Faith and Patience
From The Book of Awakening: Having the Life You Want by Being Present to the Life You Have.
Faith is the state of being ultimately concerned.
--Paul Tillich
So, faith is no more than the willingness and bravery to enter and ride the stream. The mystery is that taking the risk to be so immersed in our moment of living in itself joins us with everything larger than us. And what is compassion but entering the stream of another without losing yourself?
If asked, you'll probably hear me say that I follow an alternative faith… but in the wake of some deep though I find myself asking if that is actually true. I mean yes, I don't follow one of the major 'recognised' faiths, so in that regard it is, but was thinking, in response to this and other things of late, what is the one 'thread' that seems to permeate all faiths - the one thing, I might add - that we are all notoriously 'bad' at… because that one thing is actually at the foundation of my faith as well. I'm talking about love.
If you look at the teaching of any of the major recognised faiths you'll find some mention of 'love' in the scriptures, documents, sayings of religious leaders… and in Wicca, or course, we all follow the path of life in 'perfect love' according to the rede that charges us to 'harm none.'
I think it goes without saying that I'm not advocating going around throwing ourselves at everyone and everything - wouldn't insult your intelligence by explaining that really, but looking at love, as I said it's something we're all notoriously bad at… showing the kind of loving concern for all life that we would for those of our friends and family even to strangers… not getting holier than thou here, because I'm just as faulty at it as the next guy - especially when my patience is thin… which is seems to be a lot of the time. Perhaps that is why it is so hard for us to remember that love underpins most of the faiths in the world - or rather not to remember, but to live within the current of that love… because we all have so little patience? I don't know, I'm just speculating.
Faith is the state of being ultimately concerned.
--Paul Tillich
So, faith is no more than the willingness and bravery to enter and ride the stream. The mystery is that taking the risk to be so immersed in our moment of living in itself joins us with everything larger than us. And what is compassion but entering the stream of another without losing yourself?
If asked, you'll probably hear me say that I follow an alternative faith… but in the wake of some deep though I find myself asking if that is actually true. I mean yes, I don't follow one of the major 'recognised' faiths, so in that regard it is, but was thinking, in response to this and other things of late, what is the one 'thread' that seems to permeate all faiths - the one thing, I might add - that we are all notoriously 'bad' at… because that one thing is actually at the foundation of my faith as well. I'm talking about love.
If you look at the teaching of any of the major recognised faiths you'll find some mention of 'love' in the scriptures, documents, sayings of religious leaders… and in Wicca, or course, we all follow the path of life in 'perfect love' according to the rede that charges us to 'harm none.'
I think it goes without saying that I'm not advocating going around throwing ourselves at everyone and everything - wouldn't insult your intelligence by explaining that really, but looking at love, as I said it's something we're all notoriously bad at… showing the kind of loving concern for all life that we would for those of our friends and family even to strangers… not getting holier than thou here, because I'm just as faulty at it as the next guy - especially when my patience is thin… which is seems to be a lot of the time. Perhaps that is why it is so hard for us to remember that love underpins most of the faiths in the world - or rather not to remember, but to live within the current of that love… because we all have so little patience? I don't know, I'm just speculating.