When we look at any religion, spiritual path, or philosophy, we should ask these seven questions:
- What does it say is the “Source” and “Sustenance” of the universe? Various appellations for “Source” include Ultimate Cause, Fundamental Force, Primal Power, God, Great Spirit, Higher Power, Ultimate Consciousness, and the Whole of All Wholes.
- Where is this Source/Sustenance? Outside the universe, e.g., on a throne in heaven? From the death or outgrowth of a prior Universe? From Inside (part of) the existing universe? From an Eternal Ultimate Consciousness?
- How Does the Source/Sustenance Work? By miracles performed by a superbeing? By the attraction of Humans toward God? By natural processes following the laws of physics? Does it change over time? Does it evolve? Does it progress? Does it cycle or repeat? Does it die when suns die, explode, or get sucked into black holes?
- What is the Role and Purpose of Humans? To “glorify God?” To obey God? To be moral and honorable? To discover, create, and build? To love and care for one another? To love and care for the Earth? To travel to other planets? To merge with “Ultimate Consciousness,” e.g., with Brahman or Nirvana?
- Does the Source/Sustenance communicate with humans? By personal conversation? By inspiration only? By revelation? Through the words and actions of other people? Through our observations and our logic, including the scientific method? Through one or more of the above? Through none of the above?
- What is the Eventual Outcome for the Universe? Is there a Heaven and a Hell? Continual elaboration of creation, with increasing organization? With increasing meaning as well? Eventual heat death or gravity death? Compression into a black hole or into a point of singularity? Eventual cold death? Attenuation within ever-expanding space?
- What is the Eventual Outcome for Humans (and other Earthlings)? Some people are in Heaven, some in hell? Some endlessly reincarnated, and some whose minds are merged with Ultimate Consciousness? Continued battle between good and evil wherever humans live? Conquest of all disease, or the continual rise of new diseases? Human Progress toward one or more of these goals: peace, freedom, goodness, love? Human extinction on Earth due to ecological, medical, military, or astronomic events?