Johannes Scotus Erigena

What I got from the reading is that God is everything around us. "We ought not to understand God and creation as two things distinct from each other, but as one and the same." We are all brothers and sisters of God. We are all the same.

Erigena explains that we are God, God is inside each and everyone of us and everything. He is the creator of everything, "The creator of all things created in all things..."

He talks about the term "nothing" that is the divine goodness. Nothing is no existing thing, but when divine goodness is identifying by sight of our minds, we see everything. Nothing can be found in all things.

"When is begins to appear in its theophanies, it is said to proceed as though from nothing into something." We have a divine appearance of everything around us, we see the appearance of God.

Novalis

"We are close to waking up when we dream that we are dreaming."- What I get from this quote is that when we dream it feels as if it was real. For example, if you have ever falling off of something in your dream that it woke you up because the dream seemed so real. Our minds are filled with some many thoughts when we are awake and asleep.

"We are alone with everything we love."- meaning we love ourselves. It's a good thing we love ourselves, we should appreciate for who we are. You have to love yourself before you love anyone else. Be at peace with yourself.

"There is only one temple in the world and that is the human body."- Continuing about loving yourself and accepting yourself, this quote explains that our human body is a precious thing. Today people are always finding ways to change their bodies, but people do this in a dangerous way. An example would be anorexia or bulimia and in result to that is being sick all the time.

"Marriage is the highest mystery."- What this quote means to me is that I don't think marriage is a mystery its a commitment. Maybe the way people see marriage is a mystery is because nobody can stay together. For example someone being divorced many times in their life and don't understand the meaning of marriage. From my experience i see how my parents view marriage. I don't think their marriage is a mystery at all because I see them everyday loving each other, building their relationship and growing strong together.

Franz Kafka

Impatience is a big cause in this world and the result of impatience leads to anger, anxious and unwillingness to do something or go somewhere. "Because of impatience they were expelled, because of impatience they don't return."

"Beyond a certain point there is no return. This point has to be reached."- Everyone has been impatient in their lives and we just give up. When we should be patient and reach what were waiting for.

Indolence is also said in his writing. We tend to avoid and not act upon our problems, actions and there are questions we have that are never going to be answered. This quote, "There are questions that we wouldn't be able to get over if we weren't by our very nature set free from them." Letting go and being free from the pain of not knowing the answers of questions that go through your mind is the best. You don't want to feel sluggish or feel lazy. There are so many questions i have floating around in my mind that i know i will never receive an answer and sometimes its the best way to just let them free.

"The fact that our task is exactly as large as our life makes it appear infinite."-Life is a cycle of tasks, getting things done. We all have crazy lives filled with tasks that we have to complete. Impatience and indolence doesn't solve anything, you become inactive and don't want to wait. We may have infinite lists in our lives, but live each day. Reach your goals and dreams and don't give up.

The Hermetic Writings

I agree with the Hermetic Writings, everyone should be free from wanting and needing and become eternal; become one with God. We can let go of things that are physical, be free of mind. I like this quote from the reading, "find your home in the heart of every living creature; make yourself higher than all heights and lower that all depths...understand that you are everywhere..." This quote goes on and its very powerful. Everything surrounding us is what God created, what we see, hear, touch is through God.

Another quote from the reading is "God will come to meet you everywhere, he will appear to you everywhere, at times and places when you don't expect it..." It says in the speech that wanting to know God is the road that leads to God and I think that is true because for me now that I understand more about God was that I build a stronger relationship with Him. Anyone that wants a relationship with God can have one, He accepts each and everyone of us and everything. I believe that God is here with us each and everyday, watching over us, loving us and being here for us giving forgiveness to us when we need it. "That is why he made all things, so that through all things you can see him."

Maximus of Tyre

His short writing in the book, Enlightened Mind, was very good and he seemed clam, sincere and comes from the heart. He is right about God being on earth way longer then us, God created us and even though we can't see him, we can. "His essence, use the help of sounds and names and pictures, of beaten gold and ivory and silver, of plants and rivers, mountain peaks and torrents, yearning for the knowledge of him, and in our weakness naming all that is beautiful in this world after his nature."
What God created is beautiful, each living thing is beautiful and unique and thats what God wanted it to be.

Maximus of Tyre does not judge anyone, he accepts everyone and everything for what they are. He explains how everyone has an image of God."If a Greek is stirred to the remembrance of God by the art of Phildias, an Egyptian by paying worship to animals, another man by a river, another by fire."
He does not show anger or forces people to believe God as a certain image. He only wants them know, let them love, let them remember. The Greeks have many Gods and Goddess and you can choose whatever one you want to worship.I think thats pretty cool having many Gods and Goddess. You can choose which one you want to pray too and believe in that God or Goddess; its very interesting.

Dhu' L-nun Al-Misri

Many were followers of God and taught God's teachings to many others. Those people are very inspiring and knowledgeable. "Their movements are caused by God, and their words are the words of God." These well-known people or saints are good people who want to teach and help others to learn about God. I think he loves everyone equally and in the speech it seemed that God loves his saints more. That's how I interpret it. I know that God cares for each one of us and everything. He is thankful and happy that his saint are sharing and telling everyone God's way. I mean I can see why God puts a lot of love towards these saints because they put so much effort and love to Him. "The saints are those whom God has invested with the radiance of his love and adorned with the mantle of his grace; he set the crown of joy upon their heads, and he put love for them into hearts of his creatures." A lot of people have a great and special bond with God and God loves that. People who go out and teach others about God's way are the people God trust and love them for doing what they can. God tells us if someone who is sick, heal them; if someone despairs of my grace, help them; and the list goes on and on. All these powerful statements He says are true and we should give love and help to each other not turn our backs and give evil.

"You are my saints, my beloved: you are mine and I am yours." For me I was raised Catholic and went to Catholic schools and church, but that was when I was younger and didn't really know anything better. For awhile I didn't go to church, of course I believed in God, but It felt like my relationship wasn't as strong. Now I am going to church learning a lot and building my bond with Him. Its a great feeling.

Muhammad

I like Muhammad and what he had to say in his speech. He is a leader and an honest man; his religion is very similar to Christianity. He talks about in his speech that we are created by God and "We are closer to him than his jugular vein," each person is a piece of God. The statement Muhammad says, "From the heaven We have sent down the blessed rain by which We make the garden grow, and grain of the harvest and tall palm trees laden with clustered dates," I love this because if it weren't for God himself we wouldn't be hear and anything and everything wouldn't be hear on earth.

God gives life and he is the all-strong and all-wise, he gave us life. "He gives life and He brings on death and He is omnipotent over all things." God is the one who lived and died and had came back, he is the first and last Muhammad says. Muhammad explains his beliefs very well and has experienced so much in his life. Another good statement he says, "do not despise the world, for the world too is God." Don't turn your back on the world, your family, friends, anyone because you are letting God down. He loves each and everyone of us and everything, he doesn't turn his back on us and gives us pain. God is only wanting to be there for us, to love, care for and help us with anything.

You know what I have learned so far about each religion is that they are all different, but the same as well. What I liked about Muhammad was that he didn't care if you believed in what he had to say or if you disagreed with him and had beliefs in a different religion. Muhammad was a good man and he had considered himself a messenger transmitting God's will to the human world. Like it said in the world religions book, "a model for all believers."