Can Christianity Be Something More Than Superstition?
The ways symbolism and narrative truth changed my way of thinking
Nowadays, it’s quite common for people to condemn religious practices, as they consider them weapons of mass brainwash and corruption. For instance, Christianity has been accused of bloodshed, wars, witch hunting, unfair inquisitions, and obstruction of scientific truth. History is an undeniable martyr of these events and we would be voluntarily blinding our senses if we turned our gaze away from reality.
But are these everything that Christianity ever offered? I would say that it depends on our perspective, willingness, and open-mindedness.
As far as I can remember, as a child, I was a loyal follower of the Sunday Service, although my gut feeling was that God was dead, as the philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche wrote in his book, The Gay Science. My ambivalent feelings for God’s existence later morphed into anger, especially every time my relatives granted me a religious wish or forced me to attend a ritual.
Eventually, I stopped attending Sunday’s ceremonies.
I grew bitter and resentful about religious naivety. I was also feeling haughty about my capabilities for objective reasoning. This state was reinforced by reading countless pages on physics, psychology, and philosophy, but it reached its zenith when I encountered Richard Dawkins’s book, ‘The God Delusion’ and Nietzche’s Antichrist.
What now? I slowly whispered to myself.
My crusade against God had guided me to the paths of nihilism.
However, my romantic counterpart wouldn’t give up without a fair fight. As I was diving even deeper inside the rabbit hole, my lust for narrative truth was chanting endless battle cries. Thankfully, after years of exploration in the abyss, I got deeply engaged in the work of Jordan B. Peterson, John Vervaeke and Carl Jung, which ignited my interest in a reconciliation of the objective with the narrative world.
Not only that, but my investigation also provided the tools for my rebirth.
My anger belonged in the past. I could see clearly now. I became a student once more. I combined logical reasoning with romanticism. I left aside all the judgment I had unleashed on Christianity, and I tried to interact with the symbolism and the narrative world.
Here’s what I’ve learned from reinventing my approach to Christianity:
Symbols Of Transformation
From a scientific standpoint, I guess most of us can agree that the notion of a resurrection being possible sounds absurd. That’s why it always provoked me.
I refused to believe that a human being like others could ever rise from the dead.
Until I died too.
Yeah, you heard right. In 2018, I symbolically descended into chaos, desperate for a tiny trickle of hope. I was trapped inside a rabbit hole named parasitic processing, one of the principal causes of psychological human suffering. My way out came by engaging in an active relationship with the symbols of the Phoenix and Crucified Jesus, which were introduced to me by the aforementioned teachers.
Jesus, a vivid representation of the Self, after bearing his own burden, gave up his mortal life on the cross to transcend into a higher form, an immortal one. This story is highly correlated with that of the mythological Phoenix, who obtains new life by arising from the ashes of its predecessor.
After interacting with these symbols, I tried to cultivate a constant reciprocal relationship. Every day, I aspired to carry my own cross, my own burden out of the rabbit hole, step-by-step. This wasn’t an easy process, but I had an idea to strive towards. Ultimately, I also had to accept that shedding my old skin and dying, as a symbolic Self, would be necessary, like Jesus or the Phoenix.
And let there be light. After endless months of continuous effort, I had climbed my psychological mountain.
The symbolism played a huge role in my ascend and ultimate transformation.
Who would’ve told that to my previous scientific and myopic Self?
Could it have happened otherwise? Of course. Creating a relationship with Christian, or mythological symbolism in general isn’t the only way forward. But there’s wisdom to be found across ancient religions like Christianity, without the need to believe that there is an old, white, omnipotent, transcendent human being on top of the sky.
In addition, the fact that I interact with religious symbols doesn’t mean that I am a Christian now, but I certainly feel religious and more open-minded to the value and power emanating from these old stories, which is an entirely different way of existing.
Love Your Enemies
This was the toughest one for me. I couldn’t get a solid grasp of what the Apostles meant by this phrase.
How can someone love his enemies?
How can someone show compassion to ill-willed individuals?
‘That’s bogus’, I used to say disdainfully. Not only I considered this attitude hypocritical but also a sign of weakness. I didn’t have a single clue about the terms: trauma and projection.
After my symbolic transformation, I was humbled and rejuvenated. I could see and feel my previous fixed action patterns, unconscious thinking, and hopeless Egoic defense mechanisms. This observation made me incredibly compassionate about my old versions, and thankfully, the versions of other individuals around me. Furthermore, it created a brand-new and sharp sense of why people are acting the way they do.
More often than not, ‘wicked’ or ‘terrible’ people are just traumatized and wounded individuals who are projecting their inner world. This doesn’t mean that we should show tolerance for violence and terrorism, but instead, we should understand that :
- Loving your enemies means being aware and compassionate
- Loving your enemies means understanding, not justifying
- Loving your enemies means that it’s not about us. It’s about them vs them.
The Power Of Prayer
There’s something magical about massive prayer and collectivity, only if one has his perception open and sharpened. According to John Vervaeke, forging communities is essential to overcome the feelings of alienation and absurdity, which are deeply related to the loss of connection with others and the world, respectively.
Of course, there are countless communities in non-religious domains, but joining and praying with religious relatives, parents or even strangers can be transcending. You are not obliged to pray to God or Jesus, or Yahweh.
Just focus on your breath, feel the energy of your loved ones around you that have gathered to pray for kindness, love, health, and wealth. Practice loving-kindness, or Metta, for yourself and others. There are numerous ways to embrace the full capacity of religious collectivity.
My own family is deeply engaged in collective and individual praying. I remember myself being especially avoidant, to the point of adult tantrums,
when faced with prayers. I didn’t like them at all, but today I can feel their true power. Even if they emanate from religious individuals, you can utilize them for your own sake.
A few days ago, I got accepted at a university abroad, to further my studies. My uncle heard about it and quickly called to wish me the best. He is deeply religious and takes every given chance to pray for his family. I picked up the phone. After talking through the basics, he said:
‘I wish you the best. May the Lord keep you under his roof wherever you go’
I smiled wholeheartedly and answered: ‘He will, uncle. I can feel it. May he bless you too.’
He didn’t expect that answer, but I did. His wish penetrated my whole being and filled me with loving-kindness. The power of prayer is immense.
Conclusion
I didn’t write this article to convince you to believe in something higher I don’t endorse. Instead, I decided to share my story from being a myopic objective individual to becoming a human cracked open to the power of the narrative world.
Ultimately, it’s your choice. You can judge Christianity and other religions by their follower’s wrongdoings, or you can investigate the possible wisdom that lies behind the face of indoctrination, in the core of these stories of old.
If I want you to take something away from reading this, is that:
- You don’t have to believe in God, to be religious.
- Living religiously doesn’t mean justifying the terrors of fanaticism.
- Religious stories can provide symbols of transformation.
- The ability to love your enemies is a reflection of your inner world.
- Communities, and especially religious ones, can drive us out of an alienated existence and cultivate loving-kindness.
- The power of prayer can transform our lives, only if we let it.
