Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States - Center for Action and Contemplation's Father Richard Rohr's Meditation "Reconnecting" for Tuesday, 11 November 2014

Hevajra Mandala (detail) by Wonderlane 

Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States - Center for Action and Contemplation's Father Richard Rohr's Meditation "Reconnecting" for Tuesday, 11 November 2014 - Religion's main and final goal is to reconnect us (re-ligio) to the Whole, to ourselves, and to one another—and thus heal us.
Richard Rohr's Daily Meditation
"Wholeness"
"Reconnecting"
Tuesday, 11 November 2014
On one level, soul, consciousness, and the Holy Spirit can all be thought of as one and the same. Each of these point to something that is larger than the self, shared with God, and even eternal. That’s what Jesus means when he speaks of “giving” us the Spirit or sharing his consciousness with us. One whose soul is thus awakened actually has “the mind of Christ” (1 Corinthians 2:10-16). That does not mean the person is psychologically or morally perfect, but such a transformed person does henceforth see things in a much more expanded and compassionate way. Ephesians calls it “a spiritual revolution of the mind” (4:23). And it is!
Jesus calls this implanted Spirit the “Advocate” (John 14:16) who is “with you and in you” (14:17), who makes you live with the same life that he lives (14:19), and unites you to everything else (14:18, 20). He goes on to say that this “spirit of truth” will “teach you everything” and “remind you of all things” (14:26) as if you already knew this somehow. Talk about being well equipped from a Secret Inner Source. It really is too good to believe—so we didn’t believe it!
Consciousness, the soul, the Holy Spirit, on both the individual and shared levels, has sadly become largely unconscious! No wonder we call the Holy Spirit the “missing person of the Blessed Trinity.” No wonder we try to fill this radical disconnectedness by various addictions. There is much evidence that so-called “primitive” people were more in touch with this inner Spirit than many of us are. British philosopher and poet Owen Barfield called it “original participation,” and many ancient peoples seemed to have lived in daily connection with the soulful level of everything—trees, air, the elements, animals, the earth itself, along with the sun, the moon, and the stars. They were at least at home in this world, whereas many Christians have largely tried to deny or exit from this world, leaving it in a disenchanted and unholy state.
Most of us no longer enjoy a sacred consciousness in our world, and Sunday services do not appear to overcome this. We really are disconnected from one another and the divine, and are thereby unconscious. Religion's main and final goal is to reconnect us (re-ligio) to the Whole, to ourselves, and to one another—and thus heal us. When you just keep telling people how unworthy they are, it seems to become a self-fulfilling sermon.
Adapted from Breathing Under Water: Spirituality and the Twelve Steps, pages 88-89
Gateway to Silence: Wholeness holds you.

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