JOYFUL WANDERING -- 60

+ updated at 9:56am on Wednesday, February 10, 2016.

+ I am working on the spiritual practice of humility for the next series of posts in the Spiritual Explorations series. There will be 16 posts beginning at SE49. It sure helps to have the resources Spirituality and Practice offers including their quotes on humility. You can search for all kinds of resources at the best website in the universe.   

+ Inner Frontier offers "Walking Presence," the next in the Presence Trigger series.

+ Spirituality and Practice offers The Most Spiritually Literate Films of 2015. How many have you seen?

+ Video > The Mystic Heart Uploaded to Youtube on Nov 12,2006 > In this dialogue series, Brother Wayne Teasdale and Ken Wilber discuss the advent of an integral mysticism in the postmodern world. Reflecting on their own spiritual experiences, the relation of science to spirituality, the lives of the great inter-spiritual pioneers, and how youth culture is revitalizing the mystical traditions, Brother Wayne and Ken show how an integral perspective can bring the revelations of mysticism

+ Diane Rehm Show at its best today, January 18.  Two important interviews >

1 - Congressman John Lewis and author Andrew Aydin talk about March: Book Two, a comprehensive and inspiring history of the Civil Rights movement. 

2 - Joseph Stiglitz deals very informatively with the huge crisis of income inequality in the USA.  

+ “The first peace, which is the most important, is that which comes within the souls of people when they realize their relationship, their oneness with the universe and all its powers, and when they realize at the center of the universe dwells the Great Spirit, and that its center is really everywhere, it is within each of us.” -- Black Elk

https://www.goodreads.com/…/15888-the-first-peace-which-is-…

As Jesus said: "The Kingdom of God is within you."

When we get to mysticism, we get to the heart of all of our great wisdom traditions. Wayne Teasdale promoted this vision.

In The Mystic Heart (2001), Wayne Teasdale says, “The real religion of humankind an be said to be spirituality itself, because mystical spirituality is the origin of all the world religions. If this is so, and I believe it is, we might also say that inter-spirituality – the sharing of ultimate experiences across traditions – is the religion of the third millennium.” (Teasdale, p. 26) + For more on InterSpirituality, visit https://quotationstreasury.wordpress.com/tag/wayne-teasdale/

+ Joyful Wandering posts 1 to 58 are found on The Abundancetrek Blog. You can find them all here.

JOYFUL WANDERING -- 59

+ Updated at 1:13pm EST on Friday, January 15, 2016

+ This post includes entries from Saturday, November 21, 2015 until January 15, 2016. Joyful Wandering posts 1 to 58 are found on The Abundancetrek Blog.   You can find them all here. Latest entries are at the top. If you would like to contribute, write JW in your subject line and send it to John@abundancetrek.com or put a comment on my Facebook page.

+ Daily Necessities 
Tips & pointers for building a spiritual life from scratch

Pray 
Meditate 
Be aware/Stay awake 
Bow 
Practise yoga 
Feel 
Chant and sing 
Breathe and smile 
Relax/Enjoy/Laugh/Play 
Create/Envision 
Let Go/Forgive/Accept 
Walk/Exercise/Move 
Work/Serve/Contribute 
Listen/Learn/Enquire 
Consider/Reflect 
Cultivate oneself/Enhance competencies 
Cultivate contentment 
Cultivate flexibility 
Cultivate friendship and collaboration 
Lighten up 
Celebrate and appreciate 
Dream 
Give thanks 
Evolve 
Love 
Share/Give/Receive 
Walk softly/Live gently 
Expand/Radiate/Dissolve 
Simplify 
Surrender/Trust 
Be born anew

from Awakening The Buddha Within by Lama Surya Das and found when scrolling down http://www.sapphyr.net/buddhist/buddhist-quotes.htm

+ Patheos offers 

Advent Two: Longing for Sunlight and Song by Jill Crainshaw. It begins: 

The songs and images of the Advent and Christmas season stir in many people a longing for peace and good will. But peace is hard to come by these days. Instead, violent world realities incite fear.

How can a fear-wearied world rejoice with songs of hope? How do we keep fear from taking over and destroying our capacity to love and care for each other and our neighbors with open hearts and minds?

+ DailyZen 12/2/15 > "If you have any desire to surpass others, or any thought of your own ability, this is egoism and possessiveness. These are sicknesses in the context of nirvana, so The Nirvana Sutra says, “Space can contain everything, but space does not entertain the thought that it can contain everything.” This is a metaphor for the disappearance of egoism and possessiveness, by which you proceed to indestructible concentration." - Hongren (602-675)

+ ‪#‎Advent‬ > http://www.spiritualityandpractice.com/…/…/view/24493/advent+ The Spiritual Discipline of WAITING is a major theme of the season + One of the great spiritual practices related to waiting and patience id FASTING + Doesn't quite go along with everybody putting up their Christmas tree by now, does it? + Advent's great themes are hard to honor these days + Excerpt from this S&P resource for the season > As Pierre Teilhard de Chardin advised, we need to "trust in the slow work of God." That is what the Israelites did during their long sojourn in the desert and what Christians do during Advent.

+ The SpiritualLiteracy Blog offers "After Paris - Thoughts from Rabbi Lerner." Excerpt: "Lerner points out that the ancient strategies of revenge and payback should be out of the question; they lead only to more bloodshed. Healing will come only when we move beyond the unconscionable terrorist attacks of ISIS and the havoc the United States and other countries have reigned down on the innocent civilians in Syria and Iraq in drone attacks. He writes: 'As long as our resources (and here I include not only the U.S. and the West, but also China and Russia) are primarily focused on military, economic, cultural and political domination of the world, what we saw in Paris will become an increasing reality worldwide.'"

+ If you are on Facebook, I invite you to "like" and be inspired by the frequent (almost daily) photos and reflections offered on Weaving Home.  You can also go to The Weaving Home Blog offering wisdom regularly (often once a week). Here is an excerpt from the first post by Weaving Home creator Naomi Kelly, a Presbyterian pastor and a Spiritual Director:

We can plug into the Spirit of Christ in many ways, Weaving Home is one such guide to deepen your spiritual practices to enthuse and inspire, so that you are empowered to live out your calling to love God and each other.  

+ Spiritual Explorations posts have begun to accumulate on The Abundancetrek Blog. You can begin this series of posts at Spiritual Explorations -- 1 or you can find any one of the posts by going to abundancetrek.com/sepostsaccess.html.

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+ updated at 5:17pm ESDT on Tuesday, October 7, 2014. 

+ “In everything, whether it is a thing sensed or a thing known, God Himself is hidden within.”  -- St Bonaventure

+ Spirituality and Practice offers an excerpt on an excerpt on practicing Unconditional Love from the book, It's Up to You: A Practice to Change Your Life by Changing Your Mind by Karen Casey. Read the S&P review.

+ Religion for Life offers John Shuck's recent  interview with Bill McKibben

+ 2 important articles by Robert Reich:

•  “Why We Allow Big Pharma to Rip Us Off”
• “Why the Economy is Still Failing Most Americans”

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+ updated at 1:00pm EST on Wednesday, January 22, 2014

+ Thanks to my friend Ralph Clingan I just discovered a fascinating website and Facebook site:  http://connectiontocreative.com/ | http://connectiontocreative.com/daily-affirmation/ | https://www.facebook.com/connectiontocreative

I suggest you go through the 167 photos on the Facebook site.

+ Democracy Now! offers an excerpt from a new documentary being featured at the Sundance Festival. Go to "Alive Inside: How the Magic of Music Proves Therapeutic for Patients With Alzheimer’s and Dementia." Here is a portion of the report:
Could a pair of headphones change the lives of millions of Americans suffering from Alzheimers and dementia? "Alive Inside: A Story of Music & Memory," a new documentary at the Sundance Film Festival, follows a social worker named Dan Cohen who has launched a campaign to bring iPods and music therapy to nursing homes. One of the central characters he works with is a 90-something Alzheimer’s patient named Henry Dryer, who was featured in a video posted online that went viral in 2012, with nearly 10 million views. The clip begins with video of Dryer looking largely unresponsive to the outside world. Then he was given a pair of headphones to listen to Cab Calloway, his favorite artist. The music energizes him, awakens him and helps bring back old memories. We play clips from the film and speak with Cohen about his project, "Music & Memory," which he hopes to expand around the world. We are also joined by Michael Rossato-Bennett, the film’s director and producer.

+ January is Poverty Awareness Month.  Spirituality and Practice offers information, inspiration and illumination with daily posts. It is not too late to get informed, inspired and illuminated. | See the list. 

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+ updated at 4:36pm EST on Monday, January 20, 2014

+ Daily Kos offers "Most of You Have No Idea of What Martin Luther King Actually Did" by Hamden Rice. Excerpt: 

He ended the terror of living as a black person, especially in the south.

I'm guessing that most of you, especially those having come fresh from seeing The Help, may not understand what this was all about. But living in the south (and in parts of the midwest and in many ghettos of the north) was living under terrorism.  

It wasn't that black people had to use a separate drinking fountain or couldn't sit at lunch counters, or had to sit in the back of the bus.  

You really must disabuse yourself of this idea. Lunch counters and buses were crucial symbolic planes of struggle that the civil rights movement used to dramatize the issue, but the main suffering in the south did not come from our inability to drink from the same fountain, ride in the front of the bus or eat lunch at Woolworth's.

It was that white people, mostly white men, occasionally went berserk, and grabbed random black people, usually men, and lynched them. You all know about lynching. But you may forget or not know that white people also randomly beat black people, and the black people could not fight back, for fear of even worse punishment.  

This constant low level dread of atavistic violence is what kept the system running. It made life miserable, stressful and terrifying for black people.  

White people also occasionally tried black people, esp 

+ The Theological Wanderings of a Street Pastor offers "Pregnant with God." Here it is:

I beheld the fullness of God in which I beheld and comprehended the whole of creation, that is, what is on this side and what is beyond the sea, the abyss, the sea itself, and everything else.  And in everything that I saw, I could perceive nothing except the presence of the power of God, and in a manner totally indescribable.  And my soul in an excess of wonder cried out: “This world is pregnant with God!”  Wherefore I understood how small is the whole of creation – that is, what is on this side and what is beyond the sea, the abyss, the sea itself, and everything else – but the power of God fills it all to overflowing.

-St. Angela of Foligno (1248-1309)

Passage retrieved from http://datinggod.org/2010/10/01/the-world-is-pregnant-with-god/

+ Here is today's Daily Zen:

During the moment of illumination,

When I see the original face of mind,

A limitless compassion arises.

The greater the illumination,

The greater is the compassion.

The greater my compassion,

The deeper is the wisdom I feel.

- Garmaba

+ Here is today's Gratefulness Word for the Day: "If you have a strong mind and plant in it a firm resolve, you can change your destiny." -- Paramahansa Yogananda

+ Spirituality and Practice offers resources for MARTIN LUTHER KING jr DAY.

+ Today's S&P poverty month resource is an excerpt from Meal by Meal: 365 Daily Meditations for Finding Balance through Mindful Eating by Donald Altman > The excerpt begins: “"For some, leftovers are associated with poverty. For others, they signify a treasure that is not to be wasted. It seems that people either love leftovers or hate them.” Read the entire excerpt

+ Today's S&P spiritual reading is an excerpt from What You Will See Inside a Hindu Temple by Dr. Mahendra Jani and Dr. Vandana Jani > Dr. Mahendra Jani and Dr. Vendana Jani provide a succinct overview of what goes on in a Hindu temple. | Read an excerpt on devotion in Hindu homes.

+ Inner Frontier is beginning a new Inner Work series on MIND AND THOUGHT. Here is an excerpt from the introduction: “Because of their range and flexibility, our thoughts give us the illusion of freedom. But the truth is that our thoughts are bound by their patterns and by memory. Their central pattern is that they refer to a non-existent self, our ego, that we believe we are. Our thoughts create our ego in the same way that a novelist creates a character.” | Read the Introduction

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+ Spirituality and Practice offers prayers and thoughts as we deal with the highest poverty rate in many decades. 

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+ Updated at 5:22pm EST on Friday, January 10, 2014

+ This afternoon, I worked on the Abundancetrek Stillness Page which has not been updated for a while. There are many new quotes and other resources. Some links are broken and there is some duplication.

+  I added THESE ARE A FEW OF MY FAVORITE LISTS to my website, Abundancetrek.com, this morning. It now includes J. Barrett Lee’s Five Categories of Prayer.  He told me that he borrowed a lot but I like the way he put it together in an original way.

 

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+ updated at 11:11am EST on Monday, January 6, 2014

+ Hey, friends, remember the book we are working on? I NEED you. Let's begin again. Here is Page 1 > http://abundancetrekblog.blogspot.com/2013/11/the-amazing-journey-page-1.html 

What are your thoughts about these ideas? You can post in Comments here or at https://www.facebook.com/abundancetrek/posts/10202086005284056

Today being Epiphany and the beginning of a new liturgical season ... please share what's happening in your spiritual journey, or your life adventure or whatever you want to call your quest for joy and meaning and purpose.

 

Breathe Deeply. Breathe fully. Be still. Be silent. Be centered. Be grounded. ighten up. Loosen up. Let go. Let God. Celebrate. Enjoy. Be glad all over!

 

I like to exhale on "Breathe Deeply" and inhale on "Breathe Fully." Same with "Be Still" and "Be Silent" and all the other pairs. Sometimes I use beads and sometimes just my fingers to keep track. Then I will go into my sacred word as taught by Thomas Keating in his Centering Prayer method. 

 

My sacred word hasn't changed for about a decade but you can change it from one Meditation Session or Prayer Session or Contemplation Session to the next if you want to.

+ Today is Epiphany when we celebrate the revelation (appearance, manifestation) of Jesus as the Son of God come into the world.  It is the wise men who first proclaim this truth to the world. Other events in the life of Jesus marking this wondrous revelation are celebrated during this season of the Church Year including the Baptism of Jesus and his first miracle, turning water into wine at a wedding in Cana.  Churches in Cana, near Nazareth, are often included in Holy Land pilgrimages.

Here are some Epiphany resources:

• Epiphany comes from the Greek, epiphaneia, which means appearance or manifestation. The feast commemorates the day when the three wise men found the Christ child. < http://www.heraldscotland.com/sport/spl/aberdeen/briefing-epiphany-1.129910
• The Epiphany, or revelation, of the baby Jesus as the Son of God come into the world, is traditionally celebrated on the 6 January. < http://www.churchofscotland.org.uk/worship/festivals_and_dates
• Old St. Paul's Church: At High Mass on Sunday 5 January at 10.30am, the traditional gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh are carried in procession to be offered to the Child in the manger. Gold symbolises the Kingship of Christ, frankincense represents priestly service, and myrrh symbolises healing power. In the evening, Blessing of the Light precedes Solemn Evensong and Benediction at 6.30pm. On succeeding Sundays, we celebrate further revelations of the Christ: on 12 January, the Feast of the Baptism, a voice from heaven proclaims him the Beloved Son; on 19 January, the second Sunday after Epiphany, John the Baptist recognises him as Son of God, and on 2 February, the Feast of Candlemas, he is acclaimed by Simeon as the Light to lighten the Gentiles. < http://www.osp.org.uk/index.php/news/entry/epiphany_at_old_saint_pauls/
• Spirituality and Practice Naming the Days Resource > http://www.spiritualityandpractice.com/days/features.php?id=16401 / Practices: Devotion, Gratitude, Wonder. A Suggested spiritual exercise for today is offered by Christopher Hays: Step outside this evening and look up at the over 200 billion stars that blaze in beauty in our galaxy alone. The splendor of it should cause you to pray as did the Magi in adoration of God." 
• Here is an Epiphany verse from the Revised Common Lectionary: Although I am the very least of all the saints, this grace was given to me to bring to the Gentiles the news of the boundless riches of Christ, and to make everyone see what is the plan of the mystery hidden for ages in God who created all things. (Ephesians 3:8-9) < http://www.presbyterianmission.org/devotion/revised-common-lectionary/2014/1/6/
• A thought of my own! > There is stuff going on in your mind right now which is far more amazing than what you are thinking right now.
• The Presbyterian Church (USA) offers this at 
  

  http://www.presbyterianmission.org/ministries/worship/epiphany/ > Epiphany is the celebration of God’s manifestation or self-revelation to the world in Jesus Christ. In particular, we celebrate the revelation of God’s promise and purpose to the nations of the world, as the magi came from the East to worship to the Christ child, and God’s covenant of grace is extended to all who believe the good news of Christ Jesus. The symbolism of light is important: not only because of the star that guided the magi, but as it relates to the bright dawning of God’s self-revelation in Christ. / An excerpt from the Companion to the Book of Common Worship (Geneva Press, 2003, 94-95): The word “epiphany” (from the Greek epiphaneia or theophaneia) means “appearance” or “manifestation” of God, and has roots in the word for sunrise or dawn. In ancient times, an epiphany meant either a visible manifestation of a god or the solemn visit of a ruler venerated as a god. / For Christians, Christmas marks the coming of God to us; Epiphany celebrates the appearance of the Lord in the midst of humanity. The Christmas stories of the birth of Immanuel declare the divine entry; Epiphany extols the revelation of God to the world in the person of Jesus of Nazareth. / In our celebrations of Christmas and Epiphany we rejoice in the dawning and the arising of Light in darkness. … Epiphany not only discloses the Savior to the world but also calls the world to show forth Christ, to be witnesses to God’s true Light. The timeless mystery of the incarnation, God in flesh, leads us forth to show and tell of Christ as God’s gift of grace and salvation for all persons. Some call this ongoing epiphany the work of Christmas.

  
   

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+ It's the Twelfth Day of Chjristmas and it is the Second Sunday after Christmas in the Church Year. 

Here is a verse from the Lectionary for the Second Sunday of Christmas:

With all wisdom and insight he has made known to us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure that he set forth in Christ, as a plan for the fullness of time, to gather up all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth. (Ephesians 1:8b-10)

Here is a verse from the Daily Lectionary for the Twelfth Day of Christmas:

Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. (Colossians 3:14)

Here is today's Spirituality and Practice Christmas quote for the day, the last one:

 

“From joy I came, for joy I live, in sacred joy I melt.” -- Paramahansa Yogananda in Autobiography of a Yogi

Here is today's Gratefulness Word for the Day:

 

"Gratitude as a discipline involves a conscious choice. I can choose to be grateful even when my emotions and feelings are still steeped in hurt and resentment. It is amazing how many occasions present themselves in which I can choose gratitude instead of a complaint.  -- Henri Nouwen

Since it is still Christmas.  It is a feast day: St. John Neumann for Roman Catholics. In the UK this was the Feast of St. Edward the Confessor, King of England. The rest of Europe celebrated St. Julian the Hospitaller on this day. < http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twelve_Days_of_Christmas

Finally, here is a link to some information about Twelfth Night traditions

> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twelfth_Night_(holiday)

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+ updated at 12:39pm EST on Saturday, January 4, 2014

+ On Facebook, Robert Reich shared: "Several of you thought yesterday's post arguing that Congess's first priority when it convenes next week should be to restore unemployment benefits for the record number of long-term unemployed was a weak palliative for what's really needed. "We don't need unemployment benefits," wrote Burr Hubbell, for example, "We need real jobs." Mr. Hubbell and others raise an important issue. In fighting for measures that alleviate symptoms of a failing system -- whether chronic joblessness, increasing poverty, widening inequality, or ever greater economic insecurity -- are we staving off more fundamental reform? Or are we taking the only humane approach available until such time as fundamental reform is politically feasible?"

+ On Facebook, J. Barrett Lee shared: (DISCLAIMER: This is in response to an anonymous commenter on my blog, not anyone I know in real-life or Facebook)
 
I think I'm going to start responding to the phrase
"Don't be so open-minded that your brains fall out."
 
with:
 
"Don't be so close-minded that you blow other peoples' brains out."
History has many more concrete examples of the latter, I'm afraid.

+ Eleventh Day of Christmas
A verse from the Daily Lectionary:

May God grant your heart’s desire
and fulfill all your plans.”

Psalm 20:4 < http://www.presbyterianmission.org/devotion/daily/2014/1/4/

At http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twelve_Days_of_Christmas we are informed that today is the feast day of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, the first American saint according to the Roman Catholic Church. In medieval times this was The feast of Saint Simon Stylites.

Here is the Spirituality and Practice Christmas quote for today by the great Sufi poet, Hafiz:

A Suspended Blue Ocean

There is only one rule
On this Wild Playground,

For every sign Hafiz has ever seen
Reads the same.

They all say,

"Have fun, my dear; my dear, have fun,
In the Beloved's Divine
Game,

"O, in the Beloved's
Wonderful
Game."

Hafiz in The Subject Tonight Is Love by Daniel Ladinsky

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+ Seventh Day of Christmas > S & P Christmas Quote > Gift, Sharing, Joy > I think we need a new word — "comjoyment" — as a companion to "compassion" to remind us that our greatest gift to the world may be in sharing what gives us the greatest joy. -- Sam Keen in Learning to Fly

 < http://www.spiritualityandpractice.com/quotes/quotes.php?id=20440 | More Advent & Christmas Quotes are at http://www.spiritualityandpractice.com/blogs/maps.php?id=20474

+ Seventh Day of Christmas >“I think this is how we are supposed to be in the world--present and in awe.” -- Anne Lamott

+ Seventh Day of Christmas > Day 7, 31 December: Pope St. Sylvester. In Scotland this day is known as Hogmanay. In Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, Israel, Italy, Luxembourg, Poland, Slovakia, Switzerland and Slovenia, New Years Eve is still referred to as Silvester. < http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twelve_Days_of_Christmas

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+ Third Day of Christmas + Wikipedia has some great information about all of the Twelve Days of Christmas > http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twelve_Days_of_Christmas

 

Spirituality and Practice offers an inspirational quote for each day of Advent and the 12 Days of Christmas > http://www.spiritualityandpractice.com/blogs/maps.php?id=20474 

 

Here is the Spirituality and Practice Christmas quote for today > "To find joy in another's joy, that is the secret of happiness." --  Georges Bernanos in Joy by Beverly Elaine Eanes  <

http://www.spiritualityandpractice.com/quotes/quotes.php?id=20436   

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+ Christmas + Day 2 + God, Panentheism, Joy > Here is the Spirituality and Practice Christmas Quote for today: "The fullness of joy is to behold God in everything." -- Julian of Norwich (Meditations with Julian of Norwich by Brendan Doyle) | See more S&P Advent & Christmas quotes

 

+ Today is the Feast of St. Stephen, Deacon and Martyr. Here is an excerpt from The Theological Wanderings of a Street Pastor blog, Barrett Lee's fantastic blog : "Folks think of deacon’s work as charity, but that was certainly not the case according to Acts.  The office of deacon was created as a ministry of social justice to overcome racial inequality and ensure a just distribution of resources."

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+ Advent: Day 21 and the Winter Solstice + Today is the reason for the season, the day when darkness prevails more than on any other day here in the Northern Hemisphere. But just as that happens, the days begin to get longer. And the light never leaves us. Here at the 43rd parallel we still have 9 hours between sunrise and sunset. Tomorrow we will gain a few seconds. After a few more days minutes until the Summer solstice when there will be 15 hours between sunrise and sunset. The solstice happens today at 12:11pm EST. So, even today we begin to get more light, not less. The darkness which has been gaining ever since June is now on the way out.

So, why is today the reason for the season? I am a Christian. I follow Jesus. But I know that the light which we all need so much is not restricted to Christians. Jews and Muslims and Hindus and Buddhists and Taoists and Native Americans and people of all wisdom traditions are people of the Light, are Holy. Jesus said: I am the Light of the World. He also said: "You are the Light of the world." Be the Light. Shine. That's the reason for the season. Light overcoming darkness. Joy overcoming pain. Peace overcoming violence. Humans becoming humble and respectful and compassionate and gentle. That's the reason for the season. This is HUGE!

Here is wisdom from the Gospel of Thomas:

His students said to him,

"Take us to the place where you are,
since it is necessary that we seek for it."

Jesus replied,

"Whoever has ears, let him hear.
Light shines forth from a being of light
and illuminates the whole cosmos.
The one who fails to become light
is a source of darkness."
(Logion 24)

I continue to receive so much inspiration and illumination from this e-course on Advent and the Gospel of Thomas which I am taking at http://www.spiritualityandpractice.com which is also offering fantastic quotes for each day of Advent and Christmas on Waiting, Patience, Hope and Joy.

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+ Advent: Day 20 >

Jesus says,

Why did you come out into the desert?

To see a reed blown by the wind?

To see a man clothed in soft garments

like your kings and those in power?

Indeed, they are clothed in soft apparel,

but they know nothing of the truth

(Gospel of Thomas, Logion 78)

We need to keep remembering that Advent clearly keeps us aware of our need to protest the ways of the world when they are in conflict with the ways of heaven. The gap is huge.  The birth of Jesus of Nazareth made a difference but we must have a new birth of compassion, peace, justice and sustainable abundance.

I am gaining a lot of inspiration and information from the e-course on Advent and the Gospel of Thomas at www.spiritualityandpractice.com

Today is the fourth day of the O Antiphons said and sung traditionally in the week before Christmas. The O Antiphons said and sung are here > http://www.discerninghearts.com/?page_id=1941

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+ This is currently featured on the Spirituality and Practice home page:
Join Caring People Trying to Save the Planet > Elemental, a deeply spiritual documentary directed by Gayatri Roshan and Emmanuel Vaughan-Lee, opens this weekend in New York and L.A., followed by openings in other areas and availability on iTunes. It presents profiles of three dedicated environmental activists on three continents. Through their personal stories, it reveals the immense challenges faced by those who want to change attitudes and spur citizens to band together in a communal effort before it is too late. We encourage you to support this film and support these people! | See our review of Elemental. | Find a screening in your area. | Visit the official site and see how you can get involved.