Glenn Beck: nonsensical or spiritual?

©2009 Fox News

As a result of the recent diatribe over the validity of Glenn Beck and his endless chalkboard points, I decided to watch his program one more time to see if there was anything of value purported by the commenters on my articles and the commenters of Keith Wimer’s articles. I entered the experience with an open mind and as sure as I can say, “You Betcha”, Glenn proceeded to make a complete moron of himself on national television. And the commenters say I should take this man seriously? Give me a break! This man puts his foot in his mouth so much that it’s natural for it to live there. He begins his monologue with his famous chalkboard supposedly spelling the word oligarchy. However, his spelling was O-L-I-G-A-R-H-Y. Not noticing his blatant mistake, he comes back the next night and states that he purposefully left out the C because it stood for “Czars.” ??? The stupidity of this man goes beyond his entertainment ability. Why? Because he believes his own horsecrap!  He then proceeds to identify points based on each letter which have absolutely nothing to do with each other, save in his own demented mind. Calling Mr. Beck a sound political commenter is like calling a rapper a musician. A musician creates and translates music through his being into an instrument. He doesn’t sample what others have done, add his own spin to it and call it original music.

This nonsense of his is insulting to those of us who seek a greater knowledge of the world around us. Being aware of your physical existence is only part of the equation. We have, as human beings, other aspects of our beings that need to be recognized in order for us to grow individually and collectively. If we but took the time to nurture and develop these aspects, we would become more aware of the world around us. When we go to school or college we are developing our mental aspects. We learn how to study, listen and think. We are inputted with many types and forms of information, and through the practical application of this information we obtain knowledge. By developing our emotional intelligence, we learn to listen and respect the other guy and his position, even though he might not agree with us. However, when someone continually subjects us to moronic and unsubstantiated claims, we either fight them or simply turn them off. In my non-self righteous indignation, I have chosen to refute the claims of nonsensical individuals like Glenn Beck. His daily dispensing of misinformation no doubt comes from a deep-seated emotional and mental problems. His behavior is so indicative of a “dry-drunk" (an astute observation by Sue Golden, a reader of my column). Kerry Martin, the FBM.com) has more interesting information about this whole "divide and distract" thing of Mr. Beck.

But is he truly spiritual? The final, and most important aspect of an individual, is where we can truly see whether this man is telling the truth. His religious affiliation is Mormon (The Church of Latter Day Saints). I have had many years of exposure to Mormon believers and I have plenty of information about their belief system. My eldest son is a devout Mormon and he and I have had heated debates over what Joseph Smith witnessed on the hill of Cummorah in New York state. You can rest assure, I will have a series of enlightening details about Mr. Smith and his “Latter Day Saints.” My experience with this church is that they brag about family values and their commitment to their people, yet they stick their noses into people’s private business where they have NO purview. To me, they are the worst form of hypocrites. Why? Because they feel that they have some special knowledge and dispensation from God just like I called out Mr. Wimer on in his first article on Ted Kennedy. Anyone that tells you that they have as direct channel to God is waving the worst kind of B.S. possible. A truly spiritual person seeks to develop their spiritual side by becoming one with God; without a middle man. The religions of the world are great for those who are novices in spirituality. But there comes a time when you must grow up in your beliefs about God. When you understand the knowledge you have obtained, then, and only then, do you obtain wisdom.

Make the time daily to still yourself and become one with God. The reward you will get is less stress, more peace, a developing spiritual connection to the divine, and finally, the ability to distinguish nonsense from truth. Take the peace from this time and seek the truth. Develop all of the aspects of your being; physical, emotional, mental and spiritual. Don’t just develop one aspect and think that it is enough to get you through. Balance of all of the aspects is what makes one aware and truly a contributor to truth and understanding.

For more info: Download my free Wilmington Spirituality Examiner toolbar. “Life is a gift. Be thankful for it and it will be replete with abundance. Encourage others to express creativity, release negativity and embrace pro-activity." ©2009 Dean A. Banks. All Rights Reserved. Dean A. Banks, MCIWD, DD can be reached at webproducer@hotmail.com or banksnet.com. Download my free eBook on Articles 1-10 here.

Spiritual agendas

Over the past few weeks our country has been in a gridlock over healthcare reform. The loudest reactions to health care reform have been those who don’t want it. Why do you think that is? And, what does this have to do with spirituality? Plenty.  Your being is a psycho-physical unit that is programmed to survive, and ultimately thrive. If not, we would not be here as the human race. An agenda is a list of things to be done; done in order to either maintain or grow a current situation. When things don’t proceed in an effective manner, and either stagnation or regression appears imminent, then a methodical outlined approach of how to manifest inspiration leads to an agenda. Not everyone will agree on what is termed political agendas, but they sometimes will get even angrier when discussing spiritual agendas.

A political agenda is a set of policies or issues addressed or pursued by an individual or a group. In order to understand why those policies are on their agenda, one must understand their motivations. For example, why such fights recently about health care? Let’s examine their motivations. On the surface the proponents of no plan say that government run health would be disastrous; look at Medicare. Please, let’s look. Medicare operates with a 4% overhead while insurance companies hauled in $230 billion dollars in profit last year. They cry socialism yet Medicare works! Hmmm. I smell a rat. Yes, about every 10 years Medicare gets into trouble because of rising health care costs, yet it still manages to provide quality payment of health care services; it does not provide health care services. Medicare IS a government run program. Insurance companies provide payment of health care services; they do not provide health care services. There is a difference! When a political agenda focuses primarily on the profits of companies instead of the health and welfare of individuals, there is bound to be acrimony over anything that threatens that position. What value do the insurance companies provide to us for the billions in profit they generate? Have they re-invested into our health care system? Remember, in business the bottom line rules and it is their God!

A spiritual agenda is a set of policies adopted by a religious group or an individual. For example, the Catholic Church has a defined set of rules that were adopted alongside their understanding of the Bible that their church adheres to; this becomes the guideline for their spiritual agenda. The Protestants as well have their agenda, even though they disagree with the Catholics on many issues. Other religions adopt agendas based on the needs of their constituents and desire for growth. Due to the firm beliefs of some Muslims, Christians have lived in fear of their religion by lashing out anyone who is part of the Muslim religion. There are radicals in every religion. Take Blackwater’s  “Christian” agenda for example. Then there are those who outside of the mainstream religions who simply want to live their lives in peace without sets of rules and agendas in order to become the best that they can be. But, according to some, there are going to hell unless they take it upon themselves to help save their soul. What audacity!

Most Christians today operate on two principles in relation to understanding the Bible. These are the doctrines of sola scriptura and sola fide. Sola scriptura maintains that the Bible is the final source of authority for Christians; in other words Literary Authoritarianism. Sola Fide maintains that faith and not works is what is necessary for salvation; in other words the gospel according to Paul. When any book or sets of books that has been passed down by man mouth to mouth, and then written down, there has to be a question as to what has changed. Christians believe in the infallibility of the Bible as it stands as the Word of God. Yet, man, in putting down the written word had his own agenda. Many Christians use Sola Fide as a crutch to convince themselves and others the validity of Sola Scriptura. Instead of going within and listening to the still small voice of God, who guides and directs your every movement, they aggressively bang the Bible when, most of the times, they haven’t even read it or meditated upon it. They follow what their religious leaders have told them. Why? Is it too much to research it themselves? Are they too lazy? Or do they just want to take the easy way out and jump on the bandwagon. When people rely solely on their emotions and don’t think, what we have seen recently in the news is not surprise. What is your spiritual agenda? Are you looking for a better life? Are you willing to take the steps and walk the walk to a better life? Are you willing to do the research? Or will you blindly accept what others have told you to believe. It’s up to you. Design your own spiritual agenda to daily seek the truth and wisdom of God; meditate and listen to His still small voice. Don’t rely on the written word alone but feel the spirit of God within you. He will reward you with health, wealth, prosperity and abundance. It is your birthright.

For more info: Download my free Wilmington Spirituality Examiner toolbar. “Life is a gift. Be thankful for it and it will be replete with abundance. Encourage others to express creativity, release negativity and embrace pro-activity." ©2009 Dean A. Banks. All Rights Reserved. Dean A. Banks, MCIWD, DD can be reached at webproducer@hotmail.com or banksnet.com. Download my free eBook on Articles 1-10 here.