Creating Sacred in a Mad, Mad World

I'm not a religious person in the sense that I attend weekly church meetings or subscribe to a particular spiritual organization. But, I do subscribe to the notion that there IS higher power and that higher power actually lives inside of me.

Yes, mama, Jesus lives inside of me! ;)

Organized religion simultaneously pisses me off and mysteriously calls to me. Why? Because we are human and humans are, by default, faulty. I have visions of toothy, slick-haired pastors preaching fear and condemnation, then passing the tithing platter around to collect their 10% of your hard-earned cash. They drive away in the Beamer to their house high on the mountain top, grinning from ear to ear. Suckers!

**Sorry- I just went off on a tangent.**

Ok, so the reason it calls to me is because I love the idea of the "community," of finding meaning and creating "sacred" in this mad, mad world. It's important to me for my kids to understand the meaning of a "higher power" and to find their own meaning. I want them to be able to go to that safe place inside of them (Jesus?) when they feel lost and confused. I want them to be able to find an inner strength that will help them rise above the hurts and disappointments that they will surely feel during their lifetime.

Which is why I'm forming my own church. It's called the Church of Susan. You're welcome to come to service any day of the week. What can you expect? You can expect honesty. You can expect to sit at our dinner table and to talk about happy, positive things. I will try to understand you... but you have to communicate with me. I can't read your mind, so please be open and share your thoughts with me and if you love me back, you'll be ok with this. I acknowledge that I am flawed and you should too.... then I promise to work with you so that we can both become a better human beings.

My church finds sacred meaning in the smallest of things. Sharing a glass of wine before dinner, reading our favorite Curious George books before bedtime, piling up on our queen-sized bed with 2 adults, 2 kids and 2 dogs - even though it's a tight squeeze. We honor the earth and are blown away every single day by the beauty around us. I believe that sacred moments pass me by every second and I strive to tap into each and every one of them.

Life is a gift and whether you think it comes from God or not, you must learn how to appreciate it and find meaning. For every second things are changing and every moment gone, is a moment lost. Savor it. I know I am, as best as I humanly can.

Here is an article about the same thing, that I love. 

Happy Worship Day

This is from the Dalai Lama today:

We can't say that all religions are the same, different religions have different views and fundamental differences. But it does not matter, as all religions are meant to help in bringing about a better world with better and happier human beings. On this level, I think that through different philosophical explanations and approaches, all religions have the same goal and the same potential.

God and beyond

I don't believe in "God" in the traditional sense. From early on in life, I learned from my mother to question everything (she doesn't even realize that she taught me this). A quote I often heard was, "You can't really understand another person's experience until you've walked a mile in their shoes." I understood what she meant from her perspective- she felt judged and out of place, yet I applied this quote to other things... such as religion. To me, if the people in Anniston, Alabama are so ingrained in their belief system (God) and feel so right about it, who is to say that the people of say, Japan or Tibet or South Africa are wrong about their belief systems that they feel so right about.

Every person on this planet is made up of the same exact things- we all have a brain and a body. Spiritually speaking, who is to say WHO is right or rather, if I were to walk in the shoes of a Tibetan, why should I be considered "wrong" about my spirituality because YOU have different experiences?

Having said that, however, I do believe in forces beyond our comprehension. What are these "forces"... God? Angels? Allah? Who am I to say. The only thing I can believe is my personal experience and what I feel deep inside my soul.

I have to admit, the past 20 years or so I've neglected my spiritual side. Because I've refused to believe in something just because someone told me to, I've avoided it altogether. Instead I've focused simply on being a "good person". However, recent events have led me to believe that I need to nurture my soul a little better. As a result, I've spent the past several days opening up my spirit so that I can receive what it is I need in order to connect on a deeper level.

In the meantime, I'm lucky to have so many people acting on behalf through their own belief system. I've received biblical quotes, notes of prayer, inspirational quotes and most recently my aunt Trisha (who has been praying for me and sending me healing messages daily) encountered the Dalai Lama on the streets of New York and he personally blessed her - and she says she was thinking of me at that moment. This is the photo she captured:



There are healers, teachers and spiritual leaders all around us. I'm opening my heart to their messages and nourishing my soul during this incredibly difficult time.