By Carol Harper
As most of you know (from the shares on my Facebook wall), I followed the 2,300-mile Walk for Peace by the Monks of the Vipassana Bhavana Center in Texas . I loved the messages of finding inner peace, compassion and non-violence. I am not a Buddhist, but I am a believer in Light, Life, Love and Truth. And as a believer in these, I have learned (and am continually learning) discernment between Light and darkness, Life and death, Love and hate, Truth and falsehoods. The latter of the two opposites...hate and falsehoods...have revealed much about the present state of the world.
Unfortunately, their walk was not without controvesy and opposition. I was surprised to see a certain brand of resistance from Christians that the monks had encountered along the way. I'm reminded of the story in Mark 9, how Jesus clearly defined how we should respond. His disciples said that they say saw someone driving out demons in his name, and "we told him to stop, because he was not one of us."
"Do not stop him," Jesus said. "For no one who does a miracle in my name can in the next moment say anything bad about me, for whoever is not against us is for us." (Mark 9:38-40)
In my opinion, the monks certainly did do a miracle in bringing millions of people together for one purpose: Peace. I was thinking of a "John the Baptist"-type in proclaiming "Prepare the way of the Lord." (Matthew 3) for the baptisms of water and fire (and what a fire season it's going to be this year!) I contemplated the attitudes towards the Buddhist monks from these 'Christians' who obviously hadn't learned the second of Jesus' new commandments: "Love your neighbor as yourself." And who is my neighbor? (Luke 10: 29-37)
‘These people draw near to Me with their mouth,
And honor Me with their lips,
But their heart is far from Me.
9 And in vain they worship Me,
Teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’ ”
Matthew 15: 8-9
Doing it wrong.
This same born Prince of Peace cleansed the temple, overthrowing tables and driving out merchants who had made it into a "den of thieves", a busy marketplace to buy and sell. Well, that's not very peaceful, is it? But Jesus' anger was a catalyst for fighting the battle against greed and gluttony. His Seven Woes to the Pharisees was a battle against hypocrisy and injustice. His parables and teachings...oil in lamps, wise and foolish builders, the fig tree, the wheat and the tares...were words of warning.
Today, there are corporatized mega churches and religions that have (over) capitalized on their memberships with tithes, offerings and donations...building huge worship centers with coffee shops and bookstores, ornate cathedrals and temples adorned with gold...while the homeless and jobless still suffer. (Matthew 23:4) There are preachers and podcasters on the Internet and social media that make thousands/millions while the destitute still die and are dying. There are pharmaceutical companies and snake oil scams that bank on addiction rather than actual healing. So easy for them to profit off of the naive, ignorant, and desperate, all for one thing: Control.
But Jesus didn't tell us to build idols, statues and temples. He didn't tell us to invest in the stock market, 'buy low and sell high'. He didn't form a church like some conditional "members only" club, or to go out and preach for profit. He didn't tell us to take a pill or shoot up some heroin to "feel better". He didn't tell us to divide up by political persuasions and go to war with each other, or because someone or some other country has something the other doesn't have.
No, the King of kings told us what the kingdom of heaven was actually like! Jesus simply asked us to believe and follow Him. He told us to love each other, give to the needy, care for the poor and sick, be good Samaritans. He told us to beware of hypocrisy, of false prophets, of wolves in sheep's clothing. He told us that our dishes should be clean on the inside as well as the outside. He taught us to be discerning...wise as serpents and harmless as doves (Matthew 10). So if you or your congregation is doing all that, you're doing it right! And even if you aren't a believer in Christ, the tenets of Light, Life, Love and Truth are common threads that God has joined us all together as human beings on this planet Earth.
My daughter and her husband were recently married in a little small town church in the heart of Riverton, with just family and loved ones surrounding them. It was a beautiful wedding (and yes, the mother of the bride did cry!) It wasn't a big fanfare...no 200-person guest list, no elaborately flowered arches, no bridesmaids/grooms, no swans with ribbons on their necks gliding across a pond, no string quartet, no tiered cake or chareuterie tables, no band or DJ. It wasn't in a temple or cathedral. Just a simple wedding with the sun streaming through stained-glass windows as they pledged their vows and love for each other. In my opinion, they did it right!
"What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate."
Matthew 19:6
Still doing it wrong...
Historically speaking, the industrialization of America was a domino that set off a chain of destruction. It brought inhumane working conditions, long hour days, child labor, poverty wages, unplanned urbanization, disease, pollution. It also brought about a time of opportunistic greed, setting the stage for what would bring out the worst in us. The push West murdered millions of Natives, slaughtered bison and wildlife, and defaced mountains, hills, and landscapes. Instead of looking up to the skies for the ultimate Source of life and balance, we've polluted the skies and keep running on age-old gerbil wheels that generate millions for those who don't really know or care about who or what they use and abuse.
"But that's the way we've always done it!" Well-known as one of the most dangerous phrases in the business world, I am astounded that we continue to have those in positions of authority when it comes to the business of war, and they still don't get it. War hasn't never been about peace, it's about conquest. And there never has been world peace; just the constant disturbing of it. There have been over 2,000 killed and over 26,500 injured since this U.S./Israel versus Iran war began, and I hear people just keep on complacently saying:, "Well, that's just the way war is." No sh**, Sherlock! Aren't we sick of this historical global cycle of abuse? Aren't we tired of the repetition of war? But that is what we've repeatedly chosen, regardless of the warnings.
The 'spirit' of antichrist has been thousands and thousands of years in the making. I had AI help me with its definition: "According to the Bible, the Antichrist is a future, end-times figure--often identified as the "the beast" in Revelation--who will rise to global power, oppose Jesus Christ, and persecute believers. He is characterized as a "man of lawlessness" or false messiah who demands worship. The term also refers to a spirit or anyone who denies that Jesus is the Christ."
There have been many antichrists in history who have been revered, cheered and worshipped. But none as huge as this last century's antichristic Beasts of political and religious corporatization surrounded by their own beasts who do their will and persecute believers of Light, Life, Love and Truth...all trying to separate what God has joined together from the beginning.
But shouldn't we have be doing what Jesus taught us to do, instead of cheering on yet another antichrist? Shouldn't we have been lighting our lamps, be in prayer, awaiting instructions, and preparing ourselves for the battles against the evils unseen? Then again, there are those who might celebrate the accomplishment of circular prophecy ("Jesus is coming, yay!") But then, just whose side are we on? Just who or what are we voting for and worshipping now? Perhaps we'll all be surprised when the time comes for the separation of the wheat and tares.
“Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’ (Matthew 27: 21-23)
The Prince of Peace
Every Holy Week and Eastertime, I'm reminded of how Jesus told us that there is tribulation in this world, but that we should "be of good cheer, I have overcome the world." (John 16:33). It's always been one of my top favorite scriptures; comforting words as I press forward, long after Easter Sunday has passed. Believe me, I know it can be difficult to be a 'freaking ray of sunshine' as we go back to that daily grind on those rickety gerbil wheels, or having to deal with all the drama, chaos, bottlenecks and roadblocks that seem to have this annoying way of distracting us from that inner peace we yearn for. Sometimes I think there's just not enough coffee in the world!
But those yearnings for peace and those personal walks continue forward and onward, and who better than the Prince of Peace, the King of Kings, Lord of Lords, the Light of the World...to lead the Way...to guide us with the Truth revealed through simple stories and parables...and a Life exemplifying how Love will always be the impetus that saves the world.
________
Worth the read:
Matthew 5-7, The Sermon on the Mount
Matthew 23
Deuteronomy 30
I put this article on my Facebook wall. A very good read...
Cowboy State Daily: Scott Clem: What we lose when politics becomes a religion
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