For Sunday May 24th, 2015

Hello all, the essence of beauty lives always within us, as a birthright. When we spot it in the outer world it resonates within. As David Whyte says in his book Consolations, "Beauty is the harvest of presence, the evanescent moment of seeing or hearing on the outside what already lives far inside ... the conversation between what we think is happening outside in the world and what is just about to occur far inside us."

As we strive for worldly transformation, may we sit this evening for the expression of spiritual beauty from within. May we be attuned to recognize it. May we join in whole heartedly. May it be.

Thank you,

Richard

For Sunday May 17th, 2015

Hello all, the ancient Tibetan mantra 'Om Mani Padme Hum' is a six syllable meditation on generosity, ethics / morals, patience, diligence, renunciation, and wisdom; one concept for each syllable. It is an attempt to put that which is ineffable into words, to bring higher beauty down to a scale which can be stated - that it might be passed on. When done well it carries us far beyond dictionary definitions. 

May we sit this Sunday for that opportunity to launch ourselves beyond our typical thoughts, and beyond all thoughts. May we lose ourselves in a greater awareness. May we finally find 'ourselves.'

Thank you,

Richard

For Sunday May 10th, 2015

Hello all, to reach out and ask for help when we find ourselves 'missing the mark' is an elegant thing. The simple phrase 'Dear God, fill my heart' carries many changes. Self-honesty is essential to notice our position and a degree of humility is required to do the asking. The final outcome is as much as we can be open to.

May we sit this evening for these qualities. May we find them within ourselves. May we bring them forth honestly. May divine will be done.

Thank you,

Richard

For Sunday May 3rd, 2015

Hello everyone, seeing the results of earthquakes, tsunamis, riots, war, and dis-ease, we may well ask, "Why am I here?" At times the question is asked as a victim's plea, "Why do I have to put up with such and such?" But it also can be a request for insight into an outward-loving purpose in this life, "How can I be useful and helpful?"

Taking a tip from Edgar Cayce, "...get the answer from the mental self! Then enter into meditation, in the wee hours of the morning, when the world at large is quiet - when the music of the spheres and the morning stars sing for the glory of the coming day, and ask the soul; and let the spirit of self answer. Audibly? Yea, within thine own heart will come the answer..."

May we sit this Sunday for those quiet, individual answers. May we find how we each are to be helpful, to be useful, to be spiritually fulfilled. 

Thank you,

Richard

For Sunday April 26th, 2015

Hello all, it can be amazing to realize that the solution to many of the world's problems are well within our simple reach. The spread of AIDS can be stopped immediately and completely with monogamy. Racism is avoided by tolerance and cured by compassion. Religious differences fully settled with Ram Dass' comment, "Every religion is the product of the conceptual mind attempting to describe the mystery." (Thank you, Barbara)

Simplistic? Yes, elegant answers always are. The difficulty lies in the application. 

May we sit this evening for the courage and wisdom it takes to fulfill our spiritual selves. May we find it within. May we encourage it in others. May we be and spread the seed.

Thank you,

Richard

For Sunday April 19th, 2015

Hello everyone, many know the difficulties of our lives have purpose in the long term. Each soul meets itself continually on the path to reconnection. And not only our lives serve these purposes but the life of the world at large as well. Roughly put, we are teaching ourselves eternal lessons, at sometimes great immediate cost. 

As the costs pile up, environmental and human, it's good to remember that Love is the only actual power in the universe. Our love and compassion for lost souls is an essential piece of reconnection, to them, within ourselves, and to the Infinite.

May we sit this evening for the compassion of reconnection. May we find it honestly, May we share it fully. May it light our way forward in this world.

Thank you all,

Richard

For Sunday April 12th, 2015

Hello all, it may not be true that our greatest fear is the fear of death. Our greatest fear may be that of not being loved. A person may face death a number of times before they actually die. But the fear of not being loved can be an ongoing thing, endlessly warping a person's life.

As we look at the world today what do we see which may indicate a lack of love in people's lives? Nearly everything; from addictions, to obsessions, to misunderstanding wealth and power as happiness; from racism and religious intolerance to atrocities enacted upon other humans due to an attitude or belief system; we are astonishingly creative at what we're capable of in the absence of love.

Yet we have barely begun to touch what we're capable of when our hearts are full.

May we sit this evening for those full hearts. May we sit for those who are here and those yet to come. And may we sit for the sharing of the love within our own hearts this day.

Thank you,

Richard

For Sunday April 5th, 2015

Hello everyone, what if the biblical phrase, "Father forgive them for they know not what they do" is an incomplete quote? It is typically mentioned as if it ended with the words "to me", making it a personal statement of martyrdom. However, when you imagine it as, "Father forgive them for they know not what they do to each other" it instantly becomes global in meaning, deeply relevant to all the ages of humanity, and tightly bonded to another well known phrase, "Love one another."

May we sit this Sunday for religious/spiritual readings to be seen from the most loving perspective possible. May we find it ourselves. May we share our love with others. May we all simply, "Love one another."

Thank you,

Richard

For Sunday March 29th, 2015

Hello all, human hearts were designed for connection, across to each other and upward to Source. It is their natural state of being and yet, due to the various curvatures and distractions of life, is all too easily lost. When these connections are weak or fail entirely the mind attempts to 'fill-in' by conjuring up sometimes fantastic scenarios, based upon shallow observation and driven by lesser desires. Here is where you find religions filled with anger, and heartless actions from individuals.

May we sit this Sunday evening for the connections the heart seeks. May we reach out to each other. May we be open to Above. May we fulfill the original design within our own lives.

Thank you,

Richard

For Sunday March 22nd, 2015

Hello everyone, most adults are busy people, from raising a family to job responsibilities to house maintenance to bill paying, there can be little time left for quiet things. Tying a child's shoelace can easily fall under the heading of 'get it done we're late' or, "What, again?"

Now, here's an updated quote from Galileo:

The sun is a nuclear furnace, millions of times larger than the Earth. It blasts out heat, light, radiation, particles, and magnetic waves at an endless and frightening pace. It's gravity holds mighty Jupiter, distant Pluto, and all the other planets tightly within their prescribed orbits. And yet, it shines gently upon a bunch of grapes and ripens them, as if it had absolutely nothing else to do.

May we sit this Sunday for the beautiful moments in our lives. May we give them our full attention in the time they last. And, as with the Divine, may everything fall under the umbrella of loving care.

Thank you all,

Richard

For Sunday March 15th, 2015

March 15th, 2015

Hello everyone, the current state of media, both news and entertainment, is to be caught up in making money through sensationalism. Movies get darker and harsher in order to titillate the masses and "news" shows are designed to evoke a reaction rather than to inform. It can create a false view of the world.

The antidote is to look around you and observe. Road rage stands out only because the vast majority of car drivers cooperate with each other. And movies show a fantastic array of story lines not otherwise seen in our lives. 

May we sit this evening for the purpose of seeing clearly. What is a true view of our world? A parent tying a child's shoe or a stranger smiling honestly while holding a door open may carry much more weight into the future than we now realize. 

Thank you,

Richard

For Sunday March 8th, 2015

Hello all, humanity is searching for it's own destiny. It's easy to declare 'I want freedom' or 'we need justice' or 'give us equality' and then proceed to lay out the exact political and legal steps required, that is the thought process we are in. However, what is more deeply needed is the process of moving from attachment to compassion, from heartless to heartfelt. Essentially, it is a search from the known to the unknown. 

For any individual to make a change from emotionally wrought thinking to truly caring outwardly for others they may need an entire lifetime, or more. For all of humanity to make this change... Well, we're still in process.

May we sit this evening for the courage, strength, and wisdom required for this change to occur. May it continue in the world. May it continue in ourselves. May it continue for all.

Thank you,

Richard

For Sunday March 1st, 2015

Hello all, under the heading of 'steal and reuse good stuff' here is Stanley Peele's latest writing dealing with reactions to a crime in Chapel Hill, NC. He covers a lot of ground here and centers on the deep responsibility encased in the phrase 'We create the world.' May we sit this evening for the true depth which it calls for from within us.

Thank you Stanley,

Richard

OUR REACTION TO THE TRIPLE MURDER

A newlywed couple, Deah Barakat, and Yusor Abu-Salha, and Abu-Salha's sister, Razan Abu-Salha were murdered in Chapel Hill on Feb. 10, 2014.

 

Our first reaction to that was horror.  The second reaction was fear.  Many people asked the police, "Are we safe?"

 

The third reaction was anger – that the lives of three promising young students could be snuffed out in an act of violence.   Two of the comments that were made were "I hope he is fried," and "Lethal injection is too kind.  He should suffer a painful death."

 

The fourth reaction was a heartfelt appreciation of the promising lives of the victims.

 

The fifth was an intense interest in the lives and background of the victims and the alleged killer.

 

The sixth was an intense feeling of sadness about the increase of violence in the world.

 

*           *         *

 

At one time, the native people of Hawaii practiced the philosophy of Ho'oponopono.

 

The belief was that if a person was sick, caused disharmony or committed a crime, that his family and friends shared the responsibility.   When a child became sick, the child's family would get together.  Then each one would ask, "Is there anything I have done to bring about this sickness?"

 

In other words, it was not as much a process of blaming others as it was a philosophy of looking at themselves with honesty and openness.

 

The responsibility expanded beyond the parents -- to include family, friends and those who interacted with the sick child.  This idea expanded to include all the people in the village.   It can be expanded to cover all the people in the world.  Total responsibility.

 

They thought that in order to change reality, they would have to change themselves.

 Their philosophy was that everything that exists is a projection from ourselves. All consciousness is a part of the whole: any error that a person clears will benefit everyone.   Thus, they would say to other members of the family:    "I'm sorry. Please forgive me. I love you.  Thank you."

You may feel this idea is hard to swallow.  

However, this way of thinking brings us closer to the realization that when a person commits a horrible crime, we should look at ourselves to see if there is an echo of the crime within ourselves.

If we say, "I hope he fries," this may be an understandable reaction.  But it may also reveal the anger and violence within ourselves.

Thus, we can recognize that a particular act of violence exists in this world as a result of a worldwide belief in vengeance.

It takes honesty and courage to truly examine ourselves for traces of violent thoughts. If you are driving on a highway, and another driver suddenly pulls right in front of you, do you get angry?   Do the actions of President Obama or Representative John Boehner make you angry? 

The next time you have a disagreement with a friend, and he is angry with you, say these four sentences to him:

"I'm sorry.  Please forgive me.  I love you.  Thank you." 

This does not mean you change your mind about the argument.  You and your friend still disagree.   However, it changes your outlook from blaming your friend to loving him.  Blaming others is a sure way to promote the disharmony of this world.

The man who killed these three people forgot who he is.  Let us not forget who we are.

 

       This is a time to reflect on our own lives; a time to shine light into the world; a time to talk to God, and to listen for that small quiet voice.

 

       It is a time to tell our precious family and friends that we love them. 

 

Right now, say these words: "I'm sorry.  Please forgive me.  I love you.  Thank you."

That wasn't hard, was it?  Just quietly saying those four sentences can ease some of your stress.

Thus, you create peace.  Peace in your heart and peace in the world.

Stanley Peele          Feb. 19, '15