Harry Potter and the Twelve Powers: Love

 

Welcome back to our 12-week series, Harry Potter and the Twelve Powers.  Last Sunday we looked at the power of Faith.  Parker Palmer summarizes that Lesson this way;

“Faith is a venture into the unknown, into the realms of mystery, away from the safe and comfortable and secure. When we remain in the security of familiar surroundings, we have no need of faith. The very idea of faith suggests a movement away from our earthly securities into the distant, the unsettling, the strange.”
Today, we are going to look at the power of Love.  Love is the inner light that enables us to see good in all people, and I might add, in all life.

 

According to Rev. David Williamson, the second power, the power of Love, is our ability to know oneness with all and to desire that only good comes to all.  Love heals, harmonizes, renews, prospers and unites. Love is our ability to share, to draw together.  Our consciousness of love casts out fear, loneliness and ego demands.

 

 

“Love,” more than any of our spiritual powers, is thought of as something that comes to us from other people.  We think of “love” as something that others give to us rather than something we are.  We think of love as something we need to “feel”, rather than as part of the Cosmic process of which we are all an active expression.

Just as the heart circulates life-giving blood throughout our bodies, love circulates life-giving sustenance through our thinking-feeling nature and throughout our bodies and affairs.

 

Love is a spiritual power that we all have and we experience by loving.  Rev. Williamson relates that what the world needs now is not more love, but more “loving.”  In other words, we need to stop looking at love as a noun, and start realizing that it is a verb.

I gave a whole Lesson on Love as a Verb in the past.

 

Eric Butterworth taught, “You cannot give love to anyone, and no one can give love to you. You can be loving, which will create an environment in which others may find it easy to radiate and express love – and thus be loving to you.  Love is not a commodity to give, but a process through which you touch and express your own deeper nature.  Love, then, is not the plaything of the emotions or senses, but the action of divine law.”

 

Jesus taught us to love our neighbors as ourselves.  So often we forget the “as ourselves” part.  What does this mean?  It means we need to recognize that we are love.  Implicit in this self-awareness is that worthiness is irrelevant.  If you have brown hair, are you worried over whether or not you are worthy of brown hair?  Of course not.  You are Love.  It is your basic nature.  Worthiness is not the issue… but perhaps acceptance of that truth is.

 

Are we willing to love ourselves, truly and deeply?  Not in the narcissistic way that society tends to define self-love, but in a spiritually mature, centered, “within-dependent” way.  “Within dependent” as opposed to co-dependent.  Truly empathic, as opposed to patronizing.  What’s the difference?  True empathy is not saying “I understand just how you feel” because that’s impossible.  We can only feel our own feelings.  Empathy is not sympathy.  Empathy is a willingness to put ourselves into another person’s experience, a desire to truly understand.  The Native American’s put it this way, “I will walk four moons in the moccasins of my brother before judging him.”

 

How different our world would be if we all were willing to walk four moons in each other moccasins before judgment.

 

Charles Fillmore wrote, “We may talk about the wisdom of God, but the love of God must be felt in the heart.  It cannot be described, and one who has not felt it can have no concept of it from the descriptions of others.  The more we talk about love, the stronger it grows in the consciousness. If we persist in thinking loving thoughts and speaking loving words, we are sure to bring into our experience the feeling of that great love that is beyond description – the very love of God.”

 

In his book of Toltec wisdom, The Mastery of Love, Don Miguel Ruiz teaches that there are two sources for our emotions: Love and Fear.

 

Love has no obligations.  Fear is full of obligations.  In the track of fear, whatever we do is because we have to do it, and we expect other people to do something because they have to do it.  We have the obligation and as soon as we have to, we resist it.  The more we resist, the more we suffer.  Love on the other hand, has no resistance.  Whatever we do is because we want to do it. It becomes a pleasure; it’s like a game, and we have fun with it.

 

Love has no expectations.  Fear is full of expectations.  When something we expect doesn’t happen, we feel hurt.  We blame others for not fulfilling our expectations.  When we love, we don’t have expectations; we do it because we want to, and if other people do it or not, it’s because they want to or not, and it’s nothing personal.  The “not taking it personally” is such an important point.  When we take anything personally, we instantly shift from a place of contributing to our relationship or situation, to making it all about us.  And since who we are, who we came here to be, is all about making a contribution, this shift takes us out of integrity.

 

Love is based on respect. Fear doesn’t respect anything, including itself.  If I feel sorry for you, it means I don’t respect you.  If I don’t respect you, then I try to control you.  Most of the time when we tell people how to live their lives, it is because we don’t respect them. We try to do for them what they should do for themselves.  When we don’t respect ourselves, we feel sorry for ourselves.  We tell ourselves we’re not good enough to make it in the world.  Self-pity comes from disrespect.

 

Love is ruthless; it doesn’t feel sorry for anyone, but it does have compassion.  Fear is full of pity; it feels sorry for everyone. On the other hand, love respects. I love you; I know you can make it.  I know you are strong enough, intelligent enough, good enough that you can make your own choices. If you fall, I can give you my hand, I can help you stand up.  I can say, “You can do it, go ahead.”  This is compassion, but it is not the same as feeling sorry.  Compassion comes out of respect and love; feeling sorry comes from a lack of respect and fear.

 

Love is completely responsible.  Fear avoids responsibility.  Trying to avoid responsibility is one of the biggest mistakes we can make, because every action has a consequence.  This is one of the wonderful things about Unity, we encourage each other to ‘do the right thing’, to be responsible.

 

Love is always kind.  Fear is always unkind.  Anger is nothing but fear with a mask. Sadness is fear with a mask. Jealousy is fear with a mask. With all those emotions that come from fear and create suffering, we can only pretend to be kind. We are not kind because we don’t feel good, we are not happy. If you are in the track of love, you don’t feel sorry for yourself or others.  You feel good about yourself, and because you are happy, you are kind. Love is always kind, and that kindness makes you generous and opens all the doors.  Love is generous; fear is selfish.

 

Love is unconditional. Fear is full of conditions.  In the track of fear, I love you IF you let me control you, IF you are good to me, IF you fit into the image I make for you. In the track of love, there is no IF; there are no conditions.  I love your for not reason, with no justification. I love you the way you are, and you are free to be the way you are. If I don’t like the way you are, then I’d better be with someone who is the way I like them to be.  We don’t have the right to change anyone else, and no one else has the right to change us.  If we are going to change, it is because we want to change, because we don’t want to suffer any longer.

 

Ruiz concludes this teaching by observing that, “We can talk about love and write a thousand books about it, but love will be completely different for each of us because we have to experience love.  Love is not about concepts; love is about action.  Love in action can only produce happiness. Fear in action can only produce suffering.

The only way to master love is to practice love. You don’t need to justify your love, you don’t need to explain your love; you just need to practice your love.  Practice creates the master.”

 

The Harry Potter character that symbolizes love is the half-giant, Reubeus Hagrid.  Hagrid is the Keeper of Keys and Grounds at Hogwarts, and later, the teacher of the Care of Magical Creatures.  It is Hagrid who reveals the truth to Harry about his wizard parents and Harry’s own history.  Hagrid is early on revealed to be tender hearted and prone to tears. Despite his outward appearance, Harry immediately loves Hagrid. And Hagrid displays his love of all creatures, no matter how the creature may appear to others, like dragon babies and huge three-headed dogs named Fluffy. And we can’t forget his half-brother, Grop

 

Hagrid loves unconditionally.  Hagrid looks beyond appearances and sees into the heart.  Because he is so loving, he draws love to him.  Cora Fillmore wrote, “Love is the attractive force that draws our good to us according to the depth and strength of our realization of love.”  Hagrid’s realization of love is of such a depth and strength that he exudes good and therefore draws good to him, even though it sometimes takes a while to see it.

 

I find it interesting that it is Hagrid, our symbol of the power of love, who reveals the truth to Harry about his heritage.  Jesus taught us to speak the truth in love, and that the truth will set us free.  Hagrid didn’t try to protect Harry from the truth, but loved and respected him enough to tell him that truth.  Remember the teaching of Don Miguel Ruiz?  Hagrid didn’t feel sorry for Harry, he didn’t pity Harry because of his difficult childhood.  He respected Harry, and therefore told him the truth.

 

And what is that truth?  From The Mastery of Love, “The teachings that come from India, from the Toltecs, the Christians, the Greeks – from societies all over the world – come from the same truth.  They talk about reclaiming your Divinity and finding God within you. They talk about having your heart completely open and becoming wise. Can you imagine what kind of world this would be if all humans opened their hearts and found the love inside?  We can do that!  Everyone can do it in their own way. It’s not about following any imposed idea; it’s about finding yourself….

 

When you love with no conditions, you the human, and you the God, align with the Spirit of Life moving through you.  Your life becomes the expression of the beauty of the Spirit.  “Life is nothing but a dream, and if you create your life with Love, you dream becomes a masterpiece of art.”

 

Harry Potter and the Twelve Powers: Faith

 

Today we start a series on the 12 powers and we will include a character from the Harry Potter book series to make things a bit more interesting.

 

Most of you know of my love of all things Harry Potter. And Charles Fillmore’s 12 Powers are a very important part of our love of Unity and our souls growth.

 

Today we will look at the power of Faith; did you place Ron Weasley with Faith?

 

 

 

The twelve powers, as suggested by Jesus and discerned by Charles Fillmore, are basic, primal spiritual gifts or abilities that everyone possesses.  We don’t acquire these Powers; we already have them. We use our Twelve Powers all the time, according to our understanding of them.

 

The Twelve Powers are: Faith, Love, Strength, Wisdom, Power, Imagination, Understanding, Will, Order, Enthusiasm (Zeal), Release (Renunciation), Life.

 

 

According to the Rev. Dr. David Williamson:

 

Our suffering, frustration, sense of failure, and world disorder come mostly from our misuse or imbalance in the use of our Powers. Constructive, enlightened understanding and use of our Powers leads to salvation.  The word salvation comes from the Latin salvus which means healing or wholeness.  Salvation or being saved means the state of healing or wholeness that comes about by allowing the Christ consciousness to call forth and direct our Powers, as Jesus called forth and commissioned his disciples to carry forth his.

 

 

 

Faith is a spiritual power, but it is not confined to religion. We use our Faith power whenever we give mental attention to something.

 

In Matt. 9:29, “According to your faith be it done to you.”

 

Faith enables us to look past appearance of lack, limitation, or difficulty. With faith, we can take hold of a divine idea and believe in it even though we do not yet see any physical evidence of it.

 

It goes beyond thinking to knowing with ones whole being the Truth of the unseen.

 

Have you ever thought, “Oh, if only I had more faith!”  You already have all the faith you will ever need.  The issue is not how much faith you have, but where your faith is invested. We all have faith on many different levels and in many different ways, but its most perfect expression is found within our spiritual nature. It is that deep inner knowing that the good you desire is already yours.

 

The Buddha said it this way, “All that we are is the result of what we have thought.”

This is good news and bad news, because what this means is that we usually get exactly what we believe in, what we have faith in.

The ancient text called the Upanishads addresses this area of belief and faith with the analogy of a ball being batted back and forth.

It states that we human beings, given our basic belief in separation, are batted by two seeming forces within: one, the upward drive to evolve into the spiritual awakened beings that we are, aware of our oneness with all life, and as such, the ability to see ourselves and others as one powerful and infinite Mind; the other, the fierce downward thrust of our past conditioning as separate, self-oriented, physical creatures, at the mercy of all kinds of outer forces.

Charles Fillmore said that “Faith is the perceiving power of the mind.”  Faith is inner-sight, or insight.  It is our ability to look, to perceive, with our mind, to give our mental attention to something. Faith is our ability to draw our good from the invisible to the visible realm.

 

What are you placing your faith in? The outer world?  Some other person or thing? Money maybe?

This is an important question to be asking yourself.

 

Peter is the disciple of Faith, not because he was always faithful, but because he wasn’t, not at first.  Peter chose to deepen his power of Faith.  He grew in his ability to perceive and to believe. When Peter recognized the truth of who Jesus was, he was opened to the possibility of who he, Peter, was.  That they were both sons of God, as we are all children of God. It could be said that Peter had the ultimate a-ha moment, a glimpse of the higher realization of truth.

We’ve all had them, those moments of seeing behind the veil, of sensing the truth of who we are, and the truth of our existence. Many of those moments are subtle, almost constant, and often undiscerned and unheeded. Occasionally, the calls are quite dramatic–sudden, powerful, life-changing experiences that literally pick us up and point us toward our destiny. A crisis, loss of job, breakup of a relationship, disillusionment with life, etc. We could call them wake up calls from God.

Heb. 11:1 states; “Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” 

 

Are you familiar with the movie Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade?  Indiana Jones was on a search for the holy grail, the most sacred of Christian artifacts.  He was literally within arms reach of the prize when his father, on the quest with him, was mortally wounded.  Only water from the well of life, found with the grail, could save him.

 

To make the last step of his journey, he had to cross a bottomless chasm.  There was no visible bridge.  But the instructions, although cryptic, were clear that all that was needed was a step of faith.  Not a leap, not a bound, just a step.  So, Indie took a deep breath, visibly shaking, and stepped into the chasm.  As if by magic, a bridge appeared before him and he could walk safely to the cave that held the grail. What we see once he’s on the bridge, however, is that it has been there all along.  He needed to be willing to step out onto it before it could be seen. He needed to change his perspective before the miracle became visible.

 

The bridge had always been there.  But until someone had the faith to take that first step, it had remained invisible.

 

If you have eyes to see and ears to hear.

 

 

So where does Harry Potter and Ron Weasley fit in with the Power of Faith?

 

One of six children in a family of wizards, Ron is the youngest boy. Although fiercely loyal to Harry, Ron does have his moments of human jealousy and anger, just as our faith might waver.  Like Peter, Ron represents faith because he grew into his ability to perceive and believe.  Ron has faith that things will work out, even when appearances say otherwise.

 

Read Sorcerer’s Stone, pages 281 – 284.

Ron had faith that his sacrifice would not be in vain, that the universe was on his side.

 

He set himself up against the history of his brothers who had successful, & in the case of the twins, interesting examples before him at Hogwarts.   Yet he also believed in himself as he chose who he would be at school. Throughout the 7 books you could see him coming into his own wisdom and courage.

 

Marianne Williamson teaches that, To trust in the force that moves the universe is faith.  Faith isn’t blind, it’s visionary. Faith is believing that the universe is on our side, and that the universe knows what it’s doing. Faith is a psychological awareness of an unfolding force for good, constantly at work in all dimensions.

 

Like Indie stepping into the chasm, Ron was willing to step onto the chessboard, taking his place in the game, and ultimately saving his friends

 

(For those of you who haven’t read the book, he was only injured and lived to be Harry’s best friend in all the books.)

 

 

Ron’s faith was evident throughout the book series. You will see his attraction to Hermione grow through the books too, and I believe he had faith that they would eventually be together.

 

I won’t say much more in case you wish to read the books yourselves. Worth the read!

 

 

So, we see, Faith isn’t blind, it’s visionary. We need to check ourselves, have we connected to our inner Higher Self?  Have we unlocked that vault of faith available to us if we just let it unfold?

 

How do we do that? Here are some steps suggested by Rev. Winifred Wilkinson Hausmann in her book, ‘Your God Given Potential’:

 

1. Receptivity – listen, learn, & grow in understanding of spiritual truths and being receptive to God-ideas.
2. Assent –  go beyond receptivity till you are willing to agree with the spiritual truths for further, deeper investigation.
3. Belief – the mental acknowledgement of Truth that is an outgrowth of these first 2 steps. It is the ability to believe intellectually, if not yet wholly, in the goodness of God.
4. Trust –  Step from the intellectual acceptance of Truth ideas to the spiritual realization of them. Deepen your trust and reinforce it with understanding until you have a faith that is the basis for action.
5. Faith –  Believe in the divine potential that is the Christ; understanding that it inspires you to action.
6. Conviction – When you have conquered all doubts, fears, and even the temptation to judge by your senses, you reach a point of spiritual conviction.
7. Realization –  you no longer have faith you are the Christ expression of faith.

 

 

“According to your faith be it done to you” (Matt. 9:29).

Who here is a baseball fan? Why talk about Baseball?  Well, it’s only fair after all, we did talk about football before the Super Bowl.

Baseball aficionados will tell you that it is more than a sport, it’s a state of mind. And because we are spiritual, everything is spiritual, so Baseball is a spiritual thing.

But this is not just a sport.  Opening Day is a holiday for many, a tradition that dates back to the day when father and son, mother and daughter, would share the thrill of the first pitch and a new season of hopes and dreams.

And if you happen to be a Phillies fan like me, mostly hopes and dreams,—– fond reminiscences of winning seasons and pennant races!

The history of baseball in the United States can be traced to the 19th century, when amateurs played a baseball-like game by their own informal rules using home-made equipment. The popularity of the sport inspired the semipro national baseball clubs in the 1860s. Several attempts were made to organize the game, which eventually happened, under the New York rules of play, as opposed to the Boston rules, or any other set of rules from independent leagues.

And I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the formation of the All-American Girls league during World War 2, immortalized in the film A League of Their Own.

So now we have baseball as we know it today, even with instant replay, which I’m not sure I agree with!

Let’s look at our ‘national past-time. Many sport writers pay homage to the game with such titles as: Why Time Begins on Opening Day and How Life Imitates the World Series, both by Thomas Boswell; or Philip Lowry’s Green Cathedrals.

And no less a personage than Herbert Hoover pontificated that “next to religion, baseball has furnished a greater impact on American life than any other institution.”

  Many relate to the game as they would to a religion. If you recall the 1988 film “Bull Durham,” the character played by Susan Sarandon goes so far in the opening scene as to decode a religion of baseball as the camera pans over candles and “icons.” Not a religion in itself, of course, the sport does incorporate four components that are also part of all the major religious faiths of the world: Creed, Code, Ceremony, and Community. How does baseball measure up to these four necessary components of the religious enterprise? Creed Baseball transcends time and space. It is not played against a clock, but creates its own time frame; its base lines stretch out, seemingly to infinity. Roger Angell wrote, “Since baseball time is measured only in outs, all you have to do … is keep hitting, keep the rally alive, and you have defeated time. You remain young forever.” Baseball is about finality, the attainment of a place and goal designated “home.” Comedian George Carlin encapsulated such a theme with this comment: “In football the object is to march into enemy territory and cross his goal. In baseball, the object is to go home.” Code of Conduct Baseball, even though it is obsessed with records and statistics, makes allowances for, even anticipates, human weakness and fallibility. As a New York City graffiti artist once wrote: “Babe Ruth struck out 1,330 times,” yet he is known for his home runs. Or former commissioner Fay Vincent said: “What other game includes errors as one of the line items? We know people are going to make errors. No other sport acknowledges that.” Makes me think about our word  which is missing the mark, a mistake, an error perhaps?

Ceremony Baseball is full with something akin to what some religious folks would define as “sacramentals,” such as trading cards, caps, jerseys and autographs, all “relics” of the game. Baseball has its own high holy-days (Opening Day, All-Star Game, World Series) and its shrines (Cooperstown, and some of those archetypal “green cathedrals” like Wrigley Field or Fenway Park) that bring a glaze to true fans’ eyes. Baseball games have incorporated into themselves an entire series of sub-rituals, from park ground rules down to the celebrity opening pitch and seventh-inning stretch (not just take me out to the ball game but also Sweet Caroline in Boston).

Community Baseball fosters loyalty, not only to a team, but to a city or metropolitan region. Each position on the field has its own “priest” in attendance with his own particular craft. My favorite position is second base & I cried when Chase Utley, second baseman for the Phillies, was traded. Baseball is saturated with narrative, anecdote and history as means of fostering identity and a community of continuity and memory. It holds up leaders of the past, both saints and sinners, as models and cautions to each new generation. Despite the fact that it took so long to include blacks(1947), baseball has functioned as an integrating factor in American life. Those at the bottom rung of the socioeconomic ladder have often made their own mark and a place of pride for their people through the game: e.g., Irish in the late 19th century; Hispanics in the last generation.

And sitting in any stadium or ball park, you will see a variety of people’s enjoying the game, a color-less fandom.

Baseball runs according to seasonal time, its four bases perhaps corresponding to the four seasons of the year. The playing season starts from spring training to world series, somehow imitating agricultural cycles of the earth: planting, growth and harvest. At least, hopefully, harvest a pennant.

Time seems less a tyrant during the baseball season. We can forget about it for a while knowing that the game continues until the last out.

But let’s look at the numbers ;what is the significance of the 9s? The ninety feet between bases, 9 innings, 9 players? The number nine, in metaphysics means every level of being in heaven and earth and beyond. It’s a number of harmony and patience; fitting for the game.

Then there is sixty-and-a-half feet between the pitching rubber and the plate, six is a perception of duality, the picture and the batter.

Baseball is timeless and space-less.  In football and basketball, and almost all other sports, there is a starting time and an ending time. Even overtime is limited. Not so with baseball.  There is a starting time, but the game isn’t over until the last out is recorded. It ain’t over until it’s over. We have a vision of eternity while we watch game.

And the time passes by measuring outs, not ticks of the clock. Oh, that we could measure our day in increments other than minutes and hours.

The batter even progresses counterclockwise, flaunting his freedom from the tyranny of the clock. Because of its freedom from time, baseball always leaves time for redemption. Until the final out, the final strike, no deficit is insurmountable. There’s always hope.

It reminds me of our gift from our Creator We can always start over as long as we are in the moment.

A football field has sidelines and end-zones. Limits.  Basketball too.  And baseball has a touch of that with the infield dimensions. But the outfield really is unlimited. There are no fixed measures for the placement of the outfield walls. Infinity again. A mere fly ball in one stadium could be a home run in another.

We are infinite. So, just because something happened one way yesterday, today we have a different view of the playing field. Shoot for the fences! Keep in a positive frame of mind.

And isn’t it interesting that this is the only sport that the defensive team has the ball, not the offensive team. What are the metaphysics of that? Maybe ego is the defensive team and we get to drive whatever we can at it to take dominion over our playing field?

As a metaphor for life, the dynamics of baseball must adjust as each batter steps into the batter’s box. Everyone is a different expression of our Creator.

Based upon the skills of the batter, the defensive team adjusts their positions and pitching style to give them the best opportunity to win. The micro battle about to play out.

The batter stands at home plate, defiantly poised before all that endless openness, hoping to reach each base safely and return home.  That’s the gist of the game, each batter leaves home, and then strives to return home again, safely.

We do that each time we step into Unity’s home.  And we can reach home safely each time we connect with our inner Christ.

We can look at our Spiritual Journey in the same way as a baseball player, different ahaas relating to the bases as we move forward to our next level of understanding, home again and ready to look for our next hit, our next aha.

Such is our daily life too.  We practice our Principles and do our denials and affirmations, only sometimes, we have a forced error and must return to practice again. Or, like a batter, we think we know what to expect from the pitcher, yet ego sends a curve ball when we thought fast ball and we strike out.  We head back to the dugout, to Unity, to our teachers; for help from the batting ‘coach.  The coaches suggestion: No expectations.  Always be ready for what comes by going with the flow. Be practiced up, or prayed up.

We adjust to life’s hits and errors, sometimes changing our strategy along the way for the best possible outcome, using the guidance from our number 1 coach, God.

 

This game reminds us, too, that there is no such thing as perfection on this realm.  We all know that a hitter who succeeds in only one-third of their at-bats is considered remarkable. And yet, we condemn ourselves for a mistake 20 years ago!

The long, 162-game season, allows for hope and dreams to come and go and possibly, come again.  And if not, then spring training comes around, and the cycle resumes.

 

The same with our lives, we always get to start again if we so desire. And mostly, our lives are long enough to make adjustments as to the direction we wish to hit the ball. It’s our choice.

 

Baseball’s teaches us that to return home we must rely on our communities, live according to seasonal time, and attend to local limits.

Baseball may seem like a fairly individualistic game. The duel between pitcher and batter calls forth individual feats of cunning and prowess. Yet, neither pitcher nor batter can succeed on their own, except for the rare instance of a home run.

In all sports there are rules, limits and physical boundaries. But only in baseball is a player rewarded for exceeding them — by hitting one ”out of the park.” It is the combination of power and defiance by metaphysically ”breaking the rules” in a sanctioned manner that grips the imagination. A miracle!

I think our personal spiritual ‘homerun’ is finding that place where we fit, where we feel we have found ‘home’ and we just know we are on the right path for ourselves. To me, that was finding Unity, that might be the same for you.

Life is a spiritual journey.  You play it one day at a time.  One moment at a time. Each day brings you a new experience.  If you truly believe, you’ll be led, the Higher Power, like the baseball Gods, is in charge.  We are simply servants open to be led.  Enjoy each day.  Give it your best.  Remember, you are a gift created by God.  As Yogi says, “It ain’t over ‘till it’s over.”

 

 

Mother’s Day – Lessons from Famous Mothers

 

Have you heard of ‘Mothering Sunday’?  That’s what the original day was called that honored Mothers.  It can actually be traced back to the ancient Greeks and Romans festivals honoring their Goddesses Rhea and Cybele, for them, the Mothers of all.

And the early Christians picked up on the holiday and made it their own by honoring the ‘mother church’ on the 4^th Sunday of Lent.

Over time the Mothering Sunday tradition shifted into a more secular holiday, and children would present their mothers with flowers and other tokens of appreciation. This custom eventually faded in popularity before merging with the American Mother’s Day in the 1930s and 1940s.

We know from our history that the American version of Mother’s Day had its roots in our Civil War. It went from ‘Mother’s Work Clubs’ to ‘Mother’s Friendship Clubs’ to ‘Mother’s Peace Day’ to what we have today, Mother’s Day.

I thought it might be fun and interesting to look at a few famous mothers, real and fictional, and see what lessons they may have taught us.

Of course, I honor my Mother and my Grandmothers for their love and unique ways they had that helped me become me. One thing I learned from my Mother and continue to learn from her is that relationships must be fostered.  You can’t get a good relationship without out knowing what kind of one you want and then working for it. We do that constantly just by listening to each other and always making sure that we let the other know how much we love and appreciate them.

 

So, let’s look at a few Mothers and what lesson we might learn from them.

 

We really need to look at the first mother, biblically; Eve: She was the mother of firsts. She was the first to bear a child. She was the first to ever go through childbirth. She would be the first to endure the chores of being a mother. • She would have likely had the privilege to witness the first smile of a baby, the first baby laugh, the first word, the first steps and the first questions of a child. • She was the first nurturer of children.  Adam named his wife Eve, because she would become the mother of all the living. Sadly, she was the first to bury a child. • She was a mother of firsts in many ways.  Her lesson may be to always be prepared for the unexpected. I’m sure she didn’t have a child birthing class that taught her the Lamaze method of breathing. There were no books on raising children and certainly none on handling the grief of losing a child, especially at the hands of a sibling. Definitely lessons in strength and moving forward.  Probably many more too.

 

Next I choose Mary, the mother of Jesus. According to the Bible, she was chosen by God to have the baby and name him Jesus. Most likely, she was just a teenager, she would have had to endure the ridicule of being seen as a fornicator upon becoming pregnant prior to her marriage to Joseph. Yet she willingly felt it worthy for such a task, “‘may it be done to me according to your word.”   She internalized moments of Jesus’ life, treasuring all the things that happened. She followed his ministry and was there for his first miracle, the water to wine, and for his death.

She took a great interest in her Son, just like any mother should do. She was just a normal simple woman that loved God and was blessed to be Jesus’ earthly mom. She handled the ridicule of Jesus being rejected in his home town, showing strength there that she would need later at the cross.

 

These two women were probably easy choices, so here may be a few that are not immediate choices.

 

How about Ruth Bader Ginsburg,  born Joan Ruth Bader; March 15, 1933 is currently an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. Ginsburg was appointed by President Bill Clinton and took the oath of office on August 10, 1993. She was the second female justice to be confirmed to the Court (after Sandra Day O’Connor) She was a wife and mother before starting law school at Harvard, where she was one of the few women in her law school class. She transferred to Columbia Law School where she graduated tied for first in her class.

Following law school, she was a professor at Rutgers School of Law–Newark and Columbia Law School, teaching civil procedure. Ginsburg spent a considerable portion of her legal career as an advocate for the advancement of gender equality and women’s rights, winning multiple victories arguing before the Supreme Court. She was a volunteer lawyer for the American Civil Liberties Union.

Here is a woman who walked her talk early on and set an example for woman to stand up for what they believe in.  She was smart and stood strong amongst her male colleagues. And I personally am proud she is on the highest court of our country.

And there are many women who do this very same thing.

I think I would be remiss if I didn’t mention Michelle Obama, former first Lady. She, too, practiced what she peached.  She became a fashion icon, a role model for women, and an advocate for poverty awareness, nutrition, physical activity, and healthy eating while First Lady.  And as a Mother with two growing daughters in the White House, she certainly seemed to be doing a great job raising them under the extreme circumstances of such a situation. According to her biographer, she went on to prove that she concluded she could be “both brilliant and black.”

And any Mother who has to also handle the duties of the White House as well as being a Mother deserves credit.  It is a difficult enough job raising children without National scrutiny.

So, two women who walked their talk, who set a great example for the younger generation of what can be done when we set our sights to our goals and work for them.

While considering this topic, I found it interesting and sometimes, not surprising, the names of Mothers considered famous.  Some of the fictional ‘mothers’ were Marge Simpson.  I do not know a lot about the Simpsons, but from what little understanding of the show I do have, I can understand Marge Simpson would be considered an icon simply for putting up with Homer!

Another TV Mother mentioned was Edith Bunker.  Many of you, I think, will recall her character on the TV show, “All in the Family”. Again, a Mother and wife adjusting to life with a, let’s say, difficult husband and adding a married son and daughter-in-law living with them.

These TV shows show us women who were surviving in their circumstances, even being their own person against an unsupportive spouse. It shows strength and perseverance. And maybe loyalty too.

And here’s a favorite of mine from the world of literature, Molly Weasley from the Harry Potter series.  Molly Weasley was the Mother to 7 Weasleys. She and her husband Arthur were prominent in the Harry Potter books as surrogate, loving parents for the orphan Harry. Harry looked to the Weasley’s for comfort and support because he was certainly not getting it from his Aunt, Uncle and cousin.

Molly Weasley was noted as saying Harry was as good as one of her sons. She was fiercely protective of her children and unfailingly generous, especially to Harry. And she survived two Wizard Wars and is famous for ending the life of Death-eater, Bellatrix Lestrange.

 

I’m sure there are many other Mother’s in literature and TV and movies who will make my list and make yours too.  Think of the favorite shows and movies you have and where there any nurturing characters in them?  Take the time to look at the characters and what resonated with you. You may be surprised to find some characteristics that are also in you….

 

Meditation

 

I HONOR THE LOVING MOTHER SPIRIT THAT NOURISHES AND SUSTAINS MANKIND.

THERE is a mother spirit at the very heart of our universe. Even as we think of God we think in terms of Father -Mother God. This mother principle is that which nourishes, sustains, feeds, tends, and holds together. On this day, which we are dedicating to all mothers everywhere, let us remember that we are honoring the mother spirit that is such an important part of this world in which we live. Let our first thoughts be of our physical mothers; then let our thoughts reach out to all those who have mothered us throughout our lives. In some cases, our mothering has come through a father; in other cases, our mothering has come through some dedicated person a teacher, nurse, or friend. Let our thoughts today be thoughts of gratitude for this wonderful mother -love, which has nourished and sustained us. This mother -love is an expression of God’s love, which now we are able to give back in some measure through our mothering of those who need our love and our thoughts.

 

Prayer – Put feet to your prayers

One of our congregants asked that I do a Lesson on prayer. I probably would have done one anyway, seeing as this week our Nation was to celebrate National Day of Prayer, May 4th.

The National Day of Prayer is an annual day of observance held on the first Thursday of May, designated by the United States Congress, when people are asked “to turn to God in prayer and meditation”. Each year since its inception, the president has signed a proclamation, encouraging all Americans to pray on this day.

That’s easy for us to do, Unity believes in the power of prayer. Our 4^th Principle is: Through affirmative prayer and meditation, we connect with God and bring out the good in our world.

The word prayer means setting your mind like a trap so you can catch the thoughts of God.  It means to focus, tune in; and prepare our minds and hearts to receive God’s guidance, love, peace, and divine energy.

The purpose of affirmative prayer is not to change God, but to change us.

 

Five-Step Prayer Process

Prayer is connecting with God. In prayer, we create a sacred space in which we commune with God. We can use Unity’s Five-Step Prayer Process to deepen our connection with God, to heighten our awareness of God within us. To experience the power of prayer. Let’s try it: First, Relax Begin by relaxing your body and opening your mind to an awareness of God. Breathe deeply, knowing that you are in the presence of God and the presence of God is within you. Let go of your concerns and know that all is well. Now, Concentrate As you close your eyes and release any thought of the world around you, begin to think about God … about God’s presence in your life. Focus your mind on a single thought or idea or scripture that resonates with you. I use Peace. Repeat this idea over and over, lets do it silently, since we are more than one until it becomes your only thought. Now Meditate Allow this focused state of mind to move you into a deeper awareness of God. “Be still … and know that I am God.” Be still as you connect with this divine presence within you. Realize From the depth of your being, know that you are one with God. This knowing, this realization as you experience God’s holy presence is “silent soul communion.” In this receptive state of mind and heart, listen for the inspiration of God, the answers to your prayers. Give Thanks; as you’re ready to come back to this place and time, Let gratitude be your heart’s joyous response to this experience of communion with God and with God’s infinite goodness. Give thanks for blessings to come, ready to receive your good.

“Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you”.—1 Thessalonians 5:18

Nice, wasn’t it?

 

But there’s another step in our connection with God…Unity’s Principle #5: Knowledge of these spiritual principles is not enough. We must live them.

“Spirituality must be lived, not just studied.  All the books in the world will not help us if we do not live what we learn.”

 

And that is where putting feet to our prayers comes in…we must put action into our Journey…play our part, be an active partner in the connection.

For example:

Following a naval battle between Athens and Sparta during the Peloponnesian War, many ships were sinking and hundreds of sailors where floundering in the sea.  One man was praying loudly to the goddess Athena to save him, but he was obviously drowning.

 

A shipmate, clinging to a nearby piece of wreckage, saw his plight and shouted, “Pray to Athena, but move your arms at the same time!”

 

See, the action part isn’t really that hard.  While researching for this Lesson, I found many sayings from many Masters letting us know ways we can put feet to our prayers.

 

Here’s one from Lao Tzu: “If you want to awaken all of humanity, then awaken all of yourself. If you want to eliminate the suffering in the world, then eliminate all that is dark and negative in yourself.  Truly, the greatest gift you have to give is that of your own self-transformation.”

We have the power to choose the thoughts that define the activities of our life.

 

This says a lot about our self-responsibility. Something I personally have been working on with my Coaches.

Here’s another: “Choices, Chances, Changes. You must make a Choice to take a Chance or your life will never Change.”

What are these messages telling us?

Remember that part of our opening Affirmation..’when we choose that which is ours to do”…

We get to choose..that’s the free will part of God’s gift to us.

Here’s another thought from Elizabeth Gilbert: “You need to learn how to select your thoughts just the same way your select your clothes every day. This is a power you can cultivate. If you want to control things in your life so bad, work on the mind. That’s the only thing you should be trying to control.’

 

In 1 Theolagians 5:17 we are told to “pray without ceasing.” Every thought is a prayer.  Every thought we put into the ethers is ‘heard.’  It’s filled with energy.

Everything is energy.  Your thought begins it, your emotion amplifies it and your action increases the momentum.

Metaphysicians believe that thoughts transmit magnetic energy and this energy attracts other energy of the same frequency. Whether you are conscious of it or not, your thoughts are transmitting energy that is attracting more of the same. When you remain focused on your intentions, you will draw those things into your life.

 

So, you understand why we say to ‘watch your thoughts.’ And this is why we work to be more aware, more awakened.  So we are aware of our thoughts and become more conscious, so our unconscious thoughts are more Spiritual, more positive. The positive thoughts become automatic, eliminating any negative ones.

 

This consciousness is what Matthew 21:22 is all about: “If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer.”

So, if we are praying and do not feel as if the prayer in being answered, we must ask if WE are doing our part?

What does that mean?  Are we putting feet to our prayers?  Are we doing the work to clear out the past hurts that we carry?  Do we forgive – ourselves as well as others? 70 times 7? Have we asked the tough questions of ourselves?  As Dr. Phil says, “being brutally honest”.

Rosemary Ellen Guiley, author of Prayer Works, states that affirmative prayer “sets into motion the forces that enable us to manifest what we pray for.”

She adds, “Prayer is ineffective when it is accompanied or followed by negative thinking, or the endless repeating of affirmations. We have to put power and intensity into our thought, change our thought, and believe in the guidance we are receiving. If we spend energy on negative beliefs and feelings, we will get negative results, even if we and others pray daily for us. For example, if you pray for a job and then complain to others that you have no job or can’t find one, you are undermining your prayer.”

 

We can ask ourselves…

1) What am I not giving?

2) Who am I not forgiving?

3) What gift am I failing to receive?

 

It’s hard.  And it takes time.  And sometimes it takes work with other trained coaches and teachers.

Keep in mind Spiritual time is not necessarily mortal time. Prayers are answered, but sometimes not in the way we thought they would come to us and often not in the timeline we were thinking too.

Here’s a story from Samuel Smith all about the Spiritual timeline:

He says:

My wife, Laurel, and I were remodeling a building for our new book-printing business. We needed an additional $5,000. In prayer, I asked for guidance and affirmed God would provide the money at the right and perfect time.

 

A few days later, we had a torrential rain. I heard a tremendous crash and thought lightning had struck a tree. When the storm passed, I walked outside and discovered that an unneeded aluminum structure attached to our building had collapsed. Three days later, our insurance agent handed me a check for $5,300—and my brother, who was building a shed for his boat—hauled off the scrap metal.

 

By the time our shop was up and running—with employees and a weekly payroll—prayer was still at the center of operations. It occurred to me that more commercial printing jobs would help cash flow as we acquired book-printing customers. I asked God to show me where this business would come from—if this were, in fact, the divine solution.

 

The next morning a friend called with surprising news about another printer. He said, “Jerry’s shop got hit by lightning last night and burned to the ground.” I was shocked. “I am sorry to hear that,” I said.

 

My friend replied, “Well, he’s not too upset, because he is ready to retire. He’s looking for someone to take over his commercial accounts.”

 

I drove out to meet Jerry at the charred remains of his shop. I could see where lightning had hit a tree and jumped to the corner of his building. He didn’t want any cash, only a percentage of sales from his accounts for two years, which proved to be a mutually beneficial arrangement.

 

These experiences taught me prayer is not only for times when we find ourselves wounded or broken; it is also a practical skill for everyday life. Your answers may not come in lightning bolts, but during every stormy challenge or sunny opportunity, prayer can renew your mind and transform your world.”

So, we just do not know what Spirit has in store for us….just look a me!

So when it gets hard or seems to not be working, keep working.  There’s a Sufi saying: “There are two rules on the Spiritual Path: Begin and Continue.”

And you have friends and family here to aid and support you.

 

When everything seems to go wrong, just P.U.S.H.!

When the job gets you down, just P.U.S.H.!

When your money is tight and the bills are due, just P.U.S.H.!

When you’re afraid and want to cry, just P.U.S.H!

P.U.S.H!  P.U.S.H!  P.U.S.H!

P.U.S.H = Pray Until Something Happens!!!!!

 

 

Children’s Classic Series

Beauty and the Beast

We continue our metaphysical study of Children’s Classics with the story of Beauty and the Beast.  I thought it opportune to take advantage of the story since it’s a hit in the theaters at this time.

Most of you are probably familiar with the revised, or shortened version that the Disney Company, for the most part, has make popular.  However, the much longer original version was written by the French novelist, Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve. It was published in 1740.

It was shortened in 1756 by Jeanne-Marie Leprince to something close to the more recognized version.

The theme can be found in stories as far back as 4000 years, according to research…love for love’s sake.

In the original story, Belle, or Beauty had nasty sisters…. a theme that seems to be prevalent in many of the stories of old.  Wonder what that’s about? They were even turned into statues at the end of this original story because of their behavior.  Kind of reminds me of Lots wife being turned to a pillar of salt in the book of Genesis.

But maybe the lesson of good daughter-bad daughter is simple: we must have dark to be able to see the light. You know, like the day has its opposite in the night.

And a beauty has her opposite in the Beast.

Beauty, metaphysically means spiritual—Fillmore states – The loveliness of God beheld in His creations by the eye of man. Spiritual man beholds this divine loveliness everywhere. “He hath made everything beautiful in its time” (Eccles. 3:11).

And Beast is defined as: a four-footed mammal as distinguished from a human being, 2. a contemptible person; 3. something formidably difficult to control or deal with.

 

Let’s look at the story:

We start with a family; originally a family of a widowed father, and 6 sons and 6 daughters.  This was a wealthy family with spoiled children, use to the luxuries that wealth brings.  When that wealth is lost in a housefire and the sinking of his merchant ships, the family must find other ways to survive.  The sons must work in the fields and the daughters go without, losing potential wealthy husbands.

Only Beauty doesn’t seem to mind this, in fact she enjoys taking care of the house and the family and in her spare time she reads. She is the symbol of the part of each one of us that is wholly innocent and inexperienced. She is untouched by hatred and suffering and is only a reflection of beauty and goodness. She has yet to confront darkness and fear.

One day the father learns that one of his ships was not lost at sea after all and he goes to see what remains of its cargo.  Each of his children ask for some expensive item, thinking their wealth has returned to them.  They still remain materialistic. Beauty only asks for a rose, it’s her favorite flower and because she is content with her new life.

The rose symbolizes our desire to grow, to gain wisdom and spiritual insight. We ask for enlightenment and wisdom without understanding the consequences. On this request the whole story hinges and the transformation of both the Beast and Beauty are directly linked to her asking for the rose.

Unfortunately, the father’s debtors claim all that is left on the ships cargo and he is still left without. As he travels home he gets lost in a terrible storm and stumbles upon the castle of the Beast. The castle mysteriously provides warmth and food and rest for the weary traveler.

The next morning, well rested, the father starts for home, but sees a rose bush and remembers Beauty’s request and so plucks one. This arouses the Beast, who accuses the father of being ungrateful for the comforts that were provided from the night before and says he must sacrifice his life.

So we see that the sudden wealth of the family ends up being an illusion and this can cause us to fall into despair. This despair is depicted by the terrible storm that traps the father and prevents him from returning home. What appears to be a problem turns out to be an essential ingredient for the story to move forward. So too in our life, the problem is often the very thing we need, to propel us forward in our life.

By plucking the rose the Beast is roused. When you seek for knowledge and spiritual wisdom you awaken the monster inside of you; the shadow self. It is not seen at first, it is hidden from awareness but it makes its appearance causing fear and uncertainty.

The Beast wants to kill the father for being ungrateful and taking the rose. It feels like when you open yourself to deepen your spiritual life you only awaken a beast that wants to kill you off.  Rather than having more peace, it seems the spiritual path is fraught with darkness and fears. This kind of experience requires an identity death.  Think about how we’ve changed since traveling on the Path in an awakened state.

The Beast is an important symbol here. He represents the dark animal nature, the primordial part of us that is connected to our fears, our survival instincts and our untamed self. This part of us is under a curse. Just as the beast is under a curse so is this dark part of ourselves is seen only as dangerous and even evil.

He wasn’t always a Beast. His real name was Adam and he had been a handsome young prince, but extremely arrogant, entitled, and lacking in empathy. One cold and snowy night, a beggar woman came to the castle begging for a place to sleep for the night to escape from the bitter cold. In exchange she offered him a single rose.

Adam sneered at the rose and refused her a warm bed and coldly sent her on her way, but not before the beggar woman suddenly transformed into a beautiful enchantress, who in her righteous anger put a spell on him, turning him into the physical manifestation of the Beast he had become inside,

The rose she had left him–which represents Adam’s True Self (and he had sneered at it because it represented the vulnerability he had rejected)–would continue to bloom for a decade. If Adam failed to learn to love another (and earn her love) in that decade, the rose would die and he would be forever doomed to his fate.

In us, this curse has many causes, such as constant criticisms or other abuses as a child, deep fears about our own primal sexuality as well as deep beliefs about our own unworthiness, ugliness, shame and dark side. The curse has power only to the degree that we believe in it. When we believe in our own ugliness the spell cannot be broken, when we fall prey to our deep beliefs about who we think we are or engage in shameful feelings this gives power to the curse.

The father begs to be allowed to tell his family of his dilemma, and the Beast, hearing about the daughters, allows that one may take the fathers place, but must do so willingly

When the father returns home and tells his story, Beauty offers to take her fathers’ place, thinking how much she loves him and maybe she could somehow escape the Beast.

This gets her out of the house, so to speak. Beauty had to be separated from her family. Transformation is impossible in the sanctuary of the familiar. Life has to cause you to become extremely uncomfortably scared and intrigued before you can be transformed. She cannot be saved from her own transformation before she willingly accepted the path offered even though she was unaware.

Willingness is a real important part of the message. You cannot be transformed unless you go forward with willingness to be changed. This is seen when the Beast requires Beauty to come and live with him willingly.

When Beauty sees the Beast, she realizes he is not as terrifying as she had imagined. This is true of life, when you face your fears even if only for a few moments, you find they are not as frightening or sinister as anticipated.

Beauty dreams she met a handsome prince who spoke to her by a pool in a beautiful garden. He told her not to be deceived by appearances. When she woke, she wondered if the Beast had kept this handsome prince a prisoner somewhere in his castle. She wondered if she was meant to free him

The dream shows us that the answers are inside of us even if we don’t fully understand the answers when we get them. The inner self always knows the truth even when our eyes and ears are deceiving us. (for those who have eyes to see and ears to hear)

The Beast asks her if she loves him and to marry him and then demands that she tell him the truth. In life, we must come to the point where we love and embrace the thing we are afraid of or fighting against. Our dark nature must be honored and loved if the true value is to be revealed. But we must be willing to tell ourselves the truth. Otherwise it is all a pretense.

 

Months passed, Beauty found herself to have whatever she needed and wanted. Every night the Beast asked her if she loved him and if she would marry him and each time she told him the truth, that she did not love him and would not marry him. He left her each night sad and lonely and each night she dreamed of the prince who told her to let her heart guide her.

Beauty began to miss her family and one day when she had become comfortable enough with the Beast, she asked him if she might visit her father and family. The Beast lamented her leaving him and tried to convince her to stay asking her what more she could want to make her happy. She begged him to let her go for two months and then she promised to return to him. She told him that she was grateful for all he had done for her and she thanked him for his kindness. He agreed and gave her a ring which only had to be turned on her finger three times and she would be returned to him. She left the palace and the Beast and went home.

After we have come to terms with our fears and dark nature we may long to be returned to our security and ease. Sometimes staying conscious and aware gets tiring. We believe that we don’t need to continue growing and learning. We leave the path and return to ease. But our transformation is incomplete.

The Beast will die if Beauty does not return. We have awakened a primordial self and begun a dialog with that dark and untamed part of us. The Beast inside of us is essential to our survival, our growth and development as a human being. Spiritual transformation requires us to know the Beast. The Beast is under a curse and is really a handsome prince. Our seemingly dark sides are really beautiful gifts that once transformed have the power to change our lives. The transformation cannot occur if we lose our connection to our essential dark self.

When she returned home, her family was thrilled to see her. And when it came time for her to return to the castle her sisters conspired to keep her there, jealous of her fine cloths and happiness. She worried about the Beast but she had rather missed her family and did not think the Beast would mind her staying just a while longer. But all the time she was there she found herself strangely unhappy and thinking of the Beast and her home at the palace. She was not content to be with her family anymore. At long last she had a dream in which she saw the Beast lying very still in dark cave. He appeared to be dead or dying. He faintly spoke to her saying it was almost too late. Beauty finally follows her heart and returns to the palace.

Returning back to what we used to be isn’t what we remember it to be. Beauty finds she is no longer happy where once she had been so happy. (you can’t go home).  But she feels compelled to remain because her family doesn’t want her to leave. Sometimes the familiar has a powerful pull that is hard to break even when we aren’t happy with what is familiar. And the spiritual path, difficult as it may be, calls to us.

Again, she has a dream.  We are always aware deep inside ourselves about the truth of our own path. This dream propels her to return.

When she awoke, she was worried about the Beast and she turned the ring that the Beast gave her to magically return to the castle, three times and suddenly found herself back at the palace. She searched for the Beast, remembering her dream in which she saw him in a cave. She found the cave and the Beast lying just as he was in her dream near death. When the Beast opened his eyes she said, “I never knew that I loved you until I thought that you were dead and I had lost you.” The Beast looked up at her and said “you really love such monster as I?” Beauty cried and said “yes, yes she loved him very much.” he asked her again if she loved him and would marry him she said “Yes, my dear Beast.”

At that moment there was a great light burst forth and the Beast was instantly transformed into the prince of her dreams. The spell had been broken and the two married and lived happily ever after.

The ring is an interesting symbol of connection and promise. This is similar to the marriage ring that gives loyalty and love to the other, just as you must commit to give love and loyalty to yourself by staying true to your own journey.

 

Just as you need to stay on the spiritual path or your soul withers and a valuable part of yourself that you have awakened, wanes. Once a part of you has been awakened it must be integrated or it will die.  This is not a great concern because we are always guided back to where we need to be. But it is this absence that helps Beauty see for herself that she loves the beast.

The marriage between the masculine and the feminine selves is apparent here when the two get married as well as the marriage between the dark and the light.

Learning to accept the whole self is at the heart of this story; You cannot learn to love yourself only when you have achieved so-called perfection but to love yourself when are flawed, ugly, afraid etc. The transformation only occurs when you truly see the ugly as beautiful, the dark as light, the fearful as valuable. These are the lessons of the story of Beauty and the Beast.

Which character do you relate to?  Can you think why?

Easter Sunday – What does Easter mean to you?

 

Easter is a celebration of the resurrection of Jesus. What more it means to us Unitics is we are awakening our consciousness and raising our Spiritual Awareness.  Every time we connect with our inner Christ, or Buddha, or Spirit, our whatever you call your inner connection to our Divine Creator, we have a resurrection. Jesus has shown us the wonders of the Kingdom, that we all can overcome the physical duality and find peace, and BE peace…and I am grateful for it.

Most of us grew up in traditional Christianity beliefs and it has been our work to discern what works for us now and what does not.  That is most likely what brought us to Unity.

What I’d like to do today is share with each other our Easter memories.  I’ll start and let’s see how far we can get to know each other a bit better.

Reincarnation

 

I love a parade…my father was in the Hershey Chocolatiers, Drum & Bugle Corps.  I love that sound, especially the drums.

 

There wasn’t that kind of sound as Jesus entered Jeruselam on what we call Palm Sunday so long ago.  Lots of cheering and waving of Palms.  And on the other side of the city, the military ‘parade’ entering as a show of force, soldiers and weapons to show the people just who was in charge!

 

But we talked about those parades last year and what they meant.

 

Today we want to look at an entirely different idea, reincarnation.  What does reincarnation have to do with Palm Sunday or Easter?  Just wait, it’ll come.

 

How many of you believe in reincarnation? And when people raise their hands get a big smile on your face and say nice to see you again!

 

And, how many lives have you all lived so far?  Who knows, right?  Or maybe you say there is no such thing as Reincarnation.  We’re talking about the usual definition of reincarnation here, right?

 

The word “reincarnation” derives from Latin, literally meaning, “entering the flesh again”.

 

It’s defined as:

1. the belief that the soul, upon death of the body, comes back to earth in another body or form.
2. rebirth of the soul in a new body.
3. a new incarnation or embodiment, as of a person.

 

Reincarnation is the philosophical or religious concept that an aspect of a living being starts a new life in a different physical body or form after each biological death.

 

It is a central tenet of all major Indian religions, namely Buddhism, Hinduism, Jainism, and Sikhism.  And the idea of reincarnation is found in many ancient cultures as well as in many tribal societies around the world, including our Native American Indians.

 

And there are instances in the Bible that lead us to believe that Jesus and the Isrealites  believed too.  For example: in Matthew 11:14:

 

“For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John came; and if you are willing to accept it, he is Elijah who is to come. Let anyone with ears listen!”

 

And again, in Matthew 17:12-13: “But I tell you that Elijah has already come, and they did not recognize him, but they did to him whatever they pleased. So also the Son of Man is about to suffer at their hands.’ Then the disciples understood that he was speaking to them about John the Baptist.”

 

 

Unity has no “official” position on reincarnation, but Charles Fillmore, our co-founder did fervently believe in it.  In fact, he believed one could live forever, if we got all our ducks in a row, so to speak.  He did grow his leg so both were even and wife Myrtle did heal herself of TB.

 

Was he getting a bit cocky?

 

He reminds us that the demonstration of eternal life can only be made in life, the soul and body working together.  He believed we can only learn and grow while living and learning our Truths.  And as these new Truths come to light for us, we move closer to the Light.  And we all will come to the Light eventually.

 

From “Keep a True Lent”

“As the mind changes from error to Truth, corresponding changes take place in the body and the ultimate change is perfection and wholeness in every part.  “

 

If our purpose as spiritual beings engaged in a human experience is to bring more of our spiritual energy into tangible expression, to achieve that new dimension of consciousness that Jesus calls ‘the kingdom of heaven,’ then it must follow that the process requires more than the limits of a single lifetime.

Think of the possibility that Jesus began a series of incarnations, beginning prehistorically and ending with His Jesus incarnation. “In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God.” (John 1:1)  He was in the beginning with God.

 

Interesting idea…

 

Jesus’ teaching:  that we all shall be made free from error in soul and body.  But until this change in thinking is obtained, there is death.  To give us the full benefit of God’s Kingdom, life is necessary.  So, when we lose our body by death, the law of expression works within for re-embodiment, and we take advantage to regain a body.  – This gives us further opportunity to demonstrate Christ life.”

 

 

Let’s take this a bit further…the whole idea of Easter for us metaphysicians is our crucifixion and resurrection.  Maybe we can look at that through the lens of reincarnation…

 

We are to be ‘born anew’ as Jesus says in John 3:3, if we wish to see the kingdom of God.

 

Our crucifixion is the releasing of our old ways, our error thinking.  Our resurrection is grasping the new thinking that realizing the teaching of Jesus are a part of our being.  When we connect with that inner Being that is our true self, we are re-born.

 

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.

 

It is by experiencing the negativity resulting from our old choices that we are encouraged to make new, loving choices going forward. And our choices can’t be forced or dictated—it is always up to us to recognize the Good and choose to align ourselves with its energy.

 

The reincarnation thought comes into reality when we see that to get where we want to be, in complete acceptance of the Teachings of inclusion, of Oneness, and peace and love might take more that the lifetime we are living. Few of us are able to fully accomplish that goal within the artificial limits of a single human lifetime.

We work and play toward that Oneness and know that we are one with our Creator.

 

 

We are all spiritual beings, who have come into human experiences in order to achieve

the new consciousness Jesus describes as the kingdom of heaven as the inevitable consequence of his earthly choice to remain focused, not on his lack and need, but on his true spiritual identity, his Oneness with the Divine.

Since we are spiritual beings, “death” has no true validity. We may seem to “die” from the perspective of one life experience, but in truth we continue onward as eternal, expressive, creative spiritual beings. The only sense in which we could be said to die spiritually occurs when we embrace the truth of the Christ Presence that is our true identity—the truth that Jesus taught and demonstrated through his own life, and by moving through the illusion of death to express his eternal Spirit.

 

We die to mortal illusion and mortal limitation when we embrace spiritual truth and set about expressing our own true Christ nature. That is, in fact, the “second coming of the Christ.” The Christ first appeared to us through the teachings and example of Jesus Christ. It appears a second time when we follow those teachings, release old ideas of limitation, and embrace our spiritual identity. And we will find that all of God—all of the infinite universe of Good—is eagerly waiting for us to remember and express who we truly are. How many human experiences—how many “Hero’s Journeys”—it may take us to reach that point of Christ expression is entirely up to us.
So, whether we believe in the Webster definition of reincarnation or whether we look at it as an opportunity to seek spiritual liberation through ethical living and a variety of spiritual practices and learning opportunities, there are lessons to be learned.

 

What are your thoughts on the subject?

Keep a True Lent

 

We have traveled through most Charles Fillmore’s book, “Keep a True Lent” during these few weeks. In fact, we are close to the end. Soon we will reach that time of crucifixion and resurrection.

This week, Charles asks us to look at faith.  Faith-thinking.  And abundance.

What is faith-thinking?  It simply is using our ability to think with faith. Our thinking capacity is most often ego driven.  If we do not control it, have dominion over it as we spoke about last week, we can go astray.

The thinking in our head is often the second-hand ideas of our ancestors. So Charles asks: “Do we ever have an original thought?”

 

Faith-thinking is thinking from the heart or with love.

 

It is a waste of time & energy trying to build without the true thinking source, our heart, our spiritual center.

 

Everything that appears in our life & affairs physically & mentally has sometime been sent forth from our thinking.  It is only through the power vested in it that you can come into consciousness…consciousness makes our heaven & our hell.

 

Our ability to think is part of our gift from our Creator.  Ideas are available to all of us. We choose what we wish to do with those Divine ideas. Our free will is that gift that makes this world filled with variety – in every form.

We are the focus of life, intelligence, love, and substance of God. Our identity as individuals is formed by the infinitely various combinations of the attributes of the Christ.

 

Just think of the principle of music.  One principle yet millions of combinations of its parts.  And all important, just as each individual instrument is an important part of a symphony, if not heard together in harmony, it would be painful instead of beautiful to hear.

 

 

Our identity is formed by the various combinations of God’s attributes:  the 12 powers.

We get to discern how to use these powers.  Could be as a Spiritual aspect or an intellectual aspect, or very base.  We have free will to live our lives.

 

How are you living your life? Can you combine these faculties for your good and the good of all?

 

Of course you can.  Are you willing to do this?  That is the question.

 

Our thinking faculty is the inlet and outlet of all ideas. When you master your thoughts, they are filled with ideas and wisdom, God’s gift to us.

 

Your talents are part of the abundance given to us all to use for good.

 

If you suppress your talent, being indifferent to it and to life, how would that show up in your life? Maybe frustration. Maybe anxiety.

And if you would be egotistic about your talent, maybe the behavior would turn out to be obnoxious.

 

Have you noticed any behavior like this in your friends and family?  In yourself?

 

1 Timothy:4:14 tells us “Do not neglect the gift that you have…”

 

The important thing is, we must take control of our gifts–we must know what they are, and their place in our lives.

 

We can use the 12 powers to find them, and use them properly to the aid of all and for your personal growth. If we take control of our thoughts, we can enjoy a more abundant life.

 

Stephen J. Kosmyna. Unity Minister writes:

“Release thoughts of lack, limiting beliefs and self-imposed boundaries. You have more than what appears in your basket to create the life you desire. We draw from the Universe as a we think a thought, imagine what it looks like, build the picture and the vision, and hold it steady with tremendous feeling and emotion. See it. Believe it. Do your forgiveness work and be grateful for your vision manifesting in advance and absolutely it will come to be.”

 

In times of struggle…we forget what brought success to us, much like the Israelites in the Hebrew Bible.  If you recall, they would often, unfortunately, follow several years of good, fruitful living with disasters of weather and violence from enemies when they strayed from God’s Word.

 

Then they would pray and beg God to save them only to stray again, a continuous cycle until they finally got it…. just follow God’s Laws and all is well.

 

We do the same thing. We forget, or listen to ego, or someone else…instead of taking responsibility for our thoughts and actions, and following the Laws of our Creator. When we do that, all is good. We can have ‘life, and have it abundantly.”

 

To aid in that abundant life, according to Charles Fillmore, there are two laws of increase;

1. Primary law of Increase is a Permanent law because it is Spiritual: possessing and molding in thought the omnipresence of Spirit –
2. The Secondary law of Increase is Physical: piling up possessions by human effort. This is insecure: it can disappear as quickly as it appears. Just think the Wall Street crash…

 

“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal.  For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”  Matthew 6:20-21

 

 

This is the world of the visible and the invisible. The world of ego thinking and faith-thinking.

 

Money, for example, is visible. Thoughts are invisible but they are connected. Control of your thoughts makes it possible to have abundance.

 

Spirit provides through ideas and wisdom.  What we choose to do with those ideas is up to us.

 

Those choices determine our abundance.  For example, what are your thoughts as you handle money?  Do you give thanks as you write your checks to pay your bills?  Or are you thinking about lack, limitation?

 

Remember: It’s not money B UT THE LOVE OF MONEY that is the root of our problems. Believing that our source is of this physical world.

 

 

Here’s another example – when you choose to gift someone, what are your thoughts behind the gift?  Are you giving from the heart, no matter what kind of gift you are giving – could be physical, could be time or talent, or even treasure.

Could be at Holiday time, or here at Unity….

 

The thought behind a gift is the real measure of its value and efficiency. Think of a gift from a child…a drawing or a trinket.  The thought behind a gift from a child is pure love.

 

And this is one reason why we ask you to bless your Tithes and offering each Sunday.  Blessing something increases its value. We ask you to send the gift to Unity, no matter the size, and THAT increases its worth.

 

There are many ways we misuse money and other items that we give dignity to, but should not.  Think about what you value and why. Does it really have the value you are giving it?

 

I have seen lately, a comment, ‘the problem we have now is because we value things and not people.’ Something to consider.

 

So, watch your thoughts when you are handling anything you consider of value.

 

Are you hoarding it, even in your thoughts?

 

If there are thoughts along the line of hoarding, then we are misusing the thing…whether it be money or other items.

 

If we do not keep the circle of giving and receiving going, the flow of good gets stuck, and the good stops flowing.

 

Many Unity’s do what they call Circulation Day. Instead of a yard sale, for example, they set up everything and let people come and take what they need.  It’s a great way of cleaning out what no longer serves us and keeping the flow of giving and receiving going….circulation.

 

Thomas Merton said, “It is easy enough to tell the poor to accept their poverty as God’s will when you yourself have warm clothes and plenty of food and medical care and a roof over your head and no worry about rent.  But if you want them to believe you – try to share some of their poverty and see if you can accept it as God’s will yourself.”

 

We ask ourselves every Sunday, what is mine to do?  Last week I reminded us all about the blessing of tithing, how Jacob set the example of making God a partner in all transactions.

 

As we go to our daily jobs, whatever they be, we can make God a partner there too.  We do not have to slave and stress at our work.  If this is where you have chosen to share your gifts, then make God a partner with your work.  See it as a part of the Divine Journey. Look for the Divinity in all the parts of the work. Make it Sacred.

All work becomes divine when it is for God.  God is a generous paymaster. The reward is much more than the money in the bank.

 

Remember, there is no place where God is not. Make every place you are and everything you do, sacred, for it is.

 

Bonaventure wrote: “God is “within all things but not enclosed; outside all things, but not excluded; above all things, but not aloof; below all things, but not debased.” He spoke of God as one “whose center is everywhere and whose circumference is nowhere.”

 

So, when you sit down to eat your meals, be thankful for the abundance before you, whatever it is. As a child, there were times when food was scarce. A meal might have been biscuits and molasses. Or what we called Italian pancakes, made from flour and water. Yet it filled our bellies and we were grateful for it.

 

Keep in mind that everything exists because some other life form has sacrificed for it. Be it vegetable or animal. Bless the meal, be grateful for the hands that made it available to you from the farmer to the producer to the store clerk.

 

We must have compassion for our body, have compassion for every living body, declare oneness with everything and everyone.  This is how we find peace, by BEING peace.

Great Morning Beloved!

Keep a True Lent

Who do you think you are?   I’ll let you contemplate that for a minute.  Do you have a response?

 

Maybe it was something along the lines of the Reading for Tuesday in Science of Mind Magazine: “You have a name but you are not your name.  You have a body but you are not your body. You have a story but you are not your story.  Who then are you? Take some time now to reflect on this question.  What is most essentially true about you?

 

The truth about you is that you are a center of God-consciousness. You are part of the wholeness of Infinite Life.  You are a spark of the Divine, a radiance of Universal Intelligence, an emanation of the One Mind. You are the incarnation of Spirit. Your life is the Life of God. As a divine expression, you have access within your being to the qualities of God. You are peace. You are wisdom. You are love. These qualities and more are your true nature. Peace, joy, wisdom and love are ever present and available within you. You can choose to express these qualities to be who you truly are.”

 

 

How perfect do you feel now?

 

You are perfect.   We are perfect.

 

We are perfect, until we allow the thoughts and ideals of others to change our thoughts about ourselves   we hold onto a belief of limitation, of illness, of unworthiness.  That belief comes from many sources…much of it our domestication.

 

We have family history telling us a litany of deceptions:

1. You have been deceived into believing that you were born of fleshly parents and that’s all there is;
2. You have been deceived into believing that mind is subject to matter;
3. You have been deceived into believing that there are those among your associates who are your mental, moral or social superiors;
4. You have been deceived into believing that you have certain traits of character to which you are bound by nature and through them are confined or hampered in life;
5. And you have been deceived to believe that your ancestors pre-dispositioned you to certain characteristics or illnesses.

 

Any of these ring true for you?

 

Charles Fillmore reminds us:

“Although potentially perfect and incapable of producing a single condition of PERMANENT consciousness out of harmony with divine Principle, many persons are impregnated with a belief of limitation and they need the dissolving power of denial to set them free.”

 

The working power of our mind is thought & through thought all the conditions that seem to encompass us are formed, we cannot have consciousness without thinking, our every thought causes vibrations in the universe.

 

 

If consciousness can be manifested as disease, and discord, it follows that that same consciousness can undo the faulty work & build new

 

We do that with the aid of denials.

 

Denials can be made in many ways: we could develop a denial about a habit we wish to break (I deny the urge to smoke has any power over me), we could make a conscious acknowledgement that we are incorrect in our conclusion (this is not the road I wish to travel on my Spiritual Journey, this is not who I wish to be at this time); we could refuse to entertain any thoughts of a sensual nature (that donut does not belong in my stomach); we could withdraw thoughts from low ideals (this thought has no power over me, I release it and let it go).

 

There is one mind, when we depart from that one mind, is when sickness and other negative issues appear. The Truth is, Pure Mind cannot be subject to lack in any form and that which so appears must in some way be a DEPARTURE from creative Mind.

 

 

God is the source of our being. By reminding ourselves of the One Mind we find peace.

 

We are reminded of the laws of action and reaction. They are equal.  What we put out comes back to us.  If we are affirming that we are living a limited life, we will live a life of limitation.

 

 

The Law of Righteous Thinking will bring you a consciousness of perfect dominion.  Remember in Genesis we, humankind, were given dominion over the animals on the land, the creatures of the sea and the birds of the sky.

 

They represent our varied thoughts.  Dominion means the power or right of governing and controlling.

 

We are to govern and control our thoughts, they are creative.

 

According to Edison: “atoms are centers of intelligence; the human body being composed of atoms (each of which is an intelligent entity), we could control these atoms through the will and control our lives.”

 

 

So, after we take control of our thoughts and work on denying those beliefs and the domestication we have picked up through our lives that no longer serve us, what next?

 

We use Affirmations to fill the void we have established through the denial. Nature naturally fills a void.  That is what it does.  Like water flowing into a hole in the sand.

 

By filling that void with affirmative statements, we train our consciousness to positive beliefs.

 

It puts us in contact with the Christ Mind, which quickens and releases the light and energy stored in the subconscious mind

 

God created us to express in the manifest world. We have not realized and appropriated our heritage, have not trained our minds away from negative beliefs.

 

 

We wonder why our prayers do not always bring a thing to pass as Jesus did, we have not developed faith equal to Jesus.  Jesus prayed with authority, “All authority hath been given unto me in heaven and on earth.”

 

His word was with authority…that means he asserted the affirmation in thought and word.

 

By acquiring the ability consciously to go within and affirm our unity and power in Spirit we can gain control of the life current that flows all around us.

 

“All things whatsoever ye pray and ask for, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.”

That’s AUTHORITY!

 

We also know that he who uses his mind to curse gets the curse in return, the mind that blesses receives blessings in return- what we send out, comes back to us.

 

Our ‘word’ can be used to build or destroy.

 

When words are spoken with spirit, not only conditions without are changed but the cells of the body are transformed into a state of high positive activity

If thoughts of a destructive character dominate, the body suffers.  Thus, we are judged by our words

 

 

In “Keep a True Lent” Charles states that the greatest need of the human family is thought control.

 

We do that through our consciousness. We have no independent mind; there is only universal Mind; but we have consciousness in that mind and we have control over that consciousness. Our we should have control.  Control over our own thoughts, and thoughts make up consciousness.

 

But we unconsciously separate ourselves; this is where we err in our thinking and beliefs.  We should be more aware of our conscious and unconscious thoughts.

 

We must be mindful of what we are thinking all the time…I know that is difficult, it’s not we have been taught, not how we are as humans living is our created, duel world.  So at least work on it as much as possible.  You’ll get better at it.

 

Let’s look at the idea of abundance for an example.  We often let our thoughts of lack and limitation withhold our Divine inheritance.  We talked earlier of the thinking we are often exposed to in our environment growing up and even in our lives today.

 

And yet, if we would only listen and believe the law of tithing, we would increase our abundance.  The story of Jacob in the Hebrew Bible is an example of the success of tithing 10% to God, in whatever way you choose to do that, time, talent, treasure.

Jacob proved that tithing is one of the foundation principles of financial increase’ in recognition that God is part of all substance.  Prosperity Programs reinforce this all the time.

 

Yet many folks are fearful of tithing.  They tell themselves they cannot do it, and therefore take themselves out of the flow of Spiritual Good. Their consciousness is in lack instead of the knowledge that God is our Source.

 

Give of your substance with the thought that whatever it is, it is God’s that you are sharing.

 

When you make a covenant with the God of your being, that God is always with you.  You are never alone.  If you ever feel alone, that means you moved!

 

Simply, but with authority, know this:

 

Be Still and know that I am God and the work is done.

 

Believe.