The Divine Lure

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"As within, so without.  As above, so below."

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As I write this message,  I am standing outside, under an umbrella in the rain, in downtown Indianapolis at the City-County Building, preparing to vote in the 2020 Presidential Election. People are standing and staying! The line is inching forward moderately. We're all out here doing what we believe is our civic duty to help steer this country in a direction that is for the highest well-being of all (at least that is my intention for being here).

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Sadly, many of our ancestors endured great terror and some died for my simple right to be here, this moment. I honor their legacy by simply showing up.

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In all of this, I'm reminded of a term I learned in seminary, called "process theology". Simply stated, process theology is the study of the nature of God [it involves the concept of God] as co-creative Spirit working within and among humanity, luring us to greater expressions of love and well-being. This divine lure of love, this impulse of love, is primarily exercised through the agency of human freewill and consciousness. This way of viewing God and life is juxtaposed against what might be a more traditional concept of God: God unilaterally acts in the world, forcing all things to be the way they are, irrespective of human will; or that anything that happens in life is the perfect will of God (which I personally do not believe).

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Instead, the God that I lift from Scripture (in light of Christ's finished work), and my own experiences and that of others, resembles more a persevering, co-creative Spirit of love and well-being that outlasts any curse.

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How do you view God?

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This is one of the most polarizing elections, and yet it is a symbol of something very spiritual.

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I oftentimes am reminded of this truth: life often reflects back to us some aspect of ourselves!  If we learn from the reflection of events and circumstances, finding the hidden correlations in aspects of ourselves, then we may become more spiritually attuned and empowered to manifest the good.

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Democratic elections are one example of how mass-consciousness interplays with individual states of consciousness, and vice versa.  These thought-forms and beliefs form ways of viewing society and the world, and give birth to events and experiences. This ultimately shapes the social climate of the world in which we live. I see God being intricately interwoven into that process, yet not overriding the freewill that humanity has been given.

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Collectively, we can choose to be self-centered, fear-mongers, pandering to hate and prejudice, or be passionately involved in caring about the good of the whole and the advancement of the entire human family, fostering more opportunities for love and beloved community. After all, God is love.

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Either way, Dr. Martin Luther King's words ring true: "We  must learn to live together as brothers [and sisters] or perish together as fools."

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Those ancient words still ring true. "As within, so without.  As above, so below."  May we be conduits of more heaven within, so that we can experience more of the same in the world around us.

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~Jason Powell

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