Salvation

It is easy to forget that God is in ALL of us, in all of creation. Jesus is not the only "divine" being. We are all divine beings living in material forms. That's the nature of this material universe. Jesus understood this perfectly, and was in sync with the divine energy (God) which permeates all things. 

Jesus' promise of salvation comes from each of us discovering that God is in us and allowing God to manifest in all we do .... that we are, so to speak, "children of the Most High" (Psalm 82; John 10; Gal. 3)), therefore of divine lineage. Salvation is being saved from being duped by the illusiveness of this world, discovering your true self, and opening your minds to the complexity of Creation in all its dimensions. Salvation is not a "free ride." Jesus teaches us HOW to be saved - it is our own work, our own discovery of the nature of Life. We choose, we live.

It was said ...

“See that you not be deceived,
for many will come in my name, saying,
‘I am he,’ and ‘The time has come.’ 
Do not follow them! 
When you hear of wars and insurrections,
do not be terrified; for such things must happen first,
but it will not immediately be the end.” 
Then he said to them,
“Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. 
There will be powerful earthquakes, famines, and plagues
from place to place;
and awesome sights and mighty signs will come from the sky.”

Luke 21

America's Future

Education should not be a "business", but an opportunity for any American to develop their full potential. Society should fund the education of its children in order to provide for the future, generations of inventiveness, educated leadership and progress in every human milieu.

Health Care should not be a "business", but a funded service to keep America in good health so that we do not lose the possible inventiveness and leadership which disease and malconditions steal away from every generation. I recieved a bill, charging $573 for two sessions of PT (physical therapy), during which hardly anything more than consultation was accomplished. This is obscene.

Economics is the bane of this period of civilization. If the wealth of this nation is not shared, providing opportunities for everyone to excel, or just to live without financial stress, then economic inflation will eat away the good we have built like a cancer, and society will collapse. There must be ways of balancing costs with income so that everyone can live free of financial stress. But greed rules the day -  mostly out of a desire for power and control.

Be vigilant

Luke 17:

Then he said to his disciples,“The days will come when you will long to seeone of the days of the Son of Man, but you will not see it.There will be those who will say to you,‘Look, there he is,’ or ‘Look, here he is.’Do not go off, do not run in pursuit.For just as lightning flashesand lights up the sky from one side to the other,
so will the Son of Man be in his day.

Culture More Important Than Politics

These words dissolve my apathy and soothe my confusion. Sela

"Our society would collapse without the 65 million volunteers and 22 million entrepreneurs who engage in pragmatic problem solving every day.

Importantly, it is the groups outside of politics that lead the nation and create a better world. Change always comes from outside the world of politics. Positive change comes when everyday Americans use the freedom to work together in community.

No matter what happens on Election Day, the hard work of moving America forward will continue in our communities. Politics have failed, America will not."

Scott Rasmussen, editorialist. Thank you, Mr. Rasmussen.  www.rasmussenreports. com 

Culture More Important Than Politics

These words dissolve my apathy and soothe my confusion. Sela

"Our society would collapse without the 65 million volunteers and 22 million entrepreneurs who engage in pragmatic problem solving every day.

Importantly, it is the groups outside of politics that lead the nation and create a better world. Change always comes from outside the world of politics. Positive change comes when everyday Americans use the freedom to work together in community.

No matter what happens on Election Day, the hard work of moving America forward will continue in our communities. Politics have failed, America will not."

Scott Rasmussen, editorialist. Thank you, Mr. Rasmussen.  www.rasmussenreports. com 

Culture More Important Than Politics

These words dissolve my apathy and soothe my confusion. Sela

"Our society would collapse without the 65 million volunteers and 22 million entrepreneurs who engage in pragmatic problem solving every day.

Importantly, it is the groups outside of politics that lead the nation and create a better world. Change always comes from outside the world of politics. Positive change comes when everyday Americans use the freedom to work together in community.

No matter what happens on Election Day, the hard work of moving America forward will continue in our communities. Politics have failed, America will not."

Scott Rasmussen, editorialist. Thank you, Mr. Rasmussen.  www.rasmussenreports. com 

Culture More Important Than Politics

These words dissolve my apathy and soothe my confusion. Sela

"Our society would collapse without the 65 million volunteers and 22 million entrepreneurs who engage in pragmatic problem solving every day.

Importantly, it is the groups outside of politics that lead the nation and create a better world. Change always comes from outside the world of politics. Positive change comes when everyday Americans use the freedom to work together in community.

No matter what happens on Election Day, the hard work of moving America forward will continue in our communities. Politics have failed, America will not."

Scott Rasmussen, editorialist. Thank you, Mr. Rasmussen.  www.rasmussenreports. com 

God is Love is You.

But you have mercy on all, because you can do all things;
and you overlook people's sins that they may repent.
For you love all things that are
and loathe nothing that you have made;
for what you hated, you would not have fashioned.
And how could a thing remain, unless you willed it;
or be preserved, had it not been called forth by you?
But you spare all things, because they are yours,
O LORD and lover of souls,
for your imperishable spirit is in all things!

Wisdom 11:22

Only One, True Sangha (Community)

We all want to belong.

We all want to experience

meaning and purpose.

We all want to know love.

Therefore, we join ---

I marry.

I am Christian.

I am Jewish.

I am Buddhist.

I am Muslim.

We can say the same

for culture or politics ---

I am American.

I am French, Chinese, Democrat.

But the real Sangha (community of one mind and heart)

is more basic,

and even as it is so simple a concept,

it is difficult to achieve ---

I am human.

And every practice

born of "religion" (which means to link together, to be of one mind and heart),

or born of culture,

when stripped of its veneer of

language, ritual, dogma

and Teacher ---

is the same.

I am human.

I am soul.

I am Soul.

Therefore,

manage your own journey,

but respect every road

which leads home.

agd

September?

Hot, sultry Saturday morning,

80 degrees at 10 am --

a bit warm for Sept. 10, 2016,

the effects of a world

enamored with industry

and progress.

And life just follows

the seasons….

a leaf parachuting to earth

in joy and abandon.

Leaves swirled by the changing winds

born of cool and warmth,

the tans and browns

of grasses due to the heat

and no rain.

A stick bug clinging to the wall

for a time, then disappearing

into the vegetation - so clever!

Wooly caterpillars humping

their way across the road,

Good luck!

But the heat,

the humidity…

almost too much to bear,

will be forgotten in

the short, icy days of January.

Thank God for central air!!

agd

A Moment

Alone with Clio,

her pearl-white body bent,

pressing gently against by shoulder,

her cool skin warming

with the touch of my embrace

and with the wrapping of my thighs,

and with the warmth of my breath,

her voice sweetens

and sparkles in my soul --

a tune inspired

only Clio and I can sing.

agd

Tell Me a Story

Warm, moist, August morn,

the beating sun

revealing Life:

Three caterpillars,

two ginger,

one white -

Is there a story?

agd

Tell Me a Story

Warm, moist, August morn,

the beating sun

revealing Life:

Three caterpillars,

two ginger,

one white -

Is there a story?

agd

Why Bother?

Many say:

"I don't watch the news.

It's too depressing."

Yes, it can be.

The creative violence

of humanity's darkness hurts,

and it pains me, too.

I cry and wonder why, too.

My heart breaks

for the pains of the world.

So why do I bother at all?

Why do I want to know about it?

Because we are all connected:

The Korean who is killed

for her political views.

The Swede born at high noon.

The Italian suffering

the aftermath of a quake.

The joy of newlyweds in Ohio.

Even the likes of a Trump.

or a Gandhi,

or a Putin,

or a Cuello,

or Papa Fran,

or a fox,

or Fiona the cat.

We are ALL connected.

I feel them,

I feel for them.

I watch and listen because

I want to know.

I watch and listen

so I can reach out -

in prayer,

to console,

to commend,

to praise,

to heal.

agd

So Many Words

I am grateful

for the company

of the raido,

faceless voices

relating, arguing,

emoting, judging,

singing, laughing.

I know, too,

if I shut off the radio,

silence the TV,

muffle the music,

stop the ticking clock…

I have words to write.

So many words

pouring through

this filter named Allen G. Dec.

(Only one channel of so many)

It is a constant flow,

like the music,

or like like the blaring tinnitus

in the never-present silence.

So many words

pouring through me,

cataracts of letters

tumbling, with no ethic,

no morals, no judgements, none,

but coalescing into a torrent

of ideas and inspirations,

images and forms

-- meant for the world?

-- or just for me?

And will the world be any less

if I, me, do not press

graphite to pulp,

if I, me, do not speak it in public,

if Allen doesn’t tweet or publish?

Some things are meant

to be seen and heard by all,

and some are not,

but all and everything co-exists

in the Heart and Mind of the Beloved.

Live in that Heart, and enjoy.

agd

Duped

I know this is not paradise -

far from it.

Every second in this flesh

is a struggle for survival.

Yet we are seeded with hope,

hope for a life of peace and pleasure,

to wonder and experience,

fulfilling purpose and promise,

working to preserve and honor,

playing Vishnu,

all the while in the midst

of the darkness of Shiva

breaking down and destroying

so Brahma can rebuild,

and Vishnu …. etc.

An endless cycle it is.

A beautiful, stunning Life it is.

"We" are caught in the spiral of Time,

and believe it. Don't.

We've been duped.

How did we forget?

Why do we want to believe?

Bueno, it's part of my program,

my DNA, to believe

in the integrity of

my individual being,

to observe and report

from my center of the universe.

And though I am one,

I AM - ONE.

Salt

From the shadows

of depression,

tears stream down

my forehead,

blurring my vision,
flowing over my dry lips,

quenching my thirst

for being.

But even a tear of pain or sadness

contains the spice

which enhances,

gives flavor,

satisifies.

Hidden in every challenge

the quarks of being blaze,

illumining one step

striding into the next.

Hidden behind the smiling mask,

within the universe of dark matter

beats a glowing star,

the blazing soul.

Here is our only safety,

our real salvation.

Rest in the glow.

agd

The Only Law You Need To Follow

Gospel Mt 22:34-40

When the Pharisees heard that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees,
they gathered together, and one of them,
a scholar of the law, tested him by asking,
“Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?”
He said to him,
“You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart,
with all your soul, and with all your mind.
This is the greatest and the first commandment.
The second is like it:
You shall love your neighbor as yourself.
The whole law and the prophets depend on these two commandments.”

Cross That Line

"CROSS THAT LINE" by Naomi Shihab Nye

Paul Robeson stood
on the northern border
of the USA
and sang into Canada
where a vast audience
sat on folding chairs
waiting to hear him.

He sang into Canada.
His voice left the USA
when his body was
not allowed to cross
that line.

Remind us again,
brave friend.
What countries may we
sing into?
What lines should we all
be crossing?
What songs travel toward us
from far away
to deepen our days?

Sons and Daughters of God

Link:    Bishop Spong on our divine inheritance.

May I add - We are ALL sons and daughters of God! 2Cor, 6:18, Romans 8:16,  Psalm 82:6. 

And yes, in Jesus, the fullness of Being resided, but it also means, and he taught, that we, too, can evolve to his status - "and you will do greater things than this.." John 1:50, John 5:20  We get too stuck in this material world and forget our real status in the Life of Being (God, Universe, whatever). Don't dummy down what and who you are. There is no separation of divine and not divine - all is divine - own it.

Apropos

History always repeats itself.

Reading 1 Jer 14:17-22

Let my eyes stream with tears
day and night, without rest,
Over the great destruction which overwhelms
the virgin daughter of my people,
over her incurable wound.
If I walk out into the field,
look! those slain by the sword;
If I enter the city,
look! those consumed by hunger.
Even the prophet and the priest
forage in a land they know not.

Have you cast Judah off completely?
Is Zion loathsome to you?
Why have you struck us a blow
that cannot be healed?
We wait for peace, to no avail;
for a time of healing, but terror comes instead.
We recognize, O LORD, our wickedness,
the guilt of our fathers;
that we have sinned against you.
For your name’s sake spurn us not,
disgrace not the throne of your glory;
remember your covenant with us, and break it not.
Among the nations’ idols is there any that gives rain?
Or can the mere heavens send showers?
Is it not you alone, O LORD,
our God, to whom we look?
You alone have done all these things.

Visions

Quan Lin weeps for her children

and Francesco

begs for relief.

The Green Beauty is shocked 

as the West disappears

and white waters rush

at her feet.

The world is in mourning,

and some will play on grief.

Peace will come,

but later, much later.

      agd 6.29.16

A Closer Walk with God

God cannot be explained in human words. God is an experience. 

"The best we can do is to walk daily in the experience of God. We walk without road maps; we never find security. Certainty is not a possibility. Does God disappear in our inability to capture the divine in the words of the human? No, but idolatry disappears. Perhaps the best we can do is to pray for “a closer walk with God.” That is the mystical path. I choose to continue my journey into the Source of life, the Source of love and the Ground of Being without any clear or certain answer."

John Shelby Spong

The Precipice

The Precipice

I'm leaning,

leaning over

the edge of tomorrow.

It's so high up

I can barely distinguish

the distant terrain.

But why wonder about tomorrow?

Today has enough

to entertain and to wonder at.

And if I jump over

the edge of tomorrow,

will it not still be today?

Tomorrow never comes.

Today is all there is.

Live it.

agd

Grace and Healing

" The word “grace,” so freely used in religious circles, means the recognition that we are ultimately not self-made people, but are dependent on another for both life and love, which for me are synonyms for God. .....

The task of the would-be healer is to enable every person, no matter how badly he or she has been wounded by life, to find the courage to be all that he or she can be."  

Bishop John Shelby Spong

Grace and Healing

" The word “grace,” so freely used in religious circles, means the recognition that we are ultimately not self-made people, but are dependent on another for both life and love, which for me are synonyms for God. .....

The task of the would-be healer is to enable every person, no matter how badly he or she has been wounded by life, to find the courage to be all that he or she can be."  

Bishop John Shelby Spong

Wake up!

The breeze at dawn has secrets to tell you.
    Don't go back to sleep.
You must ask for what you really want.
    Don't go back to sleep!
People are going back and forth across the doorsill
where the two worlds touch.
    Don't go back to sleep.

RUMI

Cat-napping

I Dreams Reality

A gray day

presses down

and makes me say,

"Let's do a round

of napping."

I can't resist,

my eyes roll,

I feel a mist

taking its toll,

I'm napping.

The fields wide open,

Flutter-bys flitter,

I'm really hopin'

to catch that critter

today.

Tis safe here,

I'm in charge,

nothing to fear,

Life is large

while I'm napping.

The body rests,

but not I.

I explore knolls and nests

and won't even try

to awaken.

agd

Love one another

This reading, from today's Liturgy in The R.C. Church, speaks so clearly to the lack of love we see even among those who think they are followers of Jesus of Nazareth. Religious institution too oftens creates yokes which are not practical, nor are part of the message they are trying to protect. Why trade one slavery for another? Love one another - that's all you need to know and to practice. This reading also speaks to the present political situation.

Gal 5:1, 13-18

Brothers and sisters:
For freedom Christ set us free;
so stand firm and do not submit again to the yoke of slavery.

For you were called for freedom, brothers and sisters.
But do not use this freedom
as an opportunity for the flesh;
rather, serve one another through love.

For the whole law is fulfilled in one statement,
namely, You shall love your neighbor as yourself.

But if you go on biting and devouring one another,
beware that you are not consumed by one another.

I say, then: live by the Spirit
and you will certainly not gratify the desire of the flesh. 
For the flesh has desires against the Spirit,
and the Spirit against the flesh;
these are opposed to each other,
so that you may not do what you want.
But if you are guided by the Spirit, you are not under the law.
               

Be Light

Gospel Mt 6:19-23

Jesus said to his disciples:
“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth,
where moth and decay destroy, and thieves break in and steal.
But store up treasures in heaven,
where neither moth nor decay destroys, nor thieves break in and steal.
For where your treasure is, there also will your heart be.

“The lamp of the body is the eye.
If your eye is sound, your whole body will be filled with light;
but if your eye is bad, your whole body will be in darkness.
And if the light in you is darkness, how great will the darkness be.”

Violence and Nature

Humans always want to experience MORE - of whatever it might be - taste, visuals, sound, pain, risk - to the edge, and then some - and it seems that this material life is all about that - not the "classroom," "let's learn how to be 'better' persons, advancing in soul-power." Please! We are clouded by the evolution of human history, creating "morals" and "ethics" which work one way in one community and another way 2,000 miles away. Bah. It's all an illusion anyway. It's a drama - yes, Will, the world is a stage, and yes, we are all players upon it. Why? Ask the Beloved (I hear a snicker, and a shoulder shrugged - a squirm, even). Meh.

I'm not apathetic. I sense a great divide between the maniacal activity we observe all around us, and the silent "I AM," even though there is a connection, in fact, they are one. There is only One. You and I are miniscule parts of a cosmic brain CELL in which this iotic world plays out its dramas. And they are dramas. And they have and they will pass into memory and hardly be brought up except by the One who relishes all the variety of human experience. 

Yet, each one of us are so unaware of the false ego which impels me and you to be involved and be compassionate and be filled with joy and be violent and be angry and be happy and be depressed, that we actually think it all matters. Meditation calms the vibration of  conscious activity to a near stand-still - and when it stops there is no experience until consciousness begins to wiggle and increase in intensity and we "wake up" again in our little life. As the vibrations of our experiences increase, we move and act in our lives in our province and we can ride to the edge of violence - and may be propelled into chaos - mentally, emotionally, physically. Socially,  extreme activity (vibration) is not acceptable. The utopian society we seem to be trying to build (the kingdom on earth) is populated by middle-of-the-road citizens, vibrating at an acceptable mean. Anything outside that mean is an aberration and is not tolerated.

But that's NOT what the Cosmic Mind wants!! Just look at this universe and all the intensity and violence we are learning about. My God, we are moving in the vacuum around us at unimaginable speeds! And we just report that fact as if it were nothing to be concerned about. Why not? Just look at our earth without us and see how extreme the earth-experience can be in itself- nothing remains calm and peaceful for very long - there is always upheaval and re-creation. Violence is what makes life "interesting." But the statement, and this whole diatribe, must be understood on a level of self-awareness not everyone experiences. Samadhi is not a common experience.

Yes, if everyone meditated we might have the ideal society, a middle-of-the-road citizenry vibrating within reason. But it could never remain that way. The variety of human experience we are aware of globally teaches us that variety truly is the spice of Life, a Life that is not ours, but which we are a part of, for better or worse, until death do us part.

Can we live in peace? Sure - if everyone's on the same page.