How can you sit across someone at a table who thinks a belief you hold so deeply is completely ridic? Wouldn't you be all, "why do I want to hang out with someone who thinks this thing that is so important to me is false?"

Well, I'm the only member of my birth family who believes in God (well, now that my mom is dead). And yet? Still loves them all. Then again, my belief in God is somewhat offset--at least in terms of cultural norms--by my deeply-held distrust of religion, so I probably don't come across as a believer to most people.

What's interesting about believing The Secret is that it takes something that seems defensible and easy to be believed a couple of clicks to a place that seems, from the outside, somewhat crazy.

I believe that wallowing doesn't really help a situation. For example, if I wallow in my current distaste for how I look, then it doesn't really help me at all with either changing the way I look or getting over it. So being constantly negative usually does not help situations (though with some people, the Power of Negative Thinking is it gets some people to instigate change).

But to take it to the Universe not recognizing the word No? Huh?

The universe is nothing but a toddler!

But to take it to the Universe not recognizing the word No? Huh?

That's where I disconnect with it too.

One thing with the Secret that's double-bizarre to me is that the wording is really important, because The Universe doesn't understand the concept of "no," or some shit, so if you say "I want to be less fat!" all the universe understands is "I want to be fat!" So you have to be really careful to only say "I want to be thin!" If that's your goal.

Well I guess that explains all the poor and starving people in the world. If only they'd remembered to think "I wish I had a sandwich" instead of "I wish I wasn't so cold and hungry!"

But to take it to the Universe not recognizing the word No?

I first ran into this exact same theory in someone who was promoting the use of telepathic communication in dog training. Maybe the universe is just a dog who doesn't understand "stay off the dining room table"?

java, one or both or all of us should be around for most of the weekend. When were you thinking of? Want to hang out a bit or go get some coffee or just take Matilda out for a walk as well, or just do you just have time for a grab-n-go?

My beliefs about people who don't believe are definitely heavily Narnia-influenced, with a touch of a very enlightened nun who taught my mom years and years ago and played a central role in shaping her own faith. I guess I believe in the importance of faith less through what you say than through what you do -- it doesn't matter what you profess to believe or not believe, who you are and what's really in your heart are shown through your actions, the way you live, how you connect to the people in your life and the larger world around you (in which case, I know a lot of agnostics and atheists who are much, much more "right with God" than a lot of openly professing religious people, often including myself).

And there's a good dash of Aslan reminding the kids over and over again that "No one is ever told any story but his own," i.e., what's between someone else and God (or, bless Nilly, what's on God's scorecard) is completely and utterly none of my business.

Well I guess that explains all the poor and starving people in the world. If only they'd remembered to think "I wish I had a sandwich" instead of "I wish I wasn't so cold and hungry!"

Exactly!

Actually, I think you can get in trouble with wishing, too. Ideally, you sit around thinking, "I am full and warm," and hey presto, you are. Or something.

But to take it to the Universe not recognizing the word No? Huh?

Yeah, that's one of the things that bugs me about The Secret. Of course, the other thing that bugs me about it is that (from what I understand, at least), The Secret doesn't say anything about then going forth and WORKING toward what you're trying to attract to your life. In my world, positive thinking and wishes are very important, but absolutely have to be paired with actual effort on my part. Just wishing for something isn't good enough.