The Path Ministry

  Topic: The Benefits of Stress Stress gets a bad rap. From self-help books to life coaches and gurus to lists of life hacks on the internet, it seems everyone wants to tell you how to live free from stress of any kind. What they don’t tell you is that certain types of stress are genuinely beneficial. Stress is defined as a state of mental or emotional strain or tension resulting from adverse or very demanding circumstances. (Source: online dictionary) It is the psychological and physiological reaction to challenging situations, and it is also the catalyst for growth and development. Evolutionary changes are always triggered by a change in circumstances putting stress on the population. Without those changes and the associated stress, organisms have no need to change and evolve, and populations stagnate. Certain creatures have found an environmental niche and have not changed in millennia, such as sharks, crocodiles, and many single-celled organisms. They are an example of what h

Topic: Omniscience Versus Free Will In the Book of the Path, there is an essay about the dilemma of omniscience and free will. Here is a passage from that essay: “If there is an omnipotent, omniscient, and omnipresent deity, then our concept of free will is an illusion. Consider this: such a deity… knows and planned everything you will ever do, every decision you will ever make, from cradle to grave. It is impossible for you to do anything other than that which he has already seen; you cannot surprise God, you cannot do anything contrary to his plan. Nothing will ever happen that he did not know about beforehand, and in fact directly caused, as the creator/controller of the Universe.” Now, there is nothing wrong with believing in a god who looks after you and is personally interested in your life if that is what brings you peace and comfort, provided you recognize that nobody is obligated to share your beliefs. However, I cannot bring myself to believe in a being such as that