We don’t think ourselves into a new way of living. We live ourselves into a new way of thinking. – Richard Rohr
How do you respond to the above quote from my personal “guidance counselor,” Fr. Rohr? Does it make sense to you?
I was raised to believe in God and that Jesus was The Son. There was a lot of modeling in my family for what Christian love is. My Mom was even “born again.” While that is something I can’t even understand, it did change her life and, sneakily, made her the rock of our family in a way we didn’t notice til later in life.
But I have always searched for “meaning” and, even as a kid, I intuitively felt that something else was going on underneath the surface of everything. I now understand that “something else” is what I call “Christ” –the spirit that animates all living things. Dylan Thomas called it “the force that through the green fuse drives the flower.” You can call it anything you want – force, Spirit, Source, Bhudda, Allah, Cletus – or don’t call on it at all. Just flow in it – because it’s flowing all the time. And it is love, because “creating” is inherently “loving.” We don’t create things we don’t enjoy, right? Neither does God.
Coming to this understanding has made a huge difference in my life, as I no longer struggle with whether or not I “know Jesus” or am “born again.” Now I see these terms are really saying “live in the flow,” too. Yes, there is suffering, war, systemic oppression and icky bugs (I guess God must like them if he made them)…but we all know light – and an act of kindness, a flower growing in the rubble – stands out brighter in contrast to the darkness.
As Thomas Merton said, there is a “hidden wholeness” that unites us all. We just keep fighting over fragments.
Ultimately, living with all the questions from my upbringing has led me to living with the answers I am finding in this never-ending journey of discovery as an adult. I have experienced the spirit and love of “Cletus” 🙂 – rather than just letting some authority tell me what to “believe.”
I think that’s what Fr. Rohr means. But then, thinking only gets me so far…then it’s that “something else…”
Happy Easter and New Springtime Life!
Love,
Gwen
PS. Celebrate the season with our new release, IN THE GARDEN: JAZZ HYMNS FOR EASTER. No preaching, just good music. Enjoy!
