The Christic - Don Hanley’s Blog #73

CHRISTIC

I saw this poem and liked it and decided to share it with Mary, John, Ruth and Joshua. I read it to them, and both Mary and John said that Jesus would love it, and the young couple were 'blown away'. Here it is on my blog:

I am looking at a tree, but I see such astounding beauty and graciousness, the tree must be You, O God,                                                                                                                                                         I look at the wild weeds playing across the fields and their wild, joyful freedom speaks to me of You, O God.

Yesterday, I saw a child crying alone on a busy corner, and
the tears were real, and I thought, you must be crying, O God.

God, you are the mystery within every leaf and grain of sand,
in every face, young and old, you are the light and beauty
of every person.  You are Love itself. 

 

Will we ever learn our true meaning, our true identity?  

Will we ever really know that we humans are created for  

love?  For it is love alone that moves the sun and stars 

and everything in between. 

 

We are trying too hard to find You, but You are already here,  

We are seeking life without You, but You are already within,  

Our heads are in the sand, our eyes are blinded by darkness, our minds are disoriented in our desperate search for meaning. Because You are not what we think You are: 

 

You are mystery.  

You are here, and You are not,

You are me and You are not,  

You are now, and You are not, 

You are what we will become.  

You are the in-between mystery 

The infinite potential of infinite love,  

And it is not yet clear what You shall be,  

For we shall become something new together.

Now, in the Christmas of 2924, let us become this new being - with everyone!

SEARCHING FOR A SAVIOR- Don Hanley’s blog #72

I suppose that many, if not most, nonagenarians find themselves reminiscing about their years roaming around on this little planet of ours. Of course, I do. One of the many ideas that I learned and held on to, and feel ashamed that I did, was the belief that one must be baptized a Catholic Christian if I, or anyone, wished to go to heaven. There was no word about becoming a loving person. Of course, that is ridiculous, but I’m sure many thousands (millions??) continue to believe this. And many other Christian believers hold similar beliefs. I was in my 30s when I finally realized that idea was ridiculous. How in the world could a loving God create intelligent – at least in some ways - humans and then demand that they learn and accept certain beliefs to be with Him (never even considering that God is a Her) in heaven?)

I wanted to talk to John and Mary about this. I didn’t have to wait long. Mary, John, and Joshua were sitting in Mary’s flower garden. John gave me his more comfortable chair, and I was grateful. Mary looked at me and said, “Don, you look inquisitive and maybe even guilty. Tell us what’s going on with you.”

“Well, I’m ashamed to tell you that I was taught many wr0ng-headed things as I grew up in a family of devout Catholic Christians. One teaching that particularly bothered me was that only baptized Catholics could be with God our Father. when we die. All others would go to purgatory, limbo, or hell. The church leaders, the pope, bishops, and priests all claimed that the Church’s teachings came from Jesus before he died. I was looking forward to talking to you all about what Jesus taught. What did the Mosaic tradition say about this salvation thing?”

Mary and Joshua turned to John, and he said, “First, I want to repeat what I have already told you all, and that is that Jesus only stated that if we wish to be with Yahweh, our Father, we must love one another as He has loved us. And now that he has been crucified, we know that the ultimate sacrifice is to even die for our loving rather than stop loving. And He meant this for every human in our world.  He repeatedly said, "It is not an exclusive club or set of beliefs; it is based on our love – not on what we believe. And I am not anyone’s savior – each one of us is responsible for saving ourselves by being loving human persons." I don’t think Jesus could have made it any clearer. Now, Don, what is going on in your century that this is still a question?”

I don’t think John meant to put me down, but I felt scolded and like a complete dummy. I thought of the bookstore racks displaying books entitled COMPUTERS FOR DUMMIES, SMARTPHONES FOR DUMMIES,  and many more.  We need a book entitled SALVATION FOR DUMMIES. After that brief reflection, I said, “Yes, I’m afraid it is still a question. My own Catholic Church states that we have been told that  is an absolute 'trruth", and we must believe all  church 'truths' and keep all the rules of the church or CHURCH if we want to go to heaven. Another sect even condemns dancing. For many years, I believed everyone was judged by how well they kept the church's commandments. I knew a wonderfully loving and intelligent man who had five children and did not make love with his wife because it would jeopardize her health - her life even - if she were to get pregnant again. I tried to convince him that I was sure God did not operate that way. He said he knew that intellectually but remained fearful anyway. I hated it that fear overcame love and joy.”

Mary immediately jumped in, “Now, Don, I want to join in here and be absolute, too. I am sure that Jesus did NOT, in any way, condemn people for doing what they believe will help keep them physically healthy and emotionally joyous and loving.”… and with that positive note, I disappeared. Now . . . 

Ponder the joy of being your own savior and read a few prominent menus but eat the banquet joyfully.

Christmas 2024 - Don Hanley's blog #71

MERRY CHRISTMAS - my 63rd. Personal card.

Mary said, "My Son, Jesus, would love his poem."

There’s something to know; it’s simple, it’s true.

There’s something to learn, and we’re here to grow, too.

Look deep in your heart, let it shine, let it glow.

For you’re not alone, no matter where you go,

There is something you need to know

We are beautiful, yes, but not like a tree,

We’re made to connect, both you and like me.

And we celebrate a Guy, a bit like you,

He came from God with a message that’s true.

He’s more loving, even than dear old Mom,

And He told us to cheer, so come on, and stay calm.

Let’s connect with each other; don’t be afraid.

For we’re fragile, it’s true, but love never fades.

So open your heart, join the fun with a heart

The world needs your love, your kindness, your heart!

For smarts aren’t enough if love isn’t there.

So live big and be bold – show the world that you care.

DOES GOD CREATE EVIL? - Don Hanley’s blog #70

I just read a brief biography of St. Paul of Tarsus, which stated that Paul had witnessed the stoning to death of St. Stephen the Apostle by one of the Jewish factions operating under the rule of the Roman Empire. This worried me about the depth of Paul’s conversion to become a faithful follower of Jesus. I believe Paul was the mastermind who helped make Jesus’s mission an organized religion with its many rules and absolute beliefs. I wanted to talk to my Nazarene ‘family’ about this.

When I arrived back at Mary’s flower garden, I was glad to see that John and Joshua were the only ones there. John immediately said, “Oh, Don, I’m glad to see you. I hope you can help us with a profound question Joshua asked me.” 

I replied, “And I have one for you, too. So, you go first.”

“Joshua just heard the story of how one of Jesus’s followers, Stephen, was stoned to death at the hands of one of the Jewish factions for being blasphemous when he called Jesus a prophet and possibly the Son of Yahweh. It takes a great deal of murderous rage by quite a few people to stone a person to death, as I’m sure you know. So, this raises several questions for Joshua and, really, for all of us. Why does God create and allow evil? And, after allowing or creating it, why does He not stop it when it begins or is happening? And how could Jesus say that God is love if this happens? Now, what do you say about all this?” 

I was amazed that John’s questions were, in essence, the same as mine. It also added more about the depth of Paul’s conversion to becoming a follower of Jesus. “This is amazing, John. I wondered about Paul’s understanding of Jesus’s teaching about love and life. I had just read about Stephen having been stoned to death and that it was at the hands of some Jewish believers and not by the Romans, and John was there when it happened. The article did not say whether or not Paul participated in the stoning or approved of it, but he did nothing to stop it.  We saw Mary leave Joshua and Ruth’s house and head our way. “John, did Jesus ever mention that Yahweh did or did not intervene in his creation?”

“I don’t recall him ever calling it that, but he often would say something like this: “We don’t know how Yahweh relates to all creation.  Let’s ask Mary when she gets here?” 

Mary welcomed me warmly and sat down after kissing me on the forehead. She looked around at the three of us and said, “Now you all look worried; what is it?” We told her, and she replied, “I remember him once saying that Yahweh must be asleep when we were returning from Jerusalem and seeing a row of men having been crucified and were hanging beside the road. He was trying to make light of it but was crying copiously as he said this. Later, we talked about the horror of men, both Jewish, Romans, and everyone who tortured and killed others. At other times, he insisted that our human mandate was to care for one another and all of creation, never harm them.” 

We all nodded, and John asked me what Christians were saying in the 21st. Century. I responded. “Too many continued to say that evil things happened because humans sinned. Many said that humans just did bad things because they had not been ‘saved’ by being baptized and having faith in Jesus.” I added, “And many are turning away from all religions who believe in a personal god that intervenes in our lives and acts like a puppeteer and constantly manipulates us and our reality. I like the ideas of a modern 20^th-century Jewish thinker named Albert Einstein, who stated that he believes we must believe in God so that we do not become mechanical robots.” I took some time to tell them about robots. “Einstein says that love, and therefore God, is a kind of gravity and is a force or compelling energy that holds everything together – and we humans are the one part of our present civilization that must choose to help connect this positive growth and to do it together with other humans.” 

Mary nodded and said, “I don’t quite understand this Einstein fellow, but I like the idea that we must connect to create a better world. Jesus would like that, too."

John added, “This love gravity force we have must be very powerful to hold everything together, and that doesn’t answer whether or not Yahweh creates some people to be evil.”

“The article I read about Einstein’s thinking didn’t directly give us an answer, but, as you said, John, it takes a great deal of evil or evil power to stone a person to death. We have, I believe, a great deal of power, and we can choose to use it in evil ways such as engage in wars and kill people, or enslave people, and hurt people in many ways.”

Mary added, “And punish children when we declare we are ‘just’ teaching them proper behavior. I think Paul was punished that way when he was a child. I hope he revisits us some time; I would like to discuss whether God creates evil with him. I would say that God creates the energy we possess, and we must decide how to use it. Of course, my son, Jesus, taught me repeatedly that we must love one another. And, of course, he was willing to die for that belief!” She stopped and allowed herself to cry. And I was crying too as I disappeared. Now . . . 

“Ask yourself if you are keeping an open heart and working to connect with others, not eating the menu but enjoying the banquet.” 

JESUS AND THE CONSCIOUSNESS OF PEOPLE - Don Hanley’s blog #69

Leo Tolstoy, author of WAR AND PEACE, stated that the leader of any country reflects the consciousness of the people of that country. Consciousness is how people of that country act, think, and move about in this world. That is why I’m now worried about my country, the United States of America, which just elected a man who, I believe, is a bully and mean-spirited fellow who doesn’t seem to care about others. And I think that we, I mean all of my fellow citizens in our 21^st century, are doing something similar with our insistence that we must take care of ourselves and not worry or be bothered by what others think or NEED. 

I wonder if Jesus was thinking similarly as he repeatedly said that we must believe and love others and ‘love’ ourselves. I look forward to discussing this with Mary, John, and the others when we meet again.

And I didn’t have to wait long. Mary, John, Joshua, and Julie were joyfully chatting in Mary’s flower garden. After hugging and kissing all around, I told the little gathering about Tolstoy’s ideas about leaders. All four adults began thinking about these ideas as Ruth breastfed Izzy – i.e., Isiah. I had introduced the name ‘Izzy’ a few weeks earlier when I mentioned I had a teacher named Isiah, and we called him Izzy. Ruth and Joshus liked it. Ruth left us to put Izzy to bed and stayed there with him.

John looked thoughtful as he said, “I like your Tolstoy and believe it is true. Does he say anything about the leader needing people who are very needy and dependent?”

“It has been long since I’ve read Tolstoy, but I believe he did. And that would explain why people here in Judea clamored for Jesus to be their savior and why Hitler, Lenin, and our new 21^st-century leader all said they were going to take care of everyone.” Mary, Josua, and John all shook their heads.

John said, “Jesus often said that the various Jewish leaders, whether they are Pharisees, Sadducees, or whatever, had so many devoted followers – who did not know that they had the power to know and understand themselves and had the freedom to choose what kind of laws they needed and wanted to follow. And, he would always add that whatever they chose to believe and to believe in, it must be life-giving and loving and that each one, in connection with others, has the power to make it so.”

Mary added, “Jesus insisted on this from when he was a small child.” She chuckled and said, “Joseph and I didn’t know what he was talking about, but we kept listening to him and learning. We had learned that all we needed to do was follow what was taught by the leaders – and we needed to be with one of the groups, like the Pharisees or Sadducees or whomever.  To my knowledge, no one told us we should think for ourselves first.”

John grinned, saying, “That would take everyone away from them. Don, will this new leader of yours try to do that?”

“He’s going to try. Our country’s founding fathers …” 

Mary interrupted me, “Why didn’t they include some women - some founding mothers? They would have made it even better, no?”

“If it happened in our current 21^st century, they could have, and it would have made it better. Even as it was, the founding fathers wrote in the Constitution of our country three branches of government that needed to cooperate to take care of governing business. And Mary. did you and Joseph belong to any of the many groups of Jews here in Judea?” 

“No, we did not. Before Jesus was old enough to get us to thinking, we just followed the other Jews who followed the Mosaic laws – rather obediently, I guess you’d say. Looking back, I guess you would call us no-brainer faithful Jews.” She chuckled. “Jesus made us thoughtful Jews, and we began to do things and believe things only if they made sense and were what Jesus called life-giving.”

“I guess my parents and my family could have been called ‘no-brainer Catholic Christians’, and I think most of what they did was life-giving, too.”

John had been listening carefully and said, “I suppose this newly elected fellow believes that he is the 21^st century ‘Anointed One’ who will take care of you all.” I nodded and said, “I’m afraid so.” And with that, I disappeared …Now

“Keep an open and hopeful heart and mind, and don’t eat the menu and enrich the banquet of your life.”

CHRIST IS NOT JESUS’S LAST NAME – Don Hanley’s blog #68

As I arrived back in Nazareth, I was still in a somewhat depressed mood. Mary, John, and Joshua were waiting for me, as there was a vacant chair between them. They greeted me warmly, as usual. Mary opened our discussion, “Well, my time traveler friend, are you still moping about your election in your current 21^st-century home?”

I asked her, “What makes you think I’m moping?”

“Because you look like it – your smile is gone.”

“Yeah, I’m so darn sad about that damned election. You know, the very strict so-called Christians believe that this no-heart fellow was elected because God wanted them to. I wish there was an easy way to teach people that the real God does not order people to do anything, He just wants them to connect with one another in a loving way! But tonight, help me forget it, and let’s discuss whether or not I want to find out if the word ‘Christ’ was given to Jesus before He was murdered?”

Mary shook her head, not to say it was not true, but that she didn’t like it. John said, “I’m afraid many did. Of course, you know that it means ‘the Chosen One’ or the ‘Anointed One’; worst of all, they saw Jesus as the ‘Messiah’ who would lead the Jews out from under the yoke of Rome. I think the Jewish people were so hungry to have a leader who could free us from the Romans, and they liked the giftedness of Jesus that they insisted that he was the special one – the Messiah. Jesus insisted that he was only the Son of Man; he wanted every human to realize they could be connected, loving, and gifted. He repeatedly said that he, perhaps, was gifted in a way that allowed him to accept and love himself and others in a life-giving way, but he was not Yahweh nor the one and only son of Yahweh or the one we call our Father. Don, do the followers of Jesus in your home century know this and know that they are gifted in the same way Jesus was?”

I hated to tell John the terrible news that the vast majority of those who called themselves Christians were not in touch with the fact that they were gifted with the ability to love as Jesus did. They continued to hold on to the notion that Jesus was, and is, God – and one of the three persons in a small God. Three – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit- Jesus was and is on a completely different plane of existence from them. Mary shook her head, and John looked dismayed and said, “Do they, at least, realize that they have the giftedness in them that Jesus displayed in his earthly life?”

“Only the very holy ones whom they call ‘Saints.’ These saints are usually very conforming men and women who slavishly follow what they were told were Jesus’s commandments. I often heard ‘Christians’ say that the really ‘holy’ ones should just join a religious order of men and/or women and not bother the rest of us. So, many have done that and become very enlightened folks and do a great deal for one another and for other humans, Christian or not. I thought of joining one of those groups, but I wanted to be like my idol, Father Chisholm, who went to another country to tell them about Jesus.” I added, “And John, you stated in your  own Gospel that Jesus was the Messiah, didn’t you?”

John seemed a bit taken aback: “You know that my writings were not published in my lifetime, and it is possible that someone edited them so that they conformed to what was becoming the common belief of followers of Jesus. That makes me sad.”

John continued, “I would like to return to the formal names people here in Judea called my friend and mentor, Jesus.  Jesus repeatedly said that all of God’s children, old and young, black, brown, white, or whatever, were the same in God’s eyes. He detested the fact that too many societies formed special castes for different groups - and claimed to know God in a way that no one else could, and so they were the Chosen People to the exclusion of everyone else. He disliked that many passed this ‘specialness’ on to the next generation. A person could be chosen as a leader, like a king, but he should see himself as a servant of the people, not someone superior or able to order people around. He said that if everyone learned about and followed his ideas and created groups of folks who would help, cooperate, and love one another, then we would not need police and lawmakers.” John took a deep breath and slumped back into his chair.

I said, “Well, John, we in the 21st century have not made it much further. Too many so-called Christians are eating the menus as Mary said Jesus called those who did not live as they professed to do.” I paused and added, “But I believe there is an evolution of consciousness, which makes me hopeful.” … I then disappeared.

Please open your heart and mind and enjoy the banquet of life. Comment on this blog or help me find hope in our 21^st election.

OUR MIND MUST BE CONNECTED WITH OUR HEART - Don Hanley’s blog #67

Last evening, I watched an inspirational movie entitled I CAN ONLY IMAGINE. I’ve never been a fan of Country-Western or Gospel music, but this is the story of a fellow who writes and sings both. He was alienated from his alcoholic Dad, and he had left his faithful girlfriend and joined a band. He is an excellent songwriter with a fantastic voice, but he didn’t make it ‘big’ until he had an ‘ah-ha’ experience of enlightenment and ‘found’ or ‘saw’ Jesus.

His singing and songs didn’t have ‘soul’ until he forgave his dad – who had a similar encounter with God- and reunited with his girlfriend. I wanted to tell my Nazarene folks about the film, but then I would have had to explain films, the Gospel movement, and modern culture more than I already have. So, I decided to try to explain my ideas that we needed to have the ‘right’ mind as it is connected to the open heart. I wanted them to know that I know that our heart needs to be connected to our brain to be truly enlightened, i.e., transformed into a total Christian follower of Jesus.

Again, John was the only non-Nazarene sitting with Mary and Ruth this evening. Joshua was with Julie and Isiah in the house. Both women greeted me warmly, and Ruth stood by to hug me. Mary was, like me, old enough to have the privilege of remaining seated. Mary had a topic she wanted to discuss, and it matched mine.

“Don, we’ve been talking about love a great deal – going back to when Jesus was a young lad. I remember one day when he was around twelve. We had gone to Jerusalem, and while Joseph and I were shopping, Jesus talked with a group of elders who spoke Greek and Hebrew. I spoke a little Hebrew, and neither Joseph nor I spoke Greek, but Jesus, to our surprise, seemed to learn both almost instantly. As the three of us were returning home, Jesus was very excited to learn that the Greek language had two words for love – Agape for Yahweh’s love for humans and all creation and eros for the positive feelings between a man and a woman and deep friendships. Jesus wondered if his love for his father and me was a combination of agape and eros because it was too strong to be only one. So, Don, what do you think? After all, you are, in a way, 2,000 years older than we are.” Ruth and John nodded in agreement.

 I was flattered that Mary would ask me about love as she was the living specimen of love – SHE IS LOVE! Anyway, I answered, “First, I want you to know that I’ve learned more about love, or being love, from meeting with all of you than I did in all my ninety-plus years of life. So, you validated and enhanced the ideas I had about love. I’m afraid that the Catholic Church, and Christians in general, have put too much emphasis on what we intellectually think about what Jesus said and stood for than they are about being kind, joyful, and experiencing love. Too often, I fear thoughts have become more important than being. Too often, our 21^st century Christians are more worried about being orthodox thinkers than being loving human beings.”

I continued with a personal experience: “When I was accepted as a candidate to become a priest by a very kind bishop, or high priest, I believe you would call him, I did not realize that I would be expected to conform to all kinds of restrictions to be a ‘good’ or respectful priest. Nor did I know that I would be expected to unconditionally accept as absolutely true all that I would be asked to memorize during my eight years of training.  But I thought I could still be like Father Chisolm in the film Keys of The Kingdom. Anyway, my accepting bishop had retired before I became a priest, and we got a new fellow who was very unkind and completely orthodox. One time, I celebrated Mass with a small group of nuns (I had explained earlier what a Mass was and who nuns were) without wearing all the required vestments. One of the nuns reported this to the bishop, and I was ordered to report to his office.

In a very tone of voice, he said, “Father Hanley, do you think that you know more about the sacred rites of our church than the holy congregation in Rome?” I knew he expected me to apologize and promise to be more obedient in the future, but after I hesitated a few moments, I said, “You know, Bishop, for a small group of nuns in Kansas, I believe I do.” The poor man turned crimson, shook, and yelled, “You, Father Hanley, are a Free Thinker! Get out of my office right now!”

“He confirmed what I had already believed but had not said aloud – We are born to be and/or become FREE THINKERS, and I believe Jesus believed that also.” Mary and John confirmed it, and I was satisfied with myself as I vanished. Now…

Please open your heart and ensure it is securely connected to your brain—not to someone else’s brain—and enjoy the adventure that is your life!  "And let us use this time to reflect, recharge, and emerge stronger than ever. And together we can create a brighter future."  Patrick Ball, my friend and mentor.