Eleven Years

Today marks eleven years since the official end of my career as an air traffic controller. 
As much as I enjoyed the ATC gig, being retired from it is way better! I haven't engaged in supplemental income through contract work as an instructor or staff at any facility and don't understand why others have. I am apparently much less driven to have more, do more, or be more than many of my former coworkers. My pension, Social Security, and Thrift Savings Plan are enough to support my simple retirement lifestyle. 

My retirement from the evangelist/gospel magician gig came a few years later when we were unceremoniously invited to leave the church where we had served for a couple of decades because we didn't object to allowing a transgender woman to be a part of the fellowship. 
Wow! Talk about blessings in disguise! 
Admittedly, I kind of miss the magician part -- more than the ATC gig, and definitely more than the church/religious bullshit. In fact, these days I rarely make an appearance in church of any kind, and when I do it is with a small group from church that meets at a brewery!

My life today is much different that what I might have imagined it to be eleven years ago. 
But I am a much different person than I was eleven years ago, so it makes sense. 
Life happens.
People change.
People grow.
Or maybe people stay the same and you (or I) grow.

I am at peace.
I think I've always been able to find the centering peace within me, but it is helpful to be truly aware of oneself and to be able to purposefully find the calming, peaceful, almost magical presence that connects us to everything around us. Perhaps mystical is a better word than magical.
I wish I had been paying attention to that voice rather than allowing myself to be controlled by the church voices and others that speak and teach from outside of myself. 

If I were ever to go back to preaching, that is what I would teach -- that the Spirit of God lives within you. Find that voice.
Nurture that part of your being -- feed it, exercise it, help it to grow.
Learn to recognize that same spirit in others. 
Let the spirit connect us to each other and to the world around us.

Think about the philosophy that we are not bodies with souls, but rather we are souls with bodies. When we begin to view life from a spiritual perspective rather than a physical perspective everything changes.

Earthly status doesn't matter in the spiritual realm.
Wealth doesn't matter in the spiritual realm.
Power  doesn't matter in the spiritual realm.
Skin color doesn't matter in the spiritual realm.
Gender doesn't matter in the spiritual realm.
National borders don't matter in the spiritual realm.
Even the religious beliefs of us humans don't matter in the spiritual realm.

Find and strengthen the God spirit within yourself, then look for and connect with the God spirit in others.

I don't think it is a message that will preach well in our world today. Too many want to cling to the perceived power or control that their current beliefs give them.
Fair warning!!! -- Following Jesus is way harder than worshiping Jesus.

There!
I said what I said.
Now you know why I don't preach anymore.

John

Thursday Theology

I know -- this meme over simplifies the issue of religious control over its adherents. That's kind of what memes do. They are not comprehensive thoughts; just brief bits to make you think.

So let's think about it.
Although only three characters are mentioned, there are four men pictured. I am guessing that the fourth is representative of the Jewish religion and is supposed to be Moses. I don't know that. It's just an assumption on my part and an apparent afterthought of the meme creator.

I have read the teachings of some Buddhist monks and teachers.
I have read the gospels and the teachings of the New Testament.
I have not read the Quran nor many Islamic teachings. I probably need to.

As a follower of Jesus, I do need constant reminders of what he taught. Reading and understanding what he taught versus hearing what religious leaders have to say about it is often tricky and contradictory.
Many of the teachings of the Buddha and Jesus are very similar. As I have said, I don't really know much about the teachings of Mohammed. 

There are many more people that have influenced large and small sections of humanity with philosophies of how to live with one another. Some (like Buddhism) tend to be more philosophical than religious. And there are, of course, humanists that are more focused on using science, reason, and compassion to live ethically and achieve the best by everybody making contributions to living in society and community with one another.

The Christianity of most of my life taught me to believe certain things, say certain things, and to judge people and life based on what eternal reward or punishment one might receive after death. But as I read the gospels without the controlling bullshit of religion, I find that the teachings of Jesus are more about how we should live with one another daily than they are about what happens when we die.

There is a derogatory saying about Christians being too heavenly minded to be of any earthly good that brings that thought to reality. Following Jesus today (for me) is more about how I live and love today and less about what is going to happen when I die.
Even my concern for others today is more about how they live and love (and even hate) today than it is about what will happen to them when they die. 

What would happen if we were less worried about what happens after death and more concerned with the world we live in today?
I hope that whatever guides your life will lead you to live well -- today.
I hope that it will lead you to love well -- today.

John

June 29: Day 180

It's difficult to believe that the year 2025 is almost half over. July 2nd is the 183rd day of the year, making noon of that day the halfway point. I can't say that I've accomplished anything significant in the first half of the year, nor do I have any great plans to achieve greatness of any kind in the second half of the year.
Unfortunately, I am happy to enjoy each day as it comes and I tend to enjoy the simplicity and beauty of the small world around me.

Although I truly have very few people encounters throughout the week, I did manage a few good conversations last week. Reflecting on how much I've changed over the past few decades is interesting. Going from Southern Baptist Evangelist and doing revivals and kid camps that were complete with altar calls and encouragement for repentance and surrender to the religion of Jesus is pretty far from the seldom going to church, anti-religion, to each their own, but still a Christ follower that I am now.

In my few conversations with people, I find that many are searching for a community in an otherwise chaotic world. A trusted community seems to be an elusive thing for many adults in the US. It may be so in other cultures, as well, but I think that the competitive way of life in the US has destroyed community as a culture here. We would rather get ahead of our neighbor as individuals than to help the community be better as a whole. We seem to be far more concerned with getting more for me than doing better for all of us. 

Even as I recognize this need for community in our culture, I am not likely to be the one that ushers in the changes necessary to bring about the cultural shift. Community building requires far more people skills than I have in my limited toolbox. Plus, many of the community seekers are from younger generations and have community needs that I am unaware of. 

Perhaps something like the new cell phone restrictions in Missouri schools will help change the culture from the head down, eyes on the screen behavior to actual face to face communication with peers and teachers. The restrictions may provide more than eliminating learning distractions. It may bring cultural changes to how and when we use certain technologies.

Have we replaced our community with technology?
Have we taken technology that could give us more free time and used it to give us more time to work harder to make more money, accumulate more power, and achieve a higher status?
Has social media replaced personal friendships and interactions?
I think that is true for many people.

Honestly, I don't have much of a community. 
And that's okay with me.
I am fine with going to the ballgame alone, or going to watch the fights by myself. My only real hobbies are reading and working in the yard -- both are things that I do solo. 
Maybe I need a community more than I think I do.

Tell me about your communities.
How do you cultivate mutually beneficial relationships with groups of people?
Is it something that is teachable or easy to replicate?
Is community a basic human need?
Are we better off as a species when we work together?
If so, how have we gotten so far away from building and being cooperative communities?

Those are my thoughts.
What are yours?

John

Monday Morning Contemplations

June is the time of year when Facebook reminds me of all of the summer church camps that are a part of my past. I have had inquiries about doing magic since then, but I really haven't done any practice for a very long time. I may have done a little more preaching/teaching since those long ago days, but not too much more and not for a couple of years now.

Yesterday I was asked if I am still religious.
It's interesting when you have to examine who you are and how you have grown over the years to answer such a question. 
In truth, I have never really considered myself to be religious.

Side story:
Maybe 20 yrs ago
I remember walking in DC with members of NATCA's National Constitution Committee. One member that was a pretty vocal atheist prefaced a question by saying, "Hey, you're a religious guy..."
I interrupted by saying, "I am not!"
He paused, looked at me for a moment, and said, "Yeah, I get that, but..." and then went on to ask his question.

I'm actually more anti-religion than I have ever been.
That is not to say that I think churches or church camps are bad things.
I don't.
There are even parts of that previous life that I miss and think were beneficial -- both for me and for the kids that got to experience those weeks at summer camp. Sometimes I wonder what it would look like today if I were to step into a reconstructed Pastor John role. 
What would an anti-church camp be like?

I believe there is so much good stuff found in the teaching of Jesus that I don't ever see myself setting it aside and turning away from it. 
I also believe that there has been so much harm and destruction caused by churches (and religion) of all kinds that I find embracing a regular practice of religion to be a bit repulsive.

So -- 
No, I don't consider myself to be religious.
I do believe that I have become more spiritual. If I were going to assume a role similar to that of my past I might strive for something more like a modern day mystic than that of a preacher. 
Mystic, sage, mage...
Mage! Magic! Yeah, that's what I'm talking about!

No.
Not really.
I am happy in my quiet, isolated life.
No shows.
No stage.
No platform for preaching or teaching other than this little read blog.
I'll occasionally toss a few insignificant words into the cyber world and be happy if anybody reads or comments on them. And I'll be okay if nobody does.

Today (like most days) I will connect to God and nature by doing a little yard work and trying to coax a few flowers to bloom.

John 

The Kingdom of Heaven is at Hand

I suppose there is nothing like the death of someone to get you to think about the afterlife or if there even is something beyond our human existence.
According to the gospels, this is what Jesus taught -- The kingdom of heaven is here; it's right now. It's at hand.
It's a little odd that we westerners tend to look at the teachings of an ancient middle eastern man from a western perspective rather than from an eastern or middle eastern one. Eastern religions and philosophies teach us to be present; to live in the moment. It seems like quite a shift for us westerners to grasp this idea of mindfulness, but could this be what Jesus was talking about? What if heaven isn't a place we go when we die, but it is where and how we are living now?
And is the same thing true for hell?

The simple truth that I've come to in my own personal journey of faith is that I really don't know and am not equipped to tell you what you should believe. That's a huge shift from being a Southern Baptist Evangelist or even just from being an evangelical Christian that believes he has all the answers about your eternal salvation. 
I'm interested in your beliefs and philosophies on life, death, heaven and hell, but I can promise you I will have questions if we discuss them. My questions aren't to contradict nor criticize, but rather to understand how you have arrived at your beliefs.

I realize this is a short and unfulfilling post about religion or religious beliefs, but it's all I can weave together this morning. There are lots of thoughts in my head that I just don't know how to write in words or if there really are words to adequately share them. 

Two life philosophies that I am willing to share --
Live in the moment (be present)
Love your neighbor (everyone is your neighbor)

John

Monday Meditations

I saw this on Facebook this past week and decided it is worth contemplating.

It encourages us to look at people (not just ourselves) from a different perspective than we often do.
As trees grow, they continue to provide food and shelter for birds and other animals. They give shade. They filter the air taking in carbon dioxide and giving off oxygen. They blanket the ground with leaves and replenish the soil, and provide a host of other benefits.

We get old.
I no longer work or produce anything to benefit society. I often say that I am the least productive person I know. Maybe building flowerbeds and planting flowers is productive. It does feed the birds and bees and other pollinators. 
I did switch to a hybrid vehicle this year and that's better for the environment than the older car I was driving, plus it provided work for the laborers that built it (in Mexico).
I am still a consumer of goods that buys stuff and eats out often. I'm not a job creator, but I do need people in jobs that provide services and products that I use.
I may not be productive at this point in my life, but I do pay for other people to produce. I guess it's called privilege.

Maybe I need to focus more on growing and continuing to be a benefit to society. I think that trees are a good analogy since they are pretty passive in their contributions to nature. 

Hmmm...
Are you growing?
...or just getting old?

John

How is your journey?

I saw this posted on Facebook this past week and saved it.

I thought it would be useful for a Monday Meditation post.

I have many pleasant memories from the past, but I rarely dwell there.
I know there are apologies to be made, and I don't mind going back to address those things.
But in contemplating where I am on life's journey (and where I appear to be going), I have to say that I have few regrets about life to this point. Even those regrets are best addressed by moving forward to make changes rather than looking backwards and dwelling where nothing can be undone.

I don't see life looping back around to re-embrace religion. I feel like I'm in a good place spiritually and enjoy the occasional "church" interaction with folks at The Venues. Although I am not deeply involved in the ongoing work of The Venues, I do feel connected to the community and (like in the rest of my life) will continue as a kind of non-productive member.
I also have service and spiritual connections with members of other faith communities in the area. I do value these connections.

My self-imposed isolation is teaching me where and when I can be more effective in people interactions. Being more selective has greatly enhanced my inner peace. 
The alone time allows me to store energy to willingly give away for people interactions. 
There are a few people that share their energy and they are the ones that feel like my tribe. My alone time has helped me to recognize those people in the crowds and make those connections, however brief and infrequent they might be.

How is your journey?
Maybe a meditative pause to look around would be beneficial. 
Are you where you want to be?
Are you on the right road to get you there?
Do you need to recalculate?

Pause
Take a breath
Look around
Reset your sights
Move along

John

The Circle of Life ... ?

I've been wondering...

In the movie Lion King there is a scene where Mufasa is teaching a young Simba about the circle of life and the way of the world. He says that even though they (lions) eat the antelope while living, when they die their bodies become the grass and the antelope eat the grass, and such is the great circle of life.

But when we die, our remains are filled with chemicals, placed in a metal coffin, and buried in a concrete vault. We never really return to the earth from which we came.
Have we broken the circle of life?
How would our environment be different if we allowed dead bodies to return to the earth?
What if burials didn't include all of the packaging and bodies were just wrapped in a blanket and placed six feet under and buried simply?
Or we were all cremated and the ash returned to the earth?

I know it's a weird thought, but my brain wonders about such things.
I think we tend to upset nature by doing things in very unnatural ways.

What weird things work into your thoughts?

John

Monday Meditation

I was reading in the Bible -- Matthew's account of the Sermon on the Mount -- and I have some questions.

First of all -- a disclaimer or warning:
I am a follower of Jesus. Much of my life's philosophy and perspective is taken from the teachings of Jesus. I also read other perspectives and I am sure that those thoughts (and philosophical truths) will find their way into my Monday Meditations, but most thoughts will be based on my philosophies of life that were formed in my Christian upbringing.

Back to the Sermon on the Mount --
Towards the end of this story, Jesus says that not everyone that calls him Lord will enter into the kingdom of heaven, but the one that does the will of the Father who is in heaven.

Later, in the 21st chapter, Matthew records Jesus's teaching of The Parable of Two Sons. Here, a father tells one son to go work in the vineyard and the son says, "No," but later goes and does his work. The father tells a second son to go work in the vineyard and the son agrees to do that, but never shows up.
Which one does the will of his father? 

What is Jesus teaching in these two lessons?
I would think that evangelicals would wrestle greatly with these passages. A simple, bare bones explanation of their teaching is to pray this magic prayer, ask Jesus into your heart, and be saved. But don't these teachings of Jesus contradict that?
What about that person that never walks an aisle, responds to an invitation, or prays the magic prayer yet does the things that Jesus teaches (the second son)?
What about the person that goes to church and professes to be a Christian, but doesn't take care of the oppressed, poor, sick, imprisoned, etc.?

I think these things are worth understanding -- but not to apply to others. We need to understand these things for ourselves.
Another teaching from the end of the Sermon on the Mount is that we don't judge others. Jesus says that the way we judge others is the way we will be judged, and the measure we use is the same that will be used for us.
It seems that most religious people want to use the Bible as a standard for others to measure up to, rather than as a guide to live by for themselves.

These are my thoughts in self examination today.
Am I living according to what I claim to believe?
Or do my actions show that I truly believe something other than the faith I profess?

What about you?
Are you who you claim to be?
What do your actions say about your true beliefs?

John

Sunday Morning Contemplation

The other morning (a week or so ago) it occurred to me that I really haven't had a good meditation session in quite some time. I suppose that such things need to be planned out and scheduled just like physical exercise. Planning and scheduling aren't listed in my strong suits.

I still have my daily quiet time, but it isn't very structured and purposeful meditation hasn't been a part of it for some time.  Most mornings are spent just listening to nature and watching the hummingbirds at the feeder. I make my connection to God through creation. It's not exactly prayer time, but it works for me.
I believe that mindfulness practices are beneficial -- both as physical and mental/spiritual practices. 

Some time ago I wrote about sharing meditative practices and haven't really done that. Maybe if I did a weekly post -- Monday Meditation -- or something, it would keep me more focused and also provide a mindfulness reminder for some others. 
I have no research to support this opinion, but I don't believe that mindfulness or regular meditative practices are very common in the western world. 

Do any of you have a regular (or even irregular) meditative practice?
It can be anything from dedicated prayer time to mental contemplation on a long distance run.
Where do you get your mental rest? ...your focus? 
Where do you find your peace?

John

A Hard Lesson: People are just people (Philosopher's Stone)

What lesson have you learned the hard way? A long winding path almost always teaches us more than the short, straight one. Embrace the struggle.

Yes, I'm cynical. That's my nature.
And yet it took me most of a lifetime to learn this lesson. For the most part, the teachers have been pretty decent people -- some of them are even friends, Most of them I no longer keep in close contact with. Sometimes that's my choice. Sometimes it's theirs. 

If given the choice between doing what is right and what is best for themselves, generally speaking, people will always choose to do what is best for themselves.
Recognizing that has given me the freedom of not being let down by people. While it might appear that I am not a very trusting person, I believe that I am very trusting. I trust people to always look out for themselves even if it isn't always the right thing to do. 
Don't get me wrong -- I know there are people that sacrifice a lot of time and energy serving others and doing things that make the world better for all of us. They are certainly exceptional people and they are pretty rare.

Allowing people to be people may seem like a sad kind of existence, but really it's not. It reminds me of the line in The Eagle's song -- "...I know you won't let me down, 'cause I'm already standing on the ground."
In my world, you are free to be yourselves.
A few of you will always choose to be exceptional people.
Most of you are good, decent, and very likable people and I trust you to generally do the right thing in your eyes. Examining behaviors from the perspective of the person doing whatever action often leads to a better understanding of why they did it.
And some of you (far too many in my estimation) usually choose to be assholes -- and that's okay. You get to be you.

That's my hard lesson.
What's yours?

John

Philosopher's Stone

I was going to write about this morning's prompt from my online gratitude journal:

What lesson have you learned the hard way? A long, windy path almost always teaches us more than a short, straight one. Embrace the struggle.

As I thought about what I was going to write for the blog, I was thinking about how I would label the post and didn't think that any of my current labels fit it well. I thought that maybe it was time for a new label -- or maybe even time for a new, separate blog all together -- one that expresses different philosophies of life.
Nah, I don't need that. I usually just write that crap here but haven't really labeled it as such.

Like most people, I borrow philosophy from others and adapt it to my own personal experience. I also have my own philosophies that I have arrived at through experience, contemplation, and observation.
Different faith communities and faith leaders have given us many good philosophies of life. Christians and Buddhists have many books and practices that have gone beyond their own followers' lives and influence the general public in many ways. I imagine that the same is true for Islam, but I am less familiar with those teachings. There are also a great many atheist philosophers that give us deep insight into the workings of humanity in relation to each other and to the world around us.
While philosophy isn't truly a science in that it relies more on observation and logical analysis rather than on empirical evidence, I still find it a fascinating study. 

The philosopher's stone is a reference to the ancient alchemy of searching for a tincture or powder to change base metals into gold or silver. It is (or was once) believed also to give long life or immortality and its roots are both ancient and diverse. I don't know that the alchemy of the past and the philosophies of today hold much in common, but I think I'm going to use Philosopher's Stone as the new label for my philosophic ramblings.
I'll get around to sharing my answer to today's prompt on another post. For today I'll leave you with a link to an old favorite tune by VanMorrison -- The Philosopher's Stone

John