August 2012 

I think it is.

Through the ages, religions have helped people understand and cope with the mysteries of life...from creation of the world to human birth and death.

So why does it get a bad rap? Is it the religion or the people behind the religion? We can say the same thing about any kind of power that is abused; be it guns, politics, organizations, governments, the list can go on.

With politics, organizations, guns, governments, etc., the people in charge come and go. Usually "the people" are made aware of the abuse of power and the powermongers are removed...eventually.

With religion, people also come and go. But God will never go because She/He is eternal and, because of that, gets all the blame for the humans who turn religion into something that it was not set out to be.

Someone might say, "So then why doesn't God do something?" It's really quite simple; its call free will. There is a master plan, but with our limited intelligence and abilities (or is it because we believe we are limited...?) it is impossible for us to understand the unlimited.

If every time we made mistakes, God came in and fixed everything, what would we learn? Most of you are parents, so you know the drill with our children, especially as they are grow into adulthood. We have to step aside and let them live their lives and pay the consequences for the decisions they make. Of course, we say things to them when appropriate. And if they are on a life-threatening course, we take other actions according to our individuality and the situation.

God does the same thing. Usually we are so caught up in the moment that we can't see the signs or hear the warnings, similar to our children when we give them advice.

I believe that God has very big shoulders and can carry as much blame as others heap on Him...and I also believe that it is all part of His plan.

If we look at the origins of any religion, it is to bring about harmony for mankind through structure, which would be a set of spiritual principles (also known as spiritual laws). Last month, I spoke about Spiritual Independence and how one can find it through the spiritual laws of the Bible, the Vedas or even the 12-step programs.

This month, I want to share with you some of the beauty and essences of different religions around the world. So please join me in my weekly blogs. Your feedback is most welcomed.

The next time you're on Facebook, type Spiritual Recovery Program into the Facebook search box, and my Ah-man Spiritual Recovery page will come up and you can "like" my page. Once you've "liked" the page, you will get notified about my weekly blog updates.

Peace be with you now and always. 

One of the greatest joys of summer is cooking out. I can almost hear the grills around the country being fired up, and my mouth is watering!  Even if you're a vegetarian like me you can still enjoy the grilling experience.

Every chance I get, I fire up the grill and start creating vegetarian magic: grilled veggies and tofu ups and seitan, etc.  No meat products required.  In fact, the only requirements are the vegetables, the grill, the cooking implements, and, of course, my Ah-Man Apron. 

If you want to make a real fashion statement at your cookouts (or your cook-ins) this season, check out the Ah-Man Apron.  It is a unique gift idea for the grill-master or grill-mistress in your life.