| That's the title of Deepak Chopra's bestselling book | | | | So, what's the answer to all of this? How can any of |
| and the author himself assumes that God is. In other | | | | us know God? And, is religion even necessary? |
| words, the book is not like so many you'll find in | | | | 1. To begin with, I would suggest you not concern |
| bookstores today which are basically treatises on the | | | | yourself so much with which religion is right and |
| existence of God. Personally, I find it humorous when | | | | instead recognize the spritual truth inherent in all of |
| people write books that try to prove God exists. | | | | them. I suppose any religion path will bring you into a |
| You can no more prove God exists any more than | | | | meaningful knowledge of God. I, for one, grew up in |
| you can prove God does not. The whole debate is | | | | a Christian home and became myself a Christian |
| similar to the one about extraterrestrial life or UFO's, | | | | minister. For years, I believed you could not know |
| neither of which anyone has ever been able to prove | | | | God apart from believing in the tenets of the |
| or disprove. | | | | Christian faith. I no longer believe this way and in my |
| I begin with the assumption that God exists - that | | | | book, The Enoch Factor, I describe in detail the life |
| there is intelligence within and beyond everything | | | | experiences that brought me to this conclusion. |
| material. So, my interest is in knowing how to know | | | | 2. Next, I would suggest, if you wish to know God, |
| God, this intelligence whose presence I see | | | | you assume there is no "way" to know God. Instead, |
| everywhere. For as long as the human family has | | | | God IS the way. Although I grew up in a Christian |
| existed, there's been an insatiable interest in knowing | | | | home and attended one of the finest theological |
| God. Yet, with very few exceptions, most religions, | | | | seminaries where I earned a doctorate in theology, it |
| Christianity included, seem to hinder as much as they | | | | was not until much later in life that I realized there |
| help their constituents know God. | | | | was nothing I could do to know God, I knew God |
| Part of the problem is that every religion | | | | already. The same is true for you. Most people spend |
| presupposes its knowledge of God is more complete, | | | | their entire lives looking for God and the realization I |
| and often more correct, than the knowledge others | | | | had was that the search isn't necessary. God wishes |
| religions may have of God. Furthermore, virtually | | | | to be known. I was the one who was making a |
| every religion seems to suggest that, if you really | | | | struggle and effort out of what should have been |
| wish to know God, you must subscribe to that | | | | natural and easy. |
| religion's particular tenets and suppositions. | | | | 3. Are you, as I was, the proverbial fish swimming in |
| If this were not confusing enough, there are others, | | | | the ocean while looking for the sea? Then, know |
| and their numbers seem only to be growing, who | | | | that you know God already. Accept this. This is what |
| don't believe in God at all. Yet, many of them speak | | | | the Bible means by grace. While many of us have |
| of having had some kind of inexplicable, even | | | | grown up in religious traditions that leave us feeling as |
| transcendent and transformative experience, the | | | | if we're not quite there yet, that there's something |
| consequence of which has left them radically better | | | | still missing, the real truth is, nothing is missing and |
| people, too. For example, Andre' Comte-Sponville, the | | | | there's nothing to do. Just be. It is by being that we |
| self-proclaimed French atheist, recently wrote a | | | | find ourselves merged into Being itself. In other |
| magnificent book about his inner transformation | | | | words, there is nothing you need to do in order to |
| entitled The Little Book of Atheist Spirituality. He | | | | know God. You know God already. |
| likens his experience to a spiritual awakening. | | | | |