 Genuine happiness necessarily involves everyone...
One's whole life -- in its entirety -- is specifically designed for wonder and delight: for adoration and worship, equal to orgasm. With our whole body, with all the "being-ness" of our consciousness-within-skin, we are invited into the Festival of Life: this "no division" between the Sacred and the Secular, between spirit and flesh, and between thought and action is the "Open Door Community" of transformation... One might say that the purpose of the Divine is It's own Self-Discovery through our minds-souls-eyes-ears-mouths-skin-genitals... When our human condition is harmonized with the Divine Possibilities inherent in our being, we "actualize" the Divine Potential of G-d... When that harmony is unveiled through the daily practice of kindness, solidarity, service, compassion, and justice, we are on / in the "Way"... The rEvolution is the practical: "I was hungry and you fed me. Whatever the fuck you do to the least person among you, you do the very same to me." And this was from Yeshua bar Alaha (Jesus)! How about this from John: "A person who says 'I love G-d', and hates his Muslim feminist gay refugee immigrant black neighbor, is not only living a lie, but is also full of shit"... And to those who preach the Gospel of Salvation Prosperity, these words, also from Yeshua, are an apt critique of such a theology: "Do not collect wealth for yourselves." And, "Ah! Welcome home you, my Beloved poor! But woe to you rich!" What is the point of this? "The human has been commanded to become G-d." (St. Basil) How is this to be accomplished? "Let everything you do be done in love." So, is it at all possible to be a Neo-Nazi and at the same time to be a follower of Yeshua bar Alaha (Jesus)? Is it possible to want to exclude women from equal ministry and at the same time to be a follower of Jesus (Yeshua bar Alaha)? Is it possible -- really, is it possible -- to want to build "walls" or drop "the Mother of All Bombs", and at the very same time to be serving the potential bliss of humanity? Seeds for an Active Contemplation: I am criticized often for my continual attacks upon the rich. Yes: because the rich continually attack the poor. -- St. John Chrysostom The bread in your cupboard belongs to the poor. -- St. Basil The price of the kingdom is the food you give to the hungry. -- St. Leo the Great I love because I want to love, the deepest desire of my heart is for love, for union, for communion, for community. -- Dorothy Day, Saint of the Gutter Beautiful Yes: we have been perfectly designed for bliss: and yes, too, we will only know bliss to the degree that we create the conditions necessary for every life to thrive and develop into its potential... Orgasm is supposed to compel an opening upward and outward into love and compassion for everyone and all of creation: that outward flowing love will then return and transform one's consciousness... What all of this amounts to is simple, very, very simple: we love the Holy One as much as -- and no more -- than the person we love the least... [Billionaires, members of Congress, the White House, Wall Street, the Pentagon, etc. are not somehow exempt! If genuine peace and justice are our goals, then there must be some evidence of a daily practice.]
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 Bliss is our birthright!
Many -- perhaps all -- of both our personal and social problems stem from our acceptance of the central myths of social convention. Among the the more pernicious of these conventions are these selections: 1) we must accept the reality of a separation between spirit, soul, and body; 2) the satisfaction of desires are a sure sign of a certain eternal destiny of pain; 3) the Divine studies our theologies! Do you see that tired shed in the picture above? Consider it the storage shed for the "myths of social convention": drop the stuff you have collected off right there -- and keep on walking -- walk on into your bliss... Fear and shame are always in service to the Unholy Trinity of Profits, Privilege, and Power: keep on walking... The Unholy Trinity would have you living small: so small indeed, that you will stop and take up your residence in that very same shed! Walk on! Walk on: into the "welcome home" of your self... This essential coming home is the key to the possibility of living bliss. The lie that you are not "good enough" or "worthy" are simply stones in the path: placed there specifically to trip us and convince us to go back to that ol' shed... but keep walking... Now, take up your desires as your walking-staff: not the silly desires that only served that Unholy Trinity: but the Holy Desires that birthed the Universe! Ask yourself: "what if?" Follow that with "why not?" After some practice, go on the third core question, "what next?" Think Big: desire is the bridge to the Divine: erotic innocence is our original nature: and, the heart is the seat of our consciousness... A little bit of practice and you will begin to expand your orgasmic delights into an endlessly expanding compassion: and when you remember that you are making love to "God", you will be entering the realm of Sacred Imagination: all the way down into your DNA, you will begin to smile with the Face you had before you were born... This is possible....  Nehru and Eisenhower
Eisenhower, Second World War General and eight years President of the United States, warned in his farewell address of the dangers within the rising American military-industrial complex: now, decades later, the "military-industrial-technological" complex... How many wars, or better yet, how many years of peace have we had since the warning issued by Eisenhower -- just before John Kennedy became President? As I write, an American strike force is heading to North Korea -- to serve as a warning, but prepared to strike upon the order of the President or in retaliation for an attack by the North upon the South: to be sure, nuclear weapons are at the ready to be launched... I've said it before, if there was no profit in weapons or in war, or if peace were even more profitable, the children of the world would finally be safe. The slick marketing strategies of Mr. Winchester changed an America intent upon inventing a grand civilization into an America that fears its neighbor: the harmless wet dreams of boys wondering about sex steadily become the vicious wet dreams of men: lusting for unlimited profit and world domination... With but a little research, one will discover that an incredible -- no, a stunning -- amount of money has been spent by America and the world on the weapons of war and war making since the time of President Eisenhower: certainly enough money to have transformed this entire Planet -- many times over -- into a practical paradise of beauty, plenty, and peace. Then, with just a little bit more research, and one would discover all of the connections required by the lust of unlimited profit and domination that manipulate and control the world economies: the fate of nations and entire peoples are decided in Board rooms into which only a few people have access... What are the solutions? I think that they are many and varied: but here are a few suggestions for a personal beginning: 1) Commit to a personal path of mindfulness -- every thought, word, and action carry seeds that are planted in our consciousness for better or worse; 2) Commit to a personal path of transformation -- you are the blessing of the Divine, right now, upon this precious blue Planet: so manifest your blessing; 3) Commit to a personal path of promoting justice -- begin to eat and live simply (others simply want to live), recognize the connections between how you spend your money and how the workers making the products you buy are exploited or honored, educate yourself and your friends as to the requirements of justice in the international sphere; 4) Commit to a personal path of becoming a peacemaker -- study the lives of the saints and scoundrels who refused to live just for themselves and became instruments of peace in both small ways and great: then do something everyday for peace; and 5) Commit to a personal path of saving this Planet for the children -- thinking seven generations forward, discover ways of practicing nonviolence and the regeneration of the Planet in your daily life: and as importantly as anything else, form small communities of support and celebration: have festivals in your neighborhood for peace and justice: learn and teach arts and crafts: form sacred circles for shared prayer and contemplation: read poetry together: make music together: grow some of your own food together: invite people into your life who are different from you: we have to enter Paradise together with everyone else: no one enters by him or herself: its all of us or none! |
AuthorRobert Daniel Smith was privileged to serve the homeless and marginalized for 30 years in California. He is living now almost within shouting distance of the Twin Cities. He is a poet, artist, writer, and long-time Companion of the Way still dreaming... Archives
May 2022
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