Evolving Christianity

Something is Happening

Change is a necessary aspect of the fact that all life is evolving . This includes our beliefs, our self -identity’s, our priorities and our ways of living .Some people may move along the spiral of change slowly and some may proceed in sudden leaps within and changes without . Many people are currently awakening to the reality of their spiritual nature. No longer do we see ourselves as cogs in a secular machine, driven by those in positions of power and control. Instead, we now know that we are spiritual beings on a journey of learning and service on Planet Earth at this time.  Some of us as we awaken to this reality may continue to express this within a religious or spiritual tradition and some may feel drawn to draw from any other holy well’s . Jesus stressed that “man is not made for the Sabbath but the Sabbath for man “. In other words we are  beings endowed with choice and free will so need to live in ways that feel authentic for us but not feel compelled by them if we feel it is time to move on . As we begin to meditate or contemplate more deeply and release our attachments to our mundane affairs, even for a few minutes, then new horizons may start to open up  Some of the voices in the stories wrote of feeling this pull whilst others chose to stay with the practices that continued to serve them well. Then,for all of us there may come a time when we begin to experience an expansion of consciousness with a growing pull towards a greater sense of unity with all life . This does seem to be happening.

“Something is happening in our world. We are conscious of it all around us. We are now on the verge of one of those mental and spiritual leaps which have happened before in the history of mankind, eras where the corporate mentality and spirituality of man shift and expand and new vistas and interpretations of the universe open up” – F.C Happold.

This statement was written in the 1960s when some people began to awaken to a sense of ‘new vistas and interpretations of the universe’ that could be glimpsed on the horizon of our knowing. At that tine musicals such as ‘Jesus Christ Superstar’ and ‘Godspell’ hinted at this and those of us in the 70s that saw the first production of the musical ‘Hair’ realised that there was also a secular aspect to these mental leaps accompanying the spiritual ones. This process of awakening has always taken place  at an individual level but today, this same process is underway in evolutionary leaps as humanity as a collective is shifting; we are beginning to remember who we are and what we were born to do or to become.

This shift is not easy to define as it is multifaceted and can be approached and discovered in so many ways. It involves a shift from belief to a more intuitive knowing, a shift from a focus on the mind to one that integrates with the deeper knowing of the heart – a kind of ‘gnowing’ as the gnostics used to call it. It involves moving from a sense of separation  towards a growing interconnection with each other and with all expressions of the One Life. It involves a growing sense of death not as an end but as a transition from one form of being to another. It involves a deeper understanding that within us lies the still point of a deeper knowing. that might be more connected to our souls. These maybe signs that indeed, ‘something is happening’. Here are some of the indications of this shift that seems to be underway.

Interiority

When some people who no longer go to church are asked for their reason, they often respond that they find it all too busy, so much so standing up and sitting down, singing or reciting beliefs that no longer resonate with their own inner knowing. A catholic priest, well known to many of the contributors of this book, when asked how he could manage to stand up and recite the creed every Sunday replied “before I read the words I mutter under my breath ‘I used to believe’”. He was elderly and has since passed to higher realms but for many of us, inspired by both his insights and our own integrity as well as by a wish for authenticity have felt that they needed to leave the place of former belonging and seek out kindred souls with whom we can share our deeper truths. Once affirmed in our knowing we can fly higher, like Jonathan Livingston Seagull, who could express his next step in potential in the skies and of whom the author, Richard Bach commented “he can because he thinks he can”.. In other words, his thoughts and his inner resolve enabled a new possibility.

Whilst the mystics of old spent much time in their inner worlds it is only recently, sometimes from the influence of Eastern teachings, that meditation has spread as a practice of stilling that part of our mind that deals with everyday affairs Access to this inner world helps us to move into an unseen or possibly fourth dimension of experience that speaks to us in many ways.

Intuition

Intuition as a way of knowing has become sufficiently acceptable in business circles where a ‘sixth sense’ of the trends ahead can serve well. Literally, the word means ‘tuition from within’. Some see this as coming from our own higher faculties, some see this as coming from subtle level guides or angels and some from just a deeper level of their own knowing that the rational mind cannot access. Recent research confirms the reality of this faculty and Iain McGilchrist in his seminal book “The Master and his Emissary “ explains that, rather than the rational mind proscribing the way ahead, it is the intuitive mind, or right side of the brain, that should lead the way with the rational , cognitive mind being responsible for bringing an intuitive idea into form..

This inner source of wisdom is often heard as a voice that speaks within our own thinking but is distinctly different from an idea that we ourselves have conceived. Samuel in the Old Testament book of Isaiah famously says “Speak Lord for thy servant heareth”. Sometimes this comes as a flash that we sense with our minds or sometimes through a felt sense in our bodies such as a ‘gut feeling’. Sometimes this comes through quiet contemplation or  though the subtle medium of a heart knowing; sometimes an illusive prompt to contact a particular person or go somewhere. It maybe that we just feel drawn to a new job or to picking a particular book from a shelf and sometimes just taking notice of unexpected synchronicities can be a guide to our next step. The ways to develop and affirm our intuition are many.

Meditation and Mindfulness

Spending time each day,  whenever we can, using various techniques to still the ‘monkey mind’ we can enter into a space of inner stillness where our conscious mind is raised to a higher level of awareness than that of our everyday selves.  Many different ways are now available for learning meditation, which once started can open up insights that had not been available to our everyday selves.

Reflection on a text, contemplation of an image or a question is a more usual form in religious circles. Attending a retreat or sitting in a quiet garden can assist us in this.

Mindfulness has become a more commonly acceptable way of accessing what is deeper within us and is increasingly used in hospitals, schools and community settings.

Whilst taking notes in a lecture or engaging in a meeting we might find that whilst the  lower ‘ monkey mind’ is otherwise engaged a kind of creative flow sets in and  higher insights can flash in in unexpected ways.

Modalities such as visualisation or focused creative meditation or imagery work can take us into realms within ourselves that have hitherto been concealed from us. This is now sufficiently recognised that the British Psychological Society – the professional body for psychologists – has an established section for transpersonal psychology.

Visioning

Again, by citing the Old Testament, Isiah profoundly protested “without vision the people perish”. Today, as so much of the ‘old’ is disintegrating it is essential that we all clarify and hold a clear vision of a pathway ahead. We cannot know how it will look in detail but we can call forth the qualities, the values and principles that will lay the tracks that the pathway can follow. Such values as unconditional love, compassion, harmony, receptivity and honesty and such principles as beauty, goodness and truth are coming to the fore as essential for society to evolve onto its next step. In his book ‘Heaven and Earth’ Eckhart Tolle challenges us to ‘evolve or die’. This can be quite a stretch for those who depend on the practices and traditions of the past and hold as these as still essential today, but nothing that is so called’ ‘new’ needs to dismiss but rather expand our understanding of what has gone before with further insights that may help us to take our next steps.

Several of the voices speaking to us through the stories in this book mention a visit to the Findhorn Foundation in Scotland as having provided some of the keys for their next steps. This eco-village and spiritual community is a contemporary example of a group of people ‘living as if the God in all life mattered. Of the three founders of this now expanded learning community. two women who were open to intuitive guidance. As Eileen Caddy explains in her widely known bedside book ”God Spoke to Me’ how inner knowing can guide us every day.,

Be not concerned if your beginnings into this spiritual life are small. All good things have small beginnings. The mighty oak starts from a tiny acorn. From a tiny seed the most wonderful plants and flowers spring forth. From a tiny seed of love many lives can be changed. But tiny thoughts of faith and belief wonder upon wonder can come about. Little things grow into big things. Be grateful for all the little things in life, then, as they grow, you will be grateful for each and everyone, and you will still express your gratitude in words and deeds. Let that which is within express itself without. Always remember that a grateful heart is an open heart and it is made easier for me to work in and through an open heart. Give thanks and keep on giving thanks for everything, so I can work in and through you all the time and bring about my wonders and glories for all to see.

Another of the co-founders, Dorothy Mclean, began to receive intuitive guidance from the over lighting beings of the plant kingdom such as: 

“Your needs are met when you are centered in love, and only by love”

The fact that such a significant centre has grown from these words of guidance has given affirmation to the many who were teetering on the edge of acknowledging the guidance that was coming to them. All working groups at Findhorn attune before undertaking a task such as cooking a meal or weeding a garden. Before undertaking a project, or a collective task, an attunement is held. This brings into alignment all the people involved to each-other, to the higher frequencies of Spirit and to the task in hand  which brings a greater sense of harmony and clarity of focus whilst engaging in the activity  that will follow.

Group Consciousness

Most of us have been part of a group of some kind, a group of colleagues, a working team to write a proposal or focus on an issue for resolution, a community group to organize an event, or a global link up group towards the emergence of a planetary unity that includes rich diversity. There are so many reasons to form a group. Groups need to be really well facilitated because they often include a mix of opinions, needs, ambitions etc that are more likely to end in conflict than real creative work without somebody acting as a facilitator. However, in recent times a new type of group has been emerging which is when people come together to share, to explore, to undertake a task and do so not from the level of the personalities involved but from the level of soul. It is then that a true group consciousness can emerge. From this point a group field is created which can help a growing awareness or different dimensions of life, and of the search for a bigger picture, trusting that every voice has a contribution to make. As this happens a greater harmony can prevail and a greater sense of brotherhood and sisterhood is generated. As each person in the group sets forward on a path towards a greater at-one-ment with all cosmic life then the warmth of the love of the heart, the sharing of a common intention and even just a glimmering of understanding of the cosmic context in which we exist can provided a context for meaningful exchange., The more subtle levels of the universe, angels guides and helpers can also be there , awaiting  to be asked to assist a greater harmony and enable goodwill to serve the whole. These have all been mentioned in the Bible nut maybe it is now that we are beginning to recognize the reality of their existence in a way that we can interconnect and that it seems that often times they are awaiting our request for assistance!

Such groups can have a more powerful influence than we might appreciate. Jesus said “I, if I be lifted up, will draw all men unto me”. In the past this has been interpreted as referring to his being raised on the cross as this ties in with the message of salvation that orthodoxy has given but today we are beginning to question this and instead think that this refers to the raising of his consciousness to higher levels of vibrational frequency to which the frequency of others will then be entrained and lived to a higher level. If science is now telling us that all matter is energy vibrating at different levels and if consciousness is what we in the whole world are then this begins to make sense

What some ancient traditions have always seen is that Jesus was referring to the elevation of the consciousness of others. There is a formula included in a book by David Hawkens : “Power versus Force” that maps the vibrational frequency of a person in relation to the numbers of those that will be influenced by their magnetic effect and be drawn towards it. As the consciousness of a small attuned group builds so does the sense of interconnection with all life also become awakened in others. 

An increasing number of groups today, whether they meet face to face or on an online platform, begin with an attunement to each other, to spirit, and to the task in hand. At the end of the discussion the group then ends with a few moments of shared silence for mutual appreciation, for gratitude for the progress made or for a wider blessing to radiate from their shared endeavours.

Restoring the Feminine

The sacred source of all has both masculine and feminine aspects and both are needed for us to fully engage in life. A bias towards masculine words and perspectives now needs greater integration with the more feminine receptive ways than have  prevailed for so long. Now seems to be the time that the masculine  ways need to be counter balanced with the more feminine, relational ways in every area of contemporary life. A version of the Lord’s Prayer as translated direct from the Aramaic, the language that Jesus would have spoken is printed below in a version by Richard Rudd, author of the Gene Keys programmes. He suggests that this is the prayer of the new epoch that spoken by the Great Mother provides a much needed balance with “our father who art in heaven”.

“Our lady, who lives at the heart of all form,
May thy queendom come,
May thy will be done,
That heaven may come to earth,
Please allow me this day
To drink from your sacred silver spring,
And forgive me my forgetting,
As I learn through your grace,
To return all non-love with love,
And take me by the hand,
And lead me step by step,
Into the patient valley of your Heart,
For yours is the earth, my body and my life,
For ever and ever,
Amen.”

In some Christian circles there has been a tendency to shun the ideas of astrology which is somewhat strange sInce we all know that it was by reading the messages in the  stars that the three Wise were lead them to be present at the nativity. As we now moving into a greater awareness of the vast  cosmic context in which our world is placed it is perhaps more possible to see the life of our Planet Earth in a vaster universe and may begin to  appreciate the great cosmic cycles that we are told offer  great potentiality and possibilities as well as challenges.An astrological perspective shows that we are in coming to the end of a 26,000 year orbit of the planets in which there  seems to be a shift every 2100 years into another age.,Jesus was born at the start of the Piscean age and set the tone for the following 2000 years so for some time now we have been entering into the age of Aquarius which is bringing new challenges and new possibilities

Just as the transcendent  aspect of the divine has been dominant for the 2000 years of the Piscean epoch, so, now, as we begin to enter the next age of Aquarius, it is being counterbalanced by the receptive, feminine aspect of the divine immanent within all life. Just as conception can only occur with the meeting of the male sperm with the female receptive ovum, so the whole of creation has needed the integration of both. Both are essential for the marriage of the Kingdom and the Queendom to come on earth.

While the father is to be found ‘up there’ in the creative source of all life, so the receptacle for this has always been the mother who holds the blueprint for all life and nurtures us all with the   love all that flows forth.

It is only now with this realisation of the need for the restoration of the feminine to be equally honoured with the masculine that not only are women beginning to take their rightful place in wordily affairs but also are best placed to ensure that the sacred nature of the earth and all that flourishes upon it is both recognised and honoured. Within Christianity current research is beginning to reveal the significance of the role played by Mary Magdalene and undo centuries of her diminishment by ruling patriarchies. Also being gradually restored is the feminine nature of Gaia, now seen as the living consciousness of our Earth and in a feminine  kind of way, receptive of  of the expression of life through the natural world. The essential ‘I am’ that is Life itself flows through all and we are gaining more awareness of the beauties of nature .and how these are  as alive as each of us and rely on our care rather than our domination and over exploitation. . Which of us would thoughtlessly harm and pollute the wellbeing of anyone of our children unless we were demented in some unfortunate way? Or if unwittingly did so  we did so, which of us would not hasten to seek forgiveness and seek to heal, to restore and repair. At last, we are now working towards a greater wholeness. We will no more seek to increase our profits with chemicals, insecticides and other killing machines. All the fertility we need is abundantly inherent within each clod of earth, each trickle of clean, pure rain, each crawling insect and wriggling worm. All is already perfect and just needs the watering of our love and gratitude for all to flourish. Individually we can, each day, open a window and gaze at a nearby tree or bird with eyes of wonder and delight and feel sense of gratitude for the abundance that is there for us. We might also volunteer our time or resources towards the many endeavours  offering care and compassion, working to restore and regenerate a world of beauty and plenty.

Living in an authentic way

As we begin to realise new inclinations and deeper capabilities within ourselves then, with feet on the ground, a lucid mind and an open heart we can work with the new energies and collaborate collectively towards growth that is oriented in the direction of harmony and greater respect for all life. Alongside this may come a strengthening of our wish for freedom from outer controls. A greater sense of personal sovereignty may propel us towards new service to the greater life for all . The key thing is that we can all live with a sense of joy in our world and feel we are living in a way that is authentic for us , This also brings a deepening sense of the sacred in all life, and a renewed vigour to “take up your bed and follow me “, whatever changes and challenges may come our way

It is the stronger emergence of these trends that are happening. that will enable the New Story for humanity to fully emerge and be widely embraced.

~ Janice Dolley ~