Archive for the ‘consciousness’ Category

Newer Entries »

Thoughts on the Budget

February 5, 2008

As I watched the news yesterday and listened to the President and commentators talk about the newly proposed $3+ trillion budget, I was amazed and saddened at the same time!  First, I can’t get my head around ‘trillion’ other than it’s a very big number!!!!!  Hence the first amazement.  Secondly, as I heard of the proposed 8% increase in defense spending  (and this doesn’t include paying for the war in Iraq) and a freeze/cut in domestic spending, I had my second amazement moment!  And then I found myself sad.  My thoughts flew to “are we really so afraid of the world” and “do we really value life so little” and “doesn’t this administration understand”.  As I sat with these thoughts and feelings, I found myself saying a prayer – “Oh God, this can’t be real – Oh God, what do we do?”  I slowly began to be conscious, really conscious, of those thoughts and where I was going with them – to my own place of fear and yes anger!  As I became more aware, I took a deep breath and opened to the reframing and rephrasing of my prayer – “Oh God, only Love is real.  Oh God, I am open to what is mine to do.”  This shift in energy – thoughts, words, feelings – brought me to a place of greater peace, if not greater understanding.  Since then, I have given more thought to the feelings and thoughts behind that intial reaction and I must admit that I am concerned that, at each budget cycle, the idea of reducing defense spending in order to provide the necessary funding for positive domestic programs is never discussed.  And I want to make it clear that when I speak of defense cuts, I am not talking about “not supporting the troops.”  I’m talking about reductions in research into new weapons that make war less messy; I’m talking about reducing cronyism and waste in the defense contracting business; I’m talking about less support, or at least of efficient support, of the military-industrial complex.   Speaking primarily from an intuitive position with only a neophyte’s research, I believe that if we were to refocus from weapons research and wasteful spending, we could provide better health care and benefits to those who are now serving in our armed forces.  We could support those men and women returning to lives that have been turned upside down.  We would be able to focus creatively on re-tooling our industrial base to fit markets and jobs needed to move us into a greener, more connected world.
My deepest desire is that we as individuals and as a nation bring into our consciousness the awareness that every life is precious, that every individual has infinite value, and that what we spend our money on is, in fact, what we hold most dear.   I do believe that as individuals and as a nation we hold life sacred; that when we can conquer our fear, we make choices that support life and peace, not destruction and war.  I believe that our voice – that my voice – is important in sending that message to the individuals we have elected to govern for us (note:  I didn’t say govern us, rather govern for us!). 

Regardless of which party’s nominee wins, it is vitally important that we, the people, let him or her know that we expect governance based on prinicples of love and compassion, not on fear and destruction, and that this governance starts with a serious look at how we are spending our money! 

PS – perhaps the lawmakers could spending a little less time worrying about steriod use in baseball and a little more time on creatively working on bringing quality education to all or what new markets/jobs are being called for in this new century!!!

Posted in consciousness, current issues, personal, principle, seeing the world, society | 1 Comment »

Christmas

December 24, 2007

One of my favorite carols is I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day – the poem by Longfellow set to music. In his poem, Longfellow captures the despair and the hope of a world at war – an individual in pain because of personal loss. He wrote this poem in 1864 – the Civil War was raging – His son had been injured in battle – His wife had died in a fire. The world around him was not a peaceful place! And yet through all of this pain and despair, he found the Source of All Things – He heard the bells pealing peace – reconciliation – forgiveness.
Here are the original seven verses written by Longfellow.

I heard the bells on Christmas Day
Their old, familiar carols play,
And wild and sweet
The words repeat
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!

And thought how, as the day had come,
The belfries of all Christendom
Had rolled along
The unbroken song
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!

Till, ringing, singing on its way,
The world revolved from night to day,
A voice, a chime,
A chant sublime
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!

Then from each black, accursed mouth
The cannon thundered in the South,
And with the sound
The carols drowned
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!

It was as if an earthquake rent
The hearth-stones of a continent,
And made forlorn
The households born
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!

And in despair I bowed my head;
“There is no peace on earth,” I said:
“For hate is strong,
And mocks the song
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!”

Then pealed the bells more loud and deep:
“God is not dead; nor doth he sleep!
The Wrong shall fail,
The Right prevail,
With peace on earth, good-will to men!”

Several Christmases ago, I went to the Unity songbook to get the words and the page number for our Christmas service. I expected to find five verses in our songbook. Most modern version leave out the two verses specifically related to the Civil War:

Then from each black, accursed mouth
The cannon thundered in the South,
And with the sound
The carols drowned
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!

It was as if an earthquake rent
The hearth-stones of a continent,
And made forlorn
The households born
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!

Today, it might be appropriate to add them back in, especially in those parts of our world where war is an every day thing.

I was astonished to see that there were only the first three verses in our song book. The two verses that speak of the despair and grief and that seem to make a judgment about Right and Wrong had also been taken out. Interestingly, this often happens in Unity. Thinking that we are following the Law of Mind Action and removing the “negative” thoughts and judgments, we cut out the grief, the pain, the despair, and the process of discerning. For me, what we are left with is often a veneer of smiles and goodness, a thin layer of ice that covers deep emotions and consequences of prior thoughts and actions that have not been processed and transmuted.

Now please don’t get me wrong – I do understand that when we hold “negative” thoughts in mind, we get more of the same. And that “judgment” when made from our personality can create error thought and actions. And yet to refuse to look beneath the ice to the swirling water is denial – and not in the way that Charles and Myrtle meant when they used the term. In my understanding of their writings, it is necessary that we recognize the situation, the issues, the apparent “reality” and only then are we able to “see” beyond appearance t the truth and how that truth can be restored.

When there is war in our world – bombs and bullets that are killing people – devastating hunger and starvation in a bountiful world – death from treatable diseases – violence in our streets and our homes – when all of this exists, to not feel a moment of despair and pain is to not be human. The power of the Law of Mind Action is that we can acknowledge the condition – the appearance – without accepting it as permanent. We can look deeper into the thought causes of these conditions – the thoughts of fear and lack – and we can, by replacing those thoughts with ones of love, bounty, unity, change these conditions. For as we change our perspective and thought, we will change our actions. As we shift the energy of a situation from fear to love, from lack to abundance, for death to life, we – and all those we touch – are changed.

For me, this is the spirit of Christmas! And so in this Christmas time, reach out to the infinite that is God – the Unity that includes the Duality – and as Henry Wadsworth Longfellow did in 1864 – hear the bells peal loud and down – Peace on Earth – Good will to all!

Posted in Christmas, consciousness, God, seeing the world | Leave a Comment »

What I believe Part III

December 20, 2007

And the next installment in the credo process —

When I was a child, I spoke as a child and God was Father, Brother Jesus, very much arbiter of good and bad, right and wrong, always addressed as Thou and Thee, always right, perfect, sometimes angry, sometimes kind, sometimes a friend, sometimes a puppet master.  

When I grew up, God became …well, that’s still evolving!! 

In order for me to move further on this portion of the credo journey, I would like to restate my credo statements and define a couple of key terms.

Statements of Belief:

  • I believe that there is only one Power and Presence and that that Power and Presence is life-affirming.  (actually that it is life itself)
  • I believe that I, like all things, am a hologram of that Power and Presence – one point in that Presence that contains the entirety of that Presence.
  • I believe that “all that exists and beyond all that exists” is that Presence – connected energy – simultaneous energy points and at the same time unique manifestations.
  • I believe that how I think and what I think configure the out forming of that Presence, as the energy that is consciousness moves through that point that is “me.”
  • I believe that how and what I think moves me to consciously experience “feelings” as specific “things”, for “feelings” are energy without charge or meaning until I “think” a label, name, meaning.
  • I believe that consciousness evolves – in individuals and in collectives.
  • I believe that when my thoughts, feelings and actions come from a limited consciousness, I create the perception of a less than whole life. 
  • I believe that conscious use of prayer, meditation, and thought can increase my awareness of wholeness and bring me and my “world” into alignment with that Power and Presence.
  • I believe that my purpose in this lifetime is to consciously experience the oneness in all points of energy as I come in contact with them and through every manifestation of my thoughts and feelings.

Definition of Key Terms:

Being:  1 a: the quality or state of having existence; b (1): something conceivable as existing (2): something that actually exists (3): the totality of existing things c: conscious existence : life  2: the qualities that constitute an existent thing : essence; especially : personality3: a living thing; especially : person

Paradox:  1: a tenet contrary to received opinion; 2 a: a statement that is seemingly contradictory or opposed to common sense and yet is perhaps true; b: a self-contradictory statement that at first seems true; c: an argument that apparently derives self-contradictory conclusions by valid deduction from acceptable premises; 3: one (as a person, situation, or action) having seemingly contradictory qualities or phases

 

These two words are at the core of my past and present views of God.

Now for more commentary –

I have often said somewhat jokingly that my God was always bigger than the God I learned about from church and family.  And now looking back, I remember asking as a young child how could an all-loving, all-knowing God send all those good people in China to hell?  I had an aunt who was Catholic and hadn’t “accepted Jesus as her personal Savior.”  I knew that my God was not going to send her to hell!  If not bigger, my God was at least more inclusive.

And – even my larger, more inclusive God was a being more in the nature of the second and third definitions shown above – an existent thing, a personality, a living thing or person.  God was usually a “He,” a perfect being, far beyond all other beings, the creator of all.  The concepts and words of traditional religion, crafted to describe this God, worked most of the time.  I must say that the one part of this traditional religious framework that I never quite accepted was the belief in an equal and opposing evil power, ever present, waging a war for my soul.  While I didn’t have a good rebuttal to the traditional argument for, I just didn’t buy it – so I ignored it!

The religious beliefs that supported this mythic God did not always mix well with the every expanding scientific knowledge of the time.  In my immediate environment, often the two worlds – religion and science –  were estranged at best and enemies at worst.  It was in fact this rift between religion and science that created one of the early cracks in my evolving chicken/egg.  I was faced with what I saw as blind faith and hard facts.  The hard facts won out.  And so, in my early 30’s the disconnect between what I felt and g-knew God to be, what science was uncovering about the way the world and humans worked, and the structures and words that my religious tradition used to speak of, and reach for, God became too wide to ignore.  I began to consciously seek out a more universal framework within which I could live and move and have my being. 

Much of this search for a new framework was intellectually driven because I knew at the time that I had locked my mind into a very narrow box and much more data and a broader perspective were needed.  Also, at that time, my heart was pretty badly encrusted.  Interestingly enough, many of my first search paths focused on very mystical traditions – Celtic paganism, Celtic Christianity, Shamanism, and Taoism.  These traditions, with their focus on meditation and spiritual journeys, reawakened my soul to the mystical spirituality of God and began the second major crack in the egg.

As I understand it now, I was moving out of a Blue Stage of consciousness evolution (Spiral Dynamics, Don Beck) with its mythic God view – a god separate and apart from humans, ethnocentric, a patriarchal god of law – into an Orange Stage consciousness with its scientific God view – a god that is universal – humanist – giant within waiting to be empowered – requiring no dogma – embracing materialism and pragmatism.  This was the first of several shifts of consciousness for me, each bringing a new “view of God.”   (I will write more about Spiral Dynamics in part IV of this project).

For me today, my God-view is more aligned with that of an Integrative Yellow Stage of consciousness evolution – a god that is universal – a god of systems, integration and paradox – manifests “godself” through evolutionary process – fosters the ‘magnificence of existence’ – god of all religions and peoples.  This God looks more like the first definition of being – the totality of existence. 

I believe this is the God Emilie Cady speaks of in Lessons in Truth (quoted here with a couple of minor changes made by me and shown in italics) – ‘God, the source of our existence every moment, is not simply omnipotent; God is omnipotence.  God is not alone omniscient; God is omniscience.  God is not only omnipresent, but more – omnipresence.  God is not a being having qualities; God is the very quality itself in existence and beyond.  Everything you can think of that affirms life, when in its absolute perfection, goes to make up that invisible Being we call God.    God is then the creative essence that is.’  Charles Fillmore also described this God in Teach Us To Pray in more traditional language, “We cannot get a right understanding of the relation that the manifest bears to the unmanifest, until we set clearly before ourselves the character of original Being.  So long as we think of God in terms of personality, just so long shall we fail to understand the relation existing between humankind and God.”   

In his writings, Charles used a number of names for God – First Cause, Principle, Divine Mind.    It was this language that first drew me to Unity.  These terms and others that come from other faith traditions and from our technological environment resonate with my present understanding of God.  From Taoism and Native American spirituality, the Tao and Great Mystery; from modern culture, Divine Matrix, Web of Life, Zero Point Field, even the Infinite Database!  For me, these names more effectively call out the image and feeling of interconnectedness of all things and suggest a core substance from which we are drawn and from which we manifest all matter.    

Quantum physicists now tell us that quantum particles exist in a state called “superposition” in which they are just a potential of something – they’re all of their possible selves, all at the same time.  And here is how  Charles Fillmore defines Substance in Revealing Word, “This does not mean matter, because matter is formed while God is the formless.  The substance that God is lies back of all matter and all forms.  It is that which is the basis of all form yet enters not into any form as finality.  It cannot be seen, tasted, or touched.  Yet it is the only enduring substance in the universe.” (pg 85)   In other words, God by any name is the realm of pure potential.    What a magnificent new way to see a powerful idea! 

Also from the new physics we learn that everything is energy and that thoughts are very well-ordered light energy called bio-photon emissions.   According to German physicist, Fritz-Allen Popp, these bio-photon emissions are micro energy trades between living things and the Zero Point Field (the quantum energy field of which all things are part) and that this constant trading process helps us maintain some sort of equilibrium.   If I may paraphrase Jesus, our Wayshower – I am the Light of the World and all those who seek after the truth that I am will have peace.  I believe that we must search in the new sciences for just  such updated versions of the very old message.

Also, within this present Integrative level God-view, I find that I can address and work with the paradoxes – those statements or tenets that appear contradictory or opposed to common sense, and are perhaps true – that I struggled with in lower level consciousness.  

The four major paradoxes and a brief statement of Unity definition shown below provide me with a basis from which to begin in any discussion, meditation and teaching.

 God As Immanent and Transcendent:

As Immanent, “the life and intelligence permeating the universe…God within us, forever resident in the invisible side of humankind’s nature.” (RW/85)

As Transcendent, “God above or beyond God’s universe, apart from it…God is more than God’s universe.” (RW/196)

God As Father and Mother

“Being itself must be masculine and feminine, in order to make humans in its image and likeness, male and female.”  (TTP/53)

“We are saying God as Father and God as Mother.  God is the divine Source of the masculine and feminine principles of life…” (Metaphysics I/25)

 God As Law and Grace

As Law:  “Divine law is the orderly workingout of the principles of Being, or the divine ideals, into expression and manifestation throughout creation…Divine law cannot be broken.  It holds humankind responsible for the results of its labors.”  (RW/118)

As Grace: “Grace is attunement with law in its perfect working…simply the Truth of Be-ing that which we are.” (LL/89/222)

God As Principle and Personal

As Principle:  “The unchangeable life, love, substance and intelligence of Being.  Principle does not occupy space; neither has it any limitations of time or matter, it eternally exists as the one underlying cause out of which come forth all true ideas.”  (RW/84)

As Personal: “God is personal to us when we recognize God within us as our indwelling life, intelligence, love and power.  There is a difference between a personal God and God personal to us.  Since the word personal sometimes leads to misunderstanding, it would probably be better to speak to God individualized in humankind rather than of God personal to humankind.” (RW/83)

My present view of the Nature of God is based on both/and not either/or, a view that is open to the unity behind the duality without angst and struggle.

I plan to cover my thoughts and beliefs around the paradoxes of Immanent/Transcendent, Father/Mother and Principle/Personal in the next installment.  I believe that these are best discussed in light of how humankind is in relation to God.  The paradox of Law and Grace I’m still working on a clear understanding.

In this Integrative God View of mine I have also found the rebuttal for the argument that Satan is a real power in opposition to God.  The Unity teachings on Satan, the Devil, and evil provide the words that I could not find before.  From the Revealing Word is this definition of the Devil:  the mass of thoughts that have been built up in human race consciousness through many generations of earthly experiences and crystallized into what may be termed human personality…which opposes and rejects God.  The ‘devil’ is a state of consciousness adverse to the divine good…There is no personal devil.  God is the one Principle of the universe, and there is no room for any principle of evil, personified or otherwise.” (pg54) 

The discussion to this point has centered primarily on an intellectual journey and expansion, and yet there can be no real expansion or evolution of consciousness if I am not in touch with the intuitive or g-nowing heart center.   As I journeyed through the non-traditional traditions mentioned earlier, I rediscovered the knowledge of the five natural states of consciousness and their impact on knowing:

  1. gross-waking states
  2. subtle-dreams states, e.g., vivid daydreams, visualization, certain types of meditation
  3. causal-formless states, e.g., deep dreamless sleep and yoga, meditation
  4. witnessing states, i.e., the capacity to witness all of the other states
  5. ever-present nondual awareness, i.e., the ever-present ground of all states – oneness
    (Ken Wilber)

Each one of us uses one or more of these states of consciousness daily, regardless of what stage of conscious evolution we are moving in.  It is in the states beyond gross waking that we find the experiential knowing of the nature of God.  It is the heart-centered focus of the mystic in us that can lift this search for a truer understanding of the nature of God past the intellect.  Through such practices as meditation and prayer, some yoga, and on-going reflection on my own inner nature, I have caught momentary glimpses of the connectedness and joy that so many of  the mystics have shared with us as they attempted to describe the indescribable – the sudden and blinding light on the road to Damascus, the awe at the grandeur of the heavens, the sense of calm serenity when a decision is reached, the radiance and beauty of a landscape covered with new fallen snow, the unbounded joy of a child’s laughter at the dancing rainbow, the strength of a woman in great pain as she reached to help her roommate who is dying of cancer, the palpable energy of oneness on Sunday morning as we sing together and pray.  All of these people, places and events are the nature of God. 

The following quote from Peace Pilgrim, an American peace activist, expresses beautifully what I believe is part of our understanding of this Nature of God:

“All of a sudden I felt very uplifted, more uplifted than I had ever been.  I remember I knew timelessness, and spacelessness and lightness.  I did not seem to be walking on the earth…the most important part of it was not the phenomena; the important part of it was the realization of the oneness of all creation…a oneness with that which permeates all and binds all together and gives life to all…a oneness with that which many would call God.”

In working with the levels or stages of consciousness evolution as outlined by Beck in Spiral Dynamics, I have come to understand that when I move into a new level of consciousness and hence a new view of God, I naturally have available to me the understanding of all views in levels through which I have moved.     Because i have this ability, I then can extrapolate a belief that whatever is not clear to me today about God, its nature and its paradoxes will be known to me as I am willing to open myself to greater and greater awareness of the Infinite. 

As I wrote in Part I of this project, I was born into a world where God existed.  There has never been a time when I doubted that there was a Presence and may there never be such a time.

Posted in consciousness, Credo, God, personal | Leave a Comment »

A Quote from Charles

August 23, 2007

“All power has its birth in the silence.  There is no exception to this rule in all the evidence of life.  Noise is the dying vibration of a spent force.  All the clatter of visibility, from the harangue of the politician to the thunder’s roar, is but evidence of exhausted power.”
Charles Fillmore

During the month of September, the first of four Seasons for Peace and Nonviolence – the Season for Interfaith Celebration – will begin.  On September 11th, there will be several Remembrance Services in the area.  On September 13th, we will join Unity communities worldwide in observing the Unity World Day of Prayer, this year’s theme being World Peace.  On September 21st, the Frederick Forum for the Seasons for Nonviolence will host the International Day of Peace program at the Baker Park Band shell beginning at 5:30 pm. 

All of these wonderful activities will bring people together from a wide variety of faith traditions and walks of life – each one holding his or her dream of peace.  In these gatherings we have a opportunity to channel the power of peace to our community and to the world – if only we don’t dissipate that power with soundbites and hot air.   Sometimes it is more powerful to stand together in silence than to attempt to persuade with speech – to be open to the energy and consciousness of love and compassion as it moves through us and from us – to keep our hands clasped as we move through the issues.  AND so, while I agree with Charles that ‘noise is a dying vibration of power,’ I also believe that words combined with feeling are what we use to bring forth from the silence the world in which we desire to live.   So maybe more space between more considered words is what is called for now!  May it be so!

Posted in consciousness, current issues, seeing the world | Leave a Comment »

The True Church

July 11, 2007

Pope Benedict’s recent summary and clarification of Dominion Iesus,  a theological treatise about ecclesiology published by the Vatican in the year 2000 during the pontificate of John Paul II, is an interesting piece of work.  In his clarification document, Pope Benedict XVI asserted yesterday that the Roman Catholic Church is the “one church” that Christ “established here on Earth” and that other Christian denominations “cannot be called ‘churches’ in the proper sense…..” 

In the Baltimore Sun we find this quote: “It’s a clarification of the meaning of the word church,” said Lawrence S. Cunningham, who writes a column for the Catholic magazine Commonweal and is a theologian at the University of Notre Dame. “Behind this document is the worry that the language of ecumenism has become too flabby and too imprecise, and too Pollyannish about glossing over real doctrinal positions.”  Again from the International Herald Tribune,  ‘The document released Tuesday focused largely on the Vatican definition of what constitutes a church, which it defined as being traceable through its bishops to Christ’s original apostles. Thus, it said, the world’s Orthodox Christians make up a church because of shared history, if “separated” from the “proper” Catholic tradition; Protestants, who split from Catholicism during the Reformation, are considered only “Christian communities.”  The document repeated church teaching that the Roman Catholic Church alone is the mediator of salvation, though other beliefs can be its “instrument.”‘
Father Johnathan, writing for Fox News, says that this clarification was written for theologian and should not be taken as a press release.

As a person who believes strongly in the power of words and that clarity is important, I applaud the Pope’s desire to be clear, if not his interpretations and methods.   And this document does make the position of the Roman Catholic Church clear.  Perhaps it would have been better if it had been released only to theologians, because now it clearly has reached the world in “press release-ese”. 

The International Herald Tribune headline reads: “Pope restates ‘defects’ of other Christian faiths….”  The Baltimore Sun headline reads: “Pontiff  asserts Catholic primacy.”  The Chicago Sun-Tribune reads: “Catholicism is the only true church, Vatican declares.”  ABC and Reuters reads: “Vatican says other Christian churches ‘wounded.'”

As a person who has travelled an eclectic road with God, I don’t need the Pope to define for me what the True Church is.  AND if he sees it as part of his calling as the leader of the Roman Catholic Church to define it for them, then God bless him.   I feel sad that he, and judging by the press coverage, many in the rest of the world, seem to think that he might be the arbiter of this question for everyone else.  I believe that his words, regardless of the reasons for issuing them,  will not help bring unity and peace to this world.  It is my belief that going back to old language, old rituals, old thought patterns will not bring about evolved thinking, believing and doing.  

From the depths of my being, I affirm that together we will find new words, the new rituals, the new thought patterns that represent God, the Infinite Spirit, the Eternal One – and that these “new” ideas and concepts will show us how to recognize and apply the truths taught by all the great teachers in a unifying, inclusive, and nonviolent way.  

“The church of Christ covers every department of our existance and enters into every fiber of our being. 
We carry it with us day and night, seven days of the week.  We live in it as a fish lives in water; as we become conscious of its enveloping presence, we are transformed into a new creature.  Life becomes an ecstasy, and our cup is full to overflowing.”  from Talks on Truth, Charles Fillmore. 

Posted in consciousness, current issues, God, seeing the world, society | 1 Comment »

Question of Fear

July 5, 2007

In Sojomail, the weekly email-zine sent out by Rev Jim Wallis, he listed 4 questions that he was not able to ask the three leading Democratic candidates during the Candidate Forum on Faith, Values, and Poverty held on June 4th.  The first was about our commitment to Africa; the second concerned the impact that the world view outlined in the beatitudes (peace, justice) would have on their leadership; the fourth dealt with the relationship between faith-based initiatives and the government.  All of these are relevant questions.  However it was the third one that really caught my attention –
“3.   The command “be not afraid” appears frequently in the Bible, and yet U.S. foreign policy seems to be driven by fear, primarily of terrorist attacks. Our leaders seek to justify the most important decisions in foreign policy with dire warnings of impending attacks. Have we let fear push out wisdom and prudence as the primary virtues of foreign policy? Should the biblical command “be not afraid” have a role in foreign policy decision-making?”

And actually, I would broaden the question – I would replace the word “foreign” with “domestic and foreign”.  We seem to have fear of terrorists, fear of immigrants, fear of recession, fear of inflation, fear of liberals, fear of conservatives, fear of homosexuals, fear of aging, fear of death, fear of criticism, fear of change – and on and on –  as conscious and unconscious influences in our societal and governmental decisions. The question has been asked, “Is the threat real or is this a manipulation tactic by decision makers to push through an agenda?”  And if the threat is real, do we, as individuals and as a government, really have a good understanding of the causes behind the threat?  And then, why fear, rather than optimism around solutions?  Why does it seem easier for us as a nation and as individuals to move to fear rather than hope?  

When we’re not sure that the ground under our feet is stable, we get anxious, fearful – When ‘who we are’ is no longer clear, we get anxious, fearful – When our purpose, our vision is no longer clear and well-defined, we get anxious, fearful.  When these conditions exist, we find fear and, to reach past fear,  we are called to do some re-defining.  In this country, we have had a number of these redefining moments in history.  After most of these “moments,” the pace of the world around us was such that we had breathing space to clarify, regroup, rethink, realign.   The impact of a decision made during these “realigning” times was not necessarily immediate – it took a bit more time for the news to get out, for all of the primary and secondary systems to be affected.  Issued created by the decision could be surfaced and tweaked before the whole world knew!  We as individuals had a bit more time to absorb the effects of the change.  We had time to integrate the “New” and become comfortable with the new terrain under our feet.  This “time” gave us the opportunity to move from fear to hope, to love, to stability. 

Our world today moves at a much more rapid pace; the level of real-time connection is amazing.  The amount of information each individual has access to tends to be overwhelming.  The rate of change is astounding.  The following quote from Ray Kurzweil, inventor and futurist, brings this into perspective:
“Centuries ago people didn’t think that the world was changing at all.  Their grandparents had the same lives that they did, and they expected their grandchildren would do the same, and that expectation was largely fulfilled….What’s not fully understood is that the pace of change is itself accelerating, and the last 20 years are not a good guide to the next 20 years.  We’re doubling the paradigm shift rate, the rate of progress, every decade.  This will actually match the amount of progress we made in the whole 20th century, because we’ve been accelerating up to this point.  The 20th century was like 25 years of change at today’s rate of change.  In the next 25 years, we’ll make four times the progress you saw in the 20th century.  And we’ll make 20,000 years of progress in the 21st century, which is almost a thousand times more technical change than we saw in the 20th century.”


When I ponder this quote, I think of my father – The year he was born, the Wright Brothers were still working to get us to accept airplanes as viable modes of transportation.  Before he passed away at 83, men had walked on the moon and there was an international space station.  Dad said on several occasions that her was having a difficult time keeping up!  And even if Mr. Kurzweil is overestimating the rate of change by 50%, this 21st century is going to be a really wild ride! Now, back to the original question – should the guidance of Jesus – “be not afraid” – play a part in our world – our governmental policy – our daily lives?  If fear comes from change and uncertainty, then in a time of such change and uncertainty, how can we ‘be not afraid’?   Can we find things of which we are certain – can we use these things to build a more stable foundation, a more peaceful world?   I don’t know about things of which we are all certain; however, I know there are ideas – concepts – that appear to be universal and perenniel.  For me, these provide a good starting point.  More on them next time!

Posted in consciousness, current issues, society | Leave a Comment »

I choose love

May 18, 2007

Posted in consciousness, video | 1 Comment »

Reflections on an article by Ken Wilber

May 16, 2007

I stumbled across an column written by Ken Wilber entitled – what else – An Integral Spiritualityon Beliefnet.  In it he sets out”…. seven general items [or currents] that regularly recur in humanity’s attempts to know God…”  He adds that “….these similarities would seem to suggest, among other things, that there are spiritual patterns at work in the universe, at least as far as we can tell, and these spiritual patterns announce themselves with impressive regularity wherever human hearts and minds attempt to attune themselves to the cosmos in all its radiant dimensions.”   If this is so, does that mean that we humans are “hardwired” for spirituality?  Wilber would suggest yes and that the variety of expression of that spirituality are based on a number of factors, including but not limited to perspectives, such as first-person, second-person and third-person perspectives, and levels of consciousness and development. 
The “integral” spirituality that Wilber articulates would be one that “…claims to leave nothing essential out.  It would be a spirituality that in principle could be recognized and even practiced by believers in all the world’s religions without abandoning their own essentials.  If would be inclusive and comprehensive….”
If this integral spirituality is possible, would it not also include, in addition to the accepted practices of prayer, meditation, yoga, contemplation, modern psychological and psychotherapeutic measures?  Would it not “….transcend and include science”? 
So what are these seven general currents or similarities that recur in almost all great wisdom traditions?  As Wilber states in his column, “this is not the last word on the topic, but the first word, a simple list of suggestions to get the conversation going.  Most of the great wisdom traditions agree that:
1.  Spirit, by whatever name, exists.
2.  Spirit, although existing “out there,” is found “in here,” or revealed within to the open heart and mind.
3.  Most of us don’t realize this Spirit within, however, because we are living in a world of sin, separation, or duality – that is, we are living in a fallen, illusory, or fragmented state.
4. There is a way out of this fallen state (of sin or illusion or disharmony); there is a Path to our liberation [or wholeness].
5.  If we follow this Path to its conclusion, the result is a Rebirth or Enlightenment, a direct experience of Spirit within and without, a Supreme Liberation, which
6.  marks the end of sin and suffering, and
7.  manifests in social action of mercy and compassion on behalf of all sentient beings.”

If these 7 patterns or currents make sense, we might just have a starting point for dialogue.  We could debate the details without calling into questions the foundation of our various “traditions.”  I believe he’s on to something!

More on this in later postings!

Posted in consciousness, God | Leave a Comment »

Are we listening?

May 5, 2007

A quote from Quantum Listening: From Practice to Theory To Practice by Pauline Oliveros:   “Listening is the key to performance. Hearing is the passive basis of listening. Hearing is involuntary. Hearing protects us from unseen dangers. We can hear without listening. (Unconsciousness) We choose to listen inwardly or outwardly to the past, present or future. (Consciousness) Listening actively directs one’s attention to what is heard, to the interaction of the relationships of sounds and modes of attention. We hear in order to listen. We listen in order to interpret our world and experience meaning. Our world is a complex matrix of vibrating energy, matter and air just as we are made of vibrations. Vibration connects us with all beings and connects us to all things interdependently. We open in order to listen to the world as a field of possibilities and we listen with narrowed attention for specific things of vital interest to us in the world. We interpret what we hear according to the way we listen. Through accessing many forms of listening we grow and change whether we listen to the sounds of our daily lives, the environment or music.” 
How often am I hearing, rather than listening – deep listening?  And when I’m really listening, how many layers – how many dimensions – can I recognize? 

Posted in consciousness | 2 Comments »

Newer Entries »