Awesome! Thanks so much. I have a bunch of fiction available to paid subscribers. I recommend The Godsverse Chronicles, The Vessel, Worst Thing in the Universe, or The Void Calls Us Home if you want to check out how I combine them.
Aug 10, 2023Liked by Russell Nohelty, M. E. Rothwell
I opened this article completely unprepared for the heartbreaking, poignant description of a demolition of a child’s faith under a corrupt religious regime. I relate deeply. Being gay isn’t the reason I left Christianity, but it certainly helped me see its flaws and hypocrisies more deeply.
I also entirely track with Russell Nohelty’s journey of creating a spiritual practice despite a lack of theistic belief. That’s been my journey too. I now consider myself a nontheist/agnostic, but I meditate daily and serve as a minister in a nontheistic religious community.
I’ve never read Siddhartha, but this piece has inspired me to pick it up. Thanks so much for sharing.
I'm sorry that happened to you, but hopefully reading it makes you feel more seen. If you'd like to read any of the books I've written like Worst Thing in the Universe, The Godsverse Chronicles, The Vessel, or Void Calls Us Home, that speak to this, or even Sorry for Existing, they are all available for free to paid members. I'm happy to offer you a 30-day trial if you'd like to check them out. Otherwise, I'm very happy this resonated with you.
Aug 10, 2023Liked by Russell Nohelty, M. E. Rothwell
This book is wonderful. Easy to read, short, and straight to the point. No much impact. I also recommend Hess’ narcissus and goldmund. Excellent read. The story of two men the exact opposite of one another, yet still friends. One has a wild streak and the other one is very pious. All kinds of adventures and trouble brews for them.
Aug 10, 2023Liked by Russell Nohelty, M. E. Rothwell
This is my life. I am only just starting to write in my 40’s. But all the catholic bs happened to me and this book also changed me! Opened my eyes! I landed on paganism in the end. thank you! There is so much more in the world than Christianity.
Aug 10, 2023Liked by Russell Nohelty, M. E. Rothwell
So much of this resonates with me. Also a lapsed Catholic for similar reasons. As a seeker, I enjoyed Siddhartha and loved The Tao of Pooh and The Te of Piglet. (Guess I like humor with my spiritual wisdom. 😁 Why I love anything by Anne Lamott.) It’s the journey, not the destination. Thanks for stating this great conversation.
Aug 10, 2023Liked by Russell Nohelty, M. E. Rothwell
Russell!! Have you read Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance? I’m reading it right now and really enjoying it. I would be curious to know your thoughts. It sounds like Siddhartha needs to be next on my list. I literally just read this passage this morning:
“He became aware that the doctrinal differences among Hinduism and Buddhism and Taoism are not anywhere near as important as doctrinal differences among Christianity and Islam and Judaism. Holy wars are not fought over them because verbalized statements about reality are never presumed to be reality itself.”
I am almost halfway through, and for me, it’s a been surprisingly relaxing read. I was expecting to exert a lot of brain power, and I do feel like my brain is working, but in a really pleasant way haha. I don’t know if that makes any sense. If I manage to get through it in time (I don’t want to rush!) I will try to make sense of it all in my full review next week :)
Aug 15, 2023Liked by Russell Nohelty, M. E. Rothwell
Such a moving piece! I love books that "torture" and force us to rethink societal concepts and narratives. I got instantly reminded of the Krishnamurti's speech:
Aug 11, 2023Liked by Russell Nohelty, M. E. Rothwell
Ah, Russell, I loved this. I had a different (lucky) background of almost no experience of religion, and so I came to it pretty fresh-it was my fierce insistence in self-sufficiency I had to get over (12 steps got me there). Hope you have been able to reconnect with some mystical Christianity - such a lot of amazing wisdom - and bowing to you & your life's work🙏🏻
Aug 11, 2023Liked by Russell Nohelty, M. E. Rothwell
Man, we had similar upbringings, it sounds like. And even similar reactions to it!
For me, discovering existentialism and particularly Sartre's view on choice was very important to reconciling faith for me. Too, discovering the Tao te Ching on accident did much to shape the person I became.
Thanks so much for reading. I'm very glad it resonated with you. If you'd like to read any of my work that speaks to this, I have a dozen novels available for free to paid members. I'm happy to give you a 30-day trial if you'd like to check them out. https://authorstack.substack.com/p/fiction
Aug 10, 2023Liked by Russell Nohelty, M. E. Rothwell
I consider myself fortunate to have read Siddhartha early on. I'd like to think it has affected me in a good way that has lasted. I find myself rereading it as time goes on, and I'm always glad I did. Thanks for writing!
Aug 21, 2023Liked by Russell Nohelty, M. E. Rothwell
Most of my boyhood experience with catholics was being made to feel that I was not fit to be part of the world because I did not go to their church. When I finally decided to give it a try, all I could see were sneering faces. Then at the methodist kids club i was told i could no longer attend for the same reason. Gods embracing love ? Ha ! Rhubarb. If in a war, God is on both sides, where's the love in that ? Follow the money. Think...... and Live in Peace, Maurice
Aug 21, 2023Liked by Russell Nohelty, M. E. Rothwell
i don't doubt that Russel, having met, worked and discussed beliefs with local leaders of many faiths. my observation is that there is a prevalence of blind faith. Where one would expect behavior according to moral teachings, I see every sin, every abuse, that comes with the elitist mindset. Admittedly the majority the perps are rarely self aware. But that's Humans in general, N'est pas..... Peace, Maurice
Aug 11, 2023Liked by Russell Nohelty, M. E. Rothwell
Thanks, Russell. Fascinating read. I went on a similar journey with my childhood Catholicism but Kungfu practice weirdly effected an adult synthesis. Vital matters that are too often sidelined in public discourse. Continued success.
Aug 24, 2023Liked by Russell Nohelty, M. E. Rothwell
Wonderful story! Thank you for this post. Siddhartha and Hesse helped me mould my self-discovery journey. I've went on to read every book Hesse has written.
Aug 12, 2023Liked by Russell Nohelty, M. E. Rothwell
Thank you for writing this. I can relate to your journey as I struggled with the whole religion thing all my life. Being born in India with my father being Sikh and my mother being Hindu, I was taken to Gurdwara (Sikh temple) and Hindu temples all my childhood. However, my parent did not limit my sister and me to these two religions. We were taken to mosques and church too. My parents told us each religion is just a different path to reach the same god. There is no Christian god or Hindu gods. There is only one god. Additionally, being raised with parents believing two different religions which are very different beliefs with one believing in million of gods and other telling you to believe in a book was another huge contradiction I faced in my childhood. All the poverty I saw all around me where good people suffered and bad people live a good life, I could not comprehend why god will do this to good people and even today I cannot answer that question even after several decades on this earth even though Hinduism tells that everything happens due to your karmas in previous life. I could not also comprehend why anyone wants to come back to this earth again and again when most people live a miserable life and it is a game of chance as factors like where you are born, who your parents and environment around you impacts significantly your chances of success and living a good life.
Do I still go to temples/church? The answer is Yes but not to ask something for me but everyone in the world. I really do not want to be reborn even though I do not have any complaints about how the life turned out for me.
I do believe the religions were needed to bring us to where we are today otherwise we would not have survived as a species or grew as much as we have and each religion attempts to teach you what is right and what is wrong which was needed but now most of us get that information from media and blogs etc. so is it worth learning about other religions? The answer is Yes. It helps you understand the world better and to some extend where most of the people are coming from especially people who still believe in the god/religion.
I believe as much as possible in Coat of arms of the Royal Society with the motto Nullius in verba along the bottom. Nullius in verba (Latin for "on the word of no one" or "take nobody's word for it"), which translates to withstand the domination of authority and to verify all statements by an appeal to facts determined by experiment. Does my experience and facts support what I am reading or hearing and if not, I will not discard it but I will wait for facts to support it and religion and god are one of those things as I have not discarded them but currently facts do not support to follow them and then you have the Pascal wager to deal with:
it is better to bet that God exists, and therefore to live so and try to believe in Him. If God doesn't exist, we might lose some things, but if He does exist, we could gain a lot, like eternal happiness in Heaven. If God did not exist it would make no difference. For this reason, it would be better to believe in God.
So life is complicated but that’s what it makes it worth living at least one time.
Thanks so much for letting me write this piece and fall in love again with this book that changed my whole life. :)
and thank you for writing such an excellent and honest essay!
It was quite a moving read! Really resonated with me. I think my writing in some way deals with the intersection of mythology and religion too.
Awesome! Thanks so much. I have a bunch of fiction available to paid subscribers. I recommend The Godsverse Chronicles, The Vessel, Worst Thing in the Universe, or The Void Calls Us Home if you want to check out how I combine them.
I opened this article completely unprepared for the heartbreaking, poignant description of a demolition of a child’s faith under a corrupt religious regime. I relate deeply. Being gay isn’t the reason I left Christianity, but it certainly helped me see its flaws and hypocrisies more deeply.
I also entirely track with Russell Nohelty’s journey of creating a spiritual practice despite a lack of theistic belief. That’s been my journey too. I now consider myself a nontheist/agnostic, but I meditate daily and serve as a minister in a nontheistic religious community.
I’ve never read Siddhartha, but this piece has inspired me to pick it up. Thanks so much for sharing.
It’s feedback like this to a great writer like Russell that makes me so happy that Books That Made Us exists.
I'm sorry that happened to you, but hopefully reading it makes you feel more seen. If you'd like to read any of the books I've written like Worst Thing in the Universe, The Godsverse Chronicles, The Vessel, or Void Calls Us Home, that speak to this, or even Sorry for Existing, they are all available for free to paid members. I'm happy to offer you a 30-day trial if you'd like to check them out. Otherwise, I'm very happy this resonated with you.
This book is wonderful. Easy to read, short, and straight to the point. No much impact. I also recommend Hess’ narcissus and goldmund. Excellent read. The story of two men the exact opposite of one another, yet still friends. One has a wild streak and the other one is very pious. All kinds of adventures and trouble brews for them.
Thanks so much for the recommendations! I will definitely check both books out.
Sorry, I meant to write *so much impact* :)
This is my life. I am only just starting to write in my 40’s. But all the catholic bs happened to me and this book also changed me! Opened my eyes! I landed on paganism in the end. thank you! There is so much more in the world than Christianity.
Thanks for reading. I wholeheartedly agree.
So much of this resonates with me. Also a lapsed Catholic for similar reasons. As a seeker, I enjoyed Siddhartha and loved The Tao of Pooh and The Te of Piglet. (Guess I like humor with my spiritual wisdom. 😁 Why I love anything by Anne Lamott.) It’s the journey, not the destination. Thanks for stating this great conversation.
I love both Tao of Pooh and Te of Piglet so much. I also like the Tao of Steve movie, though admittedly it's not amazing. I still like it though.
"It’s the journey, not the destination." and the people with you on the journey😉
Hi Julie - I love this Rumi quote too: "We're all just walking each other home."✨🌟💖🙏🕊️
love this.
“that true perfection lies in the imperfect experiences that tested him.”
I’m a huge fan of Siddhartha and this one sentence from Russell sums it up. Great book and post!
Thanks!
Russell!! Have you read Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance? I’m reading it right now and really enjoying it. I would be curious to know your thoughts. It sounds like Siddhartha needs to be next on my list. I literally just read this passage this morning:
“He became aware that the doctrinal differences among Hinduism and Buddhism and Taoism are not anywhere near as important as doctrinal differences among Christianity and Islam and Judaism. Holy wars are not fought over them because verbalized statements about reality are never presumed to be reality itself.”
I have! It's been a long time, but I love that book, and very true as well.
I have - great book! Not at all like I imagined it would be when I first picked it up
I am almost halfway through, and for me, it’s a been surprisingly relaxing read. I was expecting to exert a lot of brain power, and I do feel like my brain is working, but in a really pleasant way haha. I don’t know if that makes any sense. If I manage to get through it in time (I don’t want to rush!) I will try to make sense of it all in my full review next week :)
Very interested to hear your take on it - have subbed!
Such a moving piece! I love books that "torture" and force us to rethink societal concepts and narratives. I got instantly reminded of the Krishnamurti's speech:
I maintain that Truth is a pathless land, and you cannot approach it by any path whatsoever, by any religion, by any sect. That is my point of view, and I adhere to that absolutely and unconditionally. Truth, being limitless, unconditioned, unapproachable by any path whatsoever, cannot be organized; nor should any organization be formed to lead or to coerce people along any particular path. If you first understand that, then you will see how impossible it is to organize a belief. A belief is purely an individual matter, and you cannot and must not organize it. If you do, it becomes dead, crystallized; it becomes a creed, a sect, a religion, to be imposed on others. This is what everyone throughout the world is attempting to do. Truth is narrowed down and made a plaything for those who are weak, for those who are only momentarily discontented. Truth cannot be brought down, rather the individual must make the effort to ascend to it. You cannot bring the mountain-top to the valley. If you would attain to the mountain-top you must pass through the valley, climb the steeps, unafraid of the dangerous precipices. Copyright © Krishnamurti Foundation of America
Love this. Thanks for sharing
This is awesome
Ah, Russell, I loved this. I had a different (lucky) background of almost no experience of religion, and so I came to it pretty fresh-it was my fierce insistence in self-sufficiency I had to get over (12 steps got me there). Hope you have been able to reconnect with some mystical Christianity - such a lot of amazing wisdom - and bowing to you & your life's work🙏🏻
Thank you so much for reading and sharing :)
Man, we had similar upbringings, it sounds like. And even similar reactions to it!
For me, discovering existentialism and particularly Sartre's view on choice was very important to reconciling faith for me. Too, discovering the Tao te Ching on accident did much to shape the person I became.
Absurdism is one of the pillars of my life. Dadaism is as important to my existence as eastern religion and mythology.
Ah, yes! I feel the same.
I might have to do a follow up interview with you about these topics!
“What I have learned about faith is that it means very little unless you question it.”
A profound perspective. For me, what showed up after I read it was “deepening” - that deepening my faith/spirituality has come through questioning it.
Thank you for an enlightening read.
Thanks so much for reading. I'm very glad it resonated with you. If you'd like to read any of my work that speaks to this, I have a dozen novels available for free to paid members. I'm happy to give you a 30-day trial if you'd like to check them out. https://authorstack.substack.com/p/fiction
I consider myself fortunate to have read Siddhartha early on. I'd like to think it has affected me in a good way that has lasted. I find myself rereading it as time goes on, and I'm always glad I did. Thanks for writing!
I just reread it a few months before writing this and it still holds up for me :)
i would like to press "like" more than once but that not being an option i'll restack as it is the best from "the books that made us"
Thanks so much :) Glad it resonated with you. I do have a bunch of novels available on my publication.
https://authorstack.substack.com/p/fiction
If you care to check out any of them, here's a link to a 30-day free trial.
https://authorstack.substack.com/3991ee08
Most of my boyhood experience with catholics was being made to feel that I was not fit to be part of the world because I did not go to their church. When I finally decided to give it a try, all I could see were sneering faces. Then at the methodist kids club i was told i could no longer attend for the same reason. Gods embracing love ? Ha ! Rhubarb. If in a war, God is on both sides, where's the love in that ? Follow the money. Think...... and Live in Peace, Maurice
It really depends on the Catholic, but yes. Sorry you had such a bad experience.
i don't doubt that Russel, having met, worked and discussed beliefs with local leaders of many faiths. my observation is that there is a prevalence of blind faith. Where one would expect behavior according to moral teachings, I see every sin, every abuse, that comes with the elitist mindset. Admittedly the majority the perps are rarely self aware. But that's Humans in general, N'est pas..... Peace, Maurice
Thanks, Russell. Fascinating read. I went on a similar journey with my childhood Catholicism but Kungfu practice weirdly effected an adult synthesis. Vital matters that are too often sidelined in public discourse. Continued success.
Love it
Wonderful story! Thank you for this post. Siddhartha and Hesse helped me mould my self-discovery journey. I've went on to read every book Hesse has written.
Yay! I love it. I think there's a lot of fiction you might like in my archives then :)
Thank you for writing this. I can relate to your journey as I struggled with the whole religion thing all my life. Being born in India with my father being Sikh and my mother being Hindu, I was taken to Gurdwara (Sikh temple) and Hindu temples all my childhood. However, my parent did not limit my sister and me to these two religions. We were taken to mosques and church too. My parents told us each religion is just a different path to reach the same god. There is no Christian god or Hindu gods. There is only one god. Additionally, being raised with parents believing two different religions which are very different beliefs with one believing in million of gods and other telling you to believe in a book was another huge contradiction I faced in my childhood. All the poverty I saw all around me where good people suffered and bad people live a good life, I could not comprehend why god will do this to good people and even today I cannot answer that question even after several decades on this earth even though Hinduism tells that everything happens due to your karmas in previous life. I could not also comprehend why anyone wants to come back to this earth again and again when most people live a miserable life and it is a game of chance as factors like where you are born, who your parents and environment around you impacts significantly your chances of success and living a good life.
Do I still go to temples/church? The answer is Yes but not to ask something for me but everyone in the world. I really do not want to be reborn even though I do not have any complaints about how the life turned out for me.
I do believe the religions were needed to bring us to where we are today otherwise we would not have survived as a species or grew as much as we have and each religion attempts to teach you what is right and what is wrong which was needed but now most of us get that information from media and blogs etc. so is it worth learning about other religions? The answer is Yes. It helps you understand the world better and to some extend where most of the people are coming from especially people who still believe in the god/religion.
I believe as much as possible in Coat of arms of the Royal Society with the motto Nullius in verba along the bottom. Nullius in verba (Latin for "on the word of no one" or "take nobody's word for it"), which translates to withstand the domination of authority and to verify all statements by an appeal to facts determined by experiment. Does my experience and facts support what I am reading or hearing and if not, I will not discard it but I will wait for facts to support it and religion and god are one of those things as I have not discarded them but currently facts do not support to follow them and then you have the Pascal wager to deal with:
it is better to bet that God exists, and therefore to live so and try to believe in Him. If God doesn't exist, we might lose some things, but if He does exist, we could gain a lot, like eternal happiness in Heaven. If God did not exist it would make no difference. For this reason, it would be better to believe in God.
So life is complicated but that’s what it makes it worth living at least one time.
Thanks for sharing this. I'm happy you appreciated the piece :)