Giving Thanks

Greetings:

I hope by now that anyone reading my blogs understands that the underlying intent is to express my gratitude and thanks to my church family and all the friends I have made. There is no greater gift than to have family and friends stand by you in times of crisis, and perhaps extend a helping hand to those who are not so lucky.

This weekend we celebrate the Canadian Thanksgiving. It's a time to think of all the things we have to be thankful for, and remember to Whom thanks is due.

The word "commune" comes from Latin, meaning com (with or together) and munus (gift). It also means an "intentional community". For us to be able to come together and worship who are like-minded, is a great gift. But as we know, it is not receiving but giving that is important. That is what we are now being asked: what can we give? in what shape or form? what should be our intent in reaching out to the world outside our doors? How, what, where, when?

Introducing a community point of view is the basis of threefolding, whose roots date back to the 19th century, to a movement in Germany called Lebensreform, of which Rudolf Steiner was a proponent. Combining thought/logic and feeling/love into something not just meaningful but inherently human - a social conscience. I have a feeling that once we get a handle on this concept, we will be able to perceive something else standing behind it - a 4th element. You only need to consider the image of a pyramid to grasp what I mean: 4 triangles standing together on a square, or rhombus. Long considered a magical or sacred space.

If you look on Dr. Emoto's website, you will be able to call up pictures of water crystals representing words like "love", "gratitude" and "joy". I think these are also appropriate for Thanksgiving. So let's pray, eat and love, not necessarily in that order, and consider the concept of Joy in Community - next blog.

Sparky

P.S. Instead of a song for inspiration, here's a dance: SAMBA!

The Jade Buddha for Universal Peace

"The Peace be with you."
This blessing is given to each person who participates in communion during our Sunday, or weekday, Service.
On a world tour right now is the Jade Buddha for Universal Peace, which I was able to take in recently. This incredibly beautiful statue was designed for one purpose - to bring people together and to think or meditate on, what peace means for each one of us, and for the world. It is truly an international icon, for the jade came from B.C., it was carved in Thailand, and will eventually make its home in Bendigo, Australia.
One first has to ask, why jade? In Asian culture, Jade has all the qualities we in the West normally ascribe to gold: wisdom, justice, compassion, courage. The ability to stimulate creativity and mental agility, to bring joy and happiness. To embody all that is good, beautiful and precious. In ancient Egypt, jade meant love, the harmonizing of energy and beauty, inner peace and balance.
Now for the hard part: how can one achieve inner peace?
My emotions have been in turmoil for more than 2 years, but I have finally reached a point where I needed to make peace with my Self. I had 3 very good reasons for doing this (see my profile picture), and that meant I had no time to lose. Through counselling, I am learning how to face my demons. Each time I go, it's a little like ripping off a bandaid, but I leave each time feeling a little bit lighter. My counsellor has warned me that I still have a lot to face, but for the sake of my children, I am willing to go through whatever is necessary. She is not only a counsellor, but a life coach and empowerment speaker. Suzanne always makes sure to give me something good to work on until we meet again. My friends are starting to notice a new me.
This is the good part: Jesus said, I stand at peace with the world. This peace can be with you also because I give it to you. I know somehow He will give me the strength to get through this. He knows exactly what I am going through, because he too, had to face the demons of this world, and came with the specific mission of sacrificing his Self for each of us. Not just giving up his Self for us, but to us. He didn't just appear and then disappear, leaving us to struggle on our own. He left a part of his Self in each of us. The trick is to find a way to connect with that little seed, and tap into its healing, renewing power.
I think that there will only be universal peace when each of us has learned how to be at peace with ourselves. No matter what demons you face, there is someone who can help, whether it is a priest, counsellor, friend, teacher. The first step is the hardest: tell someone you know you can trust and who will listen.
Happiness can be a very fleeting thing. It is not how many friends you have, or how much wealth or stuff you have. Peace of mind is a completely different thing. Which do you want? What are you willing to let go of, or undergo to get it? Someone loved you so much that He was willing to sacrifice everything for you. Maybe there is someone in your life for whom you are willing to do the same.
This is my wish for each of my friends and relatives: The Peace be with you.

Sparky

P.S. Song for the Day: I'm a Believer, by The Monkees

Grace

A person who wishes to remain anonymous has offered me a series of images they painted with accompanying verses by Rudolf Steiner. For purposes of variety I will post them intermittently.

Brown paper wrapper

We are in the process of creating a new website for our organization in North America, and if you google The Christian Community, websites for other congregations around the world will come up. Some of these have wonderful pictures, both inside and out of our churches.
The newer ones, which were built specifically for The Christian Community are very distinct in colour, form and orientation. From orthodox standards, they are, to put it mildly, very plain from the outside, like a brown paper wrapper. Now, I have been a member of our congregation for decades, but only recently have I learned to ask the all-important question, WHY? In terms of understanding what our church is all about, I am barely starting to get a glimmer here and there. So I asked myself, why are our churches built like this?
For one thing, the form is intended to be organic, to be a reflection of its natural surroundings, to be in harmony, so to speak, with its environment.
As to the colour, this, I think, is done for a very specific reason, and underlines one of the basic philosophies of our church. There is a saying, "Never judge a book by its cover." The exterior is in fact a specific challenge to all who look at it - Seek and you will Find. Come in and discover for yourself what lies within. Like a parcel wrapped in plain brown paper, you know something wonderful is waiting to be opened. It may be surprising, unexpected, maybe a little bit mysterious or unfathomable, layers upon layers of "tissue paper" waiting to be peeled back, or bubble wrap, or little styrofoam balls. In other words, it is a Gift. A gift from our community, through the working of the Holy Spirit, to YOU!

Happy birthday, Rev. Susan Locey.
Sparky

Mother Teresa

Mother Teresa's name was much in the news this week, thanks to a controversial video by a popular singing artist.
She was one of the shining lights of the 20th century, the like of which, we possibly have not seen since St. Francis of Assisi.
Here is one of her most famous quotations:

Dear Jesus, help us to spread your fragrance (essence) everywhere we go. Flood our souls with your spirit and life. Penetrate and possess our whole being so utterly that our lives may only be a radiance of yours. Shine through us and be so in us that every soul we come in contact with may feel your presence in our soul. Let them look up and see no longer us but only Jesus. Stay with us and then we shall begin to shine as you shine, so to shine as to be a light to others. The light, O Jesus, will be all from you. None of it will be ours. It will be you shining on others through us. Let us thus praise you in the way you love best by shining on those around us. Let us preach you without preaching: not by words, but by our example, by the catching force, the sympathetic influence of what we do, the evident fullness of the love our hearts bear to you.

Amen.

Sparky

The Sneeze

They walked in tandem, each of the 92 students filing into the already crowded auditorium. With their rich maroon gowns flowing and traditional caps, they looked almost as grown up as they felt. Dads swallowed hard behind broad smiles, and Moms freely brushed away tears. This class would NOT pray during commencement, not by choice, but because of a recent court ruling prohibiting it. The principal and several students were careful to stay within the guidelines allowed by the ruling. They gave inspirational and challenging speeches, but no one mentioned divine guidance and no one asked for blessings on the graduates or their families. The speeches were nice, but they were routine until the final speech received a standing ovation. A solitary student walked proudly to the microphone. He stood still and silent for just a moment, and then it happened.
All 92 students, every single one of them, suddenly SNEEZED!
The student on stage simply looked at the audience and said,
GOD BLESS YOU!
And he walked off stage.
The audience exploded into applause. This graduating class had found a unique way to invoke God's blessing on their future with or without the court's approval.
Pass this on to all of your friends, and
GOD BLESS YOU!
This is a true story. It happened at Eastern Shore District High School in Musquodoboit Harbour, Nova Scotia, Canada.
Cheers,
Sparky

Chemistry, Love, Marriage and Everything

"Approach love and cooking with reckless abandon." My grandmother remarried when she was 77 years old. We all looked on in amazement as these two "oldsters" were transformed into "youngsters". Such is the transformative power of love. They had 10 very happy years together. We were very happy for them and grateful that they had been given this joy in their old age.

My son, the erstwhile baker, is also taking chemistry in high school. I wonder if he knows how closely chemistry and baking really are? You cannot bake a cake or bread without a chemical reaction. I bet even the beginning of creation is actually chemistry rather than physics - after all, the basic molecules, protons, neutrons, are really descriptions of chemistry at work. If you have ever baked cookies with children, you know how this goes. You end up with flour all over the place, and huge smiles on their faces!

Science is changing so fast today, that teachers can't keep up. Instead, they have come up with a very sensible solution - they teach the kids How to Learn. Where to look for the answers, and how to figure things out. Our church is like that, too. We do not take things on blind faith. We are encouraged to look for deeper meaning behind even the simplest of words. If we come to a priest with a question, we are almost never given a direct answer. We are guided where to look, and to find the answer ourselves. Everyone learns differently, and looking at the same thing, will get a different answer.

Our church was founded in the early 1920's, by a group of fairly young, radical free thinkers, who wanted to look at Christianity in a new way. We have no dogma. When one of our priests comes to give a talk, they almost always precede it by saying that this is simply something they are offering from their own point of view and experience and research. It is offered in the spirit of a free gift, for each of us to take from it what we wish, or what speaks to our hearts.

When you see two people on a movie screen, sometimes people say, they have good chemistry. Sometimes two people just seem to click for no special reason, like my friend Stephanie in California and I. It's a mystery. Love is the greatest and most ancient Mystery. In fact, our world as we know it today, could not exist without it. Nothing good can exist or endure without love. Love in its highest form is sacrifice. You have to give up something, usually ego, but sometimes it can be your very life. Women face this fact every time they prepare to give birth. The greatest act of love is to give up your own life or self, for that of your fellow man. There is no fiercer animal on the face of the planet than that of a mother fighting to protect her young.

If you look up love in a comprehensive dictionary, you come up with something interesting. As a suffix, it becomes, beloved. In Old English, Old German and Middle Dutch, it becomes, belief, believe and faith. Out of love comes faith and hope.

In a marriage, though, love is not enough. There must also be mutual respect, trust, support, etc. It has to be carefully nurtured. It will not survive abuse, being taken advantage of, neglect, or being taken for granted. These things come out of ego, as do desire and need. Again, it is about sacrifice. If you take the phrase, I want peace, for example, take out the I (individual), and want (need), you are left with peace.

Different tunes are always running through my head, so here's one I'd like to leave with you,

Don't know much about history,
Don't know much about biology,
Don't know much about my science book,
Don't know much about the French I took.

What I do know is that God loves you
And if you know that you love God, too
What a wonderful world this could be.