CHRISTmUS

wow! barely 2 days before the so called Christmas. and i'm not so eager to come home. ;-( first time to feel it this way after 32 years. so much blessings came and so many gifts received the whole year and i'm spent out. would like to give everyone a gift if only i can but financially broke. ;-( maybe i give myself instead. maybe this is the best gift ever that i can give. a sincere and costless smile. then maybe with this i can find the joy of christmas and would finally be excited to come home even penniless! maybe i am being called to reconsider what really matters to me. maybe christmas is not at all only about gift-giving but making memories with the people i love and sharing laughters together. maybe i am just being very positive and optimistic. but isn't life all about choices? if so, then i chose to feel good, feel rich, and feel loved. then i came across this message below of Neale on his blog. wow! impeccable timing indeed. when i find myself heading for home before christmas, then maybe i chose to be home; if not, maybe i chose to hibernate for a change. hahahahahahaha happy holy days! ;-)

this is the meaning of Christmas.
That... that which is Christed is born in all of us.
Lives in all of us.
IS all of us.
We simply do not remember this.
And so, Christmas was created to remind us.

Christmas, it turns out, is not about a particular religion, but about all religions. It is not about a particular person, but about all persons.

It does not matter whether you are Christian or Muslim, Hindu or Jew, Baptist or Buddhist.
Or none of the above.

When you give birth to the lord within you, you give life to a wonder and a majesty and a wisdom and a love that can flow from you to all the world, and change the world forever.

Isn't this the Christmas Story?

And when we live this story as our story, are our lives not renewed, our separated selves made whole?

Indeed.

Our souls are stirred, our hearts are filled. And then it is we who bring...joy to the world.

The gift of Christmas is us, fully expressed and fully realized. It is us -- completely willing and totally ready -- to love without condition, to give without restriction, to share without limitation, to create without fear, to celebrate ourselves without shame or embarrassment.

It is us, choosing to forgive without hesitation, to help without being asked, to rush in where angels fear to tread. Indeed, to lead the way for angels.

Ah, to lead the way for angels. That's why we're here. That's why we've come to the Earth. To be a herald!

Hark! The herald, angels sing. Glory to the newborn king.

At this moment we can give birth to the royalty within us...the royalty that we are in God's eyes.
someone once said...if you saw you as God sees you, you would smile a lot.

I'm proud of you

i was teary eyed while reading this story of Wally. May we be reminded of this as we do our Christmas shopping @ the last minute when everything is rush, rush, rush. Merriest Christmas! ;-)

It was six o'clock at the mall, and I was as exhausted as an elf on Christmas Eve. In fact, I was an elf and it was Christmas Eve. That December of my sixteenth year, 1995, I'd been working two jobs to help my parents with my school tuition and to make a little extra holiday money. My second job was as an elf for Santa to help with kids' photos. Between my two jobs, I'd worked twelve hours straight the day before; on Christmas Eve, things were so busy at Santaland that I hadn't even had a coffee break all day. But this was it - only minutes more, and I'd have survived!
I looked over at Shelly, our manager, and she gave me an encouraging smile. She was the reason I'd made it through. She'd been thrown in as manager halfway through the season, and she'd made all the difference in the world. My job had changed from stress-filled to challenging. Instead of yelling at her workers to keep us in line, she encouraged us and stood behind us. She made us pull together as a team. Especially when things were their craziest, she always had a smile and an encouraging word. Under her leadership, we'd achieved the highest number of mall photo sales in California.

I knew it was a difficult holiday season for her - she'd recently suffered a miscarriage. I hoped she knew how great she was and what a difference she'd made to all her workers, and to all the little children who'd come to have their pictures taken.

Our booth was open until seven; at six things started to slow down and I finally took a break. Although I didn't have much money, I really wanted to buy a little gift for Shelly so that she'd know we appreciated her. I got to a store that sold soap and lotion just as they put the grate down. "Sorry, we're closed!" barked the clerk, who looked as tired as I was and didn't sound sorry at all.

I looked around and, to my dismay, found that all the stores had closed. I'd been so tired I hadn't noticed.

I was really bummed. I had been working all day and had missed buying her a present by one minute.

On my way back to the Santa booth, I saw that Nordstrom was still open. Fearful that they, too, would close at any moment, I hurried inside and followed the signs toward the Gift Gallery. As I rushed through the store, I began to feel very conspicuous. It seemed the other shoppers were all very well-dressed and wealthy - and here I was a broke teenager in an elf costume. How could I even think I'd find something in such a posh store for under fifteen dollars?

I self-consciously jingled my way into the Gift Gallery. A woman sales associate, who also looked as if she'd just stepped off a fashion runway, came over and asked if she could help me. As she did, everyone in the department turned and stared.

As quietly as possible, I said, "No, that's okay. Just help somebody else."

She looked right at me and smiled. "No," she said. "I want to help you."

I told the woman who I was buying for and why, then I sheepishly admitted I only had fifteen dollars to spend. She looked as pleased and thoughtful as if I'd just asked to spend $1,500. By now, the department had emptied, but she carefully went around, selecting a few things that would make a nice basket. The total came to $14.09.

The store was closing; as she rang up the purchase, the lights were turned off.

I was thinking that if I could take them home and wrap them, I could make them really pretty but I didn't have time.

As if reading my mind, the saleslady asked, "Do you need this wrapped?"

"Yes," I said.

By now the store was closed. Over the intercom, a voice asked if there were still customers in the store. I knew this woman was probably as eager to get home on Christmas Eve as everybody else, and here she was stuck waiting on some kid with a measly purchase.

But she was gone in the back room a long time. When she returned, she brought out the most beautiful basket I'd ever seen. It was all wrapped up in silver and gold, and looked as if I'd spent fifty dollars on it - at least. I couldn't believe it. I was so happy!

When I thanked her, she said, "You elves are out in the mall spreading joy to so many people, I just wanted to bring a little joy to you."

"Merry Christmas, Shelly," I said back at the booth. My manager gasped when she saw the present; she was so touched and happy that she started crying. I hoped it gave a happy start to her Christmas.

All through the holidays I couldn't stop thinking about the kindness and effort of the saleswoman, and how much joy she had brought to me, and in turn to my manager. I thought the least I could do was to write a letter to the store and let them know about it. About a week later, I got a reply from the store, thanking me for writing.

I thought that was the end of it, until mid January.

That's when I got a call from Stephanie, the sales associate. She wanted to take me to lunch. Me, a fifteen-dollar, sixteen-year-old customer.

When we met, Stephanie gave me a hug, and a present, and told me this story.

She had walked into a recent employee meeting to find herself on the list of nominees to be named the Nordstrom All-Star. She was confused but excited, as she had never before been nominated. At the point in the meeting when the winner was announced, they called Stephanie - she'd won! When she went up front to accept the award, her manager read my letter out loud. Everyone gave her a huge round of applause.

Winning meant that her picture was put up in the store lobby, she got new business cards with Nordstrom All-Star written on them, a 14-karat gold pin, a 100-dollar award, and was invited to represent her department at the regional meeting.

At the regional meeting, they read my letter and everyone gave Stephanie a standing ovation. "This is what we want all of our employees to be like!" said the manager who read the letter. She got to meet three of the Nordstrom brothers, who were each very complimentary.

I was already a little overwhelmed when Stephanie took my hand. "But that's not the best part, Tyree," she said. "The day of that first store meeting, I took a list of the nominees, and put your letter behind it, with the 100-dollar bill behind that. I took it home and gave it to my father. He read everything and looked at me and said, "When do you find out who won?"

"I said, 'I won, Dad.'

"He looked me right in the eye and said, 'Stephanie, I'm really proud of you.'"

Quietly, she said, "My dad has never said he was proud of me."

I think I'll remember that moment all my life. That was when I realized what a powerful gift appreciation can be. Shelly's appreciation of her workers had set into motion a chain of events - Stephanie's beautiful basket, my letter, Nordstrom's award - that had changed at least three lives.

Though I'd heard it all my life, it was the Christmas when I was an elf - and a broke teenager - that I truly came to understand that the littlest things can make the biggest difference.

Tool for change process

Change your present experience of life that is not bringing you peace and joy. Eliminate worry, anxiety, depression, frustration, sadness, disappointment, resentment, anger, and any other negativity from your internal landscape.

Change your present experience of life by changing your present perspective about life. Nothing in your exterior reality may change, but much in your interior reality will. The Process invites you to consider and embrace life-altering new ideas about yourself, about your purpose and how life functions, and about the reasons that things happen and have happened in your life.

Through this simple yet profound shift, you can turn...

- Judgment into Observation

- Reaction into Response

- Fear into Adventure

- Worry into Wonder

- Boredom into Excitement

- Expectation into Anticipation

- Resistance into Acceptance

- Disappointment into Detachment

- Enragement into Engagement

- Addiction into Preference

- Requirement into Contentment

- Lack into Abundance

- Illness into Health

- Loneliness into Connectedness

- Emptiness into Fullness

- Hopelessness into Hopefulness

- Grief into Joy

-Guilt into Innocence

- Failure into Success

- Depression into Appreciation

- Sadness into Happiness

- Shame into Pride

Got this very useful tips for changing into the better YOU from Neale. Perfect timing as the year 2008 is about to end. Looking back on what transpired the whole year and evaluating which area of life can you improve in 2009 and years after. i am very grateful for this year but i look forward with excitement and surprise for the coming new year. and may everything that's great will uncover itself in each moment of joy and bliss. amen. ;-)

women priests for a Catholic church; is this possible?

wow! i feel like heaven! ;-) receiving this letter below from Tikkun group excites me. it has been my long dream to see women in the altar not as servers to the priest but the priest themselves. and i believe i'm not the only one dreaming of this. this Rev. Roy got a letter from the Vatican that he will be excommunicated because he attended and gave the homily during the ordination of a woman to priesthood. below is his very brave and firm response to the Vatican. mabuhay ka Rev. Roy! i wish more and more like you will come into their senses that indeed whenever we speak of injustice, there is no graver injustice than what is happening in a Catholic church. no wonder we are still in this kind of condemning world because of what the religions teach their followers. in fact i might consider priesthood in a Catholic church if the Pope approves it. ;-)


Rev. Roy Bourgeois, M.M.
PO Box 3330, Columbus, GA 31903
November 7, 2008

TO THE CONGREGATION FOR THE DOCTRINE OF THE FAITH, THE VATICAN

I was very saddened by your letter dated October 21, 2008, giving me 30 days to recant my belief and public statements that support the ordination of women in our Church, or I will be excommunicated.

I have been a Catholic priest for 36 years and have a deep love for my Church and ministry.

When I was a young man in the military, I felt God was calling me to the priesthood. I entered Maryknoll and was ordained in 1972.

Over the years I have met a number of women in our Church who, like me, feel called by God to the priesthood. You, our Church leaders at the Vatican, tell us that women cannot be ordained.

With all due respect, I believe our Catholic Church's teaching on this issue is wrong and does not stand up to scrutiny. A 1976 report by the Pontifical Biblical Commission supports the research of Scripture scholars, canon lawyers and many faithful Catholics who have studied and pondered the Scriptures and have concluded that there is no justification in the Bible for excluding women from the priesthood.

As people of faith, we profess that the invitation to the ministry of priesthood comes from God. We profess that God is the Source of life and created men and women of equal stature and dignity. The current Catholic Church doctrine on the ordination of women implies our loving and all-powerful God, Creator of heaven and earth, somehow cannot empower a woman to be a priest.

Women in our Church are telling us that God is calling them to the priesthood. Who are we, as men, to say to women, "Our call is valid, but yours is not." Who are we to tamper with God's call?

Sexism, like racism, is a sin. And no matter how hard or how long we may try to justify discrimination, in the end, it is always immoral.

Hundreds of Catholic churches in the U.S. are closing because of a shortage of priests. Yet there are hundreds of committed and prophetic women telling us that God is calling them to serve our Church as priests.

If we are to have a vibrant, healthy Church rooted in the teachings of our Savior, we need the faith, wisdom, experience, compassion and courage of women in the priesthood.

Conscience is very sacred. Conscience gives us a sense of right and wrong and urges us to do the right thing. Conscience is what compelled Franz Jagerstatter, a humble Austrian farmer, husband and father of four young children, to refuse to join Hitler's army, which led to his execution. Conscience is what compelled Rosa Parks to say she could no longer sit in the back of the bus. Conscience is what compels women in our Church to say they cannot be silent and deny their call from God to the priesthood. Conscience is what compelled my dear mother and father, now 95, to always strive to do the right things as faithful Catholics raising four children. And after much prayer, reflection and discernment, it is my conscience that compels me to do the right thing. I cannot recant my belief and public statements that support the ordination of women in our Church.

Working and struggling for peace and justice are an integral part of our faith. For this reason, I speak out against the war in Iraq. And for the last eighteen years, I have been speaking out against the atrocities and suffering caused by the School of the Americas (SOA). Eight years ago, while in Rome for a conference on peace and justice, I was invited to speak about the SOA on Vatican Radio. During the interview, I stated that I could not address the injustice of the SOA and remain silent about injustice in my Church. I ended the interview by saying, "There will never be justice in the Catholic Church until women can be ordained." I remain committed to this belief today.

Having an all male clergy implies that men are worthy to be Catholic priests, but women are not.

According to USA TODAY (Feb. 28, 2008) in the United States alone, nearly 5,000 Catholic priests have sexually abused more than 12,000 children. Many bishops, aware of the abuse, remained silent. These priests and bishops were not excommunicated. Yet the women in our Church who are called by God and are ordained to serve God's people, and the priests and bishops who support them, are excommunicated.

Silence is the voice of complicity. Therefore, I call on all Catholics, fellow priests, bishops, Pope Benedict XVI and all Church leaders at the Vatican, to speak loudly on this grave injustice of excluding women from the priesthood.

Archbishop Oscar Romero of El Salvador was assassinated because of his defense of the oppressed. He said, "Let those who have a voice, speak out for the voiceless."

Our loving God has given us a voice. Let us speak clearly and boldly and walk in solidarity as Jesus would, with the women in our Church who are being called by God to the priesthood.

In Peace and Justice,
Rev. Roy Bourgeois, M.M.
PO Box 3330, Columbus, GA 31903

black or white?

i love this short video i found in TEN. indeed, we, Filipinos, especially the women would spend thousands just to change their skin and would actually buy all the whitening products for the skin, face, armpits, 'singit', etc., etc.

are we not happy with our color? can't you see the irony of all these? the white people love to be black or brown and the brown would like to be white. maybe the key word here is be happy with what you have and be contented with what is given. yep the latest technology now offers endless possibilities and i don't object with that but it's just the kind of attitude that maybe i resist for the majority of women has this idea that being white is beautiful. is that so?

lamierda sa Bohol 3

the chocolate hills ;-)

the beautiful sunset in Dumaluan Resort, Panglao island

sa likod ng aking ninuno na ngayon ay isa ng rebulto. sa blood compact site in Bohol

the Loboc River

the group of performers who rendered us Filipino songs and danced the Philippine dances like Tinikling, etc.

lamierda sa Bohol 2

cruising the Loboc river. it was good with nice singer and a short show of Philippines dances

ang pipit nga nakit an namon sa sulod sang Hinagdanan Cave

Dinner provided by RC Tagbilaran when we joined their club meeting. with Helen and Olive

hay.....na flat tire amon salakyan from Chocolate Hills going to Baclayon church while we were in man-made forest so may stretching kami for a few minutes. ;-)

sa chocolate hills with olive

francis, mavis, bert, olive, and i

on the way up to chocolate hills viewing area with Paul Rogers and Olive

with Francis in Hinagdanan Cave

a little break after searching for tarsiers in their sanctuary

with olive in Bohol Deaf Academy

lamierda sa Bohol

i was in Bohol October 11-20, 2008 to join the team of Rotary Club of Canterbury, Australia for eye and ear screening in pre-selected towns of Bohol. This yummy lechon was served to us by the mayor of Anda when we were invited for dinner before heading back to Tagbilaran. and this is not the sole lonely lechon ever served, they were twins! hay........super sarap! but i can only eat much especially when my all time favorite crabs, shrimps, and sea shells are also present. ;-)

we visited the project of cbm partner, IDEA Philippines, called Deaf Academy of Bohol and i found myself cremated in this thingy. ;-)

of course after the 5day series of screenings we deserve a bit of rest and recreation so one sunless Saturday off we went for a day tour of Bohol. this one taken in the tarsier sanctuary.

and this is one of the cute little tarsiers we saw. so small creature with very big funny eyes and it can turn its head 180 degrees. wow! wish i can do the same as well. hehe

for our rest and recreation we stayed in dumaluan beach resort in panglao island. i don't like it there at all. the front beach is not even nice. we walked 2-3 meters and the water is still knee high. hay.......didn't enjoy swimming in the beach but instead swam in their pool. ;-(

staying in my dream hotel of long ago

dati tinitingala ko lang ang Heritage Hotel sa kanyang kagandahan lalo na pag pasko sa nagsasayawang mga christmas lights at palamuti and i was asking myself ano ba meron sa hotel na ito at palaging puno ng tao? mahal kaya tumira dito? ano kaya itsura ng mga kwarto? makakacheck-in kaya ako one day dito?

So can you just imagine my excitement when i was invited to the AYAD programmatic workshop and knew i will be staying in Heritage Hotel? you bet i was so looking forward to it. and so the first thing i did entering the room is to look at the window and this is the sight of Roxas Boulevard that greeted me. surprised gid ko kay indi maayo katraffic unlike before. i love what Bayani has done to the streets of Manila.

dining in Heritage restaurant. masarap ang food nila which was buffet style, love the varities as well but i would still prefer the buffet table of Richmonde Hotel in Ortigas.

with my boss, Mavis, and Meagan, current AYAD volunteer assigned in Ateneo.

the killer activity of the program. presenting our output and what the Foundation is doing 19 times because there were 20 organizations in all so it was like a critiquing presentation where afterwards the audience will give you feedback and throw some questions.

group picture before we all head back home

with Joy of Christian Foundation for the Deaf and Blind

finally! it's over and done. ;-)

death penalty

I just saw a poll at AOL.com that said that 85% of respondents supported the death penalty. Are you among them? Do you think we should kill people in order to stop people from killing people?

The question on the survey was straightforward enough: "Do you support the death penalty?"

I clicked on the NO icon, then on the VOTE icon, which I knew would show me the results of all the voting on this question. I don't know why, but I expected to find the majority voting "no". To my astonishment, not only did the majority vote "yes"--but the spread in favor was overwhelming.

Over 3,000 people had voted by the time I saw the poll, and more than 2,700 of them voted "yes."

God, what kind of country are we living in? Or am I living in, I should say. I am aware that many readers of this blog are from outside the U.S.

I know this Death Penalty thing is an old subject...but how can anybody who is civilized believe in the death penalty...? What kind of barbaric society would imagine that authorized killing is an antedote to unauthorized killing?

Am I really that out-of-sync with the world in which I live?

Albert Einstein was reputed to have said (and I paraphrase here): You cannot solve any problem using the same energy that created it.

You cannot solve the problem of violence with violence, you cannot solve the problem of anger with anger, you cannot solve the problem of impatience with impatience, etc. All you are doing is throwing fuel on the fire.

Again, I ask, for the third time: How in the world can a civilized society kill people as a means of convincing people that they should not kill people? Am I the only one who sees a direct contradiction here?

from Neale's blog

well, what about you? are you in favor of death penalty.... or not? an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth, what do you get out of that? i hope Filipinos do not share the same thoughts of the Americans. not for this one please. ;-)

Religion: solution to the world's rich-poor gap?

In your opinion, have our earthly theologies provided humanity with effective guidance on how to live together in peace and harmony?

Here's my opinion: No. In fact, far too often they have produced just the opposite result.

Today 400 children die of starvation every hour. Every hour. Yet it would be possible to feed all the starving children on the planet, to protect them from dying of preventable diseases, and to make basic education accessible to all, with no more than 5% of the overall annual sales of arms in the world.

Five per cent.

Can this be possible?

Yes. It's possible and it's true.

How is this evidence of a failure of religions and theologies? Neglect of its own offspring to the point of starvation could only occur in a society whose people see themselves as separate from God and separate from each other, having little to do with each other, and this is what is taught by our religions. Only such a cultural story could justify a world in which the income of the richest 225 people is equal to the income of three billion poor people.

You may have missed the real impact of that, so let me say it again. We have created a world in which the income of the richest 225 people is equal to the income of three billion poor people.

Three billion.

That's half the world's population.

What's so wrenchingly sad about all of this is not only that the situation exists, but that so many people think it's okay that it exists. You tell them that the income of the richest 225 people is equal to the income of three billion poor people and they say, "Uh-huh. Okay. So what's the problem?"

Want to know why there's so much unrest and violence in the world today? Open your eyes.

Perhaps you already have. Perhaps you already know. Perhaps you understand. Yet it will take more of us understanding, and then deciding to do something about what we understand, for anything to change. If only more of us could open our eyes to the world around us! If only more of us could see our world as an expression of our oneness.

If only our theologies could help more of us do more of this more of the time. But in fact it is our theologies that keep us from experiencing the reality of our oneness, and teach us of separation. And it is our ideas of separation that allow such conditions to continue to exist.

If theology was a physical science--biology, say, or physics--I believe that its data would long ago have been judged unreliable in producing consistent results, even after thousands of years. At the very least, that data would now be questioned.

Does humanity have the courage to question its own data about life and about God? Are humans brave enough to ponder the unaskable What if?

What if something very important that humans think they know about God is simply inaccurate? Would that change anything?

How much more will people allow themselves to endure before they begin looking for the underlying reason that the world is the way it is? And, of those people who say that a belief in God is powerful enough to be the cure for the world's ills, how many are able to see that an inaccurate belief could be powerful enough to be the cause?

How about you? Where are you with all of this? Given the state of the world today, do you think this may be a good moment to consider some new thoughts about God, about life, and about each other?

How is your own life going? Are things just fine? Or are you meeting more challenges than, frankly, you'd like to be encountering in your relationships, in your career, in your day-to-day movement through life?

As you look at your life and as you look at the world around you, do you think you are seeing a reflection of What God Wants? If not, what do you think that God does want?

from neale's blog

...i so agree with a foreigner commenting on his first visit in the Philippines: "There is too much God and yet too much of poverty."

saan nga ba dumadaloy ang pagiging makaDiyos nating mga Pilipino? bakit pagkatapos ng ilang dekada, ang mga mahihirap, mahihirap pa rin at parang mga kabuteng dumami ng dumami. pero hindi ito nakikita ng mga nasa alta sosyedad. lalo na ng mga nasa kapangyarihan para baguhin ito. bakit napakahirap para sa ating gobyerno magpagawa ng disenteng bahay para sa maralita? bakit mas gusto nilang makita ang daralita sa ilalim ng tulay, sa gilid ng dagat, sa tabi ng ilog na kasingdumi ng burak?

bakit mahirap ipatupad ang libreng healthcare para sa masa? bakit napakahirap magpa-aral ng mga magulang sa kanilang mga anak? bakit hinahayaan nating mangyari ito sa ating kapwa? isa lang din ang rason na nakikita ko: wala tayong pakialam kasi di naman natin kapamilya at kapuso sila. at ito ang separation theology na sinasabi ni Neale. ito ang dahilan bakit wala tayong pakialam kasi akala natin iba sila, hindi natin sila kauri, hindi kasama, hindi kaibigan, hindi kamag-anak. nakalimutan natin ang sinabi ni Hesus: "we are all brothers and sisters and whatsoever you do to the least of your brethren, you do it unto me." si Hesus kasi alam nya na kaparte, kabahagi, kapamilya, kapuso, kaibigan, kapatid ang bawat isa. para sa atin 'ibang tao' sila. yun ang pinakamalaking pagkakaiba natin kay Hesus.

when we start to look at every person we meet as part of ourselves....that would be the day that we bring back peace on earth. peace at last! sana simulan natin ito NGAYON.

pagbuot it Dios

gakangawa ako ham-an it kung may big happening sa kabuhi it tawo like nakit-an sa regular check up nga may mass imong cells ag malignant kinahangean nga operahan eagi mabatian ko gid dayon sa tawo "hay, alinon ko ay daya ro kagustuhan it Dios?"

kung battered wife ka, hambaeon man kimo "hay, alinon ko ay daya a ro gintao it Dios kakon?"

kung owa ka kapasar sa Board exam mahambae ka man "a bukon a siguro it daya ro pagbuot it Dios para kakon."

may mangutana ngani ham-an it owa ka pa gaasawa ay magueang ka eon? most often than not sabat it tawo: "hay alinon ko ay daya a siguro ang kapalaran."

hay..........tama ba ang pagkaintindi ko nga Dios ro may kagustuhan nga magkacancer ka? nga Dios ro dahilan ham-an it gamasakit ka? nga Dios ro nagtao kimo it sakit. meaning to say, ginakalipay it Dios nga makit-an ka nga ga suffer? tsk, tsl, tsk. ano nga klase it Dios ing kilaea ngaron kung makaruyon gali imaw? dahil ako gapati sa ang Dios nga maeoeoy-on, mapinalanggaon ag owa ako gapati nga ginataw-an na ako it masakit para magsuffer ako in pain. my God is much more than that! gapati ako nga kung ano ang ginusto sa ang kabuhi, ginusto man it Dios para kakon dahil ako ag ro Dios sambilog eang. tan-awa ngani hambae na gintaw-an ta kamo it free will para magdesisyon para sa inyong kabuhi. ag ro free will ngaron hay minatuod nga free para kakon. no ifs and no buts, simply free....will. so kung ano nga klase it kabuhi ro ginusto mo, ikaw ro naghimo karon ag bukon it baeasueon ro Dios in the end.

this morning while i was bathing and during breakfast i've heard my Goddess whispered: "i am the way and the destination."

in deed! She is all of life. and no thing is outside of God.

is Jesus our savior?

CwG Reader's Question: Dear Neale:..I have always believed that Jesus was a savior to all mankind. After reading CWG, I'm not sure. What is the truth as you know it? Craig, Williamstown, NJ.

Neale's Response: Dear Craig, You've asked what many consider to be the central question of the century. The impact of Jesus' life was so extraordinary, it will never be forgotten. That is because Jesus was-is-a savior to all mankind. As are you and I.

Now, the difference between you and me and Jesus is that he donned the mantle, wore the cloak, accepted the responsibility. Most of us have not. In that sense, Jesus is our savior. For he did with his life what very few of us have done with ours. He did what we all came here to do! And in so doing it, he "saved" us from the necessity of doing it at all, if we do not wish.

Let me explain. We have all come to save the world. Not from the "snares of the devil," or from "everlasting damnation." (As CWG teaches, there is no such thing as the devil, and damnation does not exist.) We have come to save the world from its own mistaken notion of itself.

We are, right now, living in a world of our own creation, a non-truth, an experience which has nothing to do with ultimate reality, or with Who We Really Are. Jesus knew this. He also knew Who He Really Was. And he declared it, for all to hear. He declared something else as well. He said that what he did on the earth, we could do also.

Some people do not believe this. They cannot believe that they could be given-indeed, that they have been given-the same abilities as Jesus. Yet this level of faith is the key to experiencing those gifts. That is what Jesus taught. That was his central message. I think a careful reading of the following pages (CWG Book 1) would help provide clarity for you about this: pages 52, 55, 67, 86, 180 and 197.

I wrote a booklet, Recreating Yourself, which addresses much of this directly. In it, I make the point that it was Jesus himself who said, "According to your faith be it unto you." It was Jesus himself who said, "0 woman, great is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou wilt." And the woman's daughter was made whole from that very hour. And it was Jesus himself who said, "If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you." Still, if you cannot believe in yourself and in your own divine heritage (and because so many people cannot), Jesus, in an act of enormous love and compassion, invites you to believe in him.

"Verily, verily I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father. And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it."

Isn't that an extraordinary promise? So great and so complete was Jesus' understanding of who he was, and of who you are ("I and my Father are one" he said, and later, "all ye are brethren"), that he knew deeply there was no limit to what you could do if you believed in yourself, or in him. Could there be a mistake about Jesus' declarations here?

Could there be a misinterpretation? No. His words are very clear. He wanted you to consider yourself one with the Father, exactly as he is one with God. So great was his love for all humankind, and so full was his compassion at their suffering, that he called upon himself to rise to the highest level, to move to the grandest expression of his being, in order to present a living example to all human beings everywhere. And then he prayed that we would not only see the evidence of his oneness with the Father, but our own as well.

"And for their sakes I sanctify myself that they also might be sanctified through the truth. Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word; That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me. And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one."
You can't be much clearer than that.

Conversations with God tells us that all of us are members of the Body of God, though we imagine ourselves to be separate, and not part of God at all.

Christ understood our difficulty in believing that we were part of God, part of God's very body. Yet Christ did believe this of himself. It was therefore a simple matter (and a marvelous inspiration) for him to invite those who could not imagine themselves to be a part of God to imagine themselves to be a part of him. For he had already declared himself to be a part of God, and if we could simply believe that we were a part of Christ, we would by extension necessarily be a part of God.

Jesus must have emphasized this point many times, because the record of his teachings, and the commentaries upon them in the Bible contain countless references to this relationship. String just a few of these separate references together and you have an extraordinary revelation:

I and my Father are one. (John 10:30)

And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one. (John 17:22)

I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one. (John 17:23)

That the love wherewith thou hast loved me may be in them, and I in them. (John 17:26)

So we, being many, are one body in Christ; and every one members one of another. (Romans 12:5)

Now he that planteth and he that watereth are one. (1 Corinthians 3:8)

For we being many are one bread, and one body: for we are all partakers of that one bread. (1 Corinthians 10:17)

For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ. For by one spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or gentiles, whether we be bound or free; and have been all made to drink into one spirit for the body is not one member, but many. If the foot shall say, Because I am not the hand, I am not of the body; is it therefore not of the body? And if the ear shall say, Because I am not the eye, I am not of the body; is it therefore not of the body? (1 Corinthians 12-16)

But now are they many members, yet but one body. (1 Corinthians 12:20)

All of us are members of the Body of Christ. All of us are the Christed One. And if Christ is one with God, so, too, are we. We simply do not know it. Refuse to believe it. Cannot imagine it.

Yet it is not true that going through Jesus is required in order to be going with Jesus. Jesus never uttered such words, nor did he come close. That was not his message. His message was: If you cannot believe in me, if you do believe that I am who I say I am, what with all that I have done, then you will never, ever believe in yourself, in who you are, and your own experience of God will be virtually unattainable. Jesus said what he said, did what he did-performed miracles, healed the sick, raised the dead-even raised himself from the dead-that we might know Who He Was...and thus know also Who We Really Are. It is this second part of the equation which is most often left out of the traditional doctrine about Christ.

You see, Jesus is our savior, to the degree that he has saved us from the illusion of our own separation from God. Jesus is the Son of God, as are we all. As we teach in our workshops: You have come to the room to heal the room; you have come to the space to heal the space. There is no other reason for you to be here.

ways to change the world

An anti-abortion Republican in the white house for 8 years has not slowed abortions. It seems to me that its merely a selling point. While I am "pro-life" I do believe that prohibition has never stopped people from doing anything they want. If someone wants to abort, drink alcohol, smoke pot, do drugs, prostitute themselves, they will always find a way... except that it will introduce a whole new set of problems in society.
Holland has it right. The following is excerpted from "Collective conscience breeds Dutch tolerance" by David Morris:
Amsterdam Judge Ruter says, "You cannot solve social problems by making them taboo." The Dutch don't drive their human weaknesses underground. The minister of justice of Holland's conservative gov't says, "The aim is to prevent as much as possible a situation in which more harm is caused by criminal proceedings than by the activity itself."
Legalization allows the gov't more flexibility than criminalization. A prostitute undergoes regular health exams and measures are taken to prevent disease. One result is an astonishing low rate of AIDS infection: less than 1% as compared to America's illegal but plentiful prostitute population at 30-40%. Allowing prisoners conjugal visits with loved ones reduces prison tension and curbs aggressive in-prison homosexuality.
Marijuana loses much of its attraction to young people because its no longer forbidden, making it into an unsensational item. In fact, the proportion of teenage users in Holland is a fraction of US use and crack is virtually non-existent. Also the violent druglords are taken out of the picture. ...i guess the more you label a thing as illegal, more and more people are drawn to it. Indeed, why don't we allow drugs to be legally available? Government will make money out of it instead of the druglords. Years of campaigning against use of illegal drugs didn't reduce drug addicts.
Dutch schools teach sex education and birth control pills are cheap and available. Yet Dutch girls are no more sexually active than American girls. Holland's teen-age pregnancy rate is 1/7th that of America's. American teenagers have 12 to 14 times more abortions than Dutch teens. ...i, myself would campaign that sex education be taught in schools as early as pre-school in the terms that they can understand and would push for a cheaper birth control pills. i believe it is more irresponsible to raise a child when you, yourself didn't even manage to enjoy your teenage years. what kind of a child are you raising then? will she be part of the world's solution or a problem? i don't agree that young preggies should abort their babies but it could have been avoided if they were educated on sex and sexual activities.
The Dutch treat prostitutes, drug addicts, teen-age pot smokers and the terminally ill with respect. Not surprisingly, respect breeds responsibility, not license. The heroin addict uses a clean needle. The prostitute does not transmit disease. The teen uses birth control.
The Dutch's sense of mutual respect and collective responsibility is deeply rooted. In the 1600s they were the most prosperous nation on earth. Riches breed a "collective conscience" that demanded generosity for the needy and tolerance for those with different religions and different habits. Obligations to community, to society came first. The 300-year tradition continues. They know the most fertile breeding ground for irresponsible behavior is the slum. They offer the wold's most comprehensive social support programs. (i wish Philippine government can do the same)
This prosperous country of 14 million has much to teach us, for tolerance has never been an American trait. We have a long history of demanding moral purity of our neighbors and eagerly locking them up if they transgress. We rely on force to solve our social problems, not wisdom.
Today, America imprisons a larger portion of its citizens than any country except South Africa. The Dutch watch in amazement our descent into social anarchy. They cannot understand why a nation would willfully destroy itself to control its citizens' personal behavior.
some thoughts of 'Susan'

death

Many humans have been told that What God Wants is for their wonderful life to eventually end, at which time their opportunity to learn and to grow is over and the time to be rewarded or punished for how they have lived begins.

One result of this teaching: Many humans consider that death is a terrible thing, and something to be feared. It's the End of the Line, the Final Curtain Call, the Closing Bell. Nearly all of the imagery surrounding death are negative, fearful, or sad, not positive, uplifting, or joyful. These imagery pervade our society. A street that goes nowhere is a Dead End. A person who is badly mistaken is Dead Wrong. The spirit who comes to retrieve your soul is The Grim Reaper.

Most people do not want to even talk about death, much less experience it. No one wants to experience it before he or she has to. People cling to life, sometimes desperately. The survival instinct is the strongest human instinct of all. Our common culture supports survival as the ultimate goal. Even people who want to die are not allowed to.

On the other side of death, many people feel certain, is the Final Judgment. If you have not been good, it's at this point that you'll go to hell. Your payment for all of your sins in this way is What God Wants.

Humanity's list of What God Wants is very long and covers many other areas of human experience not discussed in the past three installments here. That list forms the basis of innumerable civil laws, cultural traditions, social mores, and familial customs that touch all human beings.

Is this basically what you remember being taught about What God Wants?

If it is, you have a lot of company. Millions of people have had the same experience.

Nay, billions.

morality

Many humans have been told that What God Wants is a moral society.

One result of this teaching: Humanity has spent its entire history attempting to define what is moral and what is not. The challenge has been to come up with a standard for society that does not change, all the while the society itself is changing. To find this "gold standard," many societies have turned to God, or Allah, or Yahweh, or Jehovah, or whatever other name they have used to designate Deity, and have relied on their understanding of What God Wants.

Many centuries ago God's preferences in this matter were given a powerful label. They were called "natural." This is because the concept of a Deity first entered the minds of primitive humans as a result of their earliest observations of and contacts with Nature. Here was something bigger than they were, something they could not control, something they could only stand by and watch, hoping for the best.

"Hoping for the best" soon transmuted into what would now be called praying. Whoever and whatever this Deity was, early humans reasoned, it was deeply connected with Nature, and Nature was an expression of It. And so humans created gods representing the sun, moon, and stars, the weather, crops, rivers, the land, and nearly everything else, in hopes of getting some control over things--or at least getting some communication going with whoever did have control.

From this connection of God and Nature it was only a short mental hop to consider that all things having to do with deities and gods were "natural," and all things not having anything to do with deities were "unnatural." When human language came into form the words "God" and "Nature" became inextricably linked. Certain conditions, circumstances, and behaviors were then described as "natural" or "unnatural," depending upon whether they adhered to or violated the current perception of the Will of God.

That which is "unnatural" has, in turn, come to be described as "immoral"--since it's not of God, and cannot, therefore, be What God Wants. The circle thus completes itself. Anything that is not considered "natural" is considered "immoral." That includes all "unnatural" abilities, powers, behaviors--and even thoughts.

The idea that What God Wants is what is natural, and that what is natural is what is moral, has not been a perfect measure, but it has been the best that humanity has been able to do in the search for an unchanging standard. It's for this reason that humanity has been loath to change its ideas about What God Wants. Changing those ideas changes the gold standard of human behavior.

Behavior is the currency of human interaction. Beliefs about What God Wants gives value to the behavioral choices of humans, just as gold gives value to the pieces of paper called money.

Thus, in most human societies it's not an individual's actual experience, but the society's definition of it, that determines its morality. This is the case with homosexuality. It's also the case with a great many other behaviors, such as prostitution, premarital sex, depictions of explicit sexual activity, the use of peyote, marijuana, and other plants and stimulants, or even the experience of ecstasy not induced by any outside stimulant.

For instance, if one says one has had an ecstatic experience of God, but if the experience does not fall within what humanity currently defines as "natural," it's considered immoral and to be warned against and, if it's continued, to be condemned, and, if it's still continued, to be punished.

In previous times it was often punishable by torture or death. More than one saint claiming and describing such ecstasies has been martyred in humanity's long history, using such guidelines.

Those saints were killed because the people killing them were convinced that they were doing What God Wants.

suffering

Many humans have been told that What God Wants is for suffering to be used by human beings to better themselves, and to purify their soul. Suffering is good. It earns credits, or points, in God's mind, especially if it's endured silently, and maybe even "offered up" to God. Suffering is a necessary part of human growth and learning and is, more importantly, a means by which people may be redeemed in the eyes of God.

Indeed, one whole religion is built on this belief, asserting that all beings have been saved by the suffering of one being, who died for the sins of the rest. This one being paid the "debt" said to be owed to God for humanity's weakness and wickedness. According to this doctrine, God has been hurt by the weakness and wickedness of humanity and, in order to set things straight, someone has to suffer. Otherwise, God and humanity could not be reconciled. Thus, suffering was established as a redemptive experience.

With regard to the suffering of human beings due to "natural" causes, it's not to be shortened by death under any circumstances that are not also "natural." The suffering of animals may be mercifully ended before "natural" death, but not the suffering of people. It's God and God alone who determines when human suffering shall end.

One result of this teaching: Human beings have endured unimaginable suffering over extended periods in order to do God's will and not incur God's wrath in the Afterlife. Millions of people feel that even if a person is very, very old and is suffering very, very much--lingering on the verge of death but not dying, experiencing interminable pain instead--that person must endure whatever life is bringing them.

Humanity has actually created civil law declaring that people have no right to end their own suffering, nor may they assist another in ending theirs. However anguishing it may be, however otherwise hopeless a life may have become, the suffering must go on.

This is What God Wants. Is this really so?

free will

Many humans have been told that What God Wants is for human beings to have Free Will. Thus, they may determine and decide for themselves which of the Ultimate Outcomes--heaven or hell--they wish to experience after their death. They may do as they choose at any moment, at every juncture. They are not restricted in any way.

Humans have been told that God has granted humanity this Free Will so that humans may freely choose God, freely choose God's Way, and freely choose to be reunited with God in heaven. In other words, they may freely choose to be good, as opposed to being forced to do so. God wants humans to return to God by choice. No one should be required to do so.

Human beings have also been told that under the doctrine of Free Will, while people may do as they choose, if they do not choose What God Wants they'll pay for it with continuous torture through all eternity. No element of duress is seen in this. It's simply the Way Things Are. It's Justice, at the highest level. It's God's Justice, which follows God's Judgment. It's important, therefore, to freely choose What God Wants.

One result of this teaching: Humanity's concept of freedom has been deeply affected and profoundly shaped by its understanding of what God means by "freedom." Humans have decided that freedom doesn't have to mean freedom, but can mean simply the ability to select outcomes.

This is better than having no choice at all, and so humans in positions of power have learned to use the word "freedom" to privately describe the process by which they get others to do as they are told. People don't have to do as they are told, of course. But if they do not, there will be a price to pay. That could mean anything from having taxes audited to being thrown in jail for two years without charges being filed and without any explanation other than being labeled a threat to the security of the country. Using this measure, nations call themselves "free."

Most people, except, perhaps, the most stubborn apologists, see the contradiction in all of this. They understand perfectly well that no people are truly free who face the most horrendous outcomes imaginable if they don't do what they're told. Only a hypocrite or a fool would call such a choice "free."

Humans have learned, then, that hypocrisy--especially hypocrisy for the "right" purpose, in the "right" cause--is acceptable on earth as it is in heaven. Much of humanity's political activity has been informed by this ethic. And elsewhere within the spectrum of human activity as well, in the way many humans communicate with each other, in the way many deal with each other, it has come to be understood that the end justifies the means.

In fact, many humans have now convinced themselves that none of this is hypocrisy at all. It's simply a matter of interpretation.

And so, in this day and age, freedoms are taken away in the name of Freedom itself. Millions of people gratefully embrace the political rhetoric that says lack of freedom is what guarantees their freedom, and the religious doctrine that says their choices in life are free only if they do as they are told, because this is What God Wants.

one life

carpe diem! live in the present and enjoy every moment of your life.

Take a 10-30 minute walk every day. And while you walk, smile.
It is the ultimate anti-depressant.
Sit in silence for at least 10 minutes each day.
When you wake up in the morning complete the following statement,
'My purpose is to __________ today.'
Live with the 3 E's -- Energy, Enthusiasm, and Empathy.
Play more games and read more books than you did the past year.
Make time to practice meditation and prayer.
They provide us with daily fuel for our busy lives.
Spend time with people over the age of 70 and under the age of 6.
Dream more while you are awake.
Eat more foods that grow on trees and plants and eat less food that is manufactured in plants.
Drink plenty of water.
Try to make at least three people smile each day.
Clear clutter from your house, your car, your desk and let new and flowing energy into your life.
Don't waste your precious energy on gossip, energy vampires, issues of the past, negative thoughts or things you cannot control.
Instead invest your energy in the positive present moment.
Eat breakfast like a queen, lunch like a prince and dinner like a college kid.
Don't believe everything you think.
Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.
Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.
You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.
Make peace with your past so it won't spoil the present.
Don't compare your life to others.
You have no idea what their journey is all about.
No one is in charge of your happiness except you.
Frame every so-called disaster with these words:
'In five years, will this matter?'
Forgive everyone for everything.
What other people think of you is none of your business.
Goddess heals everything.
However good or bad a situation is, it will change.
Your job won't take care of you when you are sick.
Your friends will. Stay in touch.
Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful.
Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.
The best is yet to come!
No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.
Call your family often.
Each night before you go to bed complete the following statements:
I am thankful for __________. Today I accomplished _________.
Remember that you are too blessed to be stressed.
Enjoy the ride. This is not Disney World and you certainly don't want a fast pass.
You only have one ride through life so make the most of it and enjoy.
May your troubles be less,
May your blessings be more,
May nothing but JOY come through your door.

why so much God and poverty?

This will be short.

I just want to ask you a question.

— 0 —

Last week, I had lunch with a wealthy foreigner.

How wealthy? He was earning two million dollars a month. (I’m not kidding.) He was in the Philippines visiting our smaller islands.

“So how did you like your visit?” I asked him.

“I loved it,” he said, “I have never met a more polite, more courteous, nicer people than the Filipinos.”

“Thank you,” I beamed.

But then he frowned. “Bo, I also noticed how religious Filipinos are. I saw the tricycles with signs, saying, “God loves you” and “John 3:16”. There is so much God in your country. And yet there is so much poverty.”

Ouch.

That hurt because it’s so true.

His question reminded me about my visit to Vietnam a month before—and how disturbed I felt.

There’s not much God in that country. It’s been a communist country for decades. But the economy is exploding. And according to statistics, poverty has gone down by a huge 60%! Can you believe that?

One reason: Foreign investments.

Last year, the Philippine’s foreign investments reached a measly $2.5B.

In Vietnam last year, their foreign investments reached $15B.

And do you know what happened this year? From January to July 2008, foreign investments in Vietnam already reached $33B!

Look at China. Another “godless” nation. But poverty has gone down as well. And they’re now poised to be the next Superpower of the world.

Look at Japan. Only 2% of its population is Christian. Many of them don’t even have any religion. Yet their economy has been thriving for decades.

But look at a few South American countries. Like the Philippines, there’s a lot of religion and poverty there too.

So here are my questions:

· Why so much God and poverty in our country?

· Does a certain brand of religion cause poverty?

· Or am I missing something here?

Share me your thoughts below.

Tell me what you think.

from bo sanchez' blog

woman: 2nd class citizen?

Is a woman allowed to speak? Is a woman allowed to lead? Is a woman allowed to have authority over men? Is a woman allowed to hold a position of responsibility in God's church? By the way, which church IS "God's church"? Is it fair to ask that question? Would anyone care to answer it?

Any comments of you Christians and Muslims out there? help me out. assist me in understanding What God Wants with regard to how we should hold womanhood in our society; how we should treat females. And, specifically, what I would like you to tell me is whether you agree or disagree with the understandings about What God Wants as they are outlined above.

Christians, do you agree with the Bible at 1 Timothy 2:11-14? Again, that passage reads...

"Let a woman learn in silence in all submissiveness. I permit no woman to teach or to have authority over men; she is to keep silent."

And you Muslims out there...help me out. Should women receive half the inheritance of male members of the family, simply because they have vaginas? Should the testimony of females at court be worth half that of a man simply for lack of a penis? Please tell me, members of the Nation of Islam, What God Wants with regard to all of this. I am asking in all sincerity. I really want to know. I really yearn to understand. Not only what Allah, bless His holy name, wants, but why. What is the reasoning behind all of this?

Or could it be that it is Conversations with God which is closer to the truth about all of this -- and that God wants nothing of the sort?

And you women out there...what do you think? Is this what God wants? And you men out there? Is this what God wants?

The Vatican can give us wonderful guidance on how to treat women. Before I continue though, let me explain something I've learned from a lifetime of Catholicism ...

if the Vatican says it is right and good, then it probably isn't.

Now, regarding these issues, take what the Vatican pontificates, do the reverse, and it will be correct.

I'm not sure that the Vatican is inaccurate about every single solitary thing that it has to say...but I agree with you that its ideas about sexuality, the role of females in the church, and such things as birth control, divorce, and abortion are outdated, outmoded, and outlandish.

Rabia al-Basri, a Sufi saint of the 8th century had this to say, and it is as resonant today as then:

"O Allah! If I worship You for fear of Hell, burn me in Hell,
and if I worship You in hope of Paradise, exclude me from Paradise.
But if I worship You for Your Own sake,
grudge me not Your everlasting Beauty."

Thank you for that contribution. I shall quote it the rest of my life to audiences everywhere!

I also loved THIS from Albert...

The antidote to fear is nakedness, openness, lightness and direct engagement.

how come there is a God, anyway?

Why does God exist? Or, as a wonderful 7-year-old asked his Mom recently, "How come there is a God, anyway?"

Good question.

In order to answer it we need to get clear, first of all, that God is not a man, or a creature that looks like a Very Big and Important Man. God is not a Super Being, sitting somewhere up in the cosmos, with all the characteristics of a human, only with tons more power. That is not what God is.

We have discussed what God is in this class over the past several weeks. So let us move on with an understanding that God is not a "person." Rather, "God" is the name we have given (in some cultures) to All That Is. "God" is the Essential Energy. God is Life Itself, Expressed.

Does this mean that God does not have Specific Awareness? Intelligence? A Sense of Self? Any Desires or Purpose?

No. In fact, God has all these things.

God is the source of all these things. God is the source of Awareness, the source of Intelligence, the source of Desire, the source of Purpose, and the Only Source of Self.

God IS the Self, Completely Sourced.

Okay, so we're clear. God is not a guy. Not even a big, powerful guy, with good intentions and a fatherly countenance and a huge heart who will do anything for us if we ask Him.

We can imagine God like that if we wish to, and God can form and shape Itself into Just That (just as God can form Itself into a flower, or a shining star, or the person across the room) -- but that is not the Totality of Who and What God Is.

I am emphasizing this point for a good reason. Once we know Who and What God is, we can begin to understand why "God is."

God IS because God cannot NOT be. The answer to the child's question, "How come there is a God, anyway?" is simple. There is a God because there is anything at all. Because God IS everything at all. God is the All of Everything.

To a child I would say: "There is a God so that everything else could exist." But then I would not make the mistake of saying what many parents say next...

"You see, God made everything."

Instead I would say...

"You see, God is everything."

This is where I would begin to change the Cultural Story of Humanity around the question of God. I would start the story with a new first line. I would not say that "God created the heavens and the earth..." I would say that "God IS the heavens and the earth."

I would not tell my children...."Then God said, 'Let there be light'." I would tell my children, "Then God said, 'I am the Light'."

I would tell them that God also said, "All things that are, I Am. Everything that is, I Am. I am the Isness and the Areness. I am not merely the Divine Being, I am the Divine, Being."

Then I would take children to the backyard and point to things and say, "That is God. And that is God. And that is God...." Then i would pick up a stone and say, "This is God."

And the children would say, "Nay-uh! That's a stone." And I woud say, "Really? Well, let's just see..."

Then I would take them into a laboratory, but the stone in half, place a tiny chip of it under a high-powered microscope, and let them see the molecules of the stone moving all around, racing to and fro...And when they said, "Wow! What's that?", I would say, "That's God, moving around to make Itself look like a stone."

Then I would snip a piece of hair from one of the children and place IT under the high-powered microscope. Then I would say, "That's God, moving around to make Itself look like you."

Then I would say, "Do you see? God is All The Stuff That Moves Around to make itself look like everything that you see!"

"Wow!" they would exclaim. "Wow, indeed," I would reply.

how come there is a God, anyway?

Why does God exist? Or, as a wonderful 7-year-old asked his Mom recently, "How come there is a God, anyway?"

Good question.

In order to answer it we need to get clear, first of all, that God is not a man, or a creature that looks like a Very Big and Important Man. God is not a Super Being, sitting somewhere up in the cosmos, with all the characteristics of a human, only with tons more power. That is not what God is.

We have discussed what God is in this class over the past several weeks. So let us move on with an understanding that God is not a "person." Rather, "God" is the name we have given (in some cultures) to All That Is. "God" is the Essential Energy. God is Life Itself, Expressed.

Does this mean that God does not have Specific Awareness? Intelligence? A Sense of Self? Any Desires or Purpose?

No. In fact, God has all these things.

God is the source of all these things. God is the source of Awareness, the source of Intelligence, the source of Desire, the source of Purpose, and the Only Source of Self.

God IS the Self, Completely Sourced.

Okay, so we're clear. God is not a guy. Not even a big, powerful guy, with good intentions and a fatherly countenance and a huge heart who will do anything for us if we ask Him.

We can imagine God like that if we wish to, and God can form and shape Itself into Just That (just as God can form Itself into a flower, or a shining star, or the person across the room) -- but that is not the Totality of Who and What God Is.

I am emphasizing this point for a good reason. Once we know Who and What God is, we can begin to understand why "God is."

God IS because God cannot NOT be. The answer to the child's question, "How come there is a God, anyway?" is simple. There is a God because there is anything at all. Because God IS everything at all. God is the All of Everything.

To a child I would say: "There is a God so that everything else could exist." But then I would not make the mistake of saying what many parents say next...

"You see, God made everything."

Instead I would say...

"You see, God is everything."

This is where I would begin to change the Cultural Story of Humanity around the question of God. I would start the story with a new first line. I would not say that "God created the heavens and the earth..." I would say that "God IS the heavens and the earth."

I would not tell my children...."Then God said, 'Let there be light'." I would tell my children, "Then God said, 'I am the Light'."

I would tell them that God also said, "All things that are, I Am. Everything that is, I Am. I am the Isness and the Areness. I am not merely the Divine Being, I am the Divine, Being."

Then I would take children to the backyard and point to things and say, "That is God. And that is God. And that is God...." Then i would pick up a stone and say, "This is God."

And the children would say, "Nay-uh! That's a stone." And I woud say, "Really? Well, let's just see..."

Then I would take them into a laboratory, but the stone in half, place a tiny chip of it under a high-powered microscope, and let them see the molecules of the stone moving all around, racing to and fro...And when they said, "Wow! What's that?", I would say, "That's God, moving around to make Itself look like a stone."

Then I would snip a piece of hair from one of the children and place IT under the high-powered microscope. Then I would say, "That's God, moving around to make Itself look like you."

Then I would say, "Do you see? God is All The Stuff That Moves Around to make itself look like everything that you see!"

"Wow!" they would exclaim. "Wow, indeed," I would reply.

from Neale's (conversations with God) blog