2008 was Great, But 2009 is Fine...and Kind

Below are the writings of our good friend Ted Murray. Ted channels these writings every morning during his meditation. He has been doing this for several years. They are always relevant for the day and hold beautiful profound truths, stated in a way that touches the heart. I'd like to share this one for 2009 as we cross over into the new year.

January 1, 2009
This is a time of transition. This year will mark the shift from a
sense of foreboding and fear about the future of the world to a sense
of hope. Expect miraculous changes to take place this year, within
your own personal life and within the world in general. The main
switch will be from a sense of separateness in which competition and
conflict reigns supreme to a sense of unity with all others.

This sense of unity must come from a true understanding of the soul
and its relationship with God. Once the soul is recognized as the
eternal reality of who we are, then you will automatically feel a
sense of unity with all other souls, regardless of their outward
covering. Make this feeling of unity be a fundamental aspect of your
life and treat all others as if they are a brother, a fellow soul
eternally connected to a benevolent creator.


12-19

You must be able to communicate your ideas and your love in order to
make an impact on lives of people. Although you may feel love, unless
it is expressed openly it cannot make others truly share in that love.
Everything is personal and that is why relationships are so important.
It is okay to send your love in general to the universe, but unless it
is also communicated directly on a personal level it will have little
impact.

When you look at what you have to share you will realize what an
incredible amount of abundance you have received in your life. Just as
being given material wealth gives you an obligation to share that
wealth in order to feel completely fulfilled, in the same way having
knowledge means that you must communicate it in as many ways as
possible. People are so hungry for a clear understanding of spiritual
truth. You must always strive to communicate these truths clearly,
boldly, and in as many ways as possible. Do this and you will truly
experience a life of abundance in every aspect.


by Ted Murray

Christmas & Winter Solstice

All too often we focus on the crucifixion of Christ and almost herald his death as his reason for living. When we do this we run the risk of missing the fine points and the highest teachings of Christ and what he embodied and anchored for humanity.

Even as we celebrate Christmas, some of us can scarcely remember the good news about the birth of Christ, because of the heaviness of his sacrifice, which incidentally means "to make sacred".

What if the true gift of Christ was delivered by his life, punctuated by his death and solidified by his re-emergence in matter and in the hearts of all mankind?

What if Christ is the human embodiment of what mother earth has been presenting to us in plain view for eons?: the winter solstice - the day that marks the return of the sun.

What if the purpose of Christ was to deliver to the human race and download into the mass consciousness the uncorrupted, upgraded program for human being? Certainly, the birth of Christ on the planet showed us many things as he took human form:

1)Humans are threefold beings: Body, Mind and Spirit/Thought, Word and Action

2)God can channel through humans.

3)Humans are capable of channeling miracles.

4)Humans will continue to evolve and do even greater things than Jesus.

5)Humans must be born (programmed), die to the stranglehold of the ego (reset), ascend (upgrade)and then return to the earth and be in the world (operate), but not of the world.(create & invent)

6)Humans are capable of unconditional love.

7)Compassion is the key to the gate of unconditional love.

The ability to love absolutely and unconditionally even as others transgress against us is what I hope we remember about Christ and celebrate at Christmas time. For as the Winter Solstice comes each year and re-enacts for us a truth that is built right into our seasons, reminding us that we are not forsaken and that renewal and rebirth always come, we understand the power of divine, transcendent love. This Sacred Love, otherwise known as Agape is not merely a feeling, it is a consciousness, and a way of being. The ability to love unconditionally, to love ourselves and our enemies both within and without is the consciousness that will lead us on to even more expansion, creation, joy and love. This is what will lead us to our destiny and to the end of all needless suffering.

"Meister Eckhart once said: ‘What good is it that Christ was born 2,000 years ago if he is not born now in your heart?’

"Lord, we do far too much celebrating your actual coming in our hearts. I believe in God, but do I believe in God-in-me? I believe in God in heaven, but do I believe in God-on-earth? I believe in God out there, but do I believe in God-with-us?

"Lord, be born in my heart. Come alive in me this Christmas! Amen."

Christmas Tree Blessing

Holy Creator of Trees,
bless with your abundant grace
this our Christmas tree as a symbol of joy.
May its evergreen branches be a sign
of your never-fading promises.
May its colorful lights and ornaments call us
to decorate with love our home and our world.
May the gifts that surround this tree
be symbols of the gifts we have received
from the Tree of Christ’s Cross.
Holy Christmas tree within our home,
may Joy and Peace come and nest
in your branches and in our hearts. Amen.
- Author Unkown

Two Magnets, The Light, Relationships & God

by Renee Bledsoe, September 6, 2007

I had this amazing vision and something I can only refer to as a "download" of knowledge. I received a waking visual of this large horseshoe magnet and then I saw another horseshoe magnet come end to end with it and they repelled each other! All the while I'm having this vision I am getting streams of knowledge regarding what this is about and interpretations. And then I saw the one horseshoe magnet shield itself with a piece of metal and then it attached to this giant magnetic source that was so big that I couldn't see where it began and ended. I "knew" that this piece of metal was significant of what we might refer to as "a cause", "a project", or "an organization". I knew that this is what allows us (the magnets) to attach to the source. I could also see how two magnets repel each other. I then saw that once the one magnet who was shielded and attached to the source began attracting other pieces of metal and other magnets and they aligned in a certain way, but all drawing power from the main magnet who was channeling power from the master source.

Of course, me being a marketer, this message is not lost on me at all, but it wasn't something I consciously knew. The major lesson I received from this teaching was that it is vital to form an organization, cause or project which polarizes your message and allows you to tap into the power of the source. This creates a cooperative environment which fosters massive growth opportunities for everyone who is linked together in this way.

Here's some of the random thoughts that came as a result of that vision:

1) The body has infinite wisdom. I have created any given situation or relationship - not to punish myself, but to learn something deeply hidden about myself.

2) Keep digging and asking why until you get an understanding. Meditate on it and play mental chess with it in your mind, discuss with others.

3) Trust that the more painful or confounding something is, the more hidden and therefore the more profound the lesson and therefore worthy of pursuit. You will never find out something you are not ready to discover.

4) This also applies to how often a situation recurrs. The more often similar situations and relationships occur, the more diligently the soul and the subconscious are attempting to reconcile.

5) Lessons are for the purpose of recalibrating to a higher vibration, not just to gain humility. Having a higher vibration is what allows you to obtain fulfillment of your human potential and preferences. Therefore it is crucial to become humble.

6) Humility facilitates nothing more than a willingness to learn and remain open to all data, not for mere submissiveness.

7) The lesson may be about the other person AND about myself, but if it is in my experience it is ALWAYS about me.

8) Hurt feelings, slights, suffering, misunderstanding, pain are only created through resistance to deep body wisdom and to the lesson.

9) Everything in your experience is serving you somehow and therefore is necessary in the moment in which it is occuring.

10) If you can create pain, then you have an equal ability to create joy, love and peace.

11) The people who get under your skin the most are your greatest teachers and represent a hidden part of you that you disown.

12) The people you love and respect the most are also your greatest teachers and represent a hidden part of you that you embrace.

13) Two magnets will repell each other, therefore 2 or more people who are attention seeking will either not engage or not get along.

14) A magnet draws in metal, therefore it is crucial to become polarized in order to attract others.

15) You must be as metal and you must stop the resistance to be firmly attached to the source magnet so that you can draw in ANYONE, attention seekers (other small magnets) or truth seekers (metal).

16) You then become a mediary between the source magnet, a gatekeeper to this particular doorway of the source.

17) The source magnet has endless sources itself and can accommodate infinite doorways.

18) When you are firmly attached to the source magnet, others will be attracted to it THROUGH you, not because of YOU.

19) It will only appear that it is YOU that they are attracted to.

20) What is really attracting them is the source magnet. The source can draw much more than you ever possibly could on your own because it satisfies all requirements. But the source NEEDS you! Because alone...it is a magnet! When it teams up with you it can then both attract and repel. And this is how to carve out a path back to the source. So that is what is meant by that we can't directly look on God's face and when Jesus said the only way to the father is through me! This team now delivers the truth and it delivers attention....lots of it....potentially inexhaustible supply. In other words, it gives you the ability to have the powers of both magnet and metal!

21) This is how the law of attraction become almost effortless and is spawned by an intention as you become one of the gateways to the source. This is the over simplified science behind this magic.

22) This is why many people who attract with their own magnetism cannot sustain it and they ultimately lose their attraction. They will either surrender it or they will polarize themselves through their choices in consciousness.

23) Initially this requires a humbling, surrender, and sacrafice.

24) When you understand this, it is only humbling because you thought you were the source. Once you understand how this works words like surrender, sacrafice and humility become obsolete in your vocabulary.

25 When you realize that the source is endless and abundant and that it is not only your birthright to become a mediator for it, but is crucial to your survival, then you will stop overlaying lower levels of reality onto situations and relationships.

26) You will create the reality of your dreams through a higher vibration and those dreams will fulfill your desire to be connected to both the above and the below. Your reality with be experienced through the dimension of heaven on earth.

27) The more people who are able to fold down this alternate universe into the physical plane, the more accessible it will be to the mass consciousness and therefore more and more people will be able to do the same.

P.S. I had to look up with polarized means...I bolded the piece here that stood out to me to be a message.

The American Heritage Science Dictionary - Cite This Source

polarize (pō'lə-rīz') Pronunciation Key To separate or accumulate positive and negative electric charges in two distinct regions. Polarized objects have an electric dipole moment and will undergo torque when placed in an external electric field. To magnetize a substance so that it has the properties of a magnetic dipole, such as having a north and south pole. To cause the electrical and magnetic fields associated with electromagnetic waves, especially light, to vibrate in a particular direction or path. The transverse electric and magnetic waves always vibrate at right angles to each other, but in ordinary unpolarized light sources, the direction of polarization of each wave is randomly distributed. Light can be polarized by reflection, and by passing through certain materials. See more at polarization. Picture Source: http://tinyurl.com/3r6athu  Other sources on Magnetism/Electricity: http://tinyurl.com/3r7wjv3

The Union of Spirit and Flesh

Here the spirit and soul become one, mind and matter merge into an indistinguishable continuum, God and Goddess unite within us, and the new realm of love and peace is ONE.

THE GREAT SCROLL: THE UNION OF SPIRIT AND FLESH

"The union of spirit and flesh is the 'one thing' spoken of by Hermes Trismegistus, who was also known as Mercurius, in his Emerald Tablet; it is the aqua vitae and quintessence of Alchemy; it is the Qi of Chinese Qigong; it is the Tao of Lao Tzu and Chuang Tzu; it is the Mysterious Female and tenuous matter of mystic Taoism; in Hinduism it is represented by Ardhanarisvara, who is the union of Shiva and Shakti, of being and non-being; it is the Great Way into Zen stillness, the Mother Luminosity or Rainbow Body of Dzogchen Buddhism, and the enlightened body of Buddha; it is the Tree of Life, linking Heaven and Earth; it is the transfiguration of the canononical Gospels, and the 'rapture' of Revelation; it is "of movement, and of rest", as declared by Christ in the Gospel of Thomas, and "The Word become flesh", of the Gospel of John; it is the ascension to unity spoken of in the New Age movement, and it is the eternal OM of the Goddess Lakshmi; it is the foundation of the Kabbalah; it is the unified wave structure of matter, of the new physics, and dark matter of astrophysics; it is the body electric of Walt Whitman, and the body divine. In short, the union of spirit and flesh is the essential component of all progressive cosmologies, for it is the true enlightenment.

Historically this 'oneness' has be called advaita (non-dual). However, the non-dualists of history seem to have overlooked the flesh as being part of that oneness, and continually declared that the body, and all matter, were merely illusion. Fortunately humanity is at a point in its evolution where the flesh can be known to be divine, and a new advaita in which emptiness and fullness are one can come into being. For some people there must be a healing of the pain caused by division in order for them to return to the original harmony of the cosmos.

The use of Tibetan singing bowls and Crystal singing bowls can assist in the re-union of our harmonic oneness. This eternal unity is well documented by Masaru Emoto, and Helena Blavatsky. One of the key players in this re-union is the Green Man. In traditional Buddhist spirituality this profound unification is known as Maitreya. In Hindu lore this new vibration is known as Kalki. In Taoism this union is practiced by the circulation of the light. Ken Wilber calls it the one taste, which in Tibetan Buddhism is known as Yab-yum. Sri Aurobindo and the Mother spoke of the divine body.

It is through this new, and absolute, unity and oneness that the true ascension of Sophia, our cosmic being, occurs. This is when the vibration of flesh is raised into the vibration of spirit, and the vibration of spirit descends into harmony with the flesh. Within this new and holy oneness, nothing shall be alien: matter is mind, will is consciousness, and flesh is now holy ground! A truly Pagan event: the divination of matter has occurred. This unification is the actual intent behind the Christian Eucharist and the Catholic communion; the word 'catholic' means 'universality'- or, that which is without limits. Communion is thus the integration of the body (flesh) and the blood (spirit), of Heaven and Earth, of form and formlessness, of Creator and Created, and of He and She.

The Aquarian Age is upon us, and Love is the one and only Law. And, as in the Jeweled Web of Indra- in which the entire cosmos is made of hollow gems, each filled with nothing but the reflection of all other gems- we must now know and feel that separateness is an illusion and we are all actually an interdependent, multidimensional, infinite oneness. Each of us is everything. A great silence. A new vibration. An holistic ascension. This is the Aquarian Awakening into the Cosmic Christ."

Blessings on your journey.

"To become light, bodily, is the destiny of man."

Adi Da

Consciousness is matter. Body is mind. Spirit is flesh.
Everything is everything. Everything is the same thing.
Everything is the same one thing. One. Flesh is now holy ground. Amen.

Source: www.spiritandflesh.com

Filling up for the holidays

Its that time of year... so much to do, so many things to attend to... parties, shopping, events filling up our calenders. In my work as a Cranio-Sacral therapist we learn how the the Cranio-Sacral fluid in the spine empties and then fills back up...Flexion and Extension..So too, our bodies and spirit fills and empties and we only need to pay attention to our bodies to notice where we are at. This holiday season as we struggle to keep up with all of the extra things that are taking up our time, take time to check in with yourselves.. are you running on empty? When we check in with ourselves and do an energy assesment, we can choose to fill ourselves up by taking time for things that bring us peace and joy... slowing down to appreciate our families, taking quiet time for ourselves in solitude, enjoying the precious moments of just being. Saying no to the hustle and bustle just for a short time can fill us up in so many ways. Just stop and listen to your physical body, is it calling for rest.. then rest.. is it calling for a quiet walk... then walk, some time in meditation... then meditate. Put everything aside and do that which fills you. As for me... ususally this time of year, I just go and do and forget about the being and by the new year I am depleted. This year, I am listening and checking in with myself and giving myself permission to take care of me. Spending time with my loved ones, enjoying my alone time in my home, stopping to light a candle on my alter and communing with Spirit and yes saying no when I feel empty are all parts of this holiday for me.. A Christmas present to myself that allows me to give my best self to those around me. So put yourself on the calender this year and fill up...

The Purpose of a Church

For the longest period of time, I believed that the purpose of a church, or spiritual gathering place, was to give the congregation their fill of spirit...of God.....of love. However, my beliefs over the years have changed radically, and in this sense , I find myself creating a whole new set of beliefs.

If the congregation depends on the church to "feed " them spiritually, to give them all that they need from a religious or spiritual sense, it creates dependency. In this case, the people would believe that they cannot find a way to get this fulfillment, that they "need" the church, and many churches may like this type of dependency.

I believe that the churches of today should be the gathering place where people get their spiritual "appetizer", enough thought provoking information and joy to wet the appetite, but not fill them up.

In this case everyone stays empowered, as the church encourages the people to go out in the world to find their meal, and to know they are welcome back each week to help instill more questions, not just answers.

As congregations from around the world realize that the "real" spiritual work is done in their daily lives, not just on Sundays, the church remains as a sacred place, but not a place where the powerful rule.

Slow down. Enjoy the nib lets offered at your services, then find the rest of your path in your own divine life, in your private readings, and your sacred alone time with God, Spirit, Energy.

Love, peace David Essel

Learn About Goddesses

Thanksgiving: A Native American View

by Jacqueline Keeler

I celebrate the holiday of Thanksgiving.
This may surprise those people who wonder what Native Americans think of this official U.S. celebration of the survival of early arrivals in a European invasion that culminated in the death of 10 to 30 million native people.

Thanksgiving to me has never been about Pilgrims. When I was six, my mother, a woman of the Dineh nation, told my sister and me not to sing "Land of the Pilgrim's pride" in "America the Beautiful." Our people, she said, had been here much longer and taken much better care of the land. We were to sing "Land of the Indian's pride" instead.

I was proud to sing the new lyrics in school, but I sang softly. It was enough for me to know the difference. At six, I felt I had learned something very important. As a child of a Native American family, you are part of a very select group of survivors, and I learned that my family possessed some "inside" knowledge of what really happened when those poor, tired masses came to our homes.

When the Pilgrims came to Plymouth Rock, they were poor and hungry -- half of them died within a few months from disease and hunger. When Squanto, a Wampanoag man, found them, they were in a pitiful state. He spoke English, having traveled to Europe, and took pity on them. Their English crops had failed. The native people fed them through the winter and taught them how to grow their food.

These were not merely "friendly Indians." They had already experienced European slave traders raiding their villages for a hundred years or so, and they were wary -- but it was their way to give freely to those who had nothing. Among many of our peoples, showing that you can give without holding back is the way to earn respect. Among the Dakota, my father's people, they say, when asked to give, "Are we not Dakota and alive?" It was believed that by giving there would be enough for all -- the exact opposite of the system we live in now, which is based on selling, not giving.

To the Pilgrims, and most English and European peoples, the Wampanoags were heathens, and of the Devil. They saw Squanto not as an equal but as an instrument of their God to help his chosen people, themselves.

Since that initial sharing, Native American food has spread around the world. Nearly 70 percent of all crops grown today were originally cultivated by Native American peoples. And at the "first Thanksgiving" the Wampanoags provided most of the food -- and signed a treaty granting Pilgrims the right to the land at Plymouth, the real reason for the first Thanksgiving.

What did the Europeans give in return? Within 20 years European disease and treachery had decimated the Wampanoags. Most diseases then came from animals that Europeans had domesticated. Some estimate that diseases accounted for a death toll reaching 90 percent in some Native American communities. The Pilgrims viewed the Indians as savages requiring the salvation of Christianity. They failed to recognize the deeply spiritual nature of the Native American people and their bond with the gods of nature. The Pilgrims aggressively tried to recruit the "savages." Those who accepted Christianity found themselves ostracized by their tribes and accepted by the Pilgrims as mere disciples. The Pilgrims' tampering with the beliefs of the Indians greatly offended the tribal leaders.

In stories told by the Dakota people, an evil person always keeps his or her heart in a secret place separate from the body. The hero must find that secret place and destroy the heart in order to stop the evil.

I see, in the "First Thanksgiving" story, a hidden Pilgrim heart. The story of that heart is the real tale than needs to be told. What did it hold? Bigotry, hatred, greed, self-righteousness? We have seen the evil that it caused in the 350 years since. Genocide, environmental devastation, poverty, world wars, racism.

Where is the hero who will destroy that heart of evil? I believe it must be each of us. Indeed, when I give thanks this Thursday and I cook my native food, I will be thinking of this hidden heart and how my ancestors survived the evil it caused. Because if we can survive, with our ability to share and to give intact, then the evil and the good will that met that Thanksgiving day in the land of the Wampanoag will have come full circle.

And the healing can begin.

Jacqueline Keeler, a member of the Dineh Nation and the Yankton Dakota Sioux works with the American Indian Child Resource Center in Oakland, California. Her work has appeared in Winds of Change, an American Indian journal.

Give Presence, Not Presents

Thanksgiving Feast Potluck

Please join us on Sunday, November 23rd immediately following our Sunday Service for a Thanksgiving Potluck Feast.

Here's the Thanksgiving Fest Menu (so far):

David Essel/Renee Bledsoe - Turkey Breast/Gravy (succulently roasted by Publix)
Renee Bledsoe - Stuffing (Ancient secret recipe)

Rick Tiner- Mashed Potatoes (Hope you like lumps he says...I do!)

Willo Uhl- Salad (The Queen of Food)

Eva & Joey Stulb- Unknown dessert (Love a mystery...surprise us)

Joanna Salerno - Apple & Pumpkin Pie (An amazing cook)

Joan Cannon - Baked Bread (Home made)
Lynn Pietrzyk - Sweet potatoes (with all the trimmings)

Jacqui Knapp- Cranberry Sauce (personal fave, love the whole berry kind, but not picky)

Susie Diblasi - 2 Pumpkins Pies (Yet, Another amazing cook)

Barb Smith - Fresh Green Bean Salad (Notice the word: Fresh - love that!)
Deb Noufrios - Greek Salad (yes, diversity is the spice of life!)
Desiree Golden - Pumpkin Soup (sounds lovely)
Our Church is providing plasticware/paperware, utensils and drinks!

We've pretty much got all our bases covered so just bring your favorite dish to share. You don't need to RSVP at this point, unless of course you want to! You can call Renee at 239-560-6314 or email from the website at www.churchofspirituallight.org

See you Sunday! Come hungry!

“Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It turns problems into gifts, failures into success, the unexpected into perfect timing, and mistakes into important events. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today and creates a vision for tomorrow.” - Melody Beattie

The Promise of the Love of the Goddess

What there will be is something that you are only just beginning to delve into….
a soul connection through an open, honest, intimate relationship with a woman
who holds all the power of the divine feminine within and without her body.
And she is fully aware of how to call down, capture and use this energy for the good of all. All the healing ecstacy, bliss and joy that you can hold is what awaits.


This is a woman that will not compromise her integrity to cling in desperation to anyone.

This is a woman who will not enable your weaknesses.

This is a woman who isn’t afraid to be alone, because she knows she is never alone.

This is a woman who will not allow you to harm her in any way.

This is a woman who is strong enough to be nurturing and tender.

This is a woman whose wisdom is her guide, who doesn’t allow herself to be ruled by her emotions, but allows pure feeling both joy and sadness to flow purely and freely through her.

This is a woman who can be present to you and present to her life.


It will not feel like anything that you are used to.

This is not being in love.

This is Being Love.

Just be love.

For that is what you truly are.

All of the rest is a choice based on your intention.

Huggling Together

For tens of millions of years, we primates have lived in tribes. I'm sure we originally came together for mutual interdependence in child rearing, security, and food gathering. The fun we experienced was a powerful side effect.

When we changed from hunter/gatherers to an agricultural society, we left the traveling band and began dividing up individual plots of land, with groups of people huddling at a distance by householding in villages. As villages grew into cities, huddling happened in neighborhoods. As we moved further apart, the experience of community was narrowed to the extended family, then to the nuclear family, and finally to the solitary dweller. This progression is otherwise known as the alienation of our society.

In my years of being a physician intimate with thousands of folks, I have known very few people who felt part of a circle of deeply committed friends. In fact, I find the vast majority of people feeling lucky to have a few close acquaintances. Even in marriages I often don't hear the serenade of friendship.

Yet ultimately, everything goes better with a circle of friends. Without this circle of safety it is extremely difficult to erase the fear that coats our health, relationships, economics, etc. This fear has been a major stumbling block in reestablishing community and must be cast aside.

Community can be experienced in many forms, and I suggest exploring lots of them. Live your life embraced by concentric circles. I have lived communally for nineteen years, and it has been one of the most significant factors in the progression of all of my dreams, both personal and public. Nothing can let you dream more freely and outrageously than living with mutually supportive chums.

My wife and I have also been together for nineteen years, and I am sure that community is the major reason why we still have a rich vibrant love for each other. And child rearing - oh, this may be the best, because our children have had such magical input from each community member.

My personal growth has also been enhanced by community. I graduated from medical school head smart, but while living in community I have learned to build buildings, farm, keep a goat herd, produce movies, do rope working, unicycle, and so much more - all as by-products of intimacy. These things are dwarfed, however, by the happiness I feel in being alive in the bosom of so many friends. There is a security that transcends economics.

- Patch Adams

Patch Adams, M.D., is the founder of the Gesundheit Institute, a free hospital based on the principle of maintaining health through community, friendship, and plain old fun. Contact him for information at 2630 Robert Walker Place, Arlington, VA 22207.

Angels Within Us

Working with angelic energies is one of the most powerful things that we can do to enrich our lives and safeguard our future. Think about how pleased you are during the course of your business when your phone rings and someone wants to engage your services. You are waiting at the ready to assist those who need your expertise. Isn't that true? Well, it's no different above, as below. For all the different types of jobs and callings we have here on earth, ditto that in the etheric realms.

Why would it be any less creative, varied, ingenious and diverse there, than it is here on earth? The answer is that it is not! But think about how under utilized the services of the angelic forces and the Heirarchy of Light may be in your life. Just as we here in the physical are always trying to do everything by ourselves, the angelic forces and other unseen helpers must sit, much like the Maytag repairman dormant and untapped.

Learning and remembering to call on these forces is something that takes a bit of effort. But it is worth it! Just as when you forge a new business relationship with a new supplier, vendor or associate, so too do these relationships require tending in order to be as effective as they can be. And that is when the fun starts. Learning about these energies brings a whole new realm of joy and hope and love to our existence. Realizing just how cared for, protected and loved we are by understanding the power of angels in our lives brings a whole new level of richness to both our inner and our outer experience.

Here are a couple of really excellent books on the subject:
Angels Within Us: A Spiritual Guide to the Twenty Two Angels that Govern Our Lives - John Randolph Price
Angel Energy: How to Harness the Power of Angels in Your Everyday Life - John Randolph Price
Hiring the Heavens - Jean Slatter

PotLuck Luncheon - Oct 12th

We are excited to announce our first PotLuck Luncheon on Sunday afternoon immediately after the service on October 12th at Center To Self Reliance. Please bring your favorite dish to share. We are averaging about 35-40 people per Sunday, just fyi.


We should look for someone to eat and drink with before looking for something to eat and drink... ~Epicurus

Divine Dance - Oct 10th

Please join us for Divine Dance on Friday night, October 10th from 7-9pm. Divine Dance is a free form dance gathering that promotes freedom of body movement and expression of self as a means of meditation, ritual and communion. We dance for about an hour or so (you can take breaks anytime and sit and watch or relax a bit) and then we end with a half hour Chill Meditation.
This is a FUN way to get together with friends and celebrate the body!

If you're wondering what life looks like without all the partying, staying up late in smokey bars and one drink too many - Divine Dance could be the antidote, as it allows you to honor the "wild child" within, without the high cost of partying too hardy! Once you experience how it feels to free your body and release some of that pent up energy in a sacred and profound way, we know you'll love Divine Dance. If you think that being "good" means life is boring - think again!

For more info visit www.divinedancelive.com

Really, What Are Obstacles?

Ganesha (Sanskrit), is one of the best-known and most worshipped deities in the Hind pantheon. His image is found throughout India. Hindu sects worship him regardless of other affiliations. Devotion to Ganesha is widely diffused and extends to Jains, Buddhists, and beyond India. Images of Ganesha first appeared in Sri Lanka at least as early as the 2nd century CE. The earliest known image occurs at the Kantaka Cetiya in Mihintale, which is dated to earlier than the 1st century BC.

Although he is known by many other attributes, Ganesha's elephant head makes him easy to identify.Ganesha is widely revered as the Remover of Obstacles and more generally as Lord of Beginnings and Lord of Obstacles (Vighnesha, Vighneshvara), patron of arts and sciences, and the deva of intellect and wisdom.

Ganesha is the Lord of Obstacles, both of a material and spiritual order. He is popularly worshipped as a remover of obstacles, though traditionally he also places obstacles in the path of those who need to be checked. Paul Courtright says that "his task in the divine scheme of things, his dharma, is to place and remove obstacles. It is his particular territory, the reason for his creation."

According to Kundalini yoga, Ganesha resides in the first chakra, called mūlādhāra. Mula means "original, main"; adhara means "base, foundation". The muladhara chakra is the principle on which the manifestation or outward expansion of primordial Divine Force rests. Thus, Ganesha has a permanent abode in every being at the Muladhara. Ganesha holds, supports and guides all other chakras, thereby "governing the forces that propel the wheel of life".

Ganesha is identified with the Hindu mantra Aum (also called Om). It is said that he personifies the primal sound.

Aum, attired in white and all-pervading,
O moon-hued, four-shouldered One
with smiling face so pleasing,
upon You we meditate
for removing all obstacles.

Shri Adi Sankara prayed in his Ganesha Bhujangam the following invocation. It is particularly suitable for recitation before japa and deep meditation on the highest wisdom of Lord Ganesha, the incomparable Lord:

To You whom the wise exclaim
as the single-syllabled, Supreme sound,
stainless and peerless,
bliss, formless, unconditioned --
the Indweller in the core of
sacred tradition -- to that
Primeval One I bow in adoration.

Interview With God

Inspirational Quotes

Fear of Intimacy

On Saturday night I knew, I felt, I heard your call. I heard you cry, your fatique at the separation. Though you know it is self-imposed...makes it no less painful and certainly no less real. Yet, the very next thing I heard was this:

Say this prayer. Say this prayer to face and relieve this wretched illusion that we are not already connected, that every soul doesn't already know everything. Say the prayer. And it shall be so.
For this group of souls may have come from an intense fear of intimacy due to unimaginable heartbreak...yet we are ready to break this illusion.

Have no doubt this prayer from this gorgeous person, Marianne Williamson who wrote Illuminata (a book of deeply personal prayers), will bring a massive opening of the heart.

Hold on. You are expanding. It may hurt a little, but only because of resistance and fear. But very quickly, if we hang tight that will dissipate. And there will be only love.

Remember, only love is real. We made a deal and we have found our way to each other...because we are remembering who we are, so that we can evolve into our best self. This love is what we are seeking and we feel it's tease all the time, for it isn't ever gone...we are. But we are getting strong enough to remain present to it with each passing moment.

May you be blessed.
May you be strengthened to know that you are divine, sacred, love incarnate waiting to consciously experience God/Goddess in the flesh in all relations.
I am that I am.

And so it is and so it shall be.
As always, I will to will thy will.
Amen.

Every Woman is a Goddess

" It's True That Every Woman Is A Goddess...It's Just So Sad Few Truly Realize This." David Essel

I have yet to meet a woman in my lifetime who is not an amazing Goddess at heart....inside...yet the above quote says it all....very few women know this and act as if they are.

I wrote a blog on this subject at www.newspress.com and was amazed when I finished it how many women said YES WE ARE!!!!.....yet when I asked them aloud how many of their female friends knew this and lived this way, the response was minuscule in nature.

Women are powerful ,intuitive, compassionate, sensitive, strong , fearless, tender, nurturing..all by nature, it just comes from who they are inside, yet they often live quite differently.

They're fierce when provoked, and soothing when they need to be....they are true beauty in every sense of the word.

When they realize they are a Goddess, they cease the trivial traits associated with many women today..like gossip, being evasive in their thoughts and desires....they instead become these amazing beings who you can't wait to be around.

I am blessed to be surrounded by women who are Goddesses and have no fear being just that.

Women who can look deeply into your eyes....who love their femininity, are proud to have their nails done if this makes THEMSELVES feel special.

One such woman the other day, a former client of mine, came up to me and proudly stated that she's finally loving her body, which had been a source of contention her whole life. Just the way she walked towards me , her posture, her strut, let me know something major had shifted.

She's finally become the Goddess she always had been , only now the whole world can see it.

Slow Down and appreciate the Goddess within if you're a women. If you're a man, it's time we awaken to the God inspired beauty of every women who's on this planet at this very moment, and let them know the inspiration they truly are.

Love, Peace, David www.talkdavid.com

Realize - It's YOU!

Realize
by Colbie Caillat

Take time to realize,
That your warmth is
Crashing down on in.
Take time to realize,
That I am on your side
Didn't I, didn't I tell you.

But I can't spell it out for you,
You know it's never gonna be that simple
No I can't spell it out for you

If you just realize what I just realized,
Then we'd be perfect for each other
And we'll never find another
Just realized what I just realized
We'd never have to wonder if
We missed out on each other now.

Take time to realize
Oh-oh I'm on your side
Didn't I, didn't I tell you.
Take time to realize
This all can pass you by
Didn't I tell you

But I can't spell it out for you,
You know it's never gonna be that simple
No I can't spell it out for you.

If you just realized what I just realized
Then we'd be perfect for each other
Then we'd never find another
Just realized what I just realized
We'd never have to wonder if
We missed out on each other but.

It's not all the same
No it's never the same
If you don't feel it too.
If you meet me half way
If you would meet me half way.
It could be the same for you.

If you just realize what I just realized
Then we'd be perfect for each other
And we'd never find another
Just realize what I just realized
We'd never have to wonder

Just realize what I just realized
If you just realize what I just realized

Missed out on each other now
Missed out on each other now
Missed out on each other now

Realize, realize
Realize, realize

Who's cross is it anyway

The other night I had a profound dream that is still speaking to me and directing me to share the story...
My daughter Maria and I, along with a few other people, were driving around going who knows where when we stopped along the side of the road along this relatively small mountain. We got out of the car to explore and came upon this large wooden cross. Maria and I went to look at it and for some reason I just knew I was supposed to carry it with me. We began to walk down this road, me carrying this heavy, awkward, giant cross on my back(think Jesus), Maria by my side asking me why was I carrying this thing (typical kid) running into all kinds of obstacles in our way. After walking quite a long distance the cross began to fall apart... first the top part came off and soon after that other pieces started to just break away and before I knew it, I was carrying just pieces of a cross. I stopped and looked at these pieces in my hand and came to the conclusion that all I was doing was carrying pieces of wood around for no reason. (Maria knew it all along) I left all the pieces by the side of the road and began to enjoy the walk with my daughter.
Its not too hard to figure out what the meaning of this dream is.. Doesn't it always seem like we are carrying these heavy burdens for no reason. You've heard the expression, "we all have our crosses to bear", well did you ever wonder like my daughter did.. why are you carrying that.
I have realized this past week how many times I have picked up a cross and most of time it isn't even mine... Is it any wonder we all have backs that ache and muscles that are sore.. So if its not my cross, why do I pick it up and if it is my cross, why don't I choose to put it down.. Let the pieces go and enjoy what life has to offer without the heavy burdens. We don't have to carry it around.. and better yet we would be doing the world the greatest service by doing away with all the crosses...Think of all the trees we would save. Love and Light, Joanna

Om Mani Padme Hum

Bodhisattwa Avalokiteshwara (Called Chenresig in Tibetan Buddhism):
Om Mani Padme Hum

Rough Translation: 'Om, salutations to The Jewel of Consciousness (the mind) which has reached the heart's lotus.'

This mantra is practiced more than any other in the world. It is pre-eminent in producing a state of dynamic compassion in the sayer. Dynamic means that this compassion contains as part of it the ability to powerfully manifest in both subtle and obvious ways. One of the simple yet profound teachings which accompanies this mantra is the concept that when the mind and heart become united, anything is possible. The implications of this simple thought are staggering. If you want to change the world for the better, this mantra should be in your spiritual toolbox.

The Daffodil Principal

Several times my daughter had telephoned to say, 'Mother, you must come to see the daffodils before they are over.' I wanted to go, but it was a two-hour drive from Laguna to Lake Arrowhead 'I will come next Tuesday', I promised a little reluctantly on her third call.
NOTE:Lake Arrowhead is approximately 100 miles east of Los Angeles.

Next Tuesday dawned cold and rainy. Still, I had promised, and reluctantly I drove there. When I finally walked into Carolyn's house I was welcomed by the joyful sounds of happy children. I delightedly hugged and greeted my grandchildren.

'Forget the daffodils, Carolyn! The road is invisible in these clouds and fog, and there is nothing in the world except you and these children that I want to see badly enough to drive another inch!'

My daughter smiled calmly and said, 'We drive in this all the time, Mother.

''Well, you won't get me back on the road until it clears, and then I'm heading for home!' I assured her.

'But first we're going to see the daffodils. It's just a few blocks,' Carolyn said. 'I'll drive. I'm used to this.'

'Carolyn,' I said sternly, 'Please turn around.

''It's all right, Mother, I promise. You will never forgive yourself if you miss this experience.'

After about twenty minutes, we turned onto a small gravel road and I saw a small church. On the far side of the church, I saw a hand lettered sign with an arrow that read, 'Daffodil Garden.' We got out of the car, each took a child's hand, and I followed Carolyn down the path. Then, as we turned a corner, I looked up and gasped.

Before me lay the most glorious sight. It looked as though someone had taken a great vat of gold and poured it over the mountain and its surrounding slopes. The flowers were planted in majestic, swirling patterns, great ribbons and swaths of deep orange, creamy white, lemon yellow, salmon pink, and saffron and butter yellow. Each different colored variety was planted in large groups so that it swirled and flowed like its own river with its own unique hue. There were five acres of flowers.

'Who did this?' I asked Carolyn.

'Just one woman,' Carolyn answered. 'She lives on the property. That's her home.' Carolyn pointed to a well-kept A-frame house, small and modestly sitting in the midst of all that glory.

We walked up to the house. On the patio, we saw a poster. 'Answers to the Questions I Know You Are Asking', was the headline. The first answer was a simple one.

'50,000 bulbs,' it read.

The second answer was, 'One at a time, by one woman. Two hands, two feet, and one brain.

' The third answer was, 'Began in 1958.'

For me, that moment was a life-changing experience. I thought of this woman whom I had never met, who, more than forty years before, had begun, one bulb at a time, to bring her vision of beauty and joy to an obscure mounta intop. Planting one bulb at a time, year after year, this unknown woman had forever changed the world in which she lived. One day at a time, she had created something of extraordinary magnificence, beauty, and inspiration.

The principle her daffodil garden taught is one of the greatest principles of celebration. That is, learning to move toward our goals and desires one step at a time--often just one baby-step at time--and learning to love the doing, learning to use the accumulation of time. When we multiply tiny pieces of time with small increments of daily effort, we too will find we can accomplish magnificent things. We can change the world.

'It makes me sad in a way,' I admitted to Carolyn 'What might I have accomplished if I had thought of a wonderful goal thirty-five or forty years ago and had worked away at it 'one bulb at a time' through all those years? Just think what I might have been able to achieve!'

My daughter summed up the message of the day in her usual direct way. 'Start tomorrow,' she said.

She was right. It's so pointless to think of the lost hours of yesterdays. The way to make learning a lesson of celebration instead of a cause for regret is to only ask, 'How can I put this to use today?

'Use the Daffodil Principle. Stop waiting.....

Until your car or home is paid off

Until you get a new car or home

Until your kids leave the house

Until you go back to school

Until you finish school

Until you clean the house

Until you organize the garage

Until you clean off your desk

Until you lose 10 lbs.

Until you gain 10 lbs.

Until you get married

Until you get a divorce

Until you have kids

Until the kids go to school

Until you retire

Until summer

Until spring

Until winter

Until fall

Until you die....

There is no better time than right now to be happy. Happiness is a journey, not a destination.

Wishing you a beautiful, daffodil day!

Note: This story is included is a book entitled: The Daffodil Principle (Hardcover)by Jaroldeen Edward and Illustrated by Anne Marie Oborn

The Gratitude Sign

Someone invented a way to say Thank You to those who serve our country. This video highlights those who are in our armed forces, however, there are many "front line" heroes at work in our world such as fireman, policeman, medica and teachers, to name a few. The sign can be used to convey a quick and unobtrusive show of gratitude for services performed.




For more info about this project visit: The Gratitude Campaign

White Dove: True Beauty

The next Addiction Alchemy Clan that is forming is the White Dove Clan. The process for naming a clan is a bit mysterious and not just a cute name that I think up. The naming of a clan is a very sacred process. In reality what is taking place is the reception of the soul call of a group of people who would like to come together to heal or empower something. The archetype or totem is how we communicate. I then channel the archetype and it gives me information I need to put out the call into the physical. I am never dissapointed by what is revealed to me and it is always more profound that anything that I could imagine. It is archetypal empowerment at its highest and finest when these archetypes download us with their energy. White Dove is no exception.

I had no idea what she was about, just a vague notion of peace and Holy Spirit. But I had never had the opportunity to channel this particular creature before. And I am blown away by what she is bringing in for the next clan.

You can read more about it on the website, but I thought I'd give you a preview of her power in a little movie created by an outreach program by none other than DOVE, (yes, Dove beauty soap), called Campaign For Real Beauty. Here's an eye opener....



For more links and info go to AddictionAlchemy.com
White Dove Clan starts June 15th, 2008. Once the clan begins it is closed to the public.

The Divine Mother

A Letter from Deepak

The divine mother is an essential nurturing, life-giving energy. She represents the power of beauty, the power of intuition, the power of creativity, the power of compassion, and the power of love. In many Eastern traditions, this dynamic, potent energy is known as Shakti, which means feminine power. This power doesn’t reside only in women, however; Shakti is the divine spark and the flow of God’s love within each of us.

Etymologically, the word Shakti is related to the word Shekinah, which in Hebrew means “the feminine face of God.” For thousands of years, human beings have largely ignored or denigrated the feminine aspect, while focusing on domination, struggle, and ego. As we continue our evolutionary journey, it is absolutely important for both men and women to embrace feminine power. In fact, this may be our best hope for inspiring global change. Gandhi and Lincoln were markedly feminine in their image and vision; so were Jesus and Buddha. Their love, forgiveness, and wisdom transformed the lives of millions.

We can begin at an individual level by recognizing and cultivating the qualities of the divine mother within ourselves:

Understanding. Shakti goes beyond the illusion of separation and sees the unity behind all diversity.
At the deepest level, we are all aspects of the same infinite Being in different disguises. Instead of imposing, Shakti communicates and seeks to understand.

Patience. Rather than forcing an answer or solution, Shakti has patience and waits for the solution to emerge. In this willingness to accept uncertainty, answers spontaneously emerge from the confusion and chaos of any situation.

Compassion. Instead of ignoring or suppressing emotions, Shakti pays attention to the emotions and signals of her body and can tell when someone else is ready to listen and act. She allows love and compassion to guide her.

Peace. Shakti is peaceful and allows herself and those around her the freedom to be as they are. No situation ever requires force. She accepts each moment as it is, knowing that the whole universe is as it should be.

Creativity. Shakti creates solutions where none were seen before. She knows that she has the ability to fulfill all her dreams because her essential nature is pure potentiality.

Wisdom. Shakti is wise. She sees the cosmic perspective, which always comes from love. She lives from the domain of spirit, which asks, “How can I help, how can I serve?”

Since most of us are conditioned to believe that we are separate, limited beings who have to fight and compete to survive in a hostile world, fully embracing our divine feminine may be a slow, gradual process. But it is an essential one. Shakti is the life force itself, the hidden power that turns matter into life, and the source of all passion and creativity. When we honor the feminine energies inherent in all of us, we can achieve anything.

Love,
Deepak

MOTHER’S DAY AND PENTECOST

MOTHER’S DAY AND PENTECOST

By Patricia Diane Cota-Robles

http://eraofpeace.org

Wow, what a powerful time! May 11, 2008, is Mother’s Day. This is the day during which we express our deepest love and gratitude to our Mothers and to all of the Mothers throughout the world. This day will be empowered by the number eleven. Eleven is the master number that is encoded with the frequencies to change the physical into the Divine. This Mother’s Day is also Pentecost, the day celebrated by millions around the world as the Day of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is known as the Holy Comforter, the Love Nature of God, and the Feminine Aspect of Deity within every Heart Flame—our Mother God. And to top it all off, in this year of new beginnings, these events are taking place within the embrace of the two very rare Wesak Full Moons, which occur on April 20th and May 19th.

Humanity in is the midst of an unprecedented purging and cleansing. This is a natural process that must be completed prior to the physical manifestation of the New Earth. One of the most critical things that needs to occur in order for us to transform our individual and collective lives into the harmonious patterns for the New Earth, is for the Divine Feminine within every evolving soul to be given her rightful authority. With the Celestial and Earthly celebrations honoring the Divine Feminine converging on Mother’s Day, we have the opportunity for this unfolding process to move forward a quantum leap. We are being called to a higher service. Stay focused on the Light, and BE the Open Door that no one can shut for this incredible influx of our Mother God’s Transfiguring Divine Love.

INVOKING THE TRANSFIGURING DIVINE LOVE OF OUR MOTHER GOD

I AM aware of my presence in the world, and I know I AM One with all Life.

I gently remove my attention from the outer world, and I reverently enter the Divinity of my Heart.

I breathe in deeply, and on the Holy Breath I ascend in consciousness into the Heart of my Father-Mother God.

Instantly, I AM enveloped in the embrace of my Mother God’s unfathomable Transfiguring Divine Love.

I hear the melodious tones, and I absorb the celestial fragrance of my Mother’s Divine Love. Suddenly, I feel myself soaring into higher frequencies of Love than I have ever known. I pierce into the core of purity within the Flame of Transfiguring Divine Love, and the splendor of this Sacred Fire permeates my Being.

I AM experiencing a Love and Reverence for Life beyond anything I ever dreamed possible. Divine Wisdom is awakening within my Heart, and in a flash of enlightenment I know, and fully understand, how I AM to convey this Reverence for ALL Life to the mass consciousness of Humanity. This realization is seared into my conscious mind and will now be tangibly available to me whenever I need to recall this sacred knowledge in my service to Humanity and all Life.

In deep humility and gratitude, I accept the opportunities that are being presented to me within the Heart of God, and I volunteer to be an Instrument of God for this Transfiguring Divine Love. Through my I AM Presence, I consecrate my life to be the Open Door through which the full spectrum of the Flame of Transfiguring Divine Love will now flow to bless all life on Earth.

For a sublime moment, I assimilate this experience as I breathe in and breathe out, slowly and rhythmically.

With each inbreath, I ascend higher and higher into the multifaceted, celestial frequencies of my Mother God’s Transfiguring Divine Love. And with every outbreath, I breathe this Sacred Fire forth to consecrate all life evolving on Earth.

As each Human Being evolving on Earth is consecrated with the full potential of the Flame of Transfiguring Divine Love, their I AM Presence activates specific genetic codings within their RNA/DNA structures. These codings contain the Immaculate Concept of each person’s Divine Plan. This activity of Light empowers every Beloved Son and Daughter of God to fulfill his or her Divine Purpose and reason for being.

Through this activation, the mind and emotions of every person are purified and realigned with the Harmony of their true Being. This purification paves the way for the conscious mind and the super-conscious mind within each individual to merge and become One.

In this state of at-one-ment, each person’s I AM Presence comes to the forefront and takes dominion of their life. As this occurs, the life, body, mind and soul of each person is quickened and lifted into a state of enlightenment that clears the way for the fulfillment of the Divine Plan and the manifestation of the New Earth.

And so it is.

The Victim and The Mother

In honor of Mother's Day, which is just around the corner, I wanted to tell you about how powerful of a time this is for us. Mother's Day is no ordinary secular holiday as it would appear. It is much, much more than a kind gesture towards our own mothers, sisters, aunts and wives. What Mother's Day is and the energy it brings to all of us is the power of the archetype of MOTHER....the divine feminine within and without.

As we work with our root chakra we are mastering the archetype of Victim. So don't be alarmed if you've noticed how much blaming you are doing lately and maybe even that this has been a life long pattern. Never fear...mother is here. She is here to bring us out of the Victim and into our own amazing innate ability to nurture and care for ourselves. She shows us with her protective and guiding hand how to take responsibility for ourselves in a loving way.

So yes, honor your mother, and all the women in your life who hold this energy for the planet. But take that a step further and honor the Mother within you. Recognize her powerful, nurturing energy, her compassion, her ability to kiss a boo boo and make it instantly better. She is with you...right at this very moment. You carry this energy within you. She is encoded into your makeup.

The Victim is integrated when the Mother steps into her power. This gives you the foundation to move up your chakra system and become that much more in touch with your Higher Power, while maintaining the ability to ground your destiny out into the physical. She is the key.

Happy Mother's Day!

Timelessness

Timeless Manifestation - Part 1



Timeless Manifestation - Part 2 - Sol/Luna Visualization


Dattatreya Siva Baba is a scholar mystic originally from India and currently living in the U.S. His interests include academic and experiential dimensions of spirituality, merger of science and spirituality, Vedic astrology, a one-World government, biological evolution of the physical body and its transformation a light body. Visit this site to find out more about this amazing man.

Cracked Pots

An elderly Chinese woman had two large pots, each hung on the ends of a pole which she carried across her neck. One of the pots had a crack in it while the other pot was perfect and always delivered a full portion of water. At the end of the long walks from the stream to the house, the cracked pot arrived only half full.

For a full two years this went on daily, with the woman bringing home only one and a half pots of water. Of course, the perfect pot was proud of its accomplishments. But the poor cracked pot was ashamed of its own imperfection, and miserable that it could only do half of what it had b een made to do.

After two years of what it perceived to be bitter failure, it spoke to the woman one day by the stream. 'I am ashamed of myself, because this crack in my s ide ca uses water to leak out all the way back to your house.'

The old woman smiled, 'Did you notice that there are flowers on your side of the path, but not on the other pot's side?' 'That's because I have always known about your flaw, so I planted flower seeds on your side of the path, and every day while we walk back, you water them.' 'For two years I have been able to pick these beautiful flowers to decorate the table. Without you being just the way you are, there would not be this beauty to grace the house.'

Each of us has our own unique flaw. But it's the cracks and flaws we each have that make our lives together so very interesting and rewarding. You've just got to take each person for what they are and look for the good in them.

SO, to all of my crack pot friends, have a great day and remember to smell the flowers on your side of the path!

Oneness Temple Consecrated

On April 22 & 23, 2008 the Oneness Temple in Golden City, India has been consecrated. This amazing temple was built to support the work of the Oneness Movement founded by the Sri Amma Bhagavane. Over 2 million people gathered for this occasion to partake in this great blessing of Oneness.

The Deeksha Blessing was brought in through the divine union consciousness of Sri Amma Bhagavane. It is an interfaith blessing, available to one and all. Click here to read more about the Oneness phenomenon.

I pray... That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us... one even as we are one: I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one..." - Jesus Christ(John 17:20-23)

Happy Earth Day!

GREETINGS TO THE NATURAL WORLD
From First People of America and Canada: Turtle Island - A Haudenosaunee “Thanksgiving” Prayer

The People
Today we have gathered and we see that the cycles of life continue. We have been given the duty to live in balance and harmony with each other and all living things. So now, we bring our minds together as one as we give greetings and thanks to each other as People.
Now our minds are one.

The Earth Mother
We are all thankful to our Mother, the Earth, for she gives us all that we need for life. She supports our feet as we walk about upon her. It gives us joy that she continues to care for us as she has from the beginning of time. To our Mother, we send greetings and thanks.
Now our minds are one.

The Waters
We give thanks to all the Waters of the world for quenching our thirst and providing us with strength. Water is life. We know its power in many forms – waterfalls and rain, mists and streams, rivers and oceans. With one mind, we send greetings and thanks to the spirit of water.
Now our minds are one.

The Fish
We turn our minds to all the Fish life in the water. They were instructed to cleanse and purify the water. They also give themselves to us as good. We are grateful that we can still find pure water. So, we turn now to the Fish and send our greetings and thanks.
Now our minds are one.

The Plants
Now we turn toward the vast fields of Plant life. As far as the eye can see, the Plants grow, working many wonders. They sustain many life forms. With our minds gathered together, we give thanks and look forward to seeing Plant life for many generations to come.
Now our minds are one.

The Food Plants
With one mind, we turn to honor and thank all the Food Plants we harvest from the garden. Since the beginning of time, the grains, vegetables, beans and berries have helped the people survive. Many other living things draw strength from them, too. We gather all the Plant Foods together as one and send them a greeting and thanks.
Now our minds are one.

The Medicine Herbs
Now we turn to all the Medicine herbs of the world. From the beginning, they were instructed to take away sickness. They are always waiting and ready to heal us. We are happy there are still among us those special few who remember how to use these plants for healing. With one mind, we send greetings and thanks to the Medicines and to the keepers of the Medicines.
Now our minds are one.

The Animals
We gather our minds together to send greetings and thanks to all the Animal life in the world. They have many things to teach us as people. We see them near our homes and in the deep forests. We are glad they are still here and we hope that it will always be so.
Now our minds are one.

The Trees
We now turn our thoughts to the Trees. The Earth has many families of Trees who have their own instructions and uses. Some provide us with shelter and shade, others with fruit, beauty and other useful things. Many peoples of the world use a Tree as a symbol of peace and strength. With one mind, we greet and thank the Tree life.
Now our minds are one.

The Birds
We put our minds together as one and thank all the Birds who move and fly about over our heads. The Creator gave them beautiful songs. Each day they remind us to enjoy and appreciate life. The Eagle was chosen to be their leader. To all the Birds – from the smallest to the largest – we send our joyful greetings and thanks.
Now our minds are one.

The Four Winds
We are all thankful to the powers we know as the Four Winds. We hear their voices in the moving air as they refresh us and purify the air we breathe. They help to bring the change of seasons. From the four directions they come, bringing us messages and giving us strength. With one mind, we send our greetings and thanks to the Four Winds.
Now our minds are one.

The Thunderers
Now we turn to the west where our Grandfathers, the Thunder Beings, live. With lightening and thundering voices, they bring with them the water that renews life. We bring our minds together as one to send greetings and thanks to our Grandfathers, the Thunderers.
Now our minds are one.

The Sun
We now send greetings and thanks to our eldest Brother, the Sun. Each day without fail he travels the sky from east to west, bringing the light of a new day. He is the source of all the fires of life. With one mind, we send greetings and thanks to our Brother, the Sun.
Now our minds are one.

Grandmother Moon
We put our minds together and give thanks to our oldest grandmother, the Moon, who lights the night-time sky. She is the leader of women all over the world, and she governs the movement of the ocean tides. By her changing face we measure time, and it is the Moon who watches over the arrival of children here on Earth. With one mind, we send greetings and thanks to our Grandmother, the Moon.
Now our minds are one.

The Stars
We give thanks to the Stars who are spread across the sky like jewelry. We see them in the night, helping the Moon to light the darkness and bringing dew to the gardens and growing things. When we travel at night, they guide us home. With our minds gathered as one, we send greetings and thanks to all the Stars.
Now our minds are one.

The Enlightened Teachers
We gather our minds to greet and thank the enlightened Teachers who have come to help throughout the ages. When we forget how to live in harmony, they remind us of the way we were instructed to live as people. With one mind, we send greetings and thanks to these caring Teachers.
Now our minds are one.

The Creator
Now we turn our thoughts to the Creator, or Great Spirit, and send greetings and thanks for the gifts of Creation. Everything we need to live a good life is here on this Mother Earth. For all the love that is still around us, we gather our minds together as one and send our choicest words of greetings and thanks to the Creator.
Now our minds are one.

Closing Words
We have now arrived at the place where we end our words. Of all the things we have named, it was not our intention to leave anything out. If something was forgotten, we leave it to each individual to send such greetings and thanks in their own way.
Now our minds are one.

What is Priesthood?

Someone recently posed a question through our website regarding the Melchizedek Priesthood and its influence on Church of Spiritual Light. I was very grateful that someone asked this question, because it gave me the opportunity to put something in writing that is very sacred to me and prior to might have been a little difficult to put into words. My motivation to share with anyone who might feel the call of priesthood, initiation and spiritual service helped me to hopefully bring some clarity to something that goes beyond words.

The Melchizedek priesthood empowers and invests humans who feel the call to serve God by serving humanity as a spiritual guide. It cuts a straight path through the hierarchies of man. It imbues us with the will, the strength, the fortitude and of course the blessing needed to carry a torch to light the way for ourselves and all mankind to establish a greater connection to the Light of God, to each other and All that is. It opens a portal of protection and all forces for good that are available throughout the entire cosmos to us and to those we serve.

The short answer is that it infuses our body, mind, heart and soul with Holy Spirit. Some people may call this life force, chi or prana. However, as an energy healer I feel that the energy received in priesthood ordination is not the same as raw life force energy. I feel that raw life force energy is a part of Holy Spirit and perhaps even the vehicle. Not that it really matters what it is. Because when you receive it, there is not a shadow of doubt that something very profound has transpired. It is a widely held belief that the confirmation of Holy Spirit is an infusion of the Divine Feminine. I would agree with this.

The priesthood is not simply an organization of men, just as the Brotherhood and Sisterhood of Light is not an earthly organization. There is no central office or organization that runs this priesthood. That is not to say that there aren't universities, seminaries and schools that train and initiate adepts and clergy, but no single entity holds a copyright or licensing rights for this priesthood. You don't call and apply, you don't have to go to a workshop and there are no dues (financial, anyway). That is not to say that you won't have a burning desire to learn and connect more. In fact, it weaves its way into your life and finds you at the behest of your soul's calling and leads you where it may. It is the oldest unbroken priesthood on the planet, dating actually before Christ, who by the way is a High Priest in this order. Many differing religions utilize the Melchizedek Priesthood.

Is it the only priesthood? No, there are others and there are other cultural, religious and traditional ways to the same empowerment for the cleric calling. This is one of the ways that was placed before us on our path that we resonated with. Yet, I feel that no matter what names you give it, we are all tapping into the same divine forces.

The priesthood establishes a lineage as it is passed down from human to human. This is done by the free will choice of the recipient. Although when you hear the call of priesthood, it doesn't feel like there is much of a choice. In fact it is an acknowledgement of what already is. Much like in a marriage the exchange of wedding vows is a declaration of what already is, yet somehow synergistically places the union on another track and the two become three entities...man/woman/relationship. The priesthood, like a marriage changes everything and nothing and creates that same type of synergy and union within yourself and all the names of God.

Priesthood ordination and other initiations support the reunification with the angelic self or higher self and empowers us to assist others with this process. Accepting the priesthood means that we intend and vow to be 100% in service to mankind in the Light as a spiritual mentor, guide and healer. There are other initiations that bring in this same energy for those who serve in other capacities...not higher, not lower, just different. Initiation as an Adept into the Brotherhood and Sisterhood of Light is one such initiation. One day I personally hope to see financial healers, instead of financial planners...a hospital that has energy healers in the emergency room....a school teacher that knows her worth.

In a nutshell, an initiation is something that the individual invokes. It's something you earn, but only in the eyes of your SELF. It's sort of like a cosmic raising of your hand to be flagged that you want and are ready for more light and empowerment. Some people feel
disempowered and turned off at the thought of initiation and feel a negative attachment about this process as if the initiators have a sort of hierarchy over them. However, this is exactly the opposite of what our "small" mind thinks. The persons who initiate others are in service to humanity and to the Light. In the Hierarchy of Light, the "higher" you are, the more of a humble servant you are!

When you accept a priesthood or initiation, does it mean that you cease to be human? No. Does it mean you are perfect? No. Does it mean you don't make mistakes? No. But you no longer see mistakes as imperfect and the definition of the word changes. Your ability to transmute darkness is increased a thousand fold. The word "sin" in ancient Greece was an archery term for "missing the mark". Of course, one could view the "sins" in archery practice as evidence of lack of skill or one could view them as crucial to mastery. Ones who view it as lack or failure will not feel worthy of initiation and so will hold themselves apart, those who tenaciously seek mastery will. It is totally driven by the self and is a marker for the level of free will that we will allow ourselves.

Most often by the time we hear the call of priesthood we have already made a great many mistakes and processed much and hopefully purified and clarified our heart and soul connection to the degree that our life lessons have entered a new realm of subtleties as we continue to integrate shadow and light. Hopefully enough light has been taken in that any remaining darkness can always be turned to the light with a sort of ease and grace. And in this very thing, is the greatest opportunity to hold the energy high and be of true service as we bring our perceived frailties into the light and model the power of transformation. For what we heal in ourselves, we heal in the world. In this endeavor we become a mixture of both human and divine beings of light.

As far as how the priesthood influences Church of Spiritual Light, I would hope that my answers above have made the benefits self-evident, as everything that I have said rains down upon all who commune together and fall under this umbrella. Ultimately one day we will be able to facilitate the handing down of this ordination and many other initiations for our people. And so this church will ultimately empower others to serve in the light in the ways of their choosing and through their own creative expressions that brings joy, love and fulfillment to all.

Heart Sutra

Gate gate (Gone, gone)

Pāragate (Gone beyond)

Pārasaṃgate (Gone completely beyond)

Bodhi svāhā (To full enlightenment)

One can interpret the mantra as the progressive steps along the five paths of the Bodhisattva, through the two preparatory stages (the path of accumulation and preparation — Gate, gate), through the first bhumi (path of insight — Pāragate), through the second to seventh bhumi (path of meditation — Pārasamgate), and through the eight to tenth bhumi (stage of no more learning — Bodhi svāhā).

Olivia Newton-John (along with Amy Sky) has recorded an amazing CD entitled, Grace & Gratitude. Included on this recording is a gorgeous version of the Heart Sutra, Gate, Gate, as well as the song below, Pearls On A Chain. Olivia's Grace & Gratitude CD takes you on a journey through your chakra system and the Tree of Life. This is a truly lovely, healing and deeply spiritual work of art that incorporates Tibetan chants, prayers from Judaism and Islam, and a poem from St. Francis of Assisi.

Dragonfly Magic

May you be

blessed today

in many

little ways.

Even in your busy-ness, I hope you can see the beauty that abounds and that if you

are surrounded by anything other than light it is only so that you can know the

difference between the two.

For the dark

provides the

contrast

only there

so you

can see

what is

wrong and

what is

right

what you

want and

do not want

So that

you can

reach a

little higher

for the

stars

for the

light

of day

for the

fullness

of the

moon

and allow

yourself

to feel

worthiness

of what

is already

embedded

in

all

that

is

and

that

is

love.

(c) 2007 Renee Bledsoe