TO LISTEN TO PART 10 OF THE STUDY GROUP, CLICK HERE
This audio tape is the studied chapter from the book Breaking the Habit of Being Yourself, by Joe Dispenza, which you can purchase on Amazon. We are also excerpting the music of Peter Kater and R. Carlos Nakai , “Call to Enchantment” and “Honoring,” which can be purchased on i-Tunes.
We will continue tomorrow at 8 PM, by calling 218-936-4986, pass code 48201.
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The Brown Girl dares to step out of the box of conventionality that has always excluded her – to envision a creation that is far more inclusive, one that sees beyond the European biblical tradition that “remade its past to suit its own interests”– and recalls ancient Africa’s place as the Motherland of creation.
Moses says to the Israelites, “you forgot the God who gave you birth” (Deut. 32:18 NIV). Isaiah said that God cried out like “a woman in childbirth,” reminding her children that she upheld since conception and “carried … since… birth” (Isaiah 42:14, 46:3). It was this Mother God, Hosea recalls, who taught us to walk, who healed us, who lifted the yokes from our necks, who bent down to feed us (Hosea 11:3-4).
Even Pope John Paul I recognized that God is not just our Father; “even more God is our [M]other.” Hence, we should not be limited to a male-dominated creation mythology that leaves out the Mother Creator.
God as Mother is not merely Creator but is creativity itself.
Creator as Mother is the epitome of Love: love as grace, love as compassion, love as peace, love as strength, love as power, love as wisdom, love as community, love as justice, love as faith, love as hope. Creator as Mother is not a gender – but is the energy of creation constantly and continuously creating itself.
Few would dispute that due to European male dominance of Christianity as a tradition, God the Father governs the majority of our relationships with God. But that solely paternal relationship is often limited to the over-literalized metaphor that it is.
The paternal image of God as Father has so monopolized “Christian speech about God that the equally legitimate and in some ways even more appropriate symbol of God as Mother [has been] eclipsed.” However, this historical, political, cultural, and economic dominance of man over woman does not dispel the Truth that God is greater than any pre-conceived notion of human sexuality or gender. God’s attributes as Creator can be better identified with the attributes of Mother as the major creative, life-giving force in the world.
“Since it is women whose bodies bear, nourish, and deliver new persons into life and, as society is traditionally structured, are most often charged with the responsibility to nurture them into maturity, language about [Creator] as mother carries a unique power to express human relationship to the mystery who generates and cares for everything.”
The Brown Girl, as a Columbian Indian, sings that God is “the mother of all races, the mother of all tribes. She is the mother of the thunder, mother of the rain and rivers, the mother of trees and all living things.” Of course, many if not most theologians choose to stay deeply embedded in a tradition merely because it is traditional; they refuse to entertain Creator as Mother since “the Bible speaks of God as ‘Father’” – fully ignoring the fact that the biblical image of God was created by men wrote the Bible.
The Brown Girl – surrounded by the hatred and condemnation of a white male-dominated world, is a Creator who uplifts those who have been marginalized and demonized – putting them in their rightful place as equal heirs to the throne; a Creator who has “a mother’s love that makes the beloved beautiful”; a Creator whose love cannot be earned or merited but is “freely and abundantly given.”
Creator as Mother generates everything and ensures that it flourishes. “Without origin, without source, without beginning,” Creator as Mother is not a gender but is creativity itself. “Creation is not something God did . . . Creation is something God does and is still doing.”
“There is a creative force constantly at work in man and all creation.” Creator as Mother is “sympathetic, comforting, loving, forgiving, and instantly healing,” with all “compassion and healing power of the Father at ‘Her’ command.”
Those of us who are oppressed, marginalized, denigrated, and impoverished realize the presence of God when we understand that “every moment is the beginning of a new creation.” Creation did not begin and end in seven days; those days are just symbolic of the Truth that “[w]herever there is the evidence of creative action, there God is.”
“God is closer to us than we are to ourselves.” We experience God through our expressions of the creative source. We are a living expression of God.
Last night, I was watching Will Smith’s movie Collateral Beauty, about a man who loses his only child, a daughter who was only six years old, and the pain that he grows through in order to return to himself. The movie raises the question what is “collateral beauty”? We always talk about collateral damage, the negative secondary or by-product of an accident, catastrophe or tragedy that brings additional pain, hurt, injury, and suffering. But we never talk about collateral “beauty,” which is, to me, the ability to see the glass half-full instead of half-empty, the ability to see the presence of God, even in the midst of messiness, turmoil and strife.
The movie Collateral Beauty focuses on three attributes, which in many respects reflect mind, body and soul: death, time and love.
The collateral beauty of our challenges is that they allow us to re-start, to re-invent, to re-create, to re-establish who we are – to get rid of the old so that the new can emerge. In John 8:51, Jesus says “Very truly I tell you, whoever obeys my word will never see death.” Nothing and no one can destroy the pure presence of Spirit expressing as us. So we get up from our mats and walk. We rise like a phoenix from the ashes. In three days, we find our temples restored.
It doesn’t matter what or who we are confronted with in the world, nothing or no one is too great for God. Even what others mean for evil, God means for good. As the scripture teaches us, the battle is not ours, it is God’s. No weapon formed against us shall prosper.
The collateral beauty of disaster or difficulty is that we can experience the fullness of the perfect divine order of life, realizing that despite appearances, we are in our right space at our right time.
Collateral beauty is more difficult to see because we are distracted from seeing the good everywhere present, the birth of Spirit all around us, the widow’s oil that keeps pouring, the baskets of fish and bread left over. The Psalmist says (27:4) “One thing I ask from the Lord, this only do I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze on the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple.”
So even when we are blinded by the events and transgressions of the world, through their impact, we are given a new vision: one that allows us to see God in every word, every breath, every event, and every circumstance.
Or I can step out into the sunlight of a new day, a day that I have never seen before. I can release the baggage of yesterday. I can climb a new mountain and cross the waters of new faith, realizing that this, too, shall pass, but more importantly, that this – whatever this is, is the blessing of collateral beauty: a small crack in the universe, where I can see God.
Luke 17:20-21 says “ Once, on being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, Jesus replied, ‘The coming of the kingdom of God is not something that can be observed, nor will people say, ‘Here it is,’ or ‘There it is,’ because the kingdom of God is in your midst.’” The kingdom of God is everywhere you are because the soul is everywhere you are.
Joel says “God is the divine being of you, your very life, your very Soul, the Self of you.”
Our resurrection comes with rising from the dead of complacency, the dead of fear, the dead of regret, the dead of worry, the dead of shame, the dead of the appearances of things. “The goal is releasing the Soul from the tomb of human existence, more especially the tomb of the human mind. In your periods of introspection or contemplation check to see to what extent you are imprisoned in your mind and body. ” (Joel S. Goldsmith, Consciousness Transformed)
The soul is always waiting to align us with the favor that is everywhere present. Albert Einstein illustrated the pure potential of life with a simple equation: E = mc2, demonstrating that energy and matter are so fundamentally related that they are one and the same. Essentially, his work showed that matter and energy are completely interchangeable. We are gods, as Jesus said, given the power of pure potential. In this realm of pure potential, all else is added. Our good is already there, already here.
Walt Disney carried Mickey around in his pocket in the appearances of poverty and despair, failing to realize that a mere mouse would manifest millions. Connecting with the soul, finding space in the kingdom within is endless abundance, infinite prosperity filled with love, gratitude and grace that will bless us past, present and future.
Today I envision myself as the whole being of God: without boundaries, limitations, or doubts. In this kingdom, I see my soul, beautiful, loving and powerful. Everything that celebrates me as a full expression of God is here. I am free. I do the work of God with brilliance, integrity, joy, and light.
This is from a previous class on the teachings of Joel Goldsmith.
This was taken from the 7th Section of Joel’s book
I am love in all things.
This is a prayer that we not lose ourselves in the fabric of the law firm, the corporate world, the police force, the military, the government, the university, the hospital—or wherever we find ourselves collectively giving to society—but that we understand that Spirit put us there for a reason, and part of that reason is what we as individuals bring as separate, creative expressions of Spirit.
This is a prayer that we have the vision and the faith to celebrate our gifts with every task that we perform by never being afraid to speak our truths and tell our stories and do our best. Being the best at who we are in all of our imperfections, not perfection itself, is a blessing.
This is a prayer that we put our egos aside to contribute what we can, whatever guise it may take, and that we be there to mentor those who need mentoring and that we grow and improve ourselves and increase our knowledge. We pray that we continually bless others in ways we cannot even imagine.
If others second-guess our skills and abilities, it only shows their shortcomings, their fears, and their need to grow, not our own. More importantly, the opinions of others are grossly over-rated and give us an opportunity to trust our own judgment. This means that we must be open-minded and receptive to good advice but know the difference between someone else’s judgment and our own wisdom – by developing a discernment that is not merely intellectual but Spirit- based.
Centering in Spirit helps us stand strong in the workplace, to be a tremendous success and a great asset because Spirit guides us continuously. Regardless of what we are doing, all we need to do is to be open and receptive to that guidance.
This is a prayer that we center ourselves in the guidance that Spirit gives us, especially in the midst of those who do not recognize our greatness, those who question our worth, those who diminish what we can offer. Only God realizes our greatness, and God puts us in our right time, at our appointed place to contribute, develop, and move forward. This is a prayer for us to shine our light, our gifts, our talents – that only we can offer.
This is a prayer that we find a space for Spirit at work. We spend such an enormous amount of time giving to our jobs and our businesses that if we do not take Spirit there, it is absent for 75% or more of the time that we live. There is no separation between us and Spirit merely because we leave church, or temple, or synagogue, or mosque. This is a prayer that we continue to be centered in Spirit—particularly in places that are most in need of its presence. This is a prayer that we allow Spirit to use us and to be so centered in Spirit that we realize it is with us—especially at work. This is a prayer that we open our consciousness to the presence of Spirit in the mundane and everyday, ordinary encounter. . . .
THIS IS AN EXCERPT FROM REV. LOVING’S BOOK
I honor the Divine that birthed the unique being CALLED ME.
I honor the Universal Ethers that formed every hair, every molecule, every fiber, every divine vibration of the I AM that I AM.
I honor the Cosmic Womb that delivered the light that shines as me.
I honor the Spirit that carried me into this reality of absolute good that we call life.
I honor the Perfect Harmony that called me from the endless bounty of this time space continuum before I was shaped in the womb.
I honor the Souls who came before me and through whose legacy I began, not simply because I am, but because without them, I would never be.
I honor the God that gave me a destiny in the irresistible vortex of my desires.
I honor the Ancestors — expressing through me the love of enlightened purpose and endless possibility.
I honor the Christ that died for me because in the second that my Savior died I began.
I honor the Breath that the Holy Ghost breathed as me in the transformational moment of my spiritual liberation.
I honor my Mother, and in so doing, I honor all of who I AM.
Mothers do not only bring out the best in us, they are the best in us.
They are that aspect of us that sacrifices all to give to others.
They are that co-creative side of us that will bring forth all energy, all resilience, all commitment, all compassion, all power to give birth to something greater than ourselves.
A mother is the deep wisdom in us that knows, really knows as much as God and sees through all appearances of things, and reaches beyond flesh to pull us back from waywardness to righteousness.
A mother is that balance in us of carefulness and carefree-ness, of resistance and release, of responsibility and blame, of praise and humility.
My mother had 5 children, and from a very early age I wanted to emulate her and so I sat on the porch with about 5 dolls lined up under my care and protection because I appreciated the sacred act of mothering and the love that she gave me.
Thich Nhat Hanh says that our mothers are so profoundly connected to us that they continue to nurture us even when they have left the fleshly realm, that they never stop giving us life, that we can always call on their support.
I have been a mother to you, and each one of you has been a mother to me. We will give birth to spiritual children while we live, and through our life and practice, we will continue to give birth even after we die.
And so I want to give everyone an opportunity to celebrate the mother today: The mother who gave you birth; the mother who keeps giving you birth; and the mother in you; and the mother you will always be – even after you are no longer on the earthly realm.
My Mother is a reservoir from which the continuous stream of good constantly flows into my life, a stream that has nothing to do with money or bank accounts — but flows endlessly from inexhaustible supply.
My mother is complete faith, unlimited joy and calming grace that blesses me with a life so wonderful that I have never even dared to imagine it.
My mother is the divine ideas that keeps anointing me with fresh stories and new friends and untold strength and cosmic energy.
My mother is the success, overflowing from the abundance of gifts in the irresistible vortex of my desires.
My mother moves through my life through a community called church and a vibrant connection of Oneness with each and every one of you.
My mother is the freedom that resurrects me through the all-encompassing soul of my being.
My mother is the prayer that is always answered and is always blessing me.
she wishes she could tell you the beginning so that you would realize the end
move with the Holy Spirit, move with the wisdom that there is no separation between all that you are and all that I am. You flow, you live, you laugh, you sing, you dance with a new understanding that you are unlimited in the Spirit, regardless of the appearances of the flesh. You are Spirit in movement.
You are not a religion, you are divine truth. You are constantly re-defining yourself because there is no limit to Spirit. In John 14:12, Jesus said, he who believes in me will do the works that I do also; and greater works than these will he do. When you dance in the Spirit, you realize that if things are not going the way that you want them to go; if you are not satisfied with the direction your life has taken; if you don’t like the experiences that manifest in your life – you have the power to change them.
When you dance in the Spirit, you know that if patterns of negativity keep showing up in your life – such as disharmony, loneliness, pain, physical discomfort, financial insecurity, lack, worry, doubt – you can change them. You can wake up from your self-limiting thought and you can experience the ceaseless flow of good – and turn your life around. You can dance.
When you dance in the Spirit, you shake the dust off your feet. You bless the people who are not in accord with your greatest good, who do not support you and do Spirit calls you to do. You dance in the joy of infinite possibility. You dance in the hope that you can create, grow, plant, deliver, empower, ignite, vote, rap, sing, write, dig, teach, sell, envision, tap, rescue, develop, uncover, realize something in your life that will heal the world of hatred, of doubt, of lack, of limitation.
The Psalmist says in the 8th Psalm, the 6th Verse, you have given him power over the works of your hands; you have put all things under his feet. You dance. No matter how unimportant, how trivial, how average, how unattractive, how old, how overweight, how unnecessary, how disabled you may seem to you, the dance that you do could not be done in quite the same way – without you doing it. You dance in the realization that you are my unique melody sung once – only once as you – one melody of Spirit singing itself into the continuum; and the music of the spheres would not be complete without your voice.
You dance in the truth that Spirit moves through you. You have something wonderful to offer life, which can only be created as you. When King David brought the Ark of the Covenant to the City of David, which to the Israelites was the ark where God was kept, David danced before the Lord with all his might. This mighty king made up his mind right then that he would tap dance, break dance, cabbage patch – clap his hands and stomp his feet – that he would gladly be a dancing fool – not just for a wooden Ark but for the Spirit that dwelt within him.
Throw away your crutches – whatever shape they may take. Get up from beside your pools of Bethesda. Touch the hem of my beloved Jesus’ garment. Rise up like Lazarus. Run the race and don’t get weary. Renew your course with a new strength, a new power and a new victory. There really is nothing, absolutely nothing that can hold you back. So press forward not just to win the prize but to dance – all the way to the finished line.
God is a Brown Girl Too 