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Only 40 percent of Americans can name more than four of the Ten Commandments, and a scant half can cite any of the four authors of the Gospels. Twelve percent believe Joan of Arc was Noah's wife. This failure to recall the specifics of our Christian heritage may be further evidence of our nation's educational decline, but it probably doesn't matter all that much in spiritual or political terms. Here is a statistic that does matter: Three quarters of Americans believe the Bible teaches that “God helps those who help themselves.” That is, three out of four Americans believe that this uber-American idea, a notion at the core of our current individualist politics and culture, which was in fact uttered by Ben Franklin, actually appears in Holy Scripture. The thing is, not only is Franklin's wisdom not biblical; it's counter-biblical. Few ideas could be further from the gospel message, with its radical summons to love of neighbor. On this essential matter, most Americans—most American Christians—are simply wrong, as if 75 percent of American scientists believed that Newton proved gravity causes apples to fly up.

The Sun Dance is a ceremony practiced differently by several North American Indian Nations, but many of the ceremonies have features in common, including dancing, singing and drumming, the experience of visions, fasting, and, in some cases, self-torture. The Sun Dance was the most spectacular and important religious ceremony of the Plains Indians of 19th-century North America, ordinarily held by each tribe once a year usually at the time of the Summer Solstice. The Sun Dance last from four to eight days starting at the sunset of the final day of preparation and ending at sunset. It showed a continuity between life and death - a regeneration. It shows that there is no true end to life, but a cycle of symbolic and true deaths and rebirths. All of nature is intertwined and dependent on one another. This gives an equal ground to everything on the Earth.

The Sun Dance symbolizes a resolution with the conflict between being a people that view the buffalo as wise and powerful, even closer to the creator than humans, and having to kill and eat them to survive. Making the buffalo sacred, symbolically giving new life to it, and treating it with respect and reverence acts a s a sort of reconciliation. Without the buffalo there would be death, and the Plains Indians saw that the buffalo not only provided them with physical well-being, but kept their souls alive, too.

When Adam and Eve were "born", the Djinn refused to worship Man. The ethereal beings were considered perverse and vicious, and wouldn't conform to worshipping Man, even though prophets were sent out to save them. Therefore, they were banished from the Earth and sent to live in islands far across the sea. According to the Qur'an, the Islamic Holy Book, Iblis was one of the more important Djinn. When God (Allah) ordered him to bow before Adam and prostrate himself, Iblis refused, seeing Adam as inferior to him as he was made of clay. God then cast him out of heaven until the Day of Judgement came upon the Earth. It is We Who created you and gave you shape; then We bade the angels prostrate to Adam, and they prostrate; not so Iblis; He refused to be of those who prostrate. (Allah) said: "What prevented thee from prostrating when I commanded thee?" He said: "I am better than he: Thou didst create me from fire, and him from clay." Qur'an 7:11-12 Iblis was cast out of heaven and given the title of "Shaitan", roughly translated as "evil" or "devil". He defiantly claims that if the punishment for his act will be witheld until the Day of Judgement,

The Earth...its size is perfect. The Earth's size and corresponding gravity holds a thin layer of mostly nitrogen and oxygen gases, only extending about 50 miles above the Earth's surface. If Earth were smaller, an atmosphere would be impossible, like the planet Mercury. If Earth were larger, its atmosphere would contain free hydrogen, like Jupiter.3 Earth is the only known planet equipped with an atmosphere of the right mixture of gases to sustain plant, animal and human life. The Earth is located the right distance from the sun. Consider the temperature swings we encounter, roughly -30 degrees to +120 degrees. If the Earth were any further away from the sun, we would all freeze. Any closer and we would burn up. Even a fractional variance in the Earth's position to the sun would make life on Earth impossible. The Earth remains this perfect distance from the sun while it rotates around the sun at a speed of nearly 67,000 mph. It is also rotating on its axis, allowing the entire surface of the Earth to be properly warmed and cooled every day. And our moon is the perfect size and distance from the Earth for its gravitational pull. The moon creates important ocean tides and movement so ocean waters do not stagnate, and yet our massive oceans are restrained from spilling over across the continents.4

he will try and stray as many of Adam's descendants off the path to their deity during his period of respite. God accepts this as Iblis says, and lets him and his children roam the earth to test the wills of Adam's children. The rest of that story says he was sent to earth with Adam and Eve after he was able to lure them into eating the apple. On the Day of Judgement, it is assumed that Iblis will be sent to Jannaham, the Islamic form of Hell.

The new doctrine taught that salvation would be achieved when the Indians purged themselves of the evil ways learned from the white man, especially the drinking of alcohol. Believers were encouraged to engage in frequent ceremonial cleansing, meditation, prayer, chanting, and most importantly, dancing the Ghost Dance.

According to the prophecy, the recent times of suffering for Indians had been brought about by their sins

10. We believe in the literal gathering of Israel? and in the restoration? of the Ten Tribes; that Zion? (the New Jerusalem) will be built upon this the American continent; that Christ will reign personally upon the earth; and, that the earth will be renewed and receive its paradisiacal glory

Refrain from using mind-altering narcotics.

How long does this take, will it happen the first time? Possibly, possibly not. We can’t determine how long this process takes, all we can do is persevere, intent is all that’s required and the ability to loose your mind. What we do know is that the experience enriches your spirituality and makes future communications a damn sight easier.

Remember that I draw these techniques from my own early explorations and they worked for me. Be inspired by them, don’t accept them as written in stone, explore and develop your own unique method of connection. Us it all by all means, or twist and tweak them to your own suiting. Above all, enjoy the process, loose yourself in a relationship that will last forever.

Education majors had a positive correlation with both the level of religious importance in one's life and the frequency of attendance at religious services.

For the physical sciences, including biology, the overall trend was neutral, with no major change in religiosity. Somewhat oddly, these students showed increased attendance at religious services, but a reduced sense of religious importance. 

There must be a difference though, because Ria is a member of a cult and the other stories are those of Abraham's binding of Isaac in the Hebrew Bible, and Jesus's sojourn on Earth as recorded in the New Testament.

While the passage of time is probably the only way to distinguish between extreme religious conviction and delusion, the same modest claim need not be made for the distinction between a religion and a cult. That line can be demarcated with relative ease, but not in the ways that it usually is

Cults are typically defined by five characteristics. First, cults tend to centralize power in the hands of a single individual or small group that is considered beyond question. Second, they treat all questions about the group and its beliefs as intolerable challenges to the group's authority and authenticity. Third, they demean all those who do not share their beliefs and sow fear and mistrust among their believers about all such people. Fourth, they typically cut off all or most opportunities for members to interact freely with those outside the group. And finally, they take revenge upon those who choose to leave the group in ways that include cutting them off from all relationships with those who remain inside, confiscating material goods and even physical harm.

All signs of well being that nurture joy in living might even extend one’s life.

Prayer and religious beliefs can have a placebo effect, just like a sugar pill. Barker, who was once a Christian Fundamentalist preacher before developing serious doubts about his religion, states that one of the strongest factors in recovery from an illness is a sense of connectedness with a community and people who care about you. Even if we mumble our prayers only when we are ill or if there is no God to hear them, the new research indicated that religious thoughts could help to heal.