RECOGNITION 4

“The natural state of man is to be in forgiveness and the recognition of the divinity of his brother. That is actually the true state of who you are and how you are intended to negotiate with one another and behave with one another and experience one another. It’s as if the dance was always in place and everybody could step on one another’s foot as part of the dance and not be smacked for it. And somewhere along the road, man began to hold grudges and to covet and to fear and consequently began to hold their brothers outside of the light while claiming that they could be in the light. And isn’t that an impossibility, to stand in the light while you demand your brother stand in the darkness?” p. 116-7

I found it interesting that after all the work in this chapter about claiming our true identity, that the final theme of the chapter is our old friend FORGIVENESS.

In the light of recent events, the terrorist attack in Paris, the extremist group Boko Haram in Nigeria and the arrest of a young man plotting to blow up the Capital building—and all the other stuff that is going on,  I do need to look at forgiveness and what it means.

To understand the essence of forgiveness I need to realize I am not accepting or condoning the behavior or actions of another. Violence, prejudice, disrespect for life need never be tolerated, but the elimination of hatred and fear cannot happen through more violence or prejudice. 

Right now we are working with forgiveness as a way to foster the understanding of who the “other” is.

Even looking at the language I am using here should make it pretty obvious that whenever I am speaking of “another” who is "out there" someplace, I am speaking the language of separateness, and how easily I fall into that mode of thinking.

The essential message of Jesus was that of Love and  Forgiveness. As the quote above suggests—you can’t have love if you are holding onto hatred, anger (no matter how justified), prejudice, or any notion of separateness. Love and Forgiveness 

go hand in hand.

A group of elders attempting to test Jesus asked him “What is the greatest commandment (of course they are thinking of the “Ten Commandments” and knew there is no right answer to that question, ‘cause no matter which one you pick as the most important, there is always an argument that another one could be more significant).

Not only did Jesus see through the trap, he also saw this as a marvelous opportunity to teach a deeper truth, a Truth that went well beyond rules and laws. 

He replied: 

“ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul. Love him with all your mind.’ (Deuteronomy 6:5) 38 This is the first and most important commandment. 39 And the second is like it. ‘Love your neighbor as you love yourself.’ (Leviticus 19:18) 40 Everything that is written in the Law and the Prophets is based on these two commandments.” (Matthew 22:36-40)

Then he was asked, “Who is my neighbor.”Luke 10:25-)

Now follows that wonderful parable called the Good Samaritan.

Samaritan’s to the Jew’s at that time were the enemy, religiously, politically and every other which way. To care for one like this would have been close to unthinkable.

Today, if Jesus was answering the question, “Who then is my neighbor?” he might have substituted Palestinian or terrorist.

This would be a current day version of the story:

There was once a man who was planning an act of terrorism. As he was traveling, he was jumped, beaten, and robbed by a gang who cared only for themselves. They left the man at the side of the road, bloody and dying. 

A priest, a man of God, walked by, and saw him there and moved to the other side of the street. The man cried out for help, but the priest pretended he did not hear. He needed to get to his church; his congregation was depending on him. 

In the same way, a doctor, a healer, walked by on his way to the hospital where he worked, and saw the man who was now moaning in pain. The doctor also moved to the other side of the street. He could not afford the chance of a malpractice suit. 

A construction worker came by, saw the man and heard his cry, he started going over, but he decided not to, he just could not get involved. He thought to himself, “Who knows what that person might have been mixed up in?” 

A family went by — Dad, Mom, and the kids, they too saw and heard the man, they were drawn to help him, but someone said, “Maybe it’s a trap, a setup; we’d better not stop.” 

And finally an off-duty policeman walked by. He was thinking about his brother officers lost on 9/11. He saw and heard the man. He went over, looked at him, and knew exactly who and what he was. Initially he was filled with rage. The urge to inflict more pain and revenge was strong in him, but he also remembered he was an aspect of the Divine, (I Am Word—and so are you) and so was the wounded man in front of him. The officer got a blanket, wrapped the man in it, and carried him to his car. He tended his most serious wounds and then drove him to the nearest emergency room, where he enlisted the care of a physician he knew. He said, “Treat him as you would a fellow officer. I will come by later and check on him. I’m good for any expenses.” 

“Then Jesus asked, ‘Which of these, do you think, proved neighbor to the man?’ And the questioner said, ‘The one who showed mercy on him.’ And Jesus said, ‘You go then and do the same.’ ” Luke 10:37 

It is written, “If anyone says, ‘I love God,’ and hates his brother, he is a liar.” 1 John 4:20 And who is my neighbor, you may ask? Here are a few examples: the person in front of you who is going too slow, the person behind you talking at the movies, the guy who shortchanged you at the store, the annoying guy who wears his hat in the restaurant, the woman jabbering about nothing on her cell phone, the person who left the shopping cart blocking your car, the person who is late, and Osama bin Laden and all the rest. 

Be careful, there is a deep lesson here. Throughout history there are experiences of violence and oppression. It is easy to feel anger and hatred when you hear names such as Stalin, Hitler, and Osama bin Laden. You are told to love them, and you feel a resistance. You know you “shouldn’t” feel that way. It is natural to take these seemingly un- acceptable people, and say, “Yes, you are my neighbor, but I’m not putting you in the same room in my mind with my grandkids. I still love you, but you go over there.” 

Sorry. That will not work. Recognize of Jesus’ statement when asked, “Lord when did we see you hungry or thirsty . . . or naked . . . or sick?” and Jesus’ answer, “Truly I say to you as you did it to one of the least of these my brethren, you did it to me.” Matthew 25:37-40 There must be room in your heart for everyone — no exceptions, no separation. 

Forgiveness is not about the actions of another it is the willingness to see the “other”, everyone, as a part of God as a Divine child of God no matter how they might appear on the outside.

It is only when we hold forgiveness with this kind of understanding can we begin to realize that forgiveness is also about me. What kind of righteous anger, fear, justifiable hatred and aggression am I holding onto that is contributing to my separateness thinking, and hurting me deeply.And not only hurting me, but affecting the thinking of all beings?

So even if I am only thinking of my own ascension to higher frequencies, I need to realize:

“It’s actually not possible to ascend in consciousness to the extent that you require your brother to suffer. It is not possible to rise in frequency when you hold the lower frequency to your heart and refuse to release it. And unforgiveness, of course, is a lower frequency.” p. 116

I would encourage us all to read/pray those two affirmations on p. 119-120

May all beings be at peace; may all beings be free of suffering.

Again, thank you for letting me share this journey with you.