November 23: Jesus Beyond Dogma II: xxiii – Science has not invented beauty.

 

There is a tremendous wonder about the way creation works. Science has not invented the beauty in creation, merely discovered what was already there. Creation seems to have been on the brink of destruction so many times, yet things never come to nought. Birth, death, rebirth flourish at an astounding rate – forever to be reborn. The secret of miracle is not divine magic but the unlimited potential of cosmic energy. Miracles belong to the ordinary not the extraordinary – miracle is where life is lived fully – the baby gurgling and happy, the serenity of an elderly face… Where love and trust are cherished sharing is always the result – miracle is what happens when love, trust and truth are life’s guides.

There are many whose poverty is ill health of body, mind and spirit; and it is short-sighted to equate curing with healing. We can and we do wonderful things in curing bodily illness – but we need also to attend to the need for overall healing of body, mind and spirit. There has to be inner healing from pain, abuse, and hurt… to set free a spirit longing for wholeness. Many people experience this new found freedom whilst still being constrained by physical limitation. I can be fully alive while being severely constrained physically.

For centuries there has been awareness of spirit power – especially to do with air, wind and water – with the rhythm of the seasons and the cycle of birth-death-rebirth. For ancient folk the Spirit was at once benign and fierce, near and distant, tangible yet ethereal – totally unpredictable. Because those ancient folk lived in tune with Creation they accommodated to life with the spirit world. But once we became owner occupiers with the agricultural revolution, and broke up the land into possessions, we lost contact with Creation and its Spirit centre, replacing it with the man-made spirit of divide and conquer – and having disconnected from the cycle of birth-death-rebirth, death was seen as the supreme evil.

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