Reincarnation and John 3:3

"Jesus answered him, 'Truly, truly I say to you, unless one is born anew, he cannot see the kingdom of God'" (John 3:3 RSV).

Question:

Discussion about whether there is/is not reincarnation.

Comment:

We are all spiritual beings, who have come into human experiences in order to achieve the spiritual goal of realizing and expressing our innate Oneness with God, so that our choices create the new spiritual consciousness that Jesus describes as the kingdom of heaven. Few of us are able to fully accomplish that goal within the artificial limits of a single human lifetime. So what, then? Are we judged as failures and sent to a place of punishment? Or does a God of infinite Love invite us to return into another human form to continue our spiritual process? To me, the second choice is the only one that makes sense. It seems intuitively right—and intuition is our clearest, strongest link with Divine Mind.   That said, I think it's a stretch to interpret this particular passage as supporting reincarnation. Jesus is describing a “born anew” experience that can occur within the limits of one human lifetime. It is the second birth that occurs when we awaken to the truth of our own spiritual identity, and the Christ potential that lives in all of us. As Jesus says later (John 3:6), "That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit." It's good news, really—we don't have to wait until we die to return at a higher dimension of awareness; it can happen in the here and now.   Blessings!

Rev. Ed