The Church of Reality is based on the principle that a person has self ownership. We have ownership rights to our own lives; the right to make our own choices, the right to control our own lives, to make our own important decisions, to be in control of our own bodies, to own property, to have opinions, and to express those opinions. It's about my life, my choice, my thoughts, my body, my property, my religion, my friends, my family, my lovers, my groups, my hobbies, my mistakes, my responsibilities, my survival, my appearance, my identity. I own it - it is mine to control. It is the ownership of oneself.
So - what does this mean? Why is it such a big deal? Owning oneself as opposed to what? Self ownership is an important concept in the Church of Reality because we live in a world where people are programmed to be submissives and to surrender their ownership of themselves to others. The Church of Reality asserts that people should take back self control and repossess themselves by asserting their rights to self ownership and resisting the oppressors that currently enslave them.
Have you ever asked yourself if you are truly free? Or do you assume that you are free because the government tells you to believe that? Some people believe that God or Jesus or Mohammed owns them; that they have willfully given their lives over to a higher cause. A person has the right to choose to devote their existence to a higher calling. I myself have chosen to develop the Kernel of the Church of Reality. I own myself. I'm not part of any cult. My life, my choice. Even if it's the wrong choice, it is my choice to make.
The Church of Reality takes the position that individuals own themselves. We are not a religion that requires that you surrender yourself to us. Cults want you to surrender your will to them. We are not a cult and hope to never become one. We do not control you, nor do we want to control you. We have enough of a job controlling ourselves. We want you to be individualistic, to be a thinker, to be innovative, to be who you are and to bring your ideas and your uniqueness into the community of Realists and share with us as a coequal member of society. We are a team model where members learn from us as we learn from them. But we retain control of our own lives.
To illustrate the issue of self control I found this article that had this illustration.
Perhaps I can best make my point by referring to an experience I had nearly twenty years ago, in one of my classrooms. In one of the segments of Constitutional Law that I taught, I asked my students whether the Constitution had any legitimacy. "On what basis does the United States government presume to rule you?," I rephrased the question. This question took us into a discussion of the subject of "authority." During the course of this discussion, a young man began to ask a series of questions:
"But how else are we going to live, if we don't follow others' [i.e., authorities]?"
"Do you understand how allowing others to direct your thinking and your actions produces conflict within yourself?", I asked.
"Yes, I think so," the young man responded.
"Would you like to learn how to live your life in a more self-directed way, without relying on ‘authorities’ to tell you how to do so?", I inquired.
"Yes," my student answered.
"How will you find out?", I asked.
"By asking you," he replied.
"Let me make certain I understand you: are you saying that you are now aware of how you have allowed others to control your thinking and actions by accepting these people as ‘authorities’ over you?"
"Yes," he responded.
"And now you are asking me to tell you how to stop living this way and take control over your own life? Can I make you a self-directed person?"
There was a long silence, during which one could almost see what was going on in this student’s mind. Finally he declared: "I guess this means that it’s up to each one of us, doesn't it?"
"Do you need me to answer this question for you?", I asked.
"No," my student answered.
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The point here is that the Church of Reality can open the cage door and invite you to freedom, but you have to decide to walk out of the cage and own your freedom. Why have free speech if you don't speak out? Owning yourself isn't just a right, it's a discipline.
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