Make Peace the Goal for 2023

  At the beginning of a new year we often make resolutions and set our intentions to better ourselves. Many of us wish for more peace in the world as each new year begins, and that is what I'm doing with the altar that I have dedicated to peace. 

    As I placed the symbols of peace on this altar I prayed that 2023 will be the year that the Era of Peace truly begins in the world of form. The Christmas card framed in green and gold displays the word "peace" in eleven languages. This and the golden globe hanging on my little tree remind us that people all over the world long for peace. Wars are waged by powerful and egotistic leaders, but most common people desire peace with their neighbors. When the will of the people, and the will of God prevail over the will of the egotists, there will be peace. 

    Doves of peace and a paper crane hang from the little tree along with the golden globe. Paper cranes have been symbols of peace since a little girl named Sadako died of leukemia ten years after the bombing of Hiroshima where she lived. Sadako believed that she would be healed if she could fold a thousand paper cranes. She made 644 cranes before she died. Afterword her classmates continued to fold cranes until there was a total of one thousand to be buried with Sadako. 

    Cranes had always symbolized long life, good health, and good fortune, but after Sadako's story spread around the world, the paper crane became known as a symbol of peace. I folded the crane on my altar as a reminder that no child should have to suffer the horrible effects of war. 

    Finally, the lion and the lamb lying together remind us of the Book of Isaiah where it actually says: "The wolf shall dwell with the lamb . . . and the calf and the lion and the fattened calf together . . . ." Whether the lion lies with the lamb or the calves is not significant. The point is that Isaiah's prophecy illustrates a future in which animals do not kill each other and there is peace in all the land. 

    Every new year ushers in the possibility that this will be the year when enemies begin to recognize the humanity in one another, when children are cherished as the miracles they are, and all of nature is honored and we begin to restore the earth to its original beauty. Let us pray that 2023 brings peace to the world. 

You might enjoy Diana Cooper's message of peace:

New Year's Eve Message 

 

The Miracle of Christmas

     During the Christmas season we are asked to believe in miracles. Believe that a virgin conceived a child by the Holy Spirit. Believe that an angel came to Joseph in a dream and told him that Mary would give birth to the Son of God. Believe that angels came to the shepherds in a field outside of Bethlehem and told them where to find the baby Jesus! And yet, if anyone claims to have seen an angel in today's world, they are scoffed at and called delusional. 

    We are told that Jesus grew up to be a great teacher and perform many miracles. He said: "I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father." (John 14:12) And yet, many churches condemn those who perform spiritual healings because, you never know, the healing might come from the devil rather than God.

    Jesus demonstrated that life is eternal, and yet, we are told not to try to contact our loved ones in spirit. Catholics and other Christians may pray for their departed loved ones, but in Protestant churches we are told that we should not pray for the dead, and we should not pray TO anyone other than God and Jesus. Life is eternal, and yet many Christians believe that this one brief physical life is our only opportunity for salvation. They don't seem to believe in the miracle of a loving God who desires the best for his and her children. 

    I often feel that Christians have put themselves in a little box with God and their definition of God.  If church members stray from the perimeters of that box with questions, explorations, or imagination, they risk the wrath of God. If we tear down the walls of that box, we find that God expands to fill the outer reaches of the universe and beyond. In Matthew 19:26 we read that "with God all things are possible." So yes, it is possible - and most likely - that God has created intelligent beings on trillions of planets throughout the universe. It is possible and likely that many of these beings are more  highly evolved than we are, and that they are already among us, waiting for the day when we are spiritually mature enough to meet them peacefully. 

    With God all things are possible - and yet, many who pray for God's kingdom to come to earth do not believe it will happen. Some Christians have told me that we will never know peace in this world, even though we read in Isaiah 2:4: "They shall beat their swords into ploughshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more." In Luke 2:14 we learn that a heavenly host of angels said to the shepherds on that first Christmas night: “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”

    We sing and pray about world peace every year at Christmastime, but how many believe it can become reality? Is it an impossible pipe dream, or do we believe that with God all things are possible? Perhaps if we truly believe the miracle of Christmas - that Jesus was born to save the world - and work toward that end, we will find favor with God and the world will be saved from the violence and mayhem we have allowed to exist for far too long. 

    I believe that if we open our hearts and minds to the possibility of miracles this Christmas, and every day, we will discover there is so much more to God's universe than we ever dreamed possible. Why not try it and see what happens?

 

    

Loving All the Children

    Look at the faces on these two little boys. Can you love them without knowing who they are? Does it matter if they are naughty or well-behaved? Could they be naughty because they don't feel loved?

    The little boy on the left is Donald Trump, and the boy on the right is Vladimir Putin.  I am trying hard to love and forgive these two people. It is difficult to do, so I have decided to picture them as little boys, before they had the opportunity to create havoc in the world. Now I can pray for them and love their inner child - the part of them that was created in God's image.

    Why am I trying to love these two people? It is because I believe the world is on the cusp of the Era of Peace and we need all of humanity to be a part of this transition. Many modern-day prophets are telling us  there are now more people than ever before who are in alignment with the will of God. Using our free will to choose divine will is the way to free humanity from the fallen state we have lived in for too many millennia. 

    Of course the world is still full of rebellious souls - the ones who keep violence and mayhem in the headlines and make us think that the world will never be at peace. When we let these people fill us with fear and anger we are doing our part to delay the coming of the new golden age. They need our love and forgiveness so that they will realize they are One with every other person in the world. When a man hurts another person he also hurts himself and everyone else. The more we can love those recalcitrant souls, the closer they will come to recognizing they are part of the Divine Oneness. 

    There may be many people in your life or in the News that you fear and hate. I suggest that you try to picture them as children, when they were more loveable, and send love to those little people. 

    Jesus said: "love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you" (Matthew 5:44). To understand the importance of loving your enemies, you might want to listen to this guided meditation: Era of Peace.

    

Election Day 2022

 

    The power of fear is driving U.S. citizens to the polls this Election Day, 2022. Members of both parties fear what will happen to the country if the other side wins. Campaign rhetoric is full of negativity regarding the opposition. 

    The opposite of fear is love. Let us take love with us into the voting booth, remembering that this country was founded on the principal that all people are created equal. Yes, the exact words are "all men are created equal" - but I believe the divine intention for this country was that all of humanity is equal in the sight of God. The intention was for  this to be a nation where people from all backgrounds and cultures would be welcome, and where we would revel in our diversity. 

    Too many ego-centric people let their thirst for power control their decisions and actions, preventing us from becoming the nation we were meant to be for 246 years. But the number of us who desire a government based on oneness, divine love, and reverence for all life has grown expeditiously in recent years. The time has come for the unified efforts of heaven and earth to manifest divine government in the United States, so that we might serve as an example for the rest of the world. 

    It is difficult to believe this is our destiny when we see the ongoing efforts of those stubborn, fear-based souls who refuse to give in to Divine Will. But their efforts, full of violence, hatred, and lies, are coming to the surface now - where they can be transformed by the light of truth and the mercy of unconditional love. 

    We can be a part of the divine plan for a heart-based government, praying for all government leaders to make their decisions based on love and compassion. And we can join in this invocation for divine government shared by Patricia Cota-Robles of the Era of Peace: 

Invocation for Divine Government

What Does the Cross Mean to You?

    

     The cross has different meanings to people depending on their religious persuasion. I grew up in a Protestant church where I learned that our cross was empty, unlike the crucifix in the Catholic Church, because Jesus had risen from the dead and the cross symbolizes the risen Christ. 

    Once, a Mormon friend, told me that the cross is not displayed in the Church of Latter Day Saints, because an instrument of torture and should not be revered. I kind of feel the same way when "The Old Rugged Cross" is sung in church. How can I sing about loving the old rugged cross when it was was used to kill Jesus and MANY other people in a sadistic, horrible manner?

  Sometimes I wear a silver necklace with a Celtic cross on it. The four arms of the Celtic cross are thought to be representative of the four directions of the compass, the four elements of Fire, Earth, Air and Water, and as representation of our mind, soul, body and heart. The center ring of the Celtic Cross is said to be evocative of the Celtic symbol for infinite love.

  

    The cross was an important symbol in many pre-Christian religions and cultures. The swastika was a type of cross historically used as a symbol in Buddhism, Jainism and Hinduism. It was widely popular in the early 20th century as a symbol of good luck or prosperity. Unfortunately this symbol was adopted as a symbol of Nazism in the 1920s and 30s so it has become a symbol of fascism. 

   When I see a cross I think about the metaphysical symbolism: that the horizontal bar represents our earthly life, and the vertical bar represents our connection with heaven. Heaven and Earth meet at the center of the cross which represents the inner sanctum - the still, quiet place within where we connect with the Divine Mystery. 

    When my husband went on a mission trip to Ethiopia he brought back a pair of Ethiopian cross earrings for me. Ethiopian crosses are made of elaborate latticework - each one uniquely fashioned.  The intertwined latticework represents everlasting life. I like this meaning, too. And yes, I believe that Jesus died on a cross and returned to prove to us that life is everlasting. 

Heaven and Earth Collide on Halloween

    Wow. Suddenly this fall I am seeing skeletons everywhere. Skeleton lawn decorations are all the rage here in Wisconsin and the popular twelve-foot skeletons tower over many homes. I wonder if skeletons have taken over the whole country? The world?

    In recent years I have noticed that a lot of people go all out decorating for Halloween, sometimes even more than they do for Christmas. There is something about the macabre that captures the human imagination and gives rise to all kinds of jokes and imaginary creations such as animated skeletons, vampires, and the walking dead. 

    Halloween originated with Samhain, a three-day ancient Celtic pagan festival that marked the end of summer with its bountiful harvest, and ushered in the long, cold winter. The Celts believed that during this period of time, halfway between the autumn equinox and the winter solstice, the veil between the physical and spiritual worlds was at its thinnest. This belief was carried into Christian tradition with All Souls' Day honoring the faithful departed on November 2nd, and The Day of the Dead, a Mexican holiday when families welcome back the souls of their deceased relatives. 

    There are a variety of ways to celebrate Halloween, the season of fall, and the thinning of the veil. I prefer pumpkins and chrysanthemums to the fake graveyards and gory mannequins favored by many of my neighbors. I also like to think that the thinning of the veil between the third dimension and the higher dimensions creates opportunities for us to connect, not only with our departed loved ones, but with the angels, spiritual guides, and all the Company of Heaven. 

    I have a vision for future Octobers, when, instead of celebrating the physical aspects of death, people will celebrate and connect with worlds beyond the veil, where higher beings dwell in peace, love, and harmony. If this is the time when the veil between this world and the next is thinnest, it must be the best time for prayer, meditation, and invocations. It is the best time to pray: "Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven." That prayer may mean different things to different people, but to me it means a permanent thinning of the veil, so that we on earth will live peacefully, according to God's will. 

    

Let's Agree to Protect Innocent Lives

     

    Many of us in the United States are feeling hopeless about the ongoing gun violence in our country, and the lack of will among our representatives to address the issue. I was grateful last Sunday when our pastor conducted a post-service meeting for us to express our concerns and discuss ways to promote changes in our gun control laws. 

    The group made plans to approach our legislators at the upcoming March for Our Lives, to be followed up with a petition and visit to our state capitol. I have already called and written to my representatives, but still waiting for gun rights advocates to realize that children's lives are more important than their gun rights. 

    This is a blog about building bridges, but I confess I don't know how to build bridges with people who buy more guns every time there is a mass shooting, instead of working on stronger gun safety laws. One man who attended Sunday's meeting expressed his concern that an obligatory waiting period for gun buyers meant that it would be a felony for him to sell a gun to someone tomorrow. I can't understand how his right to sell a gun right away is more important than protecting innocent lives. 

    The 18-year-old who killed 19 children in Uvalde, Texas, bought two semi-automatic weapons and 375 rounds of ammunition just days before going on his rampage. If there had been a waiting period, he might have had time to reconsider his intentions before trying to kill his grandmother and then going to the school to kill children and teachers. 

    If there had been a higher age limit for gun purchases, this troubled youth would not have had the legal ability to purchase weapons. If he had had a background check, there might have been a red flag regarding his mental instability. Perhaps he would have gotten the help he needed?

    If semi-automatic weapons were not available for purchase by private citizens, most of the mass shootings would not have happened. 

    I really don't understand why people can't build bridges of peace by agreeing on some commonsense measures to prevent tragedies like the ones in Uvalde, Parkland, Sandy Hook, Columbine, and too many others. 

    Please join me in contacting your representatives to beg for commonsense gun safety laws. To quote author Hollye Dexter:

I am begging you to VOTE in every election. Every single one.

To SPEAK UP against this sick gun culture, even when it’s uncomfortable.

To hound your Senators to pass sensible gun reform.

Put this number for Congress in your cell phone (202) 224-3121. Use it often. You will be able to reach your two Senators and your member of Congress. Tell them to pass Universal Background Checks. To ban assault weapons (we did it before, we can do it again). To pass Ethan’s Law (Safe Storage).

Thank you my dear friends. We can do this!