Jesus and the Urantia Book
Blog Stories
Childhood and Religion
From A Sikh Religionist...
"Charter for Compassion"
  Home Page
  Quote Of The Day
  Search the Urantia Book only
  The Urantia Book
  Jesus And The Urantia Book
  Urantia Book Video
  Urantia Book Audio
  The Gallery
  Heartwarming And Humorous Stories
  Discussion Forum
  Answers To Life's Toughest Questions
  News + Blogs
  How The Urantia Book Changed My Life
  Spiritual Studies
  Get Involved
  FAQ
  Links
  About Us
  Store
  Buscar solo en El libro de Urantia
  El Libro De Urantia
  Procure apenas no Livro de Urântia
  O Livro De Urantia
TruthBook Religious News Blog



Saturday, March 31, 2007

Finding simplicity and beauty

by Interfaith Works or The Olympian.

It has been reported that when Albert Einstein was asked about the secret that holds the universe together, he replied, "When we discover it, the answer will be simple and beautiful."

We are bombarded by the complexities of life everywhere we turn; we are exposed to more information in a few years than our ancestors 100 years ago ever had to contend with. It seems like we are drowning in knowledge and thirsting for wisdom. The Rev. Richard Rohr noted that we can put a man on the moon, but fathers don't know how to talk to their sons.

The great commandments are simple - love God and each other with the same passion - yet it seems that such simplicity asks too much of us, so we build nuance upon commentary, and in so doing, free ourselves from the obligation to love.

We are entering a holy season for many and it invites us into a period of reflecting upon the wisdom of our faith. In April alone, we will be celebrating Passover, Holy Week, Easter, the organization of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and the Buddha's birthday.

Faith traditions offer simple guidance that shimmers across the spiritual landscape, but there is something within us that resists such wisdom. Perhaps it's because we don't like the challenge that such simple words offer to our sense of sophistication.

To celebrate this season of rebirth and renewal, I would like to offer a few words from the major faith traditions, hoping to entice each of us to return to our roots and know the joy that wisdom brings.

In Buddhism: "Hatred never ceases by hatred, but by love alone is it healed." The Dhammapada, Chapter 1, verse 5

In Christianity: "Love your enemies and pray for those who hurt you." Matthew 5:44

In Judaism: "He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God." Micah 6:8

In Islam: "Those who act kindly in this world will have kindness." Qur'an 39.10

Can you imagine what human history would look like if people of faith had taken these simple injunctions seriously? My prayer is that for these days of April, each of us, regardless of our tradition, would return to the sources of our faith and see what simple words would nourish our souls if we would but let them. Then, from that wellspring, may we come together to create a world that is simply beautiful.

The Rev. Canon David C. James is rector for St. John's Episcopal Church in Olympia.

Labels: , , , ,


Permalink | Link to External Source Article

Monthly Archives - Previous Articles
03/01/2003 - 04/01/2003 04/01/2003 - 05/01/2003 05/01/2003 - 06/01/2003 06/01/2003 - 07/01/2003 07/01/2003 - 08/01/2003 08/01/2003 - 09/01/2003 09/01/2003 - 10/01/2003 10/01/2003 - 11/01/2003 11/01/2003 - 12/01/2003 12/01/2003 - 01/01/2004 01/01/2004 - 02/01/2004 02/01/2004 - 03/01/2004 03/01/2004 - 04/01/2004 04/01/2004 - 05/01/2004 05/01/2004 - 06/01/2004 06/01/2004 - 07/01/2004 07/01/2004 - 08/01/2004 08/01/2004 - 09/01/2004 09/01/2004 - 10/01/2004 10/01/2004 - 11/01/2004 11/01/2004 - 12/01/2004 12/01/2004 - 01/01/2005 01/01/2005 - 02/01/2005 02/01/2005 - 03/01/2005 03/01/2005 - 04/01/2005 04/01/2005 - 05/01/2005 05/01/2005 - 06/01/2005 06/01/2005 - 07/01/2005 07/01/2005 - 08/01/2005 08/01/2005 - 09/01/2005 09/01/2005 - 10/01/2005 10/01/2005 - 11/01/2005 11/01/2005 - 12/01/2005 12/01/2005 - 01/01/2006 01/01/2006 - 02/01/2006 02/01/2006 - 03/01/2006 03/01/2006 - 04/01/2006 04/01/2006 - 05/01/2006 05/01/2006 - 06/01/2006 06/01/2006 - 07/01/2006 07/01/2006 - 08/01/2006 08/01/2006 - 09/01/2006 09/01/2006 - 10/01/2006 10/01/2006 - 11/01/2006 11/01/2006 - 12/01/2006 12/01/2006 - 01/01/2007 01/01/2007 - 02/01/2007 02/01/2007 - 03/01/2007 03/01/2007 - 04/01/2007 04/01/2007 - 05/01/2007 05/01/2007 - 06/01/2007 06/01/2007 - 07/01/2007 07/01/2007 - 08/01/2007 08/01/2007 - 09/01/2007 09/01/2007 - 10/01/2007 10/01/2007 - 11/01/2007 11/01/2007 - 12/01/2007 12/01/2007 - 01/01/2008 01/01/2008 - 02/01/2008 02/01/2008 - 03/01/2008 03/01/2008 - 04/01/2008 04/01/2008 - 05/01/2008 05/01/2008 - 06/01/2008 06/01/2008 - 07/01/2008 07/01/2008 - 08/01/2008 08/01/2008 - 09/01/2008 09/01/2008 - 10/01/2008 10/01/2008 - 11/01/2008 11/01/2008 - 12/01/2008 12/01/2008 - 01/01/2009 01/01/2009 - 02/01/2009 02/01/2009 - 03/01/2009 03/01/2009 - 04/01/2009 04/01/2009 - 05/01/2009 05/01/2009 - 06/01/2009 06/01/2009 - 07/01/2009 07/01/2009 - 08/01/2009

News Archives Predating March 2003



RSS Feed

This page is powered by Blogger. Isn't yours?
Blogroll Me!

Blogarama
The Urantia Book : Pictures of Jesus : Angel Pictures: Inspirational Quotes : Life After Death : Story of Jesus : Truthbook.com : Urantia : The Urantia Book

EXPLORE TRUTHBOOK

The Urantia Book

Jesus in the Urantia Book

Quote of the Day

Urantia Book Video

Urantia Book Audio

Discussion Forum

Art Gallery

Heartwarming Stories

Humorous Stories

Life's Toughest Questions

FAQ

Spiritual Studies

About Us

News and Blogs