Wow! What an evening last night!
I got a call from a relative in that extended family I
mentioned in yesterday's post followed immediately by the viewing of segment 7
in Bill Moyers' series called Faith & Reason. The juxtaposition just blows
me away. Whoever or whatever may be the actual nature of that thing I sometimes
call Cosmic Mind has a really cool sense of timing and an amazing sense of
humor.
The relative is a faithful member of the same Christian
religion in which I grew up. It's working beautifully for her and clearly
satisfies her spiritual needs. The interviewee on the Moyers' show was Pema
Chöndrön, a Buddhist nun. Her religion works for her, too.
I asked my relative how I was coming across in this blog.
She has been reading it (don't know how long) but has never commented. She said
that I came across as ...searching. The way she said it led me to jump to the
conclusion that 'searching' was a bad thing. (MY stuff, not necessarily hers -
I didn't check it out.)
Here's my REVELATION:
(Multi-faceted, no particular order)
Ø It’s the
search that is important, not the answer.
Ø My
thrashing about for answers is about (may
be about) my own need for drama and wanting to be ‘made special’ by some kind
of cosmic communication.
Ø There
really ARE (at least) Nine Billion Names of god. Which one I choose (or don’t
choose) is probably irrelevant to you.
Ø NO ONE
actually KNOWS who/what/where god is until s/he experiences it after this
lifetime is over. What that person believes about it is her/his own belief
system about it.
Ø A belief
system may be inherited (by default or by thoughtful consideration), or it may
be rationally chosen after careful research and/or experience.
Ø I still
have ‘knee-jerk’ reactions to some things that sound like fundamental
Christianity.
Ø What
others believe about my experience is none of my business, but may make
interesting conversation. (if we can avoid having expectations for each other)
Ø True
‘fundamentalism’ seems symptomatic of a closed mind regardless of the form that
fundamentalism takes: religion, politics, whatever.
Ø I’m
better served, spiritually, if I remain flexible and open to the possibility
that I may be totally and completely wrong about ALL matters spiritual and by
attaching nothing to that possibility.
Ø We all,
each of us, have the potential of embracing fundamentalism in one realm or
another.
There will be more on this subject, of course. It seems
enough for now that I can (at last) RELAX. My current spiritual task is to
manifest the best, kindest, most peaceful spirit I can manage in any given
moment, and to model that in my heart, my behavior, my speech; indeed, in ALL
aspects of my life. Doing that will also require that I translate my former
angst into actual spiritual practice. For me, that will be more meditation and
further exploration. If I need further revelation it will be provided.
Hallelujah, amen.
