Speaking of Spirit

 Photo (c) 2016 Rev. Linda M. Rhinehart Neas Long before her death, my mother told me that the yellow butterfly was her sign or symbol.  She said, "When you see a yellow butterfly, it will be me."  After her death, a yellow butterfly has visited me often.  The serendipity of these sightings is often so poignant as to bring me to tears.  Skeptics, on the other hand, tell us that we see signs and symbols because we want to see them. They say that our need to have some kind of proof causes us to find an answer where there really isn't one. This may be, however, there are times when things happen, when signs appear where the variables are simply too high to brush off as matter of fact. In my life, I have found signs and symbols that could not be reasoned away on multiple occasions. Allow me to give you an example of the most recent event.  My daughter and family were on a river in Maine with her husband's sister and her family. The boys were playi...

Photo (c) 2017 Linda M. Rhinehart Neas The stormy winds of time and space can leave us feeling ramshackled and beyond all hope of repair, but, as Pete Seeger said, "There is always hope." The most dilapidated building can be repaired and restored.  Our spirits are even more capable of this kind of transformation, if we allow the Light into the darkened corners. Hope allows Love and Faith to plant seeds of new beginnings within us. As those seeds grow, our once crumbling spirits begin to rise and flourish. We are never beyond Hope! Like spring gardens that appear as wastelands until the rain and sun nourish the plants to blossom and bloom, we, too, can revive with Hope, Love and Faith. May we all feel the warmth of Love, the strength of Faith and the tenacity of Hope as we travel along Life's path.  Blessings to all!

This is called the Season of Light and Love, but what does Love have to do with it?  How do we factor in love as a symbol of holidays that give witness to the duality of light and dark in the world. For me, Love and Light go hand-in-hand. Think about it...don't you "light up" when you see someone you love?  Have you ever witnessed "love lights" in someone's eyes?  How often have you heard or read that falling in love was like having a fire burning inside? With the feeling of love, comes the desire to give. If we think about gift-giving, which is a prominent tradition during this time of the year, love is a huge factor. We give gifts, symbols of our love and affection, to those we care about, those we hold close. We also give gifts as a sign of friendship. (Love is synonymous with charity, agape, and goodwill.) In cultures around the world, gift-giving is an important part of keeping the peace, showing respect and gratitude as well as demonstratin...

There is a crack in everything, that's how the light gets in. Leonard Cohen   In September, the season of Light, Love and Gratitude began. This month, people around the world celebrate - the harvest (Sukkot), grateful for the bounty they have been given; the Light (Diwali), observing Light and darkness; and the love of ancestors (All Soul's Day/All Hallows' Eve), remembering our dead and giving thanks for their lives with us. As we move forward towards the end of the year, the feasts and festivals of Light, Love and Gratitude continue.   This year, there is a greater need to observe these days, together. The world is very "dark" in so many places due to natural disasters, hate, oppression, and greed. Observing these Holy days, reminds us that even in the darkest night the Light of millions of stars illuminates the sky. These times together remind us that Love is eternal; that those who shared our lives are always with us. These celebrations remind u...

Photo Credit: (c) 2017 Band of Angels - L M Neas The last nine months have been increasingly difficult for so many around the world. Politics aside, there have been numerous natural disasters that, at times, have made it difficult to feel safe, let alone know what to do. But, when random violence is added to the mix, our security bottoms out, leaving us all vulnerable and filled with fear. Random violence with hand guns and automatic weapons in the United States has become daily news. Our schools, churches, and venues of entertainment have all been placed in the cross hairs of someone's gun sight. During these times, the first thing many people do is turn to prayer, which is exactly what happened this past week, when a killer let loose on innocent victims in Las Vegas. This time, however, there was a torrent of memes on social media disparaging prayer. "Get off your knees and do something!" one such message read. Another stated, "The time for prayer ...

Photo Credit: (c) 2017 L. M. Rhinehart Neas Whatever kindnesses we do for others, we do for the Divine, which is what we read th roughout the sacred scriptures of almost all faith paths. As children growing up with a vivid imaginations, we may find it easy to see the Divine in others. However, as we grow older, more occupied with the trails and tribulations of life, this ability wanes.  How can we meet others in a continual spirit of Love and Compassion? How can we keep our inner eyes open to seeing the Divine in all, even those who are difficult to care about in this world, now?  First, as always, we must see the Divine within ourselves. Each of us is born with this Sacred Spark within us. This is what helps us to feel the pain of others when they suffer, and the beauty around us when we are in nature. This is what brings us joy.  If we feed our spirits, the spark can become a beautiful, loving Light. If we continually harden your hearts, ignoring the pain and...

Photo Credit: (c) 2017 Linda M. Rhinehart Neas       Blessings! For Christians around the world, today is Pentecost Sunday. This is the feast of the Holy Spirit. Today, more than ever, I believe we are in great need of the Spirit in all our lives. We, like the early disciples, are full of fear. The world around us is dangerous. Sometimes it feels that hatred is running rampant through our lives. But, if we open ourselves to Spirit, remembering that we all carry within us the Spark of Light from the Divine, then we can release the fear and walk fearlessly into the darkness of the world. How can we do that? How can we joyously leave the shelter of our rooms to share Love with the world? First, we must disassociate ourselves from that which sucks our hope, trust and love dry. Turn off the media. Leave the doomsayers behind. Second, we must nurture our own timid hearts. We must feed our souls with Love and Beauty. We must spend alone time with Creator. W...

Sam Mugraby, Photos8.com CC via Wikimedia Commons This week, both Jews and Christians celebrate their Holy Days of Light, Love and Peace. Candles will be lit, gifts exchanged and traditional foods shared. There will be prayers and readings from scriptures, as well as the observance of ancient rituals. Followers of both religions will hope for peace. Peace seems such a distant concept these days, however. Those that strive to create it find pockets of peace in their lives and the lives of those they love, but their dreams, their hopes of peace world-wide face the gales of hate and greed. Still, they burn their candles, lighting the path they travel for themselves and those close by; they shield their candles from the treacherous winds that attempt to blow out their light.  This image of candles and light, of love and peace being share is an ancient one.  Many legends, myths and stories use the imagery of a candle to interpret these qualities. One of my favorite q...

By Scott Kelly Public domain via Wikimedia Commons According to Doreen Virtue, Lightworkers are " those who volunteered, before birth, to help the planet and its population heal from the effects of fear." Doreen is best known for her books on angels and their role in our lives. I found her thoughts on Lightworkers interesting. I was brought to thinking of her writings when I woke this morning thinking that now the Light will return. This was my waking thought, but I think it had more to do with the work we humans have to do now, than the length of sunlight per day. So, I looked up Light Work, which brought me to Doreen's website. When the Dark is most obvious, it is easy to feel that there is no Light. However, there is always Light. Right now, in the world, there is a heavy, overpowering sense of Darkness. Many people feel full of despair. Hope appears to be waning, but the truth is that there are even more people sharing the Light at this moment in time than e...

  New Grange, Ireland - were the sun lights up the tomb during the winter solstice. Photo Credit: R. J. Welch (late 1800's) For Christians around the world, this Sunday is the 4th Sunday of Advent.  Advent, a season of anticipation...of hope.   In many other cultures and spiritual paths, this time of year is also a season of anticipation, of hope and of new or rebirth.  Humans from the earliest of times anticipated the return of the sun in the northern hemisphere, thereby creating the connection to Light at this time of year.  They hoped that their harvest would last throughout the long, dark winter days. They awaited the new birth of life to the fields, with their animals and even within their communities. As our longest day - the Winter Solstice - is celebrated this week , along with the other Holy days of Hanukkah, Christmas, and Kwanzaa, let us ponder what we are anticipating, what we are hoping for and how we can become part of the birthi...

The days are getting longer.  The sun is warming the Earth, melting the snow to provide nourishment to the new growth that lies beneath the ice quilt of winter.  Spring is Nature's long awaited wake-up call.  Spring is also the time we, humans of the Northern climates, practice various traditions of self-renewal, growth and awakening. Like Nature with its occasional Spring snows, we sometimes resist the call to become introspective. We, too, want to cover our heads with the blankets and tell the Light to go away for a bit longer.  But, in truth, the Light is always there, calling to us, shining for us.  We are the ones that chose to turn a blind eye. Staring up at the blue skies, I call out to the Creator... Bless us with Your Love and Light!  Warm our frozen hearts so that we may become instruments of Peace and vessels of Love.  Nurture us with Your Grace so that we may bloom to be the best we can.   As Spring awakens the Earth, awaken...

Choices!  Everyday, we face millions of them.  Some are split-second, done without even thinking; others we deliberate on for hours; still others can be so agonizing, we feel we have no choice at all. "Everything in your life is a reflection a choice you have made.  If you want a different result, make a different choice." (Author unknown) The thing is, though, when we are in the middle of untenable situations, the entire world grows dark, or rather, appears to grow dark. We can make the choice to fall deeper into the darkness or turn around.  We can walk back down the tunnel we entered, as difficult as it may be, walk towards the light until we emerge from the pain and suffering that seems to overwhelm us, or not. The choice is ours. Author, Mandy Hale said, " Growth is painful, change is painful, but nothing is as painful as staying stuck somewhere you don’t belong." Unfortunately, many of us think that we somehow belong in a place of pain and suffering....

In the past, there was a tradition of placing a candle or a light in the window if a loved one was traveling.  Guest houses would also do this, letting the weary traveler know there was lodging within that particular dwelling. As a child, we lit candles (electric ones) in the windows.  We also lit candles on an Advent Wreath. When I asked why we did this, the answer was,"to show we are waiting."   Now, we are in the middle of the Season of Light and Love.  Many people from many different cultures are lighting candles and fires of various types or will be soon. If we look back to the traditions from whence these rituals came, we find that the lighting has to do with expectation, with welcome, with hope. Expectation, we lcome , and hope are empty when we have no idea what it is we are waiting for, welcoming in or hoping to have happen. Therefore, my question is still , "What are we w aiting for?" If we are waiting for Peace, for Love, for Light to retu...

  Photo Credit: by Sasha Kopf under GNU license on wikimedia commons Often, we are faced with making a decision that fills us with fear.  Often, the only way to get where we need to go is to have the courage to take a leap of faith.  Often, the courage comes from a tiny spark  - like a satellite sent towards the dark unknown, which finds new universes, our tiny light suddenly is revealed as the brilliant star of hope. The following is by John O’Donohue , a poet and philosopher who is best known for his book, Anam Cara, (Gaelic for "Soul Friend"; 1997). This is a poem about finding that light. For Courage ~ John O'Donohue When the light around you lessens And your thoughts darken until Your body feels fear turn Cold as a stone inside, When you find yourself bereft Of any belief in yourself And all you unknowingly Leaned on has fallen, When one voice commands Your whole heart And it is raven dark, Steady yourself an...