Here is my problem with any religion claiming exclusive rights on objective truth.

“Each of the great world religions–Buddhism, Hinduism, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam–is a braid woven from four strands: an originating experience, a mythic narrative, a theology, and an institution. In the beginning a [solitary man]–Buddha, Moses, Jesus, Muhammad–had a numinous encounter that filled him with a sense of power and purpose–a voice coming from a burning bush or from the depths of the soul. Following this life-changing experience, these great pathfinders shared their insights with a few men and women who became disciples and formed the master’s story into a coherent narrative.”

In time, the narrative gave rise to scriptures, creeds, and theologies. Gradually, temples, churches, mosques, and synagogues encapsulated the primal experience of the sacred in formal rites, rituals, and narratives, each claiming to be the definitive revelation of the transcendent God…. To the degree that any religion focuses the attention and devotion of believers on the official narrative, theology, and liturgical practices of the institution, it obscures the primal or elementary experience of the sacred that is our common birthright.” ~ Sam Keen

Suppose that all this time, so many of us have been seeking to recreate the experiences of others before us which were never meant for us specifically (they were meant for these people who came before us)? Suppose that we have our own primal experiences to…well…experience, as has been the case for many before us and seems to presently be the case today, at least according to many people who do not depend so much upon others’ experiences in order to experience how they perceive that which is sacred (or meaningful) to them?

What if we are going about all this in the wrong way?