Wednesday, August 23, 2017

UUs bring heaven to people with their seven principles

Linda said she believed in deprivation. She complained of feeling anxious much of the time. She told me her doctor told her she was suffering from "generalized anxiety disorder" and prescribed Klonapin for her which used to make her feel better and then didn't so she increased the dose and now it doesn't seem to work at all.

When we talked more she told me she grew up worrying about money, and her parents, and was fearful that there would never be enough and it was only a matter of time before some bad thing happened. As we talked she said she could see how the fear of deprivation had contributed to her thinking that sacrifice was love and it made her feel better to do things for other people to the point that people laughed at her and told her that she should remember that "nice gals finish last." Linda said with tears that she usually felt as if she was last or would become last in any given situation.

The doctor diagnosed Linda's problem as a medical problem, and a psychotherapist might diagnose her problem as psychiatric, and I wondered with Linda if it was spiritual.

Linda asked what do you mean, spiritual?

I said, "Thinking that you are a body and meeting its needs has made you fearful of so many things and situations in life that it is robbing you of your peace and contentment. You are not your body but a divine spark that is loved by the universe. It says in  A Course In Miracles, 'As long as you perceive the body as your reality, so long will you perceive yourself as lonely and deprived.' It says a bit further 'Deprivation breeds attack, being the belief that attack is justified. And as long as you would retain the deprivation, attack becomes salvation and sacrifice becomes love.'"

"Does that mean," asked Linda, "that to be happy and at peace I have to give up my preoccupation with my body and focus my energies on fulfilling myself in other ways?"

"Yes," I said, "and our UU faith can help you do that if you pursue the mission of living and extending the seven principles. These principles are rich and deep and their implementation and operation in our lives brings great peace and happiness. Pick one and work on it for a week or as long as you want and then move on to one of the other principles.My favorites are the first, the third, the fourth and the seventh."

Linda laughed and said, "That's about all of them."

I laughed too and said, "Yeah, it's hard for me to choose. Start with the first and see where that takes you."


6 comments:

  1. It may of interest to note that some people think of the Son Of God to mean all of humanity not an individual. Christians call this idea the "Body Of Christ". Emerson called it the "over soul." and other folks have called it "cosmic consciousness." The first principle points us to this idea when it talks about the "inherent worth and dignity of every person." The inherent worth and dignity of every person is based on the idea that every person is a member of this oneness. Our egos block this awareness and put us in the territory of competition, deprivation, and scarcity. This egotistic obstacle blocks our awareness of the abundance of Creation's love and support for us and only asks that we co-create for the well being of all creation. The unconconscious belief in scarcity which the ego has implanted in us contributes to the hell we suffer. Would that we could rise above it and come to love everybody all the time.

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  2. The Universalists were the first people in the Puritanical world of New World Protestantism to believe in an unconditional god who does not send people to hell. It was novel at the time and still is in the Christian world and can get you excommunicated and exiled as Bishop Carlton Pearson knows only too well at All Soul's in Tulsa.

    The unconditional love of God, as Jesus taught, is abundant with no hint of deprivation. Linda needs to learn about the Original blessing not original sin. Her life is a blessing and it is a wonderful world if you approach it from a better frame of mind. That is not to say that suffering and pain do not occur, however, they are not the same thing and that takes a mind and heart of higher consciousness which we all have the potential to achieve. Walking the UU way of life can help us do that.

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    1. People are told repeatedly that they are sinners and we sense that there is something wrong with us. This sense of defectiveness comes from our separation from the Godhead not because of mistakes we make and things we do here on earth.

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  3. One of the primary fear inducing strategies of the ego is witholding. Trump threatened it last night in Phoenix when he said that congress doesn't fund his wall he will shut the government down. Is that the devil talking or as a post said last week that Trump is the AntiChrist. Remember the three temptations of the devil to Jesus? Jesus told the devil go bugger off and embarked on his ministry and teaching of love. Do UUs have the same courage? I'm betting they do.

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  4. Like Linda my well meaning, I think, doctor got me hooked on Xanax for over 10 years. The benzos are America's worst drug problem after Opiods and than god benzos can't kill you alone unless taken in combinations with other substances. I got through a lot of committee meetings tranquilized which I could never have done sober. The UU faith had nothing to do with my getting sober or keeping me sober. I learned in NA, a 12 step program like AA, for drug addicts that a spiritual awakening is necessary to stay sober. I have gotten help with this more from my sponsor and NA groups than I ever did from any UU church I attended.

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    1. It's interesting how medicine's answer to human beings existential anxiety is to drug us. It seems like malpractice borne out of giving the wrong answer because the right question was not asked.

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