For Sunday January 29th, 2017

Hello everyone, Tibetans are the only people known to have changed from a warrior culture to being peaceful and spiritually oriented. Despite being warriors they still maintained a connection to the Earth and saw themselves as shepherds of the Earth rather than owners free to exploit resources for profit.

This compassionate core provided them with a foundation upon which Buddhist teachings could build a new focus for their society.  

Today in our fractured and often exploitive world what compassion do we have to build a better world upon? Perhaps the compassion we show to each other. 

May we sit this Sunday for the strength and the will to treat everyone we interact with compassionately. May we treat all others as we would like to be treated ourselves.

Thank you,

Richard

For Sunday January 22nd, 2017

Hello to everyone, self-awareness is a difficult and often painful path. Our inner conflicts can be embarrassing to discover and uncover. One way to avoid such torment is by following authority, relinquishing our challenging inner work to follow preset rules in hopes of achieving happiness.

But authority creates power which corrupts the leader and blinds the follower. It leads us away from the matter of our inner issues and gives a balm which is temporary at best. 

May we sit this Sunday for the courage to dig in. May we see ourselves clearly and lovingly. May such love fully 'be' on this Earth.

Thank you all,

Richard

For Sunday January 15th, 2017

Hello everyone, in this sometimes troubling era discerning false prophets by the fruits of their labors can take time. The fruits to look for are laid out by all the great religions and are known in your heart; patience, wisdom, wonder, kindness, and loving outwardly rather than inwardly to self, among others. 

It is possible to hold these same fruits as a benchmark for ourselves and give the gift of time to all concerned.

This evening, as we seek to improve the world, let us improve ourselves within it. May we sit for these fruits in our lives. May we may recognize them in others.

Respectfully submitted,

Richard

For Sunday January 8th, 2017

Hello everyone, when we can 'smile from our hearts' at all people, when we can see them as aspects of the Divine no matter how lost they seem to be in our view, we enlarge our hearts and create connections.

At times like this when there are those who would profit from division and anger these connections are critical. 

This evening may we begin building our future from the inside until it shows on the outside. 

Thank you all,

Richard

For Sunday January 1st, 2016

Hello everyone, in this season of political and economic discord between the left and the right, fake and real news, haves and have-nots, it may be well to retain a broad perspective. 

Yes, each of us must follow what we find in our hearts and do the work which comes to hand. But even snowflakes with their myriad variations are not in angry conflict. Each is different, some landing among the trees and some upon the ground, yet keep in mind it is winter – summer will come, and all will rejoin.

May we sit this evening for the presence of mind to see the fuller picture, even when delving into details.

Thank you all,

Richard

For Sunday December 25th, 2016

Hello everyone and Merry Christmas, as we celebrate 'the one' whose spiritual job is not yet finished let us work toward the Oneness which is within our reach. Here's a connective process:

Step one; get the hands busy, find or join an activity which can be done with a group. 

Step two; the community spirit which is built during the activity is the engagement of hearts. 

Step three; it is the engagement of people's hearts which changes the brain and thereby the thinking.

May we sit this Christmas Sunday in the unity which is promised but we have not yet delivered. May we reach out and make the connections we can. May Thy Will be done in all things.

Thank you all,

Richard

For Sunday December 18th, 2016

Hello everyone, Edgar Cayce said, "Let thy words and thy meditation be, as ye present thy bodies, thy lives, thy activities before others: "Lord, use me in whatever way or manner that my body may be as a living example of Thy love..." - reading 262-84"

As the saying about Buddhism goes, "It's not about what you believe, it's about what you do." Let us live our highest ideals in the of tiniest ways, even with the least people.

May we sit tonight for our opportunities; to be kind, to be helpful, to show our truest selves, to fulfill the commandment of 'Love One Another' in all we do.

Thank you all,

Richard

For Sunday December 11th, 2016

Hello everyone, two thoughts come together this week. Fr. James Martin says that Jesus didn't come down to us as a book, he came as a human to meet us where we are – with all human frailties intact. 

And Edgar Cayce says, "Know thy ideal, and live to that. For, each soul must give account for its own self." 

As we approach one another; if we can bring our best self forward, if we can meet others where they are, perhaps we can connect. And it's that connection which holds the future for the world.

May we sit tonight for these ideals. May they be foremost in our hearts. May we build the future moment by moment throughout our lives.

Thank you,

Richard

For Sunday December 4th, 2016

Hello everyone, may we sit this Sunday for all those affected by the wild fires in Tennessee and North Carolina. I don't know why with all the other things going on in the world right now that this would call me but that's what's happening. 

May we ask that God's will be done for the highest good of all.

Thank you,

Richard

Re: For Sunday November 27th, 2016

Hello everyone, when kids ask Walter Krehling, "Are you the real Santa?" He answers, "I'm the real Santa Claus that's here right now. There is a Santa Claus that I work for, but he can't be here right now. I'm here. Right here, right now, I'm the real Santa Claus."

Never mind that I cried for ten minutes when I read that, the lesson couldn't be more clear. We are all ambassadors for the 'Big Guy'. However you wish to interpret that term, we are all empowered to be a representative of spirituality in physical form, right here, right now.

May we sit this Sunday in thanksgiving for this great gift, that we each can bring the best of spirituality forward into the physical. May we be cleansed in our soul, even as we stuff ourselves bodily. May we all grow to fulfill our full potential on Mother Earth.

Thank you with Blessings,

Richard

Re: For Sunday November 13th, 2016

Hello everyone, compassion is a universal component of humanity. However, it can be easily lost beneath fear and anger, which ultimately brings pain. And one of the quotes often heard this week is "Wisdom rides on the coattails of pain." 

The fear, anger, and scapegoating which was employed to enact personal gain in this election has already overshadowed compassion in some people. 

Just as pain eventually cracks open the heart's door, it is compassion which fuels the greatest wisdom.

May we sit this Sunday for the quick return of compassion. We can develop compassion within ourselves. We can share it with all others we contact. And by doing so we create more of it in the world.

Thank you all,

Richard

For Sunday November 20th, 2016

Hello everyone, it is possible to love someone who is in a state of fear. It's also possible to love someone when they are angry. It's even possible to love someone despite whatever 'wrongs' they may have committed.

This is useful to keep in mind. You can call it the beginnings of unconditional love when we reach out to others. But it may be far more essential when we look at ourselves. 

The self-honesty which brings an awareness of our own internal difficulties is also a loving doorway for viewing the same difficulties in others. Then the forgiveness we wish for ourselves, once given to us, can be extended.

May we sit this evening for our own forgiveness. May we extend it to others. May we begin to touch upon Unconditional Love.

Thank you all,

Richard

For Sunday November 6th, 2016

Hello everyone, as the various irritations of this year's presidential election come to a head let's look at some basic understandings. Souls do not enter into a material existence just to have a good time or to magnify the ego. There can be spiritual reasons for any particular person to come into a position of leadership. Material success can be an enormous stumbling-block for soul development. And all lessons, however difficult, lead toward Oneness.

This Sunday may we set aside all our mentally preconceived notions, biases, and justifications to find Divine Will. May we face this process and all it's outcomes with courage, strength, and self-honesty. May the truth of Oneness shine through us as we deal with one another in the coming days.

Respectfully submitted,

Richard