Awareness of the interconnectedness of life.

Modern science is now increasingly able to demonstrate what mystics have always intuited. The relatively new discipline of ecology is one of the most obvious scientific expressions of the interconnectedness of biological life. Other sciences have also made breakthroughs that are less easy to grasp but even more extraordinary in their implications.

Wigglesworth, Cindy. SQ21: The Twenty-One Skills of Spiritual Intelligence (p. 69). SelectBooks, Inc.. Kindle Edition. 

The sixth skill of spiritual intelligence, awareness of the interconnectedness of life, is repressed in our contemporary consciousness by the ubiquitous requirements of the capitalistic system which denies, and if even aware, refuses to acknowledge what are called “externalities” which allows us to hide the true costs of things.

The hiding of the externalities contributes to living in an illusionary world which, if not in the short run, will have negative consequences for the ecosystem in which we live in the long run. Recognition is slowly beginning to dawn on homo sapiens of the interconnectedness of life  as we become consciously aware of what we have done to planet Earth’s climate.

Some people say “ignorance is bliss” while others encourage us to wake up. Unitarian Universalists join together to affirm and promote an awareness of the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part.

We ask ourselves to what extent, low, medium, or high, are we aware of the interconnectedness of life and make decisions about our actions accordingly?

Come follow me.

When you unite with me you are uniting without the ego, because I have renounced the ego in myself and therefore cannot unite with yours. Our union is therefore the way to renounce the ego in you. The truth in both of us is beyond the ego. Our success in transcending the ego is guaranteed by God, and I share this confidence for both of us and all of us. I bring God’s peace back to all His children because I received it of Him for us all. Nothing can prevail against our united wills because nothing can prevail against God’s. T-8.V.4:1-6

A Course in Miracles (p. 292). Foundation for Inner Peace. Kindle Edition.

Jesus tells us “The truth in both of us is beyond the ego.” and it makes me laugh. Jesus was laughing when he said, as the Romans were killing him, “Father, forgive them for they know not what they do.” Life beyond the ego is filled with peace and joy. Rise above the nonsense and the insanity. The promises of the world of the ego are such a joke.

In Unitarian Universalism some of us join together to affirm and promote the free and responsible search for truth and meaning and seekers come to realize that truth and meaning is not to be found in the world of the ego. Truth and meaning are found by rising above the ego and seeking it in the awareness of the non dual Oneness of unconditional love. Jesus knows this and invites us to join him.

Today it is suggested that we consider what Jesus means when he says to people “Come follow me.” Where is he leading us and if we go with him what will we find?

Our inherent worth and dignity emanates from being an extension of our Transcendent Source.

God’s Oneness and ours are not separate, because His Oneness encompasses ours. To join with me is to restore His power to you because we are sharing it. I offer you only the recognition of His power in you, but in that lies all truth. As we unite, we unite with Him. Glory be to the union of God and His holy Sons! T-8.V.3:1-5

A Course in Miracles (p. 291). Foundation for Inner Peace. Kindle Edition. 

In the passage above, Jesus makes it explicit that the Atonement is true in that the separation has been healed and we have become One with Him and our Transcendent Source.

In Unitarian Universalism some of us join together to affirm and promote the inherent worth and dignity of every person which arises from our Oneness with our creator from which we are an extension.

Today it is suggested that we reflect on the Oneness of Life in which we all share and which gives rise to our inherent worth and dignity.

Spiritual Intelligence - Skill 6: Awareness of Interconnectedness Of Life

Cindy Wigglesworth breaks her model of the Twenty-One skills of spiritual intelligence into four quadrants. The first five skills are in quadrant one which is labeled “Self/ self awareness.” The next six skills fall in quadrant two which is labeled, “Universal Awareness.” The first skill in this second quadrant is the awareness of interconnectedness of life. This skill also happens to be identified in the seventh of the seven principles of Unitarian Universalism which is the affirmation and promotion of respect for the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part.

Albert Einstein wrote in a letter to a grieving friend that, “A human being is part of a whole, called by us ‘Universe,’ a part limited in time and space. He experiences himself, his thoughts and feelings, as something separated from the rest—a kind of optical delusion of his consciousness. The striving to free oneself from this delusion is the one issue of true religion.”27 What Einstein states so beautifully is a truth that more and more of humanity are waking up to: the fact that we are not isolated islands, but rather we are threads in a vast web of interconnectedness.

Wigglesworth, Cindy. SQ21: The Twenty-One Skills of Spiritual Intelligence (p. 68). SelectBooks, Inc.. Kindle Edition. 

During the Covid-19 pandemic there were shortages in many stores blamed on the broken supply chains. The term “supply chain” became a common concept when toilet paper was not on the store shelves.

To what extent are we aware of the supply chains upon which we are dependent for resources that contribute to our well being? Most of the elements of these supply chains are invisible to us. We, ourselves, are components of many supply chains and our activities have positive and negative effects on the outputs of these chains. To what extent are we aware of and grateful for the jobs that people perform to keep supply chains working effectively and efficiently? Looking at work from the perspective of systems thinking leads to the conclusion that most work is sacred.

The awareness of interconnectedness and the concomitant awe and gratitude is an important skill of spiritual intelligence.

Becoming aware of our wholiness.

Yet to heal is still to make whole. Therefore, to heal is to unite with those who are like you, because perceiving this likeness is to recognize the Father. If your perfection is in Him and only in Him, how can you know it without recognizing Him? The recognition of God is the recognition of yourself. There is no separation of God and His creation. You will realize this when you understand that there is no separation between your will and mine. Let the Love of God shine upon you by your acceptance of me. My reality is yours and His. By joining your mind with mine you are signifying your awareness that the Will of God is One. T-8.V.2:4-12

A Course in Miracles (p. 291). Foundation for Inner Peace. Kindle Edition. 

To heal is to make whole. Jesus is referring in this passage to the non dualistic Oneness of which He, and We, and God are one. We all, drops of the ocean, make up the ocean.

In Unitarian Universalism some of us join together to affirm and promote the awareness of the interdependent web of existence of which we are a part.

Today it is suggested that we rise above our everyday concerns in the world of the ego and experience the healing of being aware of our holiness.

Don’t believe the false promises of the ego that they will deliver peace.

Can you be separated from your identification and be at peace? Dissociation is not a solution; it is a delusion. The delusional believe that truth will assail them, and they do not recognize it because they prefer the delusion. Judging truth as something they do not want, they perceive their illusions which block knowledge. Help them by offering them your unified mind on their behalf, as I am offering you mine on behalf of yours. Alone we can do nothing, but together our minds fuse into something whose power is far beyond the power of its separate parts. By not being separate, the Mind of God is established in ours and as ours. This Mind is invincible because it is undivided. T-8.V.1:1-8

A Course in Miracles (pp. 290-291). Foundation for Inner Peace. Kindle Edition. 

The bolding above has been added to make it stand out because of its importance. The ocean is greater and more powerful than the separate drops even if the drops refuse to acknowledge that they come from and are part of the ocean. Jesus tells us, in the Course, that we are part of the ocean with him.

In Unitarian Universalism some of us join together to affirm and promote the free and responsible search for truth and meaning while most people don’t recognize and acknowledge the truth for they prefer or only know the false promises of the world of the ego.

Today it is suggested that we recognize and acknowledge the delusions we cling to hoping that the false promises of the ego will bring us peace. It is further suggested that having recognized and acknowledged these false promises that we engage in unconditional loving from which we have come and to which we return.

Send out ripples of hope

 

Dynamic metaphors of waves and ripples are helpful. Often horticultural metaphors are helpful as well such as "planting seeds" and "watching them germinate and grow" which requires "irrigation, fertilization, and cultivation."