Sacred Sexuality

But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart. Matthew 5:28

lust - definition of lust by the Free Online Dictionary, Thesaurus and ...
www.thefreedictionary.com/lust
a. An overwhelming desire or craving

Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbour's. Exodus 20:1-17

covet - definition of covet by the Free Online Dictionary, Thesaurus ...
www.thefreedictionary.com/covet
v. cov·et·ed, cov·et·ing, cov·ets. v.tr. 1. To feel blameworthy desire for (that which is another's).

It seems to me that the wrong in lusting and in coveting is that the desire is overwhelming; therefore, it drives the person consumed by the desire to endanger oneself or others (physically, emotionally, or spiritually)in the pursuit of the fulfillment of the passion.

I feel so sorry for the moral men
Who have been taught to live in shame
Because of their need of their women.
We are animals who are given a gift:
The sacred bonds of sexuality,
So that we won't want to drift
From protection of the community
Including our precious young,
With life mates basic to unity.
Physical desires drive us to bond
Whether in wrestling, hugging,
Or the mating life depends upon.

It is competition that has led us
To reject lifetime partnerships
And to scorn those that wed us.
Fear of the church and of the state
That we may find something more sacred
Than that which they overrate.
The sacred is transcendent,
And it is the greatest blessing
That in sexual love we are sent.
The transcendent man or woman
Will have discipline if we reclaim
The sacred in sexuality's plan.

America's Collective Cowboy Complex

I offered my back to those who beat me, my cheeks to those who pulled out my beard; I did not hide my face from mocking and spitting. Isaiah 50:6

But I say to you, love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which spitefully use you, and persecute you. Matthew 5:4

For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in. Matthew 25:35

On this Veterans Day, many of us may ask ourselves how to square our views on loving our enemies and turning the other cheek with war. It seems that there has always been war because there has always been jealousy and greed, a lust for imperial power. Adam and Eve wanted to be greater than their creator; Cain wanted to best Abel. How different our world would be if Adam and Eve had understood peaceful partnerships and parental protection.

One of the wonders of the way our current armed forces are approaching their duties as protectors of the oppressed is in holding the bullies at bay while encouraging the empowerment of the citizenry. From Time Magazine, Monday, Aug. 29, 2011, The New Greatest Generation by Joe Klein: "...Seth Moulton, a Marine captain who had been the Harvard class-of-2001 commencement speaker and became particularly adept at working with Iraqis to organize construction projects. "Petraeus was an amazing boss," Moulton says. "Our mission was to defeat the military bureaucracy. We were able to build border forts, using Iraqi engineers and work crews, for one-fifth the price that the American contractors were charging and in one-third the time. Our proposals went right to his desk, rather than through the bureaucracy. The only thing he demanded of us was success."

The post-patriarchal era of United States military involvement appears to be empowerment by passing on information and protecting the weak while they learn. This is something that we know has happened all over the world in wars past, but we've not necessarily been proud to admit it. Helping our former enemies to help themselves is a hallmark of America's fighting forces. Chivalry isn't dead; it's now called cooperation and compassion, shared by women and men. Perhaps we Americans do have a collective cowboy complex, but I wouldn't have it any other way.

Arguing for Amazement as Sacred Scripture

This is what I mean when I say that I believe that very little of sacred scripture is contained in the works that the world religions call "sacred scripture." I believe that the sacred is first written in the hearts of the people who take the time to be amazed and grateful for that amazement, and secondly on paper, stone tablets, papyrus, and cyberspace. I would love to see more of the contemporary stories of that amazement and gratitude written down by everyday men and women reporting on their everyday lives.

One of my soul sisters who has spent much of her life studying the Judeo-Christian faiths and now writes a blog about her spiritual journey called "One Bird Watching" mentioned that she's reading a book called Radical Amazement. This term spoke to me because it seems to embody part of my philosophy of The Spirit, "Amazement," so I Googled the term. The first reference to the term that I came upon was regarding Abraham Joshua Heschel (January 11, 1907 – December 23, 1972) who was a Polish-born American rabbi and one of the leading Jewish theologians and Jewish philosophers of the 20th century. Here are some pretty amazing quotes from him:

"Wonder rather than doubt is the root of all knowledge."
"Just to be is a blessing. Just to live is holy."
"Racism is man's gravest threat to man - the maximum hatred for a minimum reason."
"All it takes is one person… and another… and another… and another… to start a movement"
"A religious man is a person who holds God and man in one thought at one time, at all times, who suffers harm done to others, whose greatest passion is compassion, whose greatest strength is love and defiance of despair."
" God is either of no importance, or of supreme importance."
"Self-respect is the fruit of discipline, the sense of dignity grows with the ability to say no to oneself."
"Life without commitment is not worth living."
"Above all, the prophets remind us of the moral state of a people: Few are guilty, but all are responsible."
"Remember that there is a meaning beyond absurdity. Be sure that every little deed counts, that every word has power. Never forget that you can still do your share to redeem the world in spite of all absurdities and frustrations and disappointments."
"When I was young, I admired clever people. Now that I am old, I admire kind people."
"Awareness of symbolic meaning is awareness of a specific idea; kavanah is awareness of an ineffable situation.
"A Jew is asked to take a leap of action rather than a leap of thought."
"Speech has power. Words do not fade. What starts out as a sound, ends in a deed."
"The Almighty has not created the universe that we may have opportunities to satisfy our greed, envy and ambition."
"The higher goal of spiritual living is not to amass a wealth of information, but to face sacred moments."
"The course of life is unpredictable... no one can write his autobiography in advance."
"When I marched in Selma, my legs were praying."

I realized that he hadn't written the book with that title, so I looked further and found that non-deceased Judy Cannato had written it. Here is a quote from an interview with her:

“ When each of us vibrates love and compassion, our energy mysteriously unites with the energy of love and compassion all over the planet, augmenting the field of compassion, making its resonance, manifestation, and influence a very powerful force for transformation and
healing. . . . Could there be any greater cause for hope in the community of life?”

If these things aren't sacred scripture, I don't know what would qualify.

The Sweetness of the Sacred

The sweetness of life is all the sacred that I have ever needed;
It is also, I understand, with death and destruction seeded.
But to continue waiting to attain a heaven or a hell after death
Gives my uneasy, longing human heart and soul very little rest.

I suffer the pain of separation every time I lose sight of a loved face;
I try to remind myself that I'm always left with the loved ones grace.
The consolations that I have in losing someone to the hereafter
Is in the remembrance of our shared lives, love, and laughter.

I will not save these enjoyments until after my loved ones are gone;
Continually celebrating the joys of my people is what I depend upon.
I can't say that it doesn't sometimes hurt to be so emotionally open,
But the faith that every day is sacred is the faith on which I depend.

The Core of Community

I've always been most comfortable with people who discipline themselves,
Instead of depending on rewards and punishments administered by someone else.
These are people who can be trusted not to be manipulated
By the many moods or the whims that others have strongly stated.
The rules in which they operate create a comfortable fence
In which their steadfastness is our community's best defense.
Those of strong emotions are sometimes called upon for fuel,
But their fiery passions are not allowed to be the final rule.
It takes quite a lot of courage to handle emotional hurricanes,
But without people of strong moral courage, no boundaries remain.
It is also true that those who have closed their minds to reason
Can't be counted on to survive through the stormiest of seasons.
Every community must be balanced with people of adventure,
Without ever losing sight of the core values at its center.

The Haze of Our History

There are so many things that our men can't seem to say,
As if the forming of the right words gets in their way.
In email, chat, and messaging they communicate many things,
That if dependent on spontaneity, their thoughts would grow wings --
Not to tell us what they think, feel, or want for themselves
But in trying to please what in each of their communicants indwells.

I had a message conversation with a beloved nephew today;
The many topics we touched on were of a varied array.
He's intelligent, compassionate, and politically interested,
But none of my personal opinions has he actually requested.
He did, however, ask for some of my remembered information
About the family we had shared before his life's creation.

I hope he knows that all my most vivid recollections
Are actually made up, in part, by others' reflections.
There is no absolute truth in any telling of history;
Every reflection is colored by the person who did see.
Nothing would please me more than to our history hear
From the mouths of the people my nephew holds most dear.

Patience and Priorities

Our western way is not one of patience; it is more like the restlessness of a teenager seeking instant salvation through saying a few magic words or instant gratification through demands that we be given whatever are our whims or risk the creation of chaos.

How easy it is to be swayed by those that cause us to feel fascinating by their wooing of our attentions, and how hard it is to find true friends who will help us to simply be the best we can be, no matter the cost to themselves. This seems to be the segment of relationships that we aren't taught, the patience part. Without patience, all relationships are doomed to failure, even our relationships with our better selves.

Setting priorities seems to be the most important part of relationships. This setting of priorities necessarily means the exclusion or delay of gratification in other things. Our worldly, scared selves can be convinced that this discipline is snobbery or cowardice, but it is actually the only way to become truly whole.