Faith: Seeing Beyond The Paradox
I want to begin this newsletter by thanking all of you who take the time to
read my work. I'm so very honored that my work is meaningful to you. I want to
share with you the growing edge of where I am and where I'm going in my
spiritual development. I've
rewritten and retitled this newsletter over and over trying to hone in on the
shifting sands that are moving with earthquake intensity and rapidity. That
movement speaks so well to one of my favorite quotes, "I am in the world, not
of the world!" This quote speaks so well to the Abraham teachings, to Eckhart
Tolle's understandings, and to Byron Katie's teachings of "The Work" as she
calls it. I am reminded of words that came through to me in the late 70s,
"Beware of the pendulum as it swings from psychopathic rage to the "doormat
mentality". There is a middle ground called Love." Living from Love is the epitome
of actualizing that we are Spirit made manifest. We are Love Incarnate. My
question is how do I do that right now in each moment? Some of my keys for being
there are: Realize that people can't be anywhere other than where they are in
the moment, and neither can I. That means Nonresistance to what is! Nonjudgment
of what is. Love what is! Realize God is present as this moment! Remember
what Abraham says, "We need contrast in order to see what we want and what we
don't want." Some of my other favorite teachings are: See beyond appearances!
Don't take things personally! Look for the blessing in the lesson! All things are
working together for my Good and I am working with them in the Love and
Wisdom and Power of Spirit!
I am exceedingly intense. Life is very precious to me. My expectations for
myself are very high! Sometimes I don't know how to meet them. As I said last
month abuse and inequity enrage me. Sometimes I have to take the VERY long view
of how things are working together for Good! I am passionately devoted to
being the change I want to see in the world. To that end I am currently reading a
landmark book, The Feminine Face Of God: The Unfolding Of The Sacred In Women,
written by Sherry Ruth Anderson and Patricia Hopkins, published in 1991 after
five years of research. The authors interviewed over 100 women nationwide for
a minimum of two days each, resulting in a 3,000 page typewritten manuscript
of their tape recorded interviews. Jean Shinoda Bolen, MD and Jungian analyst,
said this book "is as significant as Betty Friedan's The Feminine Mystique
and Carol Gilligan's In A Different Voice were in articulating a growing edge
of conscious awareness in women. The Feminine Face of God does for women's
spirituality what these two books did for women's roles and women's ethics..."
The authors said the comment that stopped them in their tracks was when woman
after woman being independently interviewed said, "I don't know how to pray.
I don't know who to pray to. I don't know who I am as a woman." I was
thunderstruck by these comments because they so clearly highlight the reality that
humans are image makers! The authors made the very poignant statement, "while
it is true that images of the Virgin Mary are present in every Catholic church,
and that her position is highly venerated, for all that she is beloved, she
is never mistaken for God." Another point the authors made, that has been made
by Bishop John Shelby Spong and Joseph Campbell among many others, is the
issue of the myth of Eve and Adam; a myth written with the deliberate political
intent to discredit and disempower women. It is chilling to consider the impact
of this myth, still so very alive today! Two other quotes from the women that
just knocked me flat were one woman's statement that as a 15 year old she was
in a convent school and she could hear the nun next door beating herself with
a whip "for the sin of being a woman." The authors spoke to the issue of "the
importance of language especially when it is used to teach spiritual
principles.... We remembered the formal prayers still spoken by men today in the
Jewish and Buddhist traditions, prayers of gratitude for having escaped the fate of
being born in a female body." I'm highlighting some of these comments
because they epitomize the necessity of moving to a hugely expanded Love, Compassion
and Understanding especially since these attitudes are deliberately taught
and are still so prevalent today! This book is especially important to me
because as familiar as I am with the Goddess traditions this book made it very real
how powerful and necessary feminine images of the Divine are for the healthy
development of our global self-concept. Another landmark book I'm reading,
"When God Was A Woman", written in1976, by Merlin Stone revealed another fact
that knocked me flat. As many times as I've read and heard the Bible quote
about not worshipping false idols it never occurred to me they were talking
about not worshipping the Goddess!!! I was thunderstruck!!! I've
taught Psychology at the college level. Attitudes shape our lives in the most
fundamental ways! The misogyny expressed in the story of our humanity is
still so very evident today worldwide. It's heartbreaking. I'm sharing these
thoughts and feelings because they epitomize the contrast mentioned in the Abraham
teachings. Contrast asks us so clearly "Are you sure this is what you want?
Are you sure you don't want to align your feelings with Joy and Love rather
than fear and self-hatred projected out onto all of life?" We can choose to live
from the exponential Confidence and Magnanimity of Divine Love in us!
In a much more lighthearted way I want to share some comments about another
landmark book I'm reading. It's a delightful story about holding the paradox.
"The Go-Giver" is a 2007 national bestseller written by Bob Burg and John
David Mann. I read this fabulous heartwarming book twice in four days. It's a
story told as a fable about a young man, the prototypical "go-getter" and his
journey toward learning that it is in giving that we are truly prosperous. This
young man learns the Five Laws Of Stratospheric Success. Each Law significantly
challenges his concepts of how to do business and yet he keeps on because he
is intrigued by this journey. In hearing about the first Law, "The Law of
Value: Your true worth is determined by how much more you give in value than you
take in payment" he says, "That sounds like the road to bankruptcy." He learns
that giving is truly how you "land the big contract." What I especially love
about this book is the heartwarming style of the authors and the fact that
the subtitle of this book is: A Little Story About A Powerful Business Idea. The
fact that this book is a national bestseller tells me a lot of people value
this changing business practice! I truly feel the timing couldn't be more
monumental. I'm so very grateful for all the people in all the venues so valiantly
working for change! Generosity takes great Faith, Love, Confidence and
Understanding! Generosity is the magnanimous understanding of who we truly are. There
is no greater Joy than living from that understanding!
Are you willing?
I
AM!!!!!!
Spirit of Love thank you so very much for Your Presence in my life and
all the world!!!!!!!!!
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