Society is a Foolish Juror

Continuing the theme of communication with the incomprehensible, I am remembering a woman at choir rehearsal. I don't know her well. She began to complain that she hadn't been able to watch her "programs" because of those "horrid people lying about the president". Rather than chastise her or ignore her, I listened to her. She rambled on about tuning in to TCM and watching an old movie called The Red Shoes. She is an Englishwoman and she mentioned it was the first movie her mother took her to see when she was 8 years old. I began asking her questions and it turns out she wanted to become a ballerina and had been told she couldn't marry because she must devote all her time to dance. Well, when she was 18, she met and married a man from Oklahoma, who was in the military stationed in England. He didn't know what ballet was and didn't want to, but she loved him and he loved her, and so she gave up her studies, married, and moved to the United States. That was more than 60 years ago. In talking to her, I found she was a lovely woman, if not an educated one. And I liked her. 

"Society is a foolish juror, listening only to one side of the case. Justice often comes too late to secure a verdict. People with mental work before them have no time for gossip about false law or testimony. To reconstruct timid justice and place the fact above the falsehood, is the work of time. " Mary Baker Eddy, Science & Health Page 238:25-28

“Yet you must learn to doubt their evidence will clear the way to recognize yourself, and let the Voice for God alone be Judge of what is worthy of your own belief. He will not tell you that your brother should be judged by what your eyes behold in him, nor what his body’s mouth says to your ears, nor what your fingers’ touch reports of him. He passes by such idle witnesses, which merely bear false witness to God’s Son. He recognizes only what God loves, and in the holy light of what He sees do all the ego’s dreams of what you are vanish before the splendor He beholds.” A Course in Miracles  W-151.7:1-4

The Good That Is Unfolding

 

Afternoon Tea - art by Catrin Welz-Stein

I heard a term which sent me directly to a search engine: Adulting. Its definition is: “the practice of behaving in a way characteristic of a responsible adult, especially the accomplishment of mundane but necessary tasks”. I have found it difficult to “adult” at times when I let myself become overwhelmed by too many activities. If my mind is racing in circles with a multitude of duties whirling around in it, I may flit from one to another with no focus anywhere. At those times, it’s easy to think there is too much on my plate and I’d rather retreat into a good book. Through the years, I’ve learned to sit quietly, listening for the rhythms of divine order to lead the way, and then to be present in the Now. Some people like to make lists and prioritize, others want someone to tell them what to do first, but few of us know that there is an omnipresence which can help us navigate life’s activities. It can be difficult to override our ego’s dictates, admitting that we may not know what is best, releasing control, and flowing with the good which is unfolding right in front of us. But I’m going to keep trying, because I’ve seen how much easier it is than thinking I know it all!

“The objects of time and sense disappear in the illumination of spiritual understanding, and Mind measures time according to the good that is unfolding.” 

Mary Baker Eddy, Science & Health Page 584

“Do you really believe you can make a voice that can drown out God’s? Do you really believe you can devise a thought system that can separate you from Him? Do you really believe you can plan for your safety and joy better than He can? You need be neither careful nor careless; you need merely cast your cares upon Him because He careth for you. You are His care because He loves you. His Voice reminds you always that all hope is yours because of His care. You cannot choose to escape His care because that is not His Will, but you can choose to accept His care and use the infinite power of His care for all those He created by it.” 

A Course in Miracles T-5.VII.1:1-7

We’re Here To Help Each Other

When politicians and other leaders act in heartless ways, it may seem okay for individuals to do the same. Some churches believe they need to care for their members, and then if there’s anything left over, they’ll look across the fence.  And speaking of fences, gated communities and whole towns think they can build walls and live in their own cocoon. It's long past the time for us to look at what really matters. We are here to help each other. Yet many people and institutions seem to have a self-centered, me-first attitude. A wise man once said the measure of a country is in how it treats its animals. We can also gauge our society by how we treat the homeless, the hungry, the children, and others in need. I want leaders who care about human growth, about our planet, our rivers, our food supplies. Corporations are not people. They don't cry or care. Look your neighbor in the eye, listen to a friend in need, say a kind word to the serviceperson helping you, vote for people who do the same. We can make a difference!

“To my sense, the most imminent dangers confronting the coming century are: the robbing of people of life and liberty under the warrant of the Scriptures; the claims of politics and of human power, industrial slavery, and insufficient freedom of honest competition; and ritual, creed, and trusts in place of the Golden Rule, ‘Whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them.’”

Mary Baker Eddy - from The New York World, December, 1900 (An article entitled Insufficient Freedom)

“The Golden Rule asks you to do unto others as you would have them do unto you. This means that the perception of both must be accurate. The Golden Rule is the rule for appropriate behavior. You cannot behave appropriately unless you perceive correctly. Since you and your neighbor are equal members of one family, as you perceive both so you will do to both. You should look out from the perception of your own holiness to the holiness of others.” 

A Course in Miracles T-1.III.6:2-7

Beyond Darkness, Into Light

I know many people who are social activists. They have worked for years to improve our environment, politics, and the multitude of things in need of advancement. Some have told me they are tired of the fight. I am extremely grateful to each and every one of you who work to clean up rivers, who are passionate about producing uncontaminated food, who stand up to various tyrants and declare, "The emperor has no clothes!" Not a single person has told me that they're tired of the physical effort involved in these projects; it's the butting up against thought stuck in strong opinion, or that which is fueled by hate and fear, which is frustrating to them. This is where our metaphysical advice can be helpful: Don't try to change anyone else's mind, only your own. More and more of us are witnessing the effect of truth when it is brought to seemingly impossible situations, and we're finding that new avenues of action appear when this is done. There is no need to defend ourselves or proclaim our own strong opinions in support of this Truth. Knowing it, within our own selves, is sufficient!

“As when an acid and alkali meet and bring out a third quality, so mental and moral chemistry changes the material base of thought, giving more spirituality to consciousness and causing it to depend less on material evidence.” 

Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 422:14-18

“In you is all of Heaven. Every leaf that falls is given life in you. Each bird that ever sang will sing again in you. And every flower that ever bloomed has saved its perfume and its loveliness for you. What aim can supersede the Will of God and of His Son, that Heaven be restored to him for whom it was created as his only home? Nothing before and nothing after it. No other place; no other state nor time. Nothing beyond nor nearer. Nothing else. In any form. This can you bring to all the world, and all the thoughts that entered it and were mistaken for a little while. How better could your own mistakes be brought to truth than by your willingness to bring the light of Heaven with you, as you walk beyond the world of darkness into light?” 

A Course in Miracles T-25.IV.5:1-12

Translating, Understanding, Communicating

Photo credit: Aaron Springston

Translating words from one language to another can be difficult. I read a column which is dedicated to words, their origins, and usage. They told an amusing anecdote recently about the old adage “the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak”. An online translating program turned this phrase into: “the vodka is good, but the meat is rotten.” Ha!! It often seems as though the people to whom we are speaking hear things in a very different way from what we meant to convey. Perhaps we should say: Now, repeat that back to me. Actually, I’m pretty sure a great many people quit listening as soon as they think they know what you are going to say. Their brains jump into respond mode and they have no true understanding of what you are trying to convey. Translations, listening skills, critical thinking ability, communicating clearly — whew! With all these factors involved in a conversation, perhaps it’s no wonder we mistake others’ intentions. This is yet another reason I love the practice of divine metaphysics. We are learning to live in the present, and that includes listening in the now. Happy communicating to everyone on this beautiful almost-summer day!

“Laws must be communicated if they are to be helpful. In effect, they must be translated for those who speak different languages. Nevertheless, a good translator, although he must alter the form of what he translates, never changes the meaning. In fact, his whole purpose is to change the form so that the original meaning is retained. The Holy Spirit is the Translator of the laws of God to those who do not understand them. You could not do this yourself because a conflicted mind cannot be faithful to one meaning, and will therefore change the meaning to preserve the form.” 

A Course in Miracles T-7.II.4:1-6

“The compounded minerals or aggregated substances composing the earth, the relations which constituent masses hold to each other, the magnitudes, distances, and revolutions of the celestial bodies, are of no real importance, when we remember that they all must give place to the spiritual fact by the translation of man and the universe back into Spirit. In proportion as this is done, man and the universe will be found harmonious and eternal.” 

Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 209:16-24

Tribes and Oneness

Art by Nino Mak

While talking to a friend about the tribes people associate themselves with, I paused to think about the cocoon I feel cozy within here in Eureka Springs. There are a number of groups of people with whom I feel a deep kinship, but there is no limiting identity with any particular one. I remember when my boys and I moved here three decades ago. It was to attend the Clear Spring School. One of the mothers told me this school was a way of life, and I soon found out what she meant. We worked together to raise money to keep the school viable, and leaned on each other for child care and support in every avenue of life. This was a total-immersion situation unlike any other I’ve encountered. From that new beginning, I have been involved with and loved our metaphysical group, The Arkansas Metaphysical Society (Metafizzies), along with my Eureka Thyme Gallery family. Now, I feel a deep kinship with the three congregations where I have been organist/accompanist, along with the choirs I have accompanied. There is also our duplicate bridge community, the local Course in Miracles group, and my book club, Novel Women. Every day our lives can expand to include others we meet. The practice of non-duality we study opens us to our universal family, which is fluttering just out of sight! Life is Good!

“Groups of people who have shared spiritual Love are bound together for eternity.” [paraphrased] 

Joel Goldsmith

“Peace is extended from you only to the eternal, and it reaches out from the eternal in you. It flows across all else. The second obstacle is no more solid than the first. For you want neither to get rid of peace nor limit it. What are these obstacles that you would interpose between peace and its going forth but barriers you place between your will and its accomplishment? You want communion, not the feast of fear. You want salvation, not the pain of guilt. And you want your Father, not a little mound of clay, to be your home. In your holy relationship is your Father’s Son. He has not lost communion with Him, nor with himself. When you agreed to join your brother, you acknowledged this is so. This has no cost, but it has release from cost.” 

A Course in Miracles T-19.IV-B.4:1-12

Lift Your Voice and Love Loudly!

Art by J. Clement Wall

JudyClementWall.com

What do you do when you hear someone say something racist, or sexist, or ageist -- something that lays like an ugly splotch in your memory? When I was a child, I distinctly remember other children saying mean things to and about a girl. She didn't seem to have much going for her. To our way of thinking, she wasn't pretty or smart. But I liked her. I was only 8 or 9, and I was afraid to refute the words of a mob of kids who reveled in being mean to her. I never forgave myself for that. But I hope I'm rectifying it now. After that time, I began to speak up in the face of injustice. Of course, I sometimes went overboard and would challenge others, trying to defend things which didn't need my defense. Hopefully, I'm learning when my words are needed, as opposed to keeping my mouth shut and letting someone dig a hole for themselves! Whatever the case, this chalkboard art from J. Clement Wall speaks to how I feel today. "Lift Your Voice & Love Loud"! May I have the wisdom to know what to say and when to say it -- or not!

“Truth has no consciousness of error. Love has no sense of hatred. Life has no partnership with death. Truth, Life, and Love are a law of annihilation to everything unlike themselves, because they declare nothing except God.”
Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 243:25-29

“Light cannot enter darkness when a mind believes in darkness, and will not let it go. Truth does not struggle against ignorance, and love does not attack fear. What needs no protection does not defend itself. Defense is of your making. God knows it not. The Holy Spirit uses defenses on behalf of truth only because you made them against it. His perception of them, according to His purpose, merely changes them into a call for what you have attacked with them. Defenses, like everything you made, must be gently turned to your own good, translated by the Holy Spirit from means of self-destruction to means of preservation and release. His task is mighty, but the power of God is with Him. Therefore, to Him it is so easy that it was accomplished the instant it was given Him for you. Do not delay in your return to peace by wondering how He can fulfill what God has given Him to do. Leave that to Him Who knows. You are not asked to do mighty tasks yourself. You are merely asked to do the little He suggests you do, trusting Him only to the small extent of believing that, if He asks it, you can do it. You will see how easily all that He asks can be accomplished.”
A Course in Miracles T-14.VII.5:1-15