Progress of Women – Don Hanley’s blog #39

I felt more uncomfortable as I sat before Mary and waited for John to bring a chair from the little house.

As soon as John sat down, Mary said, “I hope you remember, Don, that you disappeared last time before you answered my question about whether our human species has or has not helped women to become equal to men. So, I hope you have given that some thought.”

I managed to look her right in the eyes and say, “Yes, Mary, I have given it a great deal of thought, and before I say more, I want you to know that I have a friend back in the 21st. century who reveres you and is critical of my writing as if I know you in my dream world.

Do you mind me talking and writing like I know you as a regular person as well as the mother of Jesus, who I think of as our guide to a more conscious realization of how to be more aware of why we were created and how to be closer - more loving - to you, Jesus and God? And I am so thankful that you are so lovingly present in my dreams.

Without hesitation, Mary, responded, "Well, Don, it is mutual - I very much enjoy your presence in my consciousness. Jesus educated both Joseph and I that we are naturally ONE with the Father and with all creation. So, now, please tell me about the progress of women in your century."

 

I thanked her for her understanding and acceptance and said, "Well we, especially in the United States, have made great progress in advancing women to a place equal to men – especially in the last one hundred years.  It has been a long and very slow process. I think that women helped men so much that men too often took them for granted – like air and water and acted like they were just there to serve the males. Even when I was young and in my early adulthood, marriage ceremonies stated that women must honor and OBEY their husbands, and husbands must only cherish and provide for the wife.

That demand for obedience rankled many women, and for centuries, they had no way to change it. Then, about a hundred years ago, many brave women in Europe and North America began to make a lot of noise about it, and some men began to join them. It was about time. And you know that I hate the word, and the demand for, obedience and want to replace it with respect.”

Pausing the discussion on women's rights, I had to clarify the locations of Europe and North America to Mary and John. I didn’t want to delve into a geography lesson, so I kept it brief. Returning to women's roles, I asked John, "Didn’t Jesus speak about how women were treated?”

John sat up straighter and said, “Oh, he was very grateful to them for all that they did for us, and he, I think, just kind of fell into the same kind of thinking that other, more ordinary men thought and, that is that women are created to have babies and to serve us, men.” I glanced at Mary, who shook her head and rolled her eyes. John saw her and added, "Jesus said that women naturally realized his teaching that we are one with those we truly love. He said that women knew intimately what he was talking about because they carried this oneness in their very bodies when they were pregnant with a child - they and their child were one - literally. And if they, the mothers, had even a modicum of love in their own lives, they continued to have this connection with the child. He loved to use he example of mother and child as you know, Mary." With this, Mary smiled and nodded.  John continued, “And remember, Jesus was with us, as a public teacher, for only three years before he was executed, so he didn’t have time to talk about everything, like slavery, what the role of women, how to be good and fair employers or good workers and all that. He was more interested in teaching us, his closest and most dedicated students, how to be authentic, unselfish, compassionate, kind, and loving people. Now, as you and Mary talk about the role of women in our society, he should have brought them into the dedicated circle, for, after all, women, as mothers, are naturally the most loving people. I think that you, Mary, are more loving and kinder than any of us apostles, and the two or three women who were with you when Jesus was dying already had what we called the indwelling of his Holy Spirit. Do you agree, Mary?”

I looked at her, and she seemed quiet and deeply in thought. She looked at John and rather solemnly said, “Yes, I do agree, and both of you must realize that my son did not create the spirit, force, or power or make it appear among us now. He insisted that the spirit of Yahweh has been with us, and with all creation, from the beginning of time – and Jesus was just more fully in touch or filled with that spirit than others, and he desired that all humans need to open themselves to that spirit, and so be kind, and loving creatures.”

And darn, I was getting into the depth of what Mary said, and again, I just vanished. So, now, please . . .

Open and nourish your heart, thoroughly study this menu, and enjoy the banquet.

Three Women and One Man - Don Hanley’s blog #38

For nearly two weeks, I pondered Mary’s question about whether the role of women had changed for the better since Jesus had walked around in Judea. Luckily, it took me that long to come up with a partial answer, and that night, I dreamt that I would be back in the flower garden with Mary and John.

Again, Mary greeted me warmly and said, “Well, my century-hopping friend, what did you come up with about the role of women over all these years?”

“I’ve given it a lot of thought, and there have been some changes, but it has been very slow. And has taken all these years. As you know, in your time or, I should say, in this time we are sitting here, women are often treated about the same as slaves. The big difference is that women can move more freely than slaves. For example, I heard that you and two other women were present when and where Jesus was crucified.”

Immediately, I was sorry I brought this up as Mary turned ashen, and tears began to flow down her cheeks. I started apologizing, but she held up a hand with her palm facing me and murmured, “Please don’t say anything. Being reminded of that horrible day always saddens me deeply. After over two or more years, I think of that day, and tears come. I believe it is rather like a prayer that I need to clear my mind, so do not think that it is you who have hurt me.”

“Would you please tell me what you experienced that day? The true believers of my time believe that Jesus died for our sins. It would help me if you would tell me what you think or maybe what Jesus would probably think of that.”

Mary looked up at me like I had lost my mind. She wiped her tears and said, “I see you are serious! I think that is pure nonsense. What kind of God, especially as we believe, a God who is also our Heavenly Father, does a thing like that? He would not create us and everyone and everything and then send us a wonderfully enlightened man to tell us that we are capable of creatively loving Him and all His creation and then kill him in one of the cruelest ways ever known. Surely, Don, you do not believe that." She stopped speaking and with a startled look added, "Do you?”

“No, Mary, I do not believe that.” I did not want to add to her grief by saying that it was still being taught by Christian ministers and even was taught to me when I was preparing to become a Catholic priest.

She seemed to relax and added, “I was so puzzled that day, and I still am, by the fact that John, here, was the only male friend of my son who joined me and two women that day. I asked one of the Roman soldiers if he had a mother and if he would like her to be present when he was dying. That question seemed to awaken him from what had appeared to be a kind of stupor, and he looked at me for the first time and nodded. I then asked him how long my son, Jesus, would hang there before he finally expired. He said maybe as long as two or even three days. I asked him how he or someone could make it shorter.

Without saying a word, he took his lance and made a deep cut in my son’s side, and blood spewed out. I cried then just as John, you, and I are crying now, for as long as Jesus’s blood flowed from his body.” As she told us her anguishing story, she and John looked distraught as they sat there. My dream-guiding angel thought I had done enough harm, and I vanished. Now, please . . .

Open and nurture your heart and contemplate this and other menus, but do not eat them.

I Am My Own Savior – Don Hanley’s blog #37

This was the longest dream involving Mary that I have had. I was talking about what I thought about children and what people needed to truly follow Jesus’s teachings. So, I’ll continue . . .

“Now, John, you were saying that when you wanted people to remember your time with Jesus, you didn’t want to lecture them but to get them to feel what Jesus wanted them to experience, remember, and change how they lived. Is that correct?”

“Yes. I had seen too many Jews mouthing what Moses and the Prophets said and then go about their lives and being as greedy, fearful, and hurtful as they were before they ever heard the words and stories.”

Still looking serene but listening closely, Mary said, “I remember Jesus, as a boy, saying that too often people just eat the menu and fail to see and enjoy the banquet. He meant the banquet our Father had created for us – including our ability to create, inspire, love, and connect with others. Joseph and I realized that our son was teaching us many things while we were teaching him how to survive. So, John, please go on about what exactly was and is, Jesus’s teachings as you see it, or perhaps, experience it.”

“Remember, Mary, when I first met you and Joseph?” Mary nodded, and he said, “Well when I entered your house, I immediately felt overwhelmingly warm and safe. I had been freezingly cold and entered a comfortably warm room. I was with Jesus, and when we left your house, I mentioned to him what I experienced, and he said, ‘John, that is what I have been talking about; I want everyone in the world – even those not yet born, that they have the power within themselves to feel what you just felt. And that power or force within them was from when they were conceived –they arrived in their mother’s womb. The embryonic baby does not know this and must learn this – first in the safe environs of the cocoon or womb and then as a newborn baby. That is why every mother must be protected and cared for in a delicate and secure way so she can pass it on to her infant. And it usually takes a few years for each one to realize, deep in our minds and hearts, that we are one with everyone and everything in creation. We are one – with, we are not alone in this world – ever.”  

“Thank you, John. I felt this same warmth and comfort when I first met Mary in my dreams. My mother wanted to pass on this warmth to me, but I was her ninth live birth, and the doctor who delivered me said to Mom, ‘Well, Maggie, here’s another mouth to feed.’ My oldest sister, who was there, told me that the doctor said that with very little compassion, and mom continued to bleed and that it took three hours to save her life. So, I guess she didn’t have much power or energy to radiate love into me.” I knew I wasn’t explaining what happened well, but I stopped talking. I continue to wonder if my mother’s inability to be as warm and loving toward me as she would have liked had made me less able to be as loving a person as I would like to be. I didn’t share that thought with Mary and John.

Mary pondered what John and I had said and gave both a warm smile and these words, “Thank both of you for telling me these things. I now know more precisely what my son was trying to do. I still cannot grasp why the Romans believed they must kill him.”

She shook her head, and I was disappointed that I just vanished . . . 

Hopefully, you are still nurturing and opening your heart, not just eating the menu. 

Ah, The Adult Jesus – Don Hanley’s blog #36

This time, I returned to the dream quickly, which I greatly appreciated.

I sat back in my chair and looked at Mary and John and then said, “I don’t know why I left you so quickly, but anyway, I’m back, and John, I’m very interested in what you began saying about what Jesus believed about children and, well, about everyone has the power to love and become enlightened just as Jesus was. Please tell me more.”

He looked at Mary and said, “Please, Mary, please tell Don what you told me about Jesus’s reflections on children.” He paused momentarily and then added, “You know, Mary, I think it is so sad that you were and are not able to teach in public about your thoughts and experiences. You have more wisdom in your little finger than the rabbis have in their collective minds.”

Mary began, “Thank you, John, but I don’t regret my role; I just think it is not time for me and women to speak in public.” She turned to me and said, “Well, Don, I’ll begin by sharing a very moving experience when I witnessed Jesus in his teens. As he often did, he was with a small group of children and looked at each. Then, he placed his left hand on a large rock near him as he sat in a circle with the children. He raised and lowered his pinkie finger and said, ‘Would you all do this? Raise and lower your littlest finger.’ They all did, and he asked, ‘Now tell me how we can do this? I can’t see any strings or hands or anything helping my finger go up and down. So, how do I do it?’ Several children said they didn’t know; one said God did it, and another said there was an invisible rope that each of us used. A pretty six-year-old named Sara added, “I think we all have the kind of energy that we have at our command so that we can move our muscles whenever we want to just by thinking about it.” They all waited for Jesus to answer, and he let them wait a while and then said, ‘Thank you, Sara, you are correct. In a way, God made us so that all we need to do is think about it, and the muscles in our hands and fingers move the way we want them to. Isn’t that wonderful?’ Then he put his hands together in prayer and said, ‘Thank you, Yahweh, for creating us in such a wonderful way.’ And they all repeated his words and actions.”

Mary had been awed by the scene and showed it in her glowing smile as she repeated it for me. She continued, “Often after he had been with a group of children, he would share some of his ideas about children and humans with Joseph and me. That day, he told us that we all were blessed, even as children, with a wonderful ability to realize how we are connected in a kind of love, force, power, or grace. I don’t think there are any words to describe it. What do you think, John? And Don, what do the wise men of your century say about children's possible ability and wisdom?” Mary exhaled and sat back in her chair. 

 John replied, “First, I believe Jesus often contradicted the wise men of our time. I’m not sure, but I believe we were taught that we were just puppets of Yahweh and His angels and were only doing what we were taught. Our job was to obey what our parents and teachers told us to think and to do. Now, Don, has that changed over all these years, and in what ways in your 21^st century?” 

I thought the first chance I got, I’d get with a bunch of kindergartners and preschoolers, do what Jesus did, and see how they reacted. I told John and Mary, “I believe that for far too long, it was believed that children came into the world as blank slates – that is, with empty minds that need to be filled up with the facts about life and the world and that is the responsibility of schools to provide these ‘facts.’ 

Religious schools were set up to ensure that Jesus’s teachings, laws, and devotions from the Bible were drilled into children's minds. What you said about what Jesus taught is just now being explored. I think I am one of those pushing to have all teachers and schools become places that nurture children's inborn ideas and giftedness. I think that our invitation to open our minds and hearts is often as quiet and soft as our own heartbeat and. . . ” and darned if I didn’t disappear again. Now, please . . . 

Continue to open your mind, nurture your heart, and study, but don’t eat the menu. 

Now Two Ghost Boys – Don Hanley’s blog #35

Every evening before I crawl into bed, I hope to have a vivid dream of Mary and her flowers. And this night, I do have one!

I’m standing in Mary’s flower garden and see her talking with a rather handsome fellow dressed in the dusty white robe common for both men and women in Galilee. Mary looks at me and says, “Oh, Don, so good to see you. I thought maybe you had forgotten me.”

She looked over at the fellow sitting in My chair. And I thought how presumptuous of me to call the chair mine, but I guess he did not see me for some reason, as Mary said, “Oh John, I guess you don’t see my other guest, Don, of the 21st Century. John, would you please take a chair out of my house and let him sit in that chair?”

Oh, so this is the apostle, John. I think there are three “Johns” in the New Testament. I hope he is the gospel writer and letters  that are written under his name. I want to talk to him about them. John went into the house and brought back a kitchen chair. I guess he saw me now, for he said, “Ah, you are the ghost fellow that Mary tells me you visit with her and tell outlandish historical stories about her and her son, Jesus.”

“I would like to believe they are outlandish stories, but they are true stories that I personally have heard. One in particular is that Jesus was, and is, the one and only Son of the true God. Mary tells me that Jesus never saw himself that way. There is a complete book, or I should say, a set of books believers call the New Testament of Sacred Scriptures or Bible. You, John, have one book, The Gospel of John, about Jesus. You say that Jesus is the Light of the World, and many things seem to support the idea that Jesus was and is one with God the Father. Did the printers or publishers get it wrong?”

Mary had put a hand over her mouth, and John looked a bit puzzled and, after a short pause, said, “What do you mean ‘printer’ and ‘publisher’? And you speak Aramaic very well. Do people in your time speak Aramaic?”

I chuckled and relaxed as I began to see how our language differences make understanding each other difficult, even if whatever angel translates my English into Aramaic and John and Mary’s Aramaic into English. Wanting to make contact, I said, “My country is called ‘the United States of America,’ and the language most of us speak is called English. I have no idea who or how my words are getting translated into Aramaic and yours into English, but I am very glad it is happening. Oh, and I enjoy the way you describe Jesus’s message of light, love, and hope, but I don’t personally believe Jesus is the one and only son of God. I believe He wants us to live our lives in such a way so that we are, or at least act like we are, all sons and daughters of God.” John smiled and nodded, and I continued, “On printers and publishers, I guess you would just say those who passed on your stories and that maybe, at times, they added some ideas or words to the stories when they told it, and those whom they told it to, do the same. Could that be true?” He nodded.

Mary took her hand away from her mouth and exhaled a sigh of relief.  I think Mary was afraid that I might offend John, so she said, “John, I’m sure Don would very much like to hear about your experiences with the adult Jesus – especially his journey to the East.  And I would like to hear more about that myself. You did accompany him there, did you not?”

“Yes, Mary, I did, but first, I want to answer Don’s question about whether Jesus was the only Son of Yahweh.” I was relieved that John seemed relaxed as he said, “Don, first, you need to remove the ‘only’ from what you say. Jesus also told us that we, too, are Sons of God." He looked over at Mary and added, "and daughters of God. I agree with what you just said about living like we are reflecting the power or force of God our Father – just as Jesus did when he was here with us physically. In telling my stories and experiences with Jesus, I should follow the ancient Jewish spiritual storytellers and enhance, and sometimes even exaggerate, what I say so that people will hear it and remember what I say. Jesus does not want us to be like him but to realize , deep down, that we too have the power and ability to be lovingly kind, enchanted, enlightened, and as connected with others as he is. He does not want us to mimic him but to be in touch with our true selves. And on my storytelling, I think if you were to tell the story of your dreams about meeting and talking with Mary, wouldn’t you tell it so that it would be exciting and memorable?“ I nodded and John continued, "I hope I will have time to tell you that Jesus thought that every person, even children, are having many free-floating thoughts about the universe and he thought that our Jewish religion put too much emphasis on just learning and repeating what Moses and other teachers believed, rather than learning  how to be with all creation." 

I was very interested in what he was saying but my dream ended and I disappeared, so...

Keep in touch with and nurture your heart, glance at the menu, and enjoy the banquet.