On Sunday May 5, Chuck Wells gave us a presentation of: This I have Come to Believe. Following is the text of that discussion.
THIS
I HAVE COME TO BELIEVE
May 5, 2019
I have struggled and searched during my 93 years to find
the beginnings, growth and the Realization that constitutes the
‘essence’ of my spiritual being.
I have enjoyed the wonder of the process in its anxious
and disturbing encounters and confrontations with my fellow human and
other beings, and of course with mortality.
So here are a few of my observations of ‘The Human
Comedy.’
I see no evidence of Divine Creation in this universe as
I understand it.
Miraculous, yes, but not ‘Devine.’
There is no evidence of Divinity guiding us in the
manner that we, the more sentient
species, have conducted and rationalized our behavior
toward one another.
How we have so much fear and hate expressed throughout
our various cultural and
religious values, while deeply knowing that, at best, we
have one life.
As does every other one of us on this earth.
So how can we in good human conscience exploit others
and believe in a benevolent
source?
No matter the range of our religious orientations, we
all have the blood of avarice and
conflicting cultural dichotomies on our hands.
On too frequent occasion we have done unto others as we
fear they may do unto us. And history tells us that is so, for good
evidentiary reason. It happens over and over.
This grim game has existed in every culture, in every
faith and under every form of government to a dominant andcontrolling
degree ever since we banded together.
The battle cries sound from “Onward Christian
Soldiers” to every other cultural faith’s
own version of supplication for security.
Yet within this continuous conflict is the
countervailing expression of love and grace
under fire and under suppression.
Nearly all of us have an innate sense of fairness.
And each have needs for the basics of existence, love
and self-esteem, and self expression.
Unfortunately these universal human needs have been, and
are, the currency of the dominating cultures and egocentric
controllers.
I should acknowledge them and perhaps thank them for
having demonstrated to me my innocence as to what we are capable of.
Some of these people I have known and still experience
some as adversaries.
And so they have contributed to the formation of my
calling, my nature and my spirituality.
Socially, what else is there to do other than to retain
my dignity, self-worth and capacity to love and enjoy my fellows and
our Heaven here on earth?
The dominant culture is unable or unwilling to
recognize that by never having put a survival for humanity value on
natural resources they have de facto condemned our nature to a slow
uninhabability.
They are threatening life’s balance and future
existence. Environmentally speaking our economy is a wholly owned
subsidiary of nature.
Nature is still here, and so far supporting this blinded
human rationalization.
So we wake up each day and confront the same problem.
To paraphrase Sally,
Do we celebrate this primal experience of awesome wonder
of living in nature or do we once again stand into the life and death
fight to save and restore our earthly habitat? We generally are
compelled to do both. And then have a Sundowner glass in celebration
of the glory of it all.
Primary reverence expression here if time allows.
