The World Can't Win the Dualistic War

The light shines in the darkness and the darkness has not overcome it.-- John 1:5

For more than 4,000 years humanity has carried on a dualistic theology of tribal warfare.  Each tribe, feudal state, or nation has held near it's own god who led them into their respective wars against "infidels."  I strongly believe that our spiritual beliefs/systems transmit deeply subconscious ideas about God and they direct our impulses and inclinations on the social level.  To change our reality we have to believe it to be different. To put it bluntly, humanity has not outgrown their warring theology in 4,000 years and it's killing the planet.  Isn't it about time we moved out of this dark place into one of light?  To skip all the history of war gods, in our present time "Evangelical Christians" support a U.S. president who promises them racial purity and legal constraints on particular "sins" they deem abhorrent.  They see their mission as protecting God from the Satanic world.  As we believe so follows concrete decisions in politics and society to battle what we fear,.

From this ancient faith mindset it is easy to interpret light and darkness in the same war-god framework.  Light wins.  Darkness loses.  Goodness wins.  Evil loses.  That's how the Star Wars movie is supposed to work.  There is no denying that Old Testament (Hebrew Scripture) has threads woven through it of Assyrian/Babylonian gods influencing their faith as there are New Testament threads-- notably Gnostic-- of evil and goodness.  But, has this warring dualistic theology led us anywhere near to what the Incarnate One (Jesus) taught us?  If we are intent about adopting an incarnational life for ourselves, are we nearer to revealing the God of all Love if we continue the long history of singling ourselves out as chosen ones and eliminating all competition?  I don't think so.

Light and darkness were two elements of a simple fundamental pattern the God of Love first created.  God provided for sleep and activity, life and death, waxing and waning, growth and burial. Much of it is cyclical and follows the wholistic pattern of birth-transformation-death-rebirth.  Our whole lives long we are growing - a change process of giving up the old and adopting the new.  Neither light nor darkness overcomes the other.  The two just ebb and flow in and out of the other and in that flow life thrives.

Changing our dualistic warring ways opens the door that we see Jesus fling open.  Healing occurs.  Love gains traction.  Acceptance and care for the least of these prospers.  Reality transforms to a life-giving and eternity sustaining proposition for the good of all -- humanity and all of creation.

Prayer:
God of life and love, may we gain the vision and insight of a loving existence that will grow as a mustard seed into a large new reality where war is no more.  Amen.

Actionable Suggestions:

1. Work, support, and vote for political candidates who show stronger incarnational leanings to inclusivity, wholeness, and love of neighbor.
2. Study the costs and implications to our social net from the warring drive to keep the world tamed to our will.
3. Begin the process of changing your theological underpinnings from dualist imaging to studying the growing body of teachings about non-dualistic faith and belief.