3rd Michaelmas 2020, Curious Confidence

2^nd 3^rd or 4^th Michaelmas

Paul’s Letter to the Ephesians, 6:10-19 

What it comes to in the end is this: grasp the power that streams to you in the experience of Christ in the soul and the powerful regency of his pure spiritual strength. 

Put on the power of God as one puts on full armor, so that you may stand against the well-aimed attacks of the adversary. For our struggle is not to fight against powers of flesh and blood, but 

against spirit beings mighty in the stream of time,

against spirit beings powerful in the molding of earth substance,

against cosmic powers whose darkness rules the present time,

against spirits who carry evil into the realms of the spiritual world. 

Therefore take up the full armor of God, that you may be able to stand your ground on the day when evil unfolds its greatest strength, and victoriously withstand it. 

Stand firm, then, girded with the truth, like a warrior firmly girded. Connect yourself with all in the world as is justified in the spiritual world, and this connection with the spirit will protect you like a strong breastplate.

And may Peace stream through you, down to your feet, so that on your path you spread peace, as the message that comes from the realm of the angels. 

In all your deeds have trust in God. This trust will be like a mighty shield; with it, you can quench all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 

Take into your thinking the certainty of Christ’s healing deed. It will protect your head like a helmet. 

And the spirit, which has become living in you, you shall grasp as one grasps a sharp sword. The sword of the spirit is the working of the Word of God. 

May this armor clothe you in all your prayers and supplications so that in the right moment, you raise yourself in prayer to the spirit. To this end, direct your spirit-strength in all your efforts of soul and in your intercessions for all who would know Christ’s healing power. 

Feel yourself united in prayer with all other bearers of the spirit. Take me into your prayers, so that when I open my mouth, the strength of the word will be given to me.  Then I can courageously and openly bring the knowledge of that holy mystery that lives in the message of the Gospel, for which I am a priestly messenger enchained. Out of the Gospel itself, there streams to me the free strength to speak with the courage I need. 

3rd Michaelmas Sunday

October 18, 2020

How timely is the Gospel reading in this year! Our spiritual enemies, spiritual beings aiming their arrows of fear and despair at our souls full, are on the attack. Paul encourages us to fight a spiritual battle. It is not a battle of aggression, for it is not our task (nor is it even possible) to destroy our eternal enemy. Rather we are to arm ourselves for our own souls’ self-defense so that we can resist the fear and remain inwardly upright. 

Don Dos Santos

We shield ourselves from these attacks of fear by remaining in trust and truth. This trust is in humankind's ultimate goal, the goal of learning to love. This truth we acquire by remaining in the current moment, the Now, which is ruled by Christ. For the truth is that fear often causes us to project a false picture into the future, which, in a vicious cycle, then inspires more fear. The truth is that the future is constantly changing, moment by moment, day by day, based on what human beings do in those moments and days. We are all involved in the process of creating the future. Any fixed picture of the future, hammered hard by constant discussion and steeped in worry generated by fear, is premature. 

“Do not worry about tomorrow,” says Christ, “for tomorrow can worry about itself. Each day has enough challenge of its own.” Matthew 6:34  We act, we trust, we pray, one day, one moment at a time. 

We must not underestimate the power of the light-filled energy that is generated by our prayers and sacraments, even when only an apparent few participate on earth. Behind each one of us stand all those who have died, who still take an active interest in their loved ones on earth. Mingling with them are those about to be born into the world, with their ideals and hopes. And above us, all stands the angelic world. Deeds of prayer and sacrament generate a healing light, a bright energy. Given into the hands of the angels, this energy can work as a positive force in world karma, helping shape the future.  Michael and his host of angels beckon us toward the courage and trust that arises in our awareness of this truth. 

A second-century mystic, Evagrios of Pontos, wrote: 

If you would pray in truth, you will

David Newbatt

suspect a deeper sense of curious confidence.

And a host of angels will walk beside you

Showing you the purpose of created things.

 

When the angel of the Lord arrives,

he scatters by his word alone

every force that acts against us,

and brings to our spirits that light

that shines without deception.*

 

www.thechristiancommunity.org

---

*Evagrios of Pontos, (345-399) “Effusions on Prayer,” in Love’s Immensity, Mystics on the Endless Light, Scott Cairns, p. 56

5th Easter 2019, Master of the Game

5^th Easter

John 16, 1-33, adapted from Madsen

“All these words I have spoken to you so that you will not go astray [because you discover what destiny falls to you through being connected with me]. For they will exclude you from their communities, and the hour will come when those who kill you will think they are offering service to God. They will do all this because they have not known my Father or me. All these words I have spoken to you so that when the time comes you will remember that I told you about it. In the beginning, I did not need to say such things for I was with you. But now I am going away to him who sent me; yet, none of you asks me “Where are you going?”  Now that I have said these things to you, sorrow enters your heart.

Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is for your salvation and healing that I leave you, for if I did not go away, the Comforter, the giver of spirit courage, [who will stand by you in all trials, the Spirit upon whom you can call for assistance at any moment,] would not come to you. When I now  go away, I will send him to you. When he comes he will call mankind to account for the decline into sin, for the working of man’s higher being and for the great world separation; for the decline into sinfulness, because they did not fill themselves with my power; for the working of Man’s higher being, because I go to the Father and you see me no more; for the great world-separation, because the decision has already been made about the ruler of this world.

I have yet much more to say to you, but you cannot bear it now. But when the Spirit of Truth comes, he will be your guide on the way to the Truth that Embraces All. he will not speak out of himself, but what he hears he will speak, and he will proclaim to you what is to come.  he will reveal me, for what he draws out of my being he will proclaim to you. Everything that the Father has is also mine. That is why I can say, ‘He will draw upon my being and proclaim to you’.

Yet a short time you will see me no more, and again a short time and you will see me.”

Then some of his disciples said to one another, “What does he mean by saying ‘Yet a short time you will see me no more, and again a short time and you will see me’, and ‘I am going to the Father’? They kept asking, “What does he mean by ‘a short time’? We do not understand his words.”

Bible moralisèe The Creation of Eve and The Birth of Ecclesia, 

Jesus knew that they wanted to ask him and he said, “You are wondering that I said, ‘A short time and you will see me no more, and again a short time and you will see me.’  Yes, the truth I tell you, you will weep and lament while other people will rejoice. You will be filled with sorrow, but this your grief will be turned into joy. A woman giving birth must bear pain, for her difficult hour has come. But when the child is born, she no longer considers the anguish because of her joy that a human being has been born into the world.

So it is with you. Now is your time of grief. But this your grief will become the power of Spirit-Birth, for I will see you again and your heart will rejoice, and no one can take that joy from you. On that day, you will no longer need to ask me anything.

Yes, I say to you; from now on what you ask of the Father in my name, He will give to you. Until now, you have not been able to pray in my name. Pray from the heart, and it will be given to your heart so that your joy may be full.

All this I have given to your souls in imagery. But the hour is coming when I will no longer speak to you in pictures but will tell you plainly about the Father, [so that you can grasp it in full, knowing consciousness]. On that day, you will ask out of my power and in my name. And no longer will I ask the Father on your behalf. For the Father himself loves you because you have loved me, and have known in your hearts that I have come forth from the Father. I have come forth from the Father and I have come into this world. I am leaving the [sense] world again and going to the Father, [of which you say that it is the world of death].”

Then Jesus’ disciples said, “Now you are speaking in clear thought and without imagery. Now we know that all things are revealed to you and that you do not even need to have anyone ask you questions. By this, we believe that you came from God.”

Jesus answered, “Do you now feel my power in your heart? Behold, the time is coming and has already come, when you will be scattered, each to his own loneliness. You will then also leave me alone. Yet I am not alone, for the Father is eternally united with me.

All this I have spoken to you so that in me you may find peace. In this world, you will have great fear and hardship. But take courage. I have overcome the world.”

5^th Easter

May 19, 2019

John 16: 1 – 33

Devil's Mirror

There is a fairy tale that tells how the devil made a great world mirror, in which everything was distorted unrecognizably into its opposite. This mirror shattered into billions of pieces, and specks flew into people’s eyes. It made them see the wrong side of things. If the specks penetrated into their hearts, their hearts turned to ice.*

In today’s reading from before his resurrection, Christ feels compassion for the disciple’s hearts; for his impending crucifixion will activate such the mirror shards and, for a while, things will not appear to them as they truly are. But He also promises that this condition will be temporary. For, after a short time, He will send a Healer who will remove the specks and show them the Truth. Their vision will be healed of its ills. Although each of them will only see from a certain angle, from a partial perspective, they will indeed see truly.

We human beings are all partial. We are on a path of evolution toward greater wholeness, toward alignment with the greater and great levels of Truth. Moments of suffering and moments of enlightenment follow each other in greater spirals. For, in the words of St. John of the Cross,

If

you were playing chess with someone who

had infinite power and infinite knowledge

and wanted to make you a

master of the game,

where would all the chess

pieces be at every

moment?

Indeed, not only where he wanted them,

but where all were best for your

development;

and that is every situation

of one’s

life.**

*Hans Christian Anderson, “The Snow Queen”.

**St. John of the Cross, “Development", in Love Poems from God, Daniel Ladinsky, p. 322.

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2nd Michaelmas 2017,

Archangel Michael, Arild Rosenkranz

Paul's Letter to the Ephesians 6: 10 - 19
2nd, 3rd or 4th Michaelmas
 
What it comes to in the end is this: grasp the power that streams to you in the experience of Christ in the soul and in the powerful regency of his pure spiritual strength.
Put on the power of God as one puts on full armor, so that you may stand against the well-aimed attacks of the adversary. For our struggle is not to fight against powers of flesh and blood, but against
spirit beings mighty in the stream of time,
against spirit beings powerful in the molding of earth substance,
against cosmic powers whose darkness rules the present time,
against spirits who carry evil into the realms of the spiritual world.
 
Therefore take up the full armor of God, that you may be able to stand your ground on the day when evil unfolds its greatest strength, and victoriously withstand it.
Stand firm, then, girded with the truth, like a warrior firmly girded. Connect yourself with all in the world as is justified in the spiritual world, and this connection with the spirit will protect you like a strong breastplate.

And may Peace stream through you, down to your feet, so that on your path you spread peace, as the message that comes from the realm of the angels.
In all your deeds have trust in God. This trust will be like a mighty shield; with it,  you can quench all the flaming arrows of the evil one.

Take into your thinking the certainty of Christ’s healing deed. It will protect your head like a helmet.

And the spirit, which has become living in you, you shall grasp as one grasps a sharp sword. The sword of the spirit is the working of the Word of God.

May this armor clothe you in all your prayers and supplications so that in the right moment you raise yourself in prayer to the spirit, and at the same time practice wakefulness in inner loyalty.
Feel yourself united in prayer with all other bearers of the spirit—also with me, Paul, so that the power of the word will be given to me when I am to courageously bring the knowledge of that holy mystery which lives in the message of the gospel.

2nd Michaelmas
October 8, 2017
Ephesians 6:10-19
 
This is a time of struggle. Outer events play like battles, battles of words, warlike behaviors, grievous wrongs. Behind these, there stand spiritual beings and spiritual forces at work, both positive and negative.
 
As the reading today says: our struggle is not to fight against powers of flesh and blood but

Newbatt

against mighty and powerful spiritual beings. For us as individuals, this means that ours is not a battle of aggression, but a battle of defense against negative spiritual forces seeking to attack our hearts and our thoughts.
 
We are to stand firm by grasping and clothing ourselves with the power that streams to us from Christ. We are to trust that no matter what appears to happen outwardly, He is the Way, the path that our human evolution is to take. He is the Truth—the very Being of Truth itself, a firm foundation for all we see and do. Clothing ourselves in His truth, our thinking is clear, and our hearts can stream peace; our words can illuminate darkness and evil.
 
It is a season of growing darkness. Our task is to remain inwardly upright and awake. We are the soldiers, the guardians who keep watch, the witnesses. We are those who are to activate the Christ force in the world. As Adam Bittleston says:
 
We need in the strife of our day
The eternal Peace of the Word of God.
Seeking this Peace with our whole being
On the path which leads from the nightmare
Of endless chaos,
Into the order of heaven
And to the Father of all things—
We shall meet Michael
Who reveals how Christ
Awakens Man
That he may serve God. *
 

 

---

*"Michaelmas II”, Adam Bittleston, in Meditative Prayers for Today. Available here.

Also visit www.thechristiancommunity.org

5th Easter 2017, A Kind of Darkening

5^th Easter

John 16, 1-33

“All these words I have spoken to you so that you will not go astray [because you discover what destiny falls to you through being connected with me]. For they will exclude you from their communities, and the hour will come when those who kill you will think they are offering service to God. They will do all this because they have not known my Father or me. All these words I have spoken to you so that when the time comes you will remember that I told you about it. In the beginning, I did not need to say such things for I was with you. But now I am going away to him who sent me; yet, none of you asks me “Where are you going?”  Now that I have said these things to you, sorrow enters your heart.

Reichenauer

Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is for your salvation and healing that I leave you, for if I did not go away, the Comforter, the giver of spirit courage, [who will stand by you in all trials, the Spirit upon whom you can call for assistance at any moment,] would not come to you. When I now go away, I will send him to you. When he comes, he will call mankind to account for the decline into sin, for the working of man’s higher being and for the great world separation; for the decline into sinfulness, because they did not fill themselves with my power; for the working of Man’s higher being, because I go to the Father and you see me no more; for the great world-separation, because the decision has already been made about the ruler of this world.

I have yet much more to say to you, but you cannot bear it now. But when the Spirit of Truth comes, he will be your guide on the way to the Truth that Embraces All. he will not speak out of himself, but what he hears he will speak, and he will proclaim to you what is to come.  he will reveal me, for what he draws out of my being he will proclaim to you. Everything that the Father has is also mine. That is why I can say, ‘He will draw upon my being and proclaim to you’.

Yet a short time you will see me no more, and again a short time and you will see me.”

Then some of his disciples said to one another, “What does he mean by saying ‘Yet a short time you will see me no more, and again a short time and you will see me’, and ‘I am going to the Father’? They kept asking, “What does he mean by ‘a short time’? We do not understand his words.”

Jesus knew that they wanted to ask him and he said, “You are wondering that I said, ‘A short time and you will see me no more, and again a short time and you will see me.’  Yes, the truth I tell you, you will weep and lament while other people will rejoice. You will be filled with sorrow, but this your grief will be turned into joy. A woman giving birth must bear pain, for her difficult hour has come. But when the child is born, she no longer considers the anguish because of her joy that a human being has been born into the world.

So it is with you. Now is your time of grief. But this your grief will become the power of Spirit-Birth, for I will see you again and your heart will rejoice, and no one can take that joy from you. On that day, you will no longer need to ask me anything.

Yes, I say to you; from now on what you ask of the Father in my name, He will give to you. Until now, you have not been able to pray in my name. Pray from the heart, and it will be given to your heart so that your joy may be full.

All this I have given to your souls in imagery. But the hour is coming when I will no longer speak to you in pictures but will tell you plainly about the Father, [so that you can grasp it in full, knowing consciousness]. On that day, you will ask out of my power and in my name. And no longer will I ask the Father on your behalf. For the Father himself loves you because you have loved me, and have known in your hearts that I have come forth from the Father. I have come forth from the Father and I have come into this world. I am leaving the [sense] world again and going to the Father, [of which you say that it is the world of death].”

Then Jesus’ disciples said, “Now you are speaking in clear thought and without imagery. Now we know that all things are revealed to you and that you do not even need to have anyone ask you questions. By this, we believe that you came from God.”

Jesus answered, “Do you now feel my power in your heart? Behold, the time is coming and has already come, when you will be scattered, each to his own loneliness. You will then also leave me alone. Yet I am not alone, for the Father is eternally united with me.

All this I have spoken to you so that in me you may find peace. In this world, you will have great fear and hardship. But take courage. I have overcome the world.”

5^th Easter

May 14, 2017

John 16, 1-33

Even if unintentional, untruths obscure. They create a kind of darkening. They

hold us back. Truths, by contrast, shed light. By illuminating, they help create for us a sense of direction. As Christ said, 'You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free'. John 8:20

The truth of our lives is much greater than we can see. The present current worldview obscures the true reality of life. In seeking to control, it makes the world too small.

Christ came to enlarge the world. He came to enliven and guide all human beings. He came to unite all humankind. He came to reunite us with the angels, with our loved ones who have died, to help us grow into the entire living cosmos. He is the Truth that enlightens us. He does so, not by teaching, but by being himself the very means, the Way to greater life. By being united in His Being of Love, humankind finds the way forward. 

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2nd Michaelmas, Three Christ-Powers

Archangel Michael, Schongauer

2nd 3rd or 4th Michaelmas

Paul’s Letter to the Ephesians, 6:10-19

What it comes to in the end is this: grasp the power that streams to you in the experience of Christ in the soul and in the powerful regency of his pure spiritual strength.

Put on the power of God as one puts on full armor, so that you may stand against the well-aimed attacks of the adversary. For our struggle is not to fight against powers of flesh and blood, but 

  

against spirit beings mighty in the stream of time,

  against spirit beings powerful in the molding of earth substance,

  against cosmic powers whose darkness rules the present time,

  against spirits who carry evil into the realms of the spiritual world.

Therefore, take up the full armor of God, that you may be able to stand your ground on the day when evil unfolds its greatest strength, and victoriously withstand it.

Stand firm, then, girded with the truth, like a warrior firmly girded. Connect yourself with all in the world as is justified in the spiritual world, and this connection with the spirit will protect you like a strong breastplate.

And may Peace stream through you, down to your feet, so that on your path you spread peace, as the message that comes from the realm of the angels.

In all your deeds have trust in God. This trust will be like a mighty shield; with it, you can quench all the flaming arrows of the evil one.

Take into your thinking the certainty of Christ’s healing deed. It will protect your head like a helmet.

And the spirit, which has become living in you, you shall grasp as one grasps a sharp sword. The sword of the spirit is the working of the Word of God.

May this armor clothe you in all your prayers and supplications, so that in the right moment you raise yourself in prayer to the spirit, and at the same time practice wakefulness in inner loyalty.

Feel yourself united in prayer with all other bearers of the spirit—also with me, Paul, so that the power of the word will be given to me when I am to courageously bring the knowledge of that holy mystery which lives in the message of the gospel.

2^nd, 3rd or 4th Michaelmas

Memling

October 11, 2016

Paul’s Letter to the Ephesians, 6:10-19

"Grasp the power that streams to you in the experience of Christ in the soul and in the powerful regency of his pure spiritual strength."

What is the power that streams to us in the experience of Christ in the soul? His power is three-fold:

It is the power to think the truth; to think thoughts that are true, that are in consonance not only with earthly reality but also with higher spiritual realities. The power of Christ in the soul heals us from the cognitive distortions of unhealthy, untrue thoughts.

Christ's power in the soul is also the power to feel a connection not only with what is beautiful and noble, but also to make peace with earthly reality, with what is. We are to absorb Christ's attitude: I stand at peace with the world, he says. And he gives us this peace so that we can spread peace out into the world. His Peace is to invade our whole being, down to our feet, so that the way we walk in the world spreads peace on the path.

And Christ's third power allows us to act with uprightness and in right relationship to the earth and all its inhabitants. We can do so, not by putting our faith in a static, absolute good, but by trusting in the ultimate victory of an ever-evolving goodness.

A well-known verse by Rudolf Steiner shows us this power of Christ that we can actively take in hand:

To wonder at beauty,

Memling

Stand guard over truth,

Look up to the noble,

Resolve on the good.

This leadeth us truly

To purpose in living,

To right in our doing,

To peace in our feeling,

To light in our thinking.

And teaches us trust,

In the working of God,

In all that there is,

In the width of the world,

In the depth of the soul.*

*Rudolf Steiner, in Wahrspruchsworte, GA 40, page 324.

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2nd Michaelmas,

2nd 3rd or 4th Michaelmas

Paul’s Letter to the Ephesians, 6:10-19

What it comes to in the end is this: grasp the power that streams to you in the experience of Christ in the soul and in the powerful regency of his pure spiritual strength.

Put on the power of God as one puts on full armor, so that you may stand against the well-aimed attacks of the adversary. For our struggle is not to fight against powers of flesh and blood, but against

Durer, The Knight, Death and the Devil (wiki)

spirit beings mighty in the stream of time,

against spirit beings powerful in the molding of earth substance,

against cosmic powers whose darkness rules the present time,

against spirits who carry evil into the realms of the spiritual world.

Therefore take up the full armor of God, that you may be able to stand your ground on the day when evil unfolds its greatest strength, and victoriously withstand it.

Stand firm, then, girded with the truth, like a warrior firmly girded. Connect yourself with all in the world as is justified in the spiritual world, and this connection with the spirit will protect you like a strong breastplate.

And may Peace stream through you, down to your feet, so that on your path you spread peace, as the message that comes from the realm of the angels.

In all your deeds have trust in God. This trust will be like a mighty shield; with it you can quench all the flaming arrows of the evil one.

Take into your thinking the certainty of Christ’s healing deed. It will protect your head like a helmet.

And the spirit, which has become living in you, you shall grasp as one grasps a sharp sword. The sword of the spirit is the working of the Word of God.

May this armor clothe you in all your prayers and supplications, so that in the right moment you raise yourself in prayer to the spirit, and at the same time practice wakefulness in inner loyalty.

Feel yourself united in prayer with all other bearers of the spirit—also with me, Paul, so that the power of the word will be given to me when I am to courageously bring the knowledge of that holy mystery which lives in the message of the gospel.

2nd Michaelmas

October 11, 2015

Paul’s Letter to the Ephesians, 6:10-19

When we ship out something precious, we know to pack it well . We give it layers of protection, so that it can withstand the shocks and drops and weight of the shipping process.

In this reading, called The Armor of God, it is clear that we are being sent out in the midst of a battle against spiritual adversaries. We are to receive and bear protective armor. We are to put on the protections of truth, of trust in God, and of the knowledge that Christ heals. The only weapon we hold is the sword of spiritual discernment, discernment according to Christ’s Word.  Yet we are not being called upon to attack the adversary, nor to destroy them. Our part in the battle is a defensive one. We are to endure their attacks, and remain standing.

Through the wearing of this armor we are called upon, not to thrash about and flail our weapons. We are called upon to become a protected vessel that contains and pours out peace, a peace that reaches down into the way we walk in the world, a peace that streams out from us so that we become messengers of the good news from the realm of the angels. As Adam Bittleston says:

We need in the strife of our day

St. Michael, Norton Simon Museum

The eternal Peace of the Word of God.

Seeking this Peace with our whole being

On the path which leads from the nightmare

Of endless chaos,

Into the order of heaven

And to the Father of all things—

We shall meet Michael

Who reveals how Christ

Awakens Man

That he may serve God.[1]

www.thechristiancommunity.org

---

[1] Adam Bittleston, Michaelmas II, in Meditative Prayers for Today, 

3rd St. Johnstide 2015, Who Can Be Trusted

St. Johnstide

Florentine School, Wikimedia

John 3: 22-36

After this Jesus and his disciples came to the land of Judea. There he stayed with them and baptized. John also baptized; he was at Aenon near Salim, because there was much water there, and people came to him and were baptized. For John had not yet been imprisoned.

Then a dispute arose between the disciples of John and the Jews about the path of purification. And they came to John and said to him, “Master, he who came to you beyond the Jordan, to whom you bore witness – here he is, baptizing, and everyone is going to him.”

John answered, “No human being can grasp spiritual power for himself that is not given to him from the higher worlds. You yourselves can testify that I said, ‘I am not the Christ, but I have been sent before him.’

“He who has the bride, he is the bridegroom. But the friend of the bridegroom, who stands by and listens to him, he is filled with joy at the bridegroom’s voice. This joy of mine is now full. He must increase, but I must decrease.

He who descends from above, out of the spiritual world, is elevated above all beings of the earth. Whoever is only of the earth, whose being arises from the earthly, his word is also earthbound.

He who comes from the heavens is elevated above all who have arisen from the earthly. What he has seen and heard in the world of the spirit, to that he can bear direct witness, but no one accepts his testimony.

But whoever accepts his testimony, sets his seal to this: that God is true [truth] [that there is no higher truth than the reality of God]. Whoever God has sent, his words are filled with the power of divine thought, for God gives the spirit to human beings not according to human rules, but according to the creative power that he awakens in man.

The Father holds the Son surrounded in his love, and has given everything into his hands. Whoever trusts in the power of the Son within himself, he grows out of the earthly into timeless life.

Whoever cannot trust in the power of the Son within will not behold the world of life; rather the working might of the spirit world must one day burn him like a fire that will consume him.”

St. Johnstide

July 12, 2015

John 3: 22-36

There is a part of ourselves that wants to make things happen. And to do that, we need energy and power. After all, we can’t use our power tools without plugging them into an energy source! In this earthly world, we have figured out how to create our own energy sources for our power tools.

John the Baptist also speaks about the uses of power and spiritual energy sources. ‘No one can grasp spiritual power for himself that is not given to him from higher worlds,’ he says. John 3:27 In the spiritual world we don’t create power; we receive it. For the energy source to perform spiritual deeds is generated in the heavens. We have to ‘plug in’ to a higher source.

When John says ‘I must decrease,’ he is recognizing the source and energy in the universe, which is Christ. John recognizes that he himself must depend less and less upon his own self-generated deeds and come to receive more and more of what Christ wants to generate through him. The course of John’s outer life, his beheading, seems tragic. But we know that his life continues on another , more angelic level. He is the guiding spirit of the circle of the disciples. He inspires John the Evangelist’s gospel and Book of Revelation. For within himself John the Baptist trusts in the power of the Son, the Bridegroom, and grows out of the earthly into timeless life. John 3:36  

As Psalm 15 says:

Lord, who can be trusted with power,

and who may act in your place?

Those with a passion for justice,

who speak the truth from their hearts;

who have let go of selfish interests

and grown beyond their own lives;

who see the wretched as their family

and the poor as their flesh and blood.

They alone are impartial

and worthy of the people's trust.

Their compassion lights up the whole earth,

and their kindness endures forever.[i]

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[i] Psalm 15 (The Psalms, translations by Stephen Mitchell)