Muddy Waters

There seems to be quite a bit of “muddy water” going around. According to some people in our news media all Muslims are terrorists; yet according to a recent report, most acts of terror in America were perpetuated by white, racist organizations who claim to be Christians. The issue of Russia’s recent laws against gays and lesbians has caused enormous controversy with regard to the Olympic Games in Sochi in 2014; while the International Olympic Committee is being criticized for reminding our gay and lesbian athletes that any political statement (e.g., waving a rainbow flag) is prohibited until IOC regulations (the punishment being ousted from the Games), some of the warnings are no different from those given in 2008 for the Beijing Games due to possibly upsetting the Chinese goverment.

People are still arguing both sides of the Zimmerman case…well, at least some people. Many of us have gone on to the next “issue-du-jour” because new upsets are ever so more juicy and intriguing than some problems we been droning over for weeks. Wow…talk about a can of worms! So what’s a religious scientist like myself to do?!?

The answer, of course, is easy. That’s one of the benefits and joys of our teaching – the answer to every question is the same:  Treat. Yep, good, old fashion Science of Mind prayer treatment that does one very, very special thing. No, it’s not a plea to an invisible old man in the sky who might (IF he’s not having a bad hair day) grant our wish. No, it is quite the opposite. Our treatments do NOTHING to God, or the Universe or Spirit, if you prefer.

Treatment changes our consciousness, our perception of the apparent problem, injustice or inequity. Doing that moves us toward understanding in solution. The answers may present choices we don’t want to make. I don’t know about you, but I’m certainly glad I didn’t have to be on the jury for George Zimmerman, given all the facts that were reported by the media in spite of so much other very different information that was never revealed or used in the courtroom. At the same time I empathize with the plight of gay men and women athletes who have trained for years and given up any semblance of a personal or social life and now must decide whether to risk arrest or worse just to compete in the Winter Games.

These events (and so, so many more … I left out all the wars, women’s rights, global warming, gun control…etc, etc, etc) can do one of two things. They can put us in a state of immobility or reaction due to fear, anger, outrage or terror. Or, they can be an opportunity for healing and positive action. For that to happen we must first clean out our own consciousness. Scripture encourages us to take the rafter out of our own eye before attempting to remove the splinter from our brother’s eye. My spiritual grandmother, Helen, says it another way:  “You can’t get clean water out of a polluted pipe.”

We have the power to make a difference, but pointing our fingers at others is not going to do anything except perhaps make us feel justified in our high-bustle and self-righteous indignation. Let’s make Grandma Helen happy and make sure worrying about all the problems in the world isn’t just a good excuse for ignoring what we really need to do:  Give our own pipes a good cleaning out.

In Spirit, Truth and Playfulness,

Terry