I've heard it said, "God can't be everywhere; that's why we need mothers."
I say, "Mothers can't be everywhere; that's why we need the godliness of others."
It has forever been that which makes us feel safe is knowing to whom we belong.
Its easy to say that we're all children of God and to think otherwise is wrong;
Humans weren't made to live alone without the comforting sounds and touch of others.
This is why we're born so helpless and for so long need our fathers and mothers.
Parents who don't create strong boundaries and hold their children close in their bond
Create a vacuum of safety and values that their family's children can depend upon.
There is a reason that it is said that harming a child should lead to one's death;
When an adult destroys a child's innocence, the child's soul is forever at unrest.
Thursday, January 5, 2012
Wednesday, January 4, 2012
Productive Progeny
Why would religions encourage parents in continuing to produce
Offspring for whom parents won't care and they will let run loose?
They are feral animals, not children, who are often brought to wrath
By the fear and anger of parents who haven't secured their own paths.
Those who rail against contraception surely can't be aware
Of the fate of the children for whom their parents can't care.
Their pure souls are tainted from before they are even born;
They feel their parents' rejection, and are born with self-scorn.
And the feelings of shame that are imparted to the innocent,
As if they were responsible for where and to whom they were sent,
Are never a good way to encourage peace and empathy for others;
It only encourages jealousy among the world's sisters and brothers.
We must stop acting as if children are manna from heaven,
Instead of responsibilities that no amount of preaching can leaven.
Each of us and each couple can only to our children impart
The gifts that we have realized in our lives and our hearts.
Those that have no spirit of wholeness will not succeed
In imparting the wholeness to their children which they so need.
While it may have once been true in lower animals
That offspring only need bellies that are kept full,
Children of humans need to be shown and be often told
That their individual bodies exist to help achieve a greater goal;
Otherwise, they become creatures of immediate gratification
That impede not only their own, but their offspring's and the world's, salvation.
Offspring for whom parents won't care and they will let run loose?
They are feral animals, not children, who are often brought to wrath
By the fear and anger of parents who haven't secured their own paths.
Those who rail against contraception surely can't be aware
Of the fate of the children for whom their parents can't care.
Their pure souls are tainted from before they are even born;
They feel their parents' rejection, and are born with self-scorn.
And the feelings of shame that are imparted to the innocent,
As if they were responsible for where and to whom they were sent,
Are never a good way to encourage peace and empathy for others;
It only encourages jealousy among the world's sisters and brothers.
We must stop acting as if children are manna from heaven,
Instead of responsibilities that no amount of preaching can leaven.
Each of us and each couple can only to our children impart
The gifts that we have realized in our lives and our hearts.
Those that have no spirit of wholeness will not succeed
In imparting the wholeness to their children which they so need.
While it may have once been true in lower animals
That offspring only need bellies that are kept full,
Children of humans need to be shown and be often told
That their individual bodies exist to help achieve a greater goal;
Otherwise, they become creatures of immediate gratification
That impede not only their own, but their offspring's and the world's, salvation.
Tuesday, January 3, 2012
Religion as Reflection of Divine Dignity
If nobody hears and responds to you today, will you cease to exist?
All social animals seem to need to experience themselves reflected in the responses and reactions of others. The lucky ones are born into an accepting tribe with a mother capable of nurture, but what about those that are born "different" or to a mother who has no nurturing capability? In the lower animals, the offspring are either killed, or nursed by others, or neglected until they die. The strongest and most aggressive of the group may survive, but as extremely aggressive and territorial members of their societies.
There is evidence of "failure to thrive" in children and the elderly. While the symptoms may vary, there seems to be a general "giving up" in those that are ignored because of their inability to produce what society deems useful.
Many people attempt to indicate that we are to find strength within ourselves, or in a spiritual realm, but we are made to be social beings. To deny our need to be acknowledged and appreciated is to deny our very human natures, which, in my opinion, is the animal nature endowed with, not only a spark of divinity, but also with the freedom to choose with whom we will associate.
The course of all human religion seems to point toward the very human need to define a group that will acknowledge and accept us and our spark of divinity, and put protective boundaries around us and our tribe. What are we to become without a socially accepting and protecting tribe of those who honestly lives within its boundaries?
All social animals seem to need to experience themselves reflected in the responses and reactions of others. The lucky ones are born into an accepting tribe with a mother capable of nurture, but what about those that are born "different" or to a mother who has no nurturing capability? In the lower animals, the offspring are either killed, or nursed by others, or neglected until they die. The strongest and most aggressive of the group may survive, but as extremely aggressive and territorial members of their societies.
There is evidence of "failure to thrive" in children and the elderly. While the symptoms may vary, there seems to be a general "giving up" in those that are ignored because of their inability to produce what society deems useful.
Many people attempt to indicate that we are to find strength within ourselves, or in a spiritual realm, but we are made to be social beings. To deny our need to be acknowledged and appreciated is to deny our very human natures, which, in my opinion, is the animal nature endowed with, not only a spark of divinity, but also with the freedom to choose with whom we will associate.
The course of all human religion seems to point toward the very human need to define a group that will acknowledge and accept us and our spark of divinity, and put protective boundaries around us and our tribe. What are we to become without a socially accepting and protecting tribe of those who honestly lives within its boundaries?
Monday, January 2, 2012
Rules for a Reason
How many of us know the beliefs of our own religions?
Do any of us have time to study all our leadership's decisions?
We tend to band together in groups that feel comfortable,
Or follow leaders who promise hearts and bellies that are full.
All Christian religions have there genesis in Judaism,
But we don't like to look at redemption through a rule-bound prism.
The rules weren't made to stop our personal harmony,
But to enable our societies, from the strife of war, to be free.
When we all agree that the same god lives in me and in you,
We can honor and nurture each other and our angers will be few.
When we use god as a threat, rather than as a source of strength,
This is not the way almighty power was meant to be spent.
Our many ancestors, mother and father and the rest,
May not deserve our love, but we can each emulate their best.
Adultery of your body's sacred temple and the temple's of other's bonds
Destroys the health and trust that families and societies are built upon.
There are many ways to steal, through deceit, and through unfair pay;
This destroys the fairness, and leaves our society in disarray.
When we lust after each other's goods, husbands, and wives,
We destroy the harmony in which families and societies thrive.
Murder begets resentment and retribution for generations;
This destroys the serenity and safety of all of creation.
And when we accuse others of things they did not do or say
It is difficult to mend the broken bonds we create along the way.
When we don't take time to give thanks and to rest with our clan,
We lose the ability to see divinity in all creation and other humans.
The commandments may be worded and numbered differently in different faiths,
But they have survived as a set of boundaries for the human race.
Until we accept some common ground on which to bring families up in peace,
It is unlikely that the killing of each other will ever cease.
Do any of us have time to study all our leadership's decisions?
We tend to band together in groups that feel comfortable,
Or follow leaders who promise hearts and bellies that are full.
All Christian religions have there genesis in Judaism,
But we don't like to look at redemption through a rule-bound prism.
The rules weren't made to stop our personal harmony,
But to enable our societies, from the strife of war, to be free.
When we all agree that the same god lives in me and in you,
We can honor and nurture each other and our angers will be few.
When we use god as a threat, rather than as a source of strength,
This is not the way almighty power was meant to be spent.
Our many ancestors, mother and father and the rest,
May not deserve our love, but we can each emulate their best.
Adultery of your body's sacred temple and the temple's of other's bonds
Destroys the health and trust that families and societies are built upon.
There are many ways to steal, through deceit, and through unfair pay;
This destroys the fairness, and leaves our society in disarray.
When we lust after each other's goods, husbands, and wives,
We destroy the harmony in which families and societies thrive.
Murder begets resentment and retribution for generations;
This destroys the serenity and safety of all of creation.
And when we accuse others of things they did not do or say
It is difficult to mend the broken bonds we create along the way.
When we don't take time to give thanks and to rest with our clan,
We lose the ability to see divinity in all creation and other humans.
The commandments may be worded and numbered differently in different faiths,
But they have survived as a set of boundaries for the human race.
Until we accept some common ground on which to bring families up in peace,
It is unlikely that the killing of each other will ever cease.
Sunday, January 1, 2012
Harmony on Earth and in Heaven
I do not believe we can be right with G_d without being right with all that is part of creation. As we enter this New Year, my hope is that we all begin to honor the spark of divinity in every bit of the universe and stop arguing and killing over semantics and rituals.
If your G_d manifests as a man and mine manifests as a tree, as long as it is a positive, life affirming manifestation, why would we want to take that gift from each other? To destroy hope seems to me the greatest sin of all. In my belief system, we are admonished to seek harmony on earth as it is in heaven.
I wish us all new hope for peace in 2012.
If your G_d manifests as a man and mine manifests as a tree, as long as it is a positive, life affirming manifestation, why would we want to take that gift from each other? To destroy hope seems to me the greatest sin of all. In my belief system, we are admonished to seek harmony on earth as it is in heaven.
I wish us all new hope for peace in 2012.
Saturday, December 31, 2011
Praying "To" and "Through" People
There are those who have a problem with praying "to" a saint; they say we should pray directly to G_d. There are others who feel that we are too insignificant to approach G_d directly, so we must have our prayers delivered "through" one who went before us to the feet of The Master, or "through" an ordained "priest." And then there are others who feel that they have a great friend in Jesus, who walks and talks with them as would a fellow friend or sibling.
I'm not sure what prayer is, but I consider the remembrances of those who loved me in this life to be prayer. I feel their energies infusing me, and I try to channel their examples of behavior.
My mothers did not approve of me, but each of them had certain gifts that were saintly to others. I studied these behaviors, and I try very hard to get past the negative baggage that comes with memories of them to the saintly qualities that I saw them sharing with others. It is often difficult to embrace their saintliness without my demons rearing their ugly heads.
My father thought I was quite a prize, but we were taught, even by him, that there was nothing remotely saintly about him. I still find myself remembering him fondly. Even though I don't "say" prayers to him, I do find myself feeling his presence infusing me with a certain positive energy.
Each of us has a relationship with a different aspect of each person we encounter. Those that have been a saint in one's life may have been pure pain in the life of another. In seeking the Spirit of Wholeness, I steadfastly strive to incorporate the positive from every encounter and hope that my Holy Spirit can keep the demons of destruction at bay. Is this prayer? I think so.
I'm not sure what prayer is, but I consider the remembrances of those who loved me in this life to be prayer. I feel their energies infusing me, and I try to channel their examples of behavior.
My mothers did not approve of me, but each of them had certain gifts that were saintly to others. I studied these behaviors, and I try very hard to get past the negative baggage that comes with memories of them to the saintly qualities that I saw them sharing with others. It is often difficult to embrace their saintliness without my demons rearing their ugly heads.
My father thought I was quite a prize, but we were taught, even by him, that there was nothing remotely saintly about him. I still find myself remembering him fondly. Even though I don't "say" prayers to him, I do find myself feeling his presence infusing me with a certain positive energy.
Each of us has a relationship with a different aspect of each person we encounter. Those that have been a saint in one's life may have been pure pain in the life of another. In seeking the Spirit of Wholeness, I steadfastly strive to incorporate the positive from every encounter and hope that my Holy Spirit can keep the demons of destruction at bay. Is this prayer? I think so.
Friday, December 30, 2011
The Much-Maligned Masses
A life without hope is certainly not worth continuing to live. When authority figures overstep their bounds to the extent that the masses no longer have hope, the masses become reckless because they feel they have nothing left to lose.
People had hoped for comfortable retirements after many years of hard work, but the corporations who love to portray their entities as people with consciences have created many layers of law that exempt the people who make the rules from any consequence of their ill-fated decisions. Many are left penniless while the robber barons are offered lifetime security and extreme wealth.
People hoped for peace in the hereafter, but the religious organizations convinced us that they have the power to grant or deny our entry into paradise. The religious leaders then exempted themselves from the rule of law governing their flocks, thereby insulating themselves from the earthly consequences of their disrespect for and abuse of their fellow humans.
People hoped to have the powerful in our government making, following, and enforcing rules of fairness. The officials in government exempted themselves from all their own rules and became the worst of the bullies, taking advantage of the weak and granting themselves lifetime benefits denied to their fellow citizens.
Religion and "our" government representatives have sold their souls to the almighty dollar and a continuation of power for their own elite. Corporations have no souls, and by their legal instruments of incorporation, are given licenses to steal.
What do the maligned masses have to look forward to, short of death? Death, even without the promise of paradise, might at least give the peace of no further pain. Nothingness may seem better to some than continued striving for fairness that is not forthcoming.
We must not stay silent as the masses band together to call for accountability. We must be willing to stand with them as they attempt to steer the world toward right. We cannot go back because there is no "back" to which we can return. It has been either destroyed or bought by the very people who now wish for us to go backward to "their America" and their world, a world from which they have exempted us.
People had hoped for comfortable retirements after many years of hard work, but the corporations who love to portray their entities as people with consciences have created many layers of law that exempt the people who make the rules from any consequence of their ill-fated decisions. Many are left penniless while the robber barons are offered lifetime security and extreme wealth.
People hoped for peace in the hereafter, but the religious organizations convinced us that they have the power to grant or deny our entry into paradise. The religious leaders then exempted themselves from the rule of law governing their flocks, thereby insulating themselves from the earthly consequences of their disrespect for and abuse of their fellow humans.
People hoped to have the powerful in our government making, following, and enforcing rules of fairness. The officials in government exempted themselves from all their own rules and became the worst of the bullies, taking advantage of the weak and granting themselves lifetime benefits denied to their fellow citizens.
Religion and "our" government representatives have sold their souls to the almighty dollar and a continuation of power for their own elite. Corporations have no souls, and by their legal instruments of incorporation, are given licenses to steal.
What do the maligned masses have to look forward to, short of death? Death, even without the promise of paradise, might at least give the peace of no further pain. Nothingness may seem better to some than continued striving for fairness that is not forthcoming.
We must not stay silent as the masses band together to call for accountability. We must be willing to stand with them as they attempt to steer the world toward right. We cannot go back because there is no "back" to which we can return. It has been either destroyed or bought by the very people who now wish for us to go backward to "their America" and their world, a world from which they have exempted us.
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