Though we should be aware of the multitude of problems facing our planet, I can hardly tolerate the slanted fear-based rhetoric in much of the mainstream media that emphasizes the war on terror and the sensationalized murders, accidents and other bad new items.

Also appalling are the number of popular horror and action films that focus on the terrible things in the world and feed people’s lower, fear-and-hate-based natures.

I am reminded of the statement found in The URANTIA Book (in a section that discusses the human mind and the divine mind circuitry of the Absolute Mind) where we are told that “often, all too often,” we humans “subject” our minds “to animal fear and distort them by useless anxiety.” (1) It seems pretty stupid to me that we would do such a thing for recreation.

How my parents helped me deal with my childhood fears gave me coping mechanisms that I have used throughout my life. Any time a fear raises its head, I use my reason, my scientific mind, to investigate the fear, to see its root and cause and whether the fear is even realistic.

As we all know, fear is very much a part of the human being, and that fear can be quite useful at times. Fear can save lives because it motivates action to get out of a dangerous situation or make necessary changes for continued survival—physical or psychospiritual.

But fear can imprison people too. If an individual lives in bondage of fear, fear often translates into worry, anxiety, anger, self-pity, lack of compassion, victimization, blame, hatred and many other lower-nature attitudes and emotions that prevent us from being healthy and happy.

If we allow fear to be a driving force in our lives and the reason for many of our choices, then eventually it will become paranoia, which, according to Merriam Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary, is fear that is delusional, at times psychotic, and involves excessive and irrational suspiciousness and distrustfulness of others.

According to Rob Brezsny, the antidote for paranoia is pronoia, which is “an understanding that the universe is fundamentally friendly.” (2) I like that. And it makes me think of something from the section called, “The Life and Teachings of Jesus” in The URANTIA Book. “ As you view the world, remember that the black patches of evil which you see are shown against a white background of ultimate good.” (3)

As I grew up and out of my unfounded fears and into my faith in a real and loving God, my nightmares and other worries diminished until now I do have a general, overall attitude of pronoia that determines my reactions and choices in life. But I think my pronoia has an added spiritual dimension because of my faith in and experience of God and His/Her goodness, fused with an understanding of the scientific aspect of reality.

I have come to realize that the destiny of each one of us humans is bonded with the destiny of the evolution of all of reality in the grand universe, ever moving toward a divine pattern of complementary harmony and cooperation on all levels of reality:  physical, mindful and spiritual. In other words, the stars and galaxies are moving towards light and life, and so are we human beings, as individuals and as a species.

If we stay imprisoned in our fears, we will miss the many hints and nudges that come from the spiritual level of reality, and we will miss the glaring facts that are presented to us from the physical and mind levels of reality. Our fears can keep us locked in destructive, habitual ways of responding to situations and people that challenge our superstitious and unrealistic belief systems.

We are all meant to evolve from the fear of demons and ghosts haunting us to experiencing the nourishment of angels.

“Evolutionary religion is born of a simple and all-powerful fear, the fear which surges through the human mind when confronted with the unknown, the inexplicable, and the incomprehensible. Religion eventually achieves the profoundly simple realization of an all-powerful love, the love which sweeps irresistibly through the human soul when awakened to the conception of the limitless affection of the Universal Father for the sons and daughters of the universe.” (4)

“The only emotion actuating you [humans] which is somewhat difficult for the angels to comprehend is the legacy of animal fear that bulks so large in the mental life of the average inhabitant of Urantia [Earth]. The angels really find it hard to understand why you will so persistently allow your higher intellectual powers, even your religious faith, to be so dominated by fear, so thoroughly demoralized by the thoughtless panic of dread and anxiety.” (5)

I am amazed at how fearful we humans get with new experiences, with unknown territory, with anything that may challenge our comfort zones—whether they are persons, uncertain outcomes, or ideas. Though fear is an integral part of human experience and can be useful at times, if we allow fear to overtake us, it becomes a burden that poisons us mentally, destroying our peace of mind and happiness.

If we continue in our faith walk, fusing the reality of spiritual truth with scientific truth, we will make “the important discovery that many human perplexities are in reality non-existent, that many pressing troubles are the creations of exaggerated fear and the offspring of augmented apprehension.” (6) Simply put, use faith over fear and allow balance and intelligent discernment to be your guiding principles when addressing your fears, whatever they may be.

Source:

1 The URANTIA Book, Paper 9, Section 5, Paragraph 7
2 From Pronoia is the Antidote for Paranoia:  How the Whole World is Conspiring to Shower You with Blessings by Rob Brezsny
3 The URANTIA Book, Paper 195, Section 5, Paragraph 12
4 Ibid., Paper 90, Introduction, Paragraph 3
5 Ibid., Paper 113, Section 2, Paragraph 5
6 Ibid., Paper 143, Section 3, Paragraph 6
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Relephant:

How to Dissolve Fear.

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Author: Niánn Emerson Chase

Editor: Travis May

Photo: Flickr/Kiran Foster