Hope, Grace & the Dance
Guilt and shame are never from God-they are merely the defenses of the false self shocked by its own poverty. Our True self must be awakened; it is never “created” by our own actions or behaviour, but is naturally indwelling. It does not imply psychological wholeness or even moral perfection. Richard Rohr
We are looking at a world more interested in the immediate and the physical, therefore God’s presence in these is what we must speak about; God’s immanence in the here and now, rather than focus on the afterlife.
“Order that comes out of control is full of tension. Order that comes out of rigidity is full of strife. Order that comes out of serenity is peaceful.” Meditations for women who do too much
Love is a force that has a nature of its own. It is not ours to shape. It has a life and quality that just is. We can only encourage or discourage-be open or closed to its entry. All the jealousy and possessiveness of relationships only serve to restrict and deny access to Love. Love is not finite. Neither is it ours to control or manipulate. There is no scarcity of love-only an incapacity for us to open ourselves to it. The place in between: living and relating with passion. 2011. Helena Phillips
‘if I see this planet as God’s world, and my longings as rumours of another world….I want to bring the two worlds together…we humans must look beyond ourselves, above ourselves, for direction in ordering our lives. Rumours of another world Philip Yancey
It is in the now that we find ourselves and in the now that we can be happy. If it is possible to live in the now, deeply and contentedly, then it possible to Hope.
For those who hope in the lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary; they will walk and not be faint. IIsaiah 40:31
“Your slightest look easily will enclose me though I have closed myself as fingers you open/always petal by petal myself as spring opens (touching skilfully, mysteriously) her first rose” ee cummings
“Beloved, last time when you walked through the city, so beautiful and so naked, You left a thousand women crazy and impossible to live with. You left a thousand married men confused about their gender. Children ran from their classrooms and teachers were glad you came. And the sun tried to break out of the sky, and at last, at last lay its ancient Love at your feet.” Hafiz (Muslim mystic)
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