It seems to me that one of the problems with believing in Karma (not that I’m seriously considering it) would be that most of us are prone to think we’ve earned less of the bad stuff, and deserved more of the good stuff, than is actually the case.
To choose an example entirely at random, take me. This was The Weekend of the Set-up Crew for me. As you know if you’ve been following my bellyaching, my church meets in a gymnasium, and we have five teams that rotate rolling out the tarps and setting up chairs, stage, sound system, etc. It usually only involves one hour on Saturday and another hour after church on Sunday morning.
This weekend was not my team’s turn. But a call went out that most of this week’s team had conflicts (crafty villains that they were), and could somebody help? So I agreed, despite my abhorrence for both physical work and the society of my fellow man. I then learned that this weekend would involve three hours. First there’d be the routine Saturday set-up. Then on Sunday, instead of tearing down after church, we’d have to move some stuff around and set up risers, because our school was having its graduation ceremony that night. And then we’d have to come in Sunday night, after the ceremony, to do the actual tear-down.
It’s with considerable self-complacency that I inform you that not one of the regular team was present for all three sessions. Only one, lone volunteer did that—Your Arrogant Servant.
In my mind, I’m paddling in the deep end of an Olympic-size pool of good karma.
Let me tell you—any enterprise that depends on the energy and industry of Lars Walker for its success is in a bad way. Any crew whose most reliable physical laborer is Lars Walker is clearly suffering from malaise, decomposition and decline.
It hope it’s not a portent of my church’s future.
You fail to take into account anything from your past lives, which is the gaping hole in any karma reasoning. Is your life unjustifiably bad or good? That’s b/c you were cruel or saintly in a former life–no evidence, just accept your fate. All of us are where we deserve to be, so don’t buck the system.
What do you mean by “Karma”? You do believe that God rewards good actions (Deut 6:18) and punishes bad ones (Deut 8:19), right?
It seems to me what you disbelieve in the human ability to fairly judge reward and punishment, which some people call Karma – not in the concept itself.
I disbelieve in the doctrine of Karma as taught by Hinduism and Buddhism, incorporating an explanation of the existence of evil and suffering (see Phil’s comment), and as a basis for a doctrine of salvation through human penance and enlightenment.
In other words, Lars, your dogma can outrun any karma. Mine, too. But I hadda say that.
In other words, Lars, your dogma can outrun any karma. Mine, too. But I hadda say that.