learned that each and everyone of us has truths of their own, one which if anyone dares to question, would surely make for long and exhaustive arguments. We have different perspective regarding things. Yes of course, for we are all different individuals, and yet we must not forget we belong to what we call the rational animals. However, some of us never use that ability. Instead, we just nod and follow what other rational beings are telling us. Most of us are afraid to ask the WHY and the WHAT question: Why are we supposed to follow what others are telling us?What’s the purpose?
In this case, what we call rational beings are like puppets controlled by those people who are self-centered, and deceptive rational people. Those who are only concerned for one thing: to satisfy their greed for power.
Some people do think in the context What and the Why, but they forget to rationalize and evaluate. Instead, they jump from one thought to another without weighing things using their critical thinking. Or did they have the ability to do so to begin with? So what exactly am I pointing out here, you may ask.
Let me just tell you that there is a kind of philosophical view-point about how people should think or the way people should think. This view is called freethinking, which holds that “opinions should be formed on the basis of science, logic, and reason, and should not be influenced by authority, or dogma.” It is a way of thinking distanced from any bias and prejudice, especially those of religious beliefs. It is a cognitive application of free thought.
Sadly, we Filipinos lack this kind of thinking, for our minds have been tuned to follow what our elders and our forefathers say without question. We accept things we never tried evaluating for ourselves. It is the result of hundreds of years in the hands of these self-centered and closed-minded people, who brainwashed our forefathers. Until now we’re in bondage to this blurred form of thinking, yet, we do have people who fight against this. Much like what our national hero did before, we dreamed of a country free from religious bigots and political tyrants.
We hope for a country of freethinking people, regardless of beliefs. Like what Gautama Buddha said:
Do not go upon what has been acquired by repeated hearing; nor upon tradition; nor upon rumour; nor upon what is in scripture; nor upon surmise; nor upon an axiom; nor upon specious reasoning; nor upon a bias towards a notion that has been pondered over; nor upon another’s seeming ability; nor upon the consideration…
Do not accept anything by mere tradition… Do not accept anything just because it accords with your scriptures… Do not accept anything merely because it agrees with your preconceived notions.. But when you know for yourselves–these things are moral, these things are blameless, these things are praised by the wise, these things, when performed and undertaken, conduce to well-being and happiness– then do you live accordingly.
This is what freethinking is about, but most of us Filipinos misunderstand it.
I would like to share a short poem I made.
New Beginning
Enchanting thoughts of today
Undermines traditional religious faith of yesterday
Generations of thinkers are now dawning
Enticing everyone to grasp freethinking
North, south, east, and west
Enclosed with new thoughts for their quest
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Change is inevitable, like death it will come
Amidst of it, we must stand firm and be calm
Make most of what you have
And do more…
Cease absurdity and be productive
Hurry up~ before its late
Open up your mind and start a New Beginning.
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Will you have the courage of going out of your comfort zone?
