AN INTERVIEW WITH JAMES TAYLOR

1. Why did you write this book?

JT: I am asked this frequently. I never intended to write a book. I didn’t like the answers I was getting on some very fundamental questions about life and our existence here. I simply went out there to find them. It took me 20 years, but what I discovered was just too enlightening not to share. So here I am. In the process, my life circumstances kept leaving me idled with time to write. Deep down inside (what I felt about the matter) was this yearning to share what I learned. While I was busy in my mind doing things with my life, my feelings were simultaneously creating at the same time. Obviously the feelings were quite strong since they created circumstances where I could write. Everything fell into place perfectly when I “sort of” surrendered and did it.

2. You illuminate some astounding ideas in your book. Aren’t you afraid of the backlash this might cause among people?

JT: Indeed, you have said a lot here. First is the fear you mentioned. Fear is a useless emotion and just gets in everyone’s way. Most people spend a great deal of their time navigating around their fears. Fear simply disconnects you from things. It is a self-defeating position. Eliminate your fears, and then watch your life change. About the backlash: Let me assure you that I knee-jerked a few times along the way. If this does happen, I hope they grow beyond their “backlash” and see that my intentions were most honorable.

3. You introduced some fairly complicated sciences into several parts of your book. Are you a physicist or bio-engineer?

JT: You make me smile with a little pride. No, I am not a scientist. One of my favorite hobbies is physics. I have always been keen on understanding how things exist on an atomic and molecular level of things. Hey, it is us we are talking about. I just like comprehending more about the physical laws guiding us. With the breakthroughs of the 21st century, we can no longer ignore the connections of our physical presence (and understanding of it) and our spiritual occupation here. They are connected…plain and simple.

4. I think everyone would like to know: what is your religion?

JT: This is the most frequent question I receive from readers. You wouldn’t believe the number of emails. My first reaction is, “Why does it matter?” One of the purposes of writing the book was to illustrate how religions work perfectly. Which one you choose doesn’t diminish its potency. You can discover God in an endless number of ways. So I say, “Find him!” and experience God through whatever means you so choose. Applauds to them all!

5. How did you accumulate so many insights and ideas? Didn’t you grow up in the rural southern U.S.?

JT: Wow, you do your homework, don’t you? Good question. I did grow up on a cattle farm out in the middle of nowhere. I learned early that if you started eliminating people based on bias, then pretty soon you would run out of people. We just didn’t have many. Farm life is a great life. I went high-tech in the early ‘80s and international in the ‘90s. I lived in China, Malaysia, and spent some wonderful times in Turkey. These positions allowed me travel to dozens of countries and time to explore their cultures. I actually sought out spiritual and religious leaders to understand what they knew as truth. You might say I sort of went out there as a surrogate for all those that couldn’t and drilled down on things a bit. In a way, the book is sort of a deliverable report on the matter.

6. If you could ask your readers a question, what would you ask?

JT: I suppose I would just ask people to look closely at the world we have constructed and ask themselves if their belief system has anything to do with it. Their own belief frameworks are part of the framers, the architects of the world we live in. Just ask: what is our end-game and what are we trying to achieve? Most importantly, I would ask everyone to ask themselves the assumptions their beliefs make about and ascribe to God. If they can’t agree with their own assumptions…then change course. Is this asking too much?

7. You are obviously an inspired man. What inspires you so?

JT: Great question! My love of physics sort of started my quest to learn about matters. If God created all things, then the creator’s footprint should be there, too. Current physics define physical laws we all live by. They are in play, and no one is immune. Once I became aware of having a non-physical existence, a soul or spirit, then I also realized this aspect of me must live by some laws (not physical) and these must be absolute and universal since my spiritual existence can be outside the physical world. Again, these would be without exceptions and in play for all of us beings. When I realized how both aspects of me exist here and how I was utilizing these laws, I realized I was actually in charge of this (me)! I was creating my life. So I simply took charge and started navigating. Now, that is all that I am doing, all I was ever doing…creating my life. Indeed, this inspires me!

8. What is your political view of the world? Are you Republican, Democrat or Independent?

JT: Your question reminds me of a great quote: “Once you label me you negate me from being more.” Once you identify with any particular anything, you will then galvanize others’ views of you into that particular alignment. We all do it. From that point on you will struggle to birth out of their perception, and this gets in the way of things. I believe we should not kill. So does this make me a Democrat or a Republican? I believe in God. Does this make me Jewish or Muslim?

9. If you could summarize the entire book into a message, what would that message be?

JT: That’s easy. Be! Just be. Be the best of your grandest idea of yourself, and be that all the time in all circumstances…it is having tremendous impact on you and my world. Stop judging others and surely stop killing people. All religions work. I know this and they (whoever they are) know this also. Notice I didn’t mention any specific religion. Spectacular experiences (miracles) happen with people of great faith no matter which religion they choose. Why? Obviously something is going on identically to produce those experiences. What is that? When you try to measure things here on Earth by physical laws of nature, you are ignoring the non-physical aspect of you (soul, spirit, etc.). There are non-physical laws that are also in play. What are these, and how do they manifest in your life? So the first message would be that God put laws in play that enable all things to exist and be and in “being” they produce undeniable experiences and this makes all religions work perfectly. Stop denying others because they didn’t find God they way you did. Believe me, you have impact beyond what you currently understand. Science has now proven this for us to see. Use this, and use it wisely.

10. Did you grow up in a “Godly” way? Were you guided by one particular religion?

JT: Good question, but it’s ambiguous. “Godly way” is defined so many different ways. I grew up Methodist. A lot of my friends were Baptist, but we also had “Church of Christ” and “Church of God” and “Jehovah’s Witness” and “Presbyterian.” We only had 28,000 people in the entire county. Even on such a small scale I had a lot of options that I needed to look into. When I realized the world beyond my hometown had even more options, then the idea of choosing the right one seemed overwhelming. This didn’t make sense to me at the time. But to answer your question more specifically, I grew up getting in the same sort of trouble everyone else did. Too bad we can’t use our retrospect as a weapon to fire backwards in time and change a few things. However, those very events that I chose led me here, so perhaps I should be grateful and look back and love all of them regardless.

11. Why do you think your book has been so successful?

JT: Why is anything of human involvement successful? If I introduce a new fruit into the food chain, is it the fruit or the consumer of that fruit that makes it successful? I think it is obvious that a great deal of people had some of the same questions in their minds, and it was their yearning that caused the success. My fruit is only an appetizer at best.

12. I noticed that you are taking part of your proceeds from the book and funding some projects around the world. What were your selection criteria?

JT: I have been exposed to many charities. They were all terrific initiatives and worthy. Most of them, however, are addressing consequences after the event. Kids dying of starvation and disease are already in that condition…why? The answer to this question guides me. We as a human race need to fully comprehend how we are creating our existence here and how each of us is participating in this event. There are many great projects out there in pursuit of these answers. The opportunities are everywhere. If the results will help us create a better world, then shouldn’t it be of interest to all of us? By purchasing the book, you are contributing. So, you see, it isn’t really me providing the contribution. We are all in this together. The projects I choose affect all of us and not just one nation or people. They are all universal in their orientation so that all human beings are considered without bias to race, religion, culture, or sex. In this way, all outcomes would benefit all of us.

13. Question: Can you give some examples?

JT: Yes of course. Although this not a project I funded, it is a good example. Lynne McTaggart, in her cutting-edge experiments in quantum physics, took a bunch of people and put them in room in London and had them meditate on only one subject, and that was to intend for a leaf to glow. Well we all know leaves do not glow, right? The leaf was in a lab in Arizona where it was being monitored by scientist and some advanced light sensitive equipment. I think the group meditated on the idea (that is their thoughts and feelings) for a couple of hours. Well, guess what? They didn’t even need the advanced equipment in Arizona. They could see the leaf glow with their naked eyes. Now, what does this tell us? It tells us that human beings have impact on our physical world though nonphysical communication. I believe experiments such as this will help us as human beings be more careful about how we feel and think. It is having some impact.

14. Do you believe religions are a bad thing?

JT: No, of course not. Quite the opposite; they all work perfectly. Each one produces experiences that are undeniable. You see, nothing can exist without God…including each of those experiences. Can you be so naïve as to believe only your experience is correct and your God is actually God of part-things and not all things? Of course not. Each religion produces an experience of God. The better question for us all to ask (as opposed to which one) is how? Science has given us a glimpse of what this looks like, and we need to give this some serious attention. It is a paradigm shift in our understanding of things. It is within this understanding that all religions can actually unite instead of divide us all from each other.

15. So are you suggesting that we all abandon our religions and become scientists?

JT: I am suggesting that all human beings are a “walking science” and exist only because God is in all things making them work. When the world wakes up to the scientific acknowledgment of how we are affecting the physical aspects of things through being instead of what we are physically doing, then I believe we as a human race will start to change. Religions are terrific in their intent to make us be better beings from an instructional standpoint. I have a problem only with their doctrines that would cause us to employ any emotion other that ones derived from a base state of love. A great deal of mainstream scriptures contain a lot of violence and just non-loving attributes ascribed to the source of all things. Call me crazy, but I could never buy in to a creator destroying or advocating we destroy that which the creator…created.

Our world has been built such that we are separated and compete. This is our world. It belongs to all of us. It is what sustains us. What if we all just started sustaining each other? Do you think this would change a few things? Our world could be one heaven of a place instead of one hell of a mess. We constructed the current frameworks we live within. Some popular religions have been a global divider of the human race and trained us to avoid other faiths and their people. Once we understand how each religious experience is actually a natural occurrence of how things are set up here, then we will no longer judge or fear their experiences. Once we move beyond this we can begin “sustaining” each other and come together as global community. Isn’t this a better framework to operate from?

16. Some people reading your book might think you are trying to prove religions are misguiding us and are bad to participate in. What would you say to these readers?

JT: Yes, you are right. Some people will have this perception, but that isn’t the message at all. All I am doing is explaining scientifically how their beliefs work…perfectly, regardless of what it is that they believe. The only common denominator to all human experience is human beings being. There is no other option in the matter. Once you comprehend how these beliefs (whatever they are) are creating your experience, you can then see there is something larger going on here. That something is God, the universe, the source of all things or whatever you choose to label this. There are an endless number of ways to get to Chicago. Is it so important which route you took or the vehicle you drove to get there?

We live in a world divided and based on beliefs that ascribe some rather unflattering demeanors onto God. It is time the world came together and stopped avoiding each other based on these unflattering assumptions. So from this standpoint, I suppose if a religion teaches you to “not love” like you assume God does, then you might want to question their assumptions about God.

The Muslim culture is a wonderful experience. They are wonderful human beings. The good they do is tremendous. But if someone in their faith advocates that Allah wants you to despise, hate, distrust, or kill people (and these are in the Qur’an), then you should step back and see what sort of God you are describing.

Christian leaders and followers of Jesus know the base teachings were simple. Don’t kill people, turn the other cheek, love your enemy, share your food, do unto others…etc. I believe this is the true message and not for everyone to drop to their knees and worship him. So if someone in this faith advocates God wants you to despise, hate, distrust, or kill people (and these are in the Bible) you should step back and see what sort of God you are describing.