Speaking of Spirit

Today, I have a guest writer, the Rev. Teal Gray, ND.  Rev. Teal and I became acquainted during a discussion on how to talk about being and interfaith minister. After that talk, we shared other beliefs and comments with each other.  One of the topics we have covered in our short time as friends is our experiences with spirits and the paranormal.  The following are Rev. Teal's thoughts on why she keeps an open mind on this topic, questioning, interviewing and sharing what she finds.  “But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all: for to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healings by the same Spirit, to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. But one and the same Spirit w...

A colleague asked me this week how I stayed so positive - wasn't I upset by the happenings around the world?  I stood looking at her for a minute, collecting my thoughts.  Of course, I'm upset about the horrors of this past week, month, year!  The pain I feel for my brothers and sisters around the world is palpable. But, if I succumb to the pain, how can I do the work I need to do?  So, I stay positive. How? First, I limit my access to the news media (no TV, no cable) .  I know what's going on in the world.  I read the headlines. (BBC is my go-to news source because I have found it gives a much less biased view of news than other agencies.) I don't need to sit in front of a television screen 24/7 to know that the world has serious issues.  I don't need to be terrorized in my own home by newscasters who sensationalize every event and promote an aura of despair, distrust, hate and apocalyptic claptrap. Second, I focus on what I can do to make t...

  The news this week has been horrific.  I know that I cannot stop the hate, the poverty, the wars, the disease or the oppression.  I also know that continual immersion into the negative aspects of life eats away at ones ability to remain hopeful.  This is why I disconnected my TV after 9/11.  The hate mongers were terrorizing me in my own home and I wasn't going to remain placid. In many of the scriptures from various faith paths, followers are reminded that during times of pain and sorrow to "turn your eyes upon the Lord/Beloved/Source of Hope/Creator/Almighty/Light of the Divine." But how can we do this? What are our alternatives? For me, the answer came as I left work after the 9/11 attacks.  I was working at a hospital and needed to see a patient facing surgery.  As I walked across the parking lot to the hospital, my mind and soul were struggling to regain balance.  In desperation, I prayed, "God help me!"  At that moment, I no...

Photo Credit: By David Shankbone (Own work) CC BY 3.0  via Wikimedia Commons   Several years ago, when I was putting my first book together, I came upon this quote by Elie Wiesel , "I write to understand as much as to be understood." Those words captured, for me, exactly why I write.   Today, as I opened the BBC News page, I learned that this great human, who inspired so many and lived his life as an advocate for those oppressed by hate, had died. Suddenly, the brilliance of this morning's light dimmed for me. With mixed emotions, I spent time pondering the life of this gentle man. Like a beloved grandfather, he ha d given me so many lessons to learn and ponder with his writings , his work and his life. I g i ve thanks that he survived the horrors of the Holocaust, thereby, becoming a living example of hope and tenacity . I mourn him as if he were a dear relative, for truly, he was someone who had influenced my life more than some of those blood rela...